2018-09-08: Go Jump In A Leck

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  • Log: Go Jump In A Leck
  • Cast: Layna Manydays, Sorey, Catenna, Seraph Lanval, Avril Vent Fleur, Cyre H. Lorentz
  • Where: Leck Mines
  • Date: September 8th 2018
  • Summary: Drawn to the Leck Mines for various reasons and purposes, the group discovers that the place has been flooded. Venturing into the water-logged depths, they find something surprising within.

DG: A party led by Layna Manydays is now entering Leck Mines - Flooded.
DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
==========================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>==========================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Dive Into the Dark *>=====================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 2          |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 The entrance to the Leck Mines is found at the end of a long mine track...
 or at least it was, before the mine's entryway was buried under a thousand
 tonnes of stone. Near the old entry, however, a massive hole dozens of yards
 wide has opened in the ground, giving you another way in... provided you're
 willing to dive into a pitch black hole that you're /told/ has water at the
 bottom.

 "Afore ye go, take these," mumbles Drifter Saul, handing out necklaces with
 crude Symbols carved into them - each emits a faint light that provides
 about 20 feet of illumination. "Ain't no way yez can bring torches er lamps
 down 'ere - 'em Symbols is good fer 'bout an 'our, no mer, but yez be out 'r
 ded innat time, so at's alls good. As fer air..."

 Saul snorts and spits over the edge into the hole. "Well, mebbe yez kin
 finds some pockets down 'ere. Good luck, folken."
=Dungeon Conditions: Injure, Reckless=========================================
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

A lot had changed since everyone had left for Lunar. They had gone but time still marched on, and the world continued to turn...and, in some cases, shake. It was said than an eartquake had rocked the region, and now the Leck Mines had been flooded.

This place was of great interest to Layna. This was where she had found her Gear - the VALS-4 Corsair, as she had named it - so it had some importance to her. Now that it was flooded...who knew what else they'd be able to find down here?

And so she took an interest in the notice at the Adventurer's Guild and decided to head out - she probably isn't the only one. She and the others meet up with the Guild contact - a man named Saul - at a hole that supposedly leads deep, deep into the earth.

Layna recognizes this particular entry point. It's the very same one they used to bring the Corsair out of the mines in the first place. If the water has truly reached here, then the mechanisms are probably all flooded...guess they'd have to things the hard way.

Drifter Saul passes out necklaces with Symbols carved into them and Layna takes one.

"We'll be fine, trust me. I know what I'm doin' here - I was practically raised in the water." Layna says with a grin. And then she leaps into the hole, reciting an incantation that causes wind to spiral around her and slow her fall.

Now here's hoping there was actually something still down there...

DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Dive Into the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 Sorey had arrived a bit after the battle - he had been struggling to reach Azado, and it had taken him some time to descend into the ruins and make his own teleport back to Filgaia. He had been a bit surprised, but Sorey was also well aware that there were problems back on the other world that he needed to deal with. Leaving a note for Rose to follow him when she could, Sorey had set out into the wilderness to discover what had changed in Filgaia in his absence.

 Thankfully Krosse seemed to be contained for the time being. UNFORTUNATELY he also didn't have any of his old Filgaia funds at this point - they had all 'disappeared' when he hadn't paid for the room for a few weeks.

 It was time to get back to earning a bit of living money, which meant exploring ruins for fun and profit. Mostly fun, but the profit was useful, and the Adventurers Guild always paid well for new data.

 As Sorey looks down into the water next to Layna, he chuckles and accepts the necklace. "I appreciate the tool, although I've got a few other tricks up my sleeve as well," he comments with a polite smile.

 Next to him, unseen by Saul, Mikleo smirks. "Yeah, it does help having a water Seraph as a partner, doesn't, it?"

 Sorey chuckles at the unseen comment, and starts pulling out his climbing kit. "I'll lay down some rope as we go - it'll help keep people from getting lost. Diving underwater is really dangerous even with magic supporting you - it's important we don't lose our way."

 After listening to any replies or comments, Sorey leaps down into the water as well. He's just wearing his tunic and cargo pants - everything else is packed into an oilskin, watertight bag.

DG: Sorey has used his Tool Climbing Kit toward his party's challenge, Dive Into the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Catenna made the journey here without a companion. Since coming to Filgaia, the Owlet has been tired and withdrawn. Catenna has spent the last few days trying to coax it back to health, but with the Leck Mines calling and Cyre answering, she reluctantly left the little bird in the care of Jay and her friends for a brief time.

