Game Posts

Ulfren begins going through the main room, primarily concerned with anything that might be moving or otherwise inhabiting the outpost. He starts with the common area and pauses to check the northern door.

Ulfren will wait for the others to catch up after their own investigations. While he does, he moves to the main entrance to open the doors and look outside. He does not attempt to venture out, but rather secure the portal while his companions do their work.

"Clear!" Gunnar calls out as he finishes sweeping each area for threats.

Phineas rejoins the group and shrugs.

"Nothing much here."

"Easy to see why those squatters had such a time," grunts Ulfren.

Ulfren stands in the doorway in thought. "How far's the closest settlement from here?" he asks of the others. "I figure we got a couple of hours left. If we can make it, maybe we can try. Otherwise we ought to hole up here, secure the post, and head out in the morning."

"That close, huh?" says Ulfren. "All right, let's see if we can find any kin." Unless there are objections, he starts a paced march towards the gates.

Let's put feet to stone, then, girls! Billy exclaims as he belts out a little traveling music before following Ulfren.

Phineas marvels at Billy's playing, filling him with nostalgia of his people's music. He looks to the sympathetic stone and the swaying grasses and sees that the land, too, has missed the beautiful sounds of the People Under the Mountain.

We will relight the hearth fires and fill this mountain with earnest joy once again!

With Billy's music, he finds it easy to keep up with Ulfren for a change.

Gunnar marches along in time to the beat of Billy's music.

Ulfren maintains his march. Though the presence of ruined stone would normally slow his pace, the lack of dwarven life concerns him more.

Phineas fights the urge to transform into a gazelle and spring forward. He believes whole-heartedly that his people are still alive, merely trapped in stone. He knows that it will not be easy, but he can't help but think that there's still a chance to prove to his father that his path was a worthy one.

Instead, he contents himself with matching his stride with mighty Ulfren's, and attunes his mind with the rock and wind around him.

Ulfren rests his hand on the eye of his axe, staring at the rubble. "Phineas," he says, "this look like we brought it down ourselves?"

Phineas falls to his knees when he realizes what he is seeing.

"Ulfren! The gates ... "

Somehow he had expected the gates to outlast time itself, so grand and strong were they. He pulls himself to his feet at Ulfren's steady words, and stares at him for a moment, as if seeing the strength in Ulfren's worn features could grant him the strength to carry on.

Nothing seems to come from that except Ulfren looking at him like he's a being a nit. But when courage fails, sometimes embarrassment can substitute. "Yes, I'll investigate right away" he mumbles. Then he shakes himself and approaches the massive rubble-strewn terrace.

Phineas surveys the massive boulders that choke the grand entrance of his ancestral home, but instead of focusing on those, he picks up a mere pebble. "You don't belong here," he whispers. "Tell me your tale, sad stone."