The Reliquary of Ahazi, part 5
Log Info
- Title: The Reliquary of Ahazi Part 5
- Emitter: Whirlpool
- Characters: Dax, Paenitia, Aryia, Davienne, Venom, Ravendar, Seyardu, Lyme
- Place: Farmlands of Alexandros
- Time: Wednesday, July 07, 2021, 8:38 PM
- Summary: The adventurers have found a much larger room underground with a mural. The song was played, the mural lit up, and a dark stairway down appeared. They venture deeper, with Venom checking for traps. Another room, with notes on the walls and markings on the floor. Ravendar attempts a repeat performance, but it's lackluster. Paenitia declares, how hard can drumming be and takes it up. For her, not hard, and she beats out the rhythm nigh perfectly. Something is missing. Despite warnings from Venom and Seyardu, the Lucht Knight dances, and despite her heavy armour, does a decent job of it. Still, things aren't working. She invites the others to join in, all dance, and this duplication of the ceremnony seems sufficient, a cauldron appears, a fire lights. The mural suggests things need to be added. Again the party is split, some suggesting caution, others countering that they don't have any better ideas and adding ingredients is making something happen. It's not a great meal, based on what they're throwing in, and Paenitia peeps over the edge of the cauldron to see what it needs. It needs her, the liquid decides, turning into a hand and grabbing the Lucht Knight.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Appearing, in Order =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Dax 5'0" 110 Lb Human Female A 5' tall red haired human with piercings and tats. Paenitia 3'0" 34 Lb Halfling Female A Lucht knight, dark skinned in bold feathery finery. Aryia 4'8" 110 Lb Shadow Elf Female A heavily scarred mul with a curious look about her. Davienne 5'1" 101 Lb Half-Elf Female A ranger with a cat. Venom 5'6" 130 Lb Human Female A woman(?) about 5'6" in a ragged black veil and poncho. Ravendar 3'1" 40 Lb Halfling Male A red-haired Lucht Siuil man. Seyardu 5'6" 150 Lb Sith-Makar Female A friendly silver sith-makar with a perpetual squint. Lyme 7'2" 435 Lb Orc Butch Black-skinned oruch of suitable stature. =-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= As the GM =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Whirlpool Otyugh I am stinky! =-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=
The Story so Far
Sent to find a reliquary in a goat field, the adventurers dig in ruined building, discovering a mosaic and then a trap door, they venture below and explore. One spider-web and root choked passage later, they have discovered a room showing with a mural portraying the construction of this site, a musical accompaniment, and a drum, that perhaps it to be used.
Ravendar steps up to perform.
Thumpa-thumpa-thumpa. He's able to play. It is ancient, with just enough lingering enchantment to remain durable in play. The marks on the walls eventually light up, as they catch up to where they were supposed to start. It's easy to see the way the drumming is meant to accompany the story. Clearly, this was meant to be part of something greater. Perhaps there was more of a performance? Or a storyteller to illuminate what's happening in the murals? It's still missing pieces ... when it reaches one particular spot, the eldritch musical beats stop.
There's an interruption there.
... this forces Ravendar to start over and guess. There are, after all, only so many ways to use this particular drum. Once all the marks are lit up, the the ground shakes lightly as a panel in the earth opens, revealing you down a set of stairs deeper underground.
"Ole!" Paenitia says, having stood still through the whole performance. "There is more down to go."
Ravendar continues to play for a bit until the ground stops shaking and he looks around, "Hey we did it." He smiles at Venom and Aryia, "Thank you both, I couldn't have done it without you." He says as he starts to rub his hands, "Definitely not used to drumming bare handed." He mutters to himself as he goes to get his stuff so that they can head down deeper.
Lyme peers towards the stairs, and starts forwards, gripping the hilt of his falchion as he advances. He is measured in his advance, putting his back to the light sources and letting his vision do the work into the darkness.
