Session One Hundred and Forty-Seven Summary (Graveyard of Empires: After the Fall)

Session 147, August 9 2023

Introduction

We continue at 9:00AM on the 4th day of the Winter Holiday (00.000.08.31 on the Apocalypse Clock) with the party leaving the beach near Enzo's hut. They leave with some newly enchanted items, blessed at the Matriarchs' shrine on Saints' Island; they also leave with a giant mechanical wasp that seems to be starving to death without access to trans-spatial energy. The group are now headed south along the beach towards Shemm, where Enzo has told them they might find a ship to travel across the ocean. At the very least, Enzo assured Velkin that one ship is stranded on a sandbar near that village. Will they make it to Shemm without incident? Will they find a ship to travel to Crescent Island? Will they discover a source of trans-spatial energy to feed Buzz the Wasp? Find out next time; or maybe not.

We break camp, take our leave of Enzo, the fisherman (friendly fish from Peronell's fortune telling of organs.)

Invisible Velkin and Thorfus lead the way, the others following their footprints.

Around Noon a lowing echoes from the trees to the side and sounds like a cow. It's more of a moo.

It is decided that Velkin and Thorfus will go investigate. Thorfus does a quick scan with his magic spyglass at first. Seeing nothing spectacular and hearing seabirds. Ozymandius the owl is not impressed.

Kauri examines Buzz to see if he has a control cube. Looks for a charging port of some kind.

There is some sort of a connecting point between his thorax and tail. Similar to what assassin droid's had. It is dirty and seems like some of the mud is packed into it.

Kauri cleans it off using infinite tea. [Infinite tea could be used to drown the infinite spiders.]

Velkin moves stealthily and Thorfus moves in they flank them to avoid spooking them and being trampled.

It is slow going. The creatures are not in very far. There is a narrow game trail in a small clearing. Laying on the ground are two large cows and a calf. They seem to be resting from the heat.

There are no signs of domestication about them, no bells, marks, etc.

Thorfus turns around and heads back towards the beach. Velkin hears Thorfus and follows. In another ten minutes they rejoin the party.

Kauri finishes cleaning the charging port.

Peronell is interested in getting fresh meat. No one else is.

We resume the journey down the beach.

It is approaching evening and no signs of buildings, etc. So we consider whether to make camp, or keep going.

Thorfus scans to see if he can see a ship on a sandbar and thinks he can see a ship.

We decide to make camp on the sand away from the tide line.

A double full moon and high tide that goes with it is a couple days away.

We dig a pit and do a crescent around a fire with shields to hide the fire.

We set watches.

Kauri tries to follow the charge port back to see if he can find batteries in the wasp. Peeling back some plating around the charge port, there are two cylindrical items that appear to be batteries and have a constant blue light.

Kauri asks TikTok to take a look at the batteries. TikTok sits at the edge of the clock, stroking his chin, "mm-hmm, mm-hmm."

This thing is from Xenotel, correct. This isn't a subject I don't like to talk about. The charging stations on Xenotel, these items used to create drinks and other slush like objects that pulps DVLs. The last of their lifeforce is leaking away in those batteries.

What we really need is a charging chamber to hook straight in.

TikTok doesn't think casting a spell would work, but could try it. The ancient dwarves's machines maybe made is so they didn't do it.

TikTok said it should have an information cube in it's head. It might have enough power to read a cube, but it might kill him.

TikTok guesses the charge in the batteries will last at most a week.

So the choice is to read it's mind, or see if we can figure a way to charge it.

Kauri pointed out that the Dragon Empire had it's own version of batteries. Ithirialma wasn't involved in that.

The night passes uneventfully.

Before heading out, Thorfus scans the horizon and the skies. The ship seen the prior evening still is there.

Up ahead are some little bays where the coast cuts in, across the water from us there is a group of humanoids and they have some makeshift shelters. A couple have fishing poles in the water.

They are green skinned and looking kind of rough.

Echoing across the water in orcish. "Over there, look, somebody coming down the beach." Fishermen pull in their lines, and they have a few weapons. There are about a dozen of them.

They are 200 yards away.

