NPX: Gates of the Shadowkeep

[Tanaar]

Darros

Coming in from the weather, Darros vigorously shakes himself off, water droplets flying every which way as he flails himself with his arms to shake the cold. Approaching the group in the kitchen, he warms himself by the fire for a moment before following their directions to the hidden library.

Darros's eyes gleam as he takes in the volumes on the shelves. "Aha! Now we can learn a bit more about where we are." Selecting the largest tome of general knowledge, he places it on the table." Opening it, he addresses Callos, "Sir, you seem to be among the most reasonable of our ad hoc party, and as a fellow mage, you are undoubtedly educated. Perhaps you could tell me a bit more about your land and adventures, and I will compare it to those of my own land and what we find in this book."

[kuja.girl]

Tiriel

"You also thought that jumping into a pit of zombies was a good idea." Tiriel considers the weather, the low light, the climb leading up to Fizahn's keep, and her own spirits. "I know that you're not as dumb as Grynde, but what if there's another plant monster up there? I think it'd better wait till morning."

Tiriel checks to see if Fizahn will follow her back to the kitchen, but doesn't wait.

[Erikkin]

Fizahn:

Fizahn shrugs. "We killed the zombies. Someone just had to take initiative and start the fight was all." Or someone is an arrogant and stupid gnome. Fizahn casts a wistful look at his castle before deciding to follow Tiriel. "There wouldn't be any plant monsters at my castle anyway, I'm not one to have a garden."

[King_of_GRiffins]

Elthan

"Fair enough," he says, slowly turning back to his book, but more idly than in interest, "Though I can't say I understand why one would remove a cousin, I see what you mean. Maybe hearing that tale sometime would be an interesting distraction."

He glances upwards from his half-hearted reading, watching as he makes it snow within the confines of his orb, the hand of force supporting it in the air barely visible. "We are all from Faerun, some of us quite different parts, I think even across the entire continent. We've been there and back again, and as a group traversed roughly half its width. I could describe parts of it to you; The Cloud Peaks, the Deepwash, The Shining Plains, Hlondeth, Immilmar, The Underdark. There may still be a war occuring when we left, multiple armies of darkness were rising in the land, most notably that of the Baneson, whom last we heard was taking over the Dragon Coast with ease; Myth Dranor had most recently fallen to him. We dealt with our own armies of demons, undead and drow propagated by Sethra, and defeated both, preventing the Invasion into Rashemen, and ending the seige on Hlondeth."

[blackfox]

Ginevra

"I second waiting until morning..." She yawns like a cat, narrows her eyes, and shakes her head. The cold and rain has tired me out... "Fiz, I am really curious to see what both of your castles look like, though. If it matches personality, then yours probably has a ton of secret passages and stuff... And Callos would have, I dunno, a ton of books or something..." She follows Tiriel back to the kitchen, looking around for food that is even marginally more interesting than trail rations.

[Tanaar]

Darros

Darros executes a seated bow to Elthan, not having meant to preclude the half elf from discussion. He nods slowly as the mage describes his home. "None of which I am familiar with, and I have been educated in the geography of the known parts of my world. This confirms that some of us have, at the very least, been transported a very long way. The other side of the world at the very least, more likely to an entirely different one." Darros begins searching the book, paging through it rapidly, scanning for anything familiar. "Lets see if I can find any reference to either land, mine or yours as described, for connection. Then I'll describe what I know, and one of you may do the same."

Spoiler

Show

Unlike the standard Forgotten Realms world, I'm not working off an established map. Dr. B, I'll either make something up if nothing's familiar, or go with you if Darros is native to this world.

[Dr._Bob]

Kavri returns to warm himself by the kitchen hearth where Fizahn, Ginevra and Tiriel have settled down to warm themselves.

Aeroz sits in cross-legged, his eyes half-closed as he slips into a meditative trance. Addis sits nearby, fiddling with his longbow and oiling his weapons to prevent them from rusting after being exposed to the rain.

Retay looks displeased when the group separates to explore more of the complex, but does not stop anyone from leaving the kitchen. He watches quietly as Grynde practices with twin flails. The flails whisper and hiss through the air in ever more graceful circles.

...

