Stepping through the gate, SG-X3 emerges on the other side. There is barely enough room for the team to step aside.

As they do, a winged person flies up from below. It is too soon to tell if it's the same person as before; no one's studied them quite enough to know how to distinguish one from the other, though they are clearly different.

He seems to hover there effortlessly, observing SG-X3 just as they observe him. There is no sign of a weapon.

Then he speaks in an almost familiar language.


"Welcome to Zon, Travel*ers of the Magic Circle," he says. "How may Whisper'wind help you?" He appears to be speaking in Old Latin, with allowances for linguistic drift, and with some clicks and tweets interspersed with the words... possibly substituting for inflection.

Sarah easily understands the words, even being able to work out the meaning of altered words or completely new words just from structure and context. James, Marcus and Kylie can also understand the language, with only slightly more difficulty.

Cormac has enough knowledge in the Romance languages that were derived from Latin that he can work out the gist of it. For anything complex, however, he'll have to make a Languages check to get it right.

Only Randall and Del'noc do not understand.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:38, Wed 04 June 2014.

Kylie exhales deeply.  She knows she didn't have to, but she held her breath before stepping through the gate.  Now she tries to budge through the throng without knocking anyone (or herself) off the ledge.  "Um, hello," she says in Latin.  Thank goodness she took Latin as a way to more easily memorize scientific names.  The dialect is different, but she should be understood.  "We are explorers from Earth.  Is... there a way down?"

Kylie looks around for steps or some way down that doesn't involve flying.

12:54, Today: Kylie Nova rolled 12 using 1d20+9. Spot.

Sarah arrived on the ledge and preoccupied herself with balancing on the ledge and not being buffeted off by the down-force from the creatures wings.

Cormac arrived this time without planting himself into the MALP.

As he heard the bird bein speak it took him a moment to gather it was Latin base. Once that hit him he started running through more and more things in his head. Every now an then he would quietly say  no that can't be right. after each phrase he would go back to being silent quickly scanning the area and the bird man infront of him.

"The Way is the Wind and the Wind is the Way," Whisper'wind replies to Kylie, though he cocks his head to one side as if trying to ascertain the meaning of some of her words.

"You fly or you fall. That is the way down. How do you fly without wings?"


Although Whisper'wind remains polite, Sarah recognizes that Kylie made a faux pas... possibly two. Whisper'wind gave his name, but Kylie did not return the gesture. There do not appear to be any physical gestures involved in the greeting, such as bowing, but they'd be hard to do while flying. The second faux pas might have been the question about a way down without having actually established a true dialog with him. It was hard to say at this point, since there wasn't much cultural common ground.

Also, there might or might not be a pecking order in their society, so reasonably at this point only the team leader would give his name. That's probably who Whisper'wind expects to deal with.

Kylie squeezed her way to Sarah, who seemed to be the people-person of the group.  "Hey, maybe someone a bit more smooth than me should do this."  She translated the conversation so far.  "I think I annoyed him a bit.  I don't suppose 'Our wings are too bulky for the stargate and are for special occasions like space travel anyway' will work?"

Del'noc stood there and tried to wait as patiently as possible since he did not understand what the bird creature was saying. At one of the humans seemed to understand and conversed with it, albeit briefly. When a translation was given, he frowned slightly.

"Perhaps a brief explanation that we are not birds? They may have never met others that were not...them before this. I would find it difficult to believe that there are no flying creatures on this planet at all, however."

Now you come to me?  Sarah wasn't however about to damage things further, "Thank you, Kylie," and with that said, she turned to the creature.  Her Latin, while by no means flawless, was well practised as the language formed the root of many a modern language and had been a mainstay of her studies.  "Lorem ipsum dolor sit causa.... Thank you for the warm welcome, Whisperwind.  I am Sarah Morgan and we are from a world called Earth and are known by some as the 'Tau'ri'."
  The 'unfamiliar' word said as the Goa'uld would.  "We are travellers and explorers and come seeking friendship and in peace."

She waits for what will hopefully be a positive response before answering the being question, "Unfortunately we cannot fly - we have no wings and must walk."  Highlighting a difference may be considered to be opening from a weak position but showing humility in this may also cover for Kylie's opening mistakes and since these creatures willingly began speaking, Sarah doubted a show of humility would be taken badly.

Of course, there was also the matter of introducing the others, but she'd consider doing that once the creature had responded.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:31, Fri 06 June 2014.

James lets Sarah and the others do the talking as he listens and obverses

At the mention of the Tau'ri, Whisper'wind's eyes grow wide.

"Greetings, Sarah'morgan. The Tau'ri are a myth! It is said that they can fly among the stars. If you have no wings, then how could you fly among the stars?"

His tone isn't accusing, as if he thinks she is lying. It may be because he doesn't fully understand what Sarah has said, or else it could be a 'tall tale' that is an accepted method of presenting yourself to a new acquaintance.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:31, Wed 11 June 2014.

"Seeds can travel great distance blowing in the wind - without wings - and yet it is called flying."  She smiles, "We use technology like the Magic Circle to aid us in that."

"Now... I will gladly answer any number of questions for you but I find myself fearful of falling of this ledge should the wind rise.   Is there possibly a safer place we can converse, please?"  Humility and exposing ones own fears is always a good way to make others feel comfortable.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:50, Mon 09 June 2014.

"Most interesting. I shall have to ponder what you have said."

"Yes we can converse in the Great Nest. It is protected from the wind... at least as much as such a structure can be. Follow me."

At which point he drops down out of sight, though looking over the edge, you can see him heading for a large 'nest'.

After a minute, he flies back up.

"With your tech'nolo'gy."


Sarah is pretty sure that was meant to be humorous.

And why ever not.  It's not like they weren't trained for this! "Well, commander, we've been invited to join Whisperwind, at their 'Great Nest' to continue the greeting.   I think he's teasing us a little in a humorous way about our lack of flight.  Shall we show him what a little Earth ingenuity can accomplish?  Do you think we could rappel down to it?"

Kylie looks for the least steep spot to set up her rappelling equipment.  "Did anyone else bring a climbing kit?  This will probably take a while otherwise."

Del'noc watched the interaction but couldn't understand the language so had to wait for the translation. The bird-creature flew down, then back up. He looked at Kylie and nodded. "I believe that is part of the...bundle...that I brought - rope and a climbing kit, though I may need assistance in utilizing it."

Kylie shows Del'noc how to set up their gear.  "Good thing you have some too.  I'd like to get off this ledge before the gate opens up and the vortex vaporizes half of us.

"You're Jaffa, right?" She points to the tattoo on his forehead.  "May I ask which system lord you used to serve?  I'm trying to memorize that kind of thing, but there's a lot of new information I have to absorb." 

Del'noc gave a small bow of his head in response to her question. Most people in the SGC could tell he was Jaffa, yet they asked anyway. It was an odd Tau'ri quirk, but he didn't mind. It was better than them all looking at him with suspicion or hatred, for instance.

"You are correct, Kylie Nova. I am indeed Jaffa." There was a slight pause, obvious hesitation but brief. He kept working on the rope and climbing kit, aping what Kylie showed him. "I served Anubis for many years before he was defeated and exiled. Then Ra gathered what was left of the Jaffa under Anubis and took them as his own." There seemed like more to it, but that was all he said for the moment. It answered her question.

Marcus who was listening, figured he should help out.

"Should I see about sending the MALP back and letting the SGC know we have established communication?"

There was nothing for him to be suspicious of, and there was clearly no threat from the bird-people, at least not weapon-wise, but the air was there element and it was a long way down. Something still nagged at him, though. He couldn't quite put a finger on it. Maybe it was that metal canopy. It was just... incongruous.

He didn't need to ask the others who could climb; he already had that info in his head, from the files.

"Yeah, Marcus, go ahead and dial home while the rest of us set up the climbing gear. Don't send the MALP through just yet, though."

"Looks like you're our climbing expert, James. Set up a rope system for two people, tied off to the MALP, and then you go down first to secure the area. Once you've done that, we'll use the MALP's winch to lower the non-climbers down."

"Sarah, you'll be next. Access the situation."

"Del'noc... next."

"Followed by Kylie... Marcus... Cormac... and I'll bring up the rear."

He hated being last; he wanted to be first, should have been first, but in this situation, the best climber needed to take point. The MALP's winch could lower everyone, but the climbers could use ascenders to get back up to the mountain top faster than the winch could.

With things organised, Sarah nods to her commander and then turns back to talk to Whisperwind while she waits her turn, "We'll be there shortly, Whisperwind.  While we wait, maybe you can tell me a little more about your home... the Great Nest you call it?  It seems you have your own share of technology if I'm not mistaken?"

Marcus moves tot the DHD and studies it for a few minutes to find the proper symbols and starts dialing back.  He readies the radio so that if the team leader wants he can tell the SGC that they will be using the MALP on planet and return with it later.

James nods and sets about his gear ready for rappelling down the to the ground as he then sitting the rope so the others can climb down

(can we safely dial the gate without the wave hitting any of us or the malp)

20:17, Today: James Berten rolled 15 using 1d20+4. survial(mountain).
20:18, Today: James Berten rolled 20 using 1d20+3. climb.

"I do not live in the Great Nest," Whisper'wind replies to Sarah. "It is a meeting forum where all can speak their mind."

"I do not know of this tek'nolo'gee of which you speak. If it is like your tools and weapons, then, no, we do not have that."


As Marcus may have read in the reports, the point of origin symbol for every triangle DHD that has been encountered so far was always the symbol at the very bottom. He has no problem dialing home.


There is plenty of room on the top of the mountain so that the outwash from the stargate doesn't threaten anyone. If the original stargate builders put this one here, they took that into account.


James has no problem setting up the ropes. The second one is a safety line for those getting lowered on the winch. He's not really going down to the ground, but to a ledge next to the large domed nest. Once down there, it's a tricky few steps around the nest to the entrance because there's no railing. It's a long way down, but not that far to the next nest below.

Sarah ahhs softly, content to continue talking while the others do their bit around her, "I'm surprised.  The Great Nest seems to have been constructed with metal?  Did your people build it?"

Cormac is staying quiet as the others converse or perform their respective jobs. He is still trying to mentally run through so e of his earlier anthropology classes that were not too specific to Celtic culture. He really wanted to figure out who if any these being were descendent from even if it is merely a cultural liniage.

Del'noc listens and watches with the setup of the climbing gear and how James uses it. He can't understand the bird-creature anyway, so he ignores it for now, except for occasional glances at the body language of the thing. He is down on one knee near the ropes to provide cover if needs be, awaiting his turn.

Whisper'wind seems a bit surprised at Sarah's comment, but then glances down at the large domed nest below him.

"The Great Nest is made of sticks, like all our nests," he replies. "If you mean this tek'nolo'gee is the builder's craft, then I suppose we have some. The Great Nest was the largest nest my people had ever attempted. The Great Builder Starwing had claimed he had figured out how to do it, and so he had, for once the building began, it quickly became apparent that his plan would work. It took a year to build the Great Nest, for the sticks had to be gathered from far away."


Cormac, after listening to the conversation for awhile, finally comes to the conclusion that the culture from which this one may have evolved was not religious in nature. There are simply no religious terminology or references in anything that Whisper'wind says.

That alone is interesting. It means it was possibly transplanted before the rise of the Roman Empire, probably from one of the Italian provinces. It is clearly Latin, but it lacks the formal religious structure that eventually caused the decline of it as a spoken language by everyone.

There is no archaeological evidence that anyone has ever found on Earth indicating that this species could have evolved there. Therefore, the language and possibly the culture had to have been transplanted to here.


Del'noc has no problem picking up the techniques that James is using to climb. It is not unlike what the Jaffa use, but the technological tools that the Tau'ri bring to it make it so much easier. Even the devices themselves are rather simple--clever, but still simple: d-rings, o-rings, carabiners, descenders, ascenders... and the synthetic ropes and straps themselves.

James radios "Mind your step down here and for future mission I'm going to bringing rope" Jamnes will wait till the others are down

"Okay, Sarah, you're next," Randall interrupts her conversation with Whisper'wind. "I hope you aren't afraid of heights. We'll lower you down on the winch."

Randall then fastens the second safety rope to Sarah, and hooks the winch cable to her. Fortunately, the webgear they were issued for holding all their items was also capable of functioning as a climbing harness... not the best, but fine for makeshift situations like this.

Sarah wasn't getting anywhere quickly with regards to the metal construction - but what she was getting was the feeling that the metal was probably some sort of external influence on the lives of these avian folk.  Maybe a left-over from some previous civilisation?  She hoped that at least as a hidden agenda was hardly something she'd like to contemplate with these people.  "Ok Whisperwind.  I'll be at the bottom soon enough and we can continue our conversation there."  She then turned to Randall and nodded.  "Ok.  I'm ready."

Kylie waited her turn to descend.  She was glad for the help of the clamps and the second rope, as she wasn't a particularly strong climber.

There are no mishaps when the SG-X3 team climbs down to the ledge below and then carefully walks around to the opening of the Great Nest. It is not a big opening, since it is meant to minimize the wind and presumably rain that would blow through it. Clearly, the bird-people would have no problem landing on the ledge, folding their wings and then walking in.


About six feet in there is a secondary wall that's only about 10 feet long. You can walk around either end to enter the 100-foot diameter main chamber of the Great Nest.

Whisper'wind hovered outside while James climbed down, and continues to hover there until the whole team is down and moved inside. Although he says nothing, you get the impression that he might be providing some sort of lifeguard service... in case someone fell.

Once inside, you can see that there is a circular roof vent at the top, as well as several 'windows'... more like shutters, that can be closed if there's a storm.

Around the room are several dozen perches... horizontal branches on supports interconnected like a maze.

Considering the room she had to wonder at the inner walls.  Were they metal too?  What was the construction like?

Once they were all safely down, she smiled at Whisperwind.  "Surely not as fast as you, but we made it all the same."

