The Cauldron of Fear – Attempt 1, Part 7

When we last saw our intrepid hero, he had just (by the skin of his metaphorical teeth) succeeded in his submission to the Tahou Senate to allow him access to the Cauldron of…

Senator Chil, who, five minutes ago was arguing that Lone Wolf should be handed over to the Darklords for a presumed fate of certain death, suddenly transforms into my best friend, offering me all kinds of goodies from his personal warehouse.

While internally resolving to have all food offered to me from Senator Chil tasted before I even look at it, I decide to make the most of this opportunity, taking the following :

• I replenish my Quiver, to the maximum of 6 arrows.
• And….that’s about it.  To be honest, there’s no objective way to decide whether a ‘Flask of Water’ and ‘Blanket’ are more valuable than the items I already hold in my Backpack, so I just stand pat with what I have (plus, you know, what self-respecting Kai Lord would voluntarily give up alcohol for water??)

There is then a whole lengthy paragraph about the necessary steps that are taken before I can be lowered into the cauldron, but I am a little (and by ‘a little’, I mean ‘EXTREMELY’) nervous about the fact that it is specifically mentioned that Senator Chil both provides the winch / rope / pulley combo necessary to lower me into the underground, and also personally supervises the assembly of these ‘vital components’.

This guy is about as suspicious as OJ Simpson walking out of a glove convention.

Oh yeah, he totally did it.  Read The Run of His Life.

Anyway, Senator Zilaris says that, after I am lowered into the underground network, giving three sharp tugs to my rope will signal that I am to be brought back up to the ‘under siege’ city of Tahou.

Not sure which location is safer, to be honest.

I’m slowly lowered into the darkness below, and the foreshadowing couldn’t be more obvious if it was stapled to the top of Donald Trump’s grotesque hairstyle.

Sure enough, my skill of Divination lets me know (!) that Senator Chil has joined the crew helping (!) at the top of the Cauldron, but also while concealing a blade in his hand which, sure enough, cuts the rope holding up the cradle in which I currently crouch.

Yeah, for all those naive readers….

Gee, I’ve overloaded on gifs and pictures so far, haven’t I?

Aside : I’m probably trying to distract myself from tomorrow, when I will be personally running a high stakes ex parte application, wherein I will try and convince the Court to make an injunction preventing my client’s former wife from dealing with a $225,000.00 bank account which she has kept secret from my client for the last six years.

Anyway.

As expected, I fall a distance of goodness-knows-how-far before smashing into an icy lake.  I suppose that it better than flaming lava, but not by much.

I have to make an R10 check, and my lack of the Magnakia Nexus Discipline doesn’t bode well for my chances.

My score of 1…….

means that the icy water and the weight of my equipment cause me to gradually sink beneath the surface of the icy water and drown, deep below ground and without friends or hope.

So, before I start again, I’ll just note that, if you don’t have the skill of Nexus (and I’ll confirm that my Amulet, which is meant to assist with these things, wasn’t mentioned), you have a 40% (!!) chance of dying!?

Yikes.  I think the next incarnation of Lone Wolf might take Nexus as a skill instead of Psi-Screen…..

Base Stats : CS : 19, E : 25, GC 39

Current Stats : CS : 34/34, E : 0/31

Weapons : Sword, Dagger

Weapon-Like Special Items : Silver Bow of Duadon (+3), Sommerswerd (+8 CS),

Backpack : Vial of Gold Dust, Rope, Lantern, Altar Cloth, Potion of Laumspur, Sacks of Silver (1), Flask of Boaza, Brass Whistle.

Special Items : 1. Sommerswerd 2. Platinum Amulet, 3. EMPTY 4. Shield (+2 CS),                 5. Padded Waistcoat (+2 E), 6. Chainmail Waistcoat (+4 E) 7. Blue Stone Triangle Pendant, 8. Invitation 9. Quiver (6 arrows), 10. Fireseeds (6), 11. Receipt 12. Silver Bow of Duadon.

Kai Monastery storage :

• Backpack Items : Sack of Silver
• Special Items : Mao of Tekaro, Diamonds (2), Boat Ticket, Power Key, Copper Key, Ornate Silver Key, Jewelled Mace, Dagger of Vashna, Brass Whistle. Quiver (4 arrows), Pass, Vial of Clear Liquid, Crystal Star Pendant

Magnakai Rank : Principalin

Magnakai Disciplines : Weaponmastery (+3 CS in Sword, Bow, Mace, Dagger, Spear, Quarterstaff), Pathmanship, Huntmastery, Divination, Invisibility, Psi-Screen

Lore-Circles : Fire (+1 CS, +2 E), Solaris (+1 CS, +3 E)

Kai Disciplines : Camouflage, Animal Kinship, Tracking, Hunting, Sixth Sense, Healing, Mind Over Matter, Mindblast (+2CS), Mindshield, Weaponskill (+2 CS in Short Sword)

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