"You know, it really helps to look up every once in a while..."
Oh well, at least we've found another portal! That put us one ahead of ourselves: four sites checked and five portals found! Can't argue with that...
A minute or two after placing the Solus stone onto the portal, it was gone, and we had retrieved the partially invisible orb. Thinking back to what THEROS had told me in that note weeks and weeks back about portal stability and the role the Solus stone played in utilising that, we had been VERY lucky not to find a single portal taht had been activated using electrical energy. We had found a few portals out on the surface in areas which allow it to be exposed to the elements, but they were either inactive, or activated using thermal energy. I still didn't quite understand the science behind how thermal energy made a portal unstable, and electrical energy made it stable, and thus undetectable and indestructible... I was worried if I asked OROTHO, a smile would creep onto his face, and he'd bore me to death with a long lecture lasting hours, going on about thermodynamics and such! I would ask Amie, but she seems to be a similar type to OROTHO, and is reluctant to dumb anything down for people... I suppose it wasn't vital I learned how they worked, only how to destroy them! It was enough for me. We headed back out due South towards the coast where the next portal site was. It was a good half an hour's walk, and with it being right on the edge, it would be easy to find!
We made it to the next site, and when we got there, it took us a moment to realise what was actually happening... Well, what had happened. We had approached the site; I once again assumed it would be underground, so I began to look for passage or hole that might suggest the right location. It was then that I stumbled upon a rather large tree with odd protrusions growing out from either side. Initially thinking they were roots, I came closer, and began rubbing at the moss. From beneath the thick growth of lichen, a purplish-black surface slowly appeared... What? Obsidian? Rubbing off more moss, I realised that this must be the portal! Getting THEROS to help me, we managed to rub a large portion of the moss off, and stepping back, I realised that the tree had grown through the portal! On either side of the thick trunk, the sides of the portal frame hung limply... I had seen examples of how deceptively strong plant life could be, despite their weak appearance. There had been a road near to me that had been paved numerous times because weeds and wild grass had managed to break through the surface... But obsidian!!! A tree had managed to grow straight through the bottom of a portal! Well, I doubted that this portal would be of any use of HoN Co.!
Just in case HoN Co. were able to do anything with it, we both agreed that destroying it was the better, if not more time consuming option. The sun had begun to retreat into the lower Western horizon, but we still had the light with us... For the time being. With the last two well and truly crossed from the list, we progressed along the coast, still heading due South to the next one. I liked it along the coast as it was open and the scenery was a lot more varied. Plus the sound of the water lapping at the edge of the land was rather soothing, and I needed to be as calm as possible when trying to scope out ahead of us. The journey to the next location was short and uneventful. It was still quite bright considering the height of the sun in the sky, but I had stepped the scouting up a notch in case we were ambushed by something that could appear from the dark. It wasn't dark yet, but it was best to be prepared. Depending on the state of the light after this next site, we may go back to base for a resting period before continuing. I can't see THEROS arguing with that.
We made it to the next site in reasonable time. The sun was edging ever closer into the horizon, but the light remained with us. The site was a small beach area with high hills surrounding it. Unlike the others, the portal could not be seen on the surface, nor could we find any hole to indicate it's location. After a few minutes of searching, we decided that it wasn't known, and circled it on the map. Another one we may have to return to if we could verify it at a later date.
Judging from the amount of light we had left, and the proximity of the next site in relation to the base, we could probably search one more and then head back. Covering seven portals and finding six already was a good start. An excellent start! Well, four of them had been standard portals, three of which were active, one secondary portal and an unknown split in half by a tree! Judging from the amount of obsidian scattered around, it was likely to just be a standard portal, but it didn't matter. We set off in a South Easterly direction this time, more or less on a straight-line path to the base. After this next site, we would head back, wait for morning and get some rest, and then head out to the South West. We could check on UOPETA as well, and see how he was doing!
Syeonyx signing off
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