2017-08-01: Wheels Within Wheels
- Log: Wheels Within Wheels
- Cast: Josephine Lovelace, Lunata Croze, Leon Albus, Shalune Amira, Lily Keil
- Where: Rujm el-Hiri
- Date: August 1st 2017
- Summary: A group gathers to venture again into the depths of Rujm el-Hiri -- to both attempt to reclaim a few pieces of Rephaim's shattered arm and further probe the mysteries of the Singing Ruins.
DG: A party led by Josephine Lovelace is now entering Rujm el-Hiri. DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
==============<* CHALLENGE - The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception *>============== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- You ascend up the mountain range and witness the only known entranceway into Rujm el-Hiri, slipping through an open grand archway of stone into one of the dolmen that surround the site. A low thrum echoes throughout the solemn chamber. It sounds like a chorus, sung from an ancient language most should not know. Yet, an echo of meaning emanates at the back of your mind, as if your subconscious curiously understands it, intuitively: 'Seeker of the Key, The solitude of the stone-sea Protects Her from human vanity. Couched in steel, so late the pyres. The starless sky holds no applause.' A pedestal of stone rings sits atop the altar, mirroring the structure of the Ruin proper: a series of enormous concentric ring passages. The true path forward would only be permitted by discovering the trick to these rings. =Dungeon Conditions: Stupify==================================================
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
It had taken a bit of a trek to get down here (and meet people at the agreed location outside the path leading up towards the ruins) from Linga. Ultimately, the students hadn't proved particularly helpful when it came to 'any rumors about the blockade' or 'something akin to stories about, oh, Golems or 'giant machines'. In fact, all she had gotten were more half-correctly reported (...probably) stories about the incident at the end of the tournament...
But that was then, this is now -- the time to delve into the twisting depths of Rujm el-Hiri, investigate its mysteries, and -- fingers crossed now -- see if there's anything to salvage of Rephaim's left arm is at hand.
Tying up her trusty (and more importantly, free) horse outside the ruins, Josie pauses a moment to take a step backwards and gaze up, shading her eyes with her hand. Broody as usual, Penelope roosts on her shoulder.
"...Is anyone else hearing something like a song?" she asks, turning back to face the rest of the group. "'...Protects Her from human vanity'? Or something like that..." The archaeologist tilts her head to one side, confusion written plainly on her expression. "...I'm understanding that in my head, aren't I. That's not matching the words I can hear at all." She reaches up, rubbing at the back of her neck.
There is a long pause.
And then, Josie straightens, looks over at the younger girls, and smiles. "Oh, and congratulations on winning the tournament, kiddo!" She claps both gloved hands together.
Well, that was a sudden 180.
As if in disgust, Penelope suddenly takes off, winging inwards to land primly on the pedestal of stone rings and hops up to sit on one.
Is it... a hint?
DG: Josephine Lovelace has used her Tool Penelope toward her party's challenge, The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata agreed that she would come and assist Josie in the salvaging of the Rephaim's arm, but it's also out of personal interest that she came here -- to better understand the very Ruin that she acquired the Key from, and to better understand herself and the predicament that she's fallen into.
"I think... we probably will need to delve," she expresses to Josie. "The hangar bay was open when the fight happened, and I think most of the scrap fell into the Ruin itself."
There is a pause, as she closes her eyes. "The Key..." A pause. "It refers to the Key of Rephaim." She looks towards the cube floating at her side, which she gestures gently towards. "This Key... but, I do not really understand what it is a Key to, other than..."
A pause. A contract with death? It's hardly a key...
"E-eh?" A pause. "I-- I guess... thank you, M-- Josie," she catches herself, blushing. She looks towards the gimbal and focuses on it for a moment. "The intertwining nature of cycles... hm..."
DG: Lunata Croze has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Mm," Leon murmurs, then nods to Josie, as he walks. "Yes. It was here the last time we came, too."
He already tied the horse he took -- he doesn't have one horse. He rents one as he needs to; his life hasn't had the stability to feel comfortable with riding, and he tended to fight on foot. He stops a little behind Josephone, and then his eyebrows knit for a moment. He waits -- trusting that Lily will have notes on how to get inside. Today, he helps... by not getting in the way.
Instead, he looks at Lunata, and smiles. "You did well," he said. "And we haven't even had a chance to really start training you! I'm impressed. And... it must have worked out for you, too?" He looks at Shalune. She was Lunata's sponsor. "Though... terrible, how it ended."
He frowns, then.
DG: Leon Albus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
This time, Shalune has absolutely no qualms about letting Big Shal come along for the ride down into the depths of Rujm, and whatever they might find within. If nothing else, the ruins have already been sufficiently excavated and sized to allow the golem to travel along with them; if nothing else, the last time Shalune was here she got to watch her adoptive mother get killed and then ressurected by Lunata, as the link between her and Ge Ramda was forged - and all thanks to Berserk's interference. Having a golem along just seems like a good plan.
She's uncharacteristically silent upon reaching the ruins, obviously pensive on her perch atop the golem; she cocks her head slightly at Josephine's comment, listening to the empty air - and then fusses through her pockets for a pad of paper and a stub of pencil, apparently jotting down the words that she can pick out for later perusal.
As it is, the golem nearly walks into the control device, looking mildly baffled that the ruins appear to have fully closed back up; from on top of it, Shalune echoes the expression, draped over Big Shal's shoulder to frown down at the device. "Eh--... they're closed again?" she mutters, puffing up her cheeks before clambering down the side of the golem to ground level. Her pad isn't done yet, as she begins to sketch the concentric rings, comparing the shape of them to the shape of the ruins as a whole.
Leon's comment gets a momentary grin, at least. "Endin' aside, though-- um, I think it was really good for us both. I learnt a ton about myself, Lunie looked amazing in the finals-- and we managed to sort out how we felt about Ge-Ge, too."
Something twigs her, and she bolts up as she realizes: "Ah, hey, wait, Ge-Ge's right here! Can't we just get let in? Lunie's basically your high priest of this place, right?" she whines to the box as it floats innocently in the sky.
DG: Shalune Amira has used her Tool Trusty Wrench toward her party's challenge, The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception. DG: Shalune Amira has used her Tool Lunata Croze toward her party's challenge, The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
The cube quietly turns at Shalune and... ... ...quietly fidgets, like it's going 'iunno?' Geez, can't we have an ancient device that knows the meaning of convenience for once?
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily Keil is interested in Rephaim's arm, definitely, but she's not only here for that any more than Lunata is. She has her own interests in this ruin she only once had the chance to investigate.
The rumors she's sought have been helpful, but now that everyone is talking mostly about the tournament, well...
The black-haired sorceress moves along with the group, skirts swirling as her boots settle on the ground ont he way up. The music plays in her ears again. Her horse too she ties up beside Leon's, though 'her' horse is a misnomer. Mostly, she walks. "Mm," she says, but others have already handled the matter of the song.
"The empty sky holds not applause," she repeats, but it has the slight 'off' sound, having to think about it, because she translates it. ...It's not quite the same as the meaning given, but mostly.
Lily shakes her head, walks towars the stones as she pulls her notebook from her satchel. "Yes, Lunata. I'm very impressed with you and your abilities. Maybe we can come to understand them better with time." She pauses, at talk of how it ended. "...It is what it is, Leon." She sounds unusually tense as she answers him. "We can't change it."
With that, Lily moves to the center, flipping through pages. "Delving is fine. When we were here before..."
A pause, at Shalune's comment. "Usually, even a priestess has to unlock a door. Maybe there's a way to use the Key, but I certainly don't know it." As she starts to make an attempt she adds, distantly, "Ge-Ge? Really?"
