2019-09-01: I Spy With My Little Eye
- Log: I Spy With My Little Eye
- Cast: Citan Uzuki, Emeralda Kasim, Ashley Winchester, Fei Fong Wong, Gwen Whitlock
- Where: Macalania
- Date: 9/1/2019
- Summary: A completely ordinary party full of completely ordinary people go into a completely ordinary mine that ends in a room full of dead Gebler soldiers, and much, much more!
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ========================<* CHALLENGE - Guts Man's Ass *>======================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Once, there were numerous entrances to the Lapisera Mines. Then, Odessa teleported the Guts-Dozer inside of it and ARMS drove it out. The massive form of the Guts-Dozer has made a new entrance: a gaping chasm, with treadmarks torn into the ground and huge tears where the Guts-Dozer ripped through the rock with its bare hands. While an entrance exists, it is far from stable. It seems the immense derriere of the Guts-Dozer has created an unstable cavern. As you enter, you find that rubble and debris have collapsed in its wake... and worse, sometimes, chunks of rock fall from the entrance. It both has to be cleared out and dodged. And, of course, one might boggle at what possibly tore its way from this place? A huge fiend... or something worse? DA-NAAAAAA!! =Dungeon Conditions: Cripple, Madness=========================================
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
There had been rumors of an altercation in the Lapisera Mines. Moreover, it had been a few of the tales that had caught the doctor's ear...
Well. He had said to Fei and Elly that it would behoove them to investigate some of the ruins around Spira so that they might possibly locate either more information about the past advanced civilizations around here or find, quite possibly, a ruin similar to the one that had brought everyone back to Filgaia the last time.
The odds seem rather steep against that, admittedly, but one never knows what exists until one tries. He certainly won't accomplish very much continuing his daily conversations with the locals and travelers in Guadosalam and beyond.
To that end, he's collected a small group of interested parties: Gwen, Fei, Emeralda, and an apparent member of ARMs, unless he's mistaken, and head out to the mines.
"Well, I would certainly say there has been a disturbance here," he remarks, folding his arms over his chest as he surveys the wreckage. "...I am not entirely certain that is a stable entrance by the look of it. Fei, take care when you enter."
He, for his part, withdraws a rather sturdy and perfectly normal hammer from his gear and strides towards the mine entrance. "Hmm... some of these rocks seem as if they may fall," he remarks, before reaching up and striking at one of them with the hammer. "If they fall, it is best they do so now and not while we are venturing inside."
DG: Citan Uzuki has used his Tool Perfectly Normal Hammer toward his party's challenge, Guts Man's Ass.
<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
When Emeralda found out that Fei and Citan (who she knew of better than knew personally) were going out to the Thunder Plains, she volunteered to come along to have another adventure.
Emeralda has been to the Thunder Plains before. It was fun, at least by Emeralda's slightly skewed idea of what fun is; she didn't get shot by lightning even once (though not for trying, given she accepted a crazy man's challenge to dodge bolts), though she did get rained on and muddy.
But she has never been *under* the Thunder Plains, and that seems to be where they're going.
"This is a big hole," Emeralda says, peeking in rather than rushing ahead for a change. The treadmarks seem faintly familiar, though she can't say why... as if she'd seen treadprints like that before. She hesitates for only a moment before hopping past Citan.
"I'll help!"
Emeralda's idea of 'help' is to lay about with a sturdy crowbar; if Citan can hit rocks with a hammer, she can do it with a crowbar. She's too short to hit the ones up high, so she uses her bar to lever and pry at debris on the ground, pushing it out of the way with sharp shoves.
...she's pretty strong. And she works diligently... at least, for someone who looks about ten.
DG: Emeralda Kasim has used her Tool Reinforced Bar toward her party's challenge, Guts Man's Ass.
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
'A certain altercation' is a good way of describing what happened in the depths of the Lapisera Mines. 'A supernatural no-holds-barred brawl between two entirely different satans' is probably a little more accurate, though. One way or another, words of unusual activity within the mines had begun to circulate in the wake of the incident. Some say a powerful fiend has taken up residence in the depths of the earth, spurred to formation by the terrible evils that had soaked into the land...!
Or at least, that's what Ashley heard when some local Al-Bhed started complaining about unexplored mining holes and the dangers therein.
Guilt makes you hear... crazy things.
When he'd heard that a few familiar faces were going to be exploring the mines, Ashley couldn't very well say no. There was a certain notion of responsibility and a hefty helping of anxiety that drove him to volunteer. And so the bluenette stands at the lip of the crevasse, peering into the depths of the earth with concern plain on his face.
"Careful, everyone," Ashley cautions, before double-taking at the literal ten-year-old smacking rocks with a crowbar. "Oh! Um. Here, miss. Could I maybe help you with that?" He puts out a hand to receive that crowbar! If nothing else, he's a lot (A LOT) taller than an actual ten year old girl. So that should help... at least a little...!
Seriously though, what's this weirdo doctor guy doing taking a barely-tween into the hollow veins of the earth...!?
...
...Moon.
...
It's all rock!
DG: Ashley Winchester has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Guts Man's Ass.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei is happy to have Emeralda along on another adventure! He has grown close to the kid but has trouble keeping up with her in the same way he has trouble catching up with Xantia. He seems friendly enough to meet Ashley again too who he hasn't had too many run-ins with but likes well enough.
"Oh it's alright. It's her crowbar," Fei tells Ashley. because apparently he is one very permissive parent. "Her name is Emeralda, she's a great kid," Naturally he never actually brings up the fact she's not exactly human but Fei just doesn't seem to think that aspect of Emeralda is all too important. "Oh uh, Elly and I have been taking care of her." He adds, in case that wasn't clear. "She likes going on adventures like this, so..." He rubs the back of his neck and laughs like Maes Hughes.
"She's kind of taking after us huh!! Ha ha ha ha!"
He looks over to Citan and adds, "Mm... I'll be careful, Doc." He considers the entrance. The earth.
And then he exhales slowly before a red aura ripples around him and he--
--pats Emeralda fondly on the head, smiling down at the child.
And then the aura fades. It seems his contribution today is to be an encouraging pops rather than any dramatic unleashing of power, though he does help by tossing aside the occassional rock rather than, uh, exploding it all.
DG: Fei Fong Wong has used his Tool Mother's Cross toward his party's challenge, Guts Man's Ass.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
This is Gwen's first time meeting Emeralda, and while Gwen has certainly heard of her from Fei, it definitely shows off a side of her that, well, most have likely seen before. All someone needed to do was catch her with a precocious kid in a context where she wasn't trying to help, comfort, or save them.
Because then she doesn't have a task to distract her from the sheer happiness of 'omg kid is so adorable, look at her go, so sweet', though the fact that they're on a dig certainly mutes her mood a bit. Just barely.
"Man, what a mess..."
Then, Gwen watches on with barely disguised glee as Emeralda goes forth with the sort of confidence only a twelve year old could have. Sure, let her have a swing at it! They'll be there to keep her from-
....
dang she's good
But she's also short.
Ashley springs to action, and Gwen is already following, shaking out her gloved hands. "Wow, you're pretty strong, Emeralda! Lessee if we can help with that a little, eh?"