Del'noc enjoyed the climb, the physical exertion and the possibility of danger. He didn't relish the thought of dying from a fall instead of combat, however, so took much care in his climb. Once down, he made sure to help anyone else as they came down, should they need it.

After everyone had made the climb, he followed after Sarah, staying back a few steps to allow her to continue conversing with the creature. "I wish that they spoke English or Goa'uld."

Cormac would make his way down the cliff. He had done some rock climbing as a kid but it had been years since he last climbed. He would take his time to descend the cliff. Once down he would walk with Del'noc and when the jaffa mumbles something about English cormac would elbow him slightly. You and me both brother. I can kinda keep up when they are speaking slowly.

Kylie is a little hesitant to do anything that might get an annoyed face turned at her again, so she waits for some signal from Whisperwind before she tries taking a seat anywhere.  Instead, she stays near those that need translation help and explains what's going on as best she can.

James keeps aware his surroundings as they move but again keeps quiet and listens letting Sarah talk

Marcus made it down. Not fun.

He looked over the the building trying to learn about it construction.

The walls are made of sticks. You did notice as you entered that the outer wall was around 12 inches thick, but at least on the end you can see that there is some sort of mortar mixed in with the sticks. The windbreak wall is only about half as thick, but it's fastened to the outer wall at the top corners.

There's no evidence of metal at all.

Upon hearing that Cormac can understand the conversation, Del'noc immediately falls silent again to allow the man to be able to listen. He hadn't meant to disturb or disrupt anything. He wondered what the significance of the elbow bumping him was - whether it was even intentional or not. It didn't seem like a gesture of challenge, so perhaps familiarity or disrespect? He made a mental note to investigate further once back on Earth.

In the meantime, he looked at the structure they were lead to, though it was primitive it was still not a terrible feat of engineering. He was no expect, however.

Cormac would admire the structure. I was most definitely a monumental task and He would have enjoyed the chance to see it constructed and how the organization of the building was implemented along with much of the logistical aspect. To Cormac the interactions of a group in a situations such as the construction of a monument of this scale would imply some form of religion but as He had hypothesized earlier these being had no form of Religion that he could discern. In itself the entire culture and population could be a tremendous case study for him. Sadly he would need a fairly large group observe along with them either not being aware or not acknowledging his presence. That is the only way to get the cleanest results.

So clearly not the nest they'd come to investigate but still interesting never the less.  Sarah waits though for Whisperwind to respond to her and stop and greet the rest of their party - or maybe even introduce them to others of his kind - this was a meeting spot after all?

"Yes, you made it," Whisper'wind replies to Sarah. "Interesting technique. I have seen birds use their beaks to climb up a branch."

"What is that metal creature that came through before you arrived?"


Even as Sarah and Whisper'wind converse, the sound of flapping of wings can be heard, and soon several dozen of the bird-folk enter the Great Nest. They land on the ledge and then walk in, and quickly take up positions on the perch.


"These are the Elders of the Nest. They have come to meet you."

"Quite an apt description, Whisperwind."  She smiles at that.  "As for the metal creature.  It's a tool - part of our technology.  It allows us to see through its eyes and check that it is safe to travel, to breath the air of the new planet, to check that there is a safe place to alight.  Imagine if there had been no ledge?  Or the world was covered in molten rock."  And then to assure him, "It will be returned with us."

Then with the arrival of the elders, she paused and quickly turned to her fellows, "The newcomers are the Nest's Elders who have come to meet us."  She didn't have much more information than that but refocuses on the elders and bows her head to before speaking, "Thank you for taking the time meet with us.   I am Sarah Morgan."  She goes on to introduce the other members of her team - something even those unable to understand will recognise as an introduction when they hear their names spoken.  "We are from a world called Earth and are known by some as the 'Tau'ri'."

James bows towards the elders in respect but keeps quiet

Del'noc followed suit after James Berten and also gave a bow of respect to the elders once it was translated that they were indeed the elders. He waited quietly and listened to the translation as Sarah spoke.

Catching most of the conversation Marcus waited to see if were they came from would cause any sort of reaction from the bird people.

Whisper'wind introduces the elders one by one. All of them seem to have some sort of title or descriptor, such as Cloud'walker the Sky Dancer or Sunsoar the Hunter.

"I explained that you are... explorers. They also wish to know what it is that you desire to explore," Whisper'wind says. "Most of them understand that you cannot soar above the land and so you do not see things as we do. They also understand that you see things that we do not. Different worlds."

"So what do you explore?"

Sarah will  make sure to translate the names for everyone and will introduce each of the SG team in tern.   "Well, we would like to befriend you, learn from you, we seek to make allies and discover more of the universe."  She smiles, "And to be honest, we were also intrigued by the oddity of the metal construction where all your nests appear to be made of wood."

Sarah will translate her words for the other also and translate any further discussion or suggestions from her team to the elders and back.

"The Shrine of Hreidmar has been here as long as my people can remember," Whisper'wind replies.

"No strangers have ever asked to visit the shrine," one of the Elders says another in wonder.

"Only the People may visit the shrine!" protests another.

"What do they wish to do there? What do they think they will see?" asks a third.

"They must believe in the Sky God!" yet another says.


The rest of the elders all seem to chime in on one or more of those issues. It never quite reaches a cacophony of birdcalls but it starts to sound like that after a bit.

Hreidmar? Sarah quickly tries to analyse the name, referring to other languages to try and glean some knowledge as to the origins of the word before raising her voice amidst the noise intending calming and hopefully defusing the situation, "Elders, please.  We would not cause contention amongst you.  We are simply inquisitive explorers as the technology used to create the construction is far more similar to our own construction method than yours."  She smiles, "If you do not wish us to see it, then that is your prerogative.  We have come to share and learn, not take and steal."

She let's that sink in before attempting another tack, "Your words seem to imply that other strangers have visited your world?"

Once again, she translates for her fellows.

[18 on Diplomacy - if it is needed.]

Sarah's words serve to quiet the Elders even if they don't necessarily believe her, although she gathers from comments that it may not exactly that... perhaps more like a lack of understanding.

"Yes, Sarah'Morgan, travelers have come through the Magic Circle before. Some were rude and simply left after seeing where the Magic Circle was. Others wished to trade. We harvest moss from the k'tallah plant and some wish to trade for that, or for the t'dira which comes from the k'tallah moss."


Just as Sarah would be able to tell the difference between Japanese and Chinese if she heard them, even though she doesn't speak either of them yet, she is able to recognize the name as being decidely un-Latin. In fact, it sounds like a Scandinavian word, perhaps from Old Norse.

Linguistic drift has altered some of Latin words she's used to, usually shortening them or altering the gender, tense, case and conjugation. She estimates there's about an 80% similarity between the Latin she knows and the Latin the bird-folk speak. When a word crops up that she doesn't understand, she can generally pick up the meaning from the context.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:20, Thu 26 June 2014.

She nods, "I'm sure my people would be interested in learning the properties of this moss."  She looks to the others in her team as she translates.  While she can speak Asguardian, clearly these words weren't something she knew and maybe the others understood them?  "And in trading of course.  We have much to offer though we'd have to discuss what you might find useful."

"As to these people.  Where there any like us?"  They'd already discovered signs of the Goa'uld in this sector and forewarning would be useful.  "And is there regular trade?"  On a hunch she produces a bag of mixed nuts from 'somewhere' and idly nibbles on one while she's thinking and talking before taking on a surprised expression, "I'm sorry... how rude of me.  Would you like to try some of our food?"  She offers the bag to the others - it contains mixed 'raw' nuts.

Despite himself, Randall had to smile at Sarah's antics. He wasn't overly thrilled with civilians, but he'd read her file... and been impressed anyway.

What seemed like simple gestures were really meant to encourage trust and friendship, to win over potential hostiles.

He didn't have to understand her words to understand what she was doing. From what he'd seen of their equipment and tools, they didn't have any metalworking crafts. So tools would be useful to them... as long as they didn't get dependent on them.

They probably hadn't invented the wheel; of what use would it be to them?

"I think you're on the right track, Sarah. Trading food is a good idea. They don't look like they are starving, but good times are appreciated by all."

He continued to stand there and nod sagely when it seemed appropriate. He'd known this would be one of the problems he'd face... letting others handle the social and technical stuff.

When it was translated that Sarah had asked if any of the other travelers had been like "us", Del'noc tilted his head up a bit. On the one hand, not having his armor and staff-weapon were a bit disconcerting. On the other hand, however, he could see situations where carrying it to worlds that had been visited by the Goa'uld would cause problems. He stayed silent though as Sarah was deep in diplomatic talks with the bird folk.

James helps Sarah by translating for the others so she is free to talk to the elders

"There have been others like you," replies the Elder known as Crimson'wing. "Most did not stay long enough to converse. Without wings, they were not comfortable on the mountain top."

"We trade moss with the Cromar once a year. In return, they give us flint and nuts."

He is the first one to take up Sarah's offer of the nuts.

"I particularly like this one," he says as he holds up an almond after sampling them.

She smiles and offers him the bag, "We could trade for those if you like."  She then turns the conversation back to those who came through the Stargate, "Could you describe those similar to us who came through?  And what of the Cromar?  Could we meet these traders?"

"The Cromar have always come here; we have never gone to their world," Crimson'wing replies to Sarah. "They are small and furry."

"What is that you would wish to trade for?"


Before Sarah can reply, there is a loud whistle from outside. It is quickly picked up by a second whistle and then a third, and a dozen or more after that. Even a few of the Elders have whistles that they pull out and begin sounding as they all rush to the door.


"Raptors attack!" Whisper'wind manages to say before he runs out the door.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 21:13, Mon 30 June 2014.

Sarah is mid-conversation when the loud whistles can be heard.  After Whisper'wind's announcement though, she turns to her commander, "It's a 'Raptor' attack, Sir.  I don't know what this involves, but I'd suggest we be ready.  This could be another opportunity to show our hand and forge a bond with these people.  Just make sure there is no 'friendly' fire."

"We can't get involved in a fight we know nothing about," Kylie shouted over the whistles.  "We'd be picking sides based only on who we met first."

"Sir would you like me to scout and find out what or who is this raptor is?" James asks the Cpt.

Padraig was getting his weapons ready after admiring the structure and paring close atention to what was being said. He was still slow on the uptake but that's what he gets for not studying Latin as much as he should have.

At Kylie's comment Padge just looked at her said. "If they fire on me or any SG memeber I am firing back as far as I am concerned the matter of sides can be explained as self defense instead of alliance. I suggest you get your weapon ready either way."

OOC: forgot color will edit when I get home.

Marcus took up a defensive stance, having one of the few Zats he leaves his hand on its handle ready to pull if the need arrives.

He waited for some explanations or orders hoping that ting could resolved peacefully.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:43, Tue 01 July 2014.

Del'noc was listening to the translations as they came, but it was interrupted by whistling. His brow furrowed. He didn't know what a raptor was but it sounded like it was a bad thing. He readied his weapon and took up a defensive position to cover his team, awaiting orders.

SG-X3 manages to stay out of the way as the bird-folk hastily exit the Great Nest. After that, it's easy enough to walk to the main opening and look out. The view is a sight to behold! The sky is filled with hundreds of winged creatures! After a few seconds, the ever-changing image resolves itself into an aerial dogfight of epic proportions!

The bird-folk are fighting a much larger... flying dinosaur! They look like pterodactyls, but have nasty-looking toothed beaks.

Archaeologists would classify them as pterosaurs, of an earlier period, and they aren't strictly dinosaurs, but lived at the same time.

The bird-folk are wielding only spears, and it often takes several stabs to take out a single pterosaur. In return, the pterosaurs are snapping off bird-folk wings with a single nasty bite. It's only a fight because the bird-folk are more maneuverable in the air.

As the team watches this amazing sight, there is a crash on the nest above them, and a toothy beak suddenly stabs inward and bites the major on the arm and starts pulling him out of the nest.

Cormac takes in the sights if the two groups fighting above the SG team. He has little knowledge of dinosaurs but he had for one reason or another read about the "raptors" before and the identifiers were there.

When the "raptor bites thorne's arm Cormac immediately snaps his weapon around and fires into the beak. Hoping to at least cause the beak to release thorne's arm. After the indecent in the pyramid he doesn't hesitate. For one this man Thorne had put his life on the line before and Cormac would repay him for that in any way he could and this was one of those times.


18:40, Thu 03 July 2014: Cormac McLane rolled 18 using 1d20+2 ((16)).
OOC I'm guessing I hit but please let me know and I will roll for damage if I indeed did hit.

Side note. Archaeology is more culture and objects. Paleontology is dinosaurs and fossils. No big deal just a heads up for future reference.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:17, Fri 04 July 2014.

The sight is magnificent even if deadly and she looked to the  others hoping that some of them at least might choose to side with the bird folk and help them.  It really would help them out.   It's about then that the raptor crashing into the nest and grabs the major and it's all she can do to not scream out in shocked fright as she turns to witness the attack.

James reacts by running and drawing his P-90(the medical bag hanging on his shoulder)then shoots into the hole where the break came from

07:53, Today: James Berten rolled 24 using 1d20+4. p-90. -1=23
07:59, Today: James Berten rolled 9 using 1d10+1 with rolls of 8. dmg. x2=18 dmg

Once the bird-folk Elders had all flown out the front door, SG-X3 had also moved forward to see what was happening, so everyone was standing at the front looking out through the open doorway. Randall was at the front.

The raptor had landed on the nest just above the door, so he was more or less upside down. That allowed him to reach down and through the doorway with his long beak and grab Major Thorne.

Cormac's quick reaction easily hit the creature's beak with a spray of bullets, causing it to let go of Randall. Not quite sure what just happened, the raptor is still perched on the nest when James cuts loose. He can't actually see it through the open doorway, and isn't about to step forward and lean out to get a clean shot, so he simple shoots through the nest. Made of sticks and some sort of mortar, it's not dense-packed--it does let air through, so shooting through it is reasonable.

