Game: In the Spire's Shadow

P&~P looks around, simulating a puzzled expression, and says, "I'm not sure what the problem with swearing an oath to uphold and protect entropy is... For is entropy not just, as many great scholars have described, 'a measure of the level of disorder or randomness in a closed system'? By existing we uphold a certain amount of disorder. We, in not being of pure law, introduce chaos and randomness into the closed system that is the multiverse. If it were not for entropy then all the multiverse would be as Mechanus aspires to be. Orderly. Unvarying. But even Mechanus must have entropy for it is affected by the chaos of the multiverse. And because of that entropy, some beings of pure law are set loose to become rogue. I will swear this oath to uphold entropy with no remorse and no deceit..."

The modron composes itself and stands as tall as it can, saying "I, P&~P, do swear to exist and thereby cause and protect cosmic entropy."

Zhegre peers at it. "Hmm," he says, not yet very illuminatingly. "I think we will have to be more straightforward about our oaths. Athene might not have liked it wery much, but if this temple started in Sigil she would not have had any say about the portal or its key, anyway..."

He raises Tharmekhûl's holy symbol and addresses the portal solemnly, with the furthest he's capable of honestly going: "Pursuant to preserving and embracing Multiwerse as unified whole, I hereby swear to preserve and embrace forces of entropy."

Without another word Kadar leaps at the portal.

Zhegre winces at Kadar's collision. "Sorry. Looks like one ticket, one fare," he says, and steps through.

Check surroundings, quick, ready to cast a defensive spell if need be... assuming immediate safety, step away from portal exit so we're not falling all over ourselves coming through...

Spot and Listen checks. The Outlands are usually not too inhospitable, but a portal exit's a nice place for various opportunists to gather.

Kadar sighs and picks himself up, "Seems the cadence has a sense of humour." he mutters, "Ah well, it was worth a try. I, Kadar swear to exist and thereby cause and protect cosmic entropy."

Once the portal opens for him Kadar steps through and casts a wary eye at the 'warthogs' and edges away from them, attempting to avoid any eye contact.

[OOC- given I'm from the outlands do I automatically recognise these creatures, I assume they're fhorge's]

Once he feels secure Kadar attempts to get his bearings.

[given my survival skill level lets me know North on a prime I guess I should be able to figure out roughly what side of the ring we're on]

Kadar also takes a quick look at the birds to see if he recognises any of them as being dangerous

[Here's a few rolls in case I need them-

Knowledge Nature (untrained) (1d20+2=11)
survival (1d20+7=19)
Knowledge the planes (1d20+7=20)

Zhegre slogs his way out of the mud, happy to be in rather cleaner muck than where he just was. He's cheerfully looking forward to a campsite with washwater available as soon as possible. The animals seem calm and natural, which suits him just fine. (The Outlands are one of my two Knowledge (the Planes) specialties, so just taking 10 (total, 21) probably means I recognize them and whether there's any immediate danger.)

He takes a deep breath. Sure, it smells of warthog, but warthog ain't so bad compared to sewage. "Aahh... fresh air. Simple blessings are still best." With that, he absolutely cannot wait any longer, and as he waits for his friends he gets a helmet full of the cleanest water from the mudhole he can find (casting Purify Food and Drink if necessary), and cleans off his hands, the outside of his waterskin, his face, and, to whatever limited extent possible, his hair and beard. Alas, a real bath will probably have to wait for nightfall.

Zhegre does not have Survival, so he'll be very pleased if Kadar can reliably identify which way is Automata is. Come to think of it, he peers at P&~P; the exemplar might know which direction is Axiomatic from the Spire, at that. Hope Baba decides not to wait too long -- Zhegre will get quite worried if Linji and he don't come through!

M'rek winces as Kadar falls flat on his face and then bows down to help the big man up:

"I suppose it was my luck that you tried it first...I was just about to jump it myself...well, I guess it was worth a shot..."

He then watches as the big man picks himself up and saying the proper words passes through the portal...
He then turns to Baba, PEEP (as he calls P&~P), and Linji saying...well if no one minds, I could try the necklace, as it happens I have a neck and would enjoy the mistery of it - Did Zhegre at least detect the school of magic radiating from the periapt/necklace)?

"Hey, you guys take your time...I'll cross and then see if this damn portal is actually two ways...who knows, we might need it at some point"
With that he states solemnly:
"I M'rek, son of the Nathri, do hereby swear to preserve the multiverse in all its variety and glory, in as much as I am possible, and by doing so to protect and preserve entropy as a fundamental part of the all."

He will then cross the portal, and as soon as he is confident that there is no imediate danger on the othe side, attempt to cross back, if necessary saying the same oath, or one that is just the oposit with "order" instead of entropy..just to see if it opens...
The necklace he will put on when he manages to get a hint at least as to the sschool it belongs...

