[IC] New Crobuzon & the World Beyond

[Selina Parcellus]

"You misunderstand me.  I was simply stating that I had one question owed to me by the ambassador.  Not that I needed to ask him one more question.  As for what next must be done, you and/or your friends must provide the ambassador with sufficient information about your world.  When you have completed the exchange in information, the ambassador will pardon you and your friends, including the individuals hiding out at the scientist's loft for the crimes of breaching and weakening this world's dimensional barriers and for terrorism.  This will of course save you from ReMaking which is usually the punishment for every major crime and some not so major.  But let me be clear... he has not promised to actually send you home.  If he could do this then he could simple visit your world himself to sate his curiosity.  He is also not protecting you from punishment for further crimes.  Nor will he create or have someone create a scenario where you will be charge for bogus crimes.  But you will have to find your own way home." 

Selina nods her understanding, again appreciative of the Magistrate for continuing to deal honestly with her and her companions.  He may have been trying to play Devil's Advocate in another game, as this situation seemed to Selina to be wheels within wheels, but she would gladly latch onto the nearest honest dealer within range.  She nods to Betimi's idea, but is unsure if it will be enough for the Ambassador, yet she is hopeful.  This is, undoubtedly, a trap and an interrogation.  The Ambassador was using them as a sponge for information in a quest to journey across multiple realms and lay conquest to them.  Despite this, she knows their time is running out and provides what information she can about Home without providing too much, if she can.

"Our home is a land of green valleys and snow-covered peaks, blue oceans, thick forests, and bustling hamlets.  Great castles surrounded by immense walls dot the landscape.  There is great culture and religion within my home, love of humanity and decency..."  She continues to tell him, in vague terms, all about Prime Material Plane, without getting into specifics.  Truly, a lot can be said about an entire world without delving into specifics about defenses, crime, corruption, greed, graft, and the like.  She avoids these, relying on the Magistrate to stop her from going over her time limit.  She tells the Ambassador about her time in the monastery, not telling him where it is to be found, its defensibility, or anything tactical of that sort.

((Please do tell me if I need to actually go into specifics in my post.  Oh...and another thing:
It's a TARP! ))

[GM Marvel]

"And my question remains, I can tell him of my home.. the Far Realm. What would he like to know. I know he understood the question.

The ambassador gazes at you blankly.  "I'm aware of the birth place of aberrations.  All cosmologies are 'threatened' by the Far Realm.  I actually admire the work of the uvuudaum.  But I'm more interested in how the Far Realm interacts with your Prime Dimension.  It does have a penchant for breaking into reality at various points in the Underdark, does it not?"
 

"The medieval world of Eberron is a place of magic and monsters, where arcane energy infuses the landscape and greatly influences society and industry. Thanks to a mastery of the arcane arts, the great cities of the continent of Khorvaire contain skyscraping castles, elemental-powered coaches and carriages, and all manner of enchanted conveniences. Magic is industry across the face of Eberron, the innovative spark that propels society forward." Eberron Campaign Setting, pg 8   Hehehe

The ambassador does not appear impressed by your description of Eberron.  Nevertheless Forge does have an uneasy feeling.  You wonder if this is what a small animal feels when its slowly being circled by a predator.  When you're finished the ambassador replies quietly, "Tell me more about, you."

"Our home is a land of green valleys and snow-covered peaks, blue oceans, thick forests, and bustling hamlets.  Great castles surrounded by immense walls dot the landscape.  There is great culture and religion within my home, love of humanity and decency..."  She continues to tell him, in vague terms, all about Prime Material Plane, without getting into specifics.  Truly, a lot can be said about an entire world without delving into specifics about defenses, crime, corruption, greed, graft, and the like.  She avoids these, relying on the Magistrate to stop her from going over her time limit.  She tells the Ambassador about her time in the monastery, not telling him where it is to be found, its defensibly, or anything tactical of that sort.

((Please do tell me if I need to actually go into specifics in my post.  

Seemingly satisfied with your description, the ambassador slowly nods and then turns his gaze onto another one of your party.  You wished you had paid more attention about the outer planes when you were in Seminary training.  Instead you focused on History and Religion.  But you seem to remember from your Religious texts that the incredible age of some of these creatures had bestowed upon them great patience and an uncanny ability to extract information from even the most innocent statements and behavior.  You hope that if you were correct about the daemon's intentions to use this information for some kind of invasion, that you said enough to satisfy your agreement but not so much that he learnt how to begin offering bargains and harvesting souls in new worlds.

Oh...and another thing:
It's a TARP! ))

[Forge]

Forge had some questions of his own but they could wait.  With the near expressionless face that he had, Forge shows no sign of being unnerved by the ambassador of hell despite feelings to the contrary.