James has no problem hitting the large creature, but it's hard to tell just how much damage he did. It is enough, at least, to chase the creature away.


FYI: The P-90 is designed to fire in a short 3-round burst in 'normal' mode, which is the setting the SG uses. It can be manually set to fire single round or long burst. Any time you want to use one of the other options, you'll need to state it; otherwise, it's firing in short burst.

With the creature gone and Thorne dropped to ground, Sarah will rush forward (expecting the others to cover her) and grab for Throne intending pulling him back into the nest and checking him over.

Del'noc was a bit slow to react. He had never seen such a combat or a dance in the air as it might be put by others. The death toll was high. All in all, it was a bit enthralling. Someone firing a P90 nearby snapped him out of his reverie. He pulled his own gun up and fired off a burst at the creature.

17:49, Today: Del'noc rolled 23 using 1d20+5. Wide Burst on dinosaur thing.
18:04, Today: Del'noc rolled 5 using 1d10+1. P90 damage.

Marcus covers those in the front dragging the wounded Major back from the entrance.

James moves to the entrance, dropping his medical bag for someone to use "Marcus and Sarah  treat Thomas, everyone else I say we pay those those raptors back"

James will signal them to ideal defense spots he then does a wide burst at one of the raptors that limits the chance of harm to  the bird people

13:08, Today: James Berten rolled 10 using 1d20+1. p-90 wide burst 3+1+1-3-1.
if needed
13:10, Today: James Berten rolled 9 using 1d10+1. p-90 dmg

OK, so attempts at neutrality tended to fly out the window when your teammates were attacked by giant bird people.  Good to know.  Kylie nodded at Lt. Berten and drew her handgun to follow his instructions.  She really didn't feel confident using her P-90, and she really hoped she wouldn't need either weapon.

Sarah will do what she can for Thomas, pulling out her small medical kit from apparently nowhere (she certainly hadn't been carrying it a moment before) and kneeling down next to him.

[18:14, Today: Sarah Morgan rolled 15 using 1d20+7. First Aid.]

Kylie kneels down by Sarah to help stop the bleeding.  She thinks she mostly just gets in the way, though.

22:06, Tue 08 July 2014: Kylie Nova rolled 9 using 1d20+6 ((3)).
Seriously, she just needed a 10 to aid another's roll.  How frustrating.

It's not so much getting in the way but more that with the equipment they have, there is little more than can do for the man given the situation and Sarah gives Kylie an appreciative smile.  "Can you please press and hold that bandage while I check for any other 'hidden' injuries?"  It's not easy and while Sarah has had the 'usual' training, she vouches to take a couple of advanced courses when... if she gets the opportunity.

Marcus coming over to help realized that Sarah was much better at first aid them he and asked how he could help her and Nova. "What can I do to help?"

Del'noc let the others do what they could to help the wounded while he kept watch for any more that might be heading their way. He also watched the battle a bit to see how things were faring for the birds that they had been dealing with.

"Will we be staying for the outcome of the battle?"

Of course it had never occurred to Randall that the raptors were so nimble when they landed, or that the noise on the roof was one of them landing rather than crashing. And then out of the blue, that long nasty-looking beak had reach over the doorway's top edge and chomped down on his arm!

Before he could react any more than try to jerk his arm loose--bad move, as it just dug the teeth in deeper--Cormac had opened up with the P90. At point blank range, he almost couldn't miss... the bullets slammed into the creature's beak, forcing it to let go.

It all happened so quickly that he was in momentary shock, so as the creature tried to drag him out of the next, it pulled him off balance, and after the bullets made it let go, Randall fell to the floor.

Sarah quickly rushed forward, grabbed Randall and dragged him away from the opening, even as James started shooting.

"Thanks," he managed to spit out through gritted teeth.

Fortunately, his jacket's sleeve had managed to keep the razor-sharp teeth from penetrating too deeply. Still, his jacket was shredded and his arm was a bloody mess.

As Sarah applied her first aid training, his concern was that the creature might have been venomous. Also, if it was a carrion-eater, all sorts of nasty bacteria could be in the wounds now.

"Try to figure out if these raptors are intelligent," he directed. "If they are, then that's your cue, Sarah. If they aren't, then we need to help our bird-folk friends. I authorize you to shoot the raptors... try to drive them off, but don't leave any wounded ones."
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 03:47, Mon 14 July 2014.

Work out whether an animal was intelligent or not... not really her forte now, but she guessed she could just 'speak' to them.  On the other hand, the new addition to the team was far more qualified for that and Sarah looked up at her, expectantly, "Go for it.  I'll finish up here.  I'll join you as soon as I've given him a tetanus and general antibiotic."  Unfortunately, that's about as far as her kit extended (far more than a kit you'd find in a cub-scout leaders boot, but only 'so far')

Del'noc wasn't sure he had a good idea for how to tell if they were intelligent or not. Calling out to animal can draw it's attention just like a person, and if they are belligerent and attack, you still don't know for sure. For the moment, he merely fired near the raptors to try and keep them back....and if possible away from the bird-creatures.

Marcus took a defensive position.  With the only entrance well covered by the experts he would assist when needed.

One of the things that Sarah and Kylie and Marcus have learned is that you can't judge a culture by your own standards. Still, there are signs that indicate certain traits.

As they observe the raptors, they can see that they don't use any weapons. Nor are any of them wearing any kind of clothing or harness or jewelry. They also don't seem to show any kind of teamwork or cooperation. In fact, more than once two of them attack the same birdfolk and then fight over the carcass.

The primitive weapons and teamwork of the birdfolk are the only thing that gives them an edge against the raptors, as the raptors are larger and more vicious.

There is no indication that the raptors are intelligent, though they may still be somewhat smart.

Sarah finishes patching her 'patient' up as best she can before moving closer to the doorway.  "It's doesn't look good."  She shakes her head, "I think we need to help them out."  She needs someone to argue against her decision to bring out the best of the arguments but at the same time with Thorne wounded, it falls to her to make the decision.  "Randall, Del'noc, James.  We can't afford to wait any longer.  S'far as I can tell, these creatures are simply that - creatures - and they are attacking our hosts.  It's time to make your stand.  Let's get this done."  She waits for one of the three, hopefully the most tactically minded, to (having been given the go-ahead) tell them what to do!
This message was last edited by the player at 15:11, Sat 19 July 2014.

It was only his arm that had taken damage, and not his gun hand at that, but his legs were still intact. He stood up and move to the door, more cautiously this time.

"We need to get out of this nest," he begins. "The battle's up there in the sky! We need to use the buddy system... cover each other's backs. James, take the left flank. Move out onto the hill against the next nest. Sarah, can you cover is back?"

Randall wasn't too sure about Sarah in a battle situation, but they needed to split up a bit to be the most effective.

"Del'noc, take the right flank. Marcus, cover his back."


"I'm not going to be able to climb, so I'll have to take the winch back up. We need to work our way back up to the top so we have a better field of fire."

"Kylie... can you ride up with me and cover my back?"

"Cormac... until we are secure up top, you'll need to stay here, keep out of sight but snipe at the raptors. Switch to single shot. You'll need to be more precise with your shots so that you don't hit our allies."

"Any questions? Then move out. Left flank goes first."

Sarah nods.  She had been trained, of course, but for the most part she avoided using guns.  This wasn't an opportunity to avoid them though and she unslung the P90 so she could be ready to use it in the defence of her team-mate.

James replies to Throne's orders by taking the left flank and heading to hill against the next nest

Del'noc listened to the orders put out there by Thorne. He gave a silent nod in acceptance of the orders before turning and moving to indeed take the right flank, but only once the left flank had moved.

Cormac gives Thorne a quick nod and proceeded to get set to provide cover fire for James and Del'noc. Keeping just inside the main entrance while keeping a considerable field of fire.

OOC

At work will edit when I get home. Won't be untill later.

Marcus stepped lightly after the Jaffa paying attention to his surroundings.

Kylie ties off the bandage and nods.  She might be out of her depth, but she could keep an eye out and shoot a gun in a straight line well enough.  "Let's go."

Once everyone was in place, Randall steps out and steps into the winch hook. Once Kylie is in place, he uses the remote to activate the winch.

Clearly as the winch cable hauls them up to the top again, they are quite vulnerable to attack from the raptors. That was why he positioned James and Del'noc the way he did--they were there to cover his ass, while their back-ups were cover theirs.

There was a lot of activity in the air still, but looking out on it now, it could be seen that it wasn't quite as bad as it had looked. The raptors were outnumbered, maybe two-to-one, but they more than compensated by their size and teeth.

The activity was in 360-degrees around the mountain, too. However, the slowness of the ride to the top made it almost inevitable that one of the raptors would spot Randall and Kylie and mistake them for an easy target.

As he swoops in, though, he gets caught in a crossfire from Kylie, Del'noc and James. It's hard to tell who exactly hit him, assuming they all didn't, but the creature never even gets close as he tumbles out of the sky. He crashes into the side of the mountain, just missing any nests, then slides down until he gets wedged between two nests. He doesn't move after that.

About the same time, a raptor lands on the nest above James. As its beak snaps down to bite James, Sarah has to shoot it.


While Del'noc shoots at the raptors, Marcus finds Vektar taking over to shoot.

~I hope you don't mind. I'm not yet totally familiar with your Tau'ri weapons, but I am a warrior.~


Cormac does his best to keep his eyes on four different areas... left, right, upward and straight ahead. He's able to hit a few raptors, but probably misses more than he hits.

Sarah has to shoot... but despite her careful aim and the need of the situation, the creature's movement foils her!

[I rolled a 6.]
This message was lightly edited by the player at 07:13, Tue 29 July 2014.

Cormac continues to try and take pot shots at the raptors but between his lack of sniper training and the creatures movements he seems to be a half step behind them with a few of his shots.

James switches to single shot and keeps firing at the raptors, trying to cover Randall and Kylie if he notices the one attackign him he will fire on it

08:08, Today: James Berten rolled 22 using 1d20+3. p-90 single shot 4-1.
08:09, Today: James Berten rolled 10 using 1d10+1.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:24, Mon 28 July 2014.

Del'noc saw the raptor coming in, desiring a quick kill and probably to feast. He brought his P-90 up and let out a pair of short and controlled bursts at it. He saw other arcs of fire hit the raptor that weren't his also, however. He quickly put the dead creature from mind once he saw that it had not crushed any nests and didn't seem to be getting back up.

He turned back to watching for oncoming raptors (and will shoot the one above James if he has clear line of fire on it).

Kylie keeps her gun drawn but steps over to the DHD.  "Should I dial home, sir?" she shouts at Randall.

Cormac continues firing at the raptors out in front. He can only really cover the flanks if one of the raptors comes in from the front to attack. He soon learns that they tend to drop in from above, though.

He does hit one that was in the process of attacking one of the bird-folk, which diverts its attack. Since the bullets hit it from the side, it thinks the attack was from that direction, which it was. It turns and spots Cormac, and flaps upward for a moment before dropping down to attack. Even Cormac can hit a point blank target, though, and he hits and kills it before it gets close enough to bite.


Although Sarah misses the raptor that's intent on attacking James, the noise and her action does pull the creature's attention... to her. It would seem that she appears to be a more tasty morsel than James, for it shifts its attack to her.

However, the sound of her shooting alerts James, and he is able to turn and shoot the raptor in the head before it strikes. Unfortunately, that kills it, and it now tumbles forward and down, and it's all James and Sarah can to keep from getting swept off the mountain as the beast slides downward.


Del'noc is on the other side of the Great Nest from James, so he can't really see what's going on over there.

He and Marcus/Vektar, however, are able account for half a dozen of the raptors.


Up top, Randall and Kylie reach the top without being attacked by any of the raptors, at least none that Cormac and the others don't shoot out of the way. They spot one dead bird-folk on the ground near the MALP, but no raptors.

Glad we made it to the top without getting chewed up!


Once Kylie is out of the way, Randall rolls to his feet using his good arm. He moves over to the edge though and lays face down, aiming his P90.

After using the remote send the winch back down, he activates his radio.

"Berten! Send Sarah up on the winch! Once she's on her way, Cormac move over to cover Berten!"

He was concerned that the non-military types might not be able to climb and still fire a weapon, so he had to make sure everyone was covered.

Now he took a moment to respond to Kylie.

"No, Kylie, let's not get ahead of ourselves. If we send our code, and they open the iris, one of these raptors could accidentally fly through. We're not desperate yet."

"Take cover behind the MALP, and cover me while I cover Sarah."

Having dodged the falling raptor - barely - she is more than ready to get out of trouble though at the moment her mind is wondering why they aren't simply waiting out the attack and helping the bird people.  Sadly that isn't a decision she's allowed to make and when the gear arrives back down, Sarah will strap herself in and then begin her assent, her gun awkwardly held but at the ready.

James radios "Orders heard and understood" once the winch is back down and he hears Sarah hock he does a quick double check then covers her as the winch takes her up

21:28, Today: James Berten rolled 25 using 1d20+7. Spot for checking winch hookup.
21:29, Today: James Berten rolled 11 using 1d20+3. single shot 4-1.
21:29, Today: James Berten rolled 6 using 1d10+1 with rolls of 5. p-90 dmg.

Del'noc did as he had been commanded until he was told differently - he held position and kept firing on any raptors that got too close or were easy targets to hit without endangering the bird people.

The continued fire from SG-X3 is damaging and sometimes killing the raptors, but they are unable to figure out the source. However, they realize that this side of the mountain is dangerous, and focus their efforts on the other sides.

Even the bird-folk don't fully grasp what is happening.


Sarah makes it to the top without incident.

Randall is concerned with getting those up top who might not be so good at fending for themselves, in case they do need to scurry through the gate. So Del'noc and James will be the last to get to the top.

He brings up Marcus next, then Cormac.