So Gwen is doing just that, stepping next to Ashley and, seeing that brief flare of red aura from Fei, she just brings her right fist back and *punches* it into the rock.
see id she can do it it's okay you don't have to come out
DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool ARM-ored Fist toward her party's challenge, Guts Man's Ass.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ========================<* CHALLENGE - Guts Man's Ass *>======================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Once, there were numerous entrances to the Lapisera Mines. Then, Odessa teleported the Guts-Dozer inside of it and ARMS drove it out. The massive form of the Guts-Dozer has made a new entrance: a gaping chasm, with treadmarks torn into the ground and huge tears where the Guts-Dozer ripped through the rock with its bare hands. While an entrance exists, it is far from stable. It seems the immense derriere of the Guts-Dozer has created an unstable cavern. As you enter, you find that rubble and debris have collapsed in its wake... and worse, sometimes, chunks of rock fall from the entrance. It both has to be cleared out and dodged. And, of course, one might boggle at what possibly tore its way from this place? A huge fiend... or something worse? DA-NAAAAAA!! =Dungeon Conditions: Cripple, Madness=========================================
=========================<* Lapisera Mines - Round 1 *>========================= ==========================< Results - Guts Man's Ass >========================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Citan Uzuki 0 --(0)--> 0 Fail Perfectly Normal Hammer 1 Brute Effects: Stalwart and Rally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gwen Whitlock 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass ARM-ored Fist 2 Brute Effects: Strengthen -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ashley Winchester 0 --(0)--> 0 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fei Fong Wong 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Mother's Cross 4 Brute Effects: None -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Emeralda Kasim 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Reinforced Bar 2 Brute Effects: Stalwart -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Citan Uzuki 0 --(20)--> 20 Pass Conditions: Cripple|Madness Effects: Strengthen(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Citan Uzuki has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 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. DG: Emeralda Kasim has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== =======================<* CHALLENGE - Woeful Weaponry *>======================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Something looms out of the shadows at you in the mines, silhouetted by whatever light source you might have available. Theres no question of it -- that shape, those eyes filled with grim determination this is a Tonberry. But whats in its hands is no knife. No, this Tonberry grips an elegant long sword of honed steel as it slowly advances step by step. Those familiar with such things may recognize it as a weapon of Solarian origin. =Dungeon Conditions: Fright, Stupify==========================================
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
"Yes. She appears to know what she is doing," he comments to Ashley after Fei chimes in, before glancing up at the overhang above her. "Hmm, the rock overhead here seems more stable than elsewhere along the entrance."
Perhaps if Emeralda had been a normal girl of her apparent age there may have been reservations. But, Emeralda is, perhaps, not entirely 'typical' for a child her age. Besides, considering how she appears to be determined in tagging along after her 'father'...
In the end it's more practical to bring her along and keep her where they can see her rather than risk her following them.
But of course, Citan hasn't precisely vocalized any part of this, and instead continues 'business-as-usual' as he investigates the loose-looking stone.
That fails to respond to the hammer strike, like a stubborn molar. "Hmm, I had been certain this one was..." he murmurs, furrowing his brow.
Emeralda meanwhile has far more luck. Emeralda in fact has a lot of luck as a large chunk of rock is handily levered upwards and out of the way. Citan watches this for a moment, rubbing at his chin with his free hand.
"It does appear to be a crowbar of excellent quality," he observes, before the air suddenly ripples around Fei. His attention snaps over to the young man, and for a moment -- nearly -- one might even get the impression the doctor is holding his breath.
And then there is nothing. No fireworks or anything else untoward. Gwen enters this moment by cracking another large rock with her fist.
Had Citan reacted in any way? It's hard to tell now; his expression is the same as ever. "Watch where you walk," he cautions, gaze moving to the entrance roof again. Some of these still look suspect but a number are simply too high to reach. "Let us enter from this angle. There appear to be fewer unstable sections in the rock ceiling."
<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
"Fei is - " Emeralda's position with Fei is a little odd. She has just about stopped calling him Fei's Kim, and *seems* to know he's not actually Kim, but she still thinks of him like he was Kim. So what she says is: "Yes! And it is my crowbar, it's made out of a bit from my Gear so it doesn't break." No Gear is in evidence.
If there is one thing that Emeralda *doesn't* like, it is being treated like a young child. Even though she is, sort of, a young child.
Hernly sort of, though, given her actual age. But it's not like that shows.
"No, I can do it," she says to Ashley, and indeed doesn't even stop as she works on it. Push and pry, pry and push; it works out pretty well, given the size of the rock she levers out of the way by jamming the crowbar near its underside and then jumping on it. Body weight helps. She gives Gwen a big grin afterwards.
Picking up the bar, Emeralda slings it over her shoulder as they walk further forward. "I'll keep an eye out," she promises Citan, as she does - looking left, right, up, down, left...
...
"...what's that?" Emeralda has never seen a Tonberry before. She still hasn't seen it very well because of the lighting; she can only see its silhouette. But the gleam of the knife - no, the sword - gets her attention, especially as it starts to advance, raising it.
Emeralda seems unsure of what to do. She hesitates for a long moment, only digging out a fragment of crystal - from an ether amplifier, if anyone is familiar - and holding it up before her, reaching deep for stone to erupt in front of the Tonberry to block its path.
What? It's totally legitimate combat.
DG: Emeralda Kasim has used her Tool Large Etherstone toward her party's challenge, Woeful Weaponry.
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
Ashley may not be a physicist, but he still knows a thing or two about leverage and free body diagrams, and everything he knows is telling him that little girls should not have nearly enough mass to lever a boulder out of the way. "Uh," Ashley uhs at the display, and also at Fei's attempt at making things make sense. "W-well, she certainly seems to uh. Have your... muscle...?"
Is that a compliment?
Fei is pretty swole.
There's a part of him that sort of wants to complain about the kind of irresponsibility involved in bringing one's own child to a dangerous, potentially monster-infested mine-shaft but.
Well.
Ashley really, really can't complain.
"She's a strong 'un, that's for sure," Ashley says, struck so dumb that he hardly helps at all with the rocks. "Oh, hey miss Gwen. I--"
Gwen red-punches a rock.
Ashley's jaw snaps shut with a click. "N-nice to see you again too! Ahahaha," he really should be getting used to ridiculously powerful martial artists at this point-- but in his defense, he's just met Ida. Ashley is not yet properly initiated in the wonderful world of wuxia.
But then. Then there are two terrible, glowing yellow eyes peering out at them from the darkness. Ashley has never encountered a Tonberry before, but he knows a thing or two about monsters that live in the dark. The party's eyes should still be adjusted for at least relatively dim light, but not this thing. "Flare out!" Ashley draws his sidearm with the speed of a practiced gunman and launches a gently glowing fireball at the strange thing in the darkness.
...And then it explodes in a blinding flash of light.
This... might be considered unnecessary cruelty. But hey, it's a Tonberry.
DG: Ashley Winchester has used his Tool Flare Gun toward his party's challenge, Woeful Weaponry.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
bites ashley
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
"From your Gear...?" Citan appears to weigh this for the moment. "I see," he settles for, ultimately.
As they head down the path into the mines proper, he glances Ashley's way. "I understand that you are a member of ARMS. Is that correct? I must admit, I know little of your organization outside the most basic of information."
It isn't long until trouble presents itself. "I believe it may be a Fiend, from its size," he says, assessing it from a distance.
Before the light catches the weapon it bears.
Of all things, his attention comes to rest on the sword in the Fiend's hand. ...Paw. Whatever it is that a Tonberry has. "Is that... so it was true--"
He stops himself short, throwing out a hand as if to caution the rest of them. "Be careful! That sword -- that is no normal weapon it possesses!"
Which makes it a fortunate thing that the initial responses at this moment are the sorts of things that strike at the Fiend from a distance, namely Emeralda's Ether, which Citan pauses to evaluate, and Ashley's flare gun.