Thorus uses his spyglass and listens in to what they are saying.

How many are there, do they look tough, do they have food, do they look like they could be food. Something big behinds them, it looks metal. Do they have a boat? I think we outnumber them at least. Look tough.

There are a few that looks like they are half orcs.

Thorfus relays this to the rest of the party.

One, perhaps the leader, shouts in common, "Aho there, who are you?"

Kauri says, "Travelers on the way to Shmeck." (Shem)

Ay? You're from Shem?

We're going to Shem.

OK, come around, let's make sure we can see your hands.

We keep walking.

More consternation when they see we are dragging this large mechanical thing and are very perturbed.

The leader threatened them enough to get them to line up to look intimidating.

Soon we are in non-shouting distance.

The leader says, OK, just hold it right there. You said you're from Shem and heading back.

We're heading to Shem. You'll have trouble, but not from us. Shem's gone.

What made it go away. We think they've been attacked and taken away. A few escaped capture. Said something about huge ugly creatures made of bone and fire.

We've been trapped here since our ship got stuck. We go into town occasionally.

Where's your ship? Pointing, stuck on a sandbar, just North of Shem.

Is it still seaworthy. Haven't been able to get out to it, there are things living in it.

What kind of things? Cursed sea creature kinds of things.

We're heading to Shem for a ship.

Looks at his men, we were going to try to make a try for it.

According to a genius here in morning we'll have a double high tide and might be able to float it.

We have to clear the ship first.

Kauri - he's not wrong about the double high tide, there is a high-pitched voice says, "And another on the 5th"

You need passage?

It doesn't seem like many of you are sailors now, does it?

Maybe we can work out a deal.

We are headed to Feldmark.

Some do signs to ward off the evil eye.

We have to get near Feldmark, not necessarily land there.

Did you hear about what happened there?

Some sort of creatures from sickness. A bunch of heroes helped them and salted the earth with the infected and a huge undead giant rules the city.

Undead like creatures on our ship, but not like those at Feldmark,

Maybe we can make a deal to clear our ship and labor to float it.

It's a little out of the way, we'll be heading back to Armada.

Thorfus mutters to Druul, when were they last at Armada? What do they know?

Druul asks when were they last at Armada. We were supposed to be back weeks ago? It's been a few months.

We decide not to mention Armada. Druul says that he's familiar with Armada but not from there.

We'll give you a ride if you help us.

I'm Captain Chen of the Guilded Gusset.

Chen gives a long look at Bortham and Itirialma and Philomanthraxis are obviously Imperials.

The wasp will fit on the ship.

Druul asks at Thorfus' prompting "How many creatures are on the ship?"

About 20.

So they're undead? Maybe, we tried stabbing them. There was a slight navigation error coming into Shem and got stuck. The next we know these things are clawing up the ship. We stabbed them and they didn't stop.

They have a boat to get out there.

It's hid above the tree line close to Shem.

You probably won't fit in one go, then shrugs.

Boys, why don't we strike camp. It looks like Shem is abandoned anyway, no reason to stay up here. Fishing and privacy were good up here, but we'll go with you at least as far as were our boat is stashed.

He asks if we have food. We're running low, is there more on the ship. Yes, on the ship assuming those creatures didn't eat it.

If you help us get the ship back, there'll be plenty of food for all.

They tear down shacks and divide up fish and useful items from flotsam, etc.

About Noon they are ready.

They lead the way and we follow. It is about another hour of walking. Can definitely see the ship and it is stuck, but not a traumatic grounding.

Chen says, if not for the creatures we could have just stayed aboard and floated free at high tide.

We watch the ship from shore and the creatures only seem to go on deck at night and are holed up inside during daylight.

Thorfus uses magic spyglass to look for damage and if he can see or hear the creatures. No sign of creatures, there is some items that are damaged on deck. There may be an arm of a body sticking up. It is hard to tell if there is any damage. It is definitely a sandbar. Normal hightide is enough to cover the sandbar, but not enough to dislodge it.

About 1:00 PM reach part of beach, one with high pitched voice gets captains attention. Captain Chen points to Shem and we can see the docks. The few survivors that ran into the jungle.

