Zeitgeist Blue

I'll give this a few days to stew in case anyone wants to interact or take some proactive action. Otherwise, I'd kick it into gear then.

Notice: 1d20+3 = 13

Ouroboros touches the broken pinion and in short order you see the vampire's particular dimension flow into the cracks and crevices, filling the bronze workings with negative energies, polishing it into a shiny black glow. An unholy contraption, a fix that would not last. It was set into a foundation that threatened to explode at the wrong touch... but it was certainly more than enough for now. Then the whole-yet-still-broken pieces were slotted into place and the gears began their slow turn to life. And the doorway once inert and leading nowhere but a wall, flickered open. Energy, white, and electricity contained. The entrance to the subsequent dimension stood ready for use. Through the doorway to the Forcefield dimension the sound of pistons jackhammering continued. It reached a crescendo, getting louder, and at its height the room seemed to respond physically. A crack went from the doorway, and it snaked its way up the wall into the cieling. The gears above swayed perilously and off to the side one fell down and crashed down with a shower of sparks. Then the pistons dissipate, softer than before, as if the effort could not be maintained. What now?

GM Healer Anne stares at you for a second before she relents. <Alright, fine.> She waves you inside the hut. <If Doji's one to send you then maybe you aren't so bad. Just don't mess up or you're gone faster than you could say 'Ouch'.> Inside, there is a row of patients, all in different states of health and care. Some are covered in bandages all around their torso, red with blood. Others have wounds that seem to have mostly healed, and they lay down on their cots peacefully. You lend your hands to a pair of assistants and Anne goes back to her work. The assistants bandage wounds, rewrap bandages, apply salves, and help the injured drink water. They give their patients what seems to be the concoctions, which put their patients into a near sleep. Healer Anne meanwhile, when she isn't working on creating more potions, walks among the mats where the injured lie, treating the worst looking among them. You don't know their medical practices, but some things are universal, and you are able to bandage some of the wounded. Anne looks over your shoulder a few times but leaves with nothing more than a huff. An hour or so after you had begun, Neil enters the hut, receiving the same treatment you had from the healer. He begins work he same as you do until he is beside you, muttering something about not being able to sleep. He grimaces as you lay out your plan. "Sounds like it would achieve nothing, honestly. Traps and snares..." He sighs. "This isn't a dear we're trapping, or even a bear. Walking around alone's going to " "If it's following us then it seems like the best plan is to get the hell out of dodge." He points at your ring. "Only thing worth following for. Maybe it wants that, maybe not. I'm no expert on the supernatural. But, sure, I'll go with you if it'll get you peace of mind."

It isn't part of the suit. First thing you notice as you poke through it. It feels different. Foreign. Artifacts have signatures and every dimension, though different seemed to be suffused with a common element. Not this spell. And you sense a presence there, like a set of eyes watching, but you are able to skirt around it. It seems to be intelligent, maybe? Or perhaps it is automated. From what you can tell without alerting the pair of eyes it leads towards the Inner Forcefield dimension. There could be more information but you doubt you could find it without anouncing your presence to whatever's inside. As to fixing it without breaking anything, well, Ouroboros fix of the other doorway seems to have done well enough. What's the worst that could happen?

As Sam continued to tell his story Nicole's hackles rose. Her fingers rubbing through her hair as the story unfolded and she understood more of where Sam would be getting at. There was stupid and there was hubris. There was being a thirsty AF boy. There was being a loser. Then there was all four combined and now Sam was just running for his life while the rest of the hacks at the Hidden Covenant were what? They didn't even have the competence to summon the succubus right! Sam better not be here just to beg them to clean up their mess. "You what?" Nicole shouted, incredulous that they somehow managed to screw up as badly as she feared they did. "You are losers! Stupid stupid losers! You mess up this badly and now, what? Come begging for mommy to kiss your boo-boo?" Nicole drove up to Sam to snatch the tome out of his hand when Sam's scream stopped her. Then what stood in front of her wasn't Sam anymore and when it spoke in its unearthly voice the lights flickered. Nicole could feel its gaze fall upon her and she squeaked, eyes wide. She was practically face-to-face with it. Her hand groped for the joystick and rammed her wheelchair in reverse to get the hell out as fast as she could. "Damnitdamnitdamnit." She drove past Pan as the sophomore threw his Pixie Dust at the possessed Sam. She drove past Selena and Lulu, ready to throw down, and she kept on driving backwards out the common room and around the dark corridor until she bumped into something hard, stopping her wheelchair in its tracks. She looked up to see Bellios behind her. Inert. Waiting. Her hands reached out to pull herself up.