DG: Lily Keil has used her Tool Kislev Field Manual toward her party's challenge, The Yawning Gate of Non-Perception. DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has passed this challenge! The party gained 22 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"That's good, then. You both did well." His nose wrinkles. "Ge-Ge...? Oh, ah... the cube," Leon says, with a glance back at it. He wrinkles his nose, then looks at Penelope.
He is weighing which one creeps him out more.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily is saying nothing to Penelope. She mostly doesn't. Especially because Penelope avoids her scary aura.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata does blush towards both Leon and Lily, bowing her head. "T-thank you. It isn't because of me, really... it's all because of the memories and powers Ge Ramda saw fit to lend me." Aww, someone's being shy and modest again. "But-- I know that I still have a lot of training to go, so... I look forward to what you both have to teach me, Mister Leon, Miss Lily!"
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
Shalune bobs her head, rubbing at her pink hair. "Me too, really... I didn't get nearly as far as I wanted, so I know I'm gonna haveta beef up too!" she proclaims, pumping her fists before glancing towards Lily as if there were nothing wrong whatsoever. "Ah-- well, I didn't wanna leave Ge-Ge without a nickname. I mean, she's part of the group now, sorta, so treating her differently seems kind of unfair.
You could possibly blame the tournament, and Ge Ramda's appearances within Lunata, for this... were it not surely just part of Shalune in general.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily looks over at Shalune with faint but clear alarm at the talk of a nickname being a part of being a member of the group.
"Right... Still, you have that bond, Lunata. But I'll do what I can. We both will."
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
"I assumed as much. If it were easy to reach, well... Someone else probably would have gotten to it by now, right?" She punctuates this with an expressive shrug. "Besides, it's been a while since I've gotten to go delving into a place like this. Or this place at all -- I heard the stories, so it's great just get the chance to take a look!" An easy smile plays on her lips. "This is probably up there in the finds of the century, you know? And it still has its secrets."
Even if she walks out of here with not a scrap of that odd alloy, it's still worth the time. Who knows what could be down here still?
"So that's not new? Huh," Josie comments to Leon, still obviously puzzling it over. "So this song's got something to do with your little buddy? ...Hey, Lily, Shalune," because 'kiddo' is actually going to get confusing if she resorts to nicknames this time, "Can you two write some of this down? I don't have anything for this."
Josie is Well Prepared.
"Hey-- don't get all flustered or anything, okay?" This is to Lunata. "You won. Feel good about it! Yeah, see?" She gestures, towards Shalune, Lily, and Leon. "They think so, too. ...Too bad about the assholes who interrupted, though." She's heard some of this.
Lily... might sort of have the right idea here. The Cube is sort of a key. This is the place it was found.
When Lunata and her little friend approach... something resonates. The gimbal begins to move as a mechanism rumbles underfoot.
Penelope, in the process as the gimbal swings around, gets a little ride. Whee!
Or whatever passes for 'glee' from a pigeon like Penelope.
A door shudders open, as if the mechanism caught for a moment somewhere before overcoming it by sheer inertia alone. "Looks like it's open. Let's go!"
DG: Lunata Croze has drawn a new Challenge.
===============<* CHALLENGE - The Sandmill of Shifting Ages *>================ |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 1 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- A curious contraption awaits you in this great chamber, composed of a naturally flowing stream of sand that continually turns a great stone mill. Judging from how the architecture of the device is arranged, it's likely that a large portion of the Ruins is powered by the energy released from this motion. 'Seeker of the Key, Pity not the pygmy of little dreams; It sends hope to peasants and Kings alike. As the tides of sand consume all, Only the inscrutable shall remain.' Hopping up here isn't so much a problem so much as the sand that continually drags you back. You'll need power, not speed, to perform the climb up past the mill to the archway ahead. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata lets out a little gasp when the gimbal starts to resonate in proximity to the cube -- to the Key. She hadn't expected it to exactly do anything, but... it would stand to reason. But to what extent would it assist them in going deeper here?
"I--I understand," she nods at Josie with a smile. "I should be proud. We just need to also remain vigil... because of people like that masked man in the Gear."
Past a rather brief and uneventful trek deeper into the chasm of Rujm el-Hiri, lit by unnatural illumination that seems to keep this place alive with a sense of ancient wonder since time immemorial, they come across a large stone mill of extraordinary construction, a neverending stream of sand poring into a continually moving mill.
"... I'm still in awe," she comments. "The kind of... mechanisms in this Ruin are unlike anything I've seen. To use sand, of all things...? And it can't just be regular sand if it can flow so freely..."
Still, there's a problem they need to overcome -- and it's one that she concentrates with effort as the looming form of Ge Ramda emerges above her. Huge, resplendent, a rotting spectral lich of bone and bits of flesh... yet with a beauteous side, what with the bridal kimono and ancient regalia that she is draped in.
Ge Ramda throws one spectral claw and seizes hold of the great mill from one side, slowly grinding it to a more manageable pace. "I--I'll hold this in place while we move!"
DG: Lunata Croze has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Sandmill of Shifting Ages.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"We'll start, now that the tournament's over," Leon says. "Of course... if this Ge Ramda is helping, then that's good." He hopes, as he turns to look at the cube. He keeps walking -- and then his eyes widen, first at the huge stone mill. And then at the true form of Ge Ramda, which rises up and grabs a hold of the mill. He nods, then grits his teeth.
"Right," he says. "I'll cut a path -- if you're smaller than me, try to follow behind. It might make it easier." Except, of course, that Leon's physical strength is merely 'pretty good' instead of supernatural. he steps into the sand and starts pushing.
He is breathing hard, only a few steps into it.
DG: Leon Albus has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Sandmill of Shifting Ages.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
"Waaay ahead of you, ma'am," Shalune offers a lazy salute towards Josephine, and a bright smile; she's apparently taking copious notes and sketches, detailing what she can of their trip through the ruins. After all, she and Lunata have promised to learn as much as they can about Ge Ramda, and keeping track of everything here seems like a good start. "It's all-- warnings, right? I mean, it sounds like it. 'The stone-sea protects Her' is probably somethin' like 'Ge Ramda's sleeping down in a bunch of rock, so please don't wake her up'.
She pauses, and looks sheepishly at the cube for a moment, scratching at the back of her hair. "Um, except that kinda all went to pot, I guess, but at least Ge-Ge seemed pretty happy to stretch her legs in the arena?"
The mechanic can't help but be shaken out of her thoughts when they emerge into the gigantic power room, though, awed at the scale of the construction. "This place must have an amazin' collection of gears doing all the work," she breathes, pumping her fists automatically as the lich appears to lend a hand to the proceedings - and Shalune promptly neps out as it grinds the mill down towards a halt, bobbling in place in what might be panic. "A-ah!-- just be careful you don't overdo it! I don't want us to be responsible for breaking it, even if it is yours!" she calls to the creature.
... not that it matters to her, because she's still up on the back of her golem, the stone mill creaking a little with each of its steps against the flowing sand. Shalune, that's cheating!
DG: Shalune Amira has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Sandmill of Shifting Ages.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
"Good job!" she calls back to Shalune, giving her a thumbs-up.
"Masked..." Josie blinks for a second before catching herself. "Oh, right. Jay told me a little about it."
Though the details, such as for example Leon and Lily's involvement in that business, remain a mystery to her for now.
For now.
Penelope wings after the group as they head inwards, apparently eager not to be left behind. Or something.
"...Interesting lighting," Josie comments, way, way belatedly, as they emerge into a larger chamber where sand pours endlessly upon a mill that must be ancient. "And it hasn't worn that mill to bits, either," she comments, pointing at the stone. "Even a normal millstone wears out eventually. This is..." She pauses, as if attempting to guess its approximate age, and then shrugs. Even her wits can't help with this. "...Really old," she settles for, confident enough there.
