Trial by Fire - IC Thread

[D. Rex]

Bard nodded at U'awa. "I think some refreshments would be very lovely, i always feel conversations are at their most enjoyable when done with a a cup of tea or ale in hand."

The handsome man gave a toothy and charming smile to the Imp Queen. "Then again, I'm happy to have this chance at all. It's not every day I make the company of a Queen. A very pleasant surprise."

"But I do apologize," he said with a faux abashed chuckled. "I am letting my excitement get the better of me. I always loose myself around lovely women."

The man gave a proper bow as one would to any Queen. "I am Bard, Exalt of the Sun and a man of many amusing talents. I am humbly at your service." with his other hand, he motioned for Spider to introduce herself as well. She was the more impressive one, after all.

 

[Sherwood]

As the four of you approach the building, you can see that the door is two large slabs of stone, each fifteen feet high by six feet wide, making for a very grand entrance. On the center of each stone slab is the distinctive sunburst symbol of the Unconquered Sun, used by the Solars of the old Deliberative. When you walk up, you are about fifteen feet away from the doors when they slowly open up outwards by themselves silently, showing that the doors themselves are over a foot thick and reinforced with steel on the inside. Truly this place is built to survive a siege.

Waling into the manor house, you all feel the geomancy and energy that indicates that this is a fairly powerful manse, and somewhere in here will be a hearthroom where you may be able to find the stone associated with the manse. Inside the initial vestibule, gray flagstones cover this large room's floor. Bands of silver-grey stone adorn the white marble walls; the veins in the marble often show the same gray hue. There are four piers along the side walls that hold large carvings of long, slender animals such as lions and tigers, made of the same silver-grey stone. Each pier holds three such beasts, one above the other, with rectangular, gilded mirrors between them. The carvings have glittering eyes of gold and crystal. Beyond the four piers are several halls leading out of the vestibule.

Standing in the center of the room is a figure that is covered in long, flowing robes, but this one is no statue. It is humanoid, at least you think so, since the robes completely cover it, and the face is covered up in a featureless mask. The figure bows, then says in a hollow sounding voice, "Greetings, Noble Exalts. I am the Curator. Welcome back."

 

[jaydude]

Having looked around the vestibule in wonder, Kuaidao blinked when he heard the robed figure welcome them.

"Back...you recognise us?" he asked. "Or at least, our exaltations?"

 

[Psychie]

Taking her lead from Bard, Spider offers up a bow to the imp queen and says, "As I have said before, I am Spider, Blessed of Luna, and I greet you."

 

[Sherwood]

Having looked around the vestibule in wonder, Kuaidao blinked when he heard the robed figure welcome them.

"Back...you recognise us?" he asked. "Or at least, our exaltations?"

The Curator nods. "Of course. I have been waiting for your return for a very long time. How may I be of service?"

 

[jaydude]

Kuaidao's first instinct had been to ask about the keystone, or even the other artifacts said to be hidden here. But after thinking about it a bit more, that didn't seem like the most polite of conversation openers.

"Our past selves may have come here before, but we haven't." he said. "What is this place exactly? I've only ever heard people talk about it before seeing it for myself. They've referred to it as a manor...but this place seems more like a fortress."

 

[Sherwood]

The masked figure motions for you to follow it further into the building. As it moves, it seems to float, not actually walk. "This fortress was built in the early days just after the fall of the Deliberative to be a safe refuge from the betrayers of the Dragon Blooded. The fortress served its role well, up until the deaths of the Exalts that were living here. I have since tried to maintain the manor as well as I could by myself, but I am limited in just what I can do without the powers of the Exalts that helped to build this place."

The Curator leads you through the largest set of doors to a large room that is an oval sixty feet wide by forty five feet long and a full three stories tall. Eight slender pillars of marble reach from the floor all the way to the ceiling fifty feet up overhead. Four pairs of alcoves line the walls, each with a large statue of a different person in various heroic poses; most likely these likenesses are of the Exalts that used to live here. A vast fortune of gold and orichalcum line the walls, interspaced with large black mirrors that focus the dim illumination from the skylight above onto the large stone table below.

