All-Ways Rest

The Infinite Inn

by Frank Louis

Deep in Poaca'tli's Ring there rests an inn outside of space and time, Known as the All-Ways Rest. Well-built of both corporeal materials and magic, what started as an initially simple building of four walls has grown with additions and expansions, resulting in a winding structure with a surprising number of nooks and crannies.

Architecture

In addition to an ever-shifting labyrinth of ancilliary rooms and corridors, The All-Ways Rest has three main areas that visitors will see.
In the center of the structure is the main hall, a large room with high beamed ceilings that glows with an otherworldly light. In one corner the walls carve backwards, opening onto a sizable stage that seems to be the right size, no matter how many guests are present. A wraparound bar dominates the center of the main hall where the proprietor Ifjit typically serves the thirsty from multiple kegs that each come from different places and times all over Halûme. Indeed, Ifjit once made a decision to never carry the same brew twice; once the cask is empty, she will never offer that exact drink again.
Through a wide hallway extending from the main hall is the vestibule, a smaller, more intimate space with similar high-beamed ceilings. There is a small front desk where visitors can purchase rooms for one "night," an indeterminate period of time that reflects the strangeness of the All-Ways Rest; no matter how long one stays, they never seem to get more done than one could do in the standard 24 hours of the Tripensian calendar.
Finally, on the right side of the vestibule a hallway extends off towards a larger and more expansive space known as the Exchange, an area where peoples of all places and times can barter goods they would desire in a time of need for things that others no longer require.

Shifting Space

Beyond these three rooms, the rest of the tavern seems to shift and swell with each visit. One encounter may yield a large atrium full of beautiful plants from every place and time, and the next will reveal an aquarium, or a battle ring, a massive library, or an infinite other number of eccentricities. The only guarantee is that the next time a visitor returns to the All-Ways Rest, they will not find what they did previously.

Rented Rooms

The nature of the All-Ways Rest is in its exclusivity. Due to the strange nature of its location and time, the cost of a room is much higher than it would be elsewhere, and those prices are not paid in gold and silver, but in secrets, knowledge, and skill. Almost anything can be offered to pay for one "night", but commonly accepted barters typically follow the goblin tradition of personal value.
Once a purchase has been made, the clientele will discover a room designed exactly to an imagined ideal, perfect for their particular needs.

The Exchange

In a stroke of brilliance, Ifjit created the Exchange as a location for trade. Often the clientele of the All-Ways Rest are in dire need of assistance, as they return to their place in the multiverse at the exact time and place they left. An exhausted warrior may have thrusted his arm above his head to protect from an axe blow that will surely kill him, only to have a shield flash onto the bracer of his arm, and more importantly, suddenly have a second wind that can come only from a long night's rest.
This has resulted in a large bazaar, filled with all sorts hawking strange wares.

Type

Inn