Patash finds the forge filled with only cold ashes. He finds a pile of split hardwood behind the forge. The liquid in the large tub is covered in a layer of dust. Had it been water, it likely would have evaporated completely by now.

Patash gingerly touches the surface with a clawed finger. Rubbing his fingers together, he decides that the substance is some sort of oil.

...

The others gathered in the library find several oil lamps hanging from the ceiling. The lamps are quickly lit, and you gather around the tables, poring over the old books and loose parchment.

Most of the writing is in an alien script, which is unreadable to you, but there are a number of maps found scattered about one table.

Here and there some of you find regions that look somewhat familiar, though the landmarks are labeled with the alien script. Several of the maps, but not all, are marked with a circled "x".

Disturbingly, as you share your backgrounds with each other, you become increasingly convinced that none of you are from the same region. Although some of you share knowledge of the gray elves (which some call eladrin) and of dragonborn, others had not heard of either. Your homelands are not recognizable to each other. For some of you even each others deities are unfamiliar.

[Zid]

Mazom

Mazom has been quiet during the time after the short skirmish. His use of the healing powers had left him somewhat drained. As the others tell about themselves he is increasingly excited.

"This cannot be a coincidence. Never before have I happened upon so many men and women who travelled so far, and yet no one has ever seen the others homeland. We have been drawn together for some strange purpose or quest, perhaps even by the herald of some god. What should be our plan for tomorrow? If some of us search through the keeps, others could go down to the town to find out what these castles are and, more importantly, where we are."

[Koji]

Kazz

Everyone else here has a home. Somewhere to go back to. Where did I come from...?

Kazz mulls over Mazom's conclusion. It wouldn't be any stranger than any other explanation put forward so far, but what would anyone want with her? She has no skills, no power, no influence, no money...

"We will go to the village as soon as we are able. Maybe there are people there who can help us figure out where we are," she says flatly. "I'd rather not spend another day wandering blindly into danger, especially without proper clothing."

[Dr._Bob]

Davek, Mazom, Darros and Patash all find maps that are familiar. The location of the temple is marked on each map, just where they recall finding it before being petrified. The four maps, however, do not match each other.

Another map is found, this one appears to be a hand-drawn map of the temple itself. Not all of the areas are filled in, as though the map maker had not fully explored the entire complex ...

[kuja.girl]

Tiriel

Tiriel finds herself feeling drowsy. The heat of the fire lulls her into a state of only half wakefulness and she has to fight to keep her eyes open. Tiriel decides that talking might help her stay awake. She looks at the one stranger in the group by the fire and asks "I'm sorry but I don't remember your name. I'm Tiriel," She says extending her hand in greeting to Kavri.

[Durendal]

Harsk

"True, its probably best if we stay here for the night, easier to defend then the kitchen. And the barred doors didn't offer much comfort. I'll go look for anyone left in the kitchen or wandering the halls and herd them this way" the dwarf says as he leaves the library. Upon seeing Patash fingering the oil in the tub, he helpfully explains: "Its oil for quenching hot metal. If you wouldn't mind lighting a fire in the forge so we don't freeze to death, I'll round up the stragglers." He then exits through the hidden passage, heads for the kitchen, and politely asks the others to follow him. "We found a forge and library behind the hidden passage. Several of us think it best if we stay the night there, as it seems safer. Oh, and by the way are there any other stragglers wandering around?

[Knubs]

Kavri

Kavri smiles meekly at Tiriel. "I'm Kavri Quinn of Neverhaven," he says shaking her hand. "And you are...?" Kavri frowns when Harsk enters. Move again, huh? That really hasn't helped me much today. Slowly he picks himself up and motions for Tiriel to follow. "As far as I know, this is everyone not through the secret passage."

If everyone is moving on, Kavri puts out the fire. If not, he just goes to the forge.

[Naleh]

Retay

The northerner frowns, but nods. Before Kavri puts out the fire, Retay pulls out a burning brand, so as to easier light a new fire. "I hope we can stay put this time. We still don't know what's out there."

Squeezing through the four-foot-high passage, he grunts, "I can see why you thought it would be more defensible."