Boat is small. Could squeeze 8 full sized humanoids on it.

Chen asked if we plan to go now or later.

Kauri says we'll make a plan.

Druul says it's a pretty standard merchant ship.

Thorfus whispers maybe they could go see if there are any boats back at Shem?

Kauri asks and they said that there were a couple fishing boats, you want us to get them?

The Shemites may not like it. We don't need to keep them, just use them to get to the ship.

Chen takes his men to Shem and the docks.

Thorfus mentions if they are undead, the clerics can turn them.

We decide to read Buzz's brain to see what it knows, has seen, etc.

Kauri finds a square reliquary in the skull. A bit of twitching, but no real reaction.

Kauri accesses the cube. A holographic very faint and shaky appears. Some sort of access menu.

• Security protocols
• Maintenance
• Log Files.

Start with Log Files.

• Error Logs
• Activity Logs.

Start with Activity Logs with a lot of file names with a bunch of numbers. Kauri looks for a date for part of the file names, using the dwarven calendar.

Kauri looks to the date range of when we found it to when it got trapped in the pit. A couple months since the party saw him.

Kauri skips to shortly after Xenotel found. A wasp eye view of things. In some kind of close hallway or small chamber, sparking and wires, and canted weirdly to the side. Fast forward. Finally the door opens and there is a small deep gnome (Braadlur) and Buzz flies past Rallion and the others.

It disappears to the jungle. It attacks some kind of sloth and tear it apart and eats it and spits out most of it. Attacks various creatures, rips into them and tries to eat them.

Up in the mountains. One point a dry riverbed a spider in a crevice that chases it off. Under attack from some ill looking dwarves. Kills one flees then the killed one gets up.

Eventually get to where it is flopping around, barely able to fly, then when Thorfus found it.

Look at earlier files to see how it eats. Idyllic fields of golden wheat and Buzz and other mechanical wasps flying through it. There is red flashing and images in ancient dwarven, something about intruders telling Buzz to proceed to an area. All the wasps forming up and flying purposefully in a direction, then all hell breaks loose. In tunnels outside the giant tube with all the environments, like the funnels it was found later on.

No scenes of Buzz being recharged. Will take going through older records.

Looks at error messages about failing power levels and warnings to get to a charging station and coordinates for nearest charging station. They made sense on Xenotel. Looks at dates that correspond to when it tried to eat. Inadequate power source.

There is a little about being knocked around a bit, perhaps when Xenotel was crashing.

Looks at Maintenance. Immediately notation about power situation in red at the top. Then a bunch of diagnostic tests. At the very bottom there is power saving mode. It is off. Kauri turns power saving on. Warning. Unit will be unresponsive while in power saving mode, Continue?

There is a whole menu about schematics, but not about instructions. There is no Help file.

Checked out Security Protocols. Security override attack all nearby hostiles. Take manual control. Then pre-programmed behavior patterns, patrol, designate an area. Cross link to power saving, temporary stasis.

Kauri puts it in power save mode. The menu is still there. It folds in to take up much less space. There is now a very blocky thing like a chest with signs of being a wasp, making it much easier to carry. Menu is still visible so that menu is where we can still reach it.

There is no indicator of how much time or a percentage of battery life.

Kauri turns off the display and closes the head.

During the menu investigation we can see that Captain Chen and crew have the fishing boats and are working their way back.

We test the full healing jar of Kauri into one of the four other jars (2 with Lambertus and 2 with Felix). It remains at half full. We keep them separate. Lambertus keeps it.

Caspar has been quiet. Am I coming with you? No, you are staying here with buzz. Ozymandius tells Velkin he will also hang back while undead sea creatures are deal with.

Chen and crew reach us with the two fishing boats. Between the boat left with us there is enough to carry all of us.

I told them once we get the ship off the bar, we'll bring it to the docks, we can offload some supplies in exchange for what they have.

These Shemites also want to talk to us when we told them you looked like adventuring types.

So have at it. I hope you have a good plan.

It is at least a 15 minute row to the sandbar.