But it still troubles her. The tiny Totem Bird is in the back of her mind, like a weight of worry as she approaches the edge of the hole.

Taking one of the symbological charms, Catenna loops it around her neck with a wordless nod for the handy drifter. She leans forward a little to squint down the hole.

There's supposedly water at the bottom. But who knows how deep it is? Catenna looks up at Layna as she uncoils her rope, about to say something.

The pirate jumps.

"...You're not going to be able to do that on the way back up,," Catenna says to the empty air.

The Moon Shaman sighs. She uncoils the rope she brought with her, kneeling to affix the grappling hook to a solid-looking outcrop, then wend the rope around it a few times to further secure it with a solid scout's knot. Only then does Catenna boost herself over the edge of the hole and begin a controlled descent down into the depths of the mine.

"Captain Manydays," she calls down, "is there water?"

She pauses. "If there's not, can the largest part of Captain Manysplats answer," she calls.

DG: Catenna has used her Tool Grappling Hook toward her party's challenge, Dive Into the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    The Seraph Lanval's been having a weird time of things on Filgaia, which is to be expected. For how things were on Lunar for him, though, this is likely to be home for basically forever and ever and ever and he's... adjusting. Maybe? He's been mostly quiet on whatever vague number of business trips Fox Company's made since returning.
     There is a very good reason he is present today. Flooded to heck, his very nature might be of use - he's a water elemental! He can't drown in the conventional sense. He quietly watches as everyone hears out Saul's warnings and take him up on a number of essential supplies.
     Lanval manifests himself outside of the bottle just as Layna takes the confident plunge, a ways away from the Shepherd. He doesn't voice it aloud, but he knows that's the Shepherd. He might have heard the decree from the Goddess about himself...
     ...But he can't let Layna go on her own. He already ran off on his friends that one time in a low moment in his long, long life. The portly phantom finds out he's not the only Water Seraph here, so that's... good. Maybe he can take a breather.
     He exhales - that weird habit he's picked up from mortals that's something of a meditative thing for himself - and decides nah, he'd better just flop on in ahead of most the rest that are taking their careful precautions.
     If there isn't water at the bottom where Layna's going, there will be soon...!

DG: Seraph Lanval has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Dive Into the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    It had been at once such a short and such a long trip back to Filgia.

    And, unfortunately, the world they'd returned to is not much better off than the one they so suddenly left. While she had not seen the event itself, Dean had confirmed what she had feared -- felt -- from the Medium she bears.

    Mother is awake. Which means that they now must seek to find what they might to bear against her, for the sake of the planet of which they are the children.
    It's the Medium now that leads her, as it may have (she thinks, she supposes) have done on Lunar. It's little more than a feeling, one that stretches from the ancient disc of metal to settle into her core. But when she'd seen the notification, she had known where she should head.

    "Thank you, Saul," Avril says, accepting the necklace and hooking it around her throat. She glances then from Cyre, Layna and Catenna -- both of whom she knows -- to Lanval, who she has met but does not know beyond a face, to Sorey, who she has never met before.
    And for his sake, introduces herself: "My name is Avril Vent Fleur. ...The Medium was calling me."

    Whereupon she draws out the Original Artificial Medium of the Sea, holding out before her like a divining rod.
    The sense from the Medium is weakened. But she can still feel that guiding pulse, she thinks...

    And gravely, she intones as she approaches the lip of the hole: "Lucadia... please, guide us."

    There is a moment before the slight shift in the wind (a sea breeze?) arrives.
    And a moment more before, without hesitation, Avril jumps over the edge, empowered by Lucadia's magic.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has used her Tool Sea Medium toward her party's challenge, Dive Into the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Cyre had always suspected that return to Filgaia wouldn't necessarily be a happy one. The awakening of the so-called Mother and the strange malaise gripping the Guardians and those linked to them have only confirmed that. Cyre has put in his time tending to the Caravan's sick and lethargic little owlet hatchling, but...

But even so, Cyre has tried to stay in good spirits. After a second trip to the Cage Tower, though, even he seems a bit more... subdued. He hasn't elaborated on the specifics of what it was they found there to anyone outside the Carakin, but...

It's bad.

Like, metal-infested sandworms and horrible Hyadean assimilation bad.

What's he doing at the Leck Mines, though? Well, that has to do with the local Adventurer's Guild! Money is always a good motivator, but clout enough to spread news about terrible demon plagues and be believed for it? That's something money can't (cheaply) buy.

Or, that's the plan anyway.

