xenon

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@Dark Cloud had IRL drama that has been dealt with (that kept him from getting online) & he's working on getting things sorted before he returns.

@SleepingSilence

Noted. Thanks for taking the time out to let us know, buddy!

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@Zool@Loksfjoer@Saiyan@Teyao@Zapdos@Jay009@Dark Cloud

Wulrick and his party, Silver Arrow, led Second Chance down the main streets that took them along the waterside, past The Bazaar, beyond The Temple of the Quinity and over the western Little Bridge to the beginning of the ascent up Citadel Mountain.

Midnight gave the great city of Valhiem a very different view, ordinarily so busy and vibrant, but no more so than now with the city under siege. As they went up the mountain, the near-constant waves of fiery artillery ammunition was ever more clear. Nearing the summit of Citadel Mountain, so high above the rest of the city, it felt like the Ritual Barrier was close enough to touch and explosions upon it were detailed and fearsome.

The high class, clean paved streets atop the mountain saw more traffic than the rest of the city, even at this late hour. There were people leaving and entering The Academy Campus, guards and military were more active in the area, and the many large municipal buildings saw activity too.

Lucy Bottrill was waiting for the two adventurer parties in the large square in front of The Citadel.

“Took your time,” the Guildmaster said to Wulrick. “Hospital trip?” Wulrick nodded, as did Lucy after. “I’ll take it from here. Silver Arrow will be rewarded for this great favor, mark my words.”

After a few more words between Wulrick and Lucy, they said their goodbyes and Silver Arrow was off. Lucy gestured behind her. “Good to see you’re all here.” She looked at Clive. “And I’m glad you managed to link back up with your friends.”

She had been informed by Clarissa about the top-secret and illegal operation to resurrect Clive Michel. Classified information but Clarissa was not one for following protocol if her gut told her it was important.

Lucy cast her glance across all of the faces of Second Chance. “Come with me.”

____________________________________________________________

Mayor Joseph Pendlebury.
Ambassador Malcom Crane.
Academy President Jordash Sigmar.
High Septum Areleth.
Academy Director Clarissa Shields.
Academy Director Enio Ivey.
Garrison Commander Thorn.
2nd Adventurer Guildmaster Lucy Bottrill.
High Inquisitor Lucius McGarren.

Heroes from Another World, Second Chance.

The 3rd War Room Meeting was already underway when Lucy brought The Heroes from the Sky into the room, but everyone hushed upon their arrival.

Some of them did not know what to expect after such a build-up in their minds, but the result was Second Chance did not seem particularly impressive. None wore gleaming armour, nor carried particularly impressive weapons. All were clearly human and carried the very average and unremarkable physical traits that their race was known for.

Some, like Areleth, Clarissa, Lucy… they were now beginning to take very seriously what they’d dismissed out of hand in previous meetings with Second Chance. That they were not from this world.

Those with the natural inclination to cast Identify in their minds when meeting strangers that needed sizing up, saw that each of Second Chance had already gone through multiple Ascensions. Enough that their power as a party was comparable to high-end Gold Class parties. This, coupled with the facts of their story: that they’d been in this world less than a single month!? It was nothing short of supernatural. Unheard of.

Some of the people at the meeting, such as Areleth, had knowledge of the particular uniqueness they all might carry, after witnessing James Sirius take the Cleric Test and seeing that he was either; connected to all the Gods and Goddesses of this plane, or; none of them in particular. Something else that was completely unheard of.

Some of those at the meeting didn’t know much about Second Chance. Some had heard the rumour that they had slain Aurok the Man Eater. Some simply had faith in High Septum Areleth’s intuition that these people were special. Most were understandably sceptical of the narrative that their arrival was due to the invocation of Universal Tier Ritual magic only ever heard of once in Mytherian history… in the Mythic Age where the majority of texts and records were, at best, questionable and at worst, complete conjecture and theory.

Areleth broke the silence by addressing James. “We are glad you could join us. James, if you would, please relay the story you told me, of how you and your friends ended up here in Mytheria.”

He gave the young man a chance to speak, then let the others know. “If any of you have anything to add, please share all you can.”

Their story would coincide perfectly with the partial shutting down of The WellSprings across the continent: A fact that had been kept under wraps due to National Security and Confidence concerns. Such a phenomenon was so rare that only something incredibly powerful could have triggered such a reaction... such as Universal Tier Ritual magic that could summon heroes from another world.

Clarissa would be as patient as she could be… which was not very patient at all… and would find a place to chime in and ask to hear the details regarding the Mysterious Cube they’d delivered to her. She did not ask any of them in particular, only wishing for the best recounting of how it had come in their possession, so she could hear it all again and see if she’d missed anything important, back before she’d done any testing on the artifact.