"This one's name is Forge, I was trained to fight and to serve.  Like all my kind I was born from the Creation Forges of House Cannith."  It was strange to tell this ambassador of memories from so long ago but Forge forged on.  "I was good with the hammer and could repair my comrad...." Forge's voice falters.  "My comrades, after battles..."  His softly glowing blue eyes fall down to his hands, but instead of seeing his pitted and blemished adamantine fingers he saw something else that the others did not.  A greatsword in one hand and his number two, Hammer, in the other. "Hammer." He says softly. Hammer's eyes looked back at him like black pits of coal.  The fires of his forge gone out.  A spear jutted out his neck.  Forge looks back up, where the faces of his new comrades were, other faces came to mind instead.  Over-top Selina's face and armor appeared Steelbones, was he alive? "Steelbones, is that you? No, you died by magefire."  Betimi's black eyes stared back at him but they were not Betimi's but the empty eyes of one of his many long dead human commanders.  Blood oozed out of her mouth and maggots wormed in her eye-sockets, her hair matted and sticking with life-blood.  Everywhere he looked everyone was a memory of loss and death.  Every face came back to haunt him.  Outside the glowing circle was even more darkness, a vast emptiness of nothingness.  Forge spun around looking anywhere for it all to go away. "NOOOOOOO!"  He shouted and clutched his head but his hands they were covered in blood.  He began rubbing them together.  "I can't, get it, off.  Too, much, blood."  He said as he scratched and scrubbed at his hands, trying to wash away the phantoms...

[Betimi]

"And my question remains, I can tell him of my home.. the Far Realm. What would he like to know. I know he understood the question.

The ambassador gazes at you blankly.  "I'm aware of the birth place of aberrations.  All cosmologies are 'threatened' by the Far Realm.  I actually admire the work of the uvuudaum.  But I'm more interested in how the Far Realm interacts with your Prime Dimension.  It does have a penchant for breaking into reality at various points in the Underdark, does it not?"
 

"It does, and it has, and it will do so with increasing frequency as long as these instabilities increase. And not just the prime, but all cosmologies. Your Hell is as imperiled as the Prime is. And as evil as your kind may be, you have rules, and that makes you.. and Selina may think me mad for saying it.. that makes you the lesser evil. My creators are the greater, as they want to twist even your kind to their perversions. I have faced into the oblivion and slept there, it is peaceful when compared with the rebirthing and reshaping. It has actually been a relief, this most recent reshaping, though it had I not escaped with my baby, it meant a life as breeding stock." 

"I wonder what the daelkyr would reshape such a being as yourself into? Perhaps a beholder-kin eyeball, weak and nigh powerless, only able to watch and not make bargains or bend the world to your will, or maybe into an infant, or larvae. Their whims are chaos.."

[Betimi]

Forge had some questions of his own but they could wait.  With the near expressionless face that he had, Forge shows no sign of being unnerved by the ambassador of hell despite feelings to the contrary.

"This one's name is Forge, I was trained to fight and to serve.  Like all my kind I was born from the Creation Forges of House Cannith."  It was strange to tell this ambassador of memories from so long ago but Forge forged on.  "I was good with the hammer and could repair my comrad...." Forge's voice falters.  "My comrades, after battles..."  His softly glowing blue eyes fall down to his hands, but instead of seeing his pitted and blemished adamantine fingers he saw something else that the others did not.  A greatsword in one hand and his number two, Hammer, in the other. "Hammer." He says softly. Hammer's eyes looked back at him like black pits of coal.  The fires of his forge gone out.  A spear jutted out his neck.  Forge looks back up, where the faces of his new comrades were, other faces came to mind instead.  Over-top Selina's face and armor appeared Steelbones, was he alive? "Steelbones, is that you? No, you died by magefire."  Betimi's black eyes stared back at him but they were not Betimi's but the empty eyes of one of his many long dead human commanders.  Blood oozed out of her mouth and maggots wormed in her eye-sockets, her hair matted and sticking with life-blood.  Everywhere he looked everyone was a memory of loss and death.  Every face came back to haunt him.  Outside the glowing circle was even more darkness, a vast emptiness of nothingness.  Forge spun around looking anywhere for it all to go away. "NOOOOOOO!"  He shouted and clutched his head but his hands they were covered in blood.  He began rubbing them together.  "I can't, get it, off.  Too, much, blood."  He said as he scratched and scrubbed at his hands, trying to wash away the phantoms...

Betimi interrupts her story to lay a hand on Forges torso, hoping he does not strike at her in his delirium, hoping that his new commander, Selina, might be able to calm him. 

