2019-11-22: Routine Traffic
- Log: Routine Traffic
- Cast: Tio, Eleanor Klein, Ethius Hesiod, Seraph Clarine, Yue Rohay, Marivel Armitage
- Where: Under Traffic
- Date: November 22, 2019
- Summary: A routine trip into Under Traffic finds a stranded traveler and some lost Merian history.
==============================<* Under Traffic *>=============================== Under Traffic is the name given to a large cavern that runs north-south in Meria Boule. It connects the Merian Plains to the Damzen Marches, and in the kingdom's past, it served both as a way for rebels to escape and a path that Merian armies took to conquer the north. Now, it is a well-traveled underground path. The central path is relatively safe. It is large enough to fit a wagon, and many caravans do the cooler caverns than risk the worst of the Damzena Desert and treacherous mountain passes. A few waystations provide food and supplies. However, countless smaller pathways lead off from Under Traffic's main route. These can offer shortcuts into either region -- but also pose dangers, as criminal elements and monsters alike will often hide down here. BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egukkQjbzMQ
DC: Eleanor Klein switches forms to Crest Sorceress Eleanor!
DG: Yue Rohay has left your party.
DC: Yue Rohay switches forms to Lifelong Convict Yue!
DG: A party led by Tio is now entering Under Traffic. DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
==============================<* Under Traffic *>=============================== ==========================<* CHALLENGE - Narrow Fit *>========================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Many of the side pathways leading into the depths of Under Traffic are narrow things. The wider ones are usually guarded by Merian patrols -- which means one must slip through the cracks. In this case, literally: one of the tunnels leading into the paths below is little more than a crack, which will require some careful wriggling, contorting, and fast movement to get through before a patrol spots you... or, perhaps, bandits on the prowl come along. =Dungeon Conditions: Slow, Tire===============================================
<Pose Tracker> Tio has posed.
Entering the well traveled trade route of Under Traffic is not a particularly hard task, especially for those with the authority that ARMS provides.
Leaving the beaten path, however, that's a whole different affair.
It is Tio's first official mission with ARMS, and she is eager to be of use. For the moment, the small automaton is on point. She is dressed largely as she usually is, apart from a pair of black tights covering her legs- a suggestion from Eleanor in case Tio actually felt the cold. Tio saw no reason to argue.
As she comes up to the unguarded crack in the wall, Tio looks down it. "...There appears to be a safe route through here." She relays to the rest of the group. Her antennae light up slightly, and she evaluates. "We shall have to be careful not to get stuck."
This may be easier said than done for some of the group. "I do not presently detect any enemies." She says finally, before starting to slide sideways into the gap and start crawling through. It's not well lit, but fortunately, bright lights from Tio's antennae serve as a small guiding light. It's something, at least.
DG: Tio has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Narrow Fit.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.
Eleanor hasn't asked Tio to do anything she wouldn't do herself; she is in boots and tights herself, in a sturdy but not overwarm coat and a knee-length-ish dress, the dress in pink and the coat in brown. They all appear to fit her perfectly, and her usual satchel is strapped to her by the shoulder. She has her boomerang! And--
Yeah authority isn't a problem precisely. But the crack in the wall is still wise, and when Tio mentions it... "Yes!" Eleanor answers. "Good eye, Tio!"
Pause. "Aah... Those lights of yours are terribly handy, Tio. Thank you very much."
As she gets there, she considers--"There's some sharp edges... we'd be better off cold than bleeding, so a moment please."
Eleanor pulls her Ice Rod, and smooths over edges and ridges by virtue of just covering them in nice, slick ice that they can more easily shift past.
DG: Eleanor Klein has used her Tool Ice Rod toward her party's challenge, Narrow Fit.
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
There is a surprise here, the nature of which is not always clear on the polar scale of welcome - but there is an odd white-haired man who has found a bizarre route - or some series of actions nonetheless - that has put him at a higher elevation than the gathered but within earshot of semi-polite conversation. There is another crack in the wall this higher up. Why he is taking the crack in the wall this high up and not the one that is equally serviceable at the ground level is... well, maybe it's a cultural thing wherever he's from. There is bound to be some folksy wisdom, somewhere, about taking the inconenviently placed road where there is no clear reason to ever do so. Very folksy, indeed. The folksiest line of thought.
They stop what they're doing for a moment to look down to the announcement by the recently rescued android that they do not detect any enemies.
The man finds the choice of language interesting, inwardly, as he looks to who may or may not be gathered. Whether or not he's hailed (and/or asked as to why he is choosing to take such a high, out-of-the-way wall crack and not the one at ground level), they finish fitting a harness around one wrist and then go about the business of casting an appropriate yield heat spell via Symbology to serve as something to keep them stable as they try to slip into their own crack.
Hopefully there is nothing untoward about this man's presence beyond the coincidence of being present at the same time during ARMS' investigation of the less-traveled parts of Under Traffic.
DG: Ethius Hesiod has used his Tool Hot Air Sack toward his party's challenge, Narrow Fit.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.
It was time for an ARMS mission to the Under Traffic, something which Clarine readily agreed to. She was always glad to lend a hand, and she had been here at least once before, so she could lend out her help in that regard.
"Here, allow me to assist..." Clarine says. She reaches into her sleeves, drawing out a series of small prisms. She sends them ahead into the tunnel. They float past those moving through it and out of the tunnel itself. Light refracts through them, and they form a shimmering rainbow barrier in front of the path forward.
She can take them down at any time - it's main advantage is that if enemies do approach, it should give them some time to get ready for the possibility of attack.
But as she starts to move through.
"Ah! It is you..." She remarks, staring at Ethius for a moment.
DG: Seraph Clarine has used her Tool Prismatic Projector toward her party's challenge, Narrow Fit.
<Pose Tracker> Yue Rohay has posed.
Yue is... here.
Why is she here?
ARMS was sent here on an official mission to investigate any undue disturbances in Under Traffic, and normally there would be a contingent from the Meria Bouletin, namely one fiery-headed reporter and her mechanical Reploid companion but--
Something something Mithril Chef challenge.
"... hello, Eleanor, Clarine," speaks the lifelong convict as she steps in, having slipped back into her black ulster coat and with a renewed cucco feather in her mouth. "I am helping you today to, quote, 'pay room and board for staying in Acacia's apartment'. Is this young woman a companion of yours?"
She draws a faint breath as she looks to Ethius again and waves quietly. "Hello again too."
Then there's the fact that they nearly smooched--
No, hold on! That has nothing to do with it! Baaaaah!
She looks to one of the cracks and starts shimmying on through, with a quiet sigh.
DG: Yue Rohay has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Narrow Fit.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
Marivel Armitage does not consider Tio an agent of ARMS exactly, nor is she the sort of person to force her to go on missions. In practice, sure, this m ight seem like an ARMS mission and maybe that's how Tio is reading it, but Marivel is refusing to officially 'hire' her for the moment since Tio still needs to know what 'choosing' is before she can 'choose' to be a member and Marivel isn't the type of person to take advantage of that. IRVING might be, but not Marivel.
She's been hanging back a bit, largely to see what Tio can do and also because she is finding herself fond of the weird AI. She has never been on the SAME SIDE as a Tio before but more to the point, she hasn't found herself caring about a Tio before. Sure, she cared about them in the sense that she cares about all AIs but...