Commander Thorn decided to wait to give details and orders regarding defence of the city. This current discussion seemed above his pay grade and might have consequences that went beyond merely Valhiem’s fate.

Lucy would also have some things to say, but she waited to see what Second Chance would say.

Not all in the room knew that Clive Michel had been resurrected, but those that did eyed the bare chested man with some suspicion and mostly concern about what legal ramifications they would face from Capitol City for being party to Treason.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

There is a window of time between: the end of your last post -> all the way to arriving and being fully healed at Valhiem hospital.

You have the choice which parts of the time window you wish to use to show Clive's POV.

Zapdos, Jay and Saiyan have posted this week with some great examples of ways to use this window of time.

If you're still confused, be sure to read the IC GM Update, the Group PM Update for extra info. Also, you can PM me if you're still unsure after that.

(You're not dumb, brother. There's just a lot going on right now that requires careful reading. Don't be too harsh on yourself!)

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@Zool@Loksfjoer@Saiyan@Teyao@Zapdos@Jay009@Dark Cloud

Throughout the night the fires on the northeast side of Valhiem raged. Greenglow Forest was ravaged by the CogHeads who had set up on-site manufacturing and smelting stations. Through the use of industry, alchemy and magic, iron and lumber was quickly produced from the forest and mountains. Seige towers. Catapults. Ammunition. More catapults.

What unusable trees there were did not go to waste. Pyromancers built bonfires, danced and performed rituals to enchance the power of artillery fire and also launch their own magical attacks on Valhiem's walls.

Valhiem City Ritual Barrier was holding. The Academy had divided all those with the talent to uphold the city shield into 3 shifts, giving the mages a chance to get some rest. The airspace was prioitized, leaving the strong city walls to take occasional damage. It was the best they could do, but what rest the mages and students could get would eventually not be enough to recover from the continuous drain of High-Tier Ritual Magic. But for now, the city was protected.

General Saladin, The Marquis

General Saladin, 1 of the 5 Antiquinites: The Witch Queen's personal think-tank, her most trusted people, and the heads of the invading forces divisions.

Saladin was nothing if not a patient man. Calculated and cunning. He knew how much time he had. He knew how long it would take to raze Valhiem to the ground. Everything was going as he had planned. There were only 2 variables he could not account for. 1 was currently inside Valhiem's Academy: The Control Core. It probably wouldn't matter much. The magical technology was locked behind the most innocuous of doors, a door that they would never suspect.

The 2nd variable Saladin was unsure of?

That variable was currently sneaking into the city...

____________________________________________________________

In spite of the vampire fledgings spotted around the city aswell as the patrols of Lizard Cavalry and Dark Riders, Second Chance were making progress through a combination of their intelligent decisions and talents.

Waiting until midnight was not foolproof, as some of The Witch Queens patrolling forces were mostly non-human, many possessing dark vision. But the cover of darkness certainly helped to some degree.

Fenna's injury meant that she could not swim for any real length of time, try as the tough woman did. Not even she could overcome that impossibility. But that did not mean that James' plan to use the river was completely out of the picture.

Fenna's innate talent for scouting and stealth made her the perfect lead for the party along the riverside. Adam's ability for rapid growth of plants and bushes to subtlely grow the already-existing cover that Fenna was routing through, perfectly synchronized with Fenna's skills.

James was smart enough to chant Undaya's blessing onto the party anyway, giving them all the Waterbreathing ability. On the few close calls, where Second Chance was almost caught, Adam did not need to sacrifice himself as a distraction. Instead the entire party would drop into the river and use riverweeds, grown by Adam, to hold themselves to the riverbed. Waterbreathing allowed them to stay as long as they needed underwater until the threat passed.

Still, it was a slow grind of a process. Especially at parts where there was no natural cover and Adam was forced to slowly and surruptiously grow vegetation and foiliage without anyone noticing, to create cover against the far-seeing, fast moving enemy patrols.

____________________________________________________________

Elsewhere:

The village of Cherrad, after being blessed with a full pouch of gold, sent out messengers to the Sibliconian Fortress in the north, Fornost, aswell as the nearest city, Helecarsus, for reinforcements.

Fornost would take more than 10 days to get to, and the request would be regrettably declined anyway. Valhiem was an important city, but The Free People's Empire could not risk any troops or warriors leaving Fornost. Most likely, the commanders at Fornost would suspect the attack on Valhiem to be a move for the specific purpose trying to spread the The Free People's Armies thin, so that The Witch Queen could take Fornost and have a clear path to Capitol City. In any case, it wouldn't matter as no messenger would arrive in time to make any difference.

The City of Helecarsus was closer and within the Northern-Central Mytherian Region. A messenger riding hard and fast from Cherrad would reach Helecarsus anywhere bewtween 4-6 days. Only time would tell if this would do any good for The Siege of Vahiem.

