"Widj, can you tell who, or what else is down there?" asks Zeton.
Widjgleeby's only reply is a Farbett-style shrug (which is really quite impressive).
The group rounds a shallow bend in the tunnel, and the scene changes dramatically. Actually, it's not that much; just a collection of traditional Farbett glowsacs stuck on the walls of the tunnel, but their thin luminescence reveals quite a bit more than the regular, dull red lighting.
Specifically, it reveals some ominous-looking shadows. The tunnel is blocked by what appear to be piles of trash. There is only a very narrow opening, and it is occupied by what is obviously a pair of large-bodied Farbetts in a stance that doesn't look very friendly.
The stench in the tunnel is considerably worse.
As the whole party comes into view, low growls can be heard from the Farbetts. Then one of them calls out in very badly-pronounced Her-galad, "You stop! Hands out! Where you go?"
(Lirassa's field translator is still on, so everyone more or less understands it.)
"Roots and sod..." mutters Pru.
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[Is it Pru that has that glowing amulet thing that warns us of the "poisoned?" It appears that searching is disabled on the site and I my digging didn't uncover it.]
[You remember very well. It's actually a ring, and yes, she still has it. It looks very shiny and sparkly right now...even unnaturally so...but it's not really glowing.]
[Mon'Fargret remembers very well. Don Snabulus, on the other hand, is juggling two large software projects, taxes, and Financial Aid forms. He can't remember sh*t.]
"Mey. Widj. Please, bring your hands out and present our permission to pass."
Zeton also holds his hands out and quietly waits for our "pass" to be handed over.
"What?" hisses Mey'Luskar with outrage. "Do you honestly think I'm just gonna walk up there and hand them..." She sighs and stomps her foot. "Alright, alright! I'm going!"
She takes a few steps ahead of the party toward the tunnel block, whimpering to herself.
There is a barrage of clicks as somewhere around a dozen firearms are immediately aimed in her direction.
"What want Yangae?" growls the Farbett in that language (only marginally better than his Her-Galad). "Him have appointment?"
"Um, uh..." Mey'Luskar throws a helpless look back at the party. Then she turns back to the Farbett and says, "Um, I have a pass!"
There is a pause. "Him have pass?"
"Yes, a pass!" cries Mey'Luskar. She holds it up. "Gol'br'in told us you'd let us by if we gave you this!"
"Gol'br'in him know Yangae needing appointment, not pass!" growls the Farbett. "Him no have appointment? Him no leave!"
"Now wait a minute!" cries Mey'Luskar. "You mean you won't let us go even if I have a pass?"
"Him give we pass," replies the Farbett, "him can going back where came!"
The guffawing that ensues reveals there are more Farbetts than can be seen.
"Yangae need appointment? What about ones who aren't Yangae?" Widjy asks in Farbett.
"Perhaps the Yangae can wait here while the rest of us conduct our business," Nekshi suggests, somewhat optimistically.
In reply, the Farbett offers an impressive, monosyllabic grunt of confusion. There follows a long pause. Then the Farbetts start mumbling darkly among themselves with a lot of stupid-sounding moans of befuddlement.
"Uh," says the lead Farbett after several minutes of this, "Yangae is with him, or him is with Yangae?"
Then, apparently finally realizing that Widjgleeby has spoken to him in his own language, he adds in Somekh, "Shit on stupid four-limb talk! What's all this about, anyway?"
"what do I tell him?" Widjy says in a quiet aside in Yangae.
"Widjgleeby, we thank you for your assistance. We of only four limbs are indebted to your leadership and we aim to forever help you keep the tunnels free for your brothers and sisters from the increasing disturbance. I am sorry that our presence is such a surprise to your brethren," Mon'Fargret says with as much humility as he can muster.
Following Mon'Fargret's lead, Bina adds in Her-Galad, "Widjgleeby, your friends will let us through to the airfield, won't they?"
"The airfield?!?" snaps Mey'Luskar, whirling around irritably. "I thought we were...oh." She turns to face the tunnel block again sheepishly. "Airfield! Right! That's what you call it..."
"We must be at the AIRFIELD soon or we will miss our flight, and the tasty foodstuffs will not be delivered on time." She winks broadly at Mey.
There is more dark muttering from within the tunnel block. Then the lead Farbett says in Somekh (i.e. Farbett), "Airfield? Or not? Or foodstuffs? Or...aw, SHIT on all this four-limb rag! Tell your meatless, weird-smelling Yangae pal to give us a long look at the pass! And she won't be packing flame, got that?"
Mey'Luskar gives Widjgleeby a worried look. "It's okay, I got it," she says. "And I'm not armed. I'll go." Her feet seem reluctant to move at first, but she manages to get herself going.
When she gets halfway there, a huge (and hugely ugly) Farbett emerges from the block with an impatient snort and holds out a hand.
"Um," says Mey'Luskar, holding out the pass with trembling hands.
"SHADDAP!" barks the Farbett in Yangae, seizing the pass. He immediately raises it to his snout and sniffs it intently.
And then he sighs deeply.
"Good to go," he says quietly. "Him all go through. Way open. Him go quick now!"
He makes a weird howling noise back to his fellows, and they leap into action, moving and reconfiguring the trash so as to make a clear path.
"Him go quick now!" repeats the Farbett, beckoning with a couple of arms. "Go straight in, out again. No turn or look. Straight in, out again quick. No flame out!"
"Come on let's go." Widgleebe says to her party but in Somekh so the Farbetts can overhear, "that lady I ate isn't sitting too well and I need to pass some gas. Sooner we find an air vent the better off we'll all be." and she starts lumbering towards the open barricade.