Citan himself holds his ground, waiting for either an opening to present itself, for the Tonberry to close and force the matter, or perhaps for other people to handle it.
That would honestly be the most acceptable outcome at this point, for a variety of reasons.
DG: Citan Uzuki has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Woeful Weaponry.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
Gwen then realizes she just did that *right in front of Ashley*. Having her hands in front of her chest, Gwen laughs awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head. "W-well, it's why I was surprised when you were able to, uh, carry me? Back on the plains?" To further illustrate her point, Gwen reaches to tug at the cuff of her right glove right enough to expose the metallic flesh underneath. "It's an ARM. As in, capital A, capital R, capital M. If I tried that same stunt with my left, I'd be in a world of hurt, n' likely some broken bones on top of it."
She pauses, briefly astounded by her willingness to impart with something that she would have desperately tried to hide years ago. It did help that Ashley impressed her by carrying her across a lightning-soaked plains, he also understood the importance of getting a delivery done. Especially when that delivery is _delicious muffins_ that he was able to recreate.
Then, she sees the Tonberry. "Oh Guardians, look at this guy! So determined, n' so small, just shufflin' like that..." Wait. She squints. ".... Fei, Doc- that's... a Gebler sword? I think? Ain't like the usual ones I've seen here. How'd it get ahold of a thing like this?"
When Ashley draws out his sidearm, it's now Gwen's turn to blink. "Holy cow! You can bake _and_ shoot a rifle that size?" .... She's seen it before, yes. Just usually, the grin that accompanies a rifle of that size was usually extremely unfriendly.
"I 'spose it'd be a good idea t'note that my ARM doubles as an ARM in the typical sense too, but I'm kinda limited by what I can use for bullets size-wise." She says this, taking out some bullets from a pouch on her belt and, using a sewn flap in the right sleeve of her tunic, loads her bullets. Straightening her ARM, Gwen states, "Sorry, lil' guy, but you're dangerous!"
She seems miserable as she fires those bullets out of her right palm.
DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Full Metal Courier toward her party's challenge, Woeful Weaponry.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei says, "Oh, uh, yeah! She's tougher than she looks, don't worry." Fei waves a hand towards Ashley though when he's not looking, there is a serious frown on his lips. Why? Well, it's hard to tell right now but maybe it's similar in source to that reaction Citan had when Fei channeled that 'power' for a moment.
It seems that the 'power' was content to give Emeralda a headpat though.
"I guess Citan did a good job fixing it up, huh Gwen?" Fei quips, smiling towards her before he moves forward and sees...
...a Tonberry!
He reaches nito his pocket and draws out his RPS Badge, holding it up into the air, "Do you want to play some RPS little guy?"
Fei better watch out because Everybody's Grudge will do like SO MUCH damage to him it isn't even funny.
"It kind of looks like..." He murmurs on the sword but doesn't get to finish that thought.
DG: Fei Fong Wong has used his Tool RPS Badge toward his party's challenge, Woeful Weaponry.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== =======================<* CHALLENGE - Woeful Weaponry *>======================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Something looms out of the shadows at you in the mines, silhouetted by whatever light source you might have available. Theres no question of it -- that shape, those eyes filled with grim determination this is a Tonberry. But whats in its hands is no knife. No, this Tonberry grips an elegant long sword of honed steel as it slowly advances step by step. Those familiar with such things may recognize it as a weapon of Solarian origin. =Dungeon Conditions: Fright, Stupify==========================================
=========================<* Lapisera Mines - Round 2 *>========================= =========================< Results - Woeful Weaponry >========================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Citan Uzuki 0 --(5)--> 5 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gwen Whitlock 0 --(5)--> 5 Fail Full Metal Courier 2 Combat Effects: Embolden -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ashley Winchester 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Flare Gun 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fei Fong Wong 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass RPS Badge 3 Combat Effects: Rally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Emeralda Kasim 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Large Etherstone 2 Combat Effects: Embolden -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Citan Uzuki 20 --(20)--> 40 Pass Conditions: Cripple|Fright(2)|Madness|Stupify(2) Effects: Cleanse|Embolden(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Citan Uzuki has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 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> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
Making her crowbar out of discarded Gear metal only made sense to Emeralda. Gears, she figures, are very heavy, and thus their structure needs to hold up a lot of weight. So if *she* had some of that, nothing her size would be able to bend or break it. Her reasoning is suspect but the bar has so far held up all right, if only because of good metallurgy from whoever designed it.
Now that Emeralda can actually see the Tonberry...
"...it's cute! But it's got a sword! I don't know what to think!!"
But cute things can be dangerous, Emeralda knows, thinking back to one of the cheap novels she read back on Filgaia, about the monster that disguised itself as a cute rabbit on a tree stump. And this one certainly seems to be, given it is advancing on them with a *sword*. On the plus side, this means that Fei can quite easily beat it at rock-paper-scissors. It's just going to pick scissors every time.
Citan's waiting ends up inconclusive, as the Tonberry never gets quite close enough for him to hit without overextending or rushing. And while Gwen's bullet doesn't hit it (it misses by about an inch), it is sufficient to get the Tonberry to freeze for a moment, long enough for Ashley's flare to go off and dazzle it.
It is momentarily hidden from view by Emeralda's earthrise, and when the dust from that clears... the Tonberry is gone, in search of different prey. Or possibly them, later. But either way, it's not here right now.
DG: Gwen Whitlock has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ===========<* CHALLENGE - Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems *>=========== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- The next portion of the Lapisera Mines has flooded. The water here is seawater, and it seems the already-tarnished metal doors and reinforcements are rusting. Crossing the entire flooded section might be impossible for your entire party -- it seems to stretch on for a long time. However, several of the large metal doors appear to be watertight. If opened, that could allow the water to drain into lower shafts. Of course, a wrong move might flood parts of the dungeon you hope to enter... or unleash some fiends hidden within. This is an underwater challenge. =Dungeon Conditions: Suffer===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
"He sure did!" Gwen states matter-of-factly over her shoulder to Fei.
Citan also had quite a few things to say to her in secret, too. Namely, 'don't overuse your ARM, you might die', but that's a story for a different day!
"..... well, damn." Gwen stops a certain distance into the tunnel, looking down into a large shaft into a wide, deep expanse of flooded walkways and doors.
Of course a part of the mines is flooded. Not only that, it's seawater, which... okay, it really doesn't make much of a difference for Gwen, since she can't swim in either salt or freshwater beyond a beleaguered dogpaddle.
Well, this will be embarrassing, but this is the other disadvantage of having a heavy metal-ish object being grafted onto your body.
"I might need you guys' help," Gwen says, drawing out some rope from her kit. "We can use this t'guide me around, but it looks like we might be able t'drain some of the water too. Anybody here a good swimmer?"
Some of the doors rattle, hinting at the 'surprises' some of them might hold. "... Maybe skip the ones that seem occupied, eheh..."
DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Courier Kit toward her party's challenge, Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems.
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
On the subject of Gwen's ARM, Citan's expression does not budge or betray anything in the slightest. Instead he says mildly, "I was happy to do it. It is not often that I am able to conduct repairs on an ARM such as yours."
...Because their conversation in private was fine and absolutely didn't reveal to Gwen any potential personal existential risks.
But in the end he doesn't even have to lift a finger; the Tonberry is handled -- and unfortunately wherever it has gone (if it still lives) it has taken the blade with it. The doctor pauses a moment, glancing down at the floor of the mine as if in deep thought, his arms crossed over his chest. "..."
But he doesn't there linger; he moves on.
