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Post by Mubashir on Nov 25, 2022 0:30:30 GMT -5
The rumble stirred him from his millennial slumber. Mubashir awoke, the lid of his sarcophagus still tightly secured. Unfortunate... He thought to himself. Indeterminate passage of time had certainly been a dour delight indeed. It was, what, a thousand years since he had been locked in here? Thrown unto the sea of time by those who feared progress. Sad, he hoped at least his pyramid was still around him. The white sandstone was quite marvelous, and spoke greatly to the reverence his captors held for the man. Another rumble, this time larger, and he felt the whole sarcophagus sliding. It had been about seven hundred years since an approximate twenty-eight-degree tilt had occurred, putting him on a precarious position that had finally been set in motion. He slid a short distance, and then the coffin went into a long free fall. With a large c'thunk it landed in the soft white sand below. Wait....sand? There was no sand at the bottom of his pyramidal chamber...none at all, this was bad. Being buried in a pyramid was one thing, but sand was another entirely. People at the very least had a reason to search a pyramid, if his sarcophagus got buried in the desert it would be several more millennia at least before he was found.
Days passed, he could hear the soft flow of sand blow around his prison. A thousand years of silence at the top of a white sandstone pillar and it was incredibly irritating. Though now, there was something different. A rythmic thumping in the sand like...like.....footsteps? They were heavier than he remembered. Maybe the native population had grown several sizes in his absence. He began shouting and banging on his chained sarcophagus.
"Help me! Oh please help me! I've been trapped in this blasted tomb and wish not to die!"
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Nov 25, 2022 13:02:26 GMT -5
The discovery of a lost city was big news all across Charon. Explorers and treasure hunters alike rushed to the scene in a scramble to make history. Everyone soon discovered however that it wasn’t all gold coins and fedoras exploring the sunken city. Several cave ins had injured early entrants. Rescue teams had been sent in who themselves suffered casualties. After so many incidents, the local magistrates ordered the site closed until specialists could be called in. As a high Terramancer, the fighters guild elected Shaa to come and assess the situation to see if further exploring would be tenable. In particular, the guild was called as some of the early entrants gave reports of something living and moving further in.
Shaa had arrived at the camp and got the low down from a local representative named Fazeed. According to him, one of the more successful parties had made it all the way to a square with several buildings in it. This is where Shaa decided to start his exploration.
It had not taken very long to reach the square. It was a little worrying that so many parties had come before and yet had made so little progress inside the city. Shaa had done some regular checks and things looks fairly stable for the moment. But with so many things shifting in the sand, that could change in a heart beat.
Picking one of the larger more sturdier buildings, made of rock and Karen’s columns, Shaa proceeded to do room by room checks. After moving past several upturned religious artifacts, this appeared to be some sort of temple…or perhaps..a mausoleum. Not going to be disturbing anyone in here I hope. As Shaa moved through the room, he saw several sets of chains and bars. Wonder what this was all about? He asked himself curiously. Wait, something was there. Shaa pushed away some large debris and approached an ornate sarcophagus. As he moved closer, he heard a voice from inside. "Help me! Oh please help me! I've been trapped in this blasted tomb and wish not to die!"
Shaa nearly jumped out of his skin. All of the explorers had been accounted for so he wasn’t expecting to find anyone alive down here. Shaa had run into his fair share of the occult on his adventures and, more often than not, that had meant trouble. Shaa approached the sarcophagus carefully.
Hello? He asked knocking on the lid. Who are you?
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Post by Mubashir on Nov 26, 2022 16:27:07 GMT -5
My gods it was real. A real person just outside the stone prison he found himself in. Lunala be praised, he had had his doubts in the millennia of solitude, but his faith is restored. She has finally sent someone to free him from this stone tomb. Mubashir almost vibrated with excitement, now to just not mess it up.