There are actually two pinions. One's broken but being held up by something's magic and it powers a doorway to the Inner Forcefield and the other is broken and going to the Electronic Defense System. Which one are you trying to fix or you trying for both? Some stuff will come up depending on what it is you try. *** In either case you do manage to fix what you set out to with both your Mage sight and Veronica's as a second opinion. Creating an artifact is kind of like a ritual of sorts, you've got to get the right measurements and the right ingredients and bring them all together in the right way and right situation to fit. Don't forget the incantations. Luckily, your Heal power gives you the ability to create the ingredients and the mage sight, what measurements. Except this ritual is one of stone and steel, of gears and micro-fractions. Luckily the void energies work as a stopgap measure and it holds, a mixture of bronze and nothingness, before ever slowly starting to pick up in speed.

Snakebite is no stranger to the strange and hidden artifacts dead civilizations have left in their wake. This single man-made ring is of similar nature, though it is only a matter of understanding its specific function. What Snakebite knows. 1. Hakan had created this ring using, according to the Paruma, already ancient magic he does not understand. 2. Both Kayara and the Paruma are bound to this ring. 3. It seems to weld itself to whoever enters the temple. 4. With it comes visions of the past. 5. Other weird things like Kayara's zombie-thing appearing, dreams about Neil coming at you with a gun and the jungle growing, and Doji as a young man seem to also be related to it. Therefore, it seems that this ring acts as an absorber of past events. There are many ways to but the specifics of how this ring does escapes you. Perhaps it was from all the millennia it and the temple's inhabitants has spent, revisiting old memories. Perhaps it has gained the power over the years or had it from the start. In any case, it bleeds through into your head and you are beset with visions. From how the Paruma seems to have come ahead of you, perhaps the ring also acts as a beacon for those it is bound to. Maybe you dragged the Paruma here, or maybe even freed it from its temple-prison. But where has Kayara gone to then? Was the ring, and not the temple, the true prison after all? As for ridding herself of it, you know not how. You also do not know why binds itself to people. *** The Medicine roll's okay. Least you're of some help. I'll put that up in the next GM post. *** Tell me what you'll be doing for the whole evening here or write it in your IC post. We may just write off the timeskip if you decide to do something crazy. If not, then crazy comes to you.

I'll put up an OOC post for the Arcane Lore, and as for the medicine it'll be in the next GM post.

Nicole is going to get out of her Normal Identity drawback and into Salvo. Will take more than a full round action.

Okay, roll me Medicine. Also, Snakebite has Knowledge (Arcane Lore), so shouldn't she be knowledgeable on magical things? You can roll me that too and tell me what's the fluff on the type of arcane lore she has, and I'd give some guesses that Snakebite could have come up with now that she's musing on what's happening with her ring. Finally, let's do a timeskip of the evening. You could post what Snakebite does for the rest of the evening if you want or I could in my next GM post if it can fit.

GM <Then perhaps all we can do is hope and pray,> Doji says. <You were the ones who have experienced what the temple had to offer. So I will trust your judgement in this even if it seems like a last grasp for hope.> He stands up, pushing his chair back, and leads you out to his door. He unlocks it and opens it for you, and leaning against the frame says to you, <It isn't so late that you would be waking people up, but tell Anne you come with my blessing. She can be testy with her patients.> He nods to you once then shuts the door, drowning your surroundings in darkness. It isn't a bother for you though and you make your way towards the house Doji had last indicated, where the healer was. But before you could knock on the door, it opens and you see a short and stout woman glare at you from behind the door. You see that she too looks as if she has not slept very well for the past days. Her and clothes are ruffled, and from the inside of her house you can smell a sickly, sweet smell as if perfume was being cooked in a fire. <Oh, it's the foreigner,> she practically snaps at you. <I'm busy. What do you want?>

