OOC note: This Progression was written as part of the Storyweb System, linked here. This post pertains to the activities of Faraddi Explorers. Those interested to partake in this roleplay in future missions should seek out the Order to offer assistance in roleplay, to fully partake in future posts. Spoiler: ♫ Ambience ♫ The coasts of Krayr, on October the 3rd 307, would be the site of a momentous discovery and battle, though it would not be truly known for a short while. Returning home from the Isle of Krayr in the early hours on the 4th, Amir would look upon her crew, holding a cloth up to his bleeding temple. Azra would be slung over a makeshift cot, unconscious, bruised and battered, Fahim would be somewhat improperly stitching a large gash on Khalid’s leg. Whether all this chaos and bloodshed and loss had been worth it, haunted Amir as the waves crashed against their vessel... Several hours earlier, Amir Razavi was leading their company back onto their boat, yet another map in hand describing the safest route to travel up the coast by boat. The locals of Solacia had been surprisingly welcoming to the group, selling them the safe trade routes for a modest price. It was Naajy’s and Aaminah abilities as Slizzar, with Aaminah, in particular, managing to convince a very drunk seadog to reveal the location of the Isle ofKrayr, which allowed the group to sail for the tiny isle. Its location was not as grand a secret as it once was, but knowing this was something of value in itself. As they sailed up to the coast that evening, quite suddenly, Kamaria spotted the mouth of a cave on the coast of a small island. Even from here, she could see a towering port city on the eastmost side of the Isle. They had come upon the “wrong side” of the Island, but with their copies of the map in hand, they managed to find what could only be Cooke’s Cave, where his most fast of ships was rumored to go down. Amir quickly jotted down a sketch of the Isle, in case a return journey to that infamous port city was required. Moss and vines had been burnt away around the cave, somewhat recently judging by the smoke that billowed around the area. There was no sight of the Black Dragon Sigil Boat, but a smaller boat bobbed just inside the cave. Naajy had the wise idea to hide their ship away further up the coast, before trekking back and making use of their rope to gain entrance to the cave proper, landing on a rickety wooden platform. Further inside, a large dock had been constructed of stone and wood both, with a series of tunnels splitting off further on. The group formed ranks into their pre-planned tactic, with Khalid and Azra scouting ahead. Amir held his spear to bear, leading the main party with Fahim and Naajy behind him. At the back are Aaminah and lastly Kamaria, watching their six with her quarterstaff in hands. They moved swiftly through the cave-docks and into the largest of the tunnels. What started out as corridors of dirt and stone began to give way to, of all things, stark white marble. It was Khalid who recognized it as Seraphalo, of all things. Clockwork cogs and pipes had been carved and cut through parts of the stone, implemented haphazardly. As they went, the sounds of steam and machinery were quickly complemented by yells and the sound of steel against steel. The party rushed on, but it was Azra who first spotted the true danger ahead. The tunnel they traveled through widened out to a large, expansive chamber. The walls were constructed of Seraphalo, with huge piles of a similar, but shinier, material lay scattered about the floor. In the center of the chamber, a small army of roughly dressed men were engaged in a vicious battle with what appeared to be three clockwork golems. Azra managed to spot a large pile of Seraphalo rubble for the group to hide behind as they hatched a plan. Aaminah noticed the Black Dragon Sigil on the fighting men’s clothing and quickly surmised they would need to fight their way through, to proceed into the complex. As they plotted, Khalid spotted a heavy box of sorts crudely sticking out of the napes of each golem and hatched a plan in short order. As another Black Dragon pirate was crushed beneath the fist of a golem, Azra was sent speeding along toward the Golems and attempted to climb atop its form to get at the box. This was ruined in short order as a metal fist slammed against her, sending her crashing into a pile of rubble. The rest of the party was left with no choice but to join in on the wild melle, ‘lest they leave Azra to die. Kamira managed to hold off most of the Black Dragon pirates with her quarterstaff, spinning and slamming the weapon in a dizzying array. The Golems, of note, seemed to utterly ignore Amir, but did indeed swipe at the rest of them. After a moment to consider this, during which another Black Dragon Pirat was crushed by a golem's fist, Amir took a hand to the talisman, and drew the rest of the party close to her, with Khalid dragging Azra over to them. As he did so, the Golems turned and began rather cruelly smashing the Black Dragon pirates into bits, before calmly walking to the center of the chamber, and going quite still. At the center of these golems lay a stone dias, with the floor cut up into squares. Carefully, the group moved as one, sticking close to Amir and his talisman. “Must be facing that way... Three steps left, then three steps right” recited Amir as they paced away from the central dias, before she looked up. Through a slim hole in the roof of the cavern came moonlight. The thin beam of light fell upon one of the square tiles and revealed a thin line in the center that could be lifted. Naajy gingerly lifted it up, to reveal a large glass bottle of water, with a key floating and twisting about within. Khalid didn’t seem impressed with this, making a few comments about Cooke’s riddle making skills, before the group began looking about for some sort of chest. It was a solid hour of searching, the group moving together so as not to disturb the Golems, before Aaminah pointed up at the Golems. “It’s… always in motion. The golems, they were moving!” A few moments later, they had used the key to open the box structures on each of the Golem’s napes, discovering they slid out to form ornate clockwork chests. The Golems did not seem to protest to this, and Naajy, Aaminah, and Fahim prepared to carry them out. Just as the group left the chamber, however, a trio of Black Dragon pirates ambushed them from the tunnels. One of the grazed Amir’s temple with a scimitar, while the two others sent deep slashes into Khalid’s leg. Azra was limping along with the others, but this ambushed seemed to set her off, her daggers and Kamira’s quarterstaff stabbing and slamming into the trio and laying them out in short order. With fresh wounds but three ornate chests to carry, the group managed to escape back to the surface, load up their vessel, and sail away with all haste. Sailing away from the coast of Krayr, Amir looked upon her injured crew, and the three chests they had retrieved. It would take some time to open them properly, but that would be done within a few days back in Regalia, where it was safe. As they sailed, Azra slowly came to again, and put a hand over a chunk of the Seraphalo she had grabbed, as they schemed earlier. Taking a closer look at the assumed rubble, she noted its faint blue glint, and shining material. Her eyes widened in surprise for a moment, before she passed clean out aboard the ship. Note. The Items therein will be opened during an in-game event, that may allow for other groups to participate if they discover where the Faraddi Explorers would meet, sometime this weekend. @WaterDruppel @AtticCat @PuffyPigeon @Catannine @SirJiminyCricket @Betel_ @TheBioverse