With the diminished presence of the raptors on that side, he lets Sarah and Kylie cover the ascent of the others, and moves to the opposite side of the mountain to shoot at the raptors.

Everyone runs through nearly half of their second clip before the raptors have had enough and fly away.

Shaken, Sarah remains standing where she'd been told to stand, her weapon clutched in her hands and her eyes still darting around as she tries to spot further attacks.  At the same time, her instincts are calling to her to try and help the now obviously hurt and wounded bird people and her analytical mind is cataloguing the wounds and wounded.

[Spot of 7 if I do notice anything interesting.]

While not wild about riding up a cable he didn't like being stranded behind far worse.

"GO GO GO." Marcus whispers as he is being raised by the winch.

"Sir enemy appears to be retreating. I suggest we reconnect the locals so i can get my medical and help wounded" James stays on alert and in position

What soon becomes evident is that the bird-folk don't have any sort of medical knowledge other than bandaging a wound with some sort of moss.

Whisper'wind and Crimson'wing land on the top several minutes later. Sarah and Kylie easily recognize them, though most of the others still don't know how to tell one bird-folk from another.

Whisper'wind has been injured in two places... wing and leg. Crude bandages over moss are evident.

"It has been observed that you have significantly aided us with your magic weapons against our ancient foes, the R'ap'tora. When they become sufficient in number, they come to feed on us. We lose several dozen people each time to their depradations, including many children who are easy prey. This time, we lost only one person and no children, though many are injured. The injuries, however, will heal."

"We have you to thank for that. In truth, it was not your battle to fight, nor did we ask for your assistance. Had we known of your magic weapons, perhaps we would have."

"In aiding us, you have demonstrated a great act of friendship. Even one of you was injured by them for your effort. If you do not have magical healing items that match your magic weapons, you must use the moss that grows on the k'tallah plant to neutralize the venom."

As Crimson'wing finishes, Whisper'wind steps forward and hands Sarah some moss.

"The Elders have spoken on this, and all are agreed that you shall hence forth be known as Brothers of the Sky. If you still wish to visit the Shrine of Hreidmar, you may now do so freely."

Cormac was listening to the two bird-folk. Slowly catching the conversation minus the ocassional click or chirp. Once hearing them mention the word for venom or toxin (he wasn't sure but knew it was bad) he looked over to Thorne to look for any clearly vissible signs of the venom affecting him. He then addressed James. James. Do you have something for toxins or venoms.. Other than that  Cormac would remain quiet while following the conversation.

Kylie waves at Whisper'wind as he passes her and then checks her first aid kit for antitoxin, just in case.

"You know, twenty minutes ago, I was wondering if there were other creatures on the planet and if they ate each other.  That was not quite the answer I was looking for.  At least we can go visit that structure now."

Kylie pulls out a pair of binoculars and tries to figure out the best route to the Shrine.  Hopefully there's a better path than just straight down and straight up.

07:02, Today: Kylie Nova rolled 22 using 1d20+9. Spot route to Shrine.

Sarah translates for the others and accepts the moss.  While their own anti-toxins may be viable, there's a goodly chance that they will not match the raptor's venom and she hands the moss over to Cormac to apply to Thorne before turning back to the bird people, "Thank you.  You honour us more than you may realise.  As explorers, we try not to meddle in the affairs or other cultures but your plight was an obvious one."  She smiles, "And we thank you for the moss.  Neither our medicine nor our weapons are magical - much like our means of climbing - but in some instances they can be more powerful."   She pauses and then offers, "If you wish, we could call for help from our people.  They may be able to help heal your wounded?"  She didn't directly mention the Shrine as to do so while the bird people were still recovering from the attack would be gauche.

Del'noc listened to the translation and barely stopped himself from smiling or laughing. It sounded like so many primitive cultures he had heard during his time as a Jaffa....including his own! He had been awed by the 'magic' of the gods himself for a time. He stayed silent and watchful in case any other threats presented themselves, but he took a more relaxed posture.

Crimson'wing eyes the bandage on Randall, before answering Sarah.

"You have magic weapons, but your medicine is the same as ours. We are able to tend to our wounded quite well, thank you, in no small part because of your assistance."


Kylie, now that the group has permission to visit the metal structure, makes an obvious point of studying it, particularly looking for an easier way down. The first thing that now strikes her is that it is not built like the nests. The nests are built on a slope, simply anchored to the mountain side. For the most part, the nests do not have flat or level floors, simply because the bird-folk do not need or use one.

The metal structure has been built on a flat rock. It seems unlikely that such a flat surface would be conveniently found on the mountain side. Given that the top of the mountain was leveled flat to situate the stargate, it's quite probable that this other flat area was also intentionally made that way.

With that thought in mind, she starts looking for how the people and materials might have gotten down there, assuming they didn't fly. It takes a few minutes for her to spot the 'path'. She's able to say it is a path simply because it doesn't match any other area around the platform.

It could easily be a run-off channel from the mountain top, and, in fact, probably functions that way when it rains. However, she is able to skip over nests to see it continue on the other side. In this way, she is able to trace the path as it winds around the mountain, slowly rising as it goes, until she finds where it comes out on top.

Being able to examine it up close, she can see now that it probably was a path at one time, and just as probably made to carry materials down to the that flat ledge. It was hard to spot because it hasn't been used in years, maybe decades or longer, and has also suffered from erosion.

Moving a bit closer to Sarah, Marcus asks her, "Do they use that building for any thing?"

While he can follow the conversation he figures it would be better to keep everything through Sarah rather than make a mistake with the translation.

Kylie adjusts her binoculars as she talks to the group, partially in response to Marcus.  "It doesn't look like they use it, but it must have some significance to them to be called a Shrine.  It looks like it was built by humans, or at least people that walk on the ground.  Which I guess doesn't narrow it that much, really.  Anyway, there's a path down this way."  Kylie points out the path.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:16, Tue 12 Aug 2014.

"Should we check in with what we learned" James suggest as he gathers his gear

Randall smiled a bit at Kylie's comment. It was probably her first time in any kind of combat situation, and then it was against prehistoric monsters! It'd be enough to rattle anyone.

"Kylie, we're ON top of the mountain already." He was pretty sure she knew that, but just got her words mixed up.


"We haven't really learned much that we didn't know before we got here," Randall then replies to James. "We already knew the bird-people were here, and we already knew that metal shed was here. All we've really learned is that the bird-people live in large nests that appear to be made by hand, and that they have a natural enemy in the raptors."

"I don't think that's enough to warrant dialing home yet. We've still got time till our scheduled check-in, so let's go look at that shed."

He turned to Sarah then.

"Just to be on the safe side, Sarah, ask Crimson'wing if we can go look at the shrine now."

Sarah did just that, asking whether they were allowed to visit the shrine now.   She was however somewhat disappointed that they couldn't progress help the bird-people further as a medical team would have access to much more advanced tools than a simple first-aid kit carried!   Regardless, she could not push matters further.

Del'noc waited silently, keeping a sharp eye out for any raptor stragglers or any other threats. He let the others talk to the bird-people, just patiently waiting to see if they were all going down to the metal shed or only some of the team.

"Yes, of course, you may visit the Shrine," Crimson'wing replies to Sarah. "Once the injured have been treated, it is appropriate to visit the shrine to proclaim your victory."

Marcus was happy ... ish.  While the path to get there was scary there could be some interesting items at the shrine.

"Of course, Crimson Wing."  She then turns to her compatriots, "We should wait until they cared for their wounded.  And they intend 'proclaiming our victory' - I'm not quite sure what that means but we should give them time to recover from the attack before we blunder."

Since not everyone can be involved in the treatment of the injured, it quickly becomes obvious that there's no reason to wait for them all to be treated. A few of the bird-folk start flying down to the shrine.

It can be seen that some of them are carrying flowers, and a few seem to be carrying parts of the raptors... perhaps as trophies.

Del'noc watched with interest as the bird-people began moving to the shrine. Not all at once or even in a really discernible pattern that he saw. While some brought flowers, some brought raptor parts. That was what perked up Del'noc. He wondered if it might be some sort of warrior's ritual, so he watched with interest as he waited for the team to be able to move to the shrine so he could investigate.

Unless someone indicates otherwise, Kylie heads down the path to the Shrine.  It looks to be a bit of a hike, but that's nothing new for her.  Kylie was a cross-country runner in college.

Kylie decides to get to know her teammates a bit more and walks along with Cormac.  "Dr. McLane, right?  I suppose you and I are supposed to provide insights soon, but I feel pretty out of my depth.  Most of the creatures I study are, you know, dead."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:27, Wed 27 Aug 2014.

Sarah will follow Thorne when he leaves for the Shrine.

In reply to Kylie Nova (msg # 126):

Oh I know the feeling. Hell I'm barely keeping up with the conversations. That and the fact that there aren't any objects that they made that would give insight. Mind you the shrine ay be a bit more helpful.

In reply to Cormac McLane (msg # 128):

(posting by phone)
James will his bags and follow

Going down the path, which is little more than a run-off channel any more, has to be done single file.

Kylie had taken the lead, followed by Cormac.

Randall and Sarah follow, and then James and Del'noc bring up the rear.


As Kylie reaches the shrine, it becomes more impressive and strange than she thought. Where the path reaches the floor of the shrine, there's a large flat stone there, which has served to divert the run-off away from the shrine, so there's no mud or even dirt on the floor.

It also seems likely that the bird-folk clean the floor, as a crude broom can be seen leaning in one of the corners.

The design is a kind of pavilion style. There are four posts at the corners made by a right angle metal. Each side of a post arches up and over to the next corner, but they also arch upward to form the overhead dome.

The base is around 50 feet square, made of metal, with the corner posts appearing to merge with the floor.

There is a large circular intricately-etched pattern in the center of the floor.

And then you realize that the entire interior of the corner posts and the dome are etched with writing.

"Interesting."

Upon seeing the writing Marcus grabs his video camera and begins to record what they have discovered.

None of it looks familiar to James, at least not to the point where he can read it. However, he thinks he recognizes Asgard... and maybe Ancient.

Del'noc was happy to bring up the rear. It was a little unusual, having to keep one wary eye on the sky so much, but this planet demanded such attention. He certainly didn't want more raptors getting the drop on them. Or the bird-people attacking suddenly.

He paused a moment to look over the shrine. "Impressive." He looked a bit more closely at the pattern and some of the writing but didn't expect to be able to understand them. Still, it was interesting.

Kylie started to look around the supports to see if she recognized anything.  She could read Asgard pretty well.  Hopefully these area was like the Rosetta Stone, where all the languages said the same thing.

Kylie is decent at Asgard.
07:44, Today: Kylie Nova rolled 13 using 1d20+5. xeno-languages to decipher other languages.

Kylie definitely recognizes Asgard, but has some difficulty in reading it. The first problem is that it's not quite linear writing. Considering it starts in one of the corner posts and 'spreads' out upward and in both directions. It goes halfway across the dome in each direction before there is a clear line of demarcation and another language starts.

Also, there is another mandala-like etching at the apex of the dome. It's not as large as the one on the floor, though it's just as intricate.

The second problem seems to be that the writing is some sort of poem, a bit like epic prose.


Although Sarah is more familiar with Asgardian, she still has the same problem. However, she definitely identifies the language in the opposite corner as Ancient, and one of the others as Nox. She guesses that the fourth language is probably Furlingua.


Vektar lets Marcus know that he doesn't speak or recognize any of those languages.


The bird-folk have dropped off maybe a dozen bundles of flowers or raptor parts (wings or claws) into the mandala-circle on the floor, but more fly up to leave a tribute.

"Greetings, Star Travellers," one of the bird-folk says as he lands on the ledge under the shine. "I am Dark'wing the Song'master. You saved my daughter's life. She'd been attacked by a raptor, but your magic weapons drove it off and killed it before it could do more than scratch her. You have my gratitude."

"If you wish, I can retrieve a souvenir for you from your kill, so that you can lay tribute upon the Shrine of Hreidmar."

"You read the Song of Hreidmar," he then says, as he gestures to the writing on the wall. "It tells of the Land Beneath, where the sun never shines yet it is never dark. Hreidmar's people once traded with us, until the dragons came. They fought valiantly against the dragons, and drove them off. Hreidmar decided that his people must return to the Land Beneath, but promised he would return if the dragons ever did."
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:04, Wed 03 Sept 2014.

"That story has a familiar ring to it."

Del'noc, once this was translated, gave a half-bow. "You are welcome. We are happy to have been able to help." He didn't add more as he wasn't a spokesperson of any kind and didn't speak the language so someone would have to translate for him.

He listened with interest to the summary of the tale that was told, however. Dragons? He wondered what those were supposed to represent. Unas?

Sarah has been busy reading the story in Asgardian. She has a hard time following the non-linear script, and she compares it with the Nox and Ancient versions now and then for clarification. She also spends some time studying the Furling script. It's the first time she's every seen it.

"Yes, thank you, Dark'wing the Song'master," she replies to the birdman. "It would be very difficult for us to retrieve our tributes, so we would greatly appreciate it if you would do that for us."

After he flies off, Sarah addresses the others.

"Can any of the rest of you read this? As near as I can tell, it's some sort of epic poem about someone named Hreidmar. He was the leader of the 'stonedwellers' who lived in the Land Beneath, just as Dark'wing said."

"What I find odd is that Dark'wing could accurately tell the story, but I don't think any of the bird-folk can actually read. THey don't have a written language... at least, I haven't seen any indication of it."

"I'm starting to wonder if the Asgard might not have visited here in the distant past."

"Yeah, I was thinking Hreidmar sounded kind of Asgardian.  But I've never heard of the Asgards being 'beneath' anything.  But maybe they have a cave with an Asgard connection, like that one planet.  The one with Thor's Hammer.  Dragons could be Jaffa, maybe?  Hopefully not something new.  We should ask if the 'Land Beneath' is a literal place and if we could go there."

James listens to the others talk then says when Sarah mentions Land Beneath "Could they have been Ancients"

"I can't read it." answers Marcus while he films the writing to decipher later.

