Separation Anxiety

General Summary

Another Happy Landing

Breaker, Mo, Sih'Teel, Farren, and Dante walked out of the skycraft and stretched their legs. They had traveled on the ship for three days from Ballarad to Beyonder's Blades. Android Breaker carefully pulled his body, still stored in a hovering stasis chamber, out of the cargo hold.
"I'm going to Gwydeon to get my head screwed back on," he announced to the group. Sih'Teel wandered off to the inn while Dante went home. Farren headed to the library to check out a book about crafting. Mo couldn't stay still. She ran around and around the inner edges of the palisade walls as if to outrun her own thoughts.
Meanwhile, Dariyana wandered the markets. She had just bought a Shamu, a small, four-eyed rodent that gave her an assist in battle. Sih'Teel left the inn and walked to the markets. Since he saw a new face, he strode boldly toward Dariyana and introduced himself to the scarred warrior. Dariyana explained that she had come to Beyonder's Blades after she heard about the assassins but then arrived after the group had left for Ballarad. She showed off her new Shamu with pride. Sih'Teel continued with some small talk and then courteously wished her a good day.
At Gwydeon's lab, the aged inventor hunched over an invention spread out over a table. He turned and raised an eyebrow at Breaker's unusual appearance.
"Two for the price of one! What happened?" Gwydeon said. Breaker explained about the decapitation event. Gwydeon nodded sympathetically and agreed to help him reattach his head to his body by using a special serum in the operation to make it a successful procedure.
"Well, there are two groups of people that can help you," Gwydeon told Breaker. "The first are a group of Murdens on the outskirts of the settlement. They're nasty, raven-like folk that'll double cross you the moment when they get the chance. But I've traded with them once or twice. The others are called the Odlocks. They may have the serum you're looking for."
Breaker thought for a minute and decided to ask the Odlocks for help. Gwydeon suggested that Breaker take people with him.
"There's a sword for hire that arrived recently. Her name is Dariyana. You should find her wandering the markets." The inventor mentioned.
Breaker thanked Gwydeon and agreed to leave his body with the inventor for safekeeping.
"I'm committing a big act of trust by leaving my body with you," Breaker told Gwydeon.
Gwydeon made a careless gesture with his hand. "You can trust me. This is a normal day for me when you've lived as many lives as I have."
Breaker asked Dariyana, Farren, Dante, and Sirkel to accompany him on his mission. Mo slowed down enough to hear Breaker and agree to come. Something was bothering her although she wouldn't say what.
The group headed off to see the Odlocks!

The Meaning of Life

The PCs walked to the Odlock settlement. They found bird-like creatures, a foot taller than most humans, with wings and multiple pairs of legs. The Odlocks had no hands or claws but seemed to instead move things with their mind. Breaker greeted one of the Odlocks who turned to the group with great excitement.
"Oh, there are visitors!" It called cheerfully. It wiggled its multiple legs with apparent joy and darted toward the group.
While Breaker wanted to discuss getting help, the Odlock wanted to talk philosophy first.
"What is the meaning of life?" The Odlock asked and cocked its head. Breaker turned to the rest of the group for a chat.
Sih'Teel suggested that the meaning of life was to live it fully while Dariyana pointed out that she lived mainly to shoot things. Sirkel said that the meaning of life was different for everyone. Breaker carefully formatted his own answer in his head before turning back to the Odlock.
"The meaning of life is to serve others," he told the Odlock. "We live to help others. And right now there's someone that needs my help and to do that, I need to restore my head to my body."
The Odlock flapped its wings excitedly. "What a great answer! We have discussed this for three days and even asked the trees but they are poor company. We agree to help you."
The creature explained that they could make the serum in one of their large experimentation vats but that they needed an ingredient from a living or recently killed Decanted first. Fortunately, three of the scavenger robots had been seen around a mile from camp. The Odlock suggested that the group follow the footprints.
The group soon found three Decanted around a mile or two away. The elegant, white, and tall robots would have been graceful but instead were sickening. Each Decanted possessed a preserved, once-human head in a transparent display case in their chest cavity. The group grimaced and quickly lost any idea of dinner that night. Each member of the party attacked the robots, although Sih'Teel did sneak away briefly when the battle become tough. Two of the Decanted vanished after a minute and left their wounded friend behind. Between Sih'Teel sword thrusts, Dariyana's powerful archery shots, and Breaker's valiant blade charge, the group killed the remaining Decanted and dragged it back to the Odlocks.
The Odlocks spent about half an hour making the serum while the group gratefully rested. Soon the Odlock brought Breaker a sealed beaker of serum. Then the group made their way back to Gwydeon's cave.

