Zepher

Yeah, I remember being really proud of how much everyone genuinely turned against each other. The Baltarok and Dastan Trilogies are both quests I was immensely proud of, and had a blast hosting. I'll have to go back and read them. I'm pretty sure there was a part where Hoke tried to ride away on his own and had to fight a bunch of calvary?

“Watch my back,” says Boomingham as he strides towards the zombies and begins to settle in, deeply uncomfortable.

“I’m fine,” barks Boomingham. He staggered toward the sleeping commune, but then recalls that’s not who he is. He tries to see if he can now sense what is controlling the zombies and fungi. Meanwhile, seeing as no one else has done it while he provided a distraction, he moves to remove the Oracle.

Boomingham looks at his party, and signals with his eyes for Torald and Eric to come free the Oracle as best he can. Hoping to win some more time, and, he admits, a little curious, he takes the root from the zombie. "Eh, why the Hel not." He eats the root.

Boomingham nods sagely, "would love to serve passion. Big ol' lover of passion. Passion gets a big thumbs up in my book." He scooches over towards the Oracle as he speaks and sees if there is any obvious way to free her, as well as her current condition.

“Not opposed to cracking some already cracke skulls... but limited resources and all.” Boomingham hisses back to Torald discretely before turning to the zombies. “You’re here to serve? Or are you asking if we’re here to serve? Serve what?”

"We try diplomatic first, but when it comes down to it the Oracle is top priority." Boomingham sheaths Scupperer and walks towards the Oracle, waving to the creatures as he does so. "Howdy there. Looks like you've got our friend here. Hope you don't mind if I make sure she's feeling alright."

Boomingham continues to peer over the Germ's shoulder, an act he realizes he has begun to do an awful lot. "We can look at the ground and what not later. Let's get the Oracle, already." Boomingham leads the party north, hacking through the forest with Scupperer if need be. "Drink a tonic if you haven't," he instructs the mages. "Need you ready."

"What do we think? You said that was Pixie Dust, Demon? And there were the dead pixies in the forest... looks like there's more of it that way... though just about every direction looks like it holds a secret. What do we want to prioritize? We still need to find the Oracle for Skuld, and as far as we know she's messed up in these roots. So I'm thinking either south east or north east. Though, then again," Boomingham glances over at the ancient architecture, "there's always more to uncover in this city."

Boomingham draws Scupperer as he glances around. “Dont know what that was, but she was something else than what she used to be, boy. Take a moment to say farewell again, if you need it.” He sticks his tongue in his cheek. “The Founders are supposed to be dead too.” Boomingham counts the number of tunnels leading out of the room, and tries to determine if there’s anything unique about any of them.

"We don't know that," he barks at Ezeran. "Cover your eyes, Waldorf. In case this goes south. Eric, stay alert, figure out where the Hel we are." Striding up to Annabelle Boomingham uses a Phoenix Essence on her.

"Now we move fast. Because someone could be well on our tail." Boomingham glances around. "Ezeran, Torald, either of you have a garnet? Think you can get us underground?"

The dead talking? For the first time Boomingham resolution wavers. He had heard of raising the dead, but this seemed very different. If he understood right one of the women they had met with at the edge of the Park was dead, but she hadn’t seemed it. His mind drifts briefly to his decayed decimated Kingdom, and was the bodies buried there. Wife. Son. If this is what the Founders were offering... yet he feels sure it’s not as simple as it looks. The roots... and besides, this was his city, not elsewhere. ”Sorry, lad,” he grumbles. “If you say she’s dead, chances are she is. You seem to know your way round here - any way we can sneak back to the center of the garden?”

"Lord Lawrence Boomingham," says Boomingham as he offers a hand. "Glad to see you're alive as well." Boomingham clears his throat as Torald asks to be led somewhere, and again when he says "someone important". Damn demon book. Boomingham glances at Elphaba to see if she seems worried. "Yes, well, I'm all for hitting the center of the Park as well... assuming we can figure out a way to skirt Lady Luck in getting there. This boy seems to know his way around flowers, but I'm not sure he's quite the extra fire power we need to take her on. Regardless, seems to be the center of the mystery. We're still trying to figure out what in the Hel happened to the Oracle."