And then Ge Ramda emerges. Josie lifts an eyebrow and stares in its direction.
"Too bad you can't ask your cube friend some questions. 'Cause I think you really need some answers," she comments, shaking her head at last before glancing up at the mill.
"Looks like it's up the hard way, though." Slipping off her pack briefly she extracts the mattock before stepping on up. It has a pick end, this might work.
But even Josie has to say: "This is really not ideal," as she attempts to slam it into the stone and lever herself up through the sand. Her hand is gonna make this hard though.
Penelope meanwhile can just glide on ahead, unscathed.
DG: Josephine Lovelace has used her Tool Well-Used Mattock toward her party's challenge, The Sandmill of Shifting Ages.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"It's amazing," Lily replies to Josie about the ruin. She sounds pretty muted about it, though. Distracted.
She shakes her head a moment later. "I'll remember the song. I'm writing it down." Not that nearly anyone would understand her notes, but this verse is already well recorded. She pauses though and actually looks over at Shalune. "That's good insight. You really are a smart girl." She's pleased about the notes, too.
"If I were stuck in a ruin for however long, I'm sure I'd be interested in getting out," Lily says. "Though maybe not. It could be peaceful."
"...At least you're having fun, Penelope." As they walk through the halls and talk, Lily looks around at the walls, at what carvings there might be if anything, at the architecture... "That man in the Gear," Lily repeats, and shakes her head, curling her fingers. Soon they reach this strange mill, using sand that moves on and on. This lich... "She's still strangely beautiful, isn't she?" Lily asks as she looks around for a way up. "...Leon. I'll try to get up and around so I can help the others up." She looks at those climbing, and says nothing about breaking it. Instead, she pulls a small bundle from her satchel and then lowers her hand. A black veil appears on the ground at her feet, painful to look at and cracklng faintly with purple. "A small one might work..." The object she sets down, and above it, a shell of ice. It's all very small, just big enough for her to stand on.
She takes a breath, and snaps her fingers. There's a small explosion that launches her upward, without really harming the floor.
DG: Lily Keil has used her Tool Explosive Charges toward her party's challenge, The Sandmill of Shifting Ages. DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has passed this challenge! The party gained 12 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
The flow of sand is quite the challenge to work through -- even Ge Ramda's power is not enough to completely withstand the mill, though it assists; Leon's decision to push through ahead gives the group some leverage for Lily to do her wonderful bomb-jumping technique, as is Big Shal's assistance! A pathway opens itself for them at the other end.
DG: Leon Albus has drawn a new Challenge.
========<* CHALLENGE - The Forbidden Library of Conscious Nothingness *>======== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- The song leads you into an underground chamber, perhaps once arrayed like a library, now nothing more than a maddening stanza of spiralling stairs and labyrinthine passages that cast a shallow glance into this once-proud repository of knowledge. 'Seeker of the Key, Seek not to know. I once sought to Know, in the hour of my sleep. The Wheel has left us ignorance as a solace.' Somewhere, someplace, there is a passage forward, but did the inhabitants of this place become intertwined in their hubris as they gazed deep into knowledge? Or did they array their knowledge into a futile guard to push against what was not meant to be known? =Dungeon Conditions: Overwhelm================================================
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
The way opens, and Leon breathes a sigh of relief. He trudges out of the sand, breathing hard and having worked a sweat up -- and then gives Lily an appreciative look. He nods his head to her, looking momentarily proud, before he steps up into the next room. He pauses, then he gasps a little softly as he sees what awaits:
Countless spiraling stairwells and passages, that wind through what was once a library. He stares at it all for a moment, and then he shakes his head. He tries to ignore the song.
Instead, he pulls out his notebook, and starts sketching.
"We'll need a map," he says. "Otherwise, I doubt we'll ever make it through this place. I never went this way before..."
DG: Leon Albus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Forbidden Library of Conscious Nothingness.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata's head is tucked down as she follows Leon, and rather than ignore it, this passage seems to draw her attention. "... you once sought to know?" she murmurs, looking to the cube where Ge Ramda has rescinded once more. "What is it that you ..." A pause. "Is it truly better to be ignorant...?"
The library is quite dizzying with its twisting and swarming rounds, and she shakes her head as she... ...
... pulls out a familiar thermos and pours some soup out of it. The sign next to it reads:
TODAY'S DUNGEON SOUP
Alphabet tomato soup! Served with rosemary crostinis
"Look, my soup's forming letters..." Lunata gasps. "N O E S C A P E...?" A pause. "That's not helpful, soup!"
DG: Lunata Croze has used her Tool Soup of the Day toward her party's challenge, The Forbidden Library of Conscious Nothingness.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
Shaking out her right hand with a wince once she gets up out of the eternal flow of sand, Josie then rolls her shoulders and looks on ahead. "I bet she is having a good time," she comments to Lily, watching the pigeon as she sails on down the hallway ahead.
To finally settle on one of the ledges of the infinity of curving stairs and countless passages.
"Well," Josie comments, craning her neck backwards as she stares up towards the ceiling, somewhere. "Guess the ancients were fond of working up a sweat..."
She glances at Penelope, as if the bird could help them out here.
Penelope pointedly looks away.
No deal, it seems.
Which means that Josie frowns and plants a hand on her hip. "Hmm. I remember a story about a maze with a monster inside. I wonder if there's something like that here?" She glances this way and that, and shrugs. "I think the hero used a ball of yarn or something to mark his way. ...Well, I don't have yarn, but..."
She fumbles in her pockets before turning up a piece of chalk. "Here we go! If we just mark the dead ends, we'll find our way through. ...The map won't hurt, either."
Nor will a little bit of lunch, or whatever this counts as. "Thanks, Lunata. You're a peach," Josie says, as she picks up a cup of the soup.
DG: Josephine Lovelace has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Forbidden Library of Conscious Nothingness.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
Shalune is still scribbling down the words as fast as she can - and when not writing, she's sketching instead, having spent the time during Big Shal's walk against the flow of sand to start a rough map of the interior of the ruins, together with a quick diagram of the stone mill and what connecting gears she could actually see.
"'Not knowing' sounds kinda like a theme here, doesn't it?" she comments to Lunata, at least coaxed down from the Golem's back to accept a cup of soup; she doesn't grin, not when the pencil is held in her mouth, talking around the stub of it that bobs up and down as she glances in thought at the pad in one hand. "Seek not to know, human vanity, only the inscrutable remains..."
She trails off in thought, remembering the speeches that Ge Ramda has given in the arena and wondering if they're connected; the mechanic can't really complete the thought right now, though, not without time to really think back on those memories, and she suddenly wishes she'd thought to write them down at the time.
When she glances at the landscape around them, her eyes kind of slide off it repeatedly - but at the same time the architecture seems to cheer her, more at home with a chaotic layout than an ordered one. "I can kinda see how it works... like, you've got clear sorta lines to follow, you've just gotta think of them as rough curves and circles rather than 'corridor 2, stairs 3'.
DG: Shalune Amira has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Forbidden Library of Conscious Nothingness.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"Of course she is," Lily comments about Penelope.
Lily's expression turns less disagreeable when Leon looks at her. She nods once at him, pleased. It's clear enough to those who know her well enough to read her expressions, anyway. Not that it's easy to do in this case.
Lily moves forward and hears the song before she sees the strange stairwells, the winding passages, lookng uneasy again as it turns to this. Seek not...
Lily murmurs a few words under her breath, words that are being sung already, but it would be difficult to make them out, harder still to understand them. Repeating the words isn't so strange for anyone to do.
