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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2022 8:44:30 GMT
The power of the Way seems to dim in the air as the students recognize the mark of the Shadow King's allies. There is quiet for a moment or two more as they regard the group.
One of the students, a sallow-faced young woman who resembles some of the Templar-Wives in some respects despite her being a bit overdressed for the part peers out from behind a barricade. Perhaps someday the Templars will induct her into the Shadow-Wives.
"You come with word from the King? He is well, is he? Good. The city lies in chaos. What is the situation? Poor, I assume, if he has come to rely on foreigners to run his messages."
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Post by ascieszl on Jun 24, 2022 18:32:20 GMT
(Ramir makes a face at being called an outlander)
"He is well and asserting his will upon the city once more. *These* (gestures to the rest of the party) varied individuals fought to protect and save the city - their, our, elevation to service is by merit, not necessity - though the ranks of the Shadow Wives *have* been thinned."
Thr king seeks the input of the people to govern even more wisely in the days to come, and has sent us to request representatives be sent to his new council. Will you fight to defend your charges and this city with words as capably as you have already done with the Way?"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2022 19:16:15 GMT
There's a momentary pause.
"Very well. It would be foolish in the extreme to allow such to take place without our presence. The King may have need of our abilities to determine the motives of those present. He will have our finest representative."
The students peer at one another, perhaps in confusion. Quiet murmuring overtakes their number.
"Where is the headmaster?"
"Did the dead Templars get him?"
"I haven't seen him in a while. We must find someone. How about Akkah?"
They seem agreeable to this scheme, though not nearly so enthusiastic as the previous parties. It looks like the students of the State School have tepid at best loyalties to the King, but they'd rather not gamble on disobedience.
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Post by ascieszl on Jun 24, 2022 19:29:27 GMT
(Good enough for me.)
"To the Temple of Earth then?"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 24, 2022 19:41:15 GMT
The party's map indicates that Nibenay's Temple of Elemental Earth is cut into the cliff that overlooks the city's northern edge.
This turns out to be accurate, and the cliff seems to have endured severe damage. Half of it appears to have simply fallen away, collapsing into a great heap of rubble. The other half seems completely untouched, which is rather peculiar.
Scattered about the area are the bodies of three dozen or so priests, mostly Dwarves. Some of them move from time to time, seemingly bewildered and badly wounded. They don't look like the disaster has been treating them well.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2022 18:40:10 GMT
Bharnag runs forward immediately calling out in dwarven, "BROTHERS!! BROTHERS!! BRING ME YOUR WOUNDED!!"
Bharnag will touch multiple dwarves at once while manifesting Lend Health, giving them each enough to help them back on their feet. He'll prioritize the closest to him first, then as a secondary concern any high ranking priests will receive priority. Upon his fourth attempt, he absorbs all of the damage from those he is ministering to, likely stopping him in his tracks.
Lend Health rolls: 9, 15, 7, Nat 20.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2022 20:05:44 GMT
Bharnag's shouting shocks awake several of the slumped figures, who cough miserably to expel the dust that has settled in their lungs.
It looks like around about half of the priests are still on their feet--the higher-ranking ones, at the very least, who appear to have been huddled around the shrine. The shrine itself, dedicated by the priests with symbols of the earth and heady incense, appears totally untouched by the damage that annihilated the rest of the temple.
The priests haul Bharnag the most critically wounded, his shout cutting through their stunned haze. They murmur to him in Dwarvish as he works, expending their clerical spells to assist him in the healing.
"...Our thanks to you..."
"I don't know what happened...whole place came down around our ears..."
"'Cept the shrine..."
A good half of the people here are dressed in a style no priest would be caught dead in--they must be civilians who took refuge in the temple when the shaking started. They were safe from the rain, but now many lie buried beneath the stones.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2022 0:59:35 GMT
Bharnag will refuse any offers of healing (though if he loses consciousness, he'll be helpless and accept the heal to get him back on his feet).
