Trial By Fire - Exalted 2e IC Thread

[Sherwood]

"Noble Exalt, the main power generators that control the gravity manipulation units are on a station keeping mode only. In order to be mobile once more, the generators must be brought up to full power once more. There is little that a handful of hearthstones can do at this point except provide power to some ancillary systems."

 

[Rykon]

"Alright then TARU, can you provide instructions to guide us through the repairs?" Aredin asked seriously. Not a single one of them present was a capable artificer. If they weren't able to restore the station through guided directions, it was clear they'd have to make the trek to find someone who could. If we can't handle this, who could we get that's both capable and trustworthy with this thing? Wait... if I call a terrestrial god from this far away, could they head here?

Aredin stopped what he was doing then fished in his pockets for a satchel of Jade. "Darling, could you lead a prayer to Relza? I think she might be able to help us start the process of cleaning this place up safely."

 

[Psychie]

Darian gives Aredin a smile. "I like the way you think. Hmm. TARU? Is there a temple room in the Blossom that we could use for that? I would think that a city of this size would have something that we could use for it."

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Sirocco's mind was ablaze. A flying fortress? With weapons of mass destruction, and it was just lying here, nobody the wiser?!
What other such contraptions might be laying there unclaimed?

Once TARU answers Darian, Sirocco would pipe in "TARU, can you show me the way to the holds of the warstriders? And where the store rooms are located?"

 

[Rykon]

"Hey now, leave some for the rest of us." Aredin teased with a chuckle. "While we prepare the ritual prayer to contact our friend... Think we should start evacuating the people into the city? For as much as they prize their wine, I'm sure they'll want to extract some of the vines and soil to continue the operation in Gwynnin or potentially in here. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a facility for renewable food production in here. Anyone want to volunteer to go with Issar?"

 

[Sherwood]

Darian gives Aredin a smile. "I like the way you think. Hmm. TARU? Is there a temple room in the Blossom that we could use for that? I would think that a city of this size would have something that we could use for it."

TARU replies, "Yes, Noble Exalt! There are several temples dedicated to the Celestial Incarne, and one that is available to be used for worship of any of the lesser gods that exist in Creation. I will be happy to guide you to the nearest one."

"Alright then TARU, can you provide instructions to guide us through the repairs?" Aredin asked seriously.

Turning to Aredin, the spirit says, "Some of the maintenance can be assisted by this unit, Noble Exalt, but other, more detailed work may be beyond my capabilities."

Issar, mostly quiet up to this point, says, "I can tell you that there has been a long tradition of passing down the knowledge of how to maintain the magitech artifacts that the Legion had in its possession when the mountain lifted off, so many of the Exalts here have some moderate skill in Crafting and repair. We can help make this magnificent place work once more."

 

[Rykon]

"Very well Issar. I want you to go with Annika, rally anyone trained in repair into a team, get everyone else started on moving their belongings inside. Ragnar, I need you to guard the control throne."

Aredin turns TARU, "TARU I want you to create new security codes on our data crystals to replace all the existing codes. That means removing access to any old code that you can update with a new one. I don't want Fae, Deathlords, or anyone else trying to take this place over with forged keys. When the people of the town show up I want you to assign each family a domicile in the city if you can. They are not to have access to any weapons, armaments, or control facilities for their own safety. Only Exalted and authorized divinities should be able to access them. If you can manage all of that while escorting Darian and I to the temple, please do so. Otherwise providing directions is your first priority."

 

[Sherwood]

TARU bobs up and down in front of Aredin. "Compliance, Noble Exalt! Please be aware, it will take some time to fully reconfigure the all of the required control codes. Guidance to the temple can be accomplished while the reconfiguration is underway. In the meantime, all locker rooms, weapon bays, and hangar bays will be locked until the new codes are active. Finally, Noble Exalt, this will require a second Exalt to confirm the order for security purposes."