"Ah! My good friend it iss a pleassure to hear your voice, you haven't the least idea. I am Mubasshir! Please, you must releasse me. I wass trapped in here by fools and zealotss, a cruel fate don't you agree?" This alone was probably the most exciting thing that had happened to him for the term of his imprisonment. There was that one decade when a lizard or something called the top of his sarcophagus home. It was an excruciating effort, several years tapping on the lid of the tomb to try and get the reptile to manipulate the chains around him. Fruitless in the end, but he had come to love Xalmann the lizard. "I beg of you, releasse me. Even if you dont trusst me, at leasst crack the lid. The air in here is sstifling and sstale. I would be forever in your debt!"(no relation to actual xalmann)
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Nov 26, 2022 18:46:32 GMT -5
Shaa had done some weird things in his travels. He was a little disturbed that talking to a box didn’t seem weird to him at all. He made it a point to make more normal friends in the future. His perspective was apparently pretty warped at this point. Oh well, might as well lean into it.
Shaa looked at the sarcophagus and the chains that held it shut. Someone somewhere wanted this guy in a box…but they couldn’t kill him outright. Could be for good reason. But there was a problem. As a matter of principle, Shaa HATED forced confinement. Whatever or whomever was in the box, being stuck in a box for who knows how long is just cruel. It was decided.
Ok man, here’s the deal. Whoever put you in the box is probably very very dead by now and so any sentencing should be done, right? Right. Shaa was thinking out loud now. Yup. Ok. I’m going to get you out of the box. If you attack me or go on a rampage or something, just understand I will tear all of your parts off and chuck them into a volcano I know. I don’t have many enemies because they are mostly bloody road smears at this point. So if you stay cool, we’re cool. Ok? Ok.
Shaa looked around for a solid rock. Finding one in the corner, he takes it and locates the locks on the chains holding the sarcophagus shut. With some well aimed strikes, the locks break off. The chains come sliding off in turn. Shaa sees some clasps on the sides. With a deep breath, he releases them and forces open the lid with a pop.
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Post by Mubashir on Nov 26, 2022 20:53:05 GMT -5
He could hear the chains thunking outside. Oh my Lunala what an exciting day. The man outsides distrust was apparent but warranted. He seemed to be a great warrior, at least according to his threats. Were he to step outside and see some halfling with a toothpick sword Mubashir did not think he could contain himself. He heard the scraping of metal falling off around his tomb, the unbridled joy welling inside him as the latch unclasped.
The dim light was blinding as the lid of the sarcophagus slid off the tomb and clattered to the ground on the other side. He pulled himself up excitedly, covering his eyes and looking about the room. Firstly, the large seven foot tall minotaur standing at the edge of the sarcophagus, his saviour. His grip on the ledge slipping slightly as he lifted himself out of the coffin, Mubashir collapsed on the ground before him. Ancient grey robes and a headwrap adorned his emaciated body, his skin cool and pale in the torchlight. He pulled himself up and threw his arms around the Minotaur, nearly in tears. "Oh Mr. Minotaur man, My appreciation for your good deed cannot be put into wordss my friend. I am forever indebted to you. Pleasse good ssir, pleasse tell me your name sso I may remember my ssaviour from this prison of sstone and ssteel" He composed himself, still hanging on to the bull man before him.
"The ones who ssealed me here were the sscaley folk who live here. They had me arressted and entombed when their high priesstss had accussed me of sslaying one of their own." A moment of silence passed, the implication of the statement just said hanging in the air.
"But it was falsse good sir! I sswear it! I had only just disscovered the body when I was ambusshed and thrown into thiss prisson of time!"
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Nov 27, 2022 0:43:37 GMT -5
Shaa looked at the man and did a quick threat assessment. On the plus side, he wasn’t attacking him or running off to pillage some village somewhere, so that was good. But Shaa wasn’t about to let his guard down just yet. My name? My name is…Shaa considered a little white lie just then. Just in case this guy did end up eating someone or sacrificing them to some demon somewhere, Shaa didn’t like the idea of being linked to that. Then again, he hated liars almost as much as imprisonment ( mostly because he was horrible at it) so the truth it was. Shaa. You can call me Shaa. Glad I could unstick you buddy. I’m not such a fan of lizard guys most of the time anyway.
