Same as It Ever Was (Part 17)

GAME: Zeke rolls Will: (14)+26: 40

With the shimmering blue stone circling him, Telamon nods -- carefully -- to Simony (who is on his shoulders). "It is an ioun stone, yes. I have a couple, but I don't use them much -- they tend to be a little distracting."

The sorcerer hovers, looking over Hark and Zeke. They don't seem to be suffering any ill effects, other than the nostalgic effects of the threads. Though that begs the question -- how did Rune and Hark's alternates get through here? "Do you want me to take the lead next? Give you two a chance to catch your breath?" It's clear he's unsure about the wisdom of getting your memories stirred up over and over.

GAME: Riptide rolls 1d100: (44): 44 GAME: Riptide rolls 1d6: (1): 1

Aryia, still on her high of smugness and pride, glances to the floating stone, remembering her own in her pocket. She makes a grunting sound, rifling it out and letting it free to float about her head. More coverage!

Though, the Archmage had a good point, she nods, gesturing to let someone go on ahead of her.

Simony giggles, "I can't imagine why. What does this one do?" She eyes Aryia a moment. "Are you okay?", she signs, before looking to Telamon with some concern in her expression. A little hand grips Tel's shoulder firmly. "I will definitely pinch you if you start going off into dreamland.", she murmurs. "I don't know if this is the best idea. What if we're the wrong people to go through this? What if the two lovebirds are supposed to do this? What if this is a fae thing stealing our memories like they steal names?"

"That's the problem..." Rune looks over to Telamon, bringing up the rear of the group along with their quiet traveling companions. "I don't think they /did/ go this way. But..." Her hand motions towards the Makari of the party. Then, she raises her eyebrows in a distinct expression of exasperation.

"That's my worry." Rune agrees with Simony, "In our world, I can only see the threads when I'm using the scissors, and usually they're related to strands of fate that weave people together." Rune explains, for those not aware of this particular unusual 'gift'. "These seem to be something else entirely, and I don't like messing with things we don't understand."

"It is possible they did not come through here. Used the earth to move through. Avoided the threads. Or perhaps, she is opposite to Rune. And as such, she creates Threads and all of this." He motions before himself. "Is left by her." Harkashan offers. "Regardless, the only path we have before us is forward."

"Let thisss one do it." Zeke says to Telamon's question. "Thissss one is sssuited to the tasssk." He means his size mostly. He is large enough to take up most of the space in the halls. Enough to move aside most of the threads and thusly allow others to pass unhindered beyond.

Zeke gets a confusing glimpse of memory this time. One that is certainly not his own given that in it... He has the body of a softskin. He is wearing beggar's rags. His hands are gray as they clutch to a wound on his leg. A leg that is not Makari. It is covered in slime, and his vision turns toward a massive dead grub which had harmed him. He remembers thinking that the grub is disgusting. That this was his second job in Alexandria, and that a mere grub had nearly taken his leg off. That this place was no better than where he had come from. He needs to clean it off in a bathhouse... He gets to his feet; limping out.

The memory fades quickly, his mind not really holding onto it, but he can remember that he had held it for a moment and he grunts in displeasure. "Thisss one jussst got a memory that isss not thisss onesss. Odd." He frowns thoughtfully, but it had not harmed him any more than the previous memories had, so he prepares to move forward more. "Thisss one agreesss with Harkassshan. We move forward. It isss our path."

"Alright, stop." Telamon's voice is quiet but firm, and it carries. Having heard Zeke's remark, he points at his makari friend. "The -last- thing we need are our memories getting mashed together. I'm pretty sure there are some things we don't feel comfortable sharing." He gives the others a raised eyebrow. Why yes, he means exactly what one might think he means.

The half-elf rubs his chin, before looking at Rune. "Rune... could you try and use your scissors on these threads? If it doesn't work, no harm, no foul, but I'm wondering..."

That strange sound like a violin rings out again from deeper into the cave. This time it's a morose melody, almost taunting and inviting the listener to go further.

