"Dead? Dead?!"
A'Kin, the Friendly Fiend, was dead. Slain in the prime of life... er, well, the middle of some sort of horrifying unlife, but either way.... Without him, the Cage would be at a loss at where to find half-priced magical knick knacks and full-priced semi-arcane toffees - what's more, Eye would have to go to Plan B.
The modrons who had traveled to Sigil were broken up. Now only Ki, Kilojoule, and SIDREM remained, their associates having been moved to other places for whatever nebulous reasons. A trio of new modrons had been brought in, bringing the squadron back up to six individuals.
They were:
Sidrem - Spiked modron of stealth and deception.
Ki - Skilled hand-to-hand combat unit.
Kilojoule - Cuboidal arcanist with his gear spirit companion.
5MRA - Lord of dust and gloominess.
Hex - Ex-Hexton energy portal.
And....
Artifice - Spell-sucking thaumo-junky.
And so this team of new characters was given a new mission by their monocular lord. Without A'kin's assistance, the device which they had managed to retrieve was quite without use. Yet Eye knew of a place where the proper materials to calibrate it existed.
"The Crawling City of Gehenna," the monodrone said with what appeared to be a critical lack of concern. "There is a Sage known as Bart'Lus, he should have what we need."
And what was it they needed? For once, Eye explained exactly what their goal was.
"In an age past, He worked on the creation of a secondary Orrery, though for what purpose is unclear. A great battle stirred up between We and they, and He was destroyed in the shuffle. Time passed, He returned, but this great experiment was forgotten and allowed to float away into the ethers."
"It is referred to as the "Observatorium" in some worlds. In its most basic sense, it is a free-roaming demiplane that darts around, never staying in one place longer than a few hours. It contains an Orrery quite similar to that in the Great Temple. It will be an integral piece in the creation of a home realm for our new collective."
"This Bart'Lus has records and information that date back to the original construction of the device. Hopefully, he can utilize his knowledge to calibrate the detection device and allow us to pinpoint its location."
And so they had their background and their mission. Eye related to them a portal in the Lady's Ward that would bring them directly inside the Crawling City. In addition, he gave each of them magical gift to assist them in their travels.
To Hex he gave a Modron Scope: Lens of the Horizon and a pair of Mystical Gloves (Dex +2). To artifice a Rope of Climbing. Sidrem received a magical Cap of Disguise and Kilojoule received a mystical Pearl (Pearl of Power, 1st-level) in addition tot he Device of Planar Detection. Ki was given a Backpack with far more room within than without and an Amulet that increased his protections (Amulet of Natural Armor +1). To Artifice he gave a magic cloak (of RESISTANCE +1) and to 5MRA he gave a Robe of Bones.
And then they wer eon their way. Back in Sigil, they stood on the verge of an archway in the Clerks Ward. The portal key was a scream, and beyond, laid the Crawling City of Gehenna. ONWARDS TO ADVENTURE!
((Yea, yea, the equipment is exactly even or any of that. Bah. BAH I SAY!))
(ooc: "The Crawling City of Gehenna," the monodrone said with what appeared to be a critical lack of concern. "There is a Sage known as Bart'Lus, he should have what we need."
We're going What. Where!? *stares at GM* So dead.
)