Well this is not how Shaa thought this trip was going to go. Get in. Map some stuff. Stabilize some paths. Squish a few monsters. Get out. Busting into sarcophaguses and freeing random…whatever’s…was definitely not on his list. Now what was he supposed to do with this guy? Then it came to him.
Your name is Mubashir right? And you said you were from this city? The wheels turn in Shaa’s head. Well Mubs, I let you free, so I would imagine you owe me one or two thousand favors right? Well, I’m only going to ask you for only two. One. If anyone asks, you are now a nomad from Arid Mesa not a guy who was freed from an ancient prison by a Minotaur. Two. If you are from this city, can you show me around a bit and help me map this place? What do you say?
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Post by Mubashir on Nov 28, 2022 3:07:01 GMT -5
"Of coursse, of coursse! None will know of your involvement, though I have no grad illussionss of mayhem and desstruction. Sso it sshall be, A nomad from this "Arid Meessa" who wass in fact NOT freed from an ancient prisson by a minotaur. Pleasse, allow me to guide you through my humble abode." Shaa... saviour. The words were now synonymous to Mubashir. A magnanimous entity free from the conniving and the plotting of the various royalties he was previously acquainted with. He had even given Mubashir a silly shortened name! Though he did seem insistent that no one know it was he that saved him from a millennial prison. There was a misconception that he was familiar with this area however, he had honestly been thrown in the sarcophagus not even three days from arriving in this town.
"Well, ah...letss start with in here! This was my ssarcophagus, you can ssee the claw markss on the lid from me trying to esscape! It wassnt very roomy, but if you tried you could bend sso that your head wass where your feet were to be, and vice verssa. Keepss one limber!"
His exuberance was oddly placed, he had just gotten out not moments ago yet was only speaking of the prison. Could one feel Stockholms syndrome for a box? His eyes roved around for something else in the area he could ramble about, catching on some carvings the lizards had put on the surrounding walls. Probably not the best company to get into his past actions with... He pivoted and rushed out the sand filled ancient mausoleum. The tunnel ahead seemed to be dead ended by a collapsed obelisk. The carvings on it depicting a large fat salamander sitting atop a similarly huge ziggurat. The various lizardmen carved surrounding it appeared to be bowing in revere and worship.
"Aha, If i remember correctly, ahead liess the path to the god kingss temple. Itss magnificence and awe ssurely the thing for you intellectual types. However, I do believe thiss ssilly pillar does block our path. Maybe there'ss a way around it?"
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Nov 28, 2022 17:13:45 GMT -5
The god kings temple. That sounded as promising as anything else. The only question was this pillar. If it was just him, he would simply run through it but, just in case it was supporting the ceiling or something, that would probably not be the best move. Shaa put his hands on the pillar to get a better feel for it. To his surprise, he can tell that part of it is hollow. Feeling his way along the pillar, he finds a switch and pushes it with a sharp *click*. As he dies so, a panel swings open, leading to a path into the pillar itself. Ohh these lizard guys are sneaky. He thought aloud.
Motioning to Mubashir, Shaa ducks his head and carefully makes his way into the passage. He thanked Ginma for his excellent night vision. Despite the ability, Shaa could tell that the way in front of them was desperately black. Hey, how are you with the dark? Do you need a light or something? His new companion seemed ok so far in the dim of the ruins but he didn’t want to make any assumptions. Not to mention he still wanted to keep an eye on him just in case. It looks like the path is ending up ahead. Time to see what’s on the other side of this thing.
Ground Tremors 1/2 Night Vision Eyes
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Post by Mubashir on Nov 29, 2022 22:31:44 GMT -5
They crouched through the tunnel through the obelisk, Mubashir impressed that the beast man even fit. A thousand years of darkness had done little to enable him to see clearly through the inky black. Even the small amount of light in the tunnel the bull man came from was almost blinding, but he was slowly adjusting. He could feel the heat coming off of the minotaur's body as they made their way through the low tunnel. It had also been a thousand years since he had tasted the sanguine essence, surely this man had more than enough. Control yourself fool, one could easily be thrown back in the box for another thousand years. Escape first, feast later. He wiped the sweat from his brow and chuckled towards the minotaur as they crossed out of the tunnel into another apparently large area.
