Session 19: To the Moon! Report

General Summary

Previously

  Arriving on the planet of Paraxis, and visiting the walled town of Grantz (whose diverse inhabitants scavenge the leftover technology of this world for trade and protection), the party visits the Electric Monk in the nearby forest. The unseen voice there tells them that the hurricane-sized runestorm they saw from orbit circles the spot where the once the capital city Agaddon sat, and that the monk believes that Agaddon may still exist, beyond the rift.   He goes on to explain that there was a research station on the moon, that may still hold a device that can close the rift. (And, that the moon shifts back and forth in time, and advising them to land when the green stripe is visible). The party agrees to travel to the moon, and try to close the rift (and free the city of Agaddon, if it still exists).   The party will need to use the shuttle to land on the moon, in order to trigger the automatic docking systems. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to all, spider buddy carries the Mozck virus (which the ghost captain of the Vlerryn told Zayer about). The virus infects the monk, through Zayer attempts to help the monk with magical healing. The party flees (at the monk's orders), wondering what they may have unleashed here.   Returning to Grantz, Jessa and Windy repair the shuttle with help from Rylan, using the parts and instructions from the monk. Rylan is happy to help, but expects to travel with the party to the moon, promising to be helpful. Meanwhile, the group reviews the instructions they received from the monk, and the rest of the party tries to learn more about the history of the world in town.  

Instructions from the Electric Monk

  According to the Electric Monk, there was once a research station in the large complex at the North Pole of the moon Aiturn. This research station, among other things, was a center of investigation into other planes of existence. (The civilization of Paraxis visited and studied other realms of existence, as well as other worlds and stars).   The research was placed on Aiturn, rather than the surface of Paraxis, to provide some level of protection in case of a catastrophic accident. In addition, there were multiple failsafes and protective devices meant to contain or close interplanar rifts (in case there was some sort of accident). Unfortunately, these devices on the distant moon were too far away to mitigate the catastrophic Incident at Agaddon, which the Monk believes is a great interplanar rift caused by the cataclysmic clash of the forces of science and magic there, a thousand years ago.   The goal for the party will be to travel to the North Polar Fortress complex, find the Planar Research Station within in, retrieve the "Planar Phase Stabilization Device (PPSD)", and travel to the former site of Agaddon (navigating beneath the massive Runestorm there). Once there, carry the PPSD into the rift. If Agaddon still exists in some recognizable form, then work with the people there to tie the PPSD into Agaddon's technomagic systems, to allow it to propel the city back to this world. If Agaddon no longer exists, carry the PPSD as close to the center of the rift as possible, and trigger it (with a delay to allow the party to escape back through the rift). Either way, the PPSD should close the planar rift, and hopefully cut off (or at least muffle) the source of the runestorms and null voids in Runespace, stabilizing magic and science here and giving civilization a better chance to begin rebuilding.  

• The journey will take about a day in the shuttle, which the monk advises using, in order to trigger the automatic docking systems at the North Polar Fortress. (There are whole complexes and even small abandoned cities across the desolate landscape of the moon).
• Be sure to land when the green stripe is visible on the moon, else they will be landing in the wrong time. The time shifts usually last about twenty hours, and occur once every seventy to eighty hours.
• The Monk shares what information he has (somewhat incomplete) on finding the research station and the device. (Mainly, what general level/section of the base the research station is in, and what the device generally looks like).
• After the party retrieves the device, they should travel to the former site of Agaddon, within the great runestorm. The party could fly and land directly near the edge of the runestorm. Alternatively, to give the runestorm a wider berth, the party could land farther away, or even at the top of an ancient space elevator ("a very, very, very tall tower") that the people of the current age call "The Beanstalk". It is a few days journey on foot away from the edge of the Runestorm, and with the instability that the Runestorm causes around it, in both magic and technological devices, the party might consider that route.
• Either way, once the party reaches the edge of the Runestorm, the monk strongly recommends they travel on foot, for what might be a few days within the storm. The monk believes that any active magical or technological flying craft (whether the party's ship, or the shuttle) is likely to interact badly with the Runestorm.

When asked what they should expect in the area under the runestorm, the Electric Monk can only speculate. They should expect any magic or technology to be potentially unstable and unreliable, with likely some areas where magic is particularly chaotic, and the barriers between this and other random realms are weakened. The group asks whether then can create some sort of device to guide their path though more stable areas, and avoiding the more chaotic ones. Perhaps using the same principles they used to avoid the runestorms and null voids in the system (which was a combination of using the sensor aboard the shuttle, as well as the display of the planetary locator). The lights on the wall flash as the Monk apparently considers their request for essentially a technomagic tricorder to detect chaos. Electric Monk gives something (whether advice, instructions or parts, to be determined later).  

Town and Temple

After returning to their ship, the group spends their time reviewing what the Monk told them about their mission, learning what else they can, and tending to the ship and crew. When planning, they want to make sure to maximize their time on the moon in between time shifts, by landing right after the green stripe reappears.

• Windellian explores the town more, looking for any information he can on the strange mix of magic and technology found here, what magic is/was like on this world, the history of this world, the war between science and magic that apparently precipitated The Incident, and whatever anyone may know about the phlogiston. While no one has any idea what "the Phlogiston" is, he does try to find any "crazy old man that no one will listen". This points him towards a small, run down temple. 
• Windy also asks Rylan to check him out. Rylan tells Windy that he is beautiful. Windy hopes to get more information than that.
• Prax heads into town, planning to use the pickup line of, "Hey Baby, want to go to the moon with me?"
• Zayer seeks out the local temple in town, which is dedicated to the gods of the Ancients, the Temple of the Four. Apparently, while most respect and admire the Ancients, some few actually worship them as gods, or as intermediaries to their old gods (the Four). And so, Zayer (with Zreestrarm in tow) arrives at the temple at the same time Windellian does. 

The temple seems quite run down and neglected. Unlike other places in town, there is no evidence of any scavenged tech here. The space is dominated by a prominent statue of an imposing, somewhat abstract male figure (vaguely resembling an oversized Oscar statue), with a simple altar in front. Beneath the statue, there are 3 smaller statues in front (two male figures flanking a female figure). These are arranged in a tableau and colors suggests the three form a balance, with the female figure as the pivot. The far left is lighter colored, the far right darker, and the middle grey-cloaked.    The party eventually learns that these represent the Four, the gods believed to have been worshipped by the ancients.

• The large statue represents Zurvan, Lord of time and space, as well as creation (and thus craftsmen). The Opener of the Way, the Supreme Artisan.
• The gray-cloaked statue is Umbriel, the Lady of Shadow. Her followers strived for balance in all things, They were known far and wide as healers of great renown as well as masters of subterfuge.
• The others represent Ahriman, dark god of suffering, and Paranor, the god of peace and light.

There are greeted by Redbeard the priest, who seems mad, drunk, or both.    Redbeard is quite happy to answer all the questions he can, dispensing (in his mind) wisdom and spiritual guidance. He describes the Four. From Zurvan's titles and his knowledge of various religions, and knowing that the same gods sometimes manifest differently in different systems, Zayer suspects that Zurvan may be an analog of Ptah, the creator god of the Mulhorandi pantheon (as it is known in Realmspace). Ptah is rare among gods, in that he is known in every common system (which may be either because he truly is the creator god, or because his early followers travelled widely long ago in their Barges of Ptah).    When asked about history, Redbeard launches ("Ohhh!") into this story:     Once the jewel of a star-spanning empire. Agaddon was the greatest metropolis in the Empire. The runecasters and scientists that governed the city lived in relative harmony until such time as the scientists’ “Great Breakthrough” promised to shift the balance of power. A fearful group of runecasters used more magics than the world had ever seen and crushed the scientific revolution with their runestorms, sealing the city’s fate. Arcane energies creased the sky in an array of unearthly colors while the great Stabilizers, towers of science, stood untouched and unharmed. Finally, an arc of the ancient magics struck these massive towers and amplified these magical energies a hundred fold. Law and Chaos howled in unholy unison as the world went black. The very fabric of space and time was torn. This pivotal moment became known as the Severing.   As to why? He says that when a cabal of wizards and priests felt threatened enough by science, that their powers and position might fade (perhaps in response to the hubris of scientists who sought to undermine magic, perhaps just out of fear, greed, paranoia, etc.), they invoked a ritual which upset the balance.   Redbeard claims that Zurvan talks to him sometime, and does not object to Zayer casting Divination, since the party seems quite interested and respectful. When Zayer does, the party is suffused with a strong sense of divine presence, and the face of the gold statue seems to animate subtly. "Who calls me forth, after so long?", rings out in a cold, distant, echoing voice. (Redbeard: "The Lord Speaks! Oh, Lord!...")   The party respectfully and truthfully answers the god's questions about who they are, where they are from, and then agrees to answer their questions.  

• Zurvan tells the party that the city of Agaddon still exists beyond the rift, but is much changed. The city was ripped out of this plane by the great cataclysm, and careened across the planes, with people from across time and space being washed into the city. Zurvan was able to protect the other planes from too much damage, but the city itself is beyond his reach, held close within the embrace of Umbriel, who either chose to accompany the city, or was somehow dragged along.
• During the conversation, Zurvan senses the questions about the nature of the Phlogiston in the minds of Zayer and Windellian. He says, cryptically, "The Phlogiston was created by the gods long ago, as a way to enable their worshipers to physically travel between systems, a buffer (if magic in one of the spheres catastrophically fails) and as a neutral connecting realm." He refuses to elaborate, but says that if the party brings back Agaddon successfully, he will tell them more about the true nature of the Phlogiston. He also offers to tell Windy more about the construct's origins. 
• When Zayer asks whether the sudden appearance of Chandos disrupted this system, Zurvan tells him that the disruption was minimal. When asked, Zurvan says his ability to perceive Chandos is limited, but there is definitely life on the planet still, and there is a damaged spelljamming ship in orbit of the world. 
• When Zayer (respectfully, carefully) asks whether Zurvan is really Ptah, the god is silent for a moment, and then admits that he is known by that name is some times and places. (This revelation delights Zayer). 
• Zurvan compliments Jessa on her clever craftmanship with her magical tools, which delights her immensely. 
• Regarding their mission to the moon, Zurvan warns them not to approach the moon too closely (<100 miles) in their wooden ship, since magic is quite unstable there, with science dominant. He does tell that the planar research station was dedicated to him (as the lord of time and space), and so they should seek out his starburst symbol to help them find it. 
• As the conversation ends, Zurvan gives them his blessing for their mission to retrieve the planar device and save Agaddon (in game terms, each PC gets 1 extra benny per session while they pursue this goal). 

As the presence fades, Redbeard falls over in religious shock. When he recovers, he asks them to tell the others in town about what they experiences, and Jessa promises to tell the Council. The party departs (though Windellian plans to return later, and try to get more info from the drunken priest).   

To the Moon!

  After a couple more days in town preparing, the Surprise departs with the shuttle strapped to the hull, and Rylan aboard. Word has spread through town, and so the entire populace is out to celebrate the party, and wish them well. After gently getting rid of a couple of stowaways, the day-long journey to the moon is uneventful. The ship orbits the moon, seeing what they can while waiting for the grey phase to end, and the reappearance of the green stripe.   

• In either phase, an ancient technological complex lies at each of the moon’s poles. Each complex is like a small abandoned city, with domes and sprawling structures filled with machinery and covered in frost and ice (though the complexes seem considerably smaller in the grey phase).
• In the green stripe phase, the moon is covered in ruins, a shining ball of white with a blue-green stripe around its middle.
• In the grey phase, most of the ruins are not present, but there are twelve crystalline keeps scattered across the surface, and there seems to be more lights and activity around structures than in the green phase.

After an uneventful time, the moon seems to shimmer, and the green phase reappears. Most of the party quickly boards the shuttle along with Rylan, leaving Hunter in command of the Surprise. Rylan brings along all the tech devices they found aboard the Vlleryn, including the ice cannon, the clamps and the four envirosuits (which are only likely to fit Rylan, BN Sue and Prax, since the party is such a diverse bunch).    Windellian pilots the shuttle with intermittently-useful help from Rylan, and they quickly approach the northern polar fortress. From above, they can see remnants of the fortress within huge glass domes, now empty, suggesting that the complex once sustained vast orchards and gardens. These are now long gone. The place appears lifeless, and several large wheeled vehicles are arrayed near ports around the perimeter, in various states of disrepair.   The signage and iconography once again makes it relatively easy, and the shuttle is quickly able to find a hangar. As the party approaches, a bright beam of light shoots out from one of the nearby towers. It engulfs the ship, and the controls go dead. The beam guides the ship down into a cavernous hanger as its roof doors slide open, and deposits it gently on an bare metal surface. The beams disappears, and the ceiling doors slowly close, leaving the shuttle in darkness, in a space of unknown size.