Chapter 9: A Primitive Sea

[Darren]

Despite himself, Kal keeps looking to the shaman. "We must ensure that nothing happens to that one," he says quietly, throwing nervous glances at the bubble of air around them. Despite his usual bravado, Kal seems quite uncomfortable in this new situation.

[Brian]

Between Adamant and Streko, Condign splutters and flails--until he realizes he can breathe. Being care to keep his blade away from the bubble, he makes sure everyone is accounted for. Then, he mutters, "I hate this. There is something wholly unnatural about traveling underwater like this."

As they sink into the dark depths of the sea, he adds, "Can we get a little light, please."

[Ken]

"Happy to oblige," says Belarin, and tiny motes of light seem to dance across his garments, illuminating the immediate area as effectively as a torch. He immediately glances over to the sahuagin shaman or mage, and he raises his hand in a placating gesture -- remembering at the last instant to avoid smiling. He's ready to "snuff out" the light instantly if any of the sahuagin react poorly.

He looks around with obvious* delight, his initial anxiety about being submerged totally pushed to the side by the novelty of the experience.

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*But non-smiling.

[Dave B.]

Shorak swims into the bubble and settles in with the rest of the group. Taking in his surroundings, a faint look of awe settles upon his face. "It is so beautiful." He whispers.

[Dave W.]

"This is fantastic," Adamant says brightly, lost to the comments of his friends. He reaches forward and pokes at the inside of the bubble with a thick metal finger, "I've never been inside a bubble before."

He presses his palm against the skin of the sphere just to feel a little resistance. "Condign! Look! we are like fish out of water... But also in water!"

"hummm," says more seriously, though it is a little close in here, I'm not sure how we will fight properly if it comes to that. I wonder what happens to the bubble if we end up poking it with a sword?"

[Jeff]

True enough, the sahuagin mage looks toward the bubble once Belarin lights it up with his fey motes. But the sahuagin doesn't react. And so far the light isn't strictly necessary. The world is deep and blue and muted down here but it's not yet dark. Looking up, the surface seems to glow with the pale, filtered sunlight.

Testing the edge of the bubble, Adamant sees that there's no "skin" exactly, just an invisible force that's keeping the water around it at bay in a perfect sphere. It's not even buoyant as a real bubble is, just a sphere of perfectly displaced air. It doesn't look like there's any threat of "puncturing" it. Objects can pass through the barrier effortlessly, and when they come inside it, they're still wet and dripping but they don't bring much water inside.

[Ken]

Sept 7, 2011 18:37:18 GMT -4 Dave W. said:

He presses his palm against the skin of the sphere just to feel a little resistance. "Condign! Look! we are like fish out of water... But also in water!"

"By the Shadow!" exclaims Belarin, apparently shocked. "That's... um, brilliant? Horrendous? Words escape me, Adamant. I nominate you as our resident bard."

"I wonder what happens to the bubble if we end up poking it with a sword?"

Belarin stares balefully at Adamant. "Stop. That. Stop that NOW, please."

He looks at Kal and Streko. "Is that what I've sounded like to you over the months?"

[Brian]

Trapped in the air bubble, Condign watches in horror as Adamant presses his hand against the inner surface of the bubble.

His face aghast, he grips the warforged's arm and yanks the construct's hand back from the only thing keeping him from drowing.

"Will you--" He hesitates, realizing his voice is too loud for this confined space. Then, more softly: "Will you please not do that. I have grown very fond of this...this bubble. And the air that it holds. So, can you hold off on the wonder until this little adventure is done?"

[Darren]

"What does he care? He doesn't have to breathe any of this air." Kal struggles to keep afloat with his armor weighing him down and his sword tangling in his legs. "What I can't figure out, Adamant, is how you're not sinking like a stone...."

[Dave W.]

Adamant becomes aware of his friends' alarm when Condign grabs his metal arm. "I'm sorry, I just have never experienced anything quite like this. It's... well... I'm afraid I'll have to resign my post as bard, I just can't think of fitting words."