She takes a quick quaff of some blood--and aims to squeeze her way through the cracks.
"Thanks for the headsup, Tio." She says, glancing over to Ethius in case he is feeling rather pyro today.
"Oh have you met Yue before, Tio? Tio, this is Yue. She's a lifelong convict, but more than that... a lifelong friend. Hob, run executable 'sitcom4.mp3."
"awwwww...!" A live studio audience emits from Hob.
(mp3 stands for marivel player 3 don't worry about it.)
DG: Marivel Armitage has used her Tool Tomato Juice For Grownups toward her party's challenge, Narrow Fit.
==============================<* Under Traffic *>=============================== ==========================<* CHALLENGE - Narrow Fit *>========================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- Many of the side pathways leading into the depths of Under Traffic are narrow things. The wider ones are usually guarded by Merian patrols -- which means one must slip through the cracks. In this case, literally: one of the tunnels leading into the paths below is little more than a crack, which will require some careful wriggling, contorting, and fast movement to get through before a patrol spots you... or, perhaps, bandits on the prowl come along. =Dungeon Conditions: Slow, Tire===============================================
=========================<* Under Traffic - Round 1 *>========================== ============================< Results - Narrow Fit >============================ Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ethius Hesiod 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Hot Air Sack 2 Agility Effects: Resilient -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marivel Armitage 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Tomato Juice For Grownups 1 Agility Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seraph Clarine 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Prismatic Projector 1 Agility Effects: Fanfare and Quicken -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Eleanor Klein 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Ice Rod 2 Agility Effects: Quicken -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tio 0 --(5)--> 5 Fail Rush 0 Agility Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yue Rohay 0 --(0)--> 0 Pass Rush 0 Agility Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Tio 0 --(20)--> 20 Pass Conditions: Slow(2)|Tire(2) Effects: Cleanse|Quicken(1)|Resilient(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Tio 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> Tio has posed.
One day, hopefully, Tio will understand the distinction Marivel is getting at, but today is not that day. She does nod as Eleanor compliments her antennae, and they bob in the darkness. "Thank you, Master." Yue is also there, and Tio nods with the introduction. "Understood. Yue was our opponent in the cooking contest." See, she remembers!
he path through is tight and, as Eleanor points out, sharp. The sheet of ice makes things a little slippery, but also much safer. Ethius' own way of sneaking through via applied symbology works well, keeping stable footing. Clarine provides a prismatic barrier of protection from view, allowing the group to sneak through unbothered. Yue expertly shimmy's through, despite the narrow conditions. Marivel is able to make her way through easily.
In fact it's only Tio who runs into any problems, slipping on the now icy path, and tumbling briefly back into Eleanor with a small yelp. She stands up and quickly rights herself, before they emerge from the tunnel. Tio looks apologetic when they get back into the light.
Still, she notes Ethius' presence now, and looks up at him. She tilts her head. "Who is that?"
DG: Ethius Hesiod has drawn a new Challenge.
==================================================<* Under Traffic *>===================================================
=========================================<* CHALLENGE - Suspect Demolitions *>==========================================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
Various bandit groups have laid claim to parts of Under Traffic for years.
Some of these have, in an effort to make safe houses, brought in explosives
for excavating. You find one such place, now. A large chamber ends in a
caved in section of rock... and there is a series of large wooden crates,
with hasty skull and crossbone symbols to warn that they contain loads of
dynamite. These can be used to blow a way through the cave-in.
Of course, you may want to be cautious; such explosives are suspect, to say
the least, and using too much -- or mixed with your own abilities in the
wrong amount -- might bring this whole section of cavern down on you.
=Dungeon Conditions: Weaken, Injure===========================================
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
The various people who greet Ethius are just met with one of his usual stares. It lingers for a little longer on Yue, but as far as anyone knows, that's his way of saying 'hello.' Whether he is in an arson mood or not, well... he slips through his higher crack.
Their various routes carry themselves through a stretch of cavernous pathway that occasionally breaks out into open air before becoming cramped again. All roads among the gathered soon deposit themselves before a stash of aged wooden crates - dusty, forgotten, and neglected.
This route has yet to be pioneered as anything more than a dead end - and it seems others have had designs on further exploring, as Ethius touches down from above and holds an arm out to the gathered as if to say 'stop.' Why he would is a mystery and they are under no obligation to honor that gesture because it's patently obvious what he's going to say.
"...These haven't been touched in years," he remarks. He looks back to the gathered. This is the part where he might be keen to say 'these are dangerous and maybe you shouldn't touch them and/or let me do what I want with them,' but, curiously...
He steps back and doesn't say much of anything. Anybody with any sort of familiarity with excavation equipment will be able to say that a) this is a crap ton of explosives, b) some of it is crystallized over, and c) wait what did point 'b' say...? :o
"I believe we have fully explored this passage," Ethius remarks.
That's not true, they haven't seen what's beyond the boulders and rubble ahead - they could find something no one has prior, if they're willing to make use of what they have right here! Is anyone among them feeling adventurous or curious enough to play with expired explosives?!
Ethius isn't the one who seems keen on making that call, for some reason - but he could probably be coaxed to ignite something if asked.
DG: Ethius Hesiod has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Suspect Demolitions.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.
"Your magic is always so pretty," Eleanor tells Clarine. And then she hears--"oh!" She smiles. "Hello--" She pauses, and laughs softly. Is that how it is, then?
"Yes," Eleanor answers. "Tio is our friend," she answers, and looks to smile at Tio. "You remembered!" she says of the matter of their opponent--of the festival and its games.
Eleanor sounds very happy for this."
Eleanor is not very strong, but she's in fact strong enough to brace against the wall and not fall over with her. "Oh, it's okay," she reassures her. "No harm done!"
"And this," Eleanor says once she and Tio are both stable out in the light, "Is Ethius Hesiod. He helped us once, when we needed it. He can be quiet, but I think he has a good heart."
As they walk forward, though--Eleanor is happy to walk along with the others... But she pauses, at Ethius's statement, lifting an eyebrow.
"...Ethius," she says, "I appreciate your insight--but couldn't we use some of these to help us get through there? We can find out why they're here if we do. And my magic should be able to shield us if the blast is a little unpredictable..."
boulders, and rubble.
"It could be anything! Marivel, what do you think? I say we press on! I'm terribly curious. What if it's something important to the realm? ...Or magical? ....or old???"
Yeah Eleanor is definitely for this. Buuut she isn't great at blasting through things herself, though she starts to cast a spell of protection once someone gets started.
DG: Eleanor Klein has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Suspect Demolitions.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.
Eleanor compliments her magic! Clarine beams, brightening up.
"I am glad you think so...!" She replies cheerily, before looking toward Yue.
"Ah, Yue, it is good to see you..." Clarine greets, then listens. Room and board... Clarine chuckles a little. "Ah...she is making you pay for it...? I am not surprised. Well, I am glad to have you us..."
Clarine offers her a small, friendly smile, and then nods.
"Yes, this is Tio...she is a friend of ours..." She explains - but, Marivel does the explaining for them.
But, in the end they make it through, and after some travel they eventually find themselves at...a dead end. Clarine observes it, pondering...and then, looks to the explosives that Ethius indicates.
"Hm. Explosives are...not my specialty..." Clarine remarks with a frown. "However...if you wish...I can use my light to burn a hole into the debris to place the charges into, so as to more efficiently direct the force..."