"Well, good on you, finally got the music." Dax offers, as she shakes her head a little, "See? I said ta hit it." This mostly to Paenitia as Dax is nearest the small mask wearer. "More down is better'n standing around all day waitin' on a fiddle ta dance." She does move forward though, her light still bobbing about as she moves.
Aryia flinches as the ground shakes, but flashes a thumbs up to Ravender. She waves off the praise and jabs a thumb towards Venom. She nudges the mute, gives a closed eye smile, and readies to go down the stairs with the others.
Venom claps several times and gives a thumbs up as the musician's efforts reveal the next leg of their journey. She knuckle bumps Aryia, then Ravendar as she moves between the two, then starts to examine this new portal for hazards.
Venom doesn't notice any particular threats, and starts to descend into the further depths of the temple... tomb?
She's still trying to be cautious, because they're not finished yet, and premature pride usually ends in pieces.
And Now
With Venom leading the way, Dax is more or less delegated to second or worse. She does stand back though and lets the others lead, she's purveying her surroundings even if she's pulling from her flask from time to time. That soft glowing Ioun Stone still bobbing about her head illuminating the darkness below and making it so her human eyes can see. See what? Mostly the back of Venom, "I ain't too sure what everyone's gotten so gummed up 'bout. If there be monsters, they'd of heard us by now, an' come after us all. That's fer sure." Her sage advice.
"No, I have seen the underground tombs before." The Red Knight says, shoving her shield towards her back and switching to her pole arm. She will be hammering things through people's legs. "There is the golems, that only move when you near. The bugs that stay in the wall holes. Skeletons that arise when you open the crypt door."
"Spiders, that wait for you to walk in their webs. Pressure plates and pit falls, and the strange liquid pools that turn into a wave when you touch them. There the many things that wait. They do not always run coming."
Following behind Dax, the Dark Lucht is able to slap her shoulders in a comradely fashion. On flat ground she wouldn't have been able to reach that high, and would have slapped something else, "But do not worry my friend, with no doubts, the know we are coming. Ha ha!"
Aryia follows the others down, keeping an eye on Venom should there be any sign to slow down or stop.
"Indeed," Davienne says softly as she lifts her sunrod to illuminate the way. Then she glances back at the group, "I can see somewhat in dimmer light, does anyone else need the light more?" She asks. Her eyes flick to Dax mainly when she says this. But then turn to Ravendar and she says, "I'm also rather familiar with dungeons and tombs and the like. All sorts of un-pleasantries can be found...I'm not the best at finding such things...but," She shrugs as she holds out the sunrod to Dax.
Venom continues to try and stave off any potential hazards that may have been set by the architects of this particular edifice, carefully using her soft touch and the available lights floating about the group to find any telltale signs.
The veiled woman tenses slightly as Paenitia begins to catalogue the challenges she'd run into in her own experiences, it's momentarily, and as the list carries on, the woman continues her preventative explorations.
Ravendar waits until everyone else has gone down before he slowly starts to make his way down the stairs and into the unknown. He has his fiddle and bow in hand as he carefully picks his way down with the others.
Dax looks back to Davi and the sunrod, she points up to her glowing ioun stone that is emitting a decent amount of light, "Gotta keep my hands free." And she then twists her hands back and forth to move the orcish claws she has as weapons so they glint in the light, "Ain't needin' too far of sight, jus' enough wit' a direction an' a point be fine. I do my best work when I'm chargin' in straight at a foe... they seem ta not have a great tactic against it." She offers her still, sage advice, and she then breaks from her need to have her hands frees for just another sip, then the flask goes away again - still sans Sunrod.
"I need the glow." Paenitia says, taking the sunrod offered to Dax. She straps it onto the head of her Lucern hammer, at a spot it won't immediately be crushed when she hits something with it. Hopefully it will survive a few blows. In the meantime, her pole-arm can serve as a light pole.