Until the point where they can go no further due to a flooded section. "Hmm. This appears to be quite the obstacle," he comments, gazing at the water and the doors that just might serve to keep the water in... or perhaps keep more water out. "Just one moment, Gwen," Citan says, raising a hand as if to suggest she hold her ground a moment. He sets down his pack and opens it, removing a few objects from within.
Before finally, ultimately, at last--
Bringing out his treasured camera.
"It is a rather, ah, unorthodox use of the lenses," he says, gazing through the camera to sight some of the doors. "However, I should be able to see if there are any legends on the doors." A pause. "Or other details," he adds, as one of the ones rattles ominously. "No, I would not open that one."
DG: Citan Uzuki has used his Tool Strauss Camera toward his party's challenge, Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems.
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
"Oh... Oh! That's why you were so--" Ashley! No! Don't speak any further! You know not what narrative fates you tempt! "--Eager to get out of that thunderstorm!" Oh. "That's a neat ARM though. Reminds me of the one a friend of mine has. Have you met Brad yet? He's like... A foot taller than I am? Twice as wide? Solid muscle? Big green box for an arm? He's a really cool guy."
Ashley says nothing on the subject of cute things being dangerous. He just saw a little girl topple a boulder. As far as he's concerned, cute is just another word for powerful, anymore.
But! The group soon comes to the next obstacle in their path. It's... a doozy. "Wow, this is going to be a nightmare to swim through," Ashley says, digging around in one of the satchels strapped along his belt. "Hold on, I think I've got an idea. It's time for a Booty Call...!"
There's just enough of a pause there for the moment to get extra awkward, but Ashley seems utterly unperturbed and far too occupied with digging for what is surely the moon's most debauched radio communicator. Finally, after several terrible moments, he pulls out... A weird, heavy-duty box-like thing?
"This should help us navigate," he says as he pushes a couple of buttons on the device's face. The air pulses faintly as a cocktail of harmless, wide-spectrum electromagnetic radiation pings across the cavern walls. A map quickly begins to form on the device's screen, outlining the overall features of the surrounding mine, and what appear to be several blinking, treasure-like dots far off in the distance...!
"Alright! That should do it. The Chateau's tech crew said it was waterproof too, so let's hope they're right!"
DG: Ashley Winchester has used his Tool Booty Call toward his party's challenge, Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems.
<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
Emeralda looks back a couple times as if trying to spot the Tonberry. She never does.
Eventually she looks down into the shaft. "Um, sort of," is Emeralda's response to Gwen. Emeralda is not a good swimmer for the same reason Gwen isn't, except more so. At least, not when she's trying to swim the way people keep showing her how. She has her own ways of getting around in the water.
Emeralda looks at the camera with interest, and the thing Ashley pulls out with more interest. Emeralda does not seem to understand the awkwardness; she's just seen cameras more often than she's seen whatever Ashley has. "Oh, that's neat!" she says, before he triggers her greatest foe:
Electromagnetism.
The ping isn't anywhere near enough to hurt Emeralda, but she feels it as a weird ripple in her stomach, and she jerks backwards from Ashley like she'd been burned. She gives him a glare for no readily apparent reason afterwards - it didn't have any *visible* effect on her, after all. She just felt a little queasy.
"I can help. Just tell me where to go!" Emeralda shimmies down the rope into the water and vanishes beneath it with a sound that's less a splash and more of a 'bloop'. She does not immediately surface.
This is because she has to walk along the bottom about ten feet to a rock she can step up and get her head out of the water so she can hear. "Which way?" she calls up, to the people with lensesa good viewBooty Calls. She can't tell anything from down here. But she can sure open doors like a champ!
DG: Emeralda Kasim has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei says, "Mm... I don't know if I'd say I'm a good swimmer. I can swim a bit but..."
'It's time for a Booty Call!'.
"I don't think that's really very appropriate, Ash." Fei says, frowning, crossing his arms as he looks towards the agent of ARMS. And then he brings out a box. Fei blinks a few times and he says, "...What?" As he looks at it.
He stares listlessly for a time before adding, "...Wait, what?"
Emeralda is blooping and Fei crouches down into the water, trying to get a good look of the area. He pushes himself back out of the water and slides on some gloves before moving on to the drainage doors, hoping he picks the right one--and that he's able to pull open the door besides.
DG: Fei Fong Wong has used his Tool Artist's Toolkit toward his party's challenge, Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ===========<* CHALLENGE - Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems *>=========== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- The next portion of the Lapisera Mines has flooded. The water here is seawater, and it seems the already-tarnished metal doors and reinforcements are rusting. Crossing the entire flooded section might be impossible for your entire party -- it seems to stretch on for a long time. However, several of the large metal doors appear to be watertight. If opened, that could allow the water to drain into lower shafts. Of course, a wrong move might flood parts of the dungeon you hope to enter... or unleash some fiends hidden within. This is an underwater challenge. =Dungeon Conditions: Suffer===================================================
=========================<* Lapisera Mines - Round 3 *>========================= =============< Results - Water Level - Makeshift Drainage Systems >============= Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Citan Uzuki 5 --(10)--> 15 Pass Strauss Camera 3 Wits Effects: Fanfare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gwen Whitlock 5 --(10)--> 15 Pass Courier Kit 1 Wits Effects: Resilient and Rally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ashley Winchester 0 --(10)--> 10 Pass Booty Call 3 Wits Effects: Fanfare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fei Fong Wong 0 --(10)--> 10 Pass Artist's Toolkit 2 Wits Effects: Enlighten -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Emeralda Kasim 0 --(15)--> 15 Fail Investigate 0 Wits Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Citan Uzuki 40 --(20)--> 60 Pass Conditions: Fright(1)|Suffer(1) Effects: Enlighten(1)|Resilient(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Citan Uzuki has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 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> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
CItan tells Gwen to hold for a moment, and she does so, looking with some interest at the objects he takes out of his pack.
"I remind you of someone?" As Ashley talks, Gwen nods readily. "Ohhh, yeah, I know Brad! Well, we met, anyway. He, uh, helped me figure out a thing that was goin' on with my ARM." Gwen's eyes shoot briefly in Citan's direction as she adjusts her headscarf. "I didn't think him a tech guy, but goes t'show that you should never judge a book by its cover!"
Kettle, meet pot.
As Ashley takes out his amazing ~Booty Call~ device, Gwen looks on in dismay. "... O-oh, like... a pirate! Eheh..."
For better or worse, Gwen seems completely clueless of Emeralda's abilities, aside from what may be an unusual amount of strength for someone her age. But that, in itself, isn't too unusual when Gwen really thinks about it. "Oh hey, Emeralda, you okay?" She must have *really* disliked Ashley's choice of names.
With Fei actually going into the water and navigating with the help of Citan and Ashley's devices, the water is soon drained, leaving the fiends beyond those unopened doors trapped forever more as they continue on.
DG: Ashley Winchester has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================= =====================<* CHALLENGE - Mysterious Barrier *>===================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- The rough hewn caverns of the Lapisera Mines are ancient things, and reflect the limited tools of six centuries ago. That makes the discovery here strange: a quartet of golden ARMs, which produce a powerful barrier of blue light. This barrier proves powerful indeed -- and the machinery unlike any of the Al Bhed machina encountered to date. It seems that someone who entered has left this up, to impede the process of those coming in. Those familiar may recognize them as Solarian-created devices. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken, Exhaust==========================================
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
"What? Huh? What's not appropriate?" Ashley gives Fei a look that is just far too innocent to ever belong on the face of any self-respecting soldier. He just... honestly doesn't know? Apparently? "Yeah!" He nods eagerly in Gwen's direction, "Like a pirate! It's a box that helps me find any booty that might be lying around, and other things besides. Pretty useful, huh?"