Containing his excitement, the looks to Belarin, "And I wasn't going to actually poke it with a sword, I'm actually curious in the event we have to fight something while constrained to this small space? No one plans to poke the wrong thing in these situations but it does happen."

And then to Kal, "You are being unfair Kal. Of course I care. I also do not eat but have I not done my share of the fishing to provide for those of you who do?"

"As to why I don't sink like a stone? I really couldn't say. This trip has brought me more exposure to water than all my previous 7 years of existence. Perhaps it's magic."

[Jeff]

Although sheathed in adamantine, Adamant's frame is mostly wood, and there are small amounts of air contained in his body like in many living creatures. He's heavier than a normal person by far, and though only very slowly, he does float.

Now you've begun to see shapes of things beyond the sahuagin: fish, plenty of them, coming and going, alone, in small groups, or in schools. There's even a few ominous shapes on the edge of your sight whose size you can't be sure of. At least the sahuagin don't seem to mind them.

[Darren]

Kal continues to look around nervously. "How damn long is this going to take?"

[Dave B.]

Shorak continues to look around as they move along with the Sahaugin. "This is incredible. I had no idea how much life there was under the ocean. I've had several occasions to swim underwater in lakes and rivers, but those experiences are no comparison to this." He smiles slightly, remembering not to show his teeth, taking in the view of the vast surroundings.

[Joe]

Streko takes a deep, audible breath. "I suggest we all relax. At this point, we are dry and from what I've heard about these beings, if they wanted to kill us, they wouldn't have had to get us to volunteer to drop into their own realm to do so. They could have simply destroyed the ship and devoured us by sheer number. So, while I doubt any of us can relax, I suggest we at the very least resign ourselves to being visitors on this journey. Anything else will cause us all undue alarm."

He frowns a moment. "It amazes me how calm I can be when I take the time to think, as opposed to react emotionally to an event. Now, the trick is to become aware of this as it occurs, rather than after the fact. Maybe then I'd not have to apologize so often. Bah!"

[Jeff]

"They talk too much," Streko hears the nearest sahuagin rasp aloud to one of the others in its own language. No one else can understand it, and Streko knows he's understanding the strange patterns of speech. The ritual worked nicely, and the sound travels pretty easily.

"The Lrishasa'varash is new to them," another says.

"They complain too much."

The staff-bearing mage among them eyes the group. "They look powerful, but they may be overcautious."

The bubble continues to drift down.

Suddenly, a trio of sharks drifts into view. They're big, but not too big. Man-sized, no more. Enough to make you a little nervous. The sahuagin glance over at the sharks and don't react. Adamant, Condign, Shorak, and Streko have heard that sahuagin often ally with predators of the sea.

[Darren]

Kal's head darts back and forth between the sahuagin as they speak. He looks especially nervous when the mage among them speaks. He looks up, wondering just how long he could hold his breath and whether or not it would be long enough to make it back to the surface. He swallows and takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself.

[Brian]

With the large sharks swimming around the bubble, Condign concentrates on steadying his breathing. Streko is right. He needs to relax. It's only water, he keeps telling himself. It's only water.

He can feel the tension leave his muscles. The knot in his chest loosens. Yes, this is better. Much better. Smiling, he takes a moment to inhale deeply, drawing some of the confined air though his nose. . .and suddenly starts coughing, his eyes watering.

"Oh, that is foul! Tell me, which one of you ate the beans for lunch!"

[Joe]

Streko grins savagely. He looks at Kalarian and winks. "The ritual worked."

He nods at the first speaker.

"They talk too much."

Streko wonders if the Sahuagin understand Halfling. He shifts his tone of voice so that it carries a different accent, hoping Kalarian understands he is referencing the different speakers.

He considers how he will repeat the next phrase without letting the Sahuagin known he understands them. Taken in context, he risks changing the words slightly, hoping he is correct.

"The journey under the water is new to them."

He smiles.

"They complain too much."

He changes his tone of voice slightly, trying to sound pompous. "They look powerful, but they may be overcautious."

When the sharks approach, Streko tells Kalarian what he knows about this new circumstance.