Take a +5 on the next roll to fix a pinion as Veronica directs the fixer on what to do. Like an archaeologist looking over a blueprint for an ancient structure, Veronica can see how all the parts fit. She can direct how to recreate it, brick by brick. It's obvious that these pinions are beyond repair save for, you know, magicing them into repair. Another way of repairing the doorways is to replace them with the various part and gears hanging from the cieling. There's a mechanical system, like some clockwork out of a steampunk movie, that would bring down the parts needed. Veronica could tell which those are and it's only a matter of fitting them properly. Looks easy enough... right? Depends on the application roll.

Nicole couldn't help but wince as her eyes were drawn to the shouting and Corinne slumped down on the floor. What the hell. Did she forget to eat and sleep to practice ballet more? Nicole wouldn't put it past Corinne what with Juliard's entrance tests looming nearer, though Nicole thought she knew the dancer was not one to be so negligent. Even with that thought Nicole followed Astrid, and when she reached the scene she looked over Corinne's prone form. A doctor was on Corinne right now but Nicole furrowed her brows. Things didn't look right. At first glance it looked like Corinne had a seizure, but there were no symptoms of it. "We're schoolmates," Nicole said, absently as she scrutinized Corinne even further. She could see the tall blonde's eyes. Corinne was still awake and Nicole waved a hand over Corinne's eyes. "Jeeze, she's still awake."

Actually, do you mean Craft: Chemical, TA? I can't recall a Knowledge: Chemical.

Roll me Veronica's Super Senses rank, @Thevshi. With that high a rank yoi'd auto-succeed but let's see how much you get. Also anyone, including Thevshi, can attempt to fix a pinion. Tell me which one you want to fix. You can roll either Craft: Art or Craft: Structural to attempt to fix one of the pinions without creating and using a repair-specific power. Knowledge: Arcane Lore is also a possibility but at a higher DC. Or you can create a repair power if you're capable of it. Get a bonus for Ritualist or Artificer.

Initiative: 1d20-1 = 16

Oh, nice roll. Not sure if I can add the Int Bonus to it since Nicole doesn't have Jack-of-All-Trades but there are two possibilities. Medicine: 1d20+2 (9) = 21 (28)

GM <Herbs, ingredients, drugs.> He runs his fingers through his hair as he repeats your requests. <We have those and I did promise you them, but they are in scarce supply since that Paruma came, injuring many of us.> He nods his head, determined. <Yes, you will have the ingredients.> He reaches over and slides a wooden board to the side, opening a window, then points to a nearby house. <Our healer holds most of our ingredients but I have some myself here. They will have to be prepared overnight but you will have it in the morning.> <How else can we ensure this ritual goes properly?> He asks you as the cool evening air streams in. Then he shuts the window as you show him your ring and he regards it with curiosity. <I'm afraid I don't know what this is. From the images these would be depicting the old gods?> His finger reaches out and he taps the cold iron once. And at that instant the ring warms and you see a younger man instead of the one who has seen decades pass him by. He is dark of hair and of skin, with a bookish sort of look and he regards your ring with curiosity. Then the young man retracts his finger and you see Doji, old and wrinkled if still robust. The ring is cold around your finger once more. <Something from the temple?> He shales his head vigorously then inspects the finger that touched the ring, as if it were burned. <I'm just an old man with a head for stories. I don't know much about rings that grow hot to the touch.> He looks up at you, brows raised in question. <Is it magic? Can it? But if it is from the temple then it must be cursed magic that you wear.>