He does give Emeralda a concerned look, though. She reacted poorly to... something.
...
When nobody's looking, the bluenette subtly pauses as if to inspect the stonework and briefly lags behind the others... to lean his head from side to side and give himself a quick, cursory sniff.
...Nope. Seems fine. Was it something he said, then...?
The party proceeds beyond the flooded caves and turns a corner, expecting to find nothing but more corridor, perhaps a monster or two. But there's hardly even a green exclamation point to take note of when they instead find themselves face-to-face with a glowing blue barrier... and a set of highly advanced devices powering it.
Ashley's expression rapidly changes from confused to unsettled to thoughtful in short order. "We didn't see anything like this the last time..." He murmurs, crouching near one of the ARMs to get a closer look. "Looks way more complex than anything native. But I don't think it's Filgaian, either...?" Ashley has clearly never interacted with Solarian technology before. "Maybe Veruni? Huh. I think we should be able to just break these things. The shield doesn't seem to be supporting the cave at all."
And so Ashley does as Ashley is wont to do when there's something that needs smashing. He hits it with the back end of his great big gun until it breaks.
DG: Ashley Winchester has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Mysterious Barrier.
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
It's worth pointing out that Citan's expression does not so much as twitch when Ashley calls out the name of his tool. He remarks on nothing about the name.
Instead, he lowers the camera and suggests on of the further doors to Gwen -- or rather: someone a little less, er, physically dense, like Fei, "The third one, to the right. I believe that may lead to a drainage shaft if I am understanding the pictograms on the door correctly."
...When did Citan learn Spiran mining pictograms?
Well, he did say he was doing a lot of talking with the natives since he's been here. A... lot of talking.
And then he turns to Ashley: "That is an interesting device. Would that happen to be working via electromagnetism? Devices such as that are an interest of mine. I would not mind taking a look at it."
Perhaps at the same moment Gwen glances his way, he glances hers. He doesn't say anything; there is no silent question or accusation or anything except perhaps mild curiosity when he looks at her.
He has, he realizes soon after, lost track of Emeralda. "Er, Fei, did Emeralda..."
Luckily, what she has done will make itself known once she resurfaces.
And soon after that...
A barrier blocks the path.
Citan regards the devices impassively for a moment or two. "Hmm... as I thought," he concludes, before retrieving his hammer from his belongings. "It is a shame but we must break them. To disable them would take too long," he surmises, raising his hammer.
Though, to Ashley he does say: "No, these are very much Filgaian technology. They are not utilizing a single sphere."
Before he slams the hammer into the nearest one of the devices. He does at least wince in regret.
Those things are made with higher quality parts... which cannot be salvaged now. But it can't be helped.
DG: Citan Uzuki has used his Tool Perfectly Normal Hammer toward his party's challenge, Mysterious Barrier.
<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
Whatever upset or offended Emeralda is not clear. She doesn't seem inclined to explain.
Right now she is busy wringing her hair out after going through the water to open a door, which is not strictly necessary but makes her feel a little better. She shakes her head afterwards, making her hair fluff back out again to its customary position.
By that point, the group has regathered, and is rounding the corner just in time to see the barrier. Emeralda looks at the barrier for a moment, then the machines creating it. She's never seen anything like this -
No. She has seen something like this before. Hasn't she? She wasn't awake, but - she was in a room, wasn't she? A white room. And they set up something to keep her behind before... Emeralda stares at the machines, very hard. Maybe she imagined them. But they seem so familiar...
"...I don't think those are from here," she says, but she sounds uncertain. Less enthusiastic. Ashley seems to have some to the same conclusion, though she doesn't know half of what he says (Emeralda doesn't know anything about Veruni, for one).
Everyone else seems to be breaking them, and Emeralda doesn't have any reason not to. She retrieves her bar (she never dropped it!) and tries to pry one out so she can hit it more solidly.
DG: Emeralda Kasim has used her Tool Reinforced Bar toward her party's challenge, Mysterious Barrier.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
As Gwen looks into the face of someone that genuinely seems utterly innocent as to the double meaning of his device's name, she begins to wonder.
.... Just how did she ever mistake this man for Janus? Not that she genuinely did on their first meeting, but!
Now, as they look at Completely Average Filgaian Technology, Gwen blinks. "Huh. How long ago was that, Ashley? Looks like these could be Gebler, or somethin'. Though Veruni ain't out of the picture eith- oh." She grins as Citan interjects. "I'm still learnin' on some of this stuff. Still, seein' it here isn't exactly a good sign, either way." Could the Gebler forces stranded here be up to something? Would it even be something bad?
Usually, smashing seems to be Gwen's forte, but with Ashley taking that part up, Gwen, for once, takes the more subtle route. "I'm gonna see if I can short-circuit these things. Shouldn't take that much to jam 'em all up." Tugging the leather glove off her right hand completely, Gwen wiggles the mechanical fingers on her right hand, breathing a sigh of relief. She gives Citan a look, to see if he immediately objects to her plan.
If Citan shows his misgivings, he will have to forgive her if she didn't look at him long enough to get any confirmation that this was ever a good idea.
After all, what could go wrong?
DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool ARM-ored Fist toward her party's challenge, Mysterious Barrier.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
There's a barrier coming up as well, and a strange quartet of golden ARMs which DEFINITELY doesn't belong on Spira. Fei tilts his head curiously and seems faintly bewildered but--well no, he doesn't recognize them as Solarian devices so much as, well, there was a Solarian SWORD so he has to admit, "Do you think...Gebler is still here?"
Ashley's strange look at him make him blush, doubly embarrassed. He doen't comment any further on the subject since his foot can only go so far up his mouth.
"Doc's really smart," Fei asides to Ashley. "He probably won't break it." To say nothing of the music box Citan somehow managed to destroy after turning it on but Fei doesn't know about that! It's probably okay. It's fine.
"Oh yeah she just went under a bit, " He adds.
FEI FONG WONG: GREAT PARENT. Though to be honest, he has a feeling that this isn't really the sort of thing he can stop Emeralda from doing. She wants to do it and well is clearly not fragile or weak so it feels like it'd just be kind of tyrannical to try and stop Emeralda from being adventurous.
Also it'd probably be pretty boring for Emeralda('s player)!
Still, he does give one last glance to BOOTY CALL and says, "Uh, please be careful with that. She's sensitive." He remembers that much.
Fei, much like Emeralda, decides that if everybody's going to hit them he might as well hit them too and he tries to give one of the ARMs a nice solid KICK.
DG: Fei Fong Wong has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Mysterious Barrier.