"Ah, unfortunately I cannot ssee in this darkness. Allow me but a moment" After a few awkward minutes of patting around the sand in the dark for a torch, He touched a wooden handle on the ground.
"Aha! The lizardmen were brilliant craftsscreaturess. Thiss little gadget is quite handy, ass well ass fortunate to have found on the ground right here. Luck truly is on my sside today iss it not! Look, if you can ssee in the dark that is, this ssmall metallic lever near the tip of the torch sshould jusst...There!"He clicked the metal lever, an aged and rusty squeak let out as the mechanism clicked. The spark produced slowly caught on the torch, throwing light out and illuminating the cavern.
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Nov 30, 2022 0:08:10 GMT -5
Shaa watched as the device clicked and burst into flaming life. Hey that’s pretty neat. Not really useful for me as I can see in the dark. He decides to emphasize the point. I can see really well in the dark. I can see everything. I am a very very hard person to surprise, to be clear. Shaa stares at him for a moment until he is sure he gets his meaning then takes his first look around.
The cavern was on the on the smaller side with a singular exit at the back, sealed by a wooden door. Shouldn’t be too hard to get through. With the light of torch illuminating the cavern, Shaa can see more art on the ceiling. There were pictures of more lizard people. Lizard people worshiping. Lizard people praying. Lizard people eating other people. Shaa looked again at the depictions and cringed. Whoever these lizard people were, they were not friendly.
Looks like you made it out better than most. Apparently you could have been someone’s snack. Shaa got a chill down his spine. Let’s get out of the murder cavern.
Shaa walked over to the small wooden door and smashed it open. There was another small tunnel that lead to a much larger cavern. Ohh, now that looks like a temple.
Night Vision Eyes
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Post by Mubashir on Nov 30, 2022 0:59:14 GMT -5
He shrunk a bit at the Minotaur's threat, smiling nervously as the sweat beaded down his brow. This Minotaur could crush him in an instant, surely not one to be trifled with. The implication came across crystal clear, and Mubashir would just have to wrench his clothes in hand to suppress the instincts.
"Heh...of course Sshaa. How foolissh of me, to assume you needed a torch that iss." His elation for freedom was significantly depressed by his new buddy's distrust. Musnt disappoint saviour. The door smashed open as they entered the next area of the complex, Mubs wincing with the crash. Hopefully he had not angered his new friend, he would find a way to make it up to Shaa. The torchlight glittered against gold in the darkness, not illuminating enough of the structure to see the major pieces. Its reflections like starlight in the cavern as the pair approached, Mubashir walking slightly behind Shaa, who truly did seem enamored with the structure unseen. The golden stairwell became apparent as they approached, flanked by several ancient braziers long since extinguished on either side. The carvings in the temple walls were exotic and masterful, depictions of rituals, great kings, conquered enemies, and countless sacrifices. "There it iss, the Temple of Huztluctlotl. Its majessty eternally presserved in this ssodden cavern. The sstairss lead up to the throne, it iss where they ssaid the God King conferred with the sspiritss. None were allowed to ssummit its sstepss asside from the head priesst."
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Nov 30, 2022 8:35:59 GMT -5
Shaa looked at the stairs that ascended to the temple. None can go up but a guy who had likely been dead for several hundred years hunh? Sounds like a place of interest for the book guys. Shaa had decided not to spend any more time down here than necessary. He figured if he found 3 places of interest and secured the route to all three, then that would fulfill the commission. The sooner he could finish up and get back to the surface the better. Then there was Mubs.
He hadn’t done anything wrong, yet, and he seemed to be a pretty nice guy. Shaa was starting to feel a bit guilty for being so rough with a poor guy that’s been stuck in a box for so long. But that was the issue wasn’t it? A group of very killy lizard guys don’t kill this guy, they chain him in a box. Why do that unless you CANT murder someone or let them go either? And how do you stay alive for that long in a box in a sunken city long since dead? These were the questions that were gnawing at him. Questions that needed answers.