[Erikkin]

Fizahn:

Fizahn laughs as Kavri asks who Tiriel is. "She already introduced herself. Are those pointy ears defective? Mine work fine. I'm Fizahn." The gnome extends his hand with a grin. I'm an ass. Hope he doesn't shoot me. Wouldn't be the first time. As everyone else leaves, Fizahn follows them.

[shaddy_24]

Evendur

Evendur doesn't want to sit still. Inaction led to thought, and he doesn't want to think. He doesn't want to remember. How many years had he lost the first time he died? He may never know. Then he returned again, and died after only a few hours. He didn't get to rest after that though, as he returned to life again here. He barely remembers anyone here. Their faces were only half remembered, names left blank. He'd met them half a lifetime ago, then again for only a short time...

The paladin sits quietly and stews in his thoughts. He doesn't want to sit still. Remembering hurts.

[Nahal]

Davek

Well that's bloody annoying, Davek mutters after seeing the alien notation on the maps and books. And a little worrying. If this place is meant for Callos and Fizahn, how is it that someone came through here to map out the temple beforehand? It's obvious there's more to this place than your respective holdings; these maps and our own backgrounds imply that this compound exists in multiple realities. It's a marvel reality works the way I'm used to. He thinks for a moment, then frowns. I suppose there's an outside chance the map is recording our progress, or al least that of the keeps' owners. It must have required no small amount of magic to simply create this place, so such a trinket doesn't seem beyond the realm of possibility here. It could be worth carrying with us. I'd like to test my theory, and we can also use it to keep track of where we've been either way.

[Knubs]

Kavri

Kavri looks down as the gnome addresses him. "I don't always listen when other people talk. It's a bad habit. Fizzy was it? That's a nice name for a little fellow." He mockingly shakes Fizahn's hand with vigor. "It's a pleasure to meet you Sir Fizzy."

[Cejer]

Atoly Magivol

Atoly enters the kitchen from the pantry in the middle of a yawn. "Did I hear someone say we were ready to move on?" He blinks a few times, then continues. "There's no food in the pantry. I checked and there was no food. What kind of keep has lit candles but no food?" After a thoughtful yawn, "We should get ready to move on or we'll starve."

Atoly blearily follows the next person to leave the kitchen around the temple.

[Dr._Bob]

The fire in the kitchen hearth is allowed to die down, and a similar sized blaze is kindled in the hidden forge. The forge is vented through a chimney that rises up through the ceiling. Warmth spreads through the other three adjacent chambers as well through strategically placed vents.

The secret passage is resealed, leaving your group secure within the four rooms, including the library.

Atoly wanders by the map table and finds a map of his father's holdings. The location of the keep is marked on his map in the same manner as on the other maps.

Some of you sleep, while others meditate. Hours pass, but without windows it is hard to know whether morning has arrived or not.

Addis looks over the hand-drawn map of the complex. Pointing out that the four chambers seems separated from the rest of the rooms, he suggests that perhaps the chambers represent the lower level to one of the keeps. "Perhaps yours, Callos?"

[Koji]

Kazz

Kazz settles down near the forge, still trying to shake off the chill of the night before. Several times during the night she starts awake, but rolls over and returns to sleep in an effort to fight off growing hunger pains.

She wakes early, and spends the "morning" in quiet reflection while the others prepare for the day ahead.

[Tanaar]

Darros

Darros stays up late into the night, leafing through maps and trying to make sense of them. As he works, he separates out all those that appear consistent with one another, grouping and piling them into suspected contiguous worlds. He makes a separate stack of all those that show the temple, trying to match them to what he knows of the various worlds with the different locations of the temple.

Eventually, fatigue overtakes him. He moves to a window and enters his trance. Focusing on the storm still roiling outside, his breathing and heartbeat slows as he processes the events of the day and assimilates them into his long-term memory.

[blackfox]

Ginevra

Ginevra falls asleep quickly, exhausted from the cold. She wakes up hungry and jittery, and wanders into the library to take a look at the maps. I haven't had a chance to look at these yet... I wonder if there's one for Faerun?