Mey'Luskar moans with disgust and despair as she falls in behind Widjgleeby.
Zeton follows the group led by Widjgleeby past the guards. Zeton tries to determine if there is anything special about the garbage used to block the tunnel, but he does not stop to examine anything. Zeton only glances to the left and right and tries to do so as subtly as possible. He doesn't want to incur the ire of any of the Farbett guards.
As the party passes through the path in the barricade, they are eyed balefully by at least half a dozen of the roughest-looking and ugliest Farbett punks they've ever seen, all of them armed with multiple weapons.
The stench peaks right about in the middle of the piles of trash. The odor is indescribable. Just as the party is passing through that point, Pru suddenly gasps.
If anyone wants to see if they notice anything, make an ALT roll.
Zeton rolls a 17. 16-17=-1. (I think Zeton's Lybolt senses are overwhelmed by the stench.)
I rolled a 2 for M'F. His ALT is on the other computer which is turned off at the moment, but I think it is higher than 2.
Just as the party is coming out of the other side of the tunnel block, suddenly there is a weird, muffled howl from somewhere deep inside the trash.
With surprising swiftness, two of the Farbetts suddenly jostle through the group and close in on Mon'Fargret, blocking his path. The leader steps up and holds out a hand.
"Show paper," he growls.
Mon'Fargret looks toward the noise briefly then then looks forward again. When he does he appears to look baffled when the Farbetts approach.
When confronted, he extends the paper saying, "Oh, this? Do you like it? I am going to make a sculpture out of it, probably from wood."
The Farbett pauses, scratching his snout as he eyes the paper. Then his eyes take on a weird glint for a few seconds.
"Mystic give him this?" he says in a less abrasive voice. He points down the tunnel. "Him not friend of big Yangae house?"
[Before I answer...did he point the way we came or where we are going? I think I know the answer, but just checking.]
[He pointed the way you're going.]
"Mystic? I'm no mystic, though this pattern was in a dream I had, and so I drew it. Does it mean something to you? I just thought it was a great idea for art. As you can see, I am Yangae, and a very proud one at that." Mon'Fargret replies with emphasis on the word "Yangae."
"I go to find my friends. If you want to keep that sheet, you may have it with my compliments."
The Farbett immediately starts to look more menacing, as do his fellows.
Nekshi pipes up,"He's only Yangae on his mother's side, so don't hold that against him."
To the Farbetts, "I get the feeling you don't like members of the Yangae subrace. Am I incorrect in this observation?"
Zeton, seeing the change in expression tries to be as diplomatic and non-threatening as possible in order to help out. Zeton does not use patronizing language, but chooses his words carefully to ensure the Farbetts understand his message.
"Widjgleeby, please tell the guards that Mon'Fargret, is not a friend of the 'Big Yangae house'. In fact none of us are friends of the 'Big Yangae House'. Mon'Fargret is Yangae, but he works to stop the people in the 'Big Yangae House'."
"Widjgleeby, please tell the guards Mon'Fargret did not understand their question. Tell them the Mystic gave us the papers to help us stop the bad Yangae in the Big Yangae House. We wish no trouble with the Farbett guards. We want to rescue our friend from the bad Yangae."
After translating Zeton's message I am going to make a motion like I'm surpressing a rather large belch.
After hearing Widjgleeby's translation, the lead Farbett seems to become less menacing. However, he glances at one of his fellows anxiously and gestures toward one of the trash piles.
The Farbett at the receiving end of the glance quickly sniffs at the indicated pile and then makes some kind of gesture.
"Not much time," says the lead Farbett. "Boss wake soon. Go quick, but watch. Big Yangae house guards near airfield tonight watching."
One of the other Farbetts mutters something in Somekh. The lead Farbett grunts in assent, and the other Farbett scuttles off down the tunnel at high speed.
"Him make not watch," says the lead Farbett. "Now go quick!"
Mon'Farget nods in agreement with Zeton and Widj looking sheepish and embarrassed. He quietly merges back in with the rest of the group.
[I actually misread something of Moody's and forgot some earlier dialogue...well, he did one thing right and another thing that almost got everyone killed. I'll call it a wash.]
As the party continues down the tunnel, Bina moves next to Mon'Fargret and asks to see the rune paper he used. Receiving it, she stares at it thoughtfully for a little while. Then she says, "Weird. It's still got a charge, but it's weakened."
"You heard that howl," says Lirassa. "It knocked out whoever or whatever was under that pile of crap."
"It shouldn't have worked at all!" protests Bina. "Whatever was under there wasn't human! And if somehow it was something under the Rune, it and this should have canceled each other out!"
"Some kind of...lower-level control, maybe?" wonders Lirassa. "Or maybe just communication, not really control at all?"
"If it is," replies Bina, "it's not something I know about."
"I'd better save this one, but aside from the others. I was somewhat skeptical, but I am glad they do something," Mon'Fargret says, more than ready to turn attention from his gaffe.
"I wonder if that creature was some kind of sentinel...if so, it is possible that they know something about our coming. I hope not, but we should be ready."
"I saw Pru's ring flash and then saw movement where the scream came from. I decided to give Gol'br'in's sheets a try. I guess it worked...or something happened. The Farbetts were trying to hide whatever it was and did anyone else notice that their weapons weren't standard issue? They seemed 'crafted' somehow and not of Farbett design I would wager. They seemed to like Gol'br'in and not the Yangae, so I wonder if they knew what they were hiding?"
Pru snorts derisively. "Gol'br'in did say there were 'Pol-dites', or whatever he called them, under this mountain, my lord. It sounded to me like he's been buying them off with the vine. Moss knows what that's all about!"
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