But! They are faced with a pit. And so Cyre does what Cyre always does when faced with a pit. He jumps! And then deploys his parachute, like the dirty cheater that he is.

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has used his Tool Reverse Parachute toward his party's challenge, Dive Into the Dark.
==========================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>==========================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Dive Into the Dark *>=====================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 2          |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 The entrance to the Leck Mines is found at the end of a long mine track...
 or at least it was, before the mine's entryway was buried under a thousand
 tonnes of stone. Near the old entry, however, a massive hole dozens of yards
 wide has opened in the ground, giving you another way in... provided you're
 willing to dive into a pitch black hole that you're /told/ has water at the
 bottom.

 "Afore ye go, take these," mumbles Drifter Saul, handing out necklaces with
 crude Symbols carved into them - each emits a faint light that provides
 about 20 feet of illumination. "Ain't no way yez can bring torches er lamps
 down 'ere - 'em Symbols is good fer 'bout an 'our, no mer, but yez be out 'r
 ded innat time, so at's alls good. As fer air..."

 Saul snorts and spits over the edge into the hole. "Well, mebbe yez kin
 finds some pockets down 'ere. Good luck, folken."
=Dungeon Conditions: Injure, Reckless=========================================
=====================<* Leck Mines - Flooded - Round 1 *>=====================
=======================< Results - Dive Into the Dark >=======================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Layna Manydays                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorey                               0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Climbing Kit                        1   Agility Effects: Cleanse
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avril Vent Fleur                    0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Sea Medium                          2   Agility Effects: Quicken
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catenna                             0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Grappling Hook                      2   Agility Effects: Quicken
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Reverse Parachute                   1   Agility Effects: Rally and Quicken
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC
----------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------
Leader: Layna Manydays              0 --(20)--> 20                 Pass
Conditions: Injure(2)|Reckless(2)
Effects: Cleanse|Quicken(1)
==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Layna Manydays 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> Layna Manydays has posed.

For the average folk, a jump like this would probably be fatal. Even if there was water at the bottom, at the height they were jumping it'd still be pretty dangerous.

But, these were not average folk. They were all skilled adventurers in their own right, and they'd had come more than prepared for this situation.

"It's safe, lass! I was right, though - the elevator's all rusted. We can probably get it workin' again, but it'll take some doing!" Layna shouts up.

 Whether it's climbing kits, the aid of a Guardian, or watery friends, they all make it safely to the bottom.

The room they find themselves in looks like it was a Gear hangar once, though now it's been half-flooded...but seismic activity and the risen water level has closed the original entrance and opened up a new one.

From here on out they'd be completely in the dark, but where was the fun if she knew exactly where they were going?

DG: Sorey has drawn a new Challenge.
===========================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===========================
==================<* CHALLENGE - Blinded Without the Light *>===================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 2          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 You find yourselves in the central cavern of the Leck Mines - the place
 where a dozen winding tunnels all come together, where miners would deposit
 their loads for transport to the surface. Air is trapped within the upper
 few feet of this cavern, and when you surface to catch your breath, you see
 an enormous crystal, engraved with Symbols, embedded in the roof of the
 cavern.

 Once upon a time, this device provided illumination to the entire cavern -
 if you can find out how the miners activated it, you might be able to make
 the next part of this swim that much more bearable. If not, it'll be back to
 swimming through the near-dark. But whatever the solution is - how can you
 find it in a cavern this huge?
=Dungeon Conditions: Secret, Stupify==========================================
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 This sort of jump isn't anything Sorey is unfamiliar with - he and Mikleo have jumped into some odd places in the past, although at this point he has more ways to deal with his fall as opposed to 'land in a giant column of water and Mikleo laughs at him for getting soaked'. This time there is a tornado that appears around Sorey just before he lands, slowing his fall as he calls upon Dezel's powers to ensure he has a safe landing. Mikleo just vanishes into Sorey's body for the descent, reappearing at the bottom.

 The large cave down below is dark, with areas where the water has risen and makes for treacherous going. A wrong step can result in plunging into quite a bit of water, and while that isn't hazardous for a good swimmer, it IS dangerous for someone carrying a lot of gear if they go under unexpectedly. That makes finding a way to illuminate the area a high priority, and Sorey breaks out his trusty copy of the Celestial Record, now with attached vial of glowing moss so he can read it in the dark. In this case, it's also to help illuminate the area - with how damp everything is, a typical torch or lantern is not going to last too long.

 "I think that we've got to find a control booth of some sort- I can't imagine this place would just have a light switch out here at random. It's probably going to be an enclosed area off to the side!" he calls out to the others.