With everyone beginning to descend, the silver sith-makar followed suit, bringing up the rear of the group, or second to last, as there was a silent discussion of two waiting to follow behind until Seyardu followed down. "I can see without the light, but like with normal sight, it is not the best. But I'll manage, if there is anything to be see down there." The silverscale adds.
Davienne nods to Paenitia and smiles. Then turns back to creep towards the front, going slow as she does. After all, she isn't a rogue. But she is an half-syl, and knows dungeons well enough. Down they go...
So down the stairs you go, slow and careful being the way.
The stairs aren't long, thankfully, perhaps a good ten steps or so before you're descending into another room. This one seems to be the start of a passageway. Th floor is lit up, here, with similar marks you now know are the Ahazi's means of transcribing musical notes.
The tunnel leads ahead of you. The air here feels ...somehow charged.
The redheaded drunk feels the energy around her, or at least the itchiness that comes with it. Dax reaches up to her own neck and rubs against it and scratches a bit at her jaw line like some caged wild animal ready to be out. She quirks her mouth back and forth, nose turning this way and that, until ... she grumbles loudly and scritches at her nose, "I got some kind of sneeze comin'... blocked, worst feeling in the world. I swear ta Rada an' all the ocean below..."
It is cooler underground, making a nice respite for Paenitia from her armour. She follows along, holding her light source high and looking about. She has to turn her head to effectively see with her mask, so it's obvious what she's looking at.
The musical markings.
"It time for a sing-along again. Ravendar, do you play the notes, have the marching chant for us?"
Davienne moves along the corridor, keeping to one side. Her lips and pursed as she peers into the darkness ahead. The musical notes are not her area of expertise, so she lets the others try to figure out the puzzle while she looks for traps or pits or lurking things.
"I would advise against playing more music here, without looking into things, first." The sith-makar advises quickly as she peers over the group. "Something does not feel quite right here. The path was hidden to begin with, which means there may be further things in place to stop us from moving forward."
GAME: Ravendar rolls stealth: (2)+12: 14
Ravendar moves out from what he thinks are shadows from the back of the group as he feels the change in the air. He looks at the musical markings carefully as they resemble the musical notes from before, "I can try, but it took me a while to figure them out last time with help." He studies the magical musical markings trying to see if he can make sense of them so he could play them.
Venom holds up a hand, fist closed, as the tingle in the air makes the hair on her neck stand on end. "Stop." <handspeech>
Her head cants a little and and turns her head back across a shoulder to regard Ravendar, reaching out to keep him from stepping out too far ahead of her and clicks her tongue.
As the party files into the corridor, Aryia steps off to the side and pokes the tips of her fingers together. This was not her expertise, and let the others who were more useful take the lead. She does, however, stop dead in her tracks as Venom holds up a sign.
Walking, nearly into, up behind Venom, Dax pauses just in time before running her over. She grins a bit, bigger, "I know this one, that's stop, or danger, one of the two." She offers and does a closed fist up and over her shoulder for anyone behind her, and then offers, "Why? Though?" Looking over to Ravendar she mentions, "Well, it's just like I said in the udder room, play some music, hit the drum, whatever the case may be. Can't be too hard, kinnit?"
Davienne pauses when she sees Venom's hand. "It means stop," She says softly, so that everyone understands the symbol. "What's up?" She asks the silent one. "I can try and find snares or pits. But it won't last long or, well...it isn't as good as someone who knows traps well." She gives a wry smile as she eyes the darkness ahead and around.
Paenitia halts before she runs into Dax. With short legs and heavy armour, she's not exactly speedy. She stares at the other woman's back, then looks around her hips, raises a fist, copying Venom's handsign.
Ravendar looks to Venom as he was just moving around to get a better view of the musical markings. "Don't worry I wasn't going to go past you. I have no desire to become sliced in two or fall into an acid pit. I just needed to see the markings better if I'm going to see if I can play them.
Venom's veil flutters slightly as she lets out a slow breath, then her hand cycles through a number of gestures, some quick, cadence broken slightly in a considered pause here and there.