Lily closes her eyes. "I've heard before that it's better to remain ignorant. But I don't believe it, and I don't think you should either."
She has other thoughts, but mostly she tries not to think about it, visible uncomfortable and paler than usual in this particular place. Shalune mentions a theme.
"Yeah." A pause. "...Trial and error. If we can make it faster, that's fine, but I'll write as we go." A pause. "I'd welcome a monster. I don't like this place." At that, she takes the soup, closing her eyes. "Soup, stop bothering Lunata," she mutters, and starts to eat hers. It does help a bit. "Thank you."
Her notebook comes out a moment later.
DG: Lily Keil has used her Tool Kislev Field Manual toward her party's challenge, The Forbidden Library of Conscious Nothingness. DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has passed this challenge! The party gained 26 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"I hope not," Leon says to Josie. "I remember the butterflies... I'd rather not run into one in close quarters." He lets out a sigh, before he glances down at the swirling soup.
His eyebrow cocks up.
"You've got the right idea, Shalune," he says. "And yes, I agree--ignorance isn't something to wish. What you don't know and don't understand is what kills you, unexpectedly and without mercy."
He frowns, as he says it, and then he pushes forward. He jots notes down, too -- and looks at what Lily jots down. In time, using the soup, Shalune's idea, a healthy dose of patience, and Lily's notes (because his are terrible), they find a door -- and it opens even as they approach.
DG: Josephine Lovelace has drawn a new Challenge.
========<* CHALLENGE - The Great Antechamber of Lives that Never Were *>======== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- You've descended onto a great ring-chamber in the dungeon, which moves with an unsettling precision not usually afforded to ancient Ruin gimmicks. The song seems especially audible here, perhaps owing to its origins upon the great Wheel: 'Seeker of the Key, Ponder not on the Scheme of Things. The works of the Wheel are not meant for hours calm. Thy life is long. Eternity is short.' A flash of passageways are before you, and there is a great stone wheel that could be manipulated to slow the movement of the ring that you're standing upon... a very heavy stone wheel, at that. =Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
"...Yeah," comes Josie's eventual own agreement with the general sentiment floating around the room as she marks off a few of the passageways with an 'X'. "There's no use worrying about what you can't change, but you have to know what you're even dealing with first. Hiding your head in the sand never helps."
Marking all of these is going to take a while.
"Fengalon's teeth, you kids have good eyes," she comments once Leon and Lily spot the door, stepping up to it as it opens.
It opens up atop a short flight of stairs.
And those stairs bring them all down to right upon wheel of a floor which ticks swiftly with a fluidity not typically seen in ruins... let alone one of this size.
And then the wheel went round and round...
"Whoa--" It's a brief struggle to keep her balance, but she manages, mattock dangling loosely from one hand as doors appear to zip past before her eyes. "'Don't think about what you're doing, just do it', huh--" she comments, paraphrasing the song that resonates in this chamber as she glances this way and that, attempting to see if there's an opening to make a jump for a doorway.
...Bad idea, she'd just be paste. "--Usually, I'd agree. But I think there's a difference between acting and jumping off a cliff--" It's a good thing she doesn't get seasick because this would be the room to get sick in. "--Kind of reminds me of what we were just talking about, actually--"
Her gaze finally falls upon the great stone wheel. "--There! See that? I bet that has something to do with the floor--" And without further delay, bracing herself as she moves, she takes a swing at it with the mattock. THIS IS GONNA SUCK--
Penelope, meanwhile, just remains perched up near the door above. Watching.
DG: Josephine Lovelace has used her Tool Well-Used Mattock toward her party's challenge, The Great Antechamber of Lives that Never Were.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
"... yeah..." Lunata nods in return as she agrees. "I told Mister Fei as much -- there's no use worrying about what I can't change, and that includes running away from this contract I have with Ge Ramtos. Even if it's scary -- we have to keep going forward."
There's a sudden sucking of breath as she stares towards the great ring-chamber and says, "I, wow... again... I mean, what kind of... what would you have to do to create works like this? It must weigh even more than a Gear..."
It really does make her wonder what kind of civilisation stood here. She concentrates and summons Ge Ramda once more, the lich emerging from within her as it heaves and slams onto the wheel to attempt to slow its seemingly inexorable advance.
DG: Lunata Croze has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Great Antechamber of Lives that Never Were.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Gh," Leon grunts, as soon as he steps into the ring chamber. It soends him spinning, and he makes a surprised noise -- eyes widening -- and then sees Josie swing the mattock down. He doesn't have a mattock, however. He doesn't have much of anything to help besides his hands. He could use Argent Divider, but he is loathe to risk the weapon in such a way.
He nods, then throws his hands out, and tries to clutch onto the side. He takes a deep breath -- and then he looks sideways at Lunata, when she asks.
"I've wondered," he says. "It's hard to ignore that... the past civilizations seem so much more advanced than ours."
He frowns. Gryndille was certainly beyond anything their peoples could make.
"Though... there's something beautiful about these ruins, too," he admits.
DG: Leon Albus has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Great Antechamber of Lives that Never Were.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
Shalune's brow furrows uncertainly as they move on, and as the next lilting verse hits their ears; she scribbles again, before flicking back a few pages and furrowing her brow. When she scratches underneath the line of her bobble hat, it isn't just to scratch at her hair, but apparently also to stick the pencil under the woolen lining in a safe place.
"No, um--" she hesitates, having called out in the direction of both of the Legally Responsible Adults Along For The Ride - that being Lily and Leon. "That's not quite right. I don't think it's sayin' you should be ignorant, so much as, um--" She pauses again, halting as she tries to place it properly in her mind. "It feels kinda like a mixture of 'this is too big for you' and 'hey, go live your life, it's cool', I guess?"
Where exactly she gets the insight from, she's not sure - but something in the lilting verses reminds her of a winged woman she spoke to recently, and a warning to be wary about things you don't understand. She's still yet to really figure out what she thinks about that statement.
Shaking her head, she pauses to glance at the floating box, and then at Lunata as she chews at her lip, and her frown clearly indicates the mildly frustrated confusion she's feeling before she gives up and offers a sheepish smile. "Maybe I'm thinkin' about it too much, but there was all that stuff she said to Mr. Dantear too, right?"
But it's too late, and her attention is tugged away by another grand-scale architecture project, the girl emitting a tiny and astounded 'wah' as she stares mutely at the enormous disc. "I-it's so huge! How did they avoid friction tearing this place apart? There'd be so much energy bound up in this thing-- I mean, the mechanics are easy enough to understand, right," she natters to whoever will listen and be polite enough not to stop her, bobbing from foot to foot, "But it's all in the precision. If you didn't chip it just right, have the right weight all uniform across it, it'd go out of whack waaaay earlier than this."
She's so upbeat and excited about it that she misses the slow steps Big Shal makes over towards the wheel, leaning over slowly to grasp it with both hands and apply a steadying touch to Josephine's assault.
DG: Shalune Amira has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Great Antechamber of Lives that Never Were.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Butterflies. They seem distant from here at the moment, fascinating as they were. Lily would rather be dealing with them. She says nothing about it, her gold eyes focused on her notes and on the maze.
What you don't know... Leon says what he does, and Lily nods. "It is. Learning more is the only way to escape that. The world won't offer you any kindness because you didn't know." She pauses when Shalune offers a different perspective, and looks over at her. "...I used to be able to account for some things just being too big for me," she says. "Maybe you're right. But it seems to me a strange message if so. Living your life just means you'll deal with these things sooner or later."
Lily moves on to try to spot what she can and Josie's compliment gets a shake of her head. "It's something you pick up in special forces." She moves up the short flight of stais, at the back of the group, in time to look at this... wheel. This great wheel with the song so loud in her ears. "Gh--" She too is sent moving at first, dragging herself back to a standing position. She hears the mattock going, sees that lich...