=============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================= =====================<* CHALLENGE - Mysterious Barrier *>===================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- The rough hewn caverns of the Lapisera Mines are ancient things, and reflect the limited tools of six centuries ago. That makes the discovery here strange: a quartet of golden ARMs, which produce a powerful barrier of blue light. This barrier proves powerful indeed -- and the machinery unlike any of the Al Bhed machina encountered to date. It seems that someone who entered has left this up, to impede the process of those coming in. Those familiar may recognize them as Solarian-created devices. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken, Exhaust==========================================
========================<* Lapisera Mines - Round 4 *>======================== =======================< Results - Mysterious Barrier >======================= Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Citan Uzuki 15 --(2)--> 17 Fail Perfectly Normal Hammer 1 Brute Effects: Stalwart and Rally ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Gwen Whitlock 15 --(0)--> 15 Pass ARM-ored Fist 2 Brute Effects: Strengthen ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ashley Winchester 10 --(0)--> 10 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fei Fong Wong 10 --(2)--> 12 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Emeralda Kasim 15 --(0)--> 15 Pass Reinforced Bar 2 Brute Effects: Stalwart ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Citan Uzuki 60 --(20)--> 80 Pass Conditions: Exhaust(1)|Weaken(2) Effects: Strengthen(1) ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Citan Uzuki has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 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. DG: Citan Uzuki has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== =================<* CHALLENGE - Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare *>================= |Type: Climax |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- In the depths of the Lapisera Mines, you come to a room that had once been a battle site. Strangely enough, the entrances to the room have a few bodies in strange armor and uniforms -- Gebler, for those familiar -- outside them. In addition, there is a huge hole where something (the Guts-Dozer) tore through, and made its way out. The chamber itself is a broad, flat room in a natural cavern. Pools of water gather here and there, in places where craters and grooves were cut into the ground. Stalactites are knocked over; rocks are strewn all about. Worse than that, though, is where a fresh cave-in in the back can be seen. Out of it floats a fiend larger than any you have seen thus far. Angra Mainyu resembles a Buer: a massive eyeball and a fanged mouth, with a sac of skin and huge wings behind it. This one, however, is the size of a behemoth, and it roars. It looses beams of light from its eye -- and, worse, members of the group are targeted at seeming random by immense blasts of flame. OOC: Please pull the next card immediately after resolving this one; it will be necessary to write a correct pose. Additionally, if you individually fail this challenge, and are able to cast Blue Magic or otherwise use enemy skills, you may apply for a Level 3 Flare Signature Attack on your next advancement application. =Dungeon Conditions: Suffer, Exhaust, Wound===================================
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
"Oh, sure!" Ashley says, though he doesn't quite doff the strange device to the equally strange doctor-fellow right then and there. He's got the presence of mind to hold onto it in case they have need of it somehow. "I was told it works using something called 'Radio Detection and Ranging' and a few other things. I don't really understand the details, but if you want to take a look--"
His gaze flickers Feiwards.
"It'd be fine, just uh. Please don't break it? I don't want a lecture from the ladies back at the Chateau." There's clearly nothing to worry about, though! This guy's a doctor. He's probably got a doctorate in advanced sensor technologies.
Among other things.
"She's sensitive to--" Ashley cants his head. Then realization hits him like a brick. "Oh. Oh! Gotcha," He turns toward the emerald-haired super robot and inclines his head apologetically. "Sorry, miss Emeralda. Don't worry, I'll only use it if we need it. Don't want to make anyone uncomfortable."
Speaking of uncomfortable! They're presently boxed in on five sides, and it's high time the group start dismantling a wall. Ashley's own efforts don't seem to do much, until he manages to luck out and crack his rifle right into what must have been a cooling unit, as the ARM rapidly begins smoking and sparking. "You're right," he says as the thing pops a circuit. "No spheres. You said that these looked like they might be Gebler, right...? I wonder what they're doing down here."
Gwen's efforts are even more successful. These things we clearly not designed to be overloaded like that, and she can plainly see the barrier field suddenly grow thicker around the units she's electrocuting-- before abruptly spasming and bursting as the projector fails. "It's been... a couple weeks or so? I guess that's long enough for someone to move in, and we weren't exactly quiet down here, but... Is that long enough for someone to move in and figure out that there's something worthwhile down here, and set up defenses to keep people out...?"
Meanwhile! Citan goes to smack one of the projectors with a hammer, but it's nestled into the rock face in just such a way that he can't seem to get a decent angle on it. Fortunately, with the field as weakened as it is, Emeralda is abundantly capable of wrenching one of the projectors out of place, whereupon both she and Fei are able to smash it to bits! It's a wonderful bit of father-daughter bonding. Too bad there's a rock placed right in such a way that Fei stubs his toe during one of his kicks.
With only one more projector in their way, the group doesn't have much trouble concentrating their efforts and, in short order, the barrier flickers and dies. "I wonder if the 'fiend' living down here was a member of Gebler all along? Guess we're going to find out, huh?"
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
"I assure you, Mr. Winchester, that I will treat it with the utmost care and delicacy." He pauses. "However, we may wish to wait until after we have finished the current expedition, yes?"
Speaking of treating electronics with care, he's currently got a barrier projector to handle. ...Which is proving rather, er, difficult for him to actually bash in given where they stuck it into the rock face. Frustration fleetingly crosses his face and then is gone; there's soon no need to worry at it further when the overall barrier is weakened by the others. He stows the hammer and proceeds after the others as they venture inward.
The first hint that something is just as awry as the rumors suggested is the bodies.
Citan kneels by one of them, a woman, and does a survey of the armor and damage done to it; he afterwards undoes one of the gloves, tugging it off as far as he needs to.
He doesn't need to look too long.
"...Dead for a week or so, I would say," he says, rising. Citan shakes his head. "They met with something in here that they could not stand against. Whether it was another person or a Fiend, however, I cannot--"
He stops here. His gaze has gone off towards the cavern room beyond where they now stand.
At the thing that lurks amidst the stones.
Which sees them, too.
It roars: a challenge.
"Move! Fei -- everyone, get clear--"
The warning may not be in time to handle the explosions of flame that follow, scorching them and the space around them with reckless abandon.
Citan breaks forward this time, making to move through or around the fires that flare around them. Assuming he is not caught up by the Fiend's randomfire magic, his goal is to circle it, to deliver a knife-like strike with the edge of his hand to a point that may be somewhat less well-defended.
DG: Citan Uzuki has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei's eyes kind of glaze over at all this technical mumbo jumbo but h e does say, "Oh uh. Sure. I don't know who those are. Or ... what the Chateau is. Or really about half of what you're saying. But um. Yeah, I wouldn't want folks mad at me either so... yeah."
Fei stubs his toe and says, "Mother---!"
And then winces so hard he manages to avoid saying a naughty word in front of the kids. He should just punch next time he thinks as he hobbles forward and, "Aw man."
And that's when they run into the Buer. "OH shit--" Fei says, raising up his RPS Badge defensively since he's not entirely sure what to do to face this sudden barrage--
--but it turns out to be effective because the RPS Badge is only level 98. The Bauer can't strike at him like this!
(Maybe).
"For a week? Geeze what happened here?" He pauses and looks to Ashley as if wondering if HE knows what happened here--but then that gaze turns to Gwen as if expecting HER to know.
DG: Fei Fong Wong has used his Tool RPS Badge toward his party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare.
<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
Emeralda pauses for a moment after she and Fei crunch one of the machines. She picks up a little piece of it from the inside (it looks significant), turns it over this way and that - and then shoves it in a pocket.
Well, Emeralda has always liked souvenirs, and it's not like there's been much else worth picking up... except an interestingly-shaped rock she grabbed back when they entered, but she has a lot of rocks from various places by now.
She has to hustle to catch up, having been distracted by looting (and also missed Fei's explanation to Ashley because of it). Emeralda rushes in only to be presented with Citan looking over a body. Two bodies.
Emeralda is not squeamish when it comes to beings that are actually dead (people who are hurt but not dead are a different story). This is both because she has seen a lot of violence, and maybe a side effect of being made of molecular machines and not meat; blood and bone is a lot less creepy when you don't really have either one, even if you have something that (mostly) acts the same. And just looking at those uniforms brings back another buried memory, turning over in the depths of her mind - she does not like those uniforms, or someone who wore them.
But she still feels bad for them, because they are people. "Oh," Emeralda says in a very Elly-like way, before a roar beats her on volume by quite a few decibels.