"Good point, Kylie," Sarah answered. "It does sound more like some Asgard-protected planet, though possibly the Ancients were the ones doing the protecting."

"On the other hand, all four races are represented here. That must mean something."

"I have a hard time seeing how the Jaffa could have been the 'Dragons'... Unas, maybe... perhaps even the Goa'uld. Remember, we're out in this distant cluster. I think it's probably something completely different. And I don't like the image that's conjuring up."

"Do any of you know anything about mandalas?"

She walked over to the mandala on the floor of the shrine. She couldn't really see much detail because of the trophies scattered all across it. She tried pushing some of them aside a bit. She didn't know how long they were supposed to remain there in honor of the victory... or the fallen... though, today, none had fallen. It was clear they didn't stay there until they rotted, which was probably why the broom was there in the corner.

Del'noc looked to Sarah and gave her a nod. "I had a similar thought about the Unas. They could indeed be described that way by a primitive culture."

"You know, Jaffa have scaly heads and shoot fire."  Kylie makes a motion like the Jaffa's elaborate head pieces are folding out over her own head.  "Could be dragons.  But I guess Unas makes a little more sense.  Hopefully if it's something new, it's less inclined to kill us.  If it's an actual dragon, though, I may have to go home."

Kylie steps around the trophies to Dark'wing.  "Hello Dark'wing.  I am Kylie Nova.  We are interested in the story of Hreidmar.  When Hreidmar returned to the Land Beneath, do you know where that actually was?  Or how long ago Hreidmar and the dragons were here?"

"Greetings, Kylie'Nova," Dark'wing replies to Kylie's question when he returns with the souvenirs of SG-X3's kills.

"The Land Beneath is the Land Beneath," he adds, and points to the ground. "It happened more cycles ago that there are People, or so the Elders say. Farther ago than any living Person, before even the Elders were hatched."

"Can you read the Epic of Hreidmar?" he then asked, gesturing to the writing on the walls.

"Some of it.  We recognize the languages, at least, but the way it's written makes it difficult to follow.  Sarah seems to think the pattern in the center is significant, but I'm not really familiar with it.  Do you know it's meaning?"

"The symbol on the floor?" Dark'wing asks, making sure he understands what Kylie is referring to. "It is the Heart of Hreidmar. Only by appeasing his heart can you enter the Land Beneath. That is why we put tributes on it."

"If we are deemed worthy when we die, we will join Hreidmar in the Land Beneath. If we are not, we go into the Endless Night."

None of the others knew anything about mandalas, which didn't really surprise Sarah. She thought she could recognize one if she saw one, but then realized that she didn't know what the significance was of the various designs, so maybe it wasn't a mandala if it wasn't drawn or painted just a certain way.

Listening to Dark'wing and translating for the others, Sarah considered what he said. In her field, you had to listen to what wasn't said as often as what was said, and you had to make sure that what was said was what was really meant. Even then, just because it was said didn't mean it was true or accurate. People had a tendency to repeat what sounded reasonable as factual, and disregard what contradicted anything they already knew as 'fact'.

The art of negotiation was often finding what was really wanted, what was really needed, what was really meant.

"Could it be that simple?" she said to the others as she began examining the mandala design on the floor, and its counterpart on the ceiling.

"I've never encountered a culture that thought the afterlife was underground... at least not the good part. It's always been in the sky."

"But what if there really is something under the mountain? What if this Land Beneath is a real place?"

"With all four of the Major Races represented here, maybe this mandala is actually some sort of... I don't know... a ring gate maybe?"

Marcus was not sure on Sarah's idea but if she was wrong this was going to be a very boring mission.

"Yeah, I was thinking there might be an actual cave or something at ground level.  But if there are rings here, it can probably only be activated from the other end.  Otherwise, the controls would have been found by now.  Still, I'll look around."

Kylie Nova rolled 17 using 1d20+9. spot controls.

James helps look for possible ring gate controls but he does do so in respect of the natives. He will look clues pointing to if there is  a ring gate

07:38, Today: James Berten rolled 15 using 1d20+7. Spot.
07:39, Today: James Berten rolled 24 using 1d20+10. Search.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:40, Mon 22 Sept 2014.

Getting the gist of what the others were saying, he perked up at the mention of ring controls. He began to help look for these controls, if they indeed existed. He was not the most perceptive of people, but he had prior knowledge of the Go'auld technology at least.

08:44, Today: Del'noc rolled 11 using 1d20+5. Spot.
08:45, Today: Del'noc rolled 14 using 1d20. Search.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:47, Tue 23 Sept 2014.

Marcus joins in the hunt for secret controls.

11:23, Today: Marcus Wright rolled 14 using 1d20+7. search for secret controls.

Once everyone had an idea of what to look for, the controls are more or less easily located. They are located in the corner that has the Furling writing. It wasn't obvious at first because the writing was used to obscure the controls. The etched writing was nearly indistinguishable from the grooves of the controls, especially with all the years of dust that had worked into the seams.

Kylie spotted the discrepancy, and James actually identified them as controls. Marcus and Del'noc also found some of the controls.

Sarah is able to determine that the mandala represents the ring limitations of the ring gate.

Figuring out the controls is another matter. There's probably only one direction to go--down. The mandala on the ceiling is actually the ring generator. So it's probably just figuring out the command word/keys.

Del'noc gave a nod of satisfaction. "So you were right. A Ring Gate. I assume it goes down." His lips made a slight twitch of a smile. He began trying to figure out how the controls worked based on the many times he had seen other ring gates activated before.

James looks around the room "Maybe the code is in the story?"

"That's a brilliant idea!" Sarah responds to James's suggestion. "I'm sure you are right! None of the four races would need the writing, though, so that was put there for others. The Asgard have been known to test primitives to make sure they are worthy of the vast knowledge they can impart."

She was still waiting to see if Vektar had any input. Of all of them here, the Tok'ra would have the most knowledge of the rings... and potentially how to activate them.

"None of us know the Furling writing," she lamented at that point. "Hmmmm... near as I can tell, the different languages tell the same story. And I'm starting to think that the quirky layout was a way to let the story be told the same in each language."

"See? Up here, this block is about the dragons. The same block over here also says the same thing. The writing is different, tighter, smaller... essentially saying the same thing but with more words."

"So... the control area corresponds to this area here... which is... Hreidmar's name."

She studies the various runes for a few minutes, before offering her theory.

"It's not in exactly the same pattern, because the Furlings don't organize their sentences the same way... at least, I don't think so. See here? 'Dragon' is repeated here... and here... and here. I see an identical Furling rune in the same locations. It almost looks like the Furlings spoke like Yoda from Star Wars!"

"If it's actually Hreidmar's name that's the passcode, it should be this button, then this one, this one and this one."

"Del'noc... if we push the buttons in that order and it's the correct order, would one of us have time to run over to the ring area before the ring transport activated?"

Marcus makes sure that he records the story in the various languages present.  Having a precise translations would no doubt be a big help in deciphering them in other works.

After Del'noc confirms what Randall had read in the mission briefings--it's a small detail like timing that can get you killed if you get it wrong--and Sarah asked, he has another concern.

"Okay, so here's the deal," he says to the others.

"This could be a one-way trip. That is, this ring transporter may only work once, or it may only work one way. It could also dump us somewhere totally inhospitable... as in instantly dead."

"The odds against those things seem rather high, though."

"The other concern is reporting back to SGC. To be honest, I'm a bit reluctant to pass up this opportunity. We've established good karma with these bird-folk, but that could change at any minute. The situation is just too far from norm to take anything for granted. Besides, if we don't report back on schedule, they'll come looking for us. They should be able to pick up on the good rapport we've established, and the bird-folk will tell them where we went."

"The other question is: do we leave someone behind up here? Either to contact SGC in case we don't return or to activate the rings again... in case there are no controls below?"

"If anyone does not wish to take the next step into the unknown, I have no problem with that. We're literally writing the rules as we go, so no one will think less of you if choose to stay behind. So, any takers?"

Del'noc thought for a moment. "How will we be able to establish communication from above to below? Or will there be a pre-determined amount of time before the person above automatically activates the controls?"

Del'noc wanted to go down, but was willing to stay if no one else wanted to.

"I agree that we should inform the SGC before we following to where the rings take us.  I wonder if there will be riddles to solve like SG1 found the first time they encounter a protected world."

"It's probable that our radios won't work through the mountain," Randall replies to Del'noc. "So we'll set a predetermined time to activate the rings... say, every six hours."

"Kylie, feel like accompanying me back up to the top so we can report back to SGC?"

Once the controls are found, Kylie happily heads in the direction of the rings in anticipation of them being activated.  Then Major Thorne addresses her, and she looks a little crestfallen at the idea of leaving.  "Oh, I suppose someone should, yeah.  But we'll be right behind you guys," she tells the remaining party.

"We double check our gear and double on rations just case"

Randall and Kylie trudge back up the ancient path to the high platform where the stargate sits. None of them really had any experience with the DHD, whether it was the more familiar circular one or this region's odd triangular one, but they had to learn the symbols just in case. The experts had determined that there were no new symbols on the triangular DHD, but some of the regular ones were missing. All that meant is that there were places in the galaxy that the gates out here in the cluster couldn't access.

Randall carefully dialed the address for earth again. The point of origin on the triangular DHD was always the bottom point, so some symbol on the rest was switched out. That meant that no two triangular DHDs were ever exactly the same.

Randall reported in to SGC, explaining what they'd found, and the potential problem they faced. Since they had rations for several days, it was agreed that if they didn't report back within 36 hours, a 'rescue' team would be sent through.

If Kylie had anything to add, she did so. The gate was closed, and the two of them headed back down the trail.

After the gate closed, Randall grabbed all the extra rations from the MALP, and the bag of remaining climbing gear.

Although he'd felt reporting in wasn't necessary, he had to admit, as he walked back down the old trail, that he felt a bit relieved knowing that there was a back-up plan in place to rescue them if things went wrong.

"Okay," he said to the others when he reached the shrine again. "We've checked in. We have 36 hours to check in again before they send the cavalry."

"So, everyone got extra rations? Anyone got second thoughts? I can't emphasize enough how significant this trip might be, nor how dangerous it could be. Last change to stay behind."

He moved over to stand on and under the center mandalas, and waited for the others to join him.

"You seem to be the only one here that actually knows what you are doing, Sarah," he says to the negotiator/translator with a bit of a laugh, "so, do you want to do the honors?" He indicates where the controls are.

James makes helps divide the extra rations then grabs his gear "Once more into the breach, Captain"

Marcus was ready to find something new and not made like a bird nest.

"Ready."

"Yes, I suppose it should be me," Sarah replied to Randall. "If I can't make it to the ring before it activates, I can, perhaps, explain to our host how to push the buttons while I am in the ring area."

She went over to the corner where the controls were, studied them one last time to make sure she knew the sequence, and then made sure everyone else was standing inside the mandala-ring area.

"Okay, here we go!"

She pressed the buttons in sequence, up to the last one... took up a runner's stance just before pushing the last button... and dashed over to the center!

Del'noc was silent and waiting. He inspected the controls while the others reported back to Stargate Command. He then took his place where ordered and got ready.

As expected, the rings began the activation sequence, and Sarah had just enough time to dash across the short distance to get within the mandala before the rings descended.

There was a rather vague sense of moving downward, and the bright light of the ring should have shown were you were going, but all that was visible outside of the rings was a vague shade of gray.

It was hard to tell how long it took, but it clearly wasn't instantaneous. Seconds passed before a change in the view marked the end of the journey. For just a moment, the light from the rings showed a large empty room before the rings vanished and the team was left in utter darkness.

James use his day/night sight scope on his P-90 to check the area

Marcus activated the tactical light on his P90 and began looking around.

Del'noc closed his eyes and for just a moment, in his mind, traveled back in time. He was back in the days he was a Jaffa, working for the Goa'uld, ready to do their bidding. Some days were good, some days were bad. But he much preferred his current allies instead.

He followed suit and activated the light on P90 and stepped two steps forward to be out of the rings area just in case.

There was a moment after the rings retreated upward but before the light from them went out where you could see the area around you.

You are standing in the center of a large circular room roughly 100 feet in diameter. The walls, floor and ceiling appear to be made of stone, and the floor is highly polished. There are four 'dark' areas on the wall at the compass points. Except for the dark areas, the wall appears to be carved base relief picture flowing continuously around the whole chamber.

As the light went out, you hear a voice in your head:

~Welcome to Nidavellir. To return to the surface, step into the medallion and just think 'up'.~

Nightscope and flashlights show that the four dark spots on the wall are openings.

There is no sign of life. There is no light. There is no sound.

Marcus checks the floor to see if the ring location is marked in someway.

Del'noc tensed and whirled around at the voice in his head but didn't see anything. Once everything went quiet once more, he glanced back to see if orders were forthcoming on direction (or splitting up), but kept his main focus outward for any threats that might present themselves.

Seeing no point in using his night scope now, James switches to his tac light

Yes, the ring transport is marked on the floor and ceiling here with the same mandala pattern as up above, only this design is carved into the floor and ceiling rather than done with an inlaid mosaic.

At first, Randall automatically dropped to one knee to make himself a smaller target and to get a more stable stance. It was habit, but still turned out to be unneeded. He snapped out a quick whisper then.

"Everyone out of the ring area... now!" He followed his own orders and moved away from the pattern on the floor.

"Berten, Del'noc... check out that first opening ahead on the left. Marcus, keep an eye on them. I'll cover the rear."

"Now, Kylie, Sarah... admittedly, there's not much to look at yet, but can you give me any sort of preliminary evaluation of what we've just stepped into?"

James moves out of the ring area "Sir should i leave the medical bag with Sarah?"

(occ keep in mind James is carrying 2 bags his medical bag and a survival bag)

Marcus takes up a supporting position as indicated by the team leader.

