Voddick shivered. “As a reward for our last service, guarding a haunted gate does not seem like much of one.”
Gollaon shrugged. “It is only for a few weeks and it pays as good as a war. Also, we do not have to keep people out, we just have to keep our eyes open for something trying to cross through.”
Voddick shivered again. “Where does it lead to?”
Gollaon looked at the structure. “Anywhere, everywhere, as long as it is not here. If you do not like life under the Empress you can cross to somewhere else . . . but you never get to come back.”
Exile’s Gate
In what was either a fit of pique, an act of mercy or a cruel joke, opinions vary, the Empress built this gate before the end of the first century of her rule. Constructed of stones harvested from other gates gathered from across the Sea of Stars, the stone arch looks a little haphazard and mismatched but the aura of power from it is quite palpable. Natural animals must be drugged or magically compelled to get them to approach the gate.
Lorrend, Pedr and three of the companions (Klaus, Ozcalla and Tomlin, Leaf stayed back at the tree) head out to map more of the local area. The first half day of travels and mapping is uneventful. Just after they set out again, a droning buzzing approaches through the trees, so revealed as a trio of giant wasps! Who promptly set to attacking Pedr’s pony (now named ‘Snapdragon’) and stung it to near death before they were killed. Tomlin and Ozcalla tended to the poor pony while the others set about trying to locate where they had come from.
Voddick shook black blood from the now pitted blade of his sword. “If this expedition was not paying so well, I would be regretting joining it.”
Voddick caught the blow on his shield and spun away.
As you have no doubt heard, the Thin White Duke is dead. While there are only a handful of his songs that I really enjoy, I loved his constant exploration of music and pop culture. He also starred in one of my father’s favorite movies, the Man Who Fell to Earth, and one of mine, Labyrinth.
Sea of Stars RPG Design Journal 