That's about the best she can offer in this situation - and as she recommends that, she generates a sphere of light in the air from which she will shoot a beam wherever she's directed.
DG: Seraph Clarine has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Suspect Demolitions.
<Pose Tracker> Yue Rohay has posed.
"Hmmm...? Oh!" Yue lights up as Tio says that she's met her at the cooking contest, since she probably was distracted and tugged on four sides. She nods to Eleanor with a mild chuckle. "The Minder was very proud of her ice cream serving skills." She doesn't say anything about her own cooking.
She glances to Marivel and-- you could kind of see her head steaming as Hob plays the 'awww' noise, and she guides the little orb closer to her to give it a scritch under the chin.
"Hmmm. A lifelong friend..." she muses quietly. "'Tis pleasant, to have such company."
She taps at her chin as she remarks...
"... I concur with Ethius, actually. Old explosives are highly risky," Yue advises. "I--"
Eleanor wants to press on! She looks surprised, as Clarine concurs. She asks if Acacia is making her pay for it.
"In a... manner of speaking..." Yue roundaboutly says. ... that sounds a bit suspicious. "Ha ha..."
DG: Yue Rohay has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Suspect Demolitions.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
Marivel slowly looks at Ethius.
She looks towards the explosives.
She looks back to Ethius--and then lights a match and presses it against a line that leads to a cartoon-style stick of TNT. The fuse is also cartoonishly long.
"I live for danger," Marivel says. "Though, uh, live is maybe not the best way to put it. Because I'm not 'alive'. Except metaphorically. Since I have to be clear on that point or people will think I'm being down on myself. Hob run sitcom3.mp3."
Hob plays a laugh track at Marivel's joke.
She glances over to Eleanor and smiles, and then adds, "Pressing on, right? Old??? is my favorite, slightly above Ancient??? but under Middle???."
DG: Marivel Armitage has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Suspect Demolitions.
<Pose Tracker> Tio has posed.
Well, that answers that question. The strange man is designated a name, and he seems to not be considered a danger. Tio gives a nod. There's also talk of lifelong friends, and Tio seems to think for a bit. "If Yue is a lifelong friend, have you known her for her entire life?" For some reason, Tio is thinking about this. With Clarine adding that Tio is a friend of hers- and the group as a whole- Tio seems to consider the situation.
"Clarine is designated as friend." Tio says, as if that's a normal thing to say. She seems to pause for a few moments, as if processing something.
And then Eleanor points out that she wants to go forward, and Tio nods. She touches the mana egg she carries. "Understood, Master. We will go forward."
She chants. "Purple."
And then there is a sudden crash of lightning against the crates, the wall, and everything else. Oh dear.
DG: Tio has used her Tool Soul Egg toward her party's challenge, Suspect Demolitions.
==================================================<* Under Traffic *>===================================================
=========================================<* CHALLENGE - Suspect Demolitions *>==========================================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
Various bandit groups have laid claim to parts of Under Traffic for years.
Some of these have, in an effort to make safe houses, brought in explosives
for excavating. You find one such place, now. A large chamber ends in a
caved in section of rock... and there is a series of large wooden crates,
with hasty skull and crossbone symbols to warn that they contain loads of
dynamite. These can be used to blow a way through the cave-in.
Of course, you may want to be cautious; such explosives are suspect, to say
the least, and using too much -- or mixed with your own abilities in the
wrong amount -- might bring this whole section of cavern down on you.
=Dungeon Conditions: Weaken, Injure===========================================
=============================================<* Under Traffic - Round 2 *>============================================== ===========================================< Results - Suspect Demolitions >============================================ Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ethius Hesiod 0 --(7)--> 7 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Marivel Armitage 0 --(17)--> 17 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Seraph Clarine 0 --(17)--> 17 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Eleanor Klein 0 --(17)--> 17 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tio 5 --(17)--> 22 Fail Soul Egg 2 Brute Effects: Strengthen ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Yue Rohay 0 --(7)--> 7 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------------------------
DG: The party led by Tio has failed this challenge! The party gained 10 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. [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "....well." [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "that" [OOC] Tio says, "oh no" [OOC] Ethius Hesiod says, "'splodey" [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "wasn't ideal" [OOC] Yue Rohay says, "..... ok i like that the two people who're like 'nahhh we don't wanna touch' that passed"
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
"Just about," Marivel tells Tio because she's kind of an asshole sometimes. "Do you want stories, Tio?"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "hahahahah"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "i love awkward, also"
<Pose Tracker> Yue Rohay has posed.
Yue's cheeks puff out very round at about the same time Tio goes 'purple' and lightning explodes everywhere. It's very appropriate.
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "I"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "'purple' used to be the word i had my in-person tabletop groups use if they needed to stop and get everyone's attention"
[OOC] Tio says, "oh whoops"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "no no that's not a problem it's just funny X)"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "(yes, yes, I gave my tabletop a safety word, with taht group we needed it)"
[OOC] Tio says, "Most of Tio's 'chants' in Grandia 2 are just the colour of the element she's using"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "I like that"
[OOC] Tio says, "honestly that seems like good practice, same as an X card"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "yeah basically"
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
It is Eleanor whom first broaches the idea that they make their way through with the explosives at hand - as if by a desire to see what could be beyond here that would give the idea to leave about so many old, expired explosives that may not have been expired when they were first abandoned here.
"...That is your perogative." That's also not Ethius saying 'no,' but it's impossible to not notice some tension in the man's otherwise reserved body language.
Clarine has the foundation of a solid idea - burning a hole into the obstruction ahead so that they could fit in any of the explosive charges, assuming it didn't go off the moment anyone so much as waved them around like they were lost on an uncharted island or something.
"It is their perogative," Ethius verbally tries to cut off Yue as he takes his eyes off of some of the Risky Business going on, which is a fatal mistake because when Marivel decides to have another time of her unlife to unlive dangerously, she's gone on ahead and lit something however she sees fit.
Eleanor's instinct to prepare a protective spell is prescient, all considered, as Tio dutifully follows Marivel's lead with a 'Purple.'
Ethius' eyes widen. He slurs syllables as he swings an arm inward--
* like, boom, and stuff *
Explosions go off in a violent chain reaction, some of them delayed but no less dangerous as the enclosed space collapses all around them. Only one saving grace prevents them from being flattened outright - there's a cavern beneath them!
...It's quite a fall.
Yue is, in turn, only mildly inconvenienced by the catastrophic concussive force of so many explosions going on around her at once - it's much like a rude, brisk wind. The rest... probably have Eleanor's preparation to thank them from suffering any worse than they already might from being caught in the middle of that.
Ethius is face-down, with a nearby small rock bouncing off of his head, but this is some sort of existential norm for him.
As the smoke clears...
[OOC] Marivel Armitage says, "hahaha"
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "ahahahahaha"
DG: Eleanor Klein has drawn a new Challenge. ==============================<* Under Traffic *>===============================
=============================================<* Under Traffic - Round 2 *>==============================================
================<* CHALLENGE - How to Stop a Rolling Boulder *>=================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 3 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Some of the bandits and monsters that have moved into the Under Traffic's
underbelly have left dangerous traps. In this case, the Gobs are to blame.
As you round the next corner, you hear a pair down the tunnel cackle -- and
then a massive round stone, carved to vaguely resemble the face of a Gob --
comes rolling towards you. Worse, the tunnel is short, and outrunning it may
be hard.