 They're just going to have to hope its not under water.

 He does pause however to incline his head to Avril. "The name's Sorey," he replies. "A pleasure to meet you." He doesn't add anything else - the boy has never been aggressive about introducing his station, and generally feels simple is better out in the field.

 He DOES, however, pause and wander over to Lanval as they are searching. "Hey, I just wanted to make sure you were alright," he states quietly. "Given that I don't think you were in the last group who got whisked to Filgaia from Lunar, I imagine everything here has been a bit... overwhelming."

DG: Sorey has used his Tool Sorey's Celestial Record toward his party's challenge, Blinded Without the Light.
<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

"Do you notice that the call is more distant too," Catenna asks Avril as they move along. "Lucadia, I mean... even with Celesdue, I can hear her only very basically now."

Well, move along. Swim along is more like it. Catenna is momentarily glad she didn't wear her dress and went with her vest and shorts instead. It frees up her legs to move through the water with ease.

Still, she's got to keep to the top of the water column - and it makes that crystal impossible to miss even in the temporary light. Eventually she does manage to touch bottom, wading along after sorey towards that curious object. "I would think that it is operated symbologically. Look, there are symbols right on it. Perhaps they are tied into a control area, then." Moving through the deeper water, she steps up onto a piece of rock.

It puts her close enough to the ceiling that she can take a closer look at the crystal. She runs a hand over it, biting firmly down to her lower lip.

"...Sorey," she calls to him, "try a little over to your right. In the area of that big rock."

DG: Catenna has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Blinded Without the Light.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    Lanval floats listlessly at the surface of the water, just going with the flow once everyone's there. He's keeping about as low a profile as anyone like him can, quietly drifting along the life of a Drift--
     Sorey speaks to him with genuine concern, and he flops once struggling to swim upright which is a weird, weird sight because he's water! Why would water struggle within water?
     "Ahhh...! Mmm. Oh...! Shpeherd. Ha ha," he laughs, a bit more forced, "'m all right... 'm all right... thanksh fer bein' kind ta li'l ol' me... ha ha... 'm havin' a great tiiiime~" He's even got on that stupid pair of novelty beer lens glasses on as he swims on by with more energy and haste than something like this might really warrant! It's dark in here and all of them - well, almost all of them - are at risk of drowning. He keeps laughing it off. It's kind of obnoxious!!
     ...The light from the glowing moss reflects strangely off of those amber lens, though. Wait, could that be, within the reflection...?

DG: Seraph Lanval has used his Tool Amber Tinted Glasses toward his party's challenge, Blinded Without the Light.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

A gear hangar leads directly to some kind of enormous illumination crystal. The ancients, whoever they were, must have had a pretty diverse and thorough understanding of both magic and technology to make something like this work. But from the looks of things, the lights are well and thoroughly out right now. Unless they can figure out a way to turn it back on, all they'll have to rely on is the dim illumination of their symbological amulets.

"Don't think I've run into something like this before," Cyre mutters, scratching a finger at his cheek. One of these days, he'll need to swipe Ethius' weird lens thing. It'd be perfect for something like this. But, alas, the opportunity is unlikely to present itself. Chances are the lens would just explode once it gets far enough away from Ethius anyway!

So instead, Cyre just glances over to Catenna for the fourth or fifth time this dig and gives a quick nod. "Right. I'll see if I can head up and find anything that might tell us where its power supply might be." The shaman takes off out of the water, then, drifting upwards on a jet of wind and an expanded parachute. Time to see what can be seen near the crystal's base...!

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Blinded Without the Light.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Fortunately for Layna, she tends to travel pretty lightly. She takes to the water primarily, swimming alongside them to keep an eye out for any water-dwelling monsters that might decide to give them a scare.

So far so good, though!

They have a bit of a moment to rest, but not idly. Layna climbs up to the same platform the others are standing on and glances around.

"A control booth, aye...?" Layna comments, glancing between Catenna and Sorey. She rummages through her things, eventually drawing out a telescope. She puts it up to her and eye and begins looking around to try and catch sight of anything suspicious - the telltale glow of Symbology, or something that looks out of place.

As she looks though she glances over toward Sorey as he checks up on Lanval, offering him a grin.

"Aye, don't worry, lad. We've been helpin' him keep outta too much trouble." She comments...then thinks. "...Uh. Most o' the time."

She doesn't elaborate.