Nala shifts uncertainly. "I really don't like the sound of that song," she murmurs, before she looks ahead. "Zeke... Ummm... Can I give it a try? Walking through some threads, that is. If Simony's right... Maybe I ought to be doing this?"

Aryia gets a hold of herself, the large grin simmering out to a small smirk. She flashes a thumbs up to Simony, dusting herself off as she listens to the others give their opinions. The fey experts had a solid point. Then she frowns. Someone's going to get punched in the face if they take that core memory out of them.

The ideas presented were pretty good, her holding up a hand to the bluescale. "Probably those of this timeline?" she adds on top to the suggestions, looking to her other self and Telemno. "Though the scissors sound interesting as a backup." <Handspeech/Tongues>

There is little chance that Rune will convince the Makari of anything, so she doesn't step in when Zeke continues forward, though she does watch with an expression of discomfort. She even casts an eye to Harkashan, but rather than argue his words, she just looks away, pressing her lips together tightly.

To Telamon, she furrows her brows, "I could try using them, yes. In all honesty, I don't /want/ to use them, though. They are meant for specific threads of fate in our world, ones that aren't visible like these threads of memory." Rune shakes her head, "I have no idea what it would do, and wielding them is a heavy responsibility as it is. It's not something I take lightly."

Nala's offer, however, is met with a look of consideration. "It is your world. So, I'd rather let you try your hand with them, first."

GAME: Simony rolls knowledge/religion: (4)+16: 20
GAME: Simony rolls knowledge/religion: (8)+16: 24

The Goblin frowns. "I mean... this IS where Corpse Eater is, correct? There is definitely fae magics involved here." She flashes Aryia a grin and thumbs up, then nods to Rune. "On the surface, they appear to be harmless. But we can't be sure what is happening. I don't think that if we are going to walk through them that we should all do so. What if we become enthralled or enfeebled?"

Another glance to Rune. "Would this be something Corpse Eater could do, or would doooo... uh. UHHHH. What would the reverse of you cutting those threads be? What would the alternate you be doing here?"

That grip on Telamon's shoulder gets stronger. "These are definitely memories, not threads of fate." She jumps down from her lofty perch. "Time is.. like wool spun into yarn. Like yarn, it is made up of multiple fibers. It... wait! These are specific points in time! Telamon, would you like to perform some science?"

She reaches for his hand. "If we walk through one of these together, we should experience a memory. Let's compare that memory and see what we can see, hmm?"

Zeke pauses at Telamon's insistence, looking at the other man in blank confusion. What kind of memory would he be unwilling to share? Then it occurs to him that it might simply be that Telamon would not wish to remember what he has lived through. That it might make _Telamon_ uncomfortable.

"Thisss one would not want for you to be harmed by thisss onesss memoriesss." He concedes at last, looking at the ones from this world. "Thisss one will allow you to try. One thread. If it harmsss you, or makesss you relive a memory, then thisss one will allow Rune to try her method if ssshe isss willing. If not; thisss one will clear all the threadsss carefully. Thisss one will be careful." This seems to him the best course of action. He doesn't want anyone to relive an unpleasant memory.

Telamon looks at Zeke with an inscrutable expression, as if trying to figure out if there's some kind of miscommunication. Then he seems to give a small shrug. "Memory sharing isn't something done lightly," he says finally.

Rune's remarks are noted, Tel's brow furrowing in thought. But then Nala speaks up, and... she does have a point. She is, after all, the focal point (even if she doesn't realize it). Perhaps they've been going about this backwards. "Hmm. Alright. Nala, you go ahead. Zeke, you and Aryia back her up just in case she walks into something unpleasant. The rest of us follow." He offers Simony a smile. "No offense, my friend, but experimentation is best done under controlled conditions and these are anything but."

GAME: Riptide rolls 1d20+18: (1)+18: 19 (EPIC FAIL)
GAME: Riptide rolls 1d100: (2): 2
GAME: Riptide rolls 1d6: (3): 3

Nala walks, and she goes halfway through the tunnel before she breaks through a handful of threads, and...

