Payne's group after the SFH snafu (scene A8), though Flexia arrives shortly (from scene C4). They are all rescued by Athena's group in the Time Cave (scene F3) and meet everyone else only at the rest break (scene G1).
Scene F1 - Petrified Forest
- Players at start of scene
- The SFH cars have split off from the other groups (but may stay close to Lepton's for a while) and fly over a desolate, gray-brown area covered with sparse and seemingly dying trees. Some of them are more ash-gray than others. Occasionally dwellings or roads can bee glimpsed. What people can be seen have a grayish color to them and do not appear very active either (an understatement to say the least).
- Opportunity for some vistas, description of the aerial rail system etc.
- 'Open up' the game a little, as a counterpoint to all the caves etc. Keeping to the 50's-tech theme, these vistas are all 'matte paintings' so the characters cannot interact with them, only view.
- Keep the mood dark; this is not a happy part of the adventure. Ominous is a good way to describe it.
- Sky should also be gray and overcast. Shadows are almost invisible and hazy in the flat light.
- This takes a while; either the car halts for some time for an unknown reason (like Xing attacking somewhere) but eventually gets there. Need to cover the time spent by Flexia in C1-C4 somehow; may have to insert a puzzle or similar delay.
- Station is out in the open, at the entrance to a small village which appears deserted other than the occasional statues frozen in odd Pompeii-like reaction to something their blank eyes can no longer see. For inspiration, take a look at this pic!
- The people have been literally turned to stone, clothes and all, though the population is lower than usual (i.e. some did not get frozen, here)
- Players react with curiousity, some fear. Tiffany runs among the statues and sometimes poses with them like a mime. Good foreshadow.
- They are distracted by the sound of another bubble-train arriving. It is only a single car
- The hatch pops open and
- Flexia steps out after a few seconds, looking groggy.
- She moves rather stiffly, the immobilizing effect of Xond's weapon has not completely faded.
- Flexia had come to just before the stop (hers was a direct trip, not circuitous).
- Flexia is the more advanced player but Payne is nominally in command, leading to some conflict (press on, go back for Lepton, or stay and try to make the SFH work right)
- Eventually they decide to press on. Outside the village the entrance to the Forest appears even more dingy than from the train and the one visible path seems to vanish into the gloom (did I mention there was a bit of low-lying fog too?)
- At intervals there are other statues of petrified people and animals (cows, horses, dogs). Some express fear, others not.
- Players talk (whistling in the graveyard?) about what happened to the victims.
- Someone (probably Tiffany "EEeyuuuw!") notices there are lots of beetles scuttling about.
- One of them scuttles up Kla'Tre's legs and she flinches back a little before proceeding.
- More beetles arrive; she starts to scream but suddenly becomes quiet and unmoving (not voluntarily either). They quickly start to secrete a rock-like (plaster?) substance which coats and further immobilizes the NPC. Soon she starts to have the same stony texture as all of the other statues.
- By now the beetles are starting to attack the others too. Tiffany succumbs quickly, followed by Payne who has forgotten her weapon.
- Flexia has kept clear, partially because of her higher boots and flying cape.
- Brushing off the bugs, she grabs Payne's raygun and sprays the ground all around her with fire (or ice), which kills or delays them.
- Eventually a space is cleared and she is able to make a bug-free path to one of the petrifed other (probably Tiff or Payne)
- By bathing them with the weapon's rays at a low setting, she is able to stun the bugs and sweep them off her companions.
- However they remain coated with a stony shell and do not react.
- Flexia wracks her mind to find a solution, bringing to bear her gaming experience.
- Spells -- not in this adventure
- Potions -- ditto, though she does try water which does not soften the goo
- Raygun -- the safe settings she is willing to try have no effect
- Magic -- she recalls the info on the tiara in the briefing; tries using it, but no change in the frozen figures
- Force -- no; well, wait a minute. Acting on inspiration, she pushes Kla'Tre to the ground (always experiment on an NPC)
- A sound like smashing pottery is heard, and the shell coating cracks in several places. With a moan, the guide begins to revive.
- Flexia helps Kla'Tre strip the segments of coating (which in most places is about a centimeter thick) which look like plaster casts, off her legs and torso. The guide seems to enjoy the female semi-intimate contact but that does not float Flexia's boat in the least.
- Flexia picks up a stick and whacks Payne across the ass (overdoing it a bit but understandable) and cracks her out of her shell too. Together they free Tiffany, though some of her flowing costume is too badly coated and must be torn away [aw, shucks; ed]
- At last they can proceed, using the weapon to scorch the path in front of them. Flexia is in the lead, feeling rather triumphant.
- However, this is premature because as they cross under a hanging limb, another petrifying peril manifests itself.