Emeralda throws herself to the side as something explodes around her. She comes up with the Etherstone in her hand, shoving power through it recklessly; a rough cube of lightning forms around the Angra Mainyu, orbs of electricity at the intersections, before it collapses inward with a series of thunderclaps, deafening in the enclosed space.
" "
Emeralda's words are drowned out by the thunder. She tries again, a few moments later: "What's that?!"
DG: Emeralda Kasim has used her Tool Large Etherstone toward her party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare.
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
"Oh, well yeah of course," Ashley chuckles awkwardly. "We might still need it to find a way back out of here, right? Mines can get all kinds of confusing." He should know. Seems like every other mission he got sent on back home was to a cave or mine or buried ruin or something like that.
Soon though, all talk of a Gebler conspiracy- and all talk in general- goes out the window. They turn a corner and find... Bodies. Several bodies. Bodies in uniforms that definitely look like a bunch of desert-tyrant-aiding-mercenaries are known to wear. "What could have done something like this...?" He definitely doesn't remember anything living down here that could have been capable of taking out a heavily armed group all in a bunch like this. (Clearly, they were all level 33.)
But then, the thing apparently responsible makes its appearance.
Driven by years of muscle memory, Ashley smoothly unlimbers his weapon and levels it at the giant floating eyeball. Not the most grotesque thing he's ever fought, but good god it's big. Huge, even. But it's also... an eyeball.
And that means Ashley can do this and not feel bad at all about it potentially being a tactical misstep.
Bolts of devastating power surge all around him as he takes aim. "Flash out!" Ashley pulls the trigger, launching another one of those blidning munitions right at the Ahriman's enormous pupil.
Hopefully, he's able to get the shot out without being viciously smote for daring to come down here with a level divisible by three.
(He can't exactly open his own status menu. That'd be silly.)
DG: Ashley Winchester has used his Tool Flare Gun toward his party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
Indeed, it was Gebler, in the end.
"... Oh..." Gwen presses a hand to her chest solemnly as Citan confirms their time of death. "... Maybe some fiends got in here, from the tunnels back there?" It'd take more than a pack of fiends to take down this many Gebler soldiers, however, even this far and this disconnected from their base of operations.
Something like... that thing, right there. "Guardians, what *is* that thing?!" Gwen flinches back as the beast roars its challenge, spitting fire with abandon.
.... This is the moment where a look of naked panic creases the redhead's face, trying to clamber away from the random spats of flame. No, she tries to remember. No, this is where things will go wrong. Control yourself.
It takes Fei looking at her, which clearly means 'do something', because Gwen missed the conversation completely.
Thankfully, Gwen is already forming a plan. A massive, flying eyeball can mean one thing, potentially. At first, it seems like the courier is charging up for one of more common combat techniques of 'blasting it to hell', if the glow seeping through the black threads of her undershirt's right sleeve are of any indication. Nah, Ashley and Emeralda have got that covered.
Cupping her hands in front of her, Gwen shouts, "Doc, everyone, I'm gonna blind it to give us a chance to escape!" Waiting until Citan seems to be clear enough to shield himself from any unfortunate sudden cases of blindness Gwen generates a massive flash and clap of electricity, looking away at just the last second.
What could go wrong?
DG: You must use a Tool that matches the Challenge's Dungeon Ability. If you do not have one, use the matching Basic Action instead by typing +act Brute DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Full Metal Courier toward her party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== =================<* CHALLENGE - Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare *>================= |Type: Climax |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- In the depths of the Lapisera Mines, you come to a room that had once been a battle site. Strangely enough, the entrances to the room have a few bodies in strange armor and uniforms -- Gebler, for those familiar -- outside them. In addition, there is a huge hole where something (the Guts-Dozer) tore through, and made its way out. The chamber itself is a broad, flat room in a natural cavern. Pools of water gather here and there, in places where craters and grooves were cut into the ground. Stalactites are knocked over; rocks are strewn all about. Worse than that, though, is where a fresh cave-in in the back can be seen. Out of it floats a fiend larger than any you have seen thus far. Angra Mainyu resembles a Buer: a massive eyeball and a fanged mouth, with a sac of skin and huge wings behind it. This one, however, is the size of a behemoth, and it roars. It looses beams of light from its eye -- and, worse, members of the group are targeted at seeming random by immense blasts of flame. OOC: Please pull the next card immediately after resolving this one; it will be necessary to write a correct pose. Additionally, if you individually fail this challenge, and are able to cast Blue Magic or otherwise use enemy skills, you may apply for a Level 3 Flare Signature Attack on your next advancement application. =Dungeon Conditions: Suffer, Exhaust, Wound===================================
=========================<* Lapisera Mines - Round 5 *>========================= ===================< Results - Angra Mainyu - Level 3 Flare >=================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Citan Uzuki 17 --(15)--> 32 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gwen Whitlock 15 --(15)--> 30 Fail Full Metal Courier 2 Combat Effects: Embolden -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ashley Winchester 10 --(0)--> 10 Pass Flare Gun 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fei Fong Wong 12 --(15)--> 27 Fail RPS Badge 3 Combat Effects: Rally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Emeralda Kasim 15 --(0)--> 15 Pass Large Etherstone 2 Combat Effects: Embolden -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Citan Uzuki 80 --(0)--> 80 Pass Conditions: Exhaust(1)|Suffer(1)|Weaken(1)|Wound(2) Effects: Cleanse|Embolden(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Citan Uzuki has passed 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. DG: Citan Uzuki has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ==================<* CHALLENGE - Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze *>================== |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- During the battle with Angra Mainyu, one thing becomes clear: this fiend is stronger than you can hope to defeat outright. However, you may be able to force the creature to retreat back into its lair. Unfortunately, Angra Mainyu intends to stop that. It hovers into the air, and its eye flashes. In the brief moment where it does, perhaps the wiser of you will realize you must do something to not look right into that eye -- for to do so will cause instantaneous unconsciousness. =Dungeon Conditions: Stupify, Reckless========================================
DG: Fei Fong Wong has used his Tool Artist's Toolkit toward his party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze.
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
"Not any normal Fiend, if so," he says, considering the wounds on the bodies still.
Before the possible source of this massacre makes itself quite known.
There is fire in many different places at once.
Citan's plan to strike at a potential weakpoint is thwarted when he is suddenly caught in a burst of flame; the doctor drops--
Though not because he has been grievously wounded. No, he drops because the last thing you want to do is feed a fire.
Also it gives him a little more of an opportunity to fix his situation, so to speak.
He was on fire. He's not on fire anymore. Keeping low as the others surge ahead, he reaches for his fallen kit and grabs for it.
Ashley's job wih the flaregun gave him an idea, though he's not entirely certain if what he has is strictly speaking a better tool for the job. Gwen, too, seems to have caught into the basic idea--
He is not the only one caught in the blaze. Gwen and even Fei are caught in it as they attempt to shield against or further blind the Fiend.
It's in fact Emeralda and that same flaregun blast that seem to have done the most damage to the creature, and it reels, blinking in the aftermath of the explosions of light and sound.
Before it appears to make its decision. It flutters into the air.
Its eye snaps open, wide, and it stares with a gaze that seems to piece into one's soul...
"Do not look at it!"
He has heard a story once, months ago, about Fiends that can induce instant unconsciousness with a stare. He averts his own gaze as he finds what he was seeking from the depths of his bag, and makes one final adjustment on the camera.
He takes a snapshot of the Fiend without looking at it. The bulb flashes with an audible pop; the walls of the cavern are fleetingly fully lit.