DG: Layna Manydays has used her Tool Captain's Telescope toward her party's challenge, Blinded Without the Light.
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    "Sorey," Avril says, as if testing that name; she nods soon after. "It is good to meet you."

    Catenna, a Shaman (as is Cyre) speaks on the Guardians. "The sense of the Guardian from within does seem weaker," Avril answers, in those moments between when she brings the Medium to bear and when she leaps down into the dark, "but I am afraid it never was rather strong for me. Perhaps it's the way in which this Medium was created, or perhaps it may be I who am still lacking." There is a pause before she adds, "The Ice Guardian's Medium has gone silent altogether."

    With that Guardian's aid she descends safely, landing with a softened splash in the waters below.

    "A Gear's hangar," she murmurs, before swimming on ahead to reach and then climb up upon the makeshift platform with the others.

    "If we were able to illuminate this place..." She toys with, for the moment, the shining Symbol hanging around her neck. Then, standing, she raises a hand and presses it against the crystal.

    Just a little bit of magic. The smallest piece of ice, set to wander through the crystal and the rock both. Might there be some connection between the stone and something else in here? It's Symbology, yes, and it's a rock and not something more orderly like wiring.

    But like calls to like, speaks the whisper from the depths of her mind -- if something controls this crystal, perhaps her magic might find it.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Blinded Without the Light.
===========================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===========================
==================<* CHALLENGE - Blinded Without the Light *>===================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 2          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 You find yourselves in the central cavern of the Leck Mines - the place
 where a dozen winding tunnels all come together, where miners would deposit
 their loads for transport to the surface. Air is trapped within the upper
 few feet of this cavern, and when you surface to catch your breath, you see
 an enormous crystal, engraved with Symbols, embedded in the roof of the
 cavern.

 Once upon a time, this device provided illumination to the entire cavern -
 if you can find out how the miners activated it, you might be able to make
 the next part of this swim that much more bearable. If not, it'll be back to
 swimming through the near-dark. But whatever the solution is - how can you
 find it in a cavern this huge?
=Dungeon Conditions: Secret, Stupify==========================================
======================<* Leck Mines - Flooded - Round 2 *>======================
====================< Results - Blinded Without the Light >=====================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Layna Manydays                      0 --(20)--> 20                 Fail
Captain's Telescope                 3   Wits    Effects: Fanfare
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorey                               0 --(15)--> 15                 Pass
Sorey's Celestial Record            1   Wits    Effects: Cleanse
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avril Vent Fleur                    0 --(20)--> 20                 Fail
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catenna                             0 --(20)--> 20                 Fail
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     0 --(20)--> 20                 Fail
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval                       0 --(20)--> 20                 Fail
Amber Tinted Glasses                3   Wits    Effects: Fanfare
-----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------
Leader: Layna Manydays              20 --(10)--> 30                Fail
Conditions: Reckless(1)|Secret(2)|Stupify(2)
Effects: Cleanse
===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Layna Manydays 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.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 Sorey nods once to Lanval as the two walk along, although he inclines his head slightly at the strange nervousness that the Seraph seems to be afflicted by. There's certainly no sign of condemnation from the Shepherd, which might seem... surprising? But he does nod at Catenna's suggestion, angling his search to dig around in some of the rubble nearby. Actually moving this sort of thing isn't a huge deal, but looking where there is nothing to find...? That is probably a bit less helpful.

 "Well, I know how confusing Filgaia can be when you encounter it for the first time. I probably spent the better part of a month reading up on this world as much as possible. I mean it seems more prosaic now, but it is still the legendary Blue Star for a lot of us Lunarians." He shifts another rock, using his glow stick to examine a suspicious area.

 Unfortunately it doesn't prove to be a good revelation. Sorey leans down and picks up a control that says 'MAIN ILLUMINATION' that has been ripped off the wall. The wires are shredded, the housing is demolished, and the entire bank of switches that would have provided illumination is completely destroyed. As well as the wiring it connected to. "There might be another one somewhere around here," the Shepherd states with a sigh, "But we're going to be looking for a while to try and find it. Given our supplies and what dangers might be lurking around in here, we're probably better just pushing forward. We could spend the better part of a day and not find another lighting unit."