He did keep an eye out for anything new.  Once things settled down he would began to take readings with the equipment he brought.

Del'noc moved quickly out of the ring area - a sensible precaution that was ordered. He took two steps towards the opening he was ordered to investigate, but then paused to wait for Berten.

"Yes, leave the medical bag with Sarah," Randall replies to James. "You can leave the survival bag, too, if it's going to cramp your style."

James nods and drop the medical bag then moves the survial bag on his back its more centered then moves to check the entrance with his p-90 readied

Kylie follows Berten off the mandala.  "I think we can rule out Asgard or even Ancients now," Kylie says to Berten.  "That voice was in our heads, not our ears, so it's probably not a recording.  Or if it is, then I'm quite impressed."

Kylie pulls out her flashlight and aims it towards the left entrance where Berten and Del'noc are headed.  Then she speaks louder as if speaking to the voice or the room in general.  "Excuse me!  We're explorers from a planet called Earth.  Can you hear us?"

Del'noc and James head over to the first opening. There is no sound or light coming from it. Once you get to it and shine a light in, you can see that it is some sort of office. but as you swing the light around to the right, you see an army!

Before you can fire your weapons, though, you realize that it's not an army, just maybe a dozen... a dozen robots of some sort. They are all neatly lined up in the back of that end of the room in two rows.

They aren't humanoid-looking... more like barrel-shaped, with a slightly larger base, a clearly-defined head area, with two tentacle arms and two mechanical arms, one with a claw-like pincer at the end and the other with articulated fingers.


After waiting for a few minutes, Kylie still doesn't get any response.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:04, Mon 03 Nov 2014.

Del'noc was moving cautiously, but he stopped dead and quickly brought his weapon around to aim at the...non-moving...robots? He watched them for a moment, then called back. "We have located what appear to be a large number of strange and deactivated robotic constructs. I believe they have built-in weaponry should they be activated. We would be wise to ensure that someone is always watching this door and we take care not to activate them."

Marcus having heard a magic word "Robots ???" he repeats loud enough to be heard.

"Ahhh Major .... I better check them out.  You know ... assess them for you."

"Sir i suggest we check the other pathways before we go assessing anything"

James says as he keeps his eyes on the robots to make they are not moving

Moving around the room, you find that the next passage is a landing with a ramp that leads down. The next passage is directly opposite the robot room, and it appears to be an office of some sort. It has what appears to be a console made of stone. It does not have any power that you can tell.

The fourth and final passage is another ramp down.

  The major scanned the underground chamber wearily, not comfortable in the dark with all the unknowns they faced. His combat instincts took over and treated it like he would be moving into a potentially hostile area. He turned to Marcus, "You'll have your chance to get a closer look at the robotic constructs, but right now our priority is threat assessment and determining how to extract. I need you and Carmac to look into the stone console and find out what it might be. Berten you cover the those two, and keep a close eye on the entrance to the robotic constructs as well. We have no idea what might trigger them so stay alert."

  He turned and looked over the rest of the group as he thought about further assignments, but quickly decided on an action. "Del'Noc you investigate the first ramp with Sarah. Kylie and I will check out the other ramp. Stay within sight of the entrance, then come back to the mandala chamber to report."

  The leader supplemented one last comment for the sake of the civilians. "Keep your weapons ready, until we determine the area is secured. Move out."

  He pointed his spot lamp toward the entrance to the second ramp and followed the beam of light to the ramp, making sure Kylie stayed close behind him.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:57, Tue 11 Nov 2014.

  The Ranger moved up to the entrance to the ramp, staying behind cover on the left side. He motioned with his hand for Kylie to do the same on the right. He stretched his head and shoulders out and shined the light attached to his P90, scanning the ramp and its surroundings, while keeping the rest of his torso behind cover of the entrance wall.

Del'noc stepped back from the robot room and listened to the orders given. He gave a single nod to acknowledge the order. He glanced at Kylie and gave her a nod as well, but he took point to move to that ramp and start cautiously heading down it.

James moves the where he can watch over Carmac and Marcus but still keep watch on the robot entrance

Marcus felt disappointed and then realized the console might have information on the robot and their designs.

"On it" he says.

He approaches the Console room slowly and scans the area for any danger.  If finding no he studies the console and everything else at a distance before closing and using his limited gear.

The robot room also had a stone console, set up as what was probably a desk. It had three sections: a center and two slightly angled side section. There was also a single chair behind it.

The stone console in the opposite room is similar to the one in the robot room, only this one is larger, and it's curved rather than angled. There are three chairs behind it. Other than its shape and the chairs, there is nothing about it to indicate its purpose. There are no markings on it--no writings, no carvings; it is fairly smooth, but not highly polished like a granite countertop would be.



James stands watch at the entrance to the other room where Marcus and Cormac went. The situation is a bit eerie because of the silence combined with the clearly carved-out habitation. The silence alone (except for the noise made by the SG personnel) is reminiscent of that which you'd find in a deep cave.


Del'noc and Kylie proceed down the ramp. They can only go about 50 feet and still keep sight of the entrance because the ramp appears to curve downward in a spiral. The walls are smooth but not highly polished. The floor seems to be smoother, yet not slippery.


Randall and Sarah find the same thing on the ramp they are on: featureless, spirals downward.

  The Army major came to a halt when he noticed that he was about to go out from visual range of the entrance to the ring room. He motioned for the scientist with him to stop as well. He lowered a knee and carefully searched with his tac light on the ground looking for any traces of evidence. There weren't piles of bones and flowers in the room they came in, so something must be moving the 'offerings'. Possibly a vehicle traveling up and down this ramp. He looked for any evidence, such as scrape marks from a vehicle or even debris that might have fallen as it was transported down.

  He took note of the width of the ramp, and the ceiling to see if it angled down with the ramp or was level above. After their brief investigation he will head back to join the others and come up with plans based on what they have found if anything.

OOC: 21:53, Today: Randall Thorne rolled 8 using 1d20+2. search.

There is no debris on the ramp, and no signs of any vehicle having moved over it, but Randall does find some sort of 'scrape' mark on the walls right at the bottom, maybe an inch from the floor.

The ceiling matches the floor, maintaining an even 10-foot height.

"Cool" Marcus says out loud.v  He unslings his pack and starts to select equipment that he planned to use geiger counter, chemical analyzer, and a small Metal detector.

First up was the Geiger Counter, "Safety first" he mumbles out loud as he takes some passive readings of the console.

He then uses the other testing tools in turn taking great care with the chemical analyzer along the console.

  Thorne pointed out the scrapes along the wall to Sarah and queried, as he stood up straight and turned back toward the main room, "What do make of those marks along the bottom of the wall?" He motioned for the civilian major to go ahead of him.

  As soon as the scientist began to move, he followed in her wake. He turned and walked backwards so he could keep watch for anything that might come up from below. He continued to sweep his tac light back and forth across the ramp as he ascended.

  Upon his return he checked in with the others. "Please report..." He stopped short of asking to report anything out of the ordinary, as if anything has ever been ordinary on this side of the stargate.

Marcus does not get any reading from the geiger counter, and the metal detector gets a very mild trace of metal. Then Marcus, using the chemical analyzer, determines that the substance isn't blood. It seems to be some complex mineral, not even organic. There's nothing in his data base that corresponds to it, or even comes close. Vektar has no idea, either.


The scrapes on the wall that Randall notices are about 3 inches high, and are 1 inch off the floor. They are very consistent the whole way that he can see.


Del'noc and Kylie find the same markings on the other ramp.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:13, Wed 19 Nov 2014.

Sarah examined the stone scrapings, too, but her facial expression was as blank as the wall.

"I'm sorry, Major, but Stone isn't a language I speak," she comments a bit humorously to break the tension.

"I'm also a trained negotiator, not a geologist. Kylie and Cormac are more the anthropologists, so they might have some thoughts on the matter. However, we still have very little data to go on. Clearly, though, this... facility was made by someone. I see no indications of any technology... other than the ring transporter... that we don't already have. We just haven't chose to use it in this manner."

"Do we continue on? We haven't lost radio contact yet, and since this seems to spiral downward, I'm guessing that both ramps lead to the same place."

 
  Thorne gave a little sigh at her remark, but flashed a half smile once he figured she was making an effort in comedy.

  He shook his head emphatically as she asked about going farther, but his tone was respectful in reply. "No, ma'am. I don't want us to get too far apart yet. It's not tactically sound when our base of operations isn't secure. I'd like to find out what we can around the entrance room, especially to find a way back up. Speaking of the ring room, when we entered I heard a voice say a name. Being that you are the expert linguist, does that name it spoke mean anything to you, or sound like its part of a specific language? 'Welcome to Nedalvire.. Nedallvir.. Nidaveleer, something like that."

  He scratched his head and his eyes widened as he remembered more. "Hey. It also said we can just stand in the medallion and just think 'up'. Surely it can't be that easy. Let's go and give it a try."

"It was Nidavellir," Sarah replies to the Major. "It's clearly Germanic, probably Old Norse, or maybe Proto-Norse, since it has more in common with Asgardian. Unfortunately, that wasn't one of my study focuses."

"I think it has to do with Norse mythology. You might ask Cormac. I think that was one of his specialties."

"As for those marks on the walls... they are just too regular... it looks like something passed through the tunnel that scraped both sides of the wall evenly," she suggested as she looked back up the tunnel.

Yes, the MALP can fit into the ring transport. It might not be able to make it down the hill, however. The path isn't wide enough, but the MALP can move at an angle, so one side can be in the path and the other higher or lower on the hill. The real problem is that there's not enough clearance to get past the nests.

Even though he was a linguist, that didn't mean he talked all the time. He was also an archaeologist, and knew the value of silence when it was called for.

He'd been keeping quiet for just that reason, absorbing all the new data while others did the poking and prodding. He only spoke up now because he had something to say.

"This stone workmanship is rather strange," he suggested. "This console, for instance, resembles some sort of command console, yet there are no buttons or levers or anything with which to do that controlling. So, is this just some sort of decorative or artistic display, or is it unfinished?"

"On the other hand, it's reminding me of Star Trek: The Next Generation consoles. They appear to be blank glass until backlit when power is applied. Do you think there are controls somehow embedded in the stone?"

He paused for a moment to observe Marcus work.

"I can't think of any substance that registers in the infrared," Cormac says to Marcus. "I know there are elements that fluoresce under ultraviolet light, but this is a new one to me."

"If it looks like blood, but isn't, things that come to mind are like a stain or spill. Ketchup, wine, tomato juice... Sounds typical of computer operators... they aren't supposed to drink around a console, but they do anyway."

"Wait! What if those splotches aren't... accidents? What if they were put there intentionally?"

"If I had a guess, I would venture that the compound was left behind by something that did maintenance or disposal, most likely on the robots.  Being non organic would suggest a mechanical application that transferred to the console.  Most 'snacks' a living creature would be organic in nature and as we know them would be excluded by the nature of the sample."

Thinking quietly for a moments, Marcus eyes light up (as in kid at Christmas not a host) he seems to delight in the thought of the robots down here.

"Could be what ever made those marks gained access to this section for a task and then departed.  The scenario of a caretaker left behind to maintain the facility the was not reactivated as planned."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:57, Wed 19 Nov 2014.

Del'noc spoke up regarding the marks on the ramps. "Perhaps they were made by some sort of transport or machine going up or down the ramp, rubbing or scraping along the wall as the moved."

Kylie looked over her tunnel with Del'noc but couldn't help but eavesdrop on what the others in the console room were saying.  "Try putting your hand on the console and think 'on'!  It's how the mandala works, apparently."

Then she sits cross-legged on the floor by the scuff marks and pulls out a chemical analyzer kit.  To Del'noc, she says, "This'll just take a minute.  If whatever made the scuff marks is made of metal, is shouldn't be too hard to identify what kind.  Though, it might just be easier to go downstairs and check."

Feeling a little silly, she also pulls out her magnifying glass and looks around the scuff marks for some sort of trigger or hidden door.  She played too much DnD as a kid to not look for a hidden door.

Kylie uses her chemical analyzer on the scuff marks.
10:02, Today: Kylie Nova rolled 24 using 1d20+9. spot hidden door or something else.

James keeps watch


09:46, Today: James Berten rolled 11 using 1d20+7. Spot .
09:47, Today: James Berten rolled 6 using 1d20+5 with rolls of 1. Listen .

James is almost bored trying to keep watch on an empty 'cave'. All he hears is the comments by the rest of the team as they echo through the rooms.


As Kylie examines the scrapings a bit closer, it doesn't look like metal at all. In fact, as she pulls out her kit, she realizes that it's not actually a scrape INTO the wall, but that whatever made it left part of itself behind. She is able to polish the wall a bit and see that the wall itself hasn't been damaged at all.

She has no problem analyzing the scrapings to determine that it is actually stone that has been scraped off onto the wall. She can further refine that determination into granite.

  When Thorne was able to get Sarah to move back to the main room, he walked back up to James and spoke. "I'll keep watch here, if you want to walk the perimeter and look for controls to the ring transporter device. Perhaps you can try activating it, by thinking 'up' as that strange voice said in our minds. If you're not 100% sure you can activate them to return, then we'll ask Sarah, or one of the others to go with you. You can continue to stand watch if you want, but I'm guessing you'd prefer stretching your legs a bit. Your choice, Berten. Once we find we have a sure escape route, we'll explore further into this complex."

James nods and walks to where the center of the ring and thinks ~up~

(Occ 1st LT its after Air Force Pararescue)

As soon as James thinks 'up', the rings activate. Moments later, James is standing in the shrine again.

James tries his radio to contact the others

  Randall watched the scientists progress in their investigations, but stole a glance over at the lieutenant as he stood in the ring area. Moments later the place lit up as the circle area activated and he vanished. The Major spoke more to himself than anyone in particular, "Well, I'll be damned. It worked."  He was half expecting some kind of riddle or puzzle, after recalling the reports from Thor's place.

