FINAL INVESTIGATION

[strangerpeople]

FINAL INVESTIGATION

[It is time.

The chill which had come from the now-open, unnumbered room has now begun to seep into the rest of the Depths. It seems to call to the Titled, beckoning them to come forward and to face whatever is now beyond that door.

Fie and Rubedo were right - that room was, indeed, the exit to the Depths. And at the end of the staircase is a door, which the Skeleton Key can very easily open. A few seconds later, the door at the top of the stairs opens.

And the city within the cave below is revealed to them, as they stand on a platform high above the ground.



The ruin still looks as new as it did the day it was built. The air here is cold mountain air, though the only light seems to come from one massive building carved into the very rock of the cave. There is nothing coming from the mouth of the cave save for snow.

On the door they just came through is a single parchment of paper which reads "LEINALZIND OUTER DISTRICT." Each building, they will find, is labelled similarly. Which means there is only one conclusion.

Welcome to the city of Leinalzind, Titled. And good luck, teams.

You will need it.]

Comments

[carries_war]

[Occulatory...that would be a place for watching eclipses, right? Maybe he can see the surface from here, or at least the stars.

With a rough drawstring bag on his back, over an empty shotgun, containing all the small objects from Diet Darth Maul still in his possession, along with Yusuke's art supplies, his pockets full of healing and invisibility potions, and Sisi on a harness and leash, he heads into the Occulatory with no regard for the sign. What's in here for him to touch without the Sapiarch's command?]

[strangerpeople]

[Probably the most obvious thing is the giant star map on the dome ceiling.]

[carries_war]

[It's beautiful...and more than enough to make a pang of homesickness well up inside of him, even though he presumably wouldn't recognize any of the star alignments. It takes him several moments to tear his eyes away from it before he shakes his head and turns his attention lower. What else is obvious about the room?]

[strangerpeople]

[There is, above the giant occulatory, a table that oversees the entire lens-based contraption-orb-thing that takes up 80 percent of the room.

Perhaps there might be something there?]

[carries_war]

[That sure looks like something he shouldn't touch. The obvious response is to head up there and touch it! So, just what is there to mess with?]

[strangerpeople]

[Well, the occulatory controls themselves have been somehow, sadly, disabled. However, there are several papers to peruse through on the table.]

[carries_war]

[Drat. Well, since he can't fiddle with the controls, let's take a look at those papers!]

[strangerpeople]

[The first is a series of theoretical treatises about the disappearance of the race known as the Dwemer. It was written by "Arniel Gane of the College of Winterhold", span several decades, and the final dates of these seem to be "4E201." It mentions how they finally getting help from the "new Arch-Mage" on testing his theory, and, in ever-increasingly excited handwriting, how he had all of his items ready to perform his experiment to prove once and for all his ideas...

...

And nothing more. The notes abruptly end.]

[carries_war]

[Well that's not ominous at all...]

Are we looking at this world's Joachim Mizrahi or what?

[The dog, of course, just stares at him cluelessly before nudging his hand for pets. He sighs and tucks the papers into his backpack, just in case they're useful later. Is there anything else up here with the controls?]

[strangerpeople]

[There's more papers to look at. For example, the very old tablet that is in the center of the table.

Its not in a language Jr. would even remotely understand.]

[carries_war]

[Looks like some kind of design notes. Is the tablet light enough to stick in his backpack?]

[strangerpeople]

[It is, as is the faded stone rubbings next to them. The latter is in several different languages.]

[carries_war]

[Are any of those languages something he'd be able to read, after all the time he's spent in the library?]

[strangerpeople]

[The rubbings aren't but there does seem to be a key on the back of the paper to help with deciphering the languages, at least with some time.

But, for the moment it seems best to keep looking at what else is there.]

[carries_war]

[Yeah, that's something to work on later. Is there anything else on this machinery? (Or under it, if there is a gap between the equipment and the platform.)]

[strangerpeople]

[There is a map on the table, underneath the other papers.]

[carries_war]

[He's guessing the green circle is a 'you are here' thing...but those red strikes are concerning. Too bad the letters themselves mean nothing to him!

Back to the table, anything else?]

[strangerpeople]

[Nope, this room is done. Go have some food with Eric, before he eats it all.]