The Operation

Gwydeon received the serum from Breaker and showed him the carefully prepared surgical area.
"How many times have you done this successfully?" Breaker asked. Gwydeon thought for a moment.
"Twice," he replied. "Both were successful."
Gwydeon gave Breaker a pointed stare at his helmet.
"I will have to remove your mask for the operation."
Breaker nodded and asked everyone but Mo to leave the room. Unbeknownst to Breaker and Mo, Sih'Teel vanished and slipped back into the room to watch the procedure.
After 3-4 hours, Breaker successfully was human again. Only a thin scar encircling his neck showed there had ever been a separation. He awoke to find Mo sitting patiently nearby. "Did you stay?" He asked. Mo nodded silently and bit her lip.
"You've seen me without my mask before," he reminded her. Mo nodded and chose her next words carefully.
"You said that the meaning of life was to serve... Everyone in the group helped you. Do you think they would help me too?" She asked Breaker.
Breaker nodded his masked head. "I do think that they would help you."
At this point, some uncertainty in Mo seemed to resolve. At the same moment, everyone in the party received a combat buff to make their attack and defense actions easier by one step. Mo smiled.
As Mo and Breaker had their conversation, Sirkel listened at the door to the lab. Soon Mo and Breaker emerged. Sih'Teel reappeared and passed a note to Breaker. It read, "So, I watched your surgery, MRS Breaker! would you like me to tell the rest of the group? or perhaps my memory isn't that great, for a price . . ."
Breaker pursued HER lips under the mask and spoke in hushed tones to Sih'Teel but Dante had already picked up on something albeit not correctly.
"Wait," he said,"You two are married?"
Mo laughed hysterically and Sih'Teel shook his head in disagreement. Breaker asked Sih'Teel for a talk about the note at the local inn over drinks. Sih'Teel agreed. The group headed to the inn as Breaker agreed to give everyone drinks. Meanwhile the transdimensional mirror in Farren's pocket started to buzz uncontrollably as they reached the inn...

A Way Between Worlds

The group chatted over drinks at the inn while Sih'Teel and Breaker talked business. However, it was short lived as Farren took the mirror out of her pocket. Miraculously, it unfolded itself and propped itself upright. The mirror started to glow and swirl - opening up a portal to another dimension! Farren tied a rock to the rope in her pack and tossed it through. When she pulled it back, the rope and rock were intact albeit a little cold. Farren judged the situation safe and plunged through! Sih'Teel agreed to a gentleman's agreement with Breaker so they could join in on the adventure. Dante and Mo followed Farren in while Sirkel tumbled through last.
They came into a wide valley filled with lush purple grass and bright with sunlight from a large orange star in the sky. The valley was buffeted by winds that tossed a few of the party members to the ground. In the midst of the party being situated, Farren saw a woman running toward her.
"Farren! It's you, my daughter!" The woman cried. Farren ran foward.
"Mother!" Farren cried. Mother and daughter, reunited at last, met in a long embrace. Dante cleared his throat.
"Do you think they're related?" He asked. "Maybe they're cousins or something?"
Breaker shook his head and rolled his eyes. Dante continued to observe the situation. Emi, or Farren's mother, explained to Farren that she and her father were working on a transdimensional device that malfunctioned one night when lightning struck the house. Emi and Farren's father, Hector, were sent to different places by accident. Emi asked Farren if she had had any adventures in the last nine years. Farren excitedly summarized her story as her mother listened in rapt attention.
But then Emi grabbed Farren's shoulders.
"We have to go before HE gets here," she whispered furiously.
"Who is he?" Farren asked.
"A vengeful ghost that haunts the valley. I would have come sooner if it hadn't been for him."
As Emi spoke, the party could see a vague, shifting form of a man speed toward them across the grass. Quickly everyone tumbled through the portal back to Beyonder's Blades.
All except one.
Sih'Teel stumbled on his leap through the portal and missed. The portal closed with him trapped in the alternate dimension as the ghost, the Dimension Husk, raced toward him! Sih'Teel quickly took the form of the Husk, made a duplicate of himself, and then he himself vanished. The Husk greeted a form of itself which stalled the situation.
Meanwhile on the other side of the portal, the group discussed whether or not they should rescue Sih'Teel. Breaker, who now trusted the group, explained that Sih'Teel had discovered that Breaker was in fact a woman. She had hidden her identity behind a mask the entire time she was with the party. Only Mo knew her secret before then. Since Sih'Teel had blackmailed Breaker when he found out about her identity, Breaker cautioned the group about what kind of person the flamboyant rogue was. Regardless, Sirkel and Mo encouraged Breaker that they should rescue Sih'Teel regardless. Quickly Farren and Emi opened the portal.
But there was no reply.
On the other side of the portal, Sih'Teel gazed at the opening and then walked away across the valley. The portal closed with him in the alternate dimension.

Rewards Granted

Breaker's body restored
Buff to the entire group
Stim Cypher - Sirkel

Missions/Quests Completed

Restore Breaker's Body

Character(s) interacted with

Gwydeon
Emi
Philosophical Odlock

Report Date

29 Mar 2020

Primary Location

Beyonder's Blades