Exalted - Moonbeam’s Flight

Moonbeam’s Flight
XWikiGuest
2016/06/17 19:54

Table of Contents
Jan 28 2012 	 # 

Jan 28 2012
We moved on warily, there were three more ghosts up ahead.  Pausing every so often to take aim through the holes in the great gears turning in the staircase Caelan was able to place a few arrows in the restless spirits.  Song also buried a thrown axe in the closest so as it leapt through the cog-hole it was already carrying wounds, leaving Olvir and his great moonsilver axe to make short work of it.  The second didn’t take the bulky Lunar much longer as he grappled it with silvery hands of Essence – it had many limbs of its own but they didn’t help it once restrained.  The third proved more of a fight but a few quick shouts from Caelan to direct our attacks meant we took it down without injury to ourselves.  
Heading downwards we came to the pile of bodies we’d seen from atop the staircase: old, desiccated and evidently having lain where they’d fallen for years.  Song animated one and sent in onwards – but uncoordinated, the next cog made short work of it.  We made our way on to whatever lurked at the bottom but before we reached it were ambushed by something lurking beneath the stair... a something which turned out to be a 7ft wide spider made of fused bone and metal with chain ‘tentacles’.  Two of these tentacles lashed out from under the staircase and speared both Song and Caelan in the side, injecting them with something and only failing to do the same to Olvir thanks to his armour.  Song managed to claw hers out but Caelan’s exploded in his side… an injury which would have killed one without his resilience and charms.  
Turning on the foe Caelan and Olvir drove it back – their onslaught sending it skittering back down the staircase to the bottom where we watched it slither inside something which seemed at first glance to be a pile of armour.  As the creature inside animated the pile though it reared up and turned to attack: the bony exoskeleton and long sinuous neck of the beast turning to fix us all with an unearthly, blank gaze.
Song looked to freeze it in place but even as she readied a Charm realised the beast we faced had no mind of its own for her to control.  Olvir meanwhile hadn’t hesitated in shifting to his largest form, a tyrant lizard, and drawing on the fury of Luna began tearing holes in the carapace.  Caelan joined him and cut rents in the armour but the beast was so large their attacks served only to make small holes.  The spider that had scuttled inside it drew its legs in and avoided their blows easily.
Realising that damaging the shell wasn’t getting anywhere fast we changed tactics.  Caelan began carefully aiming and while his attacks were fewer they were more precise and struck at the entity inside.  Song managed to send a pair of axes through the holes Olvir had torn and while they were too small to do considerable damage they did send sparks coruscating across the metal and bone spider within as it juddered under the impact.  Olvir’s frenzy was focused purely on his enemy; his fury unmatched and he sought only to attack.  Shifting into mospid form he slithered inside the shell through one of the holes he’d made and assaulted the spider creature from within.  As Caelan (with the aid of a graceful Charm) skipped lightly along the neck of the creature in order to best place his blows, Olvir rent it from within and as the spider reeled under the assault it eventually stopped moving and the carapace went limp.  Olvir escaped the shell but still enraged he shifted forms once again so he could pull the head off the beast and tear the remains to bits until his fury diminished.
When all was once again calm we could examine what the creature had been protecting: a door much like the one atop the staircase through which we’d entered with a gap underneath.  Song took rat form and went to take a look and what she saw stunned her into silence. The door opened onto an immense hangar at the centre of which sat an airship dwarfed only by the size of the hangar itself.  It sat quiet and still, adorned by the machinery of construction while around the sides of the hangar fires still burned gently, waiting to be used for the manufacture of great wonders once again.
She scuttled back and wordlessly nodded to Olvir to move the door.  As it swung open onto the main area and we took our first steps inside – the first Celestial Exalted to have stepped inside the great Forge Cathedral in centuries – we realised quite how epic had been the workings of our ancestors and the heights to which we could rise again.  We trod carefully as we gazed around at the forges and crafting stations before we stepped up to the airship and saw carved on her hull the name ‘Moonbeam’s Flight’… where emerging to meet us and disturb any latent dreams of First Age glory was an excited and exuberant Van-Oris, who’d rushed straight to the ship as soon as we’d entered.  He had found the location of his Sanctum and was bursting with pride as he showed us around.
The crew and state rooms would comfortably hold crew and passengers of 80 or so plus she had a roomy cargo hold.  She was almost complete but was missing two crucial elements: the spidersilk airbag which would hoist her aloft and a heat source to fill the bag.  We’d also need to attune to the ship and fill the space in the captain’s cabin where a space for a hearthstone sat.  The silk bag was almost finished and lay nearby where it had evidently been left in the final stage of completion.  There was a recessed cavity on deck where a fire could be built, or a device for generating heat would sit (we thought wistfully of the heatstone at Jadespike).
While the airship was the greatest wonder we’d seen we still wanted to explore the rest of the cathedral.  There were four wings though one was blocked off by a large tree which grew atop a staircase and barred entrance through the door at the top: we took that to be the area claimed by the Censor of the East and left it well alone.  Opposite we found a wing containing living space and plentiful shared rooms for workers as well as relaxation areas, kitchens and other necessary living space.  
The third wing contained stone and precious material forge tools and smaller workshops, while the fourth and final one held five opulent suites all furnished and looking as if they were just waiting for us to move in.  In some of these suites we found journals and plans for many wonders the Forge could create (assuming we had the time, materials and crafters of sufficient ability).  The final wing also contained a hearthstone room with space for such a gem – though there was no hearthstone present and we suspected the Eastern Censor had claimed that.
We regrouped on the airship where Van-Oris was keen to tell us what we needed to finish Moonbeam’s Flight.  We’d need some silk – about ten times the amount we’d initially got from the spiders - and a heat source.  That wasn’t ideal; the silk we’d obtained had required us to take down a tyrant lizard and while we could probably do that again there weren’t that many tyrant lizards around - even if the spiders were willing to trade so much of their precious silk (which they were unlikely to do).
There was another option, Song suggested.  We’d looked over the detailed blueprints of the airship which had an alternative approach: incorporating blue jade into the final design.  Blue jade was associated with air and when crafted correctly, would help give lift to a wonder such as Moonbeam’s Flight.  If we had sufficient blue jade we wouldn’t need such a big airbag and the silk we already had would be sufficient to complete it.  Of course, we didn’t have any blue jade either and to buy it would cost more than we could afford.  However, we could pray to the goddess of blue jade, Flowing Nila, to imbue Jadespike with enough to help us.  Perhaps it was being in the presence of First Age marvels that Song even considered such an audacious approach but Olvir and Caelan were hardly in a position to question – although Van-Oris let out a somewhat incredulous squeak, part horrified and part hopeful.  
Before we got on to details though we wanted to stake our claim to the place and remembering our conversation with the Censor of the East wanted to attune sooner rather than later, lest she grow suspicious.  After 5 hours spent attuning ourselves to the Essence of the place we were successful as she evidently gave her permission (or was not attuned herself… which we thought unlikely).  It had been a long day of travelling through unusual realms and fighting for our lives against not to mention the sheer wonder of the Forge Cathedral and each of us claimed one of the suites of rooms, the magics of the place ensuring that despite the ages of abandonment everything was as fresh as if it were new.
We woke in the morning and found the one thing the place didn’t have was food stores so Caelan went off to Moonspire for supplies.  He headed back the way he’d come – thankfully finding the doors easier to open from the inside – and emerged to find a squad of confused (but impressed) guards who were frankly surprised to see him alive.  We’d already done some work at clearing the earth from around the roof of the main chamber but Caelan directed the guards to dig the remainder out so we could open the roof and more easily gain access.  Not accustomed to taking orders from civilians they nevertheless recognised the authority in his tone and as he made for the town they mustered shovels.
By the time he returned with supplies they’d cleared a space and the silvery metal cap over the Forge Cathedral’s main workspace was clear.  Caelan’s attunement to the place gave him an understanding of how it worked and he willed the great disk to slide back.  It didn’t, which puzzled him.  Below in the chamber however, Olvir and Song saw the gondola which rested at the edge of the chamber begin to move upwards.  It travelled along grooves and mechanisms set in the wall as it slid diagonally towards the ceiling and would have given anyone inside an excellent view of the chamber were it to have any occupants.  As it neared the top the ceiling cracked open to allow it through and Olvir shifted to Strix form and likewise leapt skywards.  Caelan, relieved to finally have the entrance open and the gondola arrive was almost as surprised as the guards when a strix flew out of the hole – but not as scared.  He shouted at the bird and ordered him back inside, trying to come up with something to explain to the guards and for once grateful to Olvir as he played along and did as he was told.
As he unpacked his supplies at the bottom Olvir and Song showed Caelan what they’d been up to while he’d been out.  They’d experimented with some of the forge stations and discovered the manse offered considerable benefits to crafters. [+4 dice on rolls]  They’d also had a look over the plans and found many of them were for marvellous artifacts… a dozen designs for airships, daiklaves, lightning torment hatchets, Celestial battle armour, gunshoza armour… which we itched to try our hand at – despite knowing we’d need to advance our own crafting skills to have a hope at making any of them.
We talked over who to tell and what as we ate.  We’d need to tell the Prince and make agreements on access to the Forge as well as negotiate with the Censor as we certainly weren’t prepared to leave the place unused and untouched now we’d found what it could do.  Caelan wasn’t keen to open negotiations – as it would imply to her she could demand something in return and Song suggested we at least had time to decide our next moves before speaking with her.  Olvir was concerned about angering her and inciting another conflict so, worried people might enter the Forge, set himself up at one of the workstations and had soon crafted a wrought iron gate which he positioned at the base of the staircase leading to the Censor’s claimed wing.
In compromise, Song wrote her a letter inviting her to meet us in the Forge Cathedral but when she tried to deliver it to Adiubande (or her identity as the Daughter of the Amber Moon), the tavern owner apologised and explained she’d gone away and wasn’t expected back for at least a couple of weeks.  Song left the letter for her return anyway and we decided (when next we discussed things) that we’d proceed with what we wanted to do anyway... as the Censor wasn’t foolish and would likely have expected us to do so.  
Song also penned a letter to the Prince and delivered it on our behalf.  A reply was soon forthcoming, inviting us to meet with him in two days time (the 18th of Descending water) and we agreed.  We talked over what we might want to keep and what should be considered the Prince’s spoils.  What about the airship, Olvir asked?  Caelan had never even given a thought to the airship being part of the negotiations – of course that was ours he said.  The plans – they could be shared, but Olvir had a point: aside from them and Moonbeam’s Flight the thing of most value was the Forge itself, the crafting stations and the sheer advantage it gave to anyone utilising the facility for crafting.  That was probably the most important to agree on.
With Moonbeam’s Flight sitting serene but quietly unfinished Song gave over the evening to crafting a pean to the goddess of blue jade.  Her traditional home was the North, as blue jade was associated with air, so astride the deck of the magnificent First Age Wonder Song called out to the chill, bounteous majesty of Flowing Nila and prayed she grant us a boon.  Petitioning her as a Chosen of Luna and speaking on behalf of another and one Chosen of the Sun she asked her to flood the streams of Jadespike with cool blue jade that Moonbeam’s Flight might take to the skies.  She promised a dedicated altar to her and prayers to be made by a dedicated priest (who we’d recruit in Moonspire) as a first gesture of good faith.  Flowing Nila did not respond though Song was confident her prayer had reached the ears it was intended for.  To talk directly to her though Song suspected she’d need to be in a place of power for the goddess – such as a jade mine.  Thankfully, we had one of those.
Prayer done she went to find Varten who’d made himself scarce after we ventured into the tower.  He couldn’t exactly pass for human in Moonspire and enjoyed the chance to stretch his wings in the nearby woodlands but was pleased to see Song, especially when he heard the good news.  As the two returned to the manse she told him about her recent prayer and asked if he could speak to Vanileth to intercede on their behalf with Flowing Nila and lend weight to her request.  It was an unusual request but Song explained she hoped Vanileth would be able to see the benefit to him if he were to do so.  Varten shook his head in surprise at her ambition – the plans of the Celestial Exalted were often far grander than he expected.
The guards were growing used to our strange comings and goings as Song and Varten got back.  Once the ceiling had swung shut neither waited for the gondola to carry them down but flew on wide wings, Varten absorbing every detail of the Cathedral as he made his descent.  Down on deck Olvir showed him around along with Van-Oris who was, as ever, enthusiastic.  Olvir asked if Varten could fly the ship to which he replied that he could, but would still need a crew as one man couldn’t pilot her alone - but Caelan had already talked about mustering a group of sailors so he reassured him it was all in hand.
The Solar had spent the morning training with Ariorn in the courtyard of the Ice Wolf and returned as the others emerged onto deck.  Wanting to show off a little, he jumped from the gondola onto the top crossbar in an attempt to slide gracefully down the main mast ... but his judgement was horribly off and he missed his footing, careening onto the deck and slamming into it at full speed, knocking himself out.  As Song and Olvir ran over to make sure he wasn’t severely injured we realised he’d not only knocked himself out but also knocked an imprint of himself into the orichalcum-enhanced hull although thankfully he seemed less dented than the ship.  Grumbling about Caelan breaking his toys, Olvir lifted the unconscious Solar up and gently laid him out to rest in one of the ship’s state rooms, away from the sharp tongue and beak of Van-Oris, who was less than impressed at Caelan having left his mark.  Olvir remembered Song experimenting with a new potion to help bruising and seeing Caelan’s face and upper torso already purpling went to find some.  Unfortunately he didn’t check with Song which batch was experimental and when Caelan emerged much later his skin was streaked with orange dye – an unforeseen side effect of the process which had caused Song to reject it – but Olvir hadn’t known that.
Varten meanwhile (perhaps thinking he should speak to Vanileth sooner rather than later given the damage we seemed to be doing already) stood at the prow of the ship and began an impassioned plea to his father.  Song stood with him, offering her own.  Vanileth’s arrival was heralded by a single feather before the Daimyo of Artificial Flight materialised in a susurrus of feathers and spoke with a voice of harmonising sweet melodies.  Varten bowed and Song likewise greeted him with great respect.   She and Olvir related the story of how they’d found Moonbeam’s Flight and the Forge Cathedral before Caelan wandered out on to deck, still a little dazed and streaked purple and orange from the bruising and the salve.  We introduced him to the god… at which point Caelan realised he wasn’t wearing any shoes and considering this to be of great import went off to find them, leaving the Lunars alone with Vanileth and his son once again.
Trying to ignore the Solar’s somewhat erratic approach Song explained to Vanileth how she wanted to get Moonbeam’s Flight flying.  At her request he agreed to exert what influence he could but warned us she’d likely demand a high price; while the Jade goddesses could and had placed jade in locations on request it was perhaps a little less common than Song might have thought.
Before he left (and after Caelan had returned with his shoes) he endowed all three of us with gifts uniquely within his purview: the ability to understand and sail ships of the air. [Lore specialism: First Age Flight + Sail Specialism: Airships]  That night we dreamed of First Age vessels thronging the air with us at their helms, and woke from lingering dreams of looking down on Creation from on high, standing on the deck of mighty ships, knowing we had brought them back to life once more.
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