Omaron has heard of Jzadirune. It was a small enclave inhabited by the Dwarfs of Korim in the mountains of Kalazanbaar - the two groups worked together on furthering their magical and mechanical knowledge. It "abandoned" when the Drow attacked from Underdark some 75 years go.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:23, Wed 15 Feb 2017.

Jor'en looked at the stain one the floor, pretending to try and wipe it up. The whole while he listened to the locksmith tell his tale.

"After they killed the tall one who was watching me, I sent them through the portal in the other room to the entry to Jzadirune in the Broken Spine. They've been gone now some twelve hours now."

"Well,then," Omaron muses, glancing at Jor'en, "I suppose we should follow them into the ruins, eh? Master Ghelve, if you would be so kind as to open the gate." His tone makes it clear that he's not asking the locksmith to open the way, but is soft enough that the dwarf knows that Omaron has sympthy for his situation.

Keygan nods, "Of course, of course."

He makes his way to the curtain and opens it. Glancing down at Jor'en the dwarf says, "Come come now, let us not put on such pretenses." He makes his way to one of the chests where he steadies himself then sits. He pulls up his pants legs and begins takes off what appears to be 3' tall stilts. After removing them he learns the stilts against the chest,rolls up his pants, and hops down. "I'll open the gate from this site, you'll see the entry to the conclave easily enough after you go through."

Taking the strange key in hand, Keygan inserts it into the a diamond shaped opening in portal and turns it to the right. A moment later the hum of magics fills the room as the gears like door opens revealing a blue white swirling portal.

Standing sheepishly, Jor'en followed Omaron through the portal. He had read the whole situation wrong and was highly embarrassed as a result.

Omaron unlimbers his shield, locking the strap around his forearm and pulls his battleaxe from his belt. His features take on a stone-like cast with a minute whisper. "Well," he is momentarily interrupted by a fit of coughing, "I suppose this is where the river meets the bed. Jor'en?" He inclines his head to his newfound companion, then steps through the swirling portal.

OOC:
Readying shield and axe, activating Stoneshield aura (allies within 10' gain +1 to AC).

mood music

Stepping out of the portal, the ground under your feet gives a little as the ice and snow crack from your weight. Looking around, you find yourselves high on a mountain with the wind gusting as snow falls all around you. Nearby are ruins of several small buildings, whose purpose is lost to time and the elements. Tattered and sun bleached banners of Kalazanbaar and Korim still fly a top one of the ruined buildings. Some twenty or thirty feet north of the portal the ground gives way to an abrupt ravine, a drop hundreds of feet to distant icy peaks below. The other side of the ravine is a hundred feet away. You can just make out the once grand entrance to Jzadirune. It had caved in at some point in the past but some of rubble-strewn wreck has obviously been cleared.



Once there was a mighty feat of now impossible engineering across this ravine, a bridge built in sections on titanic chains, but one of the chains gave way taking the bridge with it. Only one giant chain remains as a way across, slick with ice and snow. There are four distinct set of footprints (three bipeds and one quadruped) in the snow and ice which head towards the chain from the portal.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:42, Tue 21 Feb 2017.

Omaron gapes at the engineering and construction feat before them, utterly in awe of the creation of dwarves long past. Pride swelled in his breast, whispers echoing in his ears of ancestors past. He shakes his head, clearing the prideful thoughts and blows a raspberry through his lips.
"Well, I guess we can just follow along until we find the forward group, eh?" he nods to the tracks before the two of them. "Shouldn't be much to slow us down if they've done a good job of it."

The young human spun a full three sixty, marveling at the teleportation from the simple shop into a far away ruin.

"Agreed. Be wary though, we wouldn't want to walk into a same or similar trap."

Jor'en followed after the dwarf. The young dwarf kept his weapons sheathed, better to have hands free on such a treacherous hike.

As you follow the footprints closer to the chain path, you each can make out what appears to be the footprints of a large four legged beast approximate fifty feet the left of the massive chain. The ground near the prints looks like something had stirred up the area. There is an semicircle area where the snow in lower and a slight ridge of snow outside the area as though a great force of wind pushed the snow away.

From across the chain you see dozens, maybe even hundreds, of skeletons on the ground around the entrance way, the site of some great battle. The bodies and ground are peppered as though with a great swarm of arrows. A path on the other side of the ravine splits off to the right, one path headed north, up beyond the entrance way, and the other to the east, to the ruins of a once towering observatory.

"Hmm, time for a decision, it would seem," Omaron ruminates. "Observatory?"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:45, Thu 23 Feb 2017.

From across the ravine you can't make out where anyone has gone. As the pair of you get closer to the chain, you see ice on the links has been cracked in areas leading across. Even with these footprints crossing could be dangerous.

"Seems as good a place to start as any."

Jor'en crossed his arms and ducked his head. He hadn't expected to be transported into the ice and snow. Shivering, he followed his companion toward the observatory.

OOC: Think I have misrepresented things ... so here's a bad map of where you are in relation to things

"Well, no use lollygagging," Omaron says gruffly, turning his cloak against yhe chill wind. He hunches against the gusts and steps onto the enormous chain bridge.

"Better to fall to our deaths sooner, rather than later?"

Jor'en quips as he follows the dwarf across the massive chain.

The pair step onto the massive chain to cross the ravine. Wind with bits of ice cuts through your clothing and causes the chain to shift more than either of you expect.

Once across, Omaron and Jor'en find themselves standing at what once was a most imposing entry. The roof has long since fallen and bones of the long dead litter the ground, any flesh has long picked from the bone by scavengers. Arrows of various sizes are still stuck in the ground here, many still stand through the bodies they slew. Various prints litter the snow covered ground. Many of the skeletal forms have obvious been moved.

A ramp leads to the entrance of Jzadirune, a thirty foot round gear door - similar to the portal you entered in Titan's Gate. The gate stands closed, holding back the elements and here too the ruins of Jzadirune were carved , these easily three feet high each. To the left of the door it seems someone has dug into the cliff face perhaps to get past the door.

"Let me take the lead for a bit."

Jor'en moves to the front, searching the entrance for any traps.

---

Perception or investigation to search for traps?

OOC: Let's go with perception please

13:58, Today: Jor'en rolled 18 using 1d20+4. Perception.

Jor'en finds no traps at the entry, however he does see small hoof prints in the dust around those of the quartet of recent passersby.

Omaron bows graciously, keeping a careful watch froma respectable distance. His gaze covers the unexplored approaches to their position, watching for any hostile or suspicious activity.

OOC:
Perception- 13

"In addition to the the prints we saw earlier there are some hoof prints here, and also here."

Crouching, he points at the ground to point his findings out to his companion. Unless Omaron objects he heads inside.

Both of you recall the shop keeper mentioning one of the two type of kidnappers had hooves.