(This turn will be a bit different as there will be explicit public and private turns. The public turn will be in the traditional on-line location, and the private responses will be sent via email. There will probably be more than one set of private turns/responses/ and reactions before the next public turn.)
The Party members are not shy, and a wall of questions flies at Ammon-Sul.
Glog starts, “Ammon Sul, tell us about ‘Khrone’ and are there any other gods in this world that the party should watch out for? Also, what about the beings that Perra went with? What do you know of the chalice, sword, and Horus?”
Ashe interjects, “what power was just depleted, and why are psionics viewed as dangerous to use, and where are we heading? What language is being spoken by the spirits within the flying machine - is it a language that can be learned?”
Roland comments, “Glog, for sure I would be reticent about using the Sword and Chalice no matter how Ammon-Sul choses to answer.” (Roland gives Glog a look that conveys – we don’t know what Ammon-Sul is all about, only that he is our guide, and we have been asked to contact and follow him.) Roland continues, “Are there other dangers associated with using other power sources here, specifically those that the party uses: void, arcane, and divine?”
Thivinen does not direct any questions at Ammon-Sul, but he turns to his Party mates and says, “magic has been my life in Zhalindor. You know that I am a firm opponent of the Void and Chaos. That beast, Khorne, was clearly of the Void.
“That is as close as I have come to a legendary ‘old one’ – old one, small ‘o’ – while it showed some of the characteristics of the Old Ones – ‘large capital letters’ – I studied at Alyrien at the Mage’s Academy, it was very weak compared to the universe threatening powers of the Old Ones our gods and the Creator faced.
“Please don’t mistake my cautiousness for lack of investment. I am here with you in another plane entirely. Clearly the laws of ether, matter, magic, spirit, and mind work differently here.
“I’m very concerned that we do not know what our powers do here. I can feel a direct connection with Ashe’s psionic amplifier. It is as though all of my magic is being channeled through Bert. I do not want to inadvertently aid the Void through the best of intentions.
“I advise caution in choosing what we do. Again, it is my intent to prevent a calamity from coming to Zhalindor and destroying the World Machine there.
“Does anyone mind if I conduct some basic examination of cantrips and their effects? If we need to draw on our powers substantively then I want to know that it is safe or at the very least be able to characterize the risks and predict some potential effects?”
Roland gives Thivinen a very thoughtful look and then, genuinely gives a hearty nod of approval. “Well said, Thivinen. Well said. Your course seems wise.”
“Very well. Thank you. Ammon-Sul, is there a place where I can test my powers safely away from either vulnerable crew or parts of this magical vessel that might be sensitive?”
Ammon-Sul pauses a moment and then says, apparently to the air, “glack dreck lacken monkia holfen.”
An apparently human skull comes floating out of a small portal in the wall of the galley. It is covered in blinking gems and numerous metallic threads and items the Party would only describe as colorful protuberances. It glides over to Thivinen, floating in mid-air and waits.
“Please follow the servitor to the hold. You may target the center of the hold, but please do not target the walls of the vessel. If you somehow breach the field protecting us then we will be dead at best, and I do not want to think about a worst case.”
Thivinen stares at the servitor for a moment, and as Thivinen stands the servitor starts towards one of the doors at a moderate pace. Thivinen follows it. The door opens briefly to allow their passage.
“That is a lot of questions, and I will do my best to answer them,” Ammon-Sul remarks.
“First, the being you saw was a chaos being of immense power. It is unwise to mention the names of the four principals of chaos anywhere, but we are tunneling through their domain to travel to our next destination. Cthonia, the homeworld of Horus. There we will meet a trans-human, known as Lorgar, Horus’ spiritual advisor.”
Ammon-Sul looks at the bewildered expressions on each of the Party member’s faces. “Oh dear. Where shall I begin?”
Ashe says, “perhaps you could tell us what you mean by a world. We came from a world called Zhalindor. We traveled from it on occasion, but never in a vessel. Though it is said that the four edges of the world hold back the Void. In my trave – in reading history, I understand that it is possible to travel to the underworld in Zhalindor through actual openings in the earth. The only way for us to reach other ‘worlds’ or ‘planes’ as we call them are through magical, mystical, or divine portals.”