"Energy in the air.... I'm not sure if we're halfway through a rite..... or if the energy means something is waiting to kill us if we rush in further without more.... music." <Handspeech>
She looks then to Ravendar as he explains and she nods crisply and gives a thumb's up.
Thinks about it, then gives a little bow his way.
"Perhaps checking the area before attempting anything further?" The silver sith'makar suggests as she peers at the walls. "The floor seems obvious with the light it give off, but perhaps there are further instructions or something that could be seen to give more context to the area. And if it is a trap, what it may have cause?"
GAME: Ravendar rolls perform/percussion: (5)+3: 8
Ravendar puts away his fiddle for the moment and he takes out the drum from upstairs. He starts to play on it, but it becomes very apparent very quickly that he's not very good with the drums. He tries to repeat what he did before upstairs, but he can't seem to find the beat though and he struggles to get through what he can see. It doesn't sound very good. He sighs softly to himself, "Sorry drums were never my forte. I can see if I can try again or someone else can try if they want to."
Davienne stays near to the front and is mostly quiet. She murmurs softly and waves her hands, eyes turned ahead. As they go she is able to give warnings for a short period of time. "I have about 30 ticks on a clock."
Paenitia takes the drum from Ravendar. She is not skiled. She has overwhelming confidence however, how hard could drums be? An enchanted drum might almost pay itsef. It can't be much harder than toe tapping or maracas.
She tucks her polearm in the crook of her arm so it will be dragged along, and attempts the beat based only on her observations of the earlier performance.
Were her eyes as sharp as her mounts, rivaling eagles? Is her mind as much as her blade, to comprehend the notes? With a few bobs of her head to set the rhythm, she drums away.
GAME: Paenitia rolls perform/percussion: (20)+2: 22
She does not bomb. She is da bomb.
Listening to the drums get played, Dax kind of bobs her head, and then drinks from her flask, "I dunno, it was fine by me. Could really get into it, simple, easy ta follow. I like it, gods be damned fer what it's worth, yer a musician if I ever heard one." When the drunken redhead is praising your music, you know you probably didn't do so well. Then the little woman gets the drums and Dax grimaces a little bit, "There's too much... hittin' in yer drummin'... hard ta follow." She critiques.
You're all fairly sure the drums are being played properly, but it would appear you must be missing something. None of the symbols light up.
GAME: Seyardu rolls perception: (5)+3: 8 GAME: Ravendar rolls perception: (2)+9: 11 GAME: Dax rolls perception: (13)+0: 13 GAME: Aryia rolls perception: (3)+12: 15 GAME: Paenitia rolls perception: (17)+4: 21 GAME: Davienne rolls perception: (18)+10: 28 GAME: Venom rolls perception: (19)+10: 29
... studying the way those marks are set into the ground, they're not just notes ...
... they're dance steps.
Venom glances between their drummer and the glowing runes. Her own sense of musicianship is... lacking. Certainly she hasn't the ground to critique the performance of a tune that, in all likelihood, hasn't been played aloud in decades.
Then the little woman takes up the challenge and gives it hell. There's an urge to applaud the catchy rendition... but that might interfere with the magic.
Ravendar is busy getting out his instrument of choice from it's case so that it will be ready again if his music is needed.
"These...are these dance steps?" Davienne says as she points to the floor. She takes a few of the steps, not clumsily but also with no real skill.
"Ole! You are right. They are." Paenitia says, already tapping in time to her own performance, once it's pointed out the notes are dance steps she attempts to incorporate them.
As a Knight, she should be skilled in courtly formalities. Dancing, certainly is on the docket. Yet, is there much call for such from a revolutionary, a Mad Dog of Isobar?
Without hesitation, she shows off what she's got.
GAME: Paenitia rolls perform/dance: (16)+2: 18
She's not bad for a Knight in rusty armour.