"Beautiful is right. Even the music..." It's not the music itself that bothers her, after all. "But I don't know. I have no idea, really. What must they have been like? There are little things we can glean, but that's all." She pauses, watching Leon attempt, thinks of what she could do...
And takes a breath before her hands are suddenly coated in jagged ice, her arms, all the way up to her elbows. Her boots anchor into the ground with the same translucent blue as Lily uses her magic to augment her merely good strength. "That's a good thought of mechanics," Lily says to Shalune." "Hr--"
DG: Lily Keil has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Great Antechamber of Lives that Never Were. DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has passed this challenge! The party gained 12 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
"Seems like they teach you a lot of interesting stuff in the army. Think I should try, too?" she asks Lily, before she heads through the doorway.
"No? You don't think so?" This is to Shalune as, yes, Josie continues to spin with the moving floor.
She can't see it. But then again, the younger girl's clearly better at seeing the forest for the trees than she is. And her mentor always said she was worst at the detailwork... Heh.
"You're-- telling-- me--" Josie calls out in response to Leon and Lunata and Lily too, mattock catching agianst the moving stone in a way that is damn uncomfortable to be holding onto.
Yeah, it is pretty nice in here, though she'll have to be excused to being a little busy right now.
Between pitched efforts (magic, lich-power, archaeological tool, and bare hands alike) to forcefully strike and stop the wheel -- and when it comes to stopping things in a pinch, a small golem is probably the best thing of all to have -- the floor underneath slows way down. There might be a brief moment where things pitch to one side as speeds shift, but this mechanism is far too well made to send anyone flying.
Josie herself staggers a few steps, hissing out a breath as she once again shakes out her poor abused right hand, but otherwise isn't too badly off.
"Let's hurry, it's gonna start up again!" she shouts, pointing at the doorway across from her. She's right -- even now the ring is starting to pick back up, an eternal motion device of the sort that would give a physicist conniptions.
DG: Shalune Amira has drawn a new Challenge.
=============<* CHALLENGE - The Mercantile Arcade of Decadence *>============= |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 1 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- A long, seemingly infinite row of arches expands before you. This arcade looks to have been at the heart of an enterprise of merchants and their goods, once upon a long time. Large pillars proudly hold large showcase pieces, with ruined merchandise of all shapes and sizes scattered about, lost to the mists of time. You find some coin here and there, several scraps of fabric once luxurious, now simply rags. 'Seeker of the Key, Jewels of joy, once shined to delight the sensuous mind Now lay insensate and lightless. Vainglory is fleeting, yet the evidence of hubris is without Time.' There is an exit here, somewhere, yet the bedazzling shower of opulence serves to distract one from the truth of passage. Only those with a steeled heart and a steady mind can navigate these corridors without becoming entranced by earthly desires, as these people once did, long ago... =Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
This time, Shalune's notes are kind of halting, if only because she is not the sort of romantic mind that can readily understand 'vainglory' as a concept. In fact, she's not even sure if she knows the word, and yet it appears fully formed in her mind and with an understanding to match, and her realization of this fact definitely brings out an odd frown on her face.
Not to mention, of course, that as she collects more and more samples of the history of Rujm, her notes are starting to get as scattered as her thoughts, especially those on the topic of Ge Ramda's-- lessons? Scriptures? "You-- you might be right, ma'am," she admits slowly towards Lily as she scratches at her temple. "I mean--... I dunno what I mean, I guess. It's strange for sure, but-- as far as it goes, I haven't really put it together in my head." She sounds almost disheartened, or at least uncertain about it, and it's obviously something that's sticking in her mind.
She does her best to puff up, though, and even gravitates towards Lunata for a moment to offer her a brief hug that seems more for the mechanic's benefit than that of the waitress - even if, right at the moment, Shalune is worrying about her just as much.
She sucks in an astonished breath when they round the corner-- and stares in surprise, her eyebrows shooting upwards at the sight of the stacked treasure rooms. "W-wow..." she breathes as she steps through it with infinite care, trying not to step on anything as if it would disturb the diorama. "I mean-- it's amazing--... I mean, the voice literally just said 'hey look at this stuff that's basically just forgotten trinkets now', so I'm sure as heck not gonna touch it, but it's still impressive." As much as there's resolution in that statement, she does also pout rather as she throws a look at the box, and plants her hands in her pocket. It doesn't help that she's spied any number of old contraptions and curiosities, little tiny marvels of engineering...
Quick, Shalune, distract yourself. "I don't, uh-- 'Sensuous mind'?" she queries, and leaves it at that.
DG: Shalune Amira has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Mercantile Arcade of Decadence.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata looks almost... deflated as they enter the arcade -- this was the same marketplace that she, Lily and Leon came to when they were last here, so long ago now. Back when they first cracked open the ruin, with Bart, Emma, and Ida, and her mother. It scarce feels like everything that happened was real since Bart ran around cheering and stuffing plates into a bag called 'LOOT'. But she blinks just for a moment as she shakes her head and says, "I think..."
She rummages through her own knapsack and peers towards some of her notes, and holds it out. "Miss Lily, this was from when we first came through here. It might be useful for us to retrace our steps..."
She listens to Shalune as she says, "... it is-- an awe-inspiring lesson, isn't it?" A pause. "Uh-- sensuous..." Her cheeks turn red a little, oh no! Lunies are short-circuiting!
DG: Lunata Croze has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Mercantile Arcade of Decadence.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
Riches don't do a lot for Leon Albus. They catch the eye of course, as he walks after them -- and he looks down at Shalune. He frowns for a moment at her response from before... but, he doesn't dwell on it, as he looks around the room. He nods at Shalune speaks.
"I wouldn't," he says. "If it's unperturbed... then I think there's a reason. I doubt anything so valuable, sitting out here like this, ahs been left alone out of the kindness and generosity of Drifters' hearts."
He cracks a small smile, before he looks sideways at Lily. "Though, some of it looks nice, doesn't it, Lieutenant? Roanie would have been going crazy if he'd seen everything here."
He sighs, and then he starts walking forward. He certainly isn't going to explain what a 'sensuous mind' is.
DG: Leon Albus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Mercantile Arcade of Decadence.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
What's in here is largely undisturbed, save by the hand of time (or at least, so it seems).
They're technically just scraps, bits and pieces of people's lives from thousands of years ago, or more.
Josephine Lovelace, though, is an archaelogist.
Which is why Josie, with an utterance of, "Fengalon's teeth," shortly after entering is already busily gravitating towards a likely-looking scattering of debris and plucking a few items free from the wreckage. A bit of cloth, a broken-off piece of something metallic, a couple coins...
She could be at this for a while, even going so far as to crouch down and poke around under the display.
Which is why Lily will at some point need to come on over and drag her away. "Wait, wait-- Dammit, Lily--"
Penelope, meanwhile, opts to settle on the nearest person (who isn't Lily) and rest her wings again for a moment.
DG: Josephine Lovelace has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Mercantile Arcade of Decadence.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Vainglory is a concept Lily believes she understands well. She doesn't murmur these words under her breath.
Shalune seems to grow less confident, and Lily feels a bit of guilt in this case at being told she's right. "...You'll have time to put it together later; just write what you see now." It's softer, gentler than her other words, the sign that she's putting effort into being kiner.
Lily does not move for any hugs.
But this room... Lily's eyes cast out over it. She could take some; it might be useful for study. But Shalune and Leon are both right, and Lunata, "...Yes, you're right. I took notes as to our path before. Let me get them out..."