This means finding a way to stop -- or destroy -- the boulder, before it
crushes you, may be the only realistic option to advance. Which you better
do quickly, because it is rolling straight for you.
But... who knows what secrets are hidden in the center of a Gob-made boulder
trap? (Answer: probably shinies.)
=Dungeon Conditions: Secret, Exhaust==========================================
[OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "bruuuuuute"
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.
"I at least know what you mean," Eleanor says to Marivel conspiratorially. And then she smiles at Yue. "It's so lovely that you two are friends like that..." Pause. "Wait, does that mean..."
Eleanor seems not to think about the risk of the explosives, and this is a problem. Unfortuantely, Eleanor is, while highly trained in leadership and diplomacy...
...Just a mite very impulsive.
"Owww," Eleanor says from the ground, complaining without real words. "W-well," she says, "At least our work was very... impressive! And, we've... found..."
She pauses, and thinks. "Hmm actually I wonder what's here, too..."
But when they all get up and move on, Eleanor peers around a corner--and here, a bit away from their landing site, she hears a cackle. They all do. "Oh, no," Eleanor says. "Gobs."
And then suddenly there's a giant ass boulder with a Gob face rolling at them and that's just terrible. "Aaa!"
Eleanor promptly... pullse her Crests and starts trying to bore a hole in the side so they can evade the crushing thing--which may well work!
...But those who are better at brute force might be able to do something about the trap in a far more fruitful fashion...
Also Eleanor's 'it will probably work' just took a big hit, with the whole explosion thing.
DG: Eleanor Klein has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, How to Stop a Rolling Boulder.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.
Clarine beams as Tio designates her a friend.
"Yes!" She replies...and then, frowns for a moment. "But, ah...only if you want to be!"
"'In a manner of speaking'..." Clarine repeats. "Hmm. I see..."
She intentionally doesn't elaborate on this. Is she...actually teasing Yue...?
Fortunately for Yue, she can't take it any further - the explosions going off drown out anything she might have said.
Fortunately for Clarine, gravity has a fairly tenuous grasp on her, and so when the cavern opens up beneath them, she falls at a safe, manageable rate. Unfortunately for her, she's still pretty toasty from the explosions.
"That was...ah...not ideal..." She murmurs. "But at least we are all still in one piece..."
...But for how long? Because it isn't soon before they find a Gob-boulder barreling right toward them.
Clarine blinks...and then, holds her hands out, once more shooting off a beam toward the Gob boulder. It could be convenient if she could drill right through it, but if she could at least damage it enough to slow down it's rolling that would be nice, too. She doesn't stick around long enough to find out either way - she quickly makes her way toward the nearest safe spot immediately after.
DG: Seraph Clarine has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, How to Stop a Rolling Boulder. [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "god i can't believe i forgot to reply to 'in a manner of speaking'"
<Pose Tracker> Yue Rohay has posed.
Yue's eyes widen as the space collapses all around them -- and starts tumbling on through. She thinks quickly and-- and--
...
She's literally using her hair as a parachute, clamped onto her heels. Is there anything her hair can't do?? (It probably can't be compared to the Hot Air Sack, because if you set a fire under it it'd just burn. Hang in there, Yue's Hair...)
...
She lands.
She also stares at Carine, stammering, "W-what? Pray do not tease me further! It is-- oh, thank goodness there is a boulder to distract us."
Yue gathers a deep and internalised breath as she steps on through to the front, drawing one leg back as she descends into martial focus--
*sssLLLASSHHhh!*
--and then pauses in the interstice of the bright white line creating a trick
in time and space both in splitting the screen apart.
"Wait. Two halves of a boulder..."
A pause.
"Is ... twice as many problems coming at us. I am sorry."
DG: Yue Rohay has used her Tool Zantetshoeken toward her party's challenge, How to Stop a Rolling Boulder. [OOC] Seraph Clarine says, "...Hahah." [OOC] Yue Rohay more like a zantetshoecan't... [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "ahahahah"
<Pose Tracker> Tio has posed.
"Yes." Tio says, in response to Marivel's question, with no idea of the potential awkwardness. "I will accept any additional data that may be helpful."
And then everything explodes. The explosion is far bigger than Tio expected. Her eyes widen, and then she falls.
Her landing is not particularly graceful, and she pulls herself off the ground and dusts herself off. Then she looks dow2n at her feet. There is a slight redness in her cheeks. Did they seriously go out of their way to make an automaton that can feel embarrassed?
And then there is that laughter. And that rumbling sound. Tio looks up and sees the boulder. She doesn't know what 'Gobs' are, but it sounds like Master does not approve. "The boulder will have achieved terminal velocity by the times it reaches us." Helpful, Tio. Helpful.
And then Yue attempts to slice the boulder in half. "That will lower the terminal velocity." Still helpful, then she nods. "I will attempt to slow the boulder."
She steps out in front of it. This is a bad plan. Will it be lightning again?
"Silver."
A huge gust of wind flies up the tunnel from where Tio is standing, aiming to slow the boulder down enough that it can be completely destroyed. And then Tio dives to one side because standing in front of giant rocks hurtling towards you is a bad plan.
DG: Tio has used her Tool Soul Egg toward her party's challenge, How to Stop a Rolling Boulder. [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "Ooooo"
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
Ethius, understandably, takes some time to get back up as he goes through the usual motions of everything that happens when his brainpan gets another booboo - it's sort of a wonder at this juncture that he can coherently put together words in a concise and understandable fa-- oh. Maybe that's why he speaks that way.
...ahem
He is among the very last to announce his presence (on the Actually Real Possibility(tm) of Getting Killed By The Explosions), when the laughter of Gobs somehow pierces the murky veil of mired, muddled senses. Noises of specific mechanical sequences click into a comprehension so deeply ingrained that the rest of his body just snaps into motion. His entire world splits into two halves - well, at least one half and another half with a partially molten edge.
Quietly, some syllables are slurred as fingers flex and flutter to an incantation so well practiced that he's capable of pulling it off even as the rest of his senses are still on the brink.
A spell name is stated at the end but lost in the ruckus, as a great burst of sorcerous heat tries to fuse the boulder against the trappings of the hallway to a stop.
"...The Gobs," Ethius remarks, "were they expecting our presence...?" Yeah, maybe they can worry about that once they know whether or not they're about to be squished (again?) by a rolling boulder.
DG: Ethius Hesiod has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, How to Stop a Rolling Boulder.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
"Does that maen what?" Marivel asks of Eleanor before--"Sweet! I love stories!"
Uh. Explosions. Yeah.
Marivel turns into a bat, hovering in midair for a moment, then looks down to look at her falling friends before saying, "Oh right. Ahhhhhhhh!"
She falls down the hole, reforming back into Marivel upon hitting the ground.
"Gobs?" She asks, then sits up--and looks right at the boulder. "...Oh Gob Dammit." Marivel says, stepping backwards because there's not enough time to chant a spell so she's going to have to count on the kindness of strangers here.
Oh wait. Stories.
"Story, story... how about the time we met? What do you think, Yue?" She's giving Yue a chance to change the parameters!! "Remember this is for Tio. Hooray! For Tio!"