"The Sahuagin often ally themselves with other predators of the sea. As long as we are in their care, as it were, I believe we are safe. This might simply be their way of making us nervous and attmepting to gain the upper hand in some type of negotiation."

Streko sniffs and continues speaking in Halfling to Kalarian, avoiding Condign's gaze. "I don't smell anything. Perhaps our friend neglected a breath mint this morning prior to our meeting with the Sahuagin?"Streko then trusn his head and flashes his teeth mischievously at the Tiefling.

[Jeff]

The mage-sahuagin drifts closer to your bubble; it doesn't seem to understand the Halfling language. In broken Common, he croaks, "We go to danger tert...territoy....to danger land. Sahuagin not of Blue Fin patrol. We protect the Lrishasa'varash. Stay inside...you will live."

They still do not seem to realize that Streko can understand their language (though he cannot speak it*).

"If need.....fight....throw...."

You are now starting to make out large shapes below, like hills or mountains that form the sea floor.

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*Per Comprehend Languages, you can't speak the language unless you get a 35 on an Arcana check, and Streko isn't high enough level to try yet.

[Ken]

Belarin, aware that Streko was preparing the language ritual earlier, is silent as Streko starts speaking in the Halfling tongue. Clever of Streko not to reveal that he is understanding the Sahuagin language, if indeed that is what has happened. "Judging from Streko's tone," he whispers to Condign, "the undersea creatures are NOT talking about how to best fry humans and tieflings. As for the stench, I must confess. It was, unfortunately, Kalarian."

[Darren]

Kal scowls at Belarin, then smiles at Streko, careful not to show his teeth. His manner has calmed in the presence of the Halfling. "Thank you, my friend," he says quietly.

[Jeff]

At last, the ground looms below you and soon the sahuagin guide the Sphere of Life bubble to a flat portion of the sea floor. It is darker here, but not all-out dark. Just dim enough for Belarin's light to make him stand out a little. The ground is covered with strange debris...underwater plants, shells and shell fragments, gravelly soil, and other curious things you can't recognize. Undersea plants even sway like grass in the slow but steady currents. It's a realm you've never seen the like of before. Colors like red and orange seem muted down here, overwhelmed by blues and greens, but it's a beauty all its own.

The bubble slows to a stop, and with it "resting" on the ground now, you find that you can stand up instead of tread water at the bottom. It should be easier to move around now, provided you remain within the Sphere.

Your sahuagin escorts gather closer around you. With their large fish eyes, spiked fins, and pronged tridents, they actually look like they're about to attack. But they stop and speak to one another in their language. Hras'Ka leads the discussion, and of course only Streko understands them.

"Give them control," Hras'Ka says. "We cannot be bothered with the Sphere if we are challenged."

"Who should it be?" The sahuagin all look at you, appraising.

"I heard them speaking. They think it is the forge-of-war who can open the Devourer's box. A strange assumption, given its nature."

"Why not? The false-people are real people to the softskins."

"You would be surprised. But the Devourer would not choose one of them. They are not of this world."

"The human, then. He may be their leader." One gestures towards Belarin and Kal.

"Which one? Both look weak."

"Magic, you fool. I think they command magic most men do not."

"The one marked by the Six, then," Hras'Ka says. "He should control the Sphere. That is my decision. Baron Aasraak has given me the responsibility. The choice is mine."

The mage-sahuagin advances to the edge of the Sphere, forcing you to back up a step. He sticks his upper body halfway through the bubble, and is suddenly dripping seawater all around. He holds out his clawed hand and looks at Kal squarely, eyes studying the dragonmarked heir. Then he opens his palm to reveal something that looks like an oversized pearl, but gray and lusterless. He speaks in Common. "Take, human. With this controls Lrishasa'varash. With thought, with...want."

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So there's the map. I'll add a grid if things get dodgy.

Note that you're currently traveling south. Let me know if you'd like to be rearranged differently as you go.

[Dave W.]

Adamant leans close to Condign and whispers, "Do you suppose Streko simply doesn't know that most of us have no idea what he's saying?"