With one pierced eyebrow raised, Dax watches as Pae breaks out the dance moves along with the drum hitting. She quirks her mouth to the side and then back again as she watches. "Ain't never seen a dancer wit' so much covered. Maybe the gods ain't like all that armor hidin' ya?" Just a question, she takes another sip from her flask, "Jus' a thought."
Venom cocks her head once more and studies the symbols a little further. Then, a face layered in veils and.. whatever is buckled beneath, is given yet another: a gloved hand.
A soft hiss from her nose as she sighs from under the facepalm. She straightens as Davienne voices their shared epiphany and, as her hand comes down, she nods, and her poncho rises and falls with her shrug, and so, she is drawn to watching the little Knight bust a move. In all that steel. A blink, hidden from the world, and the silent one straightens just a touch. She wouldn't have attributed that much grace previously... clearly her appraisal was in error. Similarly, she hasn't anything to say on obfuscative fashion.
Aryia does not move, her raising a brow as others dance along. She really hope she doesn't have to dance. Has she danced? Like, ever? She glances to Venom. Has Venom danced? They didn't seem like a dancing person.
She awkwardly shifts on her feet. Please. Please don't make Aryia dance.
Ravendar finally looks up to see what the others are doing and it appears that the next step doesn't involve music it's more of a dance. He watches at Paenitia moves quiet gracefully given the armor that she's wearing. He waits to see if he'll have to attempt to dance soon or if just one of them doing it will be enough.
The sith-makar did not know what to make of everything going on. The civilization so many knew so little about were difficult to comprehend. Perhaps the dancing was necessary? Perhaps it was not? She hoped it wasn't, as it was just asking to trip up and fall for her. "Curious." She mused. perhaps you are right."
As Paenitia dances forward, she appears to be doing it right! Something is still missing, perhaps, but the steps light up when she matches them on the ground. A double tap here, a spin there. It seems to be working. It's all in the heat and presence, right?
"The thing dancin' an' music be missin' is some kind of song. Ain't none too sure what goes with ... that." Dax kind of waves her hand in the direction of the armored, masked, drum beating halfling.
The Red Knight dances and drums, laughing cheerfully as the symbols light up. She maintains the rhythm, her moves are strictly ballroom. Her grinning mask leers at everyone as she cheerfully calls, "You must all join in my friends."
"It is the group effort, I am sure. They build a community, they eat, drink, be merry and dance together."
"You must."
GAME: Ravendar rolls perform/dance: (19)+3: 22
Ravendar nods and calls out, "You are probably right." He says as he goes to put the fiddle away once more so the he can more easily dance. "I think we all have to dance it together." He moves towards the front and starts to dance across the floor as well. His dancing is much better then his drumming, but it's easy to do once you've seen someone else do it.
GAME: Dax rolls perform/dance: (13)+2: 15
Dancing? Dax will dance, she swigs some more from her flask, and then moves forward a bit to hop and skip about on one foot to the other. Her looseness with the alcohol perhaps her only saving grace, she is, for all intents and purposes, a drunken sailor doing her best to do the dance they know best. Get out there, and hop around, laugh a bit, and otherwise... drink!
GAME: Venom rolls perform/dance: (16)+0: 16
Venoms head tilts a little to the left as Ariya looks her way, her shoulders rise and fall again before Paenitia's progress, and her declaration give her a moment's pause. This was a place of worship, it.... stands to reason the activities were..... inclusive.
With some reticence, the veiled woman steps forward and tries to follow the little woman's lead...
Aryia blinks. She fidgets with her hands, glancing to the others in the group. One by one they boogie out onto the floor. Her attention falls on Venom, her fellow mute. Aryia looked beyond uncomfortable with the idea, but as Venom resigns herself, the shadow elf lets out a deep sigh.
She follows whatever steps Paenitia was doing with no confidence in any of her steps.
GAME: Aryia rolls perform/dance: (19)+-2: 17
But sometimes fate has other plans. Through a combination of wanting to get it over with, her friends stepping up, and sheer dumb luck, the normally lack luster mul'neissa actually ends up managing to bust a move in time and step. She even hazards a small smile at it all.