She starts crying. Telanmo's face sours as he steps forward. "Nala? Is everything okay?" he asks.

"How did I forget?" Nala asks in anguish, falling to the floor of the cave. "My father... My father. He was so _cruel_. All I did was take something that wouldn't have been missed, and... He locked me up in my room."

She sniffles. "I... had a father?" she asks, seemingly confused. "I don't remember having a father. But I hate him. I hate him _so_ much. So, so, _so_ much."

Telanmo frowns. "Seems like she's confusing someone's memory as one of her own..."

"It feels like it's mine!" Nala yells.

GAME: Zeke rolls Perception: (7)+9: 16
GAME: Harkashan rolls Perception: (6)+33: 39
GAME: Aryia rolls perception: (7)+37: 44
GAME: Telamon rolls perception: (4)+33: 37
GAME: Rune rolls perception+1: (17)+41+1: 59
GAME: Simony rolls perception: (20)+29: 49

When Nala begins to speak of hatred towards a father, a frown appears on Harkashan's expression. He steps forward, instinctively, to see if he should help. But Telanmo is already at her side. It's good to see, but the words being spoken are most certainly concerning. A hatred of a father she didn't have?

He glances aside to Rune, whispering her name for a moment in a questioning manner. After all, he knows she has a rather... prickly opinion of her own father. What's worse, there's the sound in the distance. "We have company." He remarks, while putting a hand on Rune's shoulder, running his thumb along the cloth. He's uncertain how this memory sharing thing works. But there's hatred and a being who desires fear nearby.

Zeke can smell the scent of despair coming from Nala, and gently he motions her away from the wall of threads. He wishes now that he had never allowed her to touch the threads. Now she has a memory that is not her own. He hopes that it will pass for her, given time. "Thisss one will deal with the ressst. This-"

He pauses at Harkashan's warning, tilting his head but hearing no such sound. Still, he trusts the other sith and readies himself mentally and physically for a fight; his body moving between Nala and the area ahead of them.

Aryia blinks as the Nala seems to get a bad, bad memory. Her head tilts one way. Was it just a random memory? Or someone here? Couldn't be hers own, she likes her parents. As Harkashan points that out, she nods once in confirmation, snapping her fingers at Nala to get her attention. "Remember what I taught you. Ground yourself to expel the emotion, or bottle that hatred for later," she signs at her, scowling off deeper down the threaded cavern path. <Handspeech/Tongues>

Everything in Rune's posture seems to go still, as if she were frozen by Nala's words. Her eyes slowly close and she takes in a deep breath, as if she were trying to push back the very real moment that the girl's words bring back to the forefront of her mind. "It's... my memory." She admits.

The touch to her shoulder has her opening her eyes, blue gaze looking to Harkashan before she nods. "He kept me in that room for weeks, insisting I had to learn my lesson. After I got out, I ran, and didn't talk to him for nearly two years." She still rarely talks to the man. He isn't a person she cares to be around in the best of times. "We're still here." She offers in comfort to Nala.

Then... the sound of distant laughter has her ears twitching. "I really don't like that. If that asshole is laughing, then we've got real trouble on our hands."

The Goblin opens her mouth. Closes it. Frowns. "How is any of this not an experiment, Telamon? I know I brought it up as a possibility. But if these things are specific points in time, it could be important to figuring things out." She looks back and forth as the conversation moves back and forth.

Then the laughing starts. Telamon finds himself with a bit of extra weight as Simony clings to his leg. "Th-t-that's him."

GAME: Telamon casts Greater Prying Eyes. Caster Level: 20 DC: 29

Telamon is grabbed by Simony. "I know," he says gently. "But remember, we beat him before, we'll do it again." He takes a deep breath. "Alright, I know how to handle this. Emegar, haz sisa, su dag dima."

It's a very different spell, but one which has some... very -weird- results. As he spreads his hands, small bubbles of shimmering force begin to float away from his fingers. More and more of them, until he's surrounded by almost two dozen floating spheres... that resolve into ghostly eyes. "Go," he murmurs. "Scout the area and monitor it, and send one back to me." Swiftly, the magical eyes zip away, avoiding the threads as they go down the corridor. Soon one returns to alight on Telamon's hand. "A pool of water beyond," he murmurs. "... And more threads. Joy."

GAME: Telamon rolls 1d4: (2): 2

Nala sniffles deeply, but at hearing the memory was Rune's, she gets up from the cave floor, turns around, and walks up to Rune...

She embraces the half-sil in a very tender hug, sniffling. "I'm sorry," she says softly. "He shouldn't have done that. He... He _never_ should have done that." There's an edge of anger in her voice. "It's a good thing he doesn't exist in this world."

Telanmo shuffles a little, coming over to collect Nala. "Nala? Come here, my princess," he says tenderly. He opens his arms for a hug, and Nala comes over to him, hugging him tightly--by parking herself right underneath his chin. It seems, just like Cor'lana, Nala has found her happy place, because she's smiling again in short order.

"The Corpse-Eater, I'm guessing?" Telanmo asks with a frown at the others. "I didn't hear anything."

Harkashan and Rune have talked on many occasions, the 'problem' that is her father. So when she begins with 'he kept me in that room' he already mentally is filling in the blanks. Words she has spoken before echoing into this moment.

"We are still here." Harkashan agrees. "And our foe lies ahead - beyond a wall of memories and possible anguish." He notes, while stepping back to let Nala in there. Indeed, her father doesn't exist in this world, though that may not be the blessing it seems. It would appear that Leirune had a different experience in that regards.

He then nods to Nala herself. "Yes. It would appear so." -- "Telamon, what's the plan? Can you get us in there now that you have Sensors there?"

"Still. He knows we are here." She gestures to the threads. "He can probably feel when these break, I would hazard a guess." The Goblin looks to Telanmo then, and nods. "Yes, the Corpse-Eater." Her pointy ears wiggle a little. "We Goblins may be short and puny, but we've got better hearing. It's probably better you don't hear him laugh. It's pretty creepy."

She watches with interest as Telamon casts a spell she's not seen him use before. Pushing up the little pince-nez on her nose, she watches the 'eyes' head on past the golden threads. "What would happen if one of those broke a thread, I wonder?"

Aryia gives a slight shudder at the thought of someone close doing such horrible things, given the context of how everyone is taking this father figure. But with the tale of the Corpse-Eater having been explained and possibly close by, it doesn't take many dots for her to connect as Telamon gets out his scouts. And for what comes after.

Hot dropping right into this mess. She saddles up next to Telamon and crouches, flaring her legs out and stretching them to uncomfortable looking angles.. Readying for the ass kicking.

Telamon looks down at Simony. "They're constructs, meant for seeing, not feeling. But I'm not really eager to find out. So they're commanded to avoid the threads." The sorcerer stares ahead for a moment. "Gather close.There's a small ledge near the next opening, I can dimension-door us there with minimal hassle."

He focuses on the eyes. "Or I can send them further in, find us an opening..."

Rune has never been one to shy away from physical comforts, so she leans in to Nala and lightly strokes her hair to offer some in return. "You're right. I know that." She murmurs, and then shakes her head as she steps back slightly, "He may not exist in this world, but... if my counterpart is anything like me, then perhaps her mother was the cruel one, here." Before, it might have been hard for her to imagine, but she's seen enough in this parallel land to feel empathy for how a life might have gone in different circumstances.

As Telanmo gets the answer in one guess, Rune nods her head. Then, she looks at Harkashan, "It doesn't seem to take our memories in the process. But... let's just say that not every memory is a pleasant one to experience." She is woe to subject any of her friends to the experience of dying, though she knows that others have faced such fates, themselves.

As Telamon offers an alternative solution, Rune steps closer to the archmage. "I have a sneaking worry that maybe... these might not be here to keep people out, but maybe to keep something in. Until we know better, I like your solution best."

-TBC