Towards the end of summer, Antonius is finishing up his labwork involving the invention of a spring to supply the covenant, when suddenly, reality seems to twist in on itself for Antonius and everyone within about 100 feet of his traveling lab. They find themselves in a 5 apsed temple of the style they have been excavating, except that this one seems new, and has etchings on the walls which are extremely clear,and the air is very fresh and sweet.
Other than Antonious, who is caught up in this? I presume that they can see each other?
Paphos is probably in the area.
They can, it will be essentially by circumstance who was nearby at the moment, so for story purposes I'm letting players decide if they were there or not.
(OOC: I see Antonius meeting Paphos, in fact I wanted to post a new thread for a meeting between the two, this will be a perfect opportunity ! )
Julia will be there too, if someone wants to play her.
Julia unfolds into human form "Wow, what did you do? I don't think we're in Malta anymore."
Almost simultaneously, there is an exclamation of surprise from somewhere else in the subterranean warren (for that is really what the "basement" resembles). Clearly there is someone else in the warren, perhaps closer to the covenant proper.
(a breathy Keanu Reaves "Whoa..." seems appropriate)
outside of the one temple you find you are on a much smaller island, about 125' radius, surrounded by crystal blue ocean water as far as the eye can see.
Paphos stumbles out of the temple. "This is amazing, the artwork is so clear, and the stonework looks like..." He trails off as he finally registers the utter change in their surroundings. Finally he regains some measure of composure. "Wha... What happened? Is this one of your twilight episodes?"
Julia walks behind him "I don't think I would be here if this were twilight." She gazes out over the water "What is that? she points to what seems to be a whirlpool about 100 yards from shore.
Paphos will check for anything hidden (including regio boundaries) using Second Sight (Per+SS+roll 1+4+8=13, 14 for regios). He also has Faerie Lore and will ponder if this seems consistent with a faerie realm phenomenon. He also has Magic Theory, but will leave that to Antonius, who is presumably better schooled that he is.
you see what appear to be two region-like entrances. One is the whirlpool, and it appears to lead to some kind of palace, the other is a boulder, which is apparently not actually a boulder but more like a ghost of a boulder, which leads into caverns if you go into the boulder. You also notice a shimmering hemisphere in the air, surrounding the island you are on 150 yards out, which has a resemblance to a region entrance, but appears to go nowhere
For later potential usage: you succeeded on each by (including hidden bonuses and penalties):
Whirlpool: 19
Boulder: 12
sphere: special (-11)
Julia also spots these by:
whirlpool:20
Boulder: 11
sphere: spec(-10)
Antonius is surprised by the turn of event and for a moment stand there, mouth open, still holding a flask filled with melted snow of eternal snow that he had bought in the Alps a few years back.
"Where are we? What happened ? Julia, are you alright ?", hesitating and worried.
He approaches the murals and lightly touch it, exclaming "This is fantastic ! The temple complex must have looked like this centuries ago... to see one in its full glory is humbling. The people who carved these walls are long dead, but here is their legacy, still standing."
As Julia point out the whirlpool, Antonius attention is diverted away from the temple, and towards the sea all around the island.
"I don't know what this is, at least yet. We are probably in a regio....We should hurry up and find the entrance, for it could be one that is accessible every few years, and there is little to sustain us over a long period of time. Also, more people could have been brought into the regio when it opened, but might not have been as fortunate as us as to appear on the island. Be on the look out for people in the water nearby. I'll go and look for other people, I might as well check the whirlpool while we are at it."
Antonius will cast: a spell to check to which realm the aura is aligned, it's force, if there is a regio boundary, a spell to fly and then will depart, looking for other stranded covenfolk after which if there are none, he will investigate the whirpool.
(OOC: If someone wants to join now is the time 
)
Paphos will also ponder for a moment on astronomy/astrology (Artes LIberales) to determine if there is anything special about the date/time of the incident.
OOC: Is the palace underwater or would it be possible to explore it witouth extensive use of magic ? If not, I will help other reach the palace with spontaneous ReCo spells. As always, Antonius will also look for vis too.
The aura is aligned with magic, which is very clear from how easy it is for Antonius to cast- aura 10, same as where he parked the lab.
The spells do not detect any regio boundaries, and he cannot see the palace through the whirlpool, only Julia and Paphos can see it.
Before they continue further exploration, Paphos wants to make sure his regio check included the inside of the temple, and also investigate the wall paintings. If possible, he'd like to sketch them with an eye to restoring them to splendor in present day (either paper/parchment from the lab if it came with us, or use the back of a scrap of blueprint he'd have with him).
"Julia and Paphos, you say that there is a palace past the whirlpool ? It cannot see it with intellego, it must be something else, maybe an illusion ? Or maybe... divine regios? If they are that would be a very rare occurence, but not unheard of. Still if it is strue, it will add to the mystery of this place. Who knows they could be illusions too, ment to guard this place from undesirable visitors."
He will spontaneously cast a spell to see divine regio boundaries. And a spell to see if they are illusions.
(OOC: Can Antonius see the caverns too, or is it the same a for the palace ?)
InVi 20 (23 vim +5 intellego +2 stam + 10 aura+ 4 die = 44)
InIm 15 (5 intellego, +2 stam +10 aura, +10 imaginem + 4 die again =31, duration mom): detect illusions of up to level 15
Antonius cannot see the caverns either, and his spells do not detect any divine regio entrances. The boulder both is and is not an illusion, which is certainly a strange result, but in practical terms it is illusory- it's appearance is not an accurate reflection of its nature, but more of a projected image of its nature.
Paphos meanwhile examines the wall and finds that while there are no regio type entrances here he is able to make out the writing on the wall, though he does not know the language. The temple appears to be dedicated to an ancient deity which is translated as Oceanus to his mind.
Julia touches Antonius on the arm "In the palace I see people walking, naked young women, and fish flying through tree branches. In the caverns I see no life, no movement, but the caverns twist away quickly, so I cannot say what is beyond. There is light there, but it has no source."
Would Paphos (or either of the other two) know the Greek mythology of Oceanus due to either Artes Liberales or Faerie Lore?
Edit: Oceanus and his story is also a common theme in Greek and Roman Sculpture, so he might have run across it in his studies.