[Nahal]

Davek

Following his rest, Davek makes a quick meal of some of his trail rations and heads into the library. Seeing the piles of sorted maps, he first leafs through those corresponding to his world then checks to see how similar those of the other worlds are. Finally acknowledging Ginevra, he asks which of these correspond to your world? I'm curious how similar the geographies or our respective homes are, and how many worlds this place is linked to.

[kuja.girl]

Tiriel

Tiriel helps bank the kitchen fire and move to the forge room. The narrow passage is uncomfortable but it would have been worse if she still had her wings.
She tries to continue her conversation with Kavri but it has been a long day that contained many many strange and uncomfortable things and she finds herself losing interest and falling asleep.[hr]

When she wakes up she glances at the various maps. Besides having strange writing she doesn't recognize any thing depicted on them and just shrugs when asked about them.
"We need supplies and food. If the weather is better we should go to the town we saw last night."

[Rodrick_the_Red]

Patash (Dragonborn Cleric)

Patash sits back stunned after finding the maps. This proves I am on another world. I did not really believe it until now, he muses.

"These rooms will be easier to defend. Who will join me on first watch and who is on second?" Patash asks. He notes who volunteers for second watch, heads back to the forge room, eats a bit of his trail rations and prepares for his watch.

Spoiler

Show

Perception: (1d20+3)[8]

After his watch is done Patash wakes the next watch and settles to sleep in the library.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Callos

This is all too much...

The thought kept hammering through his mind, again and again, as everyone gradually went back to the sealed chamber with the secret passage to take refuge for what seemed to be a long night. It was only an afterthought that had him dismissing the skeletal hand holding up the glowing stone, that and the light and warmth of the various stones.

It no longer seemed as...necessary as it had before. And when Addis mentioned the possibility that the four separated rooms might lead to his own keep, well he gave a little chuckle and shrugged his shoulders.

"I've had all the rules and laws of magic over-turned on me in the span of the past couple of hours. I suppose anything is possible at this point. I'll check it out with some of the others once everyone is up and about."

---

And he did just that once some of the other's had gotten up. Approaching Ginverva, Evendur, Tiriel, and Davak with the same simple words. "I am investigating the Minotaur doors, I would appreciate it if you came with me."

[Naleh]

Retay

The tall northerner is one of those who volunteers for watch.

Spoiler

Show

Perception (1d20+1)[18]

He doesn't know what happened today, but he does know that, right now, Sethra could be wreaking untold havoc across Faerun. He half expects the foe to pop out of a door at any moment to finish the fight. As such, while not on watch Retay sleeps deeply, taking advantage of what rest he can get.

The next "morning", this fear in mind, he wanders into the library to find out what did happen. He examines a few maps, and his brow creases in incomprehension.

"What does all this mean?" he rumbles to some of the gathered scholars. "I haven't seen maps of everywhere, but I've travelled a little bit and I don't recognise any of these places. What are these scribbles?" he adds, gesturing at some of the alien writing.

Spoiler

Show

Sudden trans-reality teleportation had a lot of side-effects, but I'm going to assume that it didn't spontaneously make Retay literate.

[blackfox]

Ginevra

Ginevra shuffles through the maps. "I don't think any of these are from Faerun... unless some other unlucky soul had come here from the Realms before us. Even if Callos or someone had had a map with them, we lost all our equpiment..."

She starts as Callos enters the room, then scowls at her own lapse of perception. "I'll come... let's take this map with us, though, so we can mark things down as we go along. Hey, Retay... come on, come with us." She grabs the hand-drawn map of the complex and goes to the kitchen for a piece of charcoal.

[Knubs]

Kavri Quinn

Nearing the forge for warmth, the elf smoothly eases himself into meditation.

_______________________________________________

He exits the trance in the morning feeling sufficiently recovered. Moving with the others, he looks down at the maps for awhile. At Retay's disturbance, he peers up at the warrior, "It means that people made a bunch of maps. Who knows if these are true or not. I for one, know that the town of Cordell should be just about-" He places his finger a little distance from the keep's X. "here. Shockingly enough, this silly map doesn't have it. You people can't believe everything you read." Different world. Honestly? I've yet to see a pair of eyes, no matter how yellow, accomplish such an immense feat of magic. Kavri then dismisses the maps and looks for people to explore with, not study with. He catches the group gathering around Callos and tags along.