  He yelled out to the others to update them on what was going on. He spoke loudly enough that all could hear.  "Unless that ring transporter went somewhere else, we have a way to get back to base. Has anyone else found anything notable about this area?"

As expected, James cannot make radio contact with the rest of the team. Apparently they are too far underground for the radio waves to penetrate.

James looks around the room and exits the ring area

(occ how long till are next check in time>)

"Uh, the scuff marks are granite, but I don't know if that helps," Kylie yells backs at Thorne.  "I'm guessing down is our best bet."

"Hummmmmmm"
Marcus takes out his notebook and duplicates the pattern that he can see on the console.  He also takes some pictures not sure if the pattern will show up on the film.

He then carefully rechecks the console to see if there are any other markings that he did not see the first time.

Marcus's camera is digital, so it doesn't have film. As he uses the camera, though, he realizes that it can't take a picture of the symbols that he can see because he's seeing partway into the infrared end of the spectrum but the camera doesn't register that wavelength.

He does recall, however, that Kylie is carrying a photography bundle.

James will check on if the raptors have come back then activates the ring gate(running to the center)

Moving closer to where Kylie is working Marcus asks in a quiet voice, "Kylie, do you have any infrared lenses or film for your cameras?  I got something on the console I'm checking that could benefit from something more precise than my drawings."

He didn't feel like shouting across the room for some reason.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:41, Thu 04 Dec 2014.

Kylie follows Marcus back into the console room and pulls out her camera and extra lenses.  "Here."  Then she oh-so-casually touches the consol and thinks, <Turn on>, just in case.

Marcus takes the pictures with the camera.

  Thorne waited somewhat patiently for Berten’s return from the surface, while he kept close watch over the scientist'a progress and an wary eye on the room with the deactivated robotic units.

  He addressed Del’noc as soon has he returned from investigating the opposite ramp down. “Del’noc. As soon as Berten returns, I would like you and him to take one or more of our esteemed scientists with you and investigate whatever is at the bottom of the ramps. I’ll keep watch here.”
 
  The Major pulled out his radio and keyed the mike to broadcast to everyone. “Testing, testing 1, 2, 3.  Respond if you copy.” He hoped that Berten could hear him as well, but figured there was little chance deep beneath the surface for it to penetrate.
 

Kylie's effort to turn on the console by thought doesn't seem to have any effect. It seems probable that there is no power to it. The ring portal probably has its own independent power source.


Kylie's camera that Marcus is using isn't a digital camera, nor is it an instamatic. That is, it doesn't produce pictures instantly. It has film that has to be developed. It wasn't designed for quick pictures, but for long term study. She does have infrared film, though.

However, the camera does have an infrared lens. It's a bit awkward to look through the lens by itself, but as soon as Marcus does, he sees that the console and the walls are covered in symbols and patterns. He can see an outline of what are presumably an array of buttons (24 across and 10 high) in the center of the console, and the patterns surround these with lines that seem to explain what each one is used for.


James has no problem activating the rings again, dashing into them, and returning back to where the others are.

He's just in time to pick up Randall's radio check. Everyone can hear receive a radio signal at this point.

"This is Berten, back from the top. Radios cant reach down  here"

  He turned to the paratrooper and gave a nod. "Thanks lietenant. Unless you have something to report from the surface, please go with Del'noc and take a few of the scientists with you to explore the end of the ramps. Stay in one group, and give me a radio check every 5 minutes to make sure you are still in contact if there is trouble."

  He turned back to Kylie and the other science types and cleared his throat to get their attention. "Sorry to interrupt your work, but I would like at least one of you to accompany Del'noc and James to investigate whatever is down below. Any volunteers? I don't think all four of you needs to examine that stone device. We probably need a linguist in case there are writings, and if I heard correctly about infrared we might need a way to use that to search for writings or symbols below. Do we have an extra infrared lens or device in one of your kits?"

Kylie looks up from the console.  "Yeah, I'll go.  I just have the one lens.  I'll come back up for it if I need it."  Kylie meets back up with Del'noc.

James says "Yes sir" then heads to Del'noc and Kylie "Im going to leave my surivial bag here to lessen my load unless you guys think we need it"

James has his medical bag on his back

Marcus hardly heard the conversation, he was going over the console trying to figure it out and studying the layout to see if he could figure it out.

When Sarah gets her turn to look through the infrared lens and see the symbols, she is not able to read them any more than Marcus, but at least she can recognize the form.

"They are representative symbols," she explains to Marcus. "It's not writing, per se, such as using a letter to represent a sound. It's symbolic, like using the image of a goblet to represent water or drink."

"These appear to be a bit more abstract, though, as if each one represents one or more mechanical functions. For instance, this one here might represent activating the robots. Well, the other panel in the other room probably does that. This one has the look of a master control panel of some sort."

"There's no indication that there is any power, like we'd have on equipment on earth--a little light that indicates the unit has power. But that doesn't mean there isn't any power. One of these areas is probably the 'power on' symbol, though I don't see anything that makes me think that."

"Do you want to risk pushing one to find out? If so, I recommend the top center symbol. It seems to have a more pronounced aspect."

OOC: For some reason, I either thought I posted this but hadn't or else I just forgot because of the holiday craziness...

James, Del'noc and Kylie descend the ramp. It continues down and around, descending a height of maybe 20 feet and circling around a full 360 degrees before opening into a room like above. The main difference is that where the upper room had a mandala on the floor and ceiling, this one has a stone column about 30 feet in diameter.

You can see that there are two openings in the walls, just like above.

Kylie circles around the column.  "Um, I'm guessing there are more symbols here that we can't see.  Or, possibly, this is just where the rings in the above room are stored.  Though it seems a bit unnecessary to build a whole level just for that."

James looks at Kylie as he places his finger over his(James') lip then motions for Del'noc to check one of opening's while James checks the other

15:10, Today: James Berten rolled 10 using 1d20+7. Spot.
15:11, Today: James Berten rolled 25 using 1d20+5 with rolls of 20. Listen  .
15:11, Today: James Berten rolled 14 using 1d20+7 with rolls of 7. Move Silently .

Checking the one opening, it appears similar to the room above that had the robots, only this one has wheeled carts. They are roughly square, a smallish bench-style seat in the front and a flatbed in back. They are very low to the ground, and seem to have some sort of bumper rollers on the sides at the front and back.

The carts are as wide of the downward ramps.


As Kylie examines the central column, she can see that there are seams on one side... that look like a door of some kind.


Del'noc moves to check out the other opening, and finds another 'office'. It kind of looks like an office, with a stone desk and stone chairs, even a stone bench, but it doesn't have any of the paraphernalia one usually associates with an office--papers, trays, paperclips, pens, etc.

While he was moving around the floor, he also notices that there are what appear to be seams all along the walls between the openings.

As quietly as she can, Kylie looks for some sort of mechanism to release the possible door.  Baring that, she tries to get her fingers in the seam to open it manually.

I imagine this isn't actually all that quiet.

16:33, Today: Kylie Nova rolled 12 using 1d20+9. Spot on seam.

After examining the door and column, Kylie comes to the conclusion that any mechanism for opening it is probably embedded in the stone. There are probably clear indicators that aren't showing up under normal light.

Prying the door open might be an option, but would require the use of a prybar or knife to wedge into the crack and then require a Strength check (DC 20). James and Del'noc can assist.

"Ow."  Kylie looks are her abused fingertips.  "Either of you got a crowbar?  I think there may be something in here."

Nobody has a prybar in their bundles, but everyone should have a survival knife, which is probably as close to a prybar as you'll find down here. There was probably a tool on the MALP that would also work.

James looks at Del'noc "Try to help her get it open and I'll cover you"

James goes on over watch as they work

  Randall glanced at his watch several times, the exploratory group were several minutes past their check-in time. It was quiet down there, but that didn't necessarily mean they were safe...

"Hey boss, We think we may have found the complex on button ... heavy on the maybe." Gesturing the the console," is it time to try it?"

The adrenaline was about over and now the curiosity was setting in hard for Marcus,  how many great discoveries has the SGC found by accident.  Of course the flip side of that coin is sometimes it can lead to epic failures.

Kylie pulls out a heavy knife and helps Del'noc try to pry the door open.  She doesn't do much good.

13:49, Today: Kylie Nova rolled 6 using 1d20. strength roll to assist Del'noc.

  The squad leader peered in at the scientist and replied quickly. "Hold on and let me talk with the other group first. I would like them to be back up here when you do. If something goes awry, we should all be close to the transport rings."

  He pressed the Mike button on the walkie talkie strapped to his right shoulder. "Berten, give me a step sitrep on your progress."

MArcus nodded with understanding.

While he waited maybe his visual upgrade could see something else while he waited.  He started to look around and see if any thing else showed up in his visual spectrum.

"We have a possible door. Kylie and Del'noc are trying to get it opened, there was a room with wheeled carts and another room which look like an office"

  Randall clicked the mike again to respond, sending the radio transmission to the entire team. "Acknowledged. Investigate, but don't take too long with trying to access the door. Doctor Marcus believes he might be able to bring up power to the complex. It may change the situation, but I need all of you back by the exit before he makes his attempt. Especially if he triggers some kind of automated defense when bringing its systems up."

"Copy" James replies to Randall's message

Using a knife, Kylie and Del'noc are able to pry the seam open slightly, at which point a draft occurs flowing into the opening. Fingers can now be slipped into the seam and the two sides pried open a bit more.

As you pull the two halves of the door aside, an otherwise concealed mechanism causes them to slide outward partially.

Beyond is an opening, which fills the whole center of the column. After prying it open about two feet, you can see that there is no floor. It fact, it goes down a loooooong way.

"Sir I think we found an elevator" James radios to Thorne

 The Major clicked the mike to respond, the report was very short and not descriptive enough to understand what they found exactly, so he had to ask some questions to get a feel for it. He wished he was down exploring himself, waiting up here made him antsy. He pushed the thoughts aside and made sure he was broadcasting to the entire team. "Is it an elevator car or elevator shaft? Is it powered? Are there controls, or something that you two can recognize as writing or labels? If its a shaft does it go up, down or both? How far, etc."

Oops! Forgot to respond to Marcus... I did in my head, but somehow it never made it into a post!


Using the lens from the camera, Marcus does indeed find other 'markings'. The 'robots' seem to have markings on them, which kind of resemble serial numbers in some alien language. In addition, the walls are covered in markings. He can only get a limited view at a time, and he's not seeing all of what shows up through the lens, but it looks like... advertising!

After a few minutes of wandering around the level and looking at the walls, he (with Vektar's help) is able to hazard the following deductions:

1. the markings do not appear to be done with paint, though possibly made with a stain.
2. whatever treatment the stone received, it was something that caused it to 'reflect' in a lower wavelength than Humans can perceive. Essentially, if you could see further into the infrared end of the spectrum, you might actually see 'colors', not just a monochrome look.

Sarah was used to waiting, but that was across the negotiating table, where she could either study the expressions and body language of others, or else go over in her head everything that had been said and not said. Here, in this 'cave', she was more antsy. She wasn't sure if it was a touch of claustrophobia or just being out of her comfort zone.

She looked around again. Was there even a word for a complex built underground? She didn't feel 'cave' really applied. 'Dungeon' was closer but had too many other connotations. Perhaps 'under-something' was more appropriate, but they still didn't know what this was. Underbase? Undercity? Or was it just a mine? If it was a mine, it was the cleanest one she'd ever seen!

"So, what are you seeing, Marcus? Is it something I can see if I use the lens?"

"Sorry sir looks to be a shaft" James takes a chance and uses his flashlight and flashes it up. He will give Throne the rough design of the shaft

"Sir do you want to hold this position or fall back?"

Marcus half listening to the radio hears that they might of found an elevator.  And wonders what kind of lift mechanic it might use.

But till then he was trying to solve the puzzle that was the consoles.

  "Fall back to the main room here, we will revisit the shaft later on depending on what we find out from the power up attempt."

"Ok you heard the LT. Fall back and regroup at the main room" James will cover as they fall back then follow

Kylie returns to the console room to help Marcus however she can.  Plus, that's where stuff is going on.

Once back in the main room, Marcus passes around the IR lens so that everyone can get a glimpse of the strange writings on the walls.

Further examination still doesn't reveal anything that's making the markings--there's no paint, and no indication of dye.

"So ... " rubbing his hands together, "what's the plan?"

He weighed the odds on the choice the commander would make but since he had not served long with him he knew the statistical data was rough and would need to be refined through observation.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:33, Thu 12 Feb 2015.

"Sir should report back what we found so far?" James suggests

"We haven't really found anything worth reporting yet," Cormac suggests, "have we?"

"Sure, this is unusual, but what IS it? If we report back now, and the brass thinks it's a big deal, they'll send a whole 'nother team of geeks."

"Admittedly, we could possibly get resupplied with something that'll help us see what's going on, but do we want to risk it?"

"I think Cormac has the right of it," Sarah responds. "Not so much that we won't be allowed to come back, but all we can report is that we found an artificial cave, probably a mine."

"But there are clearly other things in play here. This is extremely high tech. We'd have a hard time building something like this back on Earth. The obvious tech is beyond our ability to work out. It might even be beyond our techs back on Earth."

"The real question is: who built this?"

"Well, then let's find out what we can." Kylie nudges Marcus a bit.  "Let's press the button.  Press it.  You know you want to."

  Thorne nodded to Cormac and Sarah. "I agree with both of you, we do not have enough for a detailed report until we complete the exploration of this complex. But I would like everyone at the transport ring, except Marcus and one more scientist whoever can best help him decipher what is happening at the control panel when he presses the button."

  The major led the way by standing in the Mandela circle. "I hope that Marcus is right, but in case it triggers an automatic defense system or self destruct we need to be ready for a quick exit."

Marcus felt a slight ring of annoyance that he could blow them all up but that was only a gut reaction.  He knew the assessment was spot on.  You fool around with unknown alien tech and really bad stuff can happen.