"No brothers, use your power instead to bend the rock that trap so many."
He'll then move to the collapsed area and move the rocks by hand. Should extra power be required, he'll psionically enhance his strength to get the job done.
((3 wasted attempts to boost Str, then a STR check unmodified of 6 vs his 15 Str.))
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2022 1:03:46 GMT
Despite Bharnag's difficulty activating his Psionics, his muscles do not fail him so, and he is easily able to haul away nearly a full metric ton of rock piece-by-piece over the course of about a half-hour. The sting of exertion clings to his limbs, but he can keep it up all day. They make them tough on Athas, and Bharnag is one of the toughest.
His knowledge of how dwarves wrought stone in ages past keeps him well aware of what chunks were lodestones and keystones, helps identify shards of pillars and weight-bearing sections, and ensures he keeps away from those pieces that would likely shatter at his touch. The longer he looks at the scattered stone and at the damaged temple, the more sure he is of where all these pieces went. He can see in his mind what the temple must have looked like a few hours ago, before the shaking started. The temple was like a puzzle--Bharnag was just picking up the pieces.
The other dwarves visibly marvel at his ability, wheezing as their bodies fail them long before Bharnag has even begun to flag.
"Did someone...cast a....spell on...you?"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2022 11:19:52 GMT
Bharnag organizes the stones he moves into piles and directs others to place their stones according to where each fits in the puzzle.
Otherwise he works like a dwarf possessed, when finding any survivors he calls out dwarven names as if he knows those buried personally, but is always disappointed to find they are not who he expected them to be.
When asked about magic he simply shakes his head and keeps working. "No need. I was borne hardy, always been this way."
((Bharnag will not easily leave while there is any potential to find survivors in the fallen stone. Dwarven stubbornness and all that.))
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Post by ascieszl on Jun 26, 2022 11:43:26 GMT
After apparently standing in a daze for quite some time, Rimir pitches in, hauling away the rubble as his 'little brother' directs. (Rolls 2 vs. 20 Strength check. At Str & Con 20, he's no slouch either)
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2022 21:24:22 GMT
The two of them find it particularly easy to clear the rubble, and by the time they're finished all that remains is dust particles. The pillars of neatly-stacked stones cast shadows in strange patterns across the newly-cleaned street.
By this time, those that could be saved have been, in large part, stabilized by the efforts of the priests, who pull them clear of the rubble the moment the pair of strongmen free them from the crumbling temple.
Once all is said and done, some fifty individuals sit in this area, dusting themselves off or nursing minor injuries.
"Thank goodness you arrived when you did. We might've lost quite a few of them if not. Did one of the monasteries send you?"
"No. None of them are that strong."
"Can't be Templars--they're all women."
"...Are you the army?"
One of the priests narrows his eyes slowly, staring at Bharnag. "Wait...I know that man. Don't you remember, Fhaka? He brought that splendid carving for the altar months ago."
The other priest, seemingly called Fhaka, raises his eyebrows in shock. "Bharnag?"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2022 13:12:07 GMT
Bharnag nods as he's identified. "Aye, but I'm no longer the dwarf you remember." He waves to his companion to have them produce the Sorcerer Monarch's seal. "Seems fate has decided to crush and repurpose me. We act on behalf of Nibenay himself. He seeks council as he rebuilds the city and requests you send a representative to aid in the effort. I can't imagine the City of Stone being rebuilt without proper dwarven guidance. What say you?"
Bharnag looks over the ruins of the Earth Temple. The damage is immense, but the rebuilding will occur. In another life, it would be a dream.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2022 17:28:02 GMT
The priests are not slow to respond.
"If Nibenay calls on us, we will respond. He shows great insight by sending you instead of his wives."
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Post by ascieszl on Jun 27, 2022 17:31:31 GMT
Rimir produces the ribbon when asked.
He patiently and studiously looks over his map, waiting for the homecoming to resolve naturally.
(Ready to move on whenever, no worries.)
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