____________________________________________________________

When Second Chance made it to the walls of the city, soaking wet, cold and injured, the dangers that they potentially faced had finally passed. They had been successful on every front and avoided all of the possible pitfalls in their plan.

MacKensie could use her magical grapplehook to scale the walls easily and would be greeted by an escort of adventurers who had been waiting for the arrival of Second Chance. This party went by the name of Silver Arrow, and their leader, Wulrik, was explained that Silver Arrow was sent by Lucy Bottrill to help.

Silver Arrow ordered the South River Barricade to be lifted and the rest of Second Chance entered the city by the waterway. Wulrick was asked by the Guildmaster to bring Second Chance up to The Citadel, but upon seeing all of their injuries, he took them first to Valhiem's hospital to get patched up, which was done free of charge in this time of great emergency.

Once The Heroes from the Sky were fully healed to perfect health through the Source Crystal technology of the hospital, the adventurer party, Silver Arrow, would be ready to escort them from the hospital, up the moutain to The Citadel.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

Hey guys, sorry for the silence, accidently fell on my ankle on the way to work and sprained it so I have been busy handling all the healthcare and work related paperwork

@Teyao

The ankle sprain isn't nearly as bad as the headache of dealing with work and the hospital so I feel for you, brother. Hope everything goes smoothly. Stay rested up and you'll be fine in no time.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@Zool@Loksfjoer@Saiyan@Teyao@Zapdos@Jay009@Dark Cloud

With some swift discussion amongst themselves, Second Chance formulated a plan and put it into action.

Clive left to double-back to the village of Cherrad, while the others skirted around to the Southside of the Valhiem, taking up a position in the hills between The Mazy Hillocks and Valhiem.

With the South River on their left, the option was still open to go underwater to reach their destination or simply use the riverside. Adam's creation of bushes or riverweeds would help in either choice.

Either way, Second Chance camped to rest, wait and watch until Clive returned, midnight restored their powers and and the 10 hour rest/sleep brought them back to reasonable fighting fitness.

It would be a long and anxious 10 hours, but plenty of time to prepare for a successful inflitration into the beseiged city of Valhiem.

____________________________________________________________________________

Clarissa's team all gasped as the Computer Amplifier started to light up and make noise. It was working? The Mysterious Cube - one brought to Valhiem by Second Chance - sat in the center of the machine, the intricate patterns engraved into were glowing with blue light.

But then everyone deflated when the machine powered down.

"How?!" an angry scientist exclaimed. "How is that still not enough power?!"

"I don't know," another shook his head. "I think we just caused a Brown Out on Citadel Mountain."

"At least The Cube and Computer were able to make a connection. That's something." - a more optimistic scientist in the bunch.

Clarissa paced slowly back and forth with a finger on her chin. "They said that The Cube dropped from the chest of a Skeleton. I think we're looking at this from the wrong angle." She sighed as she stopped pacing and placed her hands on her hips. "Problem is; what is the right angle?"

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@Dark CloudIt's totally up to you guys how you play this. But I do believe Zool was thinking this also when she said:

To add to what others have said; I'd say Clive should take some gold to sponser the journeys of the prospective 'Cherrad messengers.' The closest city that could have reinforcements might not be too far for the one messenger. Capitol City, however, might require a long trip - like, weeks maybe - that needs resources, so a gold piece or two, might go a long way for the other messenger to take up the big task.

@Zool

@Zool@Loksfjoer@Saiyan@Teyao@Zapdos@Jay009@Dark Cloud

Results are in early!

I think through the OOC discussion, the voting has been resolved. Everyone seems to be in agreement:

Option 4 is the winner! With the addition that Clive flys to Cherrad to organize messengers that will call for reinforcements!

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

@ZapdosIt'd be up to the boss man on that one.

@Dark Cloud

It's up to you all, how you proceed.

I will remind you though, that it's the village Second Chance just came from, Cherrad, that would have Clive there and back by evening.

Clive actually going to the nearest city (providing he can get directions) would take more than a day of hard riding. That's where a properly sized and trained garrison could potentially mobilize as reinforcements for a battle. Just making that clear.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

Oh wow, I really should watch that LOTR trilogy again sometime soon. Legendary movies.

THE WAR FOR MYTHERIA - Isekai Adventure

If our lovely GM's dice rolls try to screw us over,

@Zool

Almost every dice roll has been kind to you since this RP began. You are due a Nat 1!

Your choices, clever and creative posts make it impossible with all the 'Roll with Advantage' and Lowered DC's you rack up. Sometimes I wish misfortune on you lol. Never happens though. So many planned segments just completely skipped over