GAME: Seyardu rolls perform/dance: (20)+3: 23
Perhaps the group effort was truly necessary, or so the sith-makar resigned herself. At the very least, she could follow along with what everyone else was doing. Perhaps add something to the movements? A hop or step to the beat of the drum and fiddle that had fallen silent, but the pace was kept up regardless. It looked surprisingly natural, or convincingly like the silver sith-makar knew what she was doing, at the very least.
As you travel down the passage, dancing the whole way by necessity, the eldritch runes on the ground continue to light up and mark your way. Finally, you reach the end of the passageway and emerge into a large, circular chamber with a cauldron of some kind in the center of the room, set into a groove. Orange embers flare to life around it, bringing it to life and water starts to flow into it from a gap in the ceiling above. Seems you've activated something. The water is soon brought to a boil.
The walls here are covered in cracked and ancient murals as well, though this is one of many feasts shared by the Ahazi together, it would appear.
Getting through the hallway dancing, is a feet (*snicker*). Dax moves along at the pace she's allowed, trying not to bump into others, or disrupt the beat, but she is smiling, and looking around. "See, told'ja. No monsters or creatures or things about, lest they already be 'ere. I mean, we're dancin' an' drummin' and whatnot. Nothing." Dax shakes her head, as she side comments to whomever is nearest, "Damn near the best fun I've had underground ever. 'Cept that time I buried an octopus... the stories that thing could tell!"
Perhaps for the cleric, it was some grace of god that allowed them to reach the other side of the room without tripping from something unseen or over one of their feet. But dance they did, keeping pace and slowing down when those in front needed, but never dropping the beat of the previous song. Eventually though, she reached the other side, and she filed into the room, finally stopping the movements with a puff of air.
"As far as I am aware, that went quite well. It was easy to follow along with everyone doing so well." Seyardu chuckles. "So, another room? And more murals. I wish these people did not use so much paint."
Paenitia is likewise enjoying herself, dancing and swaying her own beat, even the clanking of her armour fits in with the tune. Her steps are a little rougher, she doesn't quite have the stride to easily make the foot placements, necessitating a short leap for each one. Still, she is successful and if her body language is any indication, happy and and enthusiastic.
After a series of small leaps, and watching the fire under the cauldron flare to life, the mural of the new room presents a confusion. "Ah, the cauldron boils. I am not the short order cook my mother was, but I know the trick or two."
"The hope is it is not the long pork recipe."
Ravendar wipes the sweat from his forehead as the dancing finally comes to an end. He watches as the room comes to life and the cauldron starts to bubble and roil. He starts to take a look around the room, moving carefully as he studies the murals.
Aryia had worked up a sweat dancing, getting a little bit into whatever the group was doing. Once they get to the next part of the underground room, she glances to the murals and the fire before stepping off to the side to inspect them further. But it really was just to hide her flushed, embarrassed face. She feels really silly doing all of that, and hopes that no one will ever mention her goofy dancing again lest she'd wish to be smote on the spot.
Venom's movements are awkward for their unfamiliarity and whatever burdens encumber her beneath the poncho she wears. Flashes of a holster here, a pouch there, and little more. The veiled one continues to dance until the party has reached the latest chamber of revelries of older times. She gives a little bow to the tiny Knight for showing them the way before she turns and starts to make her way around the murals as she had before.
Her knowledge of cooking is about as developed as her dance skills and she leaves it to better equipped souls for the particulars, instead trying to find a cypher to lead them through the next part of this. She's going to need more notebooks, the way she's eating up pages.
You've worked up quite a sweat and now the room is heating up!
Studying the murals doesn't reveal anything in particular. Each mural shows one person putting 'something' in the cauldron. Just what isn't clear. It's just 'something'. No doubt that's part of the story you're missing.