[OOC: I suppose you meant not a periapt of Wisdom, which is the only transmutation periapt... guess we know which one it is now. ;^) ]

Zhegre greets Kadar and P&~P as they come through, watches a hand small enough that it has to be M'rek's poke through the portal and pull back. He comments after Kadar's landmark-spotting, "I suppose we should have guessed that the portal would come out in this general area of the Outlands, giwen the nature of the required oath."

He combs muck out of his beard thoughtfully. "Most direct route to Automata is going to be cross-country, straight through heart of Spirelight. Baba and P&~P are primarily mages, so they would be rather hampered there, but we have enough bladeskill in group to handle kind of threats most commonly encountered in that wicinity -- and it might be handy to have the knowledgeable arcanists get a firsthand look at the expanding zone as we proceed on our mission."

"It might be faster to go through Sigil -- head for Plague-Mort and take portal to Foundry, then from there to Automata. But trawel time across Outlands can be tricky, ewen for short trips. Straight shot might be best. What do you say?"

Kadar strokes his chin for a moment before stating "We're in the same general region as my home village, I'm in no rush to go back there but I'd suggest we move a little spirewards before heading for Automata so we stay as far from Blood war raiding parties as possible. I'd prefer to go via Glorium myself, it's a little closer and it means we don't have to treck across the whole plane. On the other hand we could head for Iron ridge or Dwarven mountain and look for a portal there."

Kadar settles back and begins grooming his cloak which seems to be sulking because of all the caked on muck. Occasionally the cloak shakes and fluffs up in an attempt to help the cleaning process.

As the portal colapses M'rek looks around:

What happened to Linji? Maybe he found the portal before us and jumped through ahead?
And then with a very fast and somewhat startling change of mood he turns to baba with a mischivous grin on his saw-toothed mouth:

Well, I guess that showed the portal who crumbled first, hm? But if we are going to camp we better start moving. Linji or his guiding spirit is bound to find us eventually, the ancesters willing...

"Heh," says Zhegre. "I would hardly have problem with making for realm of such ancient and rewered dwarven powers as Brightmantle," he touches his holy symbol in respect, "and for that matter there is small community of Ring-Giwers at the gambling halls there. But I am not sure there is portal to Sigil there, at least one commonly awailable to public. Bedlam, unpleasant as city may be, definitely has one. And it is probably closer."

He looks around. "I have slight preference for Bedlam route but am also fine with communal decision. M'rek, P&~P?"

Shaking the worst of the slime from his hair and coat almost like a dog, M`rek looks around full of wonderment, shoulders his crossbow and says:

"whichever way, we better start walking or riding now...otherwise we will never get there"...

Kadar shrugs and starts striding along at the pace of the slowest party member while keeping an eye out for any upcoming troubles

(Spot checks below)

Spot (1d20+6=20, 1d20+6=14, 1d20+6=21, 1d20+6=11, 1d20+6=9)

Kadar takes a look around Passway and tries to remember what he's heard about it.

Spot Check (1d20+6=7)

Knowledge checks on Pass-way

Knowledge (the planes) check on Passway - take 10 for 19

Knowledge (Sigil & Gate-towns) check on Passway - take 10 for 16
(I think this replaced Knowledge (local)

”No no no no! Not that way! Bad surface beast, bad!”

Polp pulled futilely at the pack saddle and then tried pushing instead, leaning his tiny frame towards the beast of burden, only to finally skip and slide, landing face first into the mud and let out an incoherent curse in Druidic.

By the ancestors, these creatures are frustrating! How did that human beast trader order it to move? Polp thought to himself, as he got up and brushed off mud from his clothes.
Ah, no, that was me he ordered to move, he realized, as he recalled the trader’s last words: “Now pike it, ye soddin’ clueless earth-vermin, and take the blasted thing with ye!”

As he paused to consider the situation, doubt began to fill his mind as to whether he had been “peeled”, as these dreamers put it:
It must climb horribly in tunnels with those bony stumps on its limbs. Probably stumbles blindly around in darkness too… Perhaps I was wrong to leave the home gardens...

Polp sat on a stone nearby to clean his gear off a bit more and sighed, while a group of human children played around with small marbles nearby.
Stupid light gravity messes with your feet… If I took the beast back home it would likely drop to the ground and crawl around, like an elemental trying to glide through a metal vein.

Only then, did he realize that the beast was gone, having wandered off without Polp’s help, along with his pack, rations and other heavy gear.

“Oh no no no no no! Come back surface beast! Stay put!” he shouted, and quickly caught up. As he grabbed hold of the pack saddle once more, he noticed that the children had stopped playing and now were staring Spireward from crates and house corners. Polp’s large ears caught the sound of a mixed group of creatures approaching the village, and at the distant clank of armor and weapons he instinctively looked for a position to hide.