DG: Seraph Lanval has drawn a new Challenge.
===============================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===============================================
===========================================<* CHALLENGE - Rusty Steel Door *>===========================================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute     |Challenge Rating: 2          |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
 A few doorways were installed by miners, even on the levels they abandoned.
 This one has swung shut - and rust has made it sealed tight. Worse yet, the
 water from the flood has swelled the wood in the doorframe, making it even
 more difficult to get through.
=Dungeon Conditions: Slow, Tire===============================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    Say what one will about the darkness. It does appear, at least for this stretch, that no hostile wildlife from the diverted body of water responsible for this flood have taken up residence here. Aside from the danger of drowning and the near-inability to see much of anything, this is about as pleasant a spelunking trip as anything one could imagine.
     Lanval drifts out up ahead of the group, and bonks his head up against a metal door he couldn't even see. He floats backwards, hand on his bearded chin.
     "...Oh, it'sh a door... mmm. Betcha there'sh a crack I could get in through--' He floats up against it, and no, there isn't. He leans up against the door for a short while (underwater lounging!!). As the lighting available to the group catches up to better look at it, it's... a rusted door, yes. Comprehensively rusted. The wooden frame is so swollen from being submerged that it's not going to conventionally open. It might not even conventionally budge.
     "...There ishn't even a crack... ha ha ha, woooowww, didn't know ya could sheal up a door that tight." It's basically the equivalent of a watertight bulkhead at this point, but that does bode well, doesn't it?
     If they find a way to bust this thing open, they could dramatically lower the water level on this floor. Emphasis on 'they,' because Lanval just floats about free, free of ideas as much as he is free of the need to even take in any oxygen.

DG: Seraph Lanval has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Rusty Steel Door.
<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Thankfully, Catenna brought her kitty. She catches a glance from Cyre and flashes him a quiet smile, as if to let him know things are OK.

With Lanval floating along ahead of the group, he's quick to discover something the rest of them aren't looking for. When he does react, Catenna looks after him. She has to push down a flicker of irritation as she realizes he hasn't really been helping them with the crystal.

But then, that seems to be this Seraph's way. Suppressing the urge to sigh, Catenna wades towards the door, splashing around a little as she makes her way over to it. Running a hand over its face, she checks to see what kind of give there is.

Nine. "The wood has taken on water," she reports quietly. "Trying to swing it open won't work."

Reaching into her pack, Catenna comes up with the crowbar she tried using in the depths of the Azado catacombs. "Fortunately, wet wood can be quite brittle," she says before attempting to wedge the business end of the bar between a couple of the water-bloated wooden planks making up the door. She plants her heel against it and grunts, putting what upper body strength she has into it as she tries to break the wood.

It's not much. Catenna's fit, but not overly powerful.

DG: Catenna has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Rusty Steel Door.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

"...Completely broken, huh? Looks like the monsters must've gotten to it." Layna comments with a frown, her arms folded in front of her. Well, Sorey was right - there was no point in worrying too much about this. They might as well proceed with their original plans.

Unfortunately, they're soon stopped short by a door. Layna frowns, taking a moment to study it. Yeah, it was pretty stuck - if even Lanval couldn't find a way to ooze on through, then there was no way anything could get through.

"Aye, lass." Layna agrees with a nod toward Catenna. "Here, lemme help."

Layna rummages through her things, and this time she draws out a drill, which is before long affixed to her right arm. It was still looking a little beat up...she'd probably need to have someone take a look at it at some point, but for now she sets it a-whirring and punches it right toward the door with the hopes of drilling right on through.

DG: Layna Manydays has used her Tool Arm-Mounted Drill toward her party's challenge, Rusty Steel Door.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 Wading into waste deep water is never the best way to explore, but sometimes that is what you had. Doing this without a major source of light is just going to make the going harder, but the chances of losing a torch or lantern with this much water around are considerable. And then... progress! Impeded by a portal.

 Doors are one thing, but doors in a flooded area are asking for trouble. Sorey considers it for a moment, and nods as Catenna explains that its plum just not going to open without some effort. "I guess that effort is all we've got at this point," he muses, pulling out his own prybar and setting it to work against the water-logged portal.

 Prying this sort of thing loose from its frame is going to be a hell of a challenge. The water swollen wood binds tightly to the frame, and Sorey puts forth a mighty effort as he tries to pry it open.

 It's probably going to be stubborn.

DG: Sorey has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Rusty Steel Door.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Well! They tried. Sometimes ruins are just that, though. Ruined. Sometimes, you find a cool bit of magitechnoloy only to discover that it has long since degenerated into something utterly non-functional. Sometimes... You just get plain unlucky.

And sometimes you run into doors.

"There are always doors, aren't there?" Cyre sighs and wades up to the great big iron thing. "Rusted shut, huh? That's a pain in the ass. I really hope there's not like, a great big flood waiting back there to sweep us all downstream." Is he speaking from experience? Catenna would know the answer.