"Well, this one is pretty clear. We gotta eat." And Dax shuffles around in her small pack to try and find some jerky, which she promptly pulls out a stick and begins to chew on it. She's looking around though at the others and mentions, "Do we all gotta eat somethin' as well? Or... oh... put it in the fire? Okay." She pulls the jerky and heads to the fire to toss her jerky inside.
The fire turns blue when the jerky goes in, then red.
The cauldron makes an almost growling sound.
Ravendar looks over to Dax, "I don't think it liked your jerky." He says as he starts to look around to see if there are any hidden shelves or cupboards that might contain the ingredients for the stuff that's going into the cauldron.
"Much good thought my friend!" Paenitia says brightly, "This is the stone soup! We all add the thing!"
She maintains the rhythm as best she can while searching her pack. Too bad all the food preparations were earlier, it seems it's mealtime again. She does have her favourite collection of spices.
Taking some bottles, she dumps in some dried chilies and some cayenne pepper. "Add something, this seems the thing to do."
"Dax, I appreciate what you are doing to try and figure out what is going on, but please, wait a moment before you do things." The sith-makar called over to the monk from where she was investigating the walls. "I do not wish to anger whatever magics or machinations are in the room unecessarily."
The mural shows them adding ingredients one at a time in the mural. The rest are just standing in the background, non-descript figures."
Lyme folds his arms across his chest. "Well? The walls tells us what to do?"
With a quick look, Dax squints at the sith'makar talking to her and she ohs, nodding her head, "Yer 'fraid I'll screw things up, but if ya recall. I was the one tellin' everyone nothin' to worry 'bout. Nothin' to worry 'bout so far. Then there was the drummin'... the dancin' be owed ta the lil' knight an' all... but now? I got this 'ere thing ta respond." She offers about the fire and watches as Pae put in some spices. Thumbing over to her while taking a pull from her flask, "I'm jus' thinking yer all too cautious. None of these 'ere folks seem ta be havin' a terrible time. Dancin', drummin', eatin', it all be a party, an' if there's someone 'ere who knows how ta party. It's me." She offers, with a big of a swagger and lean, propping herself up with the nearest wall. "I'll jus' stand over 'ere fer a bit."
That didn't sound good.
Looking back over her shoulder as the firelight changes hues with a... growl(?!!), Venom ruffles her veil, then goes back to going over the murals for other clues.
Pause.
'Stone Soup??'
The quiet one listens to the others talk, transfers her writing implement to the same hand that holds her place in her notepad, then reaches up under the poncho.
She crosses the room, then, to Seyardu, who both cooked for them all, previously, and understands the hand sign.
A handful of assorted nuts and tiny chunks of sundried fruit are presented to the Sith before she tries to explain.
"One is cooking while the others wait. I don't know what materials they use, but this is all I have." <handspeech>
"Your assurances of nothing to worry about are worrying." The sith-makar replies with something akin to a sigh. "You got it to respond yes, in what way, in the correct way, we do not know. And even if it is the right the to be done, the carelessness, you are being careless with everyone else here with you."
Instead, she turns to Venom to read the hand signs, and she nods. "If that is what is to be done, then yes, we should all add what we can to the communal meal, you think?
Ravendar starts to dig into his pack to find what he can offer that would be good for the soup. He find a piece of cheese wrapped up in a cloth. He breaks it up and goes to put it in the soup as well.
There are, alas, no secret cupboards to be found in the room.
The response to the nuts and fruit is much the same as the first time.
Was the growl a mite louder, though?
The carelessness comment gets a bit of a huff from Dax as she stays leaning against her nearest wall, "I'm still alive, that fer sure. Means I'm doin' something right." And she waits where she is though as the room slowly levels out with the drink she's had. Though she blinks a few times, closing her eyes tightly and re-opening them, getting her slightly wobbly vision to behave, "'Sides, a bit of danger does everyone some good from time ta time."
Lyme considers. "Does it need blood?" He's an oruch, after all. Seems reasonable.