"OK ... we can give it a go when you the team is in position.  "

James gathers his bundles and gets into postion

"We're all on the mandala, Marcus. Go ahead and push the button," Randall calls out to Marcus.

This place is too strange for him to get a handle on its purpose just yet, but it has the appearance of a military installation, not unlike Cheyenne Mountain. What made it odd was the fact that the gate was on top of the mountain. It would make sense if the bird-folk were using it, but they weren't. So that left the people who made these caves.

Marcus rubbing his hands together closes in with the console he hopes will activates something other than a death trap. "Here we go!"

He places his bare hand on the spot he thinks is an activation spot on the console and hopes for the best.  Watching the console he tries to watch everything else at the same time, giving him a 'bug eyes' look.

After a few seconds he tries pushing the same spot again curious on if the age has affected it.

Pushing the button has the desired and expected effect, but in a somewhat unexpected manner. Everything starts to light up! However, it's nearly all red.

The first thing that lights up is console in front of Marcus, and he can now see the array of 'buttons' including the one he was trying to push the first time, but was just a little bit off.

There is a roughly 3-second delay before the ceiling in the main room lights up with blue-white light, another few seconds before the robots light up, and another few seconds before the walls light up.

It only takes another few seconds for him to realize that there are faint color tints to the lighted areas. Glancing through the lens at the wall, he realizes that the light is being emitted far into the infrared end of the spectrum.

Without the lens, most of it looks kind of blurred or washed out.

Spreading his arms wide and turning 360 degrees Marcus looks like a kid that just opened his first present on his birthday.

"Ha ha ha ha ha .... damn I'm good!" he says too loudly for those in the room.

He quickly grabs his electronics gear and starts to try and get readings from the console and anything else he can reach to test.

Kylie sweeps the area with the infrared lens to see if she recognizes any of the symbols.  "Hey, I'm going to take this downstairs to see if there's anything there.  Del'noc, will you come with me?"  When descending the ramp, she goes slowly and keeps an eye through the lens.  I imagine she looks rather silly.

  Thorne was glad to see power running to the place, but he still didn't feel secure yet. Especially with the robots activated. Turning on the engine to a car doesn't mean you can drive it.

  "Doctor Marcus. Do you have enough control to power off the robots. If not, can you assure me they are not a threat."

  The major took a closer look around the area now that there was more light, especially at the base reliefs on the walls. He pointed to Cormac and Bergen. "You two take a closer look at the robot constructs. See if you can figure their purpose, workers or security? Are the hands and arms made for causing damage or manipulating things. Any place on them for hidden weapons, and anything else you can ascertain. But don't get too close, or let them be between you and the door until Cormac or Marcus can assure us they aren't dangerous."

  "Sarah, what do you make of the walls?"

OOC: I went back and read when we first came into the area and realized we forgot about the base reliefs on the walls, when I was going over to re-read the robots. I was thinking the robots were armed, because the GM mentioned they looked like an army, but the description didn't tell of anything more dangerous than pincers, which may not be weapons.

Sarah had been studying the walls since they lit up, even though she couldn't see the entire picture. She looked at one, then another... and another. She stepped back to view them from a different perspective. Finally she replied to Randall.

"At first, I thought they might be directories of some sort. Like, this one might have directed you to the infirmary, or that one might have been directions to the latrine."

"But that's not what they are. I think they are advertisements, though I can't be sure what they are advertising. This one, for instance, looks like it's an ad for some kind of beverage."

James keeps on guard as he waits for the something to happen or all clear

"Let's go check out those robots," Cormac says to James, and heads off to the robot room without waiting for an answer, or even to see if James follows.

Once back in that room, he stops near the entrance and surveys the robots. He's not sure that they are 'robots', or at least not what he would have thought of as robots. He tries to imagine them as some kind of warrior robot, but unless they were meant to fight some really strange alien monster, they didn't seem to have the right kind of... weapons... or tools to be combatant types.

If he remembers correctly, there was another console in here. He glances around to confirm that and to see if it is lit up.

While taking readings Marcus pauses hearing his name.  After listening to the Major's question he turns to look at the Major and raises an eyebrow in true vulcan style.

"I would ask if your kidding but I know Officers don't have a sense of humor.

The answer to both of your questions is no."

"Only through intense intellectual fortitude was I able to even come up with a way to turn some power on here." Marcus gestures at the console and then toward the robots, "I have no data on the robots other than they appear to be made of a hardened substance. If you wanted an assessment of the robot I would need time to examine them more closely.

Assurances are not an option. 

James follows Mclane to where the robots where and watches the droids to see if there is any reaction from them about the powering coming on, people, etc

PM

  Randall bit back a scathing retort to Dr. Marcus and responded diplomatically instead. "Yes, if you think Cormac needs additional help to study them. Currently our biggest threat to this expedition is the robotic units. If we can't control them we need to do what we can to evaluate their purpose and potential as hostiles. That will give us more flexibility to explore without so many precautions. If we can't figure that out, then we have to treat them as possible hostiles and continue to take measures to limit the risk to the team."

The robots have powered up, but they are not otherwise active. However, examining the console shows that there is a row of buttons that have exactly the same number of lit buttons as there are robots. Further studies shows that there is a symbol on each lit button that matches an identical symbol on one of the robots.

"Hummmmmm" replies Marcus as he studies the console.

"I would tend to think that this console, obviously for the robots, is used to assign the bots to various tasks.  Perhaps even bringing up their status and other information that can be relayed.  A control/monitoring center."

Gathering up his gear he moves over to the robot bay to get a better look at them.

There were two consoles: the main one that Marcus powered up, and one in the robot bay. It's the one in the robot bay that shows the different matching symbols for the robot. It lit up once Marcus activated the main console.

On the main console, the power on/off button is glowing blue now, but the symbol on it hasn't changed.

Anyone still here?

Ooc: I am, I'm waiting on the scientists to complete their investigations

OOC Checking out the robots

i was checking out the bots

I already gave you information on the robots.


Other than the robots apparently getting power, they aren't active. They are wheeled. They appear to be constructed with interconnecting panels.

There's a symbol on each one that's now lit up, that has a corresponding lit button on the console.

If there is something specific you are trying to find out about the robots, you need to ask, or do further investigation other than just staring at them.

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 293):

I was focusing on them to make sure I didn't mess anything since I was concentrating on the console earlier.

Looking over the bots Marcus found nothing new to indicate how lethal they could be.

It would appear they are in a 'stand by' mode.

Any robot can be come dangerous if they don't have the programming and awareness to avoid damaging items that was not anticipated in its design.  Visiting a modern car factory is dangerous if you stand in the wrong place when a machine is working. 

  The Major walked into the doorway of the room with the robots and watched. He replied to Marcus. "Dangerous, yes. I understand your point. I guess the correct question is could they become hostile as in purposely attack someone of our team. If not we will have to maintain security protocols to ensure we don't get trapped down here. Maybe you can test and see if you are able to bring the power down any time? That would elimiate the possibility of a threat if someone can disable the robots from the panel in the event something is triggered to turn them hostile."

Kylie didn't have much interest in robots and headed back downstairs with Del'noc.  She used the infrared filter to see if there was anything different about the lettering down there then used her flashlight to scan the other passages.

In reply to Randall Thorne (msg # 295):

Marcus gave him a shrug.  "Unknown at this time Major.  Till we learn more about their functions I don't know if they're maintenance bots for security forces.  I lean towards maintenance ... but they could be built for both as well."

Going back down to the lower level, Kylie uses the IR camera lens to view the walls. They have the same sort of images all the way down to the lower level. She can't really see any difference in style, but the images and writing are all different, of course.

It's only when she looks at the central column with the 'elevator' door that she sees something different. There are no picture images on the column, but she does see writing up and down on both sides of the door.

"With out the go ahead to take one of these apart I'm not sure what more we can determine down here with out some more scanning equipment.  And I'm not a fan of taking one apart while their 'power' is on."

Looking around Marcus was starting to feel the need for something else to examine, since they were not ready yet to do any bot experiments, "Shall I go down and see what else I can find stuff that we can't figure out right now?"

"Sir the longer the power is on the bigger chance a gould ship or whoever made might notice someone down here"

  Randall nodded. "Go ahead Marcus. Berten, you go with him. I will keep watch here and let you know if anything changes with the bots or control room."  The ranger let out an exasperated breath. More mysteries and very little answers. Gathering intel was a necessary part of special forces operations, so he was used to performing the tedious work, security watches, surveillance, etc. This was no different, only the scientists were gathering most of the intel. It was boring and standing idle was not his favorite past-time either.

  He moved to where he could see both the main control room and the robots and kept a vigilant watch on both.

Oops! I got Ru'tan and Kyle (over in Waterfalter) confused with Del'noc and Kylie here! This post was supposed to be Del'noc.


Although the Tau'ri tended to think of Jaffa as the 'strong silent' type, in point of fact it was that Jaffa did not speak just to hear themselves. When there was something to be said, they spoke. When there wasn't, they remained quiet. Otherwise, it was wasted energy.

That was the case now as Del'noc and Kylie were joined by Marcus and James. Everything that had needed to be said had already been said.

On the other hand, given their resources, which it was turning out were inadequate for the challenge they faced, the time for analysis had passed. It was now time to do something.

He was familiar with the Tau'ri elevators... lifting platforms that went up and down mechanically. To go up, one pressed the top button. To go down, one pressed the bottom button. As he understood it, if there was no platform behind the door, the door was not supposed to open. In this case, they had forced it open.

When there wasn't a platform, one had to summon it. He extended a finger and 'pushed' the top button.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:44, Sat 02 May 2015.

As Marcus went to the lower level for the first time he went slowly so he could view the new level in detail.  He didn't want to rush by any hidden alcoves.

Once to the lower area he looked around to see what else of interest he could find.

Seeing Kylie spotting through the camera lens, "See anything of interest?

Woa ... are those carts?"
This message was last edited by the player at 19:19, Wed 15 Apr 2015.

Berten keeps guarding Marcus

Not surprising, everyone on the lower level starts to feel a faint vibration in the floor. Suddenly, the doors open silently. There is no longer a bottomless pit in the central column.

After a studious glance, you are pretty sure that the interior of the column is now smaller in diameter than it was.

"Oh  O"

The central column on the lower level had a set of doors that the others had pried open partly, only to see a bottomless pit. When Ru'tan pressed one of the buttons that had only lit up after the power had been turned on, the doors had closed. A few minutes later, the vibration had been felt, and then the doors had opened again.

"Neat.  Seems an odd place for an elevator, but I like it.  Let's see where it goes.  Who's coming in?"  Kylie steps inside and uses the lens to look for interior controls.  If she can find something comparable to a 'down' button, she presses it.

Marcus looked around getting used to the lower level.

Asking those there before, "like a parking garage does the level keep getting lower as we go or is there nothing we can easily get to that allows us to keep going down?"

He was trying to figure out if the 'lift' was the only way to move along from these two levels.

"I think one of us should go down and make sure its not a trap or something dangerous" James points and yes he does volunteer

"Perhaps," Del'noc responds to James. "It could be a trap in that we will be trapped once we descend."

"But if you go down by yourself, and it is a trap, then you might not be able to inform us. It does not appear to be a viable course of action."

Using the lens, Kylie does, indeed, see what she guesses are control buttons on the inside wall of the elevator.

There are a lot of them!

On the left of the array, there are 12 buttons stacked vertically. There's a distinct difference in the markings. The top is one pattern, the next 3 are a different pattern, then there's a different one, followed by 3 similar to the other 3, then 3 more in yet another pattern, and finally the one at the bottom in a completely different pattern from the rest.

Next to that group, there is a second group slightly offset. One button at the top is all by itself. Below that, there are 4 rows of 5 buttons, with the last one in the row being different. Then 2 buttons that are different.

This pattern repeats two more times.

Then at the bottom separated from the others are 5 more buttons.

Each button has a symbol, and Kylie gets the impression that there are different colors to them, but her lens doesn't let her see them.


           F
A       G1    G2    G3    G4    H1    H2
B1      G5    G6    G7    G8    H3    H4
B2      G9    G10   G11   G12   H5    H6   J1
B3      G13   G14   G15   G16   H7    H8
C       G17   G18   G19   G20   H9    H10
B4      G21   G22   G23   G24   H11   H12  J2
B5      G25   G26   G27   G28   H13   H14
B6      G29   G30   G31   G32   H15   H16
D1      G33   G34   G35   G36   H17   H18  J3
D2      G37   G38   G39   G40   H19   H20
D3      G41   G42   G43   G44   H21   H22
E       G45   G46   G47   G48   H23   H24  J4
           K1    K2    K3    K4    K5


No one has found any secret doors or hatches, no stairs or ladders that lead to a lower level.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:14, Sun 21 Aug 2016.

Hopefully she describes what she sees.

When she does Marcus asks, "Is there any that are currently lit up indicating where in the ... chart we're at?"  He was curious if the lift had some sort of location indicator like Earth lifts would have.

Unlike the console, that lit up when turned on, these buttons all seem to be lit, though rather dimly. Looking through the IR lens, however, shows that the F button seems to be glowing stronger, just not in the visible wavelength.

It wasn't that Sarah was any sort of cryptologist, but in her negotiations, she often had to decipher what was meant, not necessarily what was said.

"Let me have a look at those controls," she said, incautiously stepping into the elevator.

"One of you should inform the Major. Let him decide on a strategy here, because we clearly need to go down if we are going to unlock any secrets."

"So far, this is just an elevator; that's not technology that we don't already have. What we don't have, however, is the ability to making circuitry in solid stone. I'm not sure that'll be all that helpful against the Goa'uld, but we should explore further just in case it is."


She borrows the lens from Kylie for a moment, and begins entering data into her computer.

"Kylie, can you take an infrared picture of each symbol individually, plus an overall shot of the whole panel? I think we should keep a record of the way it is at the moment... in case it changes on us."