(Yes, yes he is)

Cyre steps back, clearly put out of his element by the enormous, sealed bulkhead door. He reaches down and instead fetches his...

...T-tremendously waterlogged censer.

Cyre heaves a long and tired sigh as he pops the top of the censer open and reveals the flooded insides. It's...

...Cyre sniffs.

He sniffs again.

He takes a sip of the water inside, and his eyes go wide.

A few minutes (and some creative application of Solais Emsu arcana) later, and the fragrant scent of cinnamon and bergamot wafts through the air. "Hey guys," Cyre says, taking another sip of his steaming censer-fluid. "You guys gotta try this. I think I invented a new kind of tea!"

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has used his Tool Invigorating Vapors toward his party's challenge, Rusty Steel Door.
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    Unfortunately, as she quickly realizes, it's not possible to trace out magically to find where the control mechanism is connected... because said mechanism is completely severed. "I do not believe we will be able to..."

    She trails out as she sights what Sorey has just found. "...Yes, that is what I was afraid had happened. I suppose we must continue on even without the light."

    There is some hesitation before she descends back into the water. Her hand closes around the Symbol at her neck for a moment.
    She is, ultimately, the last one in.

    And the last one to the door sealing the path ahead.

    "Is this what blocks our path?" she asks, forcing her attention forward and not back over her shoulder into the darkness and cold she's left behind. "So it has rusted. Layna, may I assist you?"

    She approaches the door and places a hand upon it. Frost blooms outwards heartbeats later, tracing patterns across the door's surface. "Perhaps... this might weaken it," she states.

    And they can keep moving forward. She cannot and will not turn back now, no matter how much terror starts to gild her heart.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Rusty Steel Door.
===============================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===============================================
===========================================<* CHALLENGE - Rusty Steel Door *>===========================================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute     |Challenge Rating: 2          |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
 A few doorways were installed by miners, even on the levels they abandoned.
 This one has swung shut - and rust has made it sealed tight. Worse yet, the
 water from the flood has swelled the wood in the doorframe, making it even
 more difficult to get through.
=Dungeon Conditions: Slow, Tire===============================================
==========================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded - Round 3 *>==========================================
=============================================< Results - Rusty Steel Door >=============================================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Layna Manydays                      20 --(15)--> 35                Pass
Arm-Mounted Drill                   3   Brute   Effects: Fanfare
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorey                               15 --(15)--> 30                Pass
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avril Vent Fleur                    20 --(20)--> 40                Fail
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catenna                             20 --(20)--> 40                Fail
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     20 --(20)--> 40                Fail
Invigorating Vapors                 1   Brute   Effects: Cleanse
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval                       20 --(20)--> 40                Fail
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
-------------------------------------------------------< Party >--------------------------------------------------------
Leader: Layna M
DG: The party led by Layna Manydays 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.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    Lanval sniffs in the interestingly scented air from Cyre, and has a good laugh. This is not a time for a good laugh. Catenna sets her breaching bar in there, and that's the beachhead in which everyone else goes from. Layna applies copious amounts of drilling, as Sorey finds a place for his own prying bar to get purchase. Driven by purpose, Avril moves forth and attempts to weaken the door's integrity with frost.
     There is no way the door will ever hold against those with such clarity and urgency of purpose. Things are a lot more bad out there than the uninitiated (many of the first time Lunar transplants) can ever realize. No door can stand in their way. No door must.
     The door gives way underneath (almost) everyone's collected power and reason, revealing that... yes, this very door was something of a watertight seal! The other side is dry.
     ...It /used/ to be dry, because now the water on this level is violently rushing to this new opening and it drags the entire team along with it into a wild, wild descent of a slide further in. That's progress, but progress that now involves a whole host of new useful things down there being overtaken and/or destroyed by the new water level further down.

DG: Catenna has drawn a new Challenge.
============================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>============================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Waterlogged Zombies *>=======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 2          |
----------------------------< Challenge Information: >----------------------------
 Mining is a dangerous occupation - beyond the monsters that tend to infest
 the darkness, there is the constant risk of rockslides, or deadfalls, or
 poisonous gas, or even sheer madness as the things that go creak in the
 dark.

 Whatever the cause, these four miners you swim up upon have died. But
 unfortunately for you, they haven't really stayed dead. As your light comes
 into view, they rise upward, lashing their arms toward you in an attempt to
 grab and smash - a movement that also serves as a crude and awkward doggy
 paddle.