Aryia had gotten herself situated by now, her turning and watching as everyone tried their hand at figuring out what to do. It was times like this where she wished she had an iota of education. She takes a seat on the floor, arms resting on her knees while one finger scratches the floor idly. Though, she does tense at the blood suggestion, the shadow elf watching the conversation.
"We are hoping blood is not a part." Paenitia says, continuing the beat and examining the wall mural for clues. She has little to go on besides her hunch that this is somehow communal, "All the others try adding things, we see what happens. I think the half-way spell is worse than the completed."
"Let us wait on the blood offerings, then." The sith-makar replies with a shake of her head. "Means you are fortunate at least." Seyardu waits for Ravendar to look at the cauldron. She takes an onion from her bag, cutting it in half with a knife before adding it in once she was able.
Another rumble. More growling. It's even louder now. That's for sure.
Ravendar hmms as he examines the cauldron, "Maybe we don't need to put things into the cauldron, maybe we have to take it out and share it as a meal." He offers.
This time, Aryia goes with her gut and raises a hand. "I don't think putting things in is a good idea." <Handspeech>
"I'm game ta eat somethin' as well. I did jus' throw my jerky inta the ... thing over there." Dax comments after Rav, and she looks around. Then she offers a smile, "If no one be the braver I'm happy ta eat first."
Lyme pulls out a boot knife, and starts cleaning his nails. "Sure thing, go for it." He maintains a slight air of disbelief.
"Ravendar, Venom, Aryia, you understand the other murals, what this one say to do?" Paenitia asks, "Something rumble, maybe the next staircase open if everyone add to the meal."
"If we stop the song and dance and cooking, it may not start again." The Dark Lucht examines the cauldron, in case it is tossing any culinary hints her way.
Venom can only shrug at first, then she starts to sign, while they others discuss their varied approaches to life.
"One item at a time." she looks to the others in turns as they speak, then, with another shrug, "This is a rite, maybe something is said as each piece is put in?" handspeech>
Aryia signs to the knight, "But the growling..." <Handspeech>
Ravendar shrugs his shoulders, "The mural doesn't give any information. It just shows one person putting something in the cauldron. It's too damaged to make out what that something is. I mean it's been musical challenges so far, either playing the drum or dancing. Honestly I'm stumped and I don't like the growling either. We are doing something wrong or missing some key point."
Adding on to the commentary, "What if it just be hungry? An' that is why it growls? I know that happens ta me when I haven't eaten in a while... an' this thing been hungry fer a long time I 'spect." Dax says as she is able to stand upright on her own again, looking at the bubbling. "Fer what its worth, I'd wager a flyin' ship, rightfully procured o'course, that it jus' be hungry."
GAME: Paenitia rolls profession/cook: (20)+10: 30
Paenitia approaches the cauldron, trusting her cooking instincts. The homey, community minded nature of the Lucht Siuil is tugging at the back of her mind, as well as momma's admonishments for what makes a good stew.
'Taste! Do not season without taste!'
Yes momma, the Dark Lucht thinks as she peers over the edge of the cauldron. Why couldn't it be right-sized! Oversized, she's barely able to clear the edge. Fortunately the Smiling Man will serve as an adequate face guard, her gauntlets like oven mits. On tip-toes, she peers in and advises the others. "The jerky, peppers and onion may not be enough. I tell you how it goes."
Peer!
The veiled one looks to her silent partner and shrugs, "You could be right. If there's another clue, here, I'm missing it."
Venom turns her interest toward the cauldron as Paenitia steps up to peer inside.
As Paenitia leans over, the growling intensifies.
That's when a hand storms up out of the water, sending a spray of scalding water in all direction, and grabs hold of them. It hangs on and starts trying to pull them into the boiling mass.
Moreover, the hand is MADE of the boiling mass of liquid. It's still boiling. Being grabbed by it can't feel good.
Given the murals, this does not appear to be part of the original sequence of events.