Say Mubs. I know you said the lizard guys stuck you in the box. And while I’m glad I was able to help. I am curious. How does one stay alive in a box for years? I don’t mean to pry but, what are you and how did you get here originally? I would appreciate a little bit more detail if you don’t mind.
As the pair approached the temple, Shaa noticed two large statues with a sword and spear respectively, flanking either side of the staircase.
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Post by Mubashir on Nov 30, 2022 22:19:17 GMT -5
The gears turned in his mind, this must be a test to see how well he was listening. His saviour was cunning in his evaluations of Mubashir.
"Ah, my friend. I was not ssaved from a ssarcophagus by a Minotaur. I am a ssimple nomad from the "Areed Messsa". I have lived this long due to being afflicted with the ssanguine cursse of undeath." There, his new identity would take some getting used to, but it was the price he would pay for freedom. As the pair approached the gilded stairway, the pair of statues began to make a creaking sound. Stone rubbed on stone as dust fell off the constructs as they turned towards them. Slowly, the sword and the spear creaked back, and with a short pause at the end erupted forward, attacking the dynamic duo. It was all Mubashir could do to blink into mist fast enough to avoid the stone lizard from stabbing him with the spear. His misty form flew backwards to create distance. His ethereal form shouted at Shaa, the voice echoey and distant.
"Beware Sshaa! Thesse creations are new, not pressent at the time of my entombment. Who knowss what dissasstrouss featss they might be capable of! Run, Sshaa, Run!"
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Post by Shaa Rhunn on Dec 1, 2022 0:34:54 GMT -5
Shaa rolls out of the way just in time as the giant sword and spear slam into the pavement. Fortunately for Shaa, the goliaths were big but they were slow. He really didn’t feel like getting squished today. Umm that would have been good to know Mubs….Mubs? As the titans rolled back around towards him, Mubs was no where to be seen. Agggh for the love of Ginma.
Shaa takes off up the temple steps. The two come following him, close behind, their thunderous footsteps crashing along. Easy mission they said. Everything down there has been dead for years, they said. Just some caves and easy mapping my furry back side! Shaa dodged behind a pillar as a giant sword came crashing down, cleaving stone and cement. What? You guys don’t have any rules about breaking your own temple? Seems pretty darn hypocritical to me? Like what’s the point of defending something if you are just going to smack it. The sword comes crashing down again, cleaving more of the pillar. Well, since you seem so determined, let me help you!
From the other side of the pillar, Shaa backs up and rushes right into it. As he does so, he crashes through the pillars foundation causing it to topple towards the already sword damaged side. The giant cannot move fast enough to avoid the falling stone as it gets crushed under the weight of the pillar. The second statue backs up slightly as Shaa dusts off his shoulder. Ohhh not so stabby now are we?
Juggernaut Force of Nature
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Post by Mubashir on Dec 1, 2022 2:16:54 GMT -5
Aha! His saviour was certainly one of strength and power. He destroyed that guardian like it was nothing! Now it is Mubashirs turn. He rematerialzed from the mist, feeling the adrenaline course through his veins and increasing his speed to inhuman heights. Dashing forward he raced towards the spear guardian, an early stab had stuck its spear in the ground. Before it began slowly grinding the stones in its arm to retract it, Mubashir lept, running up the length of the shaft and grabbing on to its lizardman head. He sat on the statues shoulders and held on by wrapping his arm around the snout. Its golden eyes inlaid with several small emeralds, and its engraved snarl unmoving with gold capped stone teeth. He slapped a hand on its head and began attempting to drain it. A moment or two passed and it retracted the spear from the ground with a clunk. It's head began rattling about and slowly turned independent of the body similarly to an owl to stare at the emaciated vampire. The mouth opened slowly as beads of sweat began to pour from his forehead. Shit Shit Shit. This isnt working he thought as he lept from the construct with a quickness, only dodging the spewed flames by moments. Or so he thought, the singed ends of his ancient robes smoked as he quickly batted out the flame on his leg wraps. Vampiric touch Raw Speed
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