"Stun it! Now!"
DG: Citan Uzuki has used his Tool Strauss Camera toward his party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze.
<Pose Tracker> Ashley Winchester has posed.
'Do not look at it! Stun it! Now!'
Ashley doesn't need to be told twice. One would think that someone whose primary weapon is a firearm might not fare well against something he's explicitly not to stare directly at, but Ashley Winchester didn't get this far on luck alone. In the brief moment that Citan fills the cavern in light, a brief snapshot of the musketeer in motion is all too clear. He's not transforming into a terrifying, demonic force or filling the air with explosive munitions. No, he's... he's tinkering with that detector device he'd used earlier.
"There! It's not the best, but whatever! Targeting mode engaged!" Apparently the Booty Call comes with a rangefinder that enables him to tune the projection angle of its electromagnetic waves. And that means he can direct all of them in the vague direction of the Ahriman and rely on the images that appear to aim!
It's brilliant!
Also probably in the manual.
(Ashley is exactly innocent enough to thoroughly read through the manual on every new electronic gizmo that comes into his possession.)
Ashley fires again. This time, the slug in his ARM is no mere flare. The canister sails through the air, hopefully perilously close to the Ahriman's eye... before bursting into a shower of sticky, incendiary gel.
...Is it a war crime if the victim is an angry eyeball monster...??
DG: Ashley Winchester has used his Tool Booty Call toward his party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze.
<Pose Tracker> Emeralda Kasim has posed.
Emeralda was hoping that the lightning did more to it than that. Honestly, she blew most of the power she had left in one big shot. If she's going to fight it now, she's going to have to do it by hand. And she actually prepares to do so, her left hand starting to soften around the edges and flatten out before Citan yells not to look at it.
Now, Emeralda still doesn't know what this thing is, but she knows it's dangerous, and she knows she can trust Citan because Fei told her she could. (She may come to regret this somewhere around Disc 2, but that's a worry for a later time.)
So, she actually listens to him without thinking much about it.
Emeralda throws herself flat, and when Emeralda throws herself flat she *really* throws herself flat; her body presses down against the ground as she loses about half her depth front to back, both due to compressing inward slightly and filling the gaps that would ordinarily be underneath her while she's lying down. She's not looking, so she figures she'll be okay. Hopefully. Maybe.
Emeralda starts to crawl toward the others, either to make an escape or simply to regroup! She does not have much available to stun it, so hopefully the others manage that - though she does use what remaining Ether power she has to throw the occasional tiny fireball, more flash than heat, as an improvised flare. She liked Ashley's flare trick, apparently.
DG: Emeralda Kasim has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
'Do not look at it!'
Fei gets an idea and crouches down suddenly, rapidly scribbling on his sketchpad, so feverously that it may appear he has been taken over by THE MADNESS. No, not that madness, like a metaphorical...madness. Basically he's scribbling real energetically. scribble scrib.
Then after a moment, he is done. "Since you're causing trouble..." Fei murmurs before he lifts up the sketchpad.
"I have sketched your picture!"
FEI HAS USED SKETCH
Unfortunately he doesn't have any magical drawing powers she just sort of uses it to block his own eyesight as he charge sin and tries to SHORYUKEN the monster into the ceiling.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.
Stun it, Citan says. "I'll try!" Gwen shouts.
He probably meant 'stun it by flashing it' but Gwen had already tried that.
So, instead, in lieu of that, Gwen continues to generate, willing the coil engine system in her ARM to loudly whir, steadily building power...
.....
With a breath, Gwen's eyes widen and the glow abruptly dies.
It may be as if she managed to look at the eyeball, but instead, she's feeling on the ground, looking for- ah. A sharp piece of metal.
She frowns.
Sharp metal never is good for eyeballs, but trying to get a good read of that without *looking* at it directly is hard, no matter how good her throw is.
So, instead, Gwen digs out of her kit and holds up-
A compact mirror, the surface smudged from frequent handling.
"I read a story where this worked! Except that one turned t'stone, so this may not!!"
Citan, she is following your advice here and you should be ashamed if it fails
DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Courier Kit toward her party's challenge, Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ==================<* CHALLENGE - Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze *>================== |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 3 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- During the battle with Angra Mainyu, one thing becomes clear: this fiend is stronger than you can hope to defeat outright. However, you may be able to force the creature to retreat back into its lair. Unfortunately, Angra Mainyu intends to stop that. It hovers into the air, and its eye flashes. In the brief moment where it does, perhaps the wiser of you will realize you must do something to not look right into that eye -- for to do so will cause instantaneous unconsciousness. =Dungeon Conditions: Stupify, Reckless========================================
=========================<* Lapisera Mines - Round 6 *>========================= ====================< Results - Angra Mainyu - Mortal Gaze >==================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Citan Uzuki 32 --(100)--> 132 Pass Strauss Camera 3 Wits Effects: Fanfare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gwen Whitlock 30 --(100)--> 130 Fail Courier Kit 1 Wits Effects: Resilient and Rally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ashley Winchester 10 --(100)--> 110 Pass Booty Call 3 Wits Effects: Fanfare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Fei Fong Wong 27 --(100)--> 127 Fail Artist's Toolkit 2 Wits Effects: Enlighten -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Emeralda Kasim 15 --(100)--> 115 Fail Investigate 0 Wits Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Citan Uzuki 80 --(10)--> 90 Fail Conditions: Reckless(2)|Stupify(2) Effects: Enlighten(1)|Resilient(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: Citan Uzuki is too exhausted to continue! DG: Gwen Whitlock is too exhausted to continue! DG: Ashley Winchester is too exhausted to continue! DG: Fei Fong Wong is too exhausted to continue! DG: Emeralda Kasim is too exhausted to continue! DG: The party has failed this challenge! All party members are now Exhausted. This attempt is over. DG: The party led by Citan Uzuki has been fully Exhausted by Lapisera Mines! DG: The party will now draw a conclusion.
==============================<* Lapisera Mines *>============================== ====================<* CHALLENGE - Depleted Ore Deposits *>===================== |Type: Landmark |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Unfortunately, the final chamber -- or the approach to it -- is too much, and you are forced to retreat. Near the lowest levels, however, are places where the mining efforts of this fallen city came to their end. There are shiny places on the walls, where trace amounts of the metal that was being mined may be found. You are able to locate some shavings of this -- which may be analyzed later, or perhaps sell for a little gil. =Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Citan Uzuki has posed.
Light is joined by light: fires burn in an improvised flare.
The Booty Call too blazes bright with a brilliant flash. A mirror reflects all the ambient illumination. Fei does the smart thing and shields his eyes.
And there is a bullet, flying for that single bared eye.
The bullet, which detonates in a spray of goo that -- as the Fiend blinks -- glues its eye shut. For a moment, it might be thought that they have all won. That, surely, the creature will take the hint and flee.
For a moment, that is.
It screams, a hideous stone-rattling wail, and flames again -- more wildly than before -- lick the walls of the cavern here.
"No--!"
One lashes too close to Fei.
"No, this is no good! We must retreat!" He takes but the time to gather his equipment before he ducks through the inferno-borne oven the cavern is becoming. "It cannot see us so it cannot follow!"
And indeed, it doesn't follow. After running a distance they find themselves in a lower cooler tunnel of the mines. There are small shiny patches on the wall.
"Is this... hmm. I believe this may be trace metal deposits," Citan notes, running a finger across some of the exposed deposits. "We may be able to collect these. Perhaps they might be sold, or perhaps... hmm, with a proper metalworking kit..."
He'll have enough time to muse this one over, it seems.