"Remember your duty Forge.  Use it to steady yourself. Focus on your orders. look there is a young kobold to protect."

[Kee]

Kee step forward and speaks a few sentence about his childhood he puts the focus to the nature part: - I come from the far east where we live near to the Jungle. The Jungle is so beautiful it is full of unique birds and other animals and there is some orchidea the blue is the rarest, ...

[Nacesh]

Nacesh didn't have much to add to the conversation. His life from the Academy to the Company was pretty much empty of any true experience to share. Talking about himself? An ordinary human? He didn't think it was the least bit interesting to this devil. Unless, of course, the Ambassador wanted to soak in names. Names of places, people, relics... He remembered his parents, really nothing worth mentioning. The teachers of the academy, some of them may be great wizards but are they really so significant in the bustling world of Cantus? And of course he remembered all his romantic excursions. well, he certainly didn't think that romance would have been something worth mentioning to this devil.

OOC - can't find my background story but as I recall it didn't really contain names. Maybe I should write a new one?

[Forge]

Forge feels a light touch and is afraid to look, to see the dead staring back at him.  The voice reminds him of his "duty" and of the kobolds.  He was not with the dead he reminds himself.  He was in a dark room with new companions.  Their lives were being bargained for and they needed him.  Forge pulls his hands away from his face and his eyes slowly open. "I will protect." He says to Betimi.  "Thank you for reminding me of my purpose."

[GM Marvel]

The Daemon listens closely to Forge's reply but it soon becomes obvious that while speaking about his past the sentient construct's mind was beginning to crack.  The ambassador waits for Forge to finish and Betimi to try to guide him into refocusing his thoughts.  He then asks, "Is losing ones mind a common trait among your kind or is it just yours?"  For a moment you think he might be trying to toss some sort of insult at you but quickly decide that that wasn't the case.  The ambassador truly seemed interested in what kind of being War Forged really are.

"It does, and it has, and it will do so with increasing frequency as long as these instabilities increase. And not just the prime, but all cosmologies. Your Hell is as imperiled as the Prime is. And as evil as your kind may be, you have rules, and that makes you.. and Selina may think me mad for saying it.. that makes you the lesser evil. My creators are the greater, as they want to twist even your kind to their perversions. I have faced into the oblivion and slept there, it is peaceful when compared with the rebirthing and reshaping. It has actually been a relief, this most recent reshaping, though it had I not escaped with my baby, it meant a life as breeding stock." 

"I wonder what the daelkyr would reshape such a being as yourself into? Perhaps a beholder-kin eyeball, weak and nigh powerless, only able to watch and not make bargains or bend the world to your will, or maybe into an infant, or larvae. Their whims are chaos.."

If Betimi was hoping for some kind of reaction from the Daemon about the horrors of her birth place or to insult him by describing the small creature he might become, he does not take the bait.  The ambassador simply shrugs his shoulder's slightly and offers her the tiniest of smiles before replying, "Every creature has its place in the universe.  Some are of great importance while others are simply cogs and diodes in this universal machine that makes up reality.  It is not my place to decide where you or I will fit into history.  If you feel it is your place to contemplate such things then be my guest.  But I've been governed to concern myself with simpler matters."

Kee step forward and speaks a few sentence about his childhood he puts the focus to the nature part: - I come from the far east where we live near to the Jungle. The Jungle is so beautiful it is full of unique birds and other animals and there is some orchidea the blue is the rarest, ...

[OoC: Was the "..." meant to convey you were continuing to describe your world of origin in detail to the ambassador's satisfaction?"]

The Daemon listens to your words with continued interest.  If not mentioned, he asks the name of your world [the name of everyone's world, actually].  And requests detailed information about the different types of sentient creatures unique to each of your worlds of origin.  Personal information [except for maybe Forge] was not something the ambassador was particularly interest in and he quickly steers all conversations back to each of your individual home worlds and what makes them unique.  If he senses [his Sense Motive as well as otherworldly senses are phenomenal] that any of you are purposely offering uninteresting information he will just politely listen without moving on to the next party member.  With Varsetty growing nervousness you quickly realize that the ambassador is more then willing to allow the time to run out before granting your request to be pardoned.

"Oh my stars!  Only 5 minutes left.  We have precious little time!" Varsetty hisses.

[Betimi]

Having no loyalty to the daelkyr or their creations whatsoever, and in fact quite willing to let the Daemon's use whatever they could against the far realm, Betimi offers up information readily [OoC in her mind given the nature of the daelkyr and what she understands of devils, theworlds would e safer with the devils in charge than if the daelkyr get loose.]