 Zombies like these aren't usually that much of a threat - but the aquatic
 environment prevents you from using the most potent weapon in the
 counter-undead arsenal: fire. This could get tricky...
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure, Fright=========================================
<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

So much for the door. Catenna scowls at the watertight other side of the door.

As if to distract from that momentary disappointment, Catenna looks over to Avril. "I do not think it is just you this time... I cannot hear Lucadia at all, though I was not devoted to her all my life. But even Celesdue is distant to me, and I was sworn to her from birth. Perhaps that is why my Owlet is so tired. It is a Totem Creature and may normally be able to hear signs from her...."

That's when she becomes aware of the way the water is rushing around them. "...Oh, this isn't good," Catenna says.

Then she squeaks as she's swept along. The water carried the group through a sloping corridor in what is practically a waterslide - but it ends at a hole in the floor. Everyone falls through and descends into a big chamber below, dropping into a deep pool of water with six individual splashes. Five if Lanval doesn't splash.

Grasping for something, Catenna gets ahold of something solid but squishy and wet. She clings to it and pulls herself up from the water, gasping for breath.

And then she realizes that what she's clinging to is a bloated dead body. One of several such bodies of dead miners floating in this chamber.

Involuntarily, Catenna screams and recoils. Her gorge rises aggressively and she has to look away from the festering, pale thing. Water does not do nice things to bodies. Her heart hammers against her chest.

And then the body turns in the water and stares at her.

Catenna screams again as the body's eyes light up with a dull light.

All of the bodies' eyes light up.

Soundlessly, the waterlogged corpses reach out, attempting to take ahold of a person each. It would be easy to get away - were the water not a dozen feet deep and forcing everyone to swim. Badly caught off-guard, Catenna flails away and belts off a gravity spell to try and hurl her zombie into the ceiling.

She's white as a sheet right now.

DG: Catenna has used her Tool Celesdue Medium toward her party's challenge, Waterlogged Zombies.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 Wow, seeing this many drowned bodies suddenly coming to life is not what Sorey would consider to be a pleasant experience. He pulls back for a moment as Catenna begins to flail - although thankfully Sorey has seen this sort of thing often enough that he always feels a bit wary until the fallen are confirmed dead, and not... well, undead.

 But he still give a brief shout of surprise as one of the zombies grabs onto his arm and begins flailing towards him in the water.

 "Ack! That's... stop that!" the Shepherd shouts, and pulls out his sword. For those who have not seen him fight before, it might be somewhat strange to see the young man pull out what looks like a highly polished, ancient wooden blade with an unusual marking up the side. But Sorey wields it like an expert, and unlike regular fire, the Flame of Purification doesn't particularly care if there is oxygen, water, or what not. Because his connection with the various elements allows him to adapt its nature on the fly.

 And thus he brings the weapon around, and aims to cleave the zombie down the middle, before turning to deal with the next one. Well, the next one and make sure no one else is being overwhelmed. Being swarmed by aquatic zombies is not a fun way to go.

DG: Sorey has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Waterlogged Zombies.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Well.

The good news is that there's no water behind the door.

The bad news is that there's no water behind the door, and water likes to go where there is no water presently. Cyre feels the rush of the current sweeping out all around him and hastily downs the rest of his makeshift tea. He finishes just in time for the waters to finally overcome his footing. Down, down, down they go, into the depths of the earth...!

Into a drowned grave.

"What--" Cyre shoots up, his nose rankling immediately from the stench of waterlogged bodies. The shaman hisses a curse and draws a soaked sleeve up over his face to shield himself from the smell. "Catenna, are you okay? That--"

The bodies rise. Their eyes flash within their skulls. Zombies...!

"Khh. Damnit, get yer hands off her!" Cyre roars, surging forward with wind-wrapped limbs. He dives forward, driving his fist into the surface of the water. Suddenly, the floodwaters surge and boil, erupting with rapidly cavitating bubbles of high-pressure air that tear upwards in lacerating spikes under the feet of the walking dead!

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Waterlogged Zombies.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Layna curses.

"Everyone, hold onto something!" She shouts. They're swept along by the current regardless, however, and they end up at the watery grave of some unfortunate miners.

Inwardly she thinks that at least they're having better luck than these guys are, but she doesn't voice that thought aloud. She feels like the current audience might not appreciate it. Doubly so one one of the bodies starts moving on its own, followed by the others.

"Damn! Watch yourself, me hearties!" Layna calls out, reciting a quick incantation. Wind starts to spiral around her fists and she lunges forward, attempting to punch right through one of the mobