Tale #1a: The Pygmy Goat Ranch

[Bluehorse]

I have to be honest I have lost the plot here. I need a reminder of events in short form of what were came here to do and what has happened. I think the giant snake(s) plus time have thrown me off.

[Samwell Turleton]

This group started in the Casketlands, responding to Jeremiah's concern over some mutilated goats on his ranch, rather than searching for the lost camel train that was delivering supplies necessary for the Casketland's survival. You agreed to investigate and as you were setting out, a dust storm kicked up. The storm became intense as you arrived at the ranch at night. Jeremiah took you to see one of the goat carcasses and the group saw both precise cuts at the animal's head and bite marks at its haunches. In the morning Jeremiah took you out to the site you are currently at, a place that has been given a name, gold bluff for the color of the stone and brush. The dust storm continued into the morning and you began to see some things in the dust and potentially hear some voices (Letting you into something you might not know from other threads - the vial that doc drank at the very beginning called the dust storm to the Casketlands). When you arrived in this area you explored a boulder field and found a campsite that had been recently used. Loam wandered into the scene with unknown purpose and ringing a bell. The sound triggered memories from your past. Loam was agitated by the camping activity in this place and was treating the clearing inside the boulders with reverence. He traced a large symbol of a serpent into the ground, the bell rang again, and you saw visions of a rainbow serpent. The group was then attacked by wild dogs and their handlers, presumably the ones responsible for the mutilation of the goats. Loam continued his activity in the center of the clearing and the winged serpent coated in black fluid came out of the stone. The serpent encircled the stones and now that it has, thunderheads have formed above you, lightning is flashing in the clouds, the black liquid sloughs off of its body, and the light from the serpent's body is creating a rainbow column of light around the boulders. Wyatte and Jeremiah are feeling a wind pulling them towards the light and Lenny and George are being blown by that wind away from the light. That wind is also blowing away the dust and revealing the market and festival as lightning is starting to branch to the ground around you.

(A little more from other threads - Old Munkley was searching for the lost camel train and was also in a dust storm, seeing things in the storm and hearing voices. He walked through a wall of dust and on the other side there was a collection of tents, a market, and a festival. The short of it, the festival involves a large cloth serpent and multicolored powdered pigments being thrown over all of the participants and the body of the serpent. The shadow of the other serpent you were seeing in the storm is a large puppet operated by people beneath it. The glowing serpent's head is over the edge of the bluff responding to the cloth serpent.)

The larger narrative is that the Casketlands needs supplies from the lost camel train and this could be a side issue related to why. You are also all at risk of being struck by lightning.

[Samwell Turleton]

George walks against the wind blowing from the column of light. He moves towards the boulder field and the black fluid oozing out from between them. The sky flashes and thunder BARRROOOOMMS and rumbles around you. Rain begins pouring heavily down. Rivulets form and quickly turn into a sheet of water flowing across the ground. The black oozing liquid dissolves and darkens the water flowing around George's feet. He passes through the column of light under the body of the serpent. Lightning strikes the tops of the boulders as George walks between them.

George yells up to the boulder, "Sheriff," he says crossly, "You satisfied that those dogs killed the goats? We done here? I ain't keen on glowy snakes or snake parties."

No response comes back from the top of the boulder.

George walks towards the center of the boulders and searches carefully. The rain is driving down hard. Near the center of the clearing an oblong amber and white colored object is being pelted by the rain. It teeters as if it is going to be swept off the rock in the flow of water.

Jeremiah crouches low as the lightning strikes around them, fear in his eyes. Sheriff, y'alright?...

The sky flashes violently.

No response comes back from the sheriff.

Jeremiah looks around as the rain begins to pour down. Wyatte is curled up on his side. Jeremiah yells as he hurries over to the Sheriff's side, Sheriff, can you hear me?. Jeremiah checks Wyatte's breathing, it is faint but still there. Jeremiah sees the light in the distance not aware that it is the opening near the snake's head and starts dragging Wyatte towards it.

[Marullus]

George walks over and scoops up the oblong amber and white colored object. "Well, if Loam got transmorgified, I didn't think he'd end up like this," he mutters as he examines it closely. He then turns and holds up it, demanding tersely to the sky, "Hey, snake! Could you please knock off the rain and thunder and simmer down, over there?!?"

Lenny, however, notices Wyatte's condition and bustles over to help. "Sherriff! Sherriff, you okay?" he calls loudly, then tries to rouse him.

[Samwell Turleton]

George grabs the oblong amber and white colored object. It is a pliable leathery thing speckled irregularly with small clusters of amber dots. The object seems both delicate and important to you but it isn't like anything you have seen before.

Lightning flashes in the clouds again and thunder roars soon afterwards vibrating through you as the storm rages on. "Hey, snake! Could you please knock off the rain and thunder and simmer down, over there?!?", George demands. The rain is heavy and soaking you to your skin. The winged serpent lingers with its body waving rhythmically back and forth, still mimicking the movements of the snake with the fabric body in the distance. It is drawing slowly closer to the fabric snake.

Jeremiah continues dragging the body of the sheriff across the rocks towards the serpent's head. Lenny powers his way up the slick boulder's surface to join Jeremiah and Wyatte's slumped body. "Sherriff! Sherriff, you okay?", Lenny says. The sheriff's head lolls to one side but it was probably from being dragged along by Jeremiah over a bump on the boulder. Jeremiah can still tell that Wyatte is faintly breathing. "Help me get him through that.", Jeremiah implores with a motion of his head in the direction of the snake's head.

[Samwell Turleton]

Wanted to share that Bluehorse is stepping away from this game and sorry to see him go.

[Marullus]

Wanted to share that Bluehorse is stepping away from this game and sorry to see him go.

...damn.

"Help me get him through that.", Jeremiah implores with a motion of his head in the direction of the snake's head.

I thought the snake was now in the sky, and thus not an obstacle? I'm unclear what I'm overcoming here.

[jemmus]

Sorry to see Bluehorse go.

[Samwell Turleton]

The serpent revealed that if you had passed over the bluff you would have passed into a new location where there is a tent encampment, marketplace, and a festival is taking place. The serpent is in the sky above you. Jeremiah is dragging Wyatte's body towards the head of the serpent, around which can be seen an opening to pass through into that encampment. The serpent's head is moving through that opening slowly and reacting to the fabric serpent that is a part of the festival in this other place.

[Marullus]

So, there's a magic portal? Is the snake guarding it or just going through it?

[Samwell Turleton]

The wall of dust hanging out over the edge of the bluff has been a threshold for as long as you have been seeing the shape of tents in the distance. The dust storm was called to the Casketlands area by the vial that Doc drank from in the very beginning of the story. The dust storm is a kind of vehicle that the people that live inside of it use to travel around the world - a magical nomadism. The serpent, in a benign way, is responding to the festival they were holding in celebration of its impending arrival. The serpent itself hasn't been aggressive or intending to cause harm, only the black liquid that came up out of the ground with it and that sloughed off of its body. The serpent did call the storm and that still has the potential to cause harm but only because it is a severe storm, the serpent didn't bring it maliciously. The storm comes from the serpent coming out of the ground - it is an interesting serpent in that way

[Marullus]

George grabs the oblong amber and white colored object. It is a pliable leathery thing speckled irregularly with small clusters of amber dots. The object seems both delicate and important to you but it isn't like anything you have seen before.

Lightning flashes in the clouds again and thunder roars soon afterwards vibrating through you as the storm rages on. "Hey, snake! Could you please knock off the rain and thunder and simmer down, over there?!?", George demands. The rain is heavy and soaking you to your skin. The winged serpent lingers with its body waving rhythmically back and forth, still mimicking the movements of the snake with the fabric body in the distance. It is drawing slowly closer to the fabric snake.

Jeremiah continues dragging the body of the sheriff across the rocks towards the serpent's head. Lenny powers his way up the slick boulder's surface to join Jeremiah and Wyatte's slumped body. "Sherriff! Sherriff, you okay?", Lenny says. The sheriff's head lolls to one side but it was probably from being dragged along by Jeremiah over a bump on the boulder. Jeremiah can still tell that Wyatte is faintly breathing. "Help me get him through that.", Jeremiah implores with a motion of his head in the direction of the snake's head.

The snake ignores George; he looks down and sighs, contemplating what's in his hands, what's real. George stands in awe of the leathery snake egg thing for a moment, in reverie as he feels it is important, but not comprehending why.

Jeremiah implores Lenny to help get the sheriff over the bluff, past the head of the snake, through the opening in the magical cloud, and to the colorful party that was never there before. "Well... alright," says the large man, hefting the sheriff up onto his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and then starting off at a jog, straight into it.
Lenny Brawn [2d6+3]=3+3=6

George's eyes snap up, feeling what his brother intends. "Hells, Lenny! We want to get away from the weird hoodoo, not run into it!" he says in exasperation. Despite his grumbling, he runs after his brother, trying to aid him to keep the Sheriff from injury, egg still in hand.
George Backbone [2d6+3]=5+3=8

[Samwell Turleton]

Jeremiah, with Lenny's help, haul the sheriff across the tops of the boulder. They pause a moment at the edge of the boulder and next to the head of the serpent. Jeremiah looks back, the opening in the dust wall looks more inviting than the drenching rain and thunder behind them but this is his land, his ranch, and he doesn't know where this new path will lead. Lenny finds the effort of jogging with the sheriff challenging as his feet slip on the slick surface. They stand together at the precipice, Jeremiah says, After you sheriff...

George sees the shape of his brother and Jeremiah hauling the sheriff's body over the tops of the boulder but can't make out the detail of what is happening up there. He cradles the leathery object carefully and splashes through the puddles along the base of the boulder. George reaches the bluff's edge and looks out, "Hells, Lenny!

Jeremiah and Lenny loft the sheriff's body through the dust wall and leap through after him. George sees the three pass through the opening and follows along after.

We will move this group here: viewtopic.php?p=569869#p569869