- Several large (~3 inch body) mechanical spiders drop onto the leader
- They immediately begin spinning their cocoon around her. She drops the weapon, the spiders ignore it.
- Instead of silk, these critters use 'Kevlar'(tm) instead, (or Lycra for its shiny effect)
- Alerted by her struggle and cries, the others fall back and are unscathed.
- Low-level weapon fire drives the spiders away, but does not affect the mummy-wrapped Flexia. The fibers form sort of a mesh, so she can move and mumble but not much. She flops on the ground rather like a fish out of water.
- What to do? Flexia's tiara is embedded (only she can use it anyway); the weapon does not help; the fiber is too strong to be cut by a knife.
- While Payne dithers (Kla'Tre does not volunteer any suggestions), Tiffany is standing idly by, pulling at a remaining chunk of coating.
- The stone breaks free, but contains a thread from the cloth, which begins to unravel.
- A light goes on in Tiffany's valley-girl mind and she tries to find a loose end of the cocoon fiber.
- There is one; she pulls on it and lo-and-behold *also* unravels.
- Payne is making the guide's job hard while Tiffany works to free Flexia behind their backs.
- When clear of the fiber, she comes up behind Payne and says "Never Mind, I got out with Tiffany's help" which makes Payne jump.
- They move on, now watching both below *and* above them....
- Possible for Xing or another villain to begin 'driving' them towards the other side of the forest (and into the next scene).
- Players lost (none)
- Players added (none)
Scene F2 - Time Cave (entrapment)
- Players at start of scene
- At the edge of the forest, they find another cave entrance, their only path forward
- Kla'Tre foreshadows danger
- Something (Xing?) prevents their backtracking
- A short ways in, they can see an curiously flashing light, which comes from a side-cave
- Closer, they can see the reflections off a spinning top-like gizmo which is suspended in mid-air by some mysterious science
- Kla'Tre has heard of this place
- Tiffany is entranced by the gizmo, starts to play with it, running her hands around and under it; making pretty shadows.
- Flexia says this is not a good idea, Payne is more direct, commanding brusquely "Get Away From THERE!!"
- Tiffany startles, whirls around and clumsily knocks the gizmo out of the suspension field. It skitters across the floor a few feet
- Time (at least inside the cave) starts to stop
- Kla'Tre shrieks "No! Put it baackk" as her voice begins to slow down
- Everyone moves as if stuck in molasses
- Payne starts to yell "Don't let it stooooo......." but never completes her sentence as the gizmo comes to a standstill
- ...and so do the adventurers, caught in a timeless limbo, frozen in their tracks
- Pick cool poses for them and describe thoroughly. They could be there for a long time. Emphasize the silence, stillness
- Things look pretty bad right now for our heroes
- Note, cutaway to scene E3 at this point to await agent of revival (Regina)
- Thematically do a wipe or fade to the other scene
- Players lost (temporary)
- Flexia (frozen in timestop)
- Payne (frozen in timestop)
- Rogers (frozen in timestop)
- Tiffany (frozen in timestop)
- Kla'Tre (frozen in timestop)
- Players added (none)
Scene F3 - Time Cave (release)
- Players at start of scene
- Flexia (frozen in timestop)
- Payne (frozen in timestop)
- Rogers (frozen in timestop)
- Tiffany (frozen in timestop)
- Kla'Tre (frozen in timestop)
- Regina
- Resumes after scene E3 with arrival of Regina. Write this as omniscient-observer to avoid getting bogged by her subjective time sense
- Regina comes upon the Time Cave after avoiding Hard Water and escaping from whatever froze Ginger.
- Sees the tableaux vivant of timestopped players and the 'toy' sitting on the floor.
- She starts to figure it out, when...
- Notices her own motions appear very sluggish. Timestop is contagious, insidious, odorless, and tasteless not to mention eternal!
- Slowly she picks up the gizmo, replaces it in the magnetic suspension, but does not spin it
- Nothing happens
- The others remain frozen
- Regina is getting very stiff/slow too
- Regina moves toward the gizmo, but loses her balance because her legs don't work anymore
- She begins to fall and just manages to brush the gizmo with her fingers
- It spins easily, looking very sparkly in the intense light
- Time starts again, and she is able to recover her balance and not fall to the floor
- Everyone starts to recover back to normal after Regina gives the gizmo a really good spin to get it back to full speed
- Each has their own reaction to being stuck in limbo
- Tiffany says an unappreciated "Oops"
- Payne is upset because she almost was lost because of a silly mistake *they all were*
- Flexia tries to sooth things over, reminds everyone that they got lucky
- Regina tells about those who have had worse luck:
- Ginger
- Athena
- Flexia remembers her tiara, decides to return to Ginger, Athena to revive them
- Resume at scene E4 for return to the caves
- Players lost (none)
- Players added (revived)
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