Boomingham scowls as Torald takes what was basically his idea and does it more successfully. It's probably because he touched that damn demonic book earlier. "Well all, let's help out the boy." Boomingham uses Scupperer to hack at the vines as well. "Looks like these bad boys did get further than we thought after all." Glancing over his shoulder he frowns deeper. "Last one in, close the door. We've got an angry lady on our tail."

“Cover the door in darkness so it can’t see what we’re doing,” Boomingham orders Ezeran, as if the idea had been wholly his. Once the door is covered he pushes the door in.

Boomingham blows a raspberry at Elphaba. Should have never let a witch come along. "Least I had an idea. Lot of good knowing the name of the damned gate does us." Boomingham scratches his head, thoroughly out of ideas. "You think we need to hold it open for someone else? There's only so many ways doors operate. You pull on it, in which case they're pulling on it as well, or you push it, in which... they push on it as well." Boomingham scratches his head again and realizes he's picking a scab, drawing blood. He licks his fingers and dries to rub away the bleeding. "Maybe we hold a mirror up to it? Does anyone have a mirror?"

Boomingham approaches the door, his forehead prickling with agitation. Surely Lady Luck will be upon them soon, and everything in his body tells him to smash the damn thing but he does his best to resist his instincts. Instead he scrutinizes his reflection. What a good looking fellow, even if there’s a bit of flab in the stomach region he is sure the mirror is adding to agitate him further. He pokes his own stomach. “Would you mind terribly opening the door?” he asks his reflection.

Boomingham returns to the gardens, disappointed in the front of the house. He quickly perks up upon seeing the Demon Germ messing around with a secret door. "Hm. Okay." Getting closer he looks at the hinges and watches curiously as the Demon Germ swings the door open.

Very cool to be doing a final tour of Eubric - bringing the Original Veterans back is such a smart choice for how to end this thing! Making me pretty sad I never got to bring my story to an end - I’ll have to write up what the final quest would have been soon. Regardless, very excited about the direction the quest is going in.

“Hm, no ghostly roots this far. That’s good news at least.” Boomingham tosses the Flora Gear to Ezeran and glances over the Demon’s shoulder at his compass. “Looks like we’re paying the Hinckwells a visit after all.” Boomingham quickly leads The Party to the front door of the Villa and investigates the door, seeing if it’s locked, boarded up, or open.

Boomingham looks ruefully at the Hinckwell Villa. “Maybe we should stop in, see if we can see anything.” Meanwhile he takes out his shovel and digs.

"I don't want to leave the gardens until we have a better idea of what the Hel crawled into Eubric, and how much of a hold it's got on the place. Lady Luck might have been a lovely distraction, but those flowers weren't natural." Boomingham hands the bouquet to Petaldan. "Eric, if Lady Luck catches up with us, you take the rest of the party and find the others. I'll stick around and have a word with her. Before anyone goes complaining about the plan, it's not a pointless sacrifice. I'm not looking to get killed, just arrested." Boomingham smirks. "There's quite a few Veterans I think it'd be worthwhile to have a word with, and there might be a friend or two of our's spending some time on this newly minted Fort Freedom or whatever they're calling it. Of course, getting captured isn't plan number one, so let's keep moving." Boomingham leads the party, quickly, to the Silverlight Grove.

Boomingham chews on his cheek but nods ruefully, feeling newfound fondness for his new friends, all apparently willing to go down swinging. “You’re right. I just don’t have any idea of where the Hel we should be heading. The streets are crawling with people who think we’re criminals and she’ll be hot on our tail wherever we go. Any bright ideas? I’ve got one, but it isn’t so bright.”

Boomingham shakes his head. "Not even back to square one - if anything we've lost ground. We can't fight her like this, and we're not closer to finding the Oracle, and it seems something nasty came through that portal and is infecting the city. What do we think? Do we traffic in coincidence, or are we thinking the flowers and the founders are somehow linked." He sighs. "Didn't someone say they knew an arbomancer around here? Is it worthwhile trying to track him down?" Boomingham glances over his shoulder. "Whatever we want to do, we have to do it fast. I wish we could have a chat with her, but I'm thinking she'll be less amenable this time around."