He dared a look and saw the unusual group of humanoids walking into the central “square” of the village houses, when he suddenly recognized the dwarf.

“By the ancestors… Mister Zhegre!” he yelled out and waved his hand. Polp darted towards his old friend, when he recalled how tall races usually instinctively reached for their weapons when one of his kin ran at top speed towards them.

-

The small, thin and gray-skinned humanoid, with a face vaguely reminiscent of a bat with oversized dark brown eyes, very large ears, and strange, flexible limbs skids to a halt a bit before the travellers. The peculiar-looking creature is a shad, male, by the look of it.
His ears are adorned with quite a great deal of earrings and piercings, many made of precious metals and of exotic and varied design. One of them hanging from his left ear particularly catch on-lookers attention: made by Solanian Truesteel, it’s designed like a tiny cylindrical cage with a small hatch at the top end, and it appears to hold miniscule green seeds.
The shad wears wide and loose brown pants, and a black vest with quite a few pockets holding small bottles and pouches. A dark gray cloak, slightly too long it seems, is fastened by his shoulders, and small specially designed bolt quivers are secured by the lower part of his legs. A sturdy wooden shield is strapped on his back, along with a heavy crossbow, and a scabbard holding a suitably sized blade is at his side.

Polp flashes a cautious smile and bows deeply, his many exotic earrings jingling slightly.
“So good to see Mister Zhegre again! So good, so good! The Planes are not that big after all, it seems!”

To Zhegre’s companions, Polp bows once more, a bit more at ease as he sees how many of them are only slightly taller than himself, and that none of them seem ready to backhand him yet.
“Forgive my rude manners, travellers. I am Polp Stingsong, tunnel-runner of Gemstone Gardens, at your service.”

As an afterthough, Polp presents the donkey behind him as well, even as it is wandering in the opposite direction:
“This is Polp’s Friendly Surface Beast, but as of late he is more behaving as Polp’s Frustrating Surface Beast... Hey, wait… Get back here, surface beast! Bad surface beast!”

(By the way, Polp... we seriously stink right now. :^) )

"Bozhe moi! Polp, is that you? Here on Great Ring? Ho, we leave one comrade on Ooze and come across another that ewening on Outlands. Unity of Rings, indeed!"

Zhegre turns to his companions. "I met the young fellow during my sojourn on Earth. He is good people, and he knows his way around a tunnel fight. I believe the Planes do not like Linji's space being left empty on our quest. If no one has any objections, I think we should explain our need and ask him to join us...."

He dismounts from the steed and turns to Polp. "And while we are telling the story, my friend, if you have been in town long enough to know where there is lodging with hot baths and hopefully equipment to do some laundry, we would all be blessedly grateful."

Entirelly caked in a greenish mud, the byproduct of ooze remnants and the dust from the road, M`rek grins a wide grin at Polp, already enjoying himself with the felows antics...

"welcome and a good crossing it be! If you can point us toward water all the better. What are you? And where are you from? No offense in asking, but I have never seen the likes of you even in Sigil! Do you know where this gate leads? What about food?"

The unrelated stream of questions will continue for a while until M`reks curiosity is satisfied!

In between gate research, lodging, bath, laundry, another bath, reminiscences, and hearing about the locals, Zhegre will pitch in the story of what has happened since he came to be with the group, including the mission they're on. He'll also be interested in hearing yours: he hadn't heard yet about the rest of the group being shoved through the Ooze portal by people with intent!

"Is that so?" he sits up. "Interesting... I wonder, then, if old man was simply taking adwantage of who Prowidence had dropped in his lap, or if that means there are people in Sigil who wanted you, personally, inwolw-*cough* entangled in this matter."

And then he gets to hear about what happened yesterday...

M`rek looks at Polp fascinated, it is as if looking at a fellow Nathri!!
While stories are being told he will happily add his coments or detailsm, never embelishing, but with a flair for mixing precision, meaning and understandability that peoples with oral traditions often have.

Speaking about his people he will also coment to polp that the Nathri too are guided by their ancestor spirits, much in the same way as the Shad, and there are stories of a lost tribe of Nathri folk that leaves somewhere hidden in the multiverse...perhaps the two could be related? Would not that be amazing? Do the Shad also like to swap stories? Where was their home world? Has he heard of the Nathri? what about these druids? Who were they? And, well, maybe this fortuitous meeting on a road IS an omen of warning also for his people? Maybe Polp was meant to leave his garden and meet those attempting to solve the mystery of the destruction of the multiverse...
The chating will go on and on, including through dinner and bath, if Polp seems amenable to the idea, M`rek is homesick and seems to relate well to the like-sized, chatty, funny fellow!

[Oh, and Hide check to not be spotted from beyond the window as well.]