When the sahuagin leans in to the bubble, Adamant again whispers to Condign, "See, it is safe to penetrate the barrier. I think we should take a look." Adamant leans forward and sticks his head into the water.

"This really is amazing, the sahuagin world is so very full of life."

[Dave B.]

As the bubble settles on the sea floor, Shorak has to keep himself from running out of the bubble like a little child. "it's a shame we have to stay inside the bubble. To be able to explore down here with complete freedom would be wonderful."

[Brian]

When Adamant sticks his head into the sea, Condign's mouth drops open in horror. The warforged's head is surrounded by water, his eyes glowing softly as he turns his head back and forth. Then a small fish swims up and bumps into Adamant's metal head and Condign can take no more.

He turns away--and Shorak starts talking about exploring the sea bottom.

"They are doing this on purpose," he mutters to himself. "Yes, this is intentional."

Turning to Streko, he says, "Maybe you could tell us what the sahaugin are saying. And not in halfling."

[Darren]

Kal shrinks back from the approaching sahuagin, his hand instinctively dropping to the hilt of his longsword. When it becomes clear that the creature means him no harm, he reaches out to take the offered pearl, his eyes never leaving the sahuagin's face. He nods respectfully, then takes a step back. He takes a deep breath, then moves the bubble a little bit back and forth, testing to make sure he understands how it works. Then he places the item deep within his pocket, checking three times to make sure it is secure. Finally, he nods to the sahuagin mage. "Where must we go?"

[Ken]

Belarin offers no comment as the sphere settles and the sahuagin mage approaches. He simply stands behind and to the right of Kal, ready to intervene if this is some sort of bizarre trap.

"It relies on thought?" he says, looking at Kal with a mock expression of dawning horror. "Oh well, better you than me. My thoughts are as leaves on the autumn winds."

[Joe]

Streko looks to Kalrian. "They are nothing if not devoted, Kalarian. They truly don't seem to mean us harm...at least, not this faction. And they are pretty much convinced that Adamant is not the one to 'open the Devourer's Box,' which narrows the field down by at least one now.

"Also, they know well of the Dark Six and it appears as if they consider Dragonmarks to be created from those Deities, which perhaps provides us an advantage in further negotiations, although I am not sure I would risk that.

"Finally, the one who is called for us is a Baron. One, Aasraak. He will be the one we must negotiate with. Oh, and Kal, please remember during the negotiations that we are far beneath the sea, thank you."

He turns his head around and speaks to the others. "Not to leave you out, my friends, my apologies. I simply am not prepared to let our benefactors here know that I know what they know. Should something important be said, I shall relay it to you, be assured.

"I will say that they believe some or all of us command magic of a sort and I sense some respect in that. However, they also see us as weak and perhaps a bit passive in our actions. They do seem to have our best iterests in mind for the time being and they are a deeply spiritual people who believe in the Dark Six, which implies they at least know of the Host."

[Darren]

"Has anyone stopped to consider what might be in this box? And that we might not want to give it to them? Or that they might decide to just kill us right after we open it?" Kal's face grows grim, realizing that he, himself, has only thought of this just now, while they stand on the ocean floor....

[Jeff]

He takes a deep breath, then moves the bubble a little bit back and forth, testing to make sure he under—

The moment he thinks about it, the bubble moves...and it jerks more quickly than he would have intended! The sphere of air shifts a good ten feet in one direction, faster than you anticipate, leaving Belarin and Condign suddenly submerged in seawater with only a few thrashing limbs still in the bubble.

Kal quickly moves the sphere of displaced air back to where it was, allowing the tiefling and other human to gulp in some air again, coughing and sputtering and dripping water. They're fine, just a little startled and annoyed.

A croaking hiss issues from one of the sahuagin. Laughter? A few small bubbles drift up from its mouth.

But now Kal's getting the hang of it. In fact, when he places the pearl in his pocket, he can feel his influence over the sphere fade away. Evidently it must remain in his grasp to work.


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For future reference: Kal can move the sphere 3 squares as a minor action if he holds the pearl in one hand.