She reads them, and starts to say something before Leon speaks up. He finishes his thought. Lily, in front of everyone, actually smiles briefly. "Roanie," she says, shaking her head. "He was always showing us something he'd picked up on leave. He..." She trails off, and puts away her notebook, all sense of happiness draining out of her face. She shakes her head, and starts to step quietly over to Josie.
Lily's not saing anything about sensuous either. Or anything at all for now.
Instead, she uses a simple hold to drag her away, sighing audibly at the older woman.
DG: Lily Keil has used her Tool Kislev Field Manual toward her party's challenge, The Mercantile Arcade of Decadence. DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has passed this challenge! The party gained 27 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
"All of the warnings and verses are about time takin' everyone, y'notice? Or else about how you sorta shouldn't ask about it," the pink-haired mechanic says to the waitress next to her, as they pick their way through the assorted treasure; every so often she looks around her, her curiosity piqued at a piece of art or a stack of gold coins or whatever else she finds along the way. "That got Mr. Dantear pretty determined to prove her wrong in the middle of the final." She wonders on that thought for a moment, then catches Lily's advice with a bite of her lip and a nod, just scratching another word on the page. "M-mm... yeah... I know, it's just-- maybe I'm tryin' to race this a bit for Lunie's sake."
Slowly, the party pick their way through the Arcade; with the group well-warned and with prior knowledge of the arcade to match, it's fast going until at one point, Big Shal's elbow accidentally catches a pillar, sending its contents tumbling to the ground and at Josephine's feet - and at the same time, Shalune suddenly balks, staring in delight at an array of perfect sphere cut through with a number of odd and jagged lines - jigsaws, it might take a moment to realize, and ones both ancient-looking while also being a sculpture as well. "Oh, wow-- look at these! We can take a couple, right?" she blurts, as Lily suddenly has to manhandle the archaeologist a little more. The mechanic turns puppy dog eyes on Lunata in turn, bobbling towards them. "They're amazing, and the work that must have gone into them is-- c'mon, they won't miss one or two, right!? Just a litt--ah?"
She cuts off when the world lifts, and then squirms against the large fingers that have picked her up by the coat. "B-Big Shal! C'mo~on!" she whines as she's carried off by the golem as it lays down the rules.
DG: Lunata Croze has drawn a new Challenge.
==============<* CHALLENGE - The Great Hall of Soul's Repose *>=============== |Type: Climax |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- This great room bears the semblance of an ancient hall. Braziers, tapestries and shelving further suggest a residential purpose, complete with a great table that could house a feast for dozens. However, eeriest is is the uncomfortable stillness that permeates this otherwise huge chamber, as if the house has had its Time robbed from it: Poor, macabre imitations of citizens hang in place around the table, frozen in place. 'Seeker of the Key, Jewels of joy ensnare the sensous mind. Yet a tide has set from the Sea of Silence. Only when quietude has swept the cities clean, Shall the Wheel crumble into soot-ash.' A sickly, faint feeling permeates the air. The light fades, absorbed by the immanent black aura of a gigantic black butterfly ascending from the darkness below. It lets out an eerie, sorrowful noise, perching upon one of the macabre imitations... and the statue turns into no more than dust. Whether this creature is a guardian or an intruder to this time-stilled place is unknown: the only thing you know is that it is a dire threat to you. =Dungeon Conditions: Maim=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata furrows her brow as she remarks, "It's as the song says... my time is long, but eternity is short." A pause. "Much like the events that have transpired to take me where I am... I can't help but feel that there is some greater machination at play..." She smiles warmly and-- kind of has to take Big Shal's side when the golem lifts the little archaelogist up from being too distracted. As Lily is to Josie, Big Shal is to Shalune.
It might be a bit too gloomy for Lunata, but her attention's gone through when they arrive towards an equally familiar chamber past the opulent arcade towards a great hall. They've been here once before, and fought that menacing butterfly of gloom -- and much like before, it causes her to hold onto her head with a sharp wince. "... this resonance... it's coming, everyone!"
Indeed, before they can even take too many steps in, the butterfly descends from where it seems keen to take a second round against the party. It menaces with large wings emanating with the presence of Death itself.
She thinks a little bit towards the last time they fought it, and asks of Leon, "Mister Leon, do you have that flare gun...? It seemed to be quite sensitive to light last time, I'll follow your lead!"
She concentrates, and the form of the katana emerges from within the cube once more. Lunata stoops towards an iai-draw as she readies herself for a well-timed slice...
DG: Lunata Croze has used her Tool Orochi-Agito toward her party's challenge, The Great Hall of Soul's Repose.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
The butterfly, which Leon knows so well. He looks up and stares at it for a moment, blood running cold. But, he nods to Lunata when she asks -- and he remembers that before. The flare did seem to ward it off.
"Yes," he says. "Go in after I fire, everyone!"
The flare gun comes up. Instead of fire it to ward it off, he aims right for the great butterfly -- and pulls the trigger. The flare snakes up, and while it doesn't hit the creature, it still explodes in brilliant light that casts it as only a silhouette for a moment.
DG: Leon Albus has used his Tool Flare Gun toward his party's challenge, The Great Hall of Soul's Repose.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
When it comes to keeping your eyes on the prize and moving along, a pillar -- full of tantalizing objects -- collapsing at your feet also really doesn't help. "Honestly, it won't hurt to take one or two--" Josie practically begs, as Lily drags her by the arm through the arcade and to the very obvious door ahead.
It's a little undignified, but that's just what you get when you go off and get distracted mid-expedition.
But the moment that she's dragged -- stumbling -- through the door, she freezes, then quietly tugs her sleeve free. She can feel it. Penelope, fresh from whatever new perch she found, dives for cover and half-burrows under the collar of her longcoat at the back of her neck.
"So that's the butterfly you were talking about, huh..." Josie says, pressing her lips thin as she draws her rifle.
"On your mark!"
Even as Leon raises his gun, she's diving for cover, only a passing glance spent towards the other contents of this room. Now though is not the time.
Light shines in a flare, and taking careful aim, she snipes at the only point of darkness ahead: the butterfly.
DG: Josephine Lovelace has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Great Hall of Soul's Repose.
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"Mm," Lily answers Shalune, finally speaking up as the talk of time and eternity and death comes again. "I don't know. Time is what it is. But it isn't..."
It isn't fair. It never is.
"I understand the impulse." That's what she says to Shalune about trying to hurry. "But steady and calm is what solves the problem."
Here they arrive at this new place, and Lily senses something here too. It's a familiar creature descending, and Lily narrows her eyes. "This again. Be careful of its touch!" she calls out. Lunata playing tactician is smart; Lily is already formed up at Leon's right hand, hands up, practically clawed. She waits.
When Leon lets loose his flare, Lily throws a huge blast of fire that roars through the chamber. That's only her first spell.
Lily says nothing about having to drag Josie out.
DG: Lily Keil has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Great Hall of Soul's Repose.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
Shalune's yelp of surprise is audible - not just at the butterfly, but at the way that Big Shal abruptly sets her down on the ground to instead crack (or creak) its knuckles; the mechanic dithers for a moment, not quite as fast or confident on the draw as Lunata is, but then reaches for the broom that's folded up at the side of her pack to pull it out and unfold it to its full length.
"Okay-- I can do this, right?" she mumbles to herself under her breath, the question apparently there purely to pump her up; it works to some extent as she grips the ringed handles that stuck out along its length, bracing herself for the explosion of light--
--and apparently throwing caution to the wind, hiding beneath her hair to avoid the sudden blaze of Leon's flare before pushing her legs forward. One hand dips to her jacket, reflexively flinging something forward - and the array of little bombs she's flung replicate the effect, exploding into sudden and bright pinpoints of light before she hops two broken columns and leaps at the flying creature, bringing her staff down upon it. "--let's go--!"