There used to be eight beautiful thrones that circled the table, but now there is only one much more humble stone chair that has a withered and desiccated body sitting on it, dead for thousands of years. In one hand is a gold chalice, and in the other is a faintly glowing orb the size of an egg, most likely a hearthstone.

Between the various statues are large murals depicting the glory of the Unconquered Sun and Luna in different scenes from the early days of the First Age, somewhat faded from the years but still impressive.

Looking about, you can tell that this chamber is the hearthroom of the manse.

The Curator moves over to hover next to the body, and lets out a sigh. "There was no one left to bury the Master, so he has waited here for all these years for someone to come."

 

[Sherwood]

Bard nodded at U'awa. "I think some refreshments would be very lovely, i always feel conversations are at their most enjoyable when done with a a cup of tea or ale in hand."

The handsome man gave a toothy and charming smile to the Imp Queen. "Then again, I'm happy to have this chance at all. It's not every day I make the company of a Queen. A very pleasant surprise."

"But I do apologize," he said with a faux abashed chuckled. "I am letting my excitement get the better of me. I always loose myself around lovely women."

The man gave a proper bow as one would to any Queen. "I am Bard, Exalt of the Sun and a man of many amusing talents. I am humbly at your service." with his other hand, he motioned for Spider to introduce herself as well. She was the more impressive one, after all.

Taking her lead from Bard, Spider offers up a bow to the imp queen and says, "As I have said before, I am Spider, Blessed of Luna, and I greet you."

U'awa and the other imps cackle in amusement at Bard's flattery, but Corr'Dal does not seem to react. U'awa says, "We greet you also, Noble Exalts, and we do hope that you will follow up on your promise to free us. We have been trapped in this frozen wasteland for a very long time."

 

[Syvvaris]

There was a bright gleam in Thallus's eyes when he entered the fortress. The majesty of the architecture silenced him when the robed curator greeted themselves and until they entered the hearthroom with the lone exalt on the throne. "Is that Kal Bax?" He asked and walked quickly past everyone and looked inches towards the thrown and the body. He walked around the stone chair, "What does this hearthstone do exactly?" He asked the curator.

 

[Sherwood]

The Curator nods. "Yes, indeed, these are the mortal remains of Kal Bax. A good man, one that I have missed over the years. As for that hearthstone, I believe that is his Hierophant's Eye. It is the stone generated by this manse."

 

[Syvvaris]

"The Hierophant's Eye, aptly name for a hearthstone made by him." Thallus spoke softly to himself, "Can I assume this hearthstone is the reason this fortress is almost invisible from the outside, and is the keystone keeping the little demons outside on Creation?"

 

[Sherwood]

The reply from the Curator is, "The power of the manse itself is what keeps the building from being seen, and the stone is simply an additional by-product of that power. The Keystone is elsewhere, most likely it is in one of the crypts in the lower level of the Fortress."

 

[Psychie]

Spider looks over at Bard and asks, "Is there anything specific you wanted to bring up to these fellows? If not, we should hurry and go join the others. I'm sure that they are at the manor house by now."

 

[D. Rex]

Bard smiled at Spider and looked towards the Queen, "A frozen hell. Yes. I suppose is at that. But from how it looks, you do have free reign here. Almost like you have your own demon state within creation. A monarchy even."

"Hoho, but I don't mean to offend, as I'm sure Malfeas is a wonderful place to live. Do you not get to stay in the manor?"

Stroking his mustache again, Bard continued his inquiry. "So how are you bound? Is it a specific number of individuals or a demon clan?"

 

[Sherwood]

Bard smiled at Spider and looked towards the Queen, "A frozen hell. Yes. I suppose is at that. But from how it looks, you do have free reign here. Almost like you have your own demon state within creation. A monarchy even."

"Hoho, but I don't mean to offend, as I'm sure Malfeas is a wonderful place to live. Do you not get to stay in the manor?"

Stroking his mustache again, Bard continued his inquiry. "So how are you bound? Is it a specific number of individuals or a demon clan?"

U'awa snorts. "Malfias is a horrible place to live, but it is better than this place. We do not do well in the cold, there is next to nothing for us to eat, and the Curator of the Fortress does not allow us inside, and he has used the weapons and automations of the place against us when we have come close." He is visibly upset, but composes himself quickly. "We number five hundred, and it is the Keystone that binds us here. Our hated captor, Kal Bax, promised that he would free us when our work was done, and didn't, and every time we would approach him to beg for our freedom, he would punish us. We curse the name of Kal Bax with every breath we breathe."

 

[Psychie]

Spider clucks her tongue. "Sounds like this Bax fellow was not a very nice guy. I am sorry you have suffered so much. No one should have to go through what you have." She looks over at Bard, then says, "If it is in my power to do so, I will send you back to Malfias and free you from this prison."

 

[Psychie]

Tilting her head, Spider then asks, "What is this about a Curator? Who or what is that?"

 

[Sherwood]

Tilting her head, Spider then asks, "What is this about a Curator? Who or what is that?"

U'awa says, "The Curator is an automation-spirit that was created by Bax in Fortress to be a servant and help them run the place. It hates us as much as we hate Bax, and has tried to kill us every time we approach the fortress. In the past, we have sneaked in through a hole in the roof in our efforts to find the Keystone, but have not been able to get very far into the manor before the Curator would find us and use its weapons against us. I do not know how it will react to the presence of Exalts. It may welcome you, it may attack."

 

[jaydude]

As this conversation was going on, back in the fortress, Kuaidao would say to the Curator, "Speaking of demons, we had an encounter with the ones around this fortress on the way here. They claimed that Kal Bax had them build this place, and bound them here to protect it once the construction was complete, using the Keystone. Is that true, or is there more to the story?"

 

[Sherwood]

The Curator gives you a dismissing wave of the hand. "Do not concern yourself with their ilk. Yes, they were called to aid in the work of constructing the fortress, given the gift of freedom from the prison of Malfias in order to do so. They were then given the task of protecting the fortress, and instead of showing thanks, they betrayed the Exalts and tried to attack them. They were then banished away outside the fortress and forbidden from coming inside thanks to the power of the Keystone; a powerful artifact that Kal Bax created. Those imps have given up on trying to attack the fortress a long time ago."

 

[jaydude]

"Huh. That's certainly a very different explanation than the one the demons gave us, and a very different reason for them to want the Keystone destroyed." Kuaidao said while crossing his arms. "Do you know why the demons attacked our past lives back then? Were they perhaps trying to get inside this fortress for one reason or another?"

 

[Sherwood]

The Curator seems amused at this. "Of course the demons would have told you something different. It is in their nature to lie; they are demons, after all. Without the bindings contained in the Keystone, there would be nothing keeping them in check. I suspect that back in the days just after the construction was complete, they sought to take control of the fortress for themselves and harness the power of the manse. Of course, it did happen so very long ago."

 

[Syvvaris]

"What exactly is the power of the manse?" Thallus interrupted Kuaidao and the Curator's dialogue. "Supposedly we are the reincarnations of these very exalt, and I am the one that holds the spark of Kal Bax's soul. I am fairly new to the life of an exalt and would like to know everything about this fortress. Every detail, however small." Thallus let loose the news that he had recently discovered in the den of the demons. He stared at the hearthstone, daring to touch but knew too little. "What does this hearthstone do?" He asked kneeling to be at eye level of the stone.

 

[Sherwood]

The Curator nods at Thallus and says, "The powers of the manse are many, but I shall start with the hearthstone. The Hierophant's Eye is invaluable in the casting of sorcery, speeding along the gathering of mystic energy in order to release the spell. [OOC it grants you one automatic non-Charm success to every shape sorcery action while socketed into an attuned artifact. Core book, pg 610.] The other energies of the manse are directed into the defenses of the building, including being able to animate the various statues inside and outside the building, powering the Lightning Ballista on the roof, and keeping the building hidden from view."

 

[jaydude]

As Kuaidao listened to the explanation about the Hierophant's Eye, it occurred to him that, as with the demons, he couldn't be sure that the Curator was telling the truth. In fact, at the moment they barely knew anything about the Curator.

"Could you please direct us to the crypts? I'd like to look at this Keystone for myself." he said, though privately he was hoping that Thallus and Melinda would be able to have a look at the thing and figure something out about its true nature. Because right now, the only things they'd gotten from the demons and the Curator were unproven claims.