The science
fantasy campaign continues! (see the session 1 write-up here)
The
characters are:
Psamtek,
the psionic Grey pilot (Halfling 3)
Keteus, the
dark prophet or something (Magic-User 3 with Space Age Sorcery spells)
After
exiting the sanctuary of ETERNAL-6000, the duo took some time to examine the
World around them, using the binoculars pilfered from the stocks of the
sanctuary.
Off in the
far-far distance, they noted a floating isle, a large chunk of earth with
mountains and perhaps ruins on top of it. It seemed to move on its own
volition.
They tried
to scout out the way down to the city, but that was not easy. They did get a
better understanding of the valley below, though: a river flows through it from
east to west, empties into the sea. The city stands on the river and is made up
of five large ziggurats/step pyramids: one in the middle, four on each corner.
After this reconnaissance,
the party started their descent. Pretty soon they got lost between the rocks
and in the narrow canyons.
After some
time, they reached a larger flat area with an interesting feature: a GIANT
SKULL embedded in the cliff-face! Small offerings (flowers, cups, simple pieces
of jewelry) had been lain out before the skull on a stone platform.
Psamtek
threw up a grappling hook and climbed up to the left eye socket. Beyond, they
saw a small grotto with a pool of water inside. They climbed in and noticed
many inscriptions carved into the inside of the skull. Keteus joined them and
read the inscriptions: most of them were vows and prayers to the MOUNTAIN
MOTHER. They didn’t touch any of the offerings and continued the way down the
mountain.
They were
still quite lost, and couldn’t find a way directly down towards the city.
However, this off-the-beaten-path journey led them to another interesting
discovery.
They
noticed the sounds of metal against rock and soon reached an open-air quarry.
The workforce was about 30 people, who chipped away tirelessly at the black
basalt. The chunks of stone were then collected by a giant robotic walker and
loaded onto a double-tracked vehicle… PULLED BY GIANT QUADREPEDAL LIZARDS!
These brontosauri had some sort of mechanisms attached to their heads, probably
for control.
 |
| Dinotopia! |
Psamtek and
Keteus descended into the quarry.
The workers
didn’t seem to notice them. The robotic vehicle, however, turned towards them,
opened its back hatch. A large, tattooed, four-armed person got out from
inside.
He
introduced himself as Seneb the Wrestler. He was surprised when the travelers told
him they came from the other side of the mountain (called the Thunder Mountains
by the locals). He explained that this was a mining operation to quarry stone
blocks for the construction of a NEW and even larger ziggurat to honor the
BLACK SUN. In exchange for a few iron rations, he explained that the party can
simply follow the wide trail left by the passage of the brontosauri and the
vehicle down the mountain. He said that he got his tattoos (intricate very 90s “tribal”
style, animate) from Diaexis in the harbor quarter of the city, CRYOPOLIS.
The party
said goodbye and headed down.
At this
point, the world around them suddenly went pitch black.
Turned out,
the TWIN SUNS of the World of Tomorrow interact in weird ways. At certain
periods, their rays of light cancel each other, turning into ANTI-LIGHT. So
this world doesn’t have a “day-night” cycle, but rather phases of LIGHT and
ANTI-LIGHT.
Even the
light of the electrical torches was warped and distorted by this effect.
But they
managed to reach the valley in safety, wait out the anti-light phase.
In the
valley, they saw the already half-build ziggurat construction site in the
distance, but decided to go towards Cryopolis instead.
They
tracked through the wide open, moss-covered valley. On the river, they saw
barges and rafts, and also the long necks of brontosauri reaching out from the
water, Loch-Ness monster style.
However,
they found that the city was on the other side of the wide river. Luckily, they
managed to reach a building on their bank of the river during the light phase.
It was the landing spot of the ferry. A compound surrounded by razor wire
fencing.
They
entered and found two other groups waiting for the ferry.
One of them
was a bunch of mindless workers, clearly some type of zombies. They were
grouped around a large crate covered with a tarp. Their leader was a masked and
hooded person with a crossbow.
Keteus and
Psamtek peered under the tarp… And saw a human hand. The smell also made it
clear that the container was full of corpses…
The other
group was a bunch of children in matching uniforms, and a taller dude. They
looked like schoolchildren on a field trip… They sat in a circle, silent. But
Psamtek was instantly hit by a strong wave of psychic power emanating from
them!
Next, they went
to find the ferryman, who turned out to be this fish-person. He explained that
the ferry is free, COURTESY OF THE CULT OF THE BLACK SUN, who are the main
power in Cryopolis. He also shared some info about the various parts of the
town. The ferry wasn’t due until the next light phase, so they settled in for
the “night”.
The
compound closed for the darkness.
During the
anti-light phase, there was a lot of noise beyond the fence. And at some point
dark creatures approached, but were driven off by the discharges of the
electrified fence. “Mutants!” the ferryman explained. “In comparison to whom?..”
Psamtek murmured.
Psamtek and
Keteus also managed to get some sleep and relived their memory fragments from
before. However, they were also subjected to some mental probing by the creepy
Midwich cuckoo schoolchildren!
In the “morning”,
the ferry arrived. Everybody boarded and crossed over to the other bank, into
the busy harbor of Cryopolis.
No comments:
Post a Comment