DG: Shalune Amira has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Great Hall of Soul's Repose. DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has failed this challenge! The party gained 0 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
The battle is short and not necessarily sweet, with their opponent -- seemingly getting smarter to their tactics. Leon's flare gun pulsates and shines across the great hall, but it seems to have commited to its tactics even before -- and large beams of light cut a swath through the dining room and shatter through the table and the poor macabre machinations of what might once very well have been people.
Leon cuts through with a vibrant slash that draws blood, with Lunata dipping in after with another strike of her own -- and similarly Lily's flame and Josie's bullet find purchase, but the creature is still standing after their initial flurry. An enormous swarm of explosions bevy inward after Shalune's toss, and in the wake of it all--
--a cloying swarm of death starts to grip away at the group. Lunata gasps and holds onto her head again, as she exclaims, "I-- we'll be in trouble... if we don't move..." She can already feel her vitality being drained away from her.
In a desperate bid, she holds her hand out -- and Ge Ramda emerges once more, to ring that mysterious chime of hers. It provides the group with just enough time as an oscillating barrier that seems to ward off the effects of death itself surround them. "It won't last long... let's-- let's run!"
DG: Lily Keil has drawn a new Challenge.
============<* CHALLENGE - The Eternal Vigil over Imminent Cycles *>============ |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- A forlorn chamber of great size awaits past the great hall, its size fit for giants rather than humans. A massive stone throne is affixed upon the centre of the darkened chamber, bearing numerous effigies and fetishes of worship in ages past. Perhaps, it is the seat of the watcher of an eternal vigil. The song has reached its peak here, and is more audible than ever before. Those with particularly magical or spiritual natures can feel the powerful ebb and flow of its chant. 'Seeker of the Key, Gaze thee upon the Ark of Ge Ramtos, Her sails wrought of the ashes of hope. Her heart is but olden dreams once dreamt by time. The Guardian's lament has made her tall, Charged of deathly innocence, rowed forth by people's fantasies. Her Eyes gaze ever eternal, upon the Princes of Old, The People who have Never Been...' A large altar stands before the giant stone throne, possessing lightly shimmering runes that seem to echo with lilting notes not altogether dissimilar to the chorus. Perhaps, it is finally time to sing back to the chorus... =Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
Lily does not enjoy this battle. The light that crashes through the shapes beyond is painful to her eyes, but still she keeps her magic coming. She thought light, this tme, but the red-orange flames of her Ether don't stop the creature.
Death swarms them, and Lily can feel it trying to take hold. It's cold, more cold with time, and she feels--
The barrier. Lily gasps for breath. "Right. We'll move!" Lily doesn't run until the last of them has gone, which means she is not the first to hear or see what is in this room. She is the one to slam a stone door into place to block their pursuit. But the music echoes out for all of them, and Lily closes her eyes, feeling it moving about her. The music...
"It's so loud," she murmurs, and she doesn't mean physically. She shifts with it, sways with the music until she shakes her head, pushes her hair out of her face, and stomps over to the runes. She pulls her notebook again, her notes on the music, but her notes are in these runes without translation, if anyone looks over her shoulder, or at the notebook when she sets it down to start trying a sequence.
DG: Lily Keil has used her Tool Kislev Field Manual toward her party's challenge, The Eternal Vigil over Imminent Cycles.
<Pose Tracker> Leon Albus has posed.
"Go!" Leon yells, as he realizes the flare has done nothing but make it angry. The swarm of sheer death hits the barrier -- and he doesn't hesitate a moment more. He runs after lily, breaking into a run affter her, and then through the doorway. He lets out a sigh of relief when she closes the door behind them, with a loud thud.
"It is," he comments to her. He looks up, then, and his eyes narrow. He heard the singing before this, too; he tries to work through the lyrics as best he can, for the answer.
His eyes, though, are drawn to the empty throne. That is an eerie memory, now.
DG: Leon Albus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Eternal Vigil over Imminent Cycles.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
The throne room is remarkably more cluttered than the last time the group was here -- in no small part because the hangar hatch overhead was open when the battle with Berserk and Vorthuzahl occured... and the scrap that rather rampantly have fallen violently in here is evident, where it's crushed several portions of the floor as well.
Rephaim's arm is rather evidently embedded onto the floor here -- it's little more than a pearlescent white gauntlet with dark grey mechanism and joints underneath at this point in time, albeit one the size of a Gear... but everyone but Lunata -- as the only non-mechanic -- can pretty much say with certainty that this arm's more or less a goner as far as its purpose as a Gear arm goes.
Which... isn't to say it's useless -- the strange oscillating material that can reverberate the Rephaim's barrier only works with the metal is sure to provide rather fascinating research and possibly repurposed into other weapons or technologies.
"... even something like the Rephaim might just eventually turn back into scrap," Lunata quietly murmurs, lowering her head. "But-- um, I think there are some parts here that would be beneficial...?" She does cant her head towards the lyrics and close her eyes.
"... the song of the Rephaim... wrought of the ashes of hope... and old dreams once dreamt by Time itself." She pauses. "The Guardian's lament... is it something that Ge Ramtos does not approve of?" She shakes her head. "There's so much I don't know..."
She uncorks her bottle and has some more soup. Somewhere, there's a Lunie-Gambit hardwired into her brain:
[ When Self: Distressed ] [ Action: Drink Soup ]
DG: Lunata Croze has used her Tool Soup of the Day toward her party's challenge, The Eternal Vigil over Imminent Cycles.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
Josie's bullet finds its mark, sure enough but--
They Kind Of Have A Problem.
Namely, that thing isn't dead. A billowing swirl of condensed death wafts out towards them, and more specifically in Josie's case towards the pillar she's perched behind. She pales, then coughs, covering her face with her right hand. "U... ugh..." she utters, closing her eyes.
"No kidding..." she mutters before breaking into another wheezing hack. Suddenly, the grip on her feels as it ebbs out. Squeezing one eye open, her gaze soon alights on the door and she bolts for it as Ge Ramda holds back the tide of death.
Leaning over once they escape into this place, she plants her hands on her thighs, breathing deep of air that isn't reeking of death and decay. "Whew... damn," she gasps, before finally straightening. Digging around in her pocket, she pulls out a flask and takes a hit off it.
And then she looks up. And up.
"...Damn," she says again, gaze skimming along the length of the shattered arm as she tucks the flask away. "Damn." Third time's the charm?
"You weren't kidding. It's ruined." She's just a novice at Gear mechanics and she can see that fact as clear as day. "Still, I think..."
At the back of her neck, Penelope squirms free, emerging back into light and life... or something like that. The bird hops forward, fluttering off towards the empty 'throne'.
And she coos, softly. The song of... a bird?
"I think we can do something with this. Some of these pieces are too big to carry out, of course, but..." She frowns thoughtfully, beginning to pace this way and that, as if to take in the whole of the shattered parts. "Maybe a few of those... damn, if only I had a workshop again... or the core of an ARM..." she mutters, approaching a likely-looking piece to pick it up and turn it over.
"Or even just good tools..."
DG: Josephine Lovelace has used her Tool Penelope toward her party's challenge, The Eternal Vigil over Imminent Cycles.
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
The pink-haired mechanic starts a little when that barrier of death shimmers into existence; she watches Ge Ramda for a moment as she tries to find her breath through the sudden pressure around them and the following cessation of it, but the lich seems content for now to simply give them a way out - once she's entirely ready to take. So she turns and runs; behind her, Big Shal appears to have had an arm simply dust away from its shoulder, but is bringing up the rear with an almost amicable stoicness.
When they enter the final chamber she immediately hushes again, cowed by the size of the place all over again; she chews her lips as she feels the song drift around them stronger than ever, her mouth making the words as she hears them, and she softens in the wake of it, slowing to a halt in front of the altar.
Her eyes flick to the arm in front of them with momentary relief and a breath of the still air, but it doesn't feel like the right time just yet to go and collect it, leaving that task up to her golem. Instead, she steps up to the altar uncertainly, resting a hand upon it. "... ... I know I said it before, but-- I'm sorry for misjudgin' you," she mumbles almost to herself; is it wrong to pray to a figure of death in front of its altar? She's still not quite sure, but Ge Ramda doesn't feel evil, so much as just--
"It kinda feels like... the traps and the song's all been to say that this is just what happens, maybe? There's a cycle, and it's not celebratin' that or warning you off from it. It's just there, like it's just a force of nature. Maybe?"
She's got no other conclusion to add right now - just an uncertainty and a cowed sort of solemnity that for once makes her look her age. It isn't a song in answer, but it's what she feels like she has to say right at that moment.
DG: Shalune Amira has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Eternal Vigil over Imminent Cycles. DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success! DG: The party led by Josephine Lovelace has successfully explored Rujm el-Hiri!
=======================<* CHALLENGE - A Useful Pendant *>======================= |Type: Discovery |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- As you unseal the throne and descend past the open gateway, the overwhelmingly striking sight of a ruined city that's been lost to the ages catches your attention. A city of a civilisation lost long ago, consumed by hubris and inviting the frightening touch of the black butterfly... just what could have really happened here? As you turn towards the town streets, you see a sorry sight -- one of the macabre imitations of humans is curled between two houses, clearly attempting to hide and yet met their end by one of the butterflies that now spread all over the ruined, lost city. They're clutching a pendant that releases easily. It must have some use, and perhaps if not, it will console over a long journey. Unfortunately, further access is impossible at the moment - more and more of those big, black butterflies patrol the area, and to fight such a great number of death-wielding monstrosities is, at best, folly. You'll need some other kind of tool or approach, and greater strength, to venture deeper into the lost city... =Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
An eerie memory is right.
But working through the lyrics, contemplating the nature of what it all says... cooing pigeon. This place is one that suits thoughts and prayers and quiet consideration, much as it inevitably comes to this, to gathering what one can of a ruined piece of machinery.
"You still have time to learn," Lily says. "...And if you don't, then..." A shake of her head. "No, I don't know either. This place..."
She trails off. She might need a drink too, like Josie. But Shalune's prayer doesn't hurt anything while they're down here. What she suggests about this cycle, Lily pauses at. "Death comes for everyone," she answers. Agrees? "Still..."
Lily does her own work. Together, they all manage to get the right set of notes out, and the opening is onto a ruined city, lost to the ages. Lily stares out at it. They have a chance to look it over, to step onto the streets, but these great butterflies increase with time. There is something that might have been a person--something that was a person--there standing.
Lily reaches over, gently, and takes the pendant, holding it in her gloved hand and looking down at it.
"Death. Hiding won't save you from it."
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.
Lunata stands by Shalune's side as she places a hand to her shoulder. "... Lunie..." She gives her a hug after a moment, smiling gently as she lets the song wash over them for a moment longer. "I think Ge Ramda would feel happy that you've said that." A pause. "No, I think I can feel her approval."
She looks up towards the throne again and says, "... I feel like death is a big part of Filgaia in the end, anyway -- all of these ancient civilisations, all of these ancient ruins... it's a reminder to never rest on your laurels, you know? They were all greater than what we can muster right now, and they all met the same end. We can't help but -- remind ourselves not to make the same mistakes, to not get too big for our own bloomers."
It almost sounds poignant up until that last part. Bloomers, Lunata??
Past the throne room, however, Lunata gazes towards the ruined city along with Lily. "... I wonder if Ge Ramda lived here, once upon a time," she has to muse to herself. But her eyes widen as she catches sight of the pendant Lily picks up--
--it's a tarnished silver pendant, with a particular gimbal design that's rather similar to that of the concentric rings that's omnipresent throughout the ruins.
"Miss Lily, can I see...?" She hurries forward and-- starts to rummage through her collar and... produces a virtually identical-looking one, save for the kind of exposure that it's suffered through.
"It's ... virtually identical to the pendant mother gave me when I was little..." she seems flabbergasted. A pause. "Where did... mother get this from? Was this the reason she was so obsessed with these Ruins in the first place...?"
<Pose Tracker> Shalune Amira has posed.
Shalune kind of keeps it together - clinging back against Lunata's hug for a moment, and clearly thankful for the support as she solemnly listens to Lunata's take on the situation. Whatever her stumbling in the dark leads to, she's clearly got a great deal of respect on the waitress' take, especially given her connection to Ge Ramda, and nods along solemnly to her point as she puffs out a breath.
"Yeah... somethin' like that. It's not exactly a pleasant thought, but it's not like it's a horrific one, either," she mumbles to herself - before there's a light snort, and then a snicker that cuts through the still air. "B-bloomers? Lunie, you gotta get more fashionable than that!" she cries, and suddenly redoubles her hug on the waitress as she cackles briefly - hiding a comforted squeeze of the other girl in her antics.
* * *
Shalune's eyes are wide as saucers when she finally looks out at the ruined city, though, infinitely amazed at the sight. "T-this is-- how wide is that?" she breathes, a hand still on Lunata's back as the waitress takes in the sight of the pendant; it takes a significant effort to look away from the view, as if the enormity of it might swallow her, but she eventually manages it.
"... I guess the only thing we can do is-- ask her. Or-- go further in," she adds haltingly. One glance at the landscape shows what she thinks of that idea right now, however.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
Death, huh. Josie's expression in profile hardens, as she twists the chunk of metal she holds this way and that in the strange, unnatural light.
In the end, everything dies. Everything goes to pieces.
But that doesn't mean she has to like it.
The archaeologist remains silent as the girls continue to wonder aloud about death, the meaning of their existence against the full breadth of the planet's past, the futility of vainglory.
Yeah, that's what happened. Resting on her laurels, and then...
The door opens, with a suddeness that catches Josie, lost in thought, briefly off-guard. "...So there's something beyond here?"
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"Can you feel what she approves of?" Lily asks Lunata, thoughtfully, after a few moments, before saying anything about Lunata's opinions for this song, the warnings...
Lily doesn't answer them after all. Bloomers. But she's not the type to make a joke about it. Instead, she stares, and answers, "You really think she might have? It... anchors her, somehow, to think of that."
But her hand is on the pendant soon after, and when Lunata asks, Lily shows it to her, careful not to drop it. "What?" she asks. "Your mother...?" Lily looks like she has no idea, because she has very little idea. "That's an interesting question. I wonder if she'll tell you." Lily picks up the pendant and squints at it. "It says something..." She murmurs a sound that isn't a word, and shakes her head. "Can't see in this place." She offers it towards Josie to look at without letting go, and shakes her head.
"Yeah, not a chance we can make it in there right now. The last of those things kicked our asses, and I still feel a chill from what it did to us." It's an agreement, with Shalune and with Josie. "I can't believe we're both talking caution though, Josie. You're usually not half this reasonable."
Lily sighs. "...I could almost spend years down here, just trying to understand it. But I don't even know what questions to ask. ...Forget it. Let's go."
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
And at that comment from Lily?
"Oh ye of little faith," Josie says, pairing it with an overdramatic sigh. "Even I know when I've met my match!"
<Pose Tracker> Lily Keil has posed.
"Aren't I more religious than you?" Lily comments archly, turning to stare at Josie.
<Pose Tracker> Josephine Lovelace has posed.
"I have my moments," Josie insists.