DG: Marivel Armitage has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, How to Stop a Rolling Boulder. [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "gob......" [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "let's find out" [OOC] Eleanor Klein says, "if more of us will be x_x" ==============================<* Under Traffic *>===============================
=============================================<* Under Traffic - Round 2 *>==============================================
================<* CHALLENGE - How to Stop a Rolling Boulder *>=================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 3 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Some of the bandits and monsters that have moved into the Under Traffic's
underbelly have left dangerous traps. In this case, the Gobs are to blame.
As you round the next corner, you hear a pair down the tunnel cackle -- and
then a massive round stone, carved to vaguely resemble the face of a Gob --
comes rolling towards you. Worse, the tunnel is short, and outrunning it may
be hard.
This means finding a way to stop -- or destroy -- the boulder, before it
crushes you, may be the only realistic option to advance. Which you better
do quickly, because it is rolling straight for you.
But... who knows what secrets are hidden in the center of a Gob-made boulder
trap? (Answer: probably shinies.)
=Dungeon Conditions: Secret, Exhaust==========================================
=========================<* Under Traffic - Round 3 *>==========================
=============================================<* Under Traffic - Round 2 *>============================================== ==================< Results - How to Stop a Rolling Boulder >=================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ethius Hesiod 7 --(0)--> 7 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marivel Armitage 17 --(20)--> 37 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seraph Clarine 17 --(0)--> 17 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Eleanor Klein 17 --(20)--> 37 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tio 22 --(0)--> 22 Pass Soul Egg 2 Brute Effects: Strengthen -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yue Rohay 7 --(0)--> 7 Pass Zantetshoeken 4 Brute Effects: Efficient and Rally -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Tio 30 --(20)--> 50 Pass Conditions: Exhaust(1)|Injure(1)|Secret(2)|Weaken(1) Effects: Strengthen(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Tio 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> Eleanor Klein has posed.
"It would be rude of me to ask," Eleanor answers Marivel.
Then, "Wait," Eleanor says suddenly. "In a 'manner of speaking'???" She senses gossip. She can practically taste it. And yet, there's this boulder!! A terrible boulder!!
Ethius brings a good question, and there is time to comprehend it... After--
The screen splits, and their large problem becomes two somewhat smaller problems.
The beam hits, and... lightens their path (OK no really it blasts a hole in the boulder.)
Tio then sets it on wind, and the sheer force of the magic slows both halves considerably. And then--Ethius melts half of the boulder to the wall, where the other half finally cracks along the fault line Clarine's magic placed, and it shatters.
Eleanor and Marivel don't have time for a lot of spellcasting in the moment, so they both get dusty.
"...Hooray," Eleanor asys without enthusiasm, coughing once. "Oh, well, I do like being alive, at least..."
She just walks up and leans on Tio for a moment. "That was entirely too much running," she sighs.
DG: Yue Rohay has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Under Traffic *>============================== =================<* CHALLENGE - Injured and Lost Traveler *>================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 1 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- Sometimes, unfortunate travelers end up in the Under Traffic's warrens by mistake. Perhaps they were lost; perhaps they were captured and escaped. You find one slumped, unconscious, against the rock. Head tilted down, hat over their face, they look like they might be dead -- until you see them draw breath. This traveler, it seems, needs medical assistance... and to get out of here. How to best do that -- and make sure they return safely -- is up to you. (Or, alternately, rob them.) =Dungeon Conditions: Reckless=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Yue Rohay has posed.
Yue at the very least splits the boulder into two smaller problems. But then, just as she retracts and stoops back towards her ready stance--
How about the time we met?
--surreptitously chooses to get whammed by the entire top half of the boulder who tells Yue, "Hey, momentum is a thing, you know," and Yue kind of has to acknowledge, "Oh yeah, momentum is a thing."
Yue winds up sailing as the rest of the group actually resolve the issue with the boulder, and...
... the rest of the group find her lying next to an injured traveller. Did she just direct herself in a direction where there would be another distraction so she doesn't have to talk about the day she met Marivel??
(yes)
"His ribs are bruised," Yue does at least speak up. "And his vitals weak. But we can save him."
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
"Wait." Ethius speaks as Yue moves to save an injured traveler she manages to find herself knocked into - and this could well be another one of those disagreeable Ethius behaviors. The man seems to have an especially strained relationship with the Veruni, for whatever reason, even when Yue is doubtlessly working to altruistic, even life-saving ends, and has been nothing but kind and helpful to just about everyone she's come across.
"...We have already been present to a Gob-designed ambush. This may be a honey pot." ...Okay that might be a more reasonable concern on his part, as he withdraws the Spectral Lens from somewhere on his person. How it wasn't smashed or shattered from that explosive incident some short time ago, well... moving on. After casting a low-yield electrical spell through his Symbology to activate it, he brings it up to one eye and gives a careful sweep to make sure that no one present is about to step on a pressure plate or anything of that sort attached to any nearby traps in waiting.
...
They probably don't have time to wait for his 'okay' to move in to help the injured traveler, though.
"Given our current circumstances," he speaks as he regards the rest of them for about the first time since someone else kindly moved to introduce him on his behalf, because he is notoriously bad/finicky about giving his name like he were some sort of Rude Elemental, as though he were a fey spirit of being Rude instead of being the flesh-and-blood sort of rude man he already /is/... ahem. "I will say that I have held some concerns about Gob activities in these parts."
That's nothing new, though, they're notorious troublemakers on average.
"I had hoped to investigate any potential sponsors or other suppliers the local tribes here may have been in contact with since the majority of us returned to Filgaia." He does not specify why he puts a distinction between 'sponsors' or 'other suppliers.'
He returns dutifully to triple-checking to make sure they aren't all about to set off another trap where the injured traveler may have been set up as bait.
DG: Ethius Hesiod has used his Tool Spectral Lens toward his party's challenge, Injured and Lost Traveler.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.
"A-ah! Yue!" Clarine remarks in surprise, as she goes flying!! Clarine quickly moves to follow her, just in case she needs treatment - but soon, she finds that there's someone who does. Clarine gasps.
"They must have gotten lost... these tunnels can be winding and treacherous, for those who do not know the way..." She murmurs. "I shall do what I can to help."
She pauses, though, looking toward Ethius as he suggests this may be an ambush.
"...Be that as it may...it is my duty to aid those who are lost and injured in dangerous places. I will not abandon him, regardless of the risks involved." She says firmly.
With that Clarine draws out a sphere of pure, clear crystal from her sleeves, using it as a focus for her power.
"Sacred spirits, bestow your healing touch upon the weary! Nurse!" Clarine incants. And then, a warm, comfortable light emanates from her location before condensing into...not shimmering, winged spheres, but two human forms? They look like actual nurses - one moves to tend to Yue, while the other moves to tend toward the traveler.
"Once he is fully healed, these incarnations of light can help lead him out. I...imagine he may be more likely to trust them." Clarine says.
...And partially, she just wanted to see if she could still create them. It had been a while since she last got creative with her spells...
<Pose Tracker> Tio has posed.
Tio does not object to being leaned on in the slightest. She waits for Eleanor to finish resting before moving forward. Still, too much running, can she even help with that? Is it possible to minimise running scenarios? Tio thinks on this as they move along.
Where they find an injured man. Tio's sensor antennae light up again. "Preliminary scans indicate Yue is correct." She says, even from a distance. She reaches for her mana egg, but Clarine beats her to it, summoning figures to assist the man. That's... impressive. Throwing more healing magic at the problem might not be a good idea. Instead she starts looking around, antennae beeping.
"It appears there is a safe route to the main cavern through here." Tio indicates what seems to be a safe, if narrow and awkward pass. But it's quite a trek, and you can't quite see the end. Are her sensors reliable enough for this.
Still, she thinks on Clarine's statement about duty, and wonders aloud. "Your duty is to many people, not just a Master?" Tio asks. "Would that not provide contradicting orders?" Even in the depths of a cave (that is possibly filled with more Gobs), she still finds herself asking questions.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
"Oh be rude, please." Marivel begs before being covered in dust. Marivel clucks her tongue and starts brushing dust off her body. "Well, let me see... t'was a long time ago... One of those early adventure dungeons... Aleister's Crypt, was it? Or was it Carmine's... Well, anyway, we were looking for power orb--one of four we needed to empower one of three shield generators to protect this city we were keen on protecting. Before she got the sword. Wait maybe it was three power orbs for four generators? I think one of the generators was already running just fine."
"Anyway, Yue also wanted the orb. If it was an orb. Let's call it 'the thing'. We both wanted the thing. And Ana wanted the thing. And we were going after the same thing. Now Ana, she didn't have the sword yet, so she tended to get a bit creative and she saw this lever. An she pulled the lever thinking it would help since it was a close fight and I wasn't really the best at shapechanging yet so I fell into the hole, and Yue fell into the hole, and we were both down the hole."
"And we were stuck in the hole while Ana was looking for a way to get us out. Anyway Ana was taking a while--turns out she got lost because it was Ana, okay--so we had to go looking for her on our own and we got to talking on the way and ended up enjoying each other's company."
Marivel smiles. "But of course after we had to fight the boss monster--geeze, was it a wyvern? I think it was some kind of wyvern. Some reptile thing--point is, there was a monster that was giving Ana a hard time and Yue had the idea to pull a lever and send it down a trapdoor. It got stuck but it was a lot easier to deal with after that."
"The moral of the story, Tio, is to always pull the lever."
She crouches down, intent on administering pain killers to the poor guy to help with the MAGIC HEALING.
"But to be with friends or mortal enemies while pulling levers."
She pauses a bit before looking to Yue. "Who ended up getting the thing anyway?"
DG: Marivel Armitage has used her Tool Wisdom of the Crimson Nobles by M. Armitage toward her party's challenge, Injured and Lost Traveler. DG: Yue Rohay has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Injured and Lost Traveler. DG: Seraph Clarine has used her Tool Brilliant Sphere toward her party's challenge, Injured and Lost Traveler. DG: Tio has used her Tool Sensor Antennae toward her party's challenge, Injured and Lost Traveler.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.
For a moment, Eleanor is almost sure Yue just stepped into that boulder. But that would be absurd. Super absurd. So she avoids the gossip for now in favor of--A story. "I'm not going to ask her about her age while we're working! It's too rude," Eleanor decides. But she does leave the door open to ask in private, and did just raise the question anyway, so is this a gambit...??? Either way--the suggestions made by this story definitely indicate some possibilities.
But--"Oh!"
Eleanor starts to move towards the man... and then hears Ethius's counsel about it. She considers it for a moment, and nods. "All right," she says, watching Clarine move forward with a nod to her. "I'll be watchful--here, I can look around corners with this item..."
Eleanor focuses, and then hurls her boomerang down the tunnel, lifting one hand to perform the necessary focus to draw on its power--
Her eyes briefly flash white, before she catches her weapon.
"No, we're safe for now from the immediate environment. And so is he, if we play our cards right. Clarine, do you need any more help with him?"
Eleanor looks to Tio, and inclines her head, then. And at her question--"It does happen," Eleanor allows, "That our priorities are tested--that we face contradictory situations. But Clarine has a strong conviction--and if she acts this way to all who need it as she finds them, then that's a very good guide for her behavior."
"Ultimately we all have to decide how best to fulfill our duties--that's one of the responsibilities and benefits both of free will."
"I have many duties, myself. Some of them are now to you, because while you obey my orders, I have a duty to care for you in turn. Related, but a little different--It's the paradox of rulership; if we do our duty, then we also serve those who we rule."
"...I suppose," she says to Marivel after that thoughtfully, "That after a long enough time the events are less important than who you met with them, what remains after."
She looks back to Tio, "Maybe don't pull every lever. ...But I do like levers..."
DG: Eleanor Klein has used her Tool Hunter's Boomerang toward her party's challenge, Injured and Lost Traveler.
=============================<* Under Traffic *>============================== =================<* CHALLENGE - Injured and Lost Traveler *>================== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 1 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- Sometimes, unfortunate travelers end up in the Under Traffic's warrens by mistake. Perhaps they were lost; perhaps they were captured and escaped. You find one slumped, unconscious, against the rock. Head tilted down, hat over their face, they look like they might be dead -- until you see them draw breath. This traveler, it seems, needs medical assistance... and to get out of here. How to best do that -- and make sure they return safely -- is up to you. (Or, alternately, rob them.) =Dungeon Conditions: Reckless=================================================
========================<* Under Traffic - Round 4 *>========================= ===================< Results - Injured and Lost Traveler >==================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ethius Hesiod 7 --(0)--> 7 Pass Spectral Lens 2 Wits Effects: Enlighten ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Marivel Armitage 37 --(0)--> 37 Pass Wisdom of the Crimson Nobles by M. 3 Wits Effects: Fanfare ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Seraph Clarine 17 --(0)--> 17 Pass Brilliant Sphere 2 Wits Effects: Enlighten ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Eleanor Klein 37 --(0)--> 37 Pass Hunter's Boomerang 1 Wits Effects: Cleanse ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tio 22 --(0)--> 22 Pass Sensor Antennae 2 Wits Effects: Enlighten ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Yue Rohay 7 --(0)--> 7 Pass Investigate 0 Wits Effects: BASIC ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Tio 50 --(30)--> 80 Pass Conditions: Reckless(2)|Secret(1) Effects: Cleanse|Enlighten(1) ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Tio has passed this challenge! The party gained 30 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> Yue Rohay has posed.
Ethius wisely points out that this may be a Gob-designed trap, something that Yue honestly would probably just... deal with when it came to it (because escaping from the story is more important!!).
He gives a scan through the area and finds... nothing. But sometimes, finding 'nothing' is a victory in and out of itself -- that there was no pressure plate-rigged trap in the vicinity!
"... if you mean the Radicals," Yue does point out, "I do not think they would engage with the Gobs. The average Radical is far too disdainful of who they believe 'lesser'," she ruefully chuckles.
Clarine goes to actually perform the deed, and a Nurse picks the traveler up and alleviates his wounds. "Aah... I'm saved..."
Yue looks up at the Nurse assigned to her.
She's glad the Seraph isn't trolling her by making her look like Acacia or anything.
Tio affirms her medical scans, and finds a path for them to follow; Eleanor explains about how one can be dutiful to many, and at the same time also performs a little of the same scans Ethius is doing and identifying it to be clear.
And then MARI HAPPENS
"... 'tis a conduit for an enormous city-wide barrier, like the one you might have seen in Saint-Centour, present day. Really, I was merely ordered to fetch it under orders, and ..."
She bobs her head one way, picking at her hair.
"We were both more fiery and young, I suppose. We spat and jab and traded barbs at each other. 'Pull the lever!' you yelled. 'I shall not!' I yelled. 'Always pull the lever!' 'You never know when it is a trap!' so on and so forth."
A pause.
"Then the Wyvern fell in the trapdoor, and there was this pause and-- we just laughed and laughed at each other. Oh, we were truly in a pickle then."
A longer pause, as Marivel asks who actually got the thing in the end.
A LONG LONG TIME AGO
"Well done!" a young Ana exclaims as she gives a big thumbs up to the unspoken fourth party in this story...
...a very round Golem whose metallic body is far less dented and shorn with rust and scuff-marks back in the day.
Big Shal turns to the camera and gives you a thumbs up.
DG: Ethius Hesiod has drawn a new Challenge.
==================================================<* Under Traffic *>=================================================== ===========================================<* CHALLENGE - Unfinished Exit *>============================================ |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 | -----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >----------------------------------------------- You finally come to the end of this particular path through the Under Traffic. The path leads to the mountains. As you approach the exit, you can spot it through a few streaks of daylight -- emerging through little holes in the rock. The rock is scored and struck, showing places where dynamite may have been applied. Unfortunately, the exit was never finished -- and it seems that there are another five feet of rock, or so, to break through before one emerges from Under Traffic. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
Whether Ethius listens intently to the story of how Yue and Marivel met - and whether there is a point in specific to this tale being recounted to this lot or not - his mineseeeping work is thorough, though his gaze does shift as Yue clarifies that this may not be the work of the 'Radicals' based on known behaviors as regards them.
"...I see." Does he, though?
"Hey... I... I remember the way I took here," says the traveller as he comes to, helped. He looks to Eleanor - who did not cast that life-saving spell - because he is not Resonant enough to see his true spellcasting savior. "Thank you for... for helping save me. Come on... let's... let's just leave before the Gobs find us..."
Well, having someone who theoretically knows the way is as great a lead as any, so by some means or another, this traveler leads everyone along up until...
"...Oh, no." The traveler winces, clutching at their side as though the sting of disappointment were there to reignite the pain they just recently suffered. "The way out collapsed...? Or did they collapse it behind me?!" Poor nondescript traveler, ready to sit down and just give in. The daylight through the cracks taunts and teases the gathered. "...They took my excavation equipment before dumping me down there and leaving me for dead... we're trapped."
He looks to the eternal convict who first 'discovered' him (in so much that she got launched towards him), the distant woman with the interesting headgear, the out-of-place noblewoman who hardly seems to have let the grime and dust of the place stick to them, the young woman he has mistaken for being his miraculous healer, looking past the place where Seraph Clarine currently manifests, and briefly settling on what looks like a man who seems the sort of guy to do what was just done to him by Gobs.
Said traveler just buries his face in his hands. "There's nothing we can do to get out of here, is there?"
Ethius just looks to the gathered with a stare that comes as close to 'bewildered' as anything his piercing stares can communicate.... to the point he puts a hand to his forehead.
"Indeed, I am to presume there is nothing we can do about this blockage." He plays along, for the moment.
He'll get to the part where he tries to Symbologically melt a whole lot of rocks in due time.
DG: Ethius Hesiod has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Unfinished Exit.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
Marivel smiles, "I had such a stick up my ass back then, but thanks to people like Yue and Ana...Well, you learn self respect and pride can come in many forms and some forms are better than other."
She looks over to Eleanor, being reminded then that this adventure was a long time ago which would explain why Marivel can be a bit hazy on the details she didn't feel were as important. She says, "Yeah... When you put it that way, it seems about right."
She glances back to Yue. And then looks down, then back up again.
"Always concerned with appearances," She describes her old self. "Yue... do I, mmm, do I still resemble...the me that you became friends with, back then?"
She laughs, "I bet I'm completely unrecognizable."
A LONG LONG TIME AGO
Marivel watches young Ana give a big thumbs up to a mysterious and very round golem with a grumpyface cool-vamp frown. Then Big Shal gives the player a thumbsup too and Marivel gives a soft 'heh' cool-vamp chuckle before her lips twist into a genuine smile.
Then her cheeks gain a soft blue blush as she looks away and contorts her face to be max sour once more.
NOW
"I should thank you, though, for not....going away." Or, well, for coming back after going away at least but Marivel is in the now.
DG: Marivel Armitage has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Unfinished Exit.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.
Clarine looks toward Tio as she asks her question.
"It is...difficult to explain." Clarine replies to Tio, hesitantly. But, thankfully, Eleanor does a good job of doing so. Clarine nods.
"Yes, that is correct. I do not think I could put it any better." She says, then sends Eleanor a slight smile. "You are very wise."
Fortunately for Yue, Clarine isn't that much of a troll, despite the various influences in her life.
She smiles, though, as Marivel recounts her story, chuckling good-naturedly. It sounded like quite a wonderful time...
But, with the traveler up on his feet, they're lead to the nearest exit - unfortunately, it happens to be one that's rather thoroughly blocked off.
"Hm... oh dear. This is a problem..." Clarine murmurs. What to do...
It'll probably just end up being lasers again, frankly. It's probably the easiest solution she has at her disposal.
"I feel like... this pathway has been one barricade after another." Clarine grumps. "I would have preferred a nice puzzle..."
DG: Seraph Clarine has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Unfinished Exit.
<Pose Tracker> Tio has posed.
The idea of a two way duty, that seems to confuse Tio. "Master, please do not worry about me. It is my duty to serve you." And not vice versa, is the unspoken part. She hasn't worked out how to complete the only order she's been given so far, of course. She simply can't understand the parameters.
The moral of the story, though, and Master's orders, those she can act on. "Understood. Pull most levers." That's a valid interpretation, right?
The new problem awaits them. A wall of stone that is collapsed. And there are no convenient factors like explosives, or a wind resistant gob face on a boulder. What to do? Her sensors blink again, and she nods. "This barricade is approximately five foot deep before opening into a wider path." She says, with some certainty. "I do not detect any levers." She reaches for her mana egg again. Lightning had backfired, and it was too solid for wind to work. What options did she have left?
"Light Blue."
She holods the Soul Egg forth, and a sudden torrent of water blasts towards the rocks. It's no sophisticated water cutter so much as it is a barrage, aiming to push the rocks apart as much as she can.
DG: Tio has used her Tool Soul Egg toward her party's challenge, Unfinished Exit.
<Pose Tracker> Yue Rohay has posed.
Yue does climb up very quietly after Clarine heals her, looking towards the traveler and patting him on the back (this is a curiously difficult manuever, because her arms are very thoroughly shackled). "Do not be discouraged so."
She chuckles and rubs a bit of the scuff off her face. "Why, before we discovered you, we were very eager to set off some explosives, I tell you..."
Ethius says there's probably nothing they can doa bout the blockage. Hmmm.
But Marivel gets her attention.
"You believe you were conceited? I was at least double that," Yue self-deprecatese with a chuckle. "Ana was good for both of us. So earnest and enthusiastic with everything she does. Today's Drifters carry her spirit on a little, do you not think?"
A pause, as she asks a more tender question.
...
"Mari." A pause. "Marivel Armitage."
She turns towards the obstacle as she once more gathers that focus of hers -- it's a stance that, back then, was used with a sword. She was always a Fast Draw practitioner back then, with ties to the Arctica of the distant past.