<I see no wrong in your livelihood,> he says, leaning back on his chair as his hands rest on his stomach. <This is your way of preserving your people's past, or of other people's in this case, just as our oral traditions do in a similar way. If your pride and vanity has brought this upon us then at least you have the courage to attempt to fix it.> <And while I appreciate you being so open to me about the faults you perceive in yourself but,> and his eyes dart to the door. <Your companion. Perhaps he won't be as admitting of his own.> He shrugs his shoulders, shirt hanging loose on his wiry frame. <Maybe it is an old man's fears, to worry. Now, you were talking about human sacrifice? And that the Paruma is somehow connected to it?> He pauses, thinking before he resumes. <I hope you are not implying we enact a human sacrifice.> He smiles tightly at you to show he was merely kidding. <But if you think you have a way, even if just an inkling, to stop this beast, then I will do what I can to help. My tribe will too, but their first priority is to the defence of our village.> He sighs. <But I fear it will be futile if we continue like this.>

"Shoot." Nicole raised her phone higher than her head and she leaned back on her wheelchair to look up at it. Halloween was pretty okay. She had on a witch's dress, all black and tattered decoratively at the hem. She had sitting on her lap her witch's pointy hat and her wheelchair was decorated with skulls and cobwebs, and glowing vials of liquid hanging from the sides. Slugishly, she swiped through Selena's ideas. There was merit there. Aja and Kam's acrobatics with Liz's magic. Mobility like nobody's business and used properly then no one was going to lay a hand on them. Then the door slammed open and Nicole was jolted out of her late night reverie. It was Sam Thorn and, from what Nicole knew, he was jumpier than a cat in water. But this was jumpier than that and his clothes were filthy. Nicole's gaze fell to the ancient tome in his hands. She's seen many tomes like that in her studies and search for magic. Never liked reading them. But then she remembered tonight's date and things started slowly falling into place. "Huh." Sue her. She was sleepy.

GM Jungle Memories: Walking the Daydream (17) Through the Mirrored Glass and Back Again (2) Salvo Fright Night at Claremont (7) Giant Krampus 2: Krampus Campus (1) Let's Fall in Like (1) The Red Will Rise (3) They Never Taught Us This (2)

<Hmm?> Doji's ears perk up at your story. As you continue he doesn't move from his seat. It is only when you end that he looks at Isa. <You should go back to the gate or sleep!> He says, clapping his hands suddenly and the noise seems to startle her. <God knows you haven't had enough the past few days.> <But---> Isa says, but he stands up before she can say anything else and ushers Isa out with a surprising vigor for someone his age. He bids her goodnight from the door and watches her leave. After a few seconds, he closes the door and slides a lock across it. Only then does he move towards the table and sits down, the energy fading from him, and for a moment he looks a hundred years old. He steeples his fingers and thinks, eyes downcast, before he finally looks at you. <There is no need to ask for forgiveness. The world is old and leaves behind many of its refuse hidden where few go. It seems to me you have stumbled across one.> He moves his head and shadow falls across his eyes. You see the wrinkles on his forehead, the drooping of skin. He is old and has seen many things. <I know of the temple you speak of. And that something lurks within.> He pauses, then takes two mugs and pours what looks to be tea into them. He speaks as he pours. <Decades ago, when I was young and foolish and before the we had fully decided to plant our roots here, I had two friends who told me of this temple they had discovered, same as you. And that they planned to take whatever was inside to grow rich and give to their families. They began their trek and when weeks passed and I had not heard from them, I knew something was wrong.> He passes you a mug, steaming with hot air. <I saw the temple, the lure that it brought to those plumbing its depths, and I turned away before I too could be caught.> He looks down at his mug. Then he raises his eyes and they meet yours. <Are you seeking what I know? Stories of old myths? But I am not surprised that you think the beast assailing us is of the old world.> He smiles at you, scratching his neck. <Paruma, if I recall. A servant of the Beast, who stalks the jungles and reminds us that we are not the masters of nature we think we are. They were unshackled from their pens and given free reign when the Moon was devoured, a lunar eclipse, and so people would offer sacrifices to appease them at the same time sacrifices to bring back the Moon they so loved.> <They were, like many things from the myths, part and parcel of Nature. Not unkind or giving, but just. Perhaps they mean for us to move, do you think? To leave them alone?>

Notice Check: 1d20+3 = 5 I love being oblivious.

Removing the conditions since it's been almost five days, time enough to recover all that.