 

[Psychie]

Darian turns to look at TARU. "I will second the order to change the codes. Lock out all other Exalted except the ones present here, now, in the control room until further notice. That way, we can make sure that anyone coming into the Blossom will not try and tamper with secure systems."

 

[jaydude]

"I'm struggling to comprehend everything that's going on here." Annika would admit. "I don't think I've ever seen this kind of technology since Rathess."

 

[Rykon]

"Long story short, this place is an aerial fortress loaded with Warstriders and other vast magitech arsenals. We're locking this place down while we attempt to restore power to the facility. Since it's likely to crumble the mountain around it, I need you to bring in the citizens to take shelter in the internal city so they don't get hurt." Aredin explained in Riverspeak.

 

[Psychie]

Darian asks, "TARU, can we at least get the lights on inside? If we are going to try and bring people into the Blossom, it should at least be lit up in here."

 

[jaydude]

As Darian was talking to the aerial fortress, Annika would respond to Aredin's words.

"I can certainly try, although I don't have quite the way with words that you and Darian do... thanks for the explanation, by the way."

 

[Rykon]

"Ah, don't be so down on yourself. I believe in you Annika." Aredin said with a smile and a clap on her shoulder. "Issar and the others can help you out if you need it. Should be pretty easy, right?"

 

[D. Rex]

"None shall enter save for those in your presence, Lord Aredin. I shall see to it that the room remains secure."



While he let the others to attend to their own duties and whims, Ragnar approached the large Atlas. "TARU. Is this an Atlas?" He asked approaching the table.

"And is it currently working?"

 

[jaydude]

"Yeah, I probably will need help." admitted Annika. "Do you know who's in charge of this settlement? It seems to me that they'll have a lot more sway over their people than I ever will, so it might be quicker to get them to organise the evacuation into this place."

 

[Neopilot]

"I shall stand watch as well. All of this technology is beyond me. Better leave to you brother." Kuridin said as they all headed about. He turned to Ragnar folding his arms and nodding to the man "Doubt anyone will force their past us who does deserve to."

 

[Sherwood]

Darian asks, "TARU, can we at least get the lights on inside? If we are going to try and bring people into the Blossom, it should at least be lit up in here."

"Yes, Noble Exalt. Power levels can be restored enough to provide basic lighting to public areas of the Blossom. I will begin to raise power output now." True to its word, a faint glow in the command center can be seen in the room, giving you a bit better view of the chamber you are in. "It will take some time to fully light the entire citadel."

While he let the others to attend to their own duties and whims, Ragnar approached the large Atlas. "TARU. Is this an Atlas?" He asked approaching the table.

"And is it currently working?"

TARU spirals around to hover in front of Ragnar. "Yes, Noble Exalt! As you have surmised, it is an Atlas. It is currently in an unpowered mode, but it is functional. If you do not wish to wait for full power to be restored, the Atlas can be activated by placing a hearthstone in this control panel here." The spirit zips over to one of the terminals, and points at a spot on the counter with its tail. "That will provide enough power to make it fully functional, and its display will activate!"


While the two are guarding the command center, Darian is making her way to the nearest temple, and Annika is heading out with Issar to talk with the other Exalts of the Mountain. What are the rest of you doing?

 

[Rykon]

Aredin offers his arm to escort Darian, still concerned for her injuries. In his other hand are the jade coins for the sacrifice, jingling softly in their pouch.

"You still holding up alright after that last fight, my love?" From the look on his face, it seemed he was still frustrated that he wasn't fast enough to intercept Alveuea.

 

[Psychie]

Darian smiles at her husband. "I will be fine soon enough. It could have been much worse, especially if your brother had not been there to end the fight as fast as he did. I'm glad Kuridin was along for the ride. Just remind me not to make him mad at me." She gives a little chuckle. "Lets see what we can do to try and summon our friend Relza and see if she will come here and help us with this massive airship."

 

[D. Rex]

Ragnar nodded back to Kuridin. "Not a soul." He confirmed. "And speaking of souls... let's see where that one that ran has went to. If he is in range of this."

Ragnar plucked the hearthstone front his armor and would put it into the socket where directed.

"Now what do I do?" He asked. Not quite sure how this machinery worked in the slightest.

 

[Rykon]

As much as he hated his recent mistakes, Aredin tried to take a measure of cheer in their current standing. "Everything has unfolded so quickly it's still hard to believe he's really back. It's like I suddenly regrew a lost arm and leg overnight. I can't even imagine how it must've been for you to regain sight in like manner." Aredin seemed absorbed in thought for a few moments as they walked. "Well, we're both still here in the thick of things, able to laugh off the pain and whatever missteps were made... So it can't all be that bad I reckon. We have much to thank the Sun for today, so let's put some heart into this one. " Aredin added with his own smile and a gentle squeeze of Darian's hand. "This will be a prayer that Relza cannot help but hear."

 

[Sherwood]

Three months.

No, lets try that again. Three very long months of very little sleep and lots of hard work, but at least you are showing some progress. First, your dealings with the local population have not been entirely positive. Many of the locals have lashed out in anger, thinking that you were trying to evict them from their homes and steal away everything that they have ever known. It takes many long hours of work on your part to reassure the population that this is not the case, and that they will be eventually moved into a much better place to live inside the Titan where they will now be working to help put the massive machine back into full working order.

Thanks to Darian's social charm and her ability to modulate the emotions of large groups of people, it helps to make the people more willing to listen to the Circle as Aredin talks to them. Psychie Do you try to 'adjust' memories of the people here to try and make things go even smoother?

As more people (especially the Dragon Blooded) start to make the adjustment to go into the Titan, more and more systems are being brought on line with a priority being put on the power reactors. With more power, the interior of the Blossom is starting to become somewhere that a person can actually live in, given more light and the food and water processors are now working to provide the needed infrastructure to support the four thousand or so native inhabitants of Mount Metagalapa.

TARU is beside itself with joy as more and more people are there for it (him?) to talk to. Somehow, the spirit/construct of the Titan is able to split itself to be able to interact with multiple people in different locations of the Citadel at the same time and keep hundreds of conversations and tasks separate and straight in its head, and without its help, the job of bringing this sleeping giant back to life would be nearly impossible.

It is at this point in time that we find Aredin and Darian on one of their return trips to Gwynnin to touch base with the other Exalts of their growing coalition, and to make sure that everything is still running smoothly at home, when a large First Age airship being escorted by a quartet of smaller gunships comes flying into view over the growing city. Needless to say, it causes a bit of concern about the place, especially as the ships slowly descend to land in the large square next to the Kings Tower, leaving the smaller escorts up in the air to stand watch over the larger ship.

Once on the ground, a hatch opens on the side of the ship and it then releases a half dozen Celestial Lions and three figures in some kind of Essence powered body armor. After looking about the place for a moment, one of the figures in the powered armor steps forward and calls out to the watching crowds and growing number of soldiers that are showing up. "We are looking for the Lord and Lady of Gwynnin, here to deliver an important message directly to their ears."

What do you do?
Rykon Psychie

 

[Rykon]

Aredin stepped forward to face the disembarked individuals. He found himself curious as to why he hadn't heard anything from Aysik, Dunbar, or the astrologers of Rathess. Surely such a blatantly heavy force making their way to Gwynnin would catch their attention. Once he saw the Celestial Lions things began to move in the back of his mind as to what might be taking place.

"I am Aredin, the lord of this land. What is so dire that a contingent including Celestial Lions seeks to speak with us?"

[Additional questions: What type of metal are the powered armors made of? Do we see any hints of insignia or heraldry on them?]

 

[D. Rex]

Ragnar is doing something somewhere. Not sure what. But surely something.