So much is her skill that she somehow manages to find a way with a pair of heels. She waits until Tio readies herself with water, looking towards the vulnerable part it's breached...
And as such, once more the screen
--SPLITS--
--and the first rays of what must be the sun start to filtrate on through with
a very clean thin line, as she rounds on her right heel, turns...
"I often call myself a disappointing adult," Yue remarks. "Indeed, before this is all over, I will disappoint you all time and time again. Because it will not be long before my mother tells me that I should carry out her wishes, with no regard to whatever lives, settlements or communities are at risk."
She lowers her head.
"And at that time, you and the other Drifters will come to oppose and repel me, as Ana once did."
... and lowers her slashing leg down.
"But never in an instance would I ever dream to be a disappointing friend to you."
She lifts her head to turn towards her with a smile.
"No matter what you become. No matter what choices you make. I am fond of all' that Marivel Armitage is, past, present and future."
DG: Yue Rohay has used her Tool Zantetshoeken toward her party's challenge, Unfinished Exit.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.
"You'll understand eventually," Eleanor tells Tio. "But it's not something I mind." She smiles. This probably doesn't help with understanding. ...She doesn't correct about the levers. Instead--
"Oh, do you?" Eleanor asks, and then--"Ah--" Eleanor gathers the truth quickly, "We're happy to help," she says as the most diplomatic approach, and they do go along, except... Oh, dear.
"What?" Eleanor asks Ethius, blinking at him. "Of course we can make a way through!" She walks to the man, and gives him a firm look. "Gather your courage! We'll have you out of here in no time--what I need you to do for us is simply to tell us if any more Gobs approach."
She smiles at Marivel--and does not... interrupt that moment, between the two of them for now. It is something special. And--
"It's kind of you to say so," she can finally respond to Clarine, "I try to be. if I can't show understanding, I'll do a poor job taking over Mother's responsibilities one day."
Pause. "But I terribly agree, a nice puzzle..."
Tio's power is impressive to her, as before. ...And Yue--ah. She realizes, and laughs faintly at the memory. However...
Her own efforts here, as the screen splits, are not to blast through--but instead to begin casting spells of strengthening on those who are. "Come on, everyone! We've faced much more difficult than a little door-to-be! All we have to do is keep doing our best!"
She turns her head slightly, and doesn't look right at Yue, "Today, at least, I'm certain none of us will disappoint one another."
DG: Eleanor Klein has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Unfinished Exit.
==================================================<* Under Traffic *>=================================================== ===========================================<* CHALLENGE - Unfinished Exit *>============================================ |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 | -----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >----------------------------------------------- You finally come to the end of this particular path through the Under Traffic. The path leads to the mountains. As you approach the exit, you can spot it through a few streaks of daylight -- emerging through little holes in the rock. The rock is scored and struck, showing places where dynamite may have been applied. Unfortunately, the exit was never finished -- and it seems that there are another five feet of rock, or so, to break through before one emerges from Under Traffic. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
=============================================<* Under Traffic - Round 5 *>============================================== =============================================< Results - Unfinished Exit >============================================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ethius Hesiod 7 --(0)--> 7 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Marivel Armitage 37 --(5)--> 42 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Seraph Clarine 17 --(5)--> 22 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Eleanor Klein 37 --(5)--> 42 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tio 22 --(0)--> 22 Pass Soul Egg 2 Brute Effects: Strengthen ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Yue Rohay 7 --(0)--> 7 Pass Zantetshoeken 4 Brute Effects: Efficient and Rally -------------------------------------------------------< Party >-------------------------------------------------
DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success! DG: The party led by Tio has successfully explored Under Traffic! ==================================================<* Under Traffic *>===================================================
=============================================<* Under Traffic - Round 5 *>==============================================
=======================================<* CHALLENGE - Ancient Knight's Emblem *>========================================
|Type: Discovery |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1 |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
The tunnels and warrens of Under Traffic have been explored and expanded on
for generations. In centuries past, Meria Boule used Under Traffic to invade
the fragmented principalities of Damzen and bring them under the control of
the crown. Many knights entered the tunnels, exploring to find new ways to
move Merian armies... and many met grisly ends in these tunnels.
As you are about to leave, you find a soul that did not escape. The skeleton
you find has been picked clean, and the armor on it has gone to rust. Its
sword crumbles a little more to be touched. However, the silvery emblem on
the armor is pristine -- ensorcelled to never tarnish. The descendants of
this brave knight may be interested -- or perhaps you would like a memento.
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Ethius Hesiod has posed.
The traveler present looks a little weirded out at the casual ease in which Marivel just seems to enjoy the company of another with her, as if unable to grasp that maybe Marivel has been Through A Lot Of Shit Like This and the concept of being stuck underground - however defeatist and ill-conceived on a purely portal perspective, even for a purely mortal perspective - and that this situation may as well be a mere fifteen minutes of a mildly uneventful day for a Crimson Noble.
The traveler looks alarmed as he takes notice of strange lights fire off without a clear source, panicking and wondering if they're under attack as they throw themselves at the ground for the inevitable Gob ambush that doesn't happen.
Eleanor helps rally those capable and able to deal with the rocks ahead - Tio's analysis of the spatial relationship between the blockage and what lies ahead is a massive boon for people who can use that for their own purposes (such as, say, Ethius right there who is trying to play coy).
Tio calls forth torrents of water to try and erode the rocks. Ethius prepares the expected higher-end heat spell to try and melt the obstruction into short-lived slag, but then Yue...
Yue once more shows that flash of overwhelming strength, even restrained. Water, heat, and light split into two halves... and the top half of the tunnel just collapses into a somewhat less inconvenient ramp of rubble that allows them a way upwards. Upwards, into open air.
The travelr looks up from where they once cower.
"H-How did any of you..." He doesn't understand what just happened. "Wait... up ahead, I...!" HE takes off, injured as he is, scaling up the loosened rocks and leading them to a skeleton bearing a silvery emblem on the long-rusted-to-useless armor. "...This is..."
The traveler kneels down before the long-picked skeleton, who nonetheless managed to keep one luxury on them. The recent excavation on their part must have loosened them from whatever unmarked grave they once rest.
"This one... this one was a knight of Meria Boule from hundreds of years ago." The traveler says. "I... I came here in hopes of recovering evidence of those who went missing during the unification of Damzen under Meria Boule. I'm... I'm not sure I could say for sure who this was by name... but the emblem is unmistakable..."
A historical artifact unto itself, however small a token it is.
Ethius shadows behind the group. He doesn't say anything to detract nor distract from the moment, or even show that much interest for the item in question - but that in itself is not unusual, for how he has been observed acting throughout the last handful of years.
"...Thank you, for helping me find at least this," the traveler says, "...I hope I can find more like this... once I know it's safe to keep looking. So many with fates unknown have yet to be found..."
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.
Marivel Armitage looks to the traveler and gives them a quiet and brief smile before looking back to Yue.
"D-double conceited... That's some conceit!" Marivel hides behind goofery to cover from mild embarrassment. "...Yeah..." She says, looking towards Eleanor. "...They do."
She closes her eyes a moment and then blinks her eyes open as Yue KICKS the screen in half once more, leaving Marivel on one side of it.
Yue speaks of a time when they will oppose Yue.
And Marivel says, quietly, "'Oppose and repel me'? That is a funny way of saying 'reach for my hand and hold it tight."
She smiles. "I look forward to that day."