“Does your world have a sun? Oh, of course it does, what am I thinking?” Ammon-Sul mutters.
“What color is your sun? Do you have more than one star in your home system?”
Rolands says, “the stars in Zhalindor represent the gods and goddesses that either serve the Creator directly or have ascended through hero questing to the celestial ranks.”
“Of course,” Ammon-Sul remarks. “I’m certain that is true. Perhaps you could sketch some of the brighter or more prominent ‘deities’ for me and tell me their colors. That way I could pinpoint the location of this ‘Zhalindor’ and find out which segmentum it is in.”
Roland continues, “the stars move with each season and rearrange themselves depending on the time of year and sometimes in response to hero quests.”
“What? You mean they move a little that you can measure precisely?”
“No, they – “ Roland starts, but Ashe interjects, “Ammon-Sul, they appear, disappear, move to opposite sides of the sky, grown in intensity, and reconfigure themselves into new patterns.”
Ammon-Sul regards the Party with a combination of complete incredulity and genuine confusion.
Glog picks up and says, “we met the Creator’s sister when she landed in a moon.”
“A moon?” Ammon-Sul muses. “Perhaps your gods travel in ships like mine and use ‘fire sticks’?”
Roland deadpans, “no Ammon-Sul, we are not simpletons. Could simpletons have defeated this champion of chaos whose name we will not mention?”
Ammon-Sul says, “I cannot understand what you are telling me, but in this world, plane, galaxy, or whatever name we choose to call it, there are worlds with air, land, and seas. They are places unto themselves. Most races at least have myths from a time when everyone was trapped on their homeworlds – like Zhalindor from the sounds of it. There are stars, like your sun, that these planets or worlds travel around. From each world, you see stars. They are suns for other worlds that are immense distances apart …”
Glog says, “our sun is actually Yelm, the god of Fire – we met him during the Godstime last year. Don’t start Thivinen on this though. He is a high priest of Filean, a competing Fire deity.”
“You met the sun?”
Roland offers, “we met the deity that is the sun when he travels through the sky each day.”
“How were you not burned up?”
“He limited his celestial fire for us to a warm glow,” Roland answered truthfully.
Ashe adds, “and the stars are not suns. History is full of examples of heroes who have traveled to a star and talked with it. Some have even hidden stars in special bags to bring them down to do chores on Zhalindor.”
Ammon-Sul shakes his head and says, “what is your interpretation of these myths?”
Ashe offers, “I have seen such a star before. These records might have other, deeper meanings, but they are quite literal too.”
Ammon-Sul thinks and says, “well, there are a few ways of traveling between worlds, but only between worlds. There are vessels or star ships like mine. To travel between planets even at the fastest speeds would take hundreds and perhaps tens of thousands of years. To travel via ships between worlds, you have to ‘cheat’ nature and travel through the domains of chaos – we call it Void travel. That will reduce the journey from ten thousand years to a few weeks.”
“What rituals must be done and sacrifices made to accomplish this ‘cheating’?” Roland asks, unconsciously fingering the Fire Sword’s pommel.
Ammon-Sul glances nervously and sputters, “well, don’t k-k-kill the messenger.”
Glog says, “we want to know what we are dealing with Ammon-Sul. Are there dangers associated with this travel? You implied there were to Thivinen. How do you know if a god accepts your ritual?”
Ammon-Sul answers, “we call these rituals ‘science’ – they are well established and maintained by the Machine Cult.”
He looks to Ashe. “They speak in binary, which is the language that the machine spirits in this vessel speak. Are you able to understand them?”
+working it+ Bert relays to Ashe. “Probably not, but it would be nice if we could,” Ashe replies.
Ammon-Sul relaxes noticeably. “It takes years and years of study under the guidance of the machine priests to understand the binary cant, and usually they replace parts of their bodies and brains with machines in order to be more acceptable to the Omnimessiah, the ultimate god of knowledge.”
+will we have to make these changes Bert?+
+Unlikely – no, no it would seem not. I have established initial, friendly contact now. These machine spirits are heterogenous. Some are as simple as a cat or dog. Others have access to vast knowledge. Ammon-Sul only interfaces with a few. There is a city of them to rival Credia or Tanarsa contained in this vessel.+
+Proceed with caution my friend. Can you prevent Ammon-Sul from being aware of our contact? That would prove a potential benefit to us.+
+I will work it.+
There are two other ways to travel between worlds as I understand them. One is via the Eld – elvish tunnels through the Void, and the other is via sorcery. This was how you came through.
“There are whole worlds that exist in these elvish tunnels through the Void. I was born on once such world. Before man came, the elves ruled a hundred thousand worlds. Man did not take these worlds from us, our own hubris caused our downfall. Mankind nearly filled the space left after our collapse.”
Glog redirects Ammon-Sul, “how do we stay safe from these other chaos denizens?”
“That is a good question. I did not think that any of them were aware of you. I will have to ponder this. We need to come up with a strategy on how to deal with Lorgar and Horus.”
“I advise honesty Ammon-Sul,” Roland remarks.
“I prefer a long and happy life,” Ammon-Sul responds. “The Chalice and the Sword were in your world a long time to soak in energy, and I don’t know how to measure what was used or how much is needed. The energy contained in them is not from this – universe – I doubt that Horus could know that some was used unless we tell him. I do know that if we don’t give the items to him then he will find us and take them. I also know that if he feels we have failed him then none of us will survive the encounter – I have seen past encounters go poorly with him.
“He has become a psionic being. He might not be able to understand or measure the energy of the Sword and Chalice, but he might be able to read our emotions.
“I don’t know how psionics work in your world or even how a world such as yours could even exist, but I must ask. Is there any way that we could be shielded from a psychic probing by someone?
“Psionicists here tap into the power of the immaterium, the realm of the chaos denizens, the area that we travel through now. Tapping into this power is uncertain and can have random and sometimes dire results ranging from a breach of chaos creatures into normal space to odd and often highly unpleasant results ranging to death and entrapment and effects I cannot even begin to imagine let alone describe.”
+Bert, can we shield him?+
+Let’s discuss before answering him.+
+Good point.+
“Thank you,” Ashe says.
“What about Perra? Who took her?” Glog queries.
“I do not know who or what those creatures were, but they were very technologically advanced. They stopped a chaos lord in his tracks. I know of no power capable of that. There are legends, but these predate even the oldest of my race by tens of or perhaps even millions of years.”
“What of the Chalice and Sword, and tell us more of Horus.”
“What I was told was that these items were forged long ago and sent to your world – I just thought it was another world in another part of the galaxy – to absorb certain types of energy unknown to our science. This is an ancient legend amongst my people. Once the items had accumulated sufficient power, they were to be returned to a powerful warrior here to destroy a great menace. Up until I was contacted by Lorgar, I thought the legend was just an allegory or myth. I would not have imagined that my people would have made artefacts for a human, but it would appear so. These items have been away from our galaxy for almost 100,000 years.
“I have seen Horus and seen his actions, but I do not know him. I only know that he is embarking on a grand crusade and seeks to topple a godless empire that denies the existence of the chaos lords.
“You speak of divine, arcane, and void powers. I know of the void as the place between real space that allows fast travel, but is also the home of the chaos denizens and the source of psychic energy. The arcane is a subset of psionics for me as I understand it that involves rituals and superstitious mumbo jumbo. Of the divine, I have seen no evidence. If supernatural beings exist then they are purely evil and inimitable to life as the one you already met.”
“Thank you,” Glog says, “we need some time to think about your words before asking further questions.”
“As you wish, we have nothing but time between now and planetfall. Please consider my request carefully and with gravity for psychic protection. I fear that our lives depend on it.”
With that, Ammon-Sul directs servitors to accompany the Party members, attend to their needs, and help them get around the vessel.
* * *
Individual notes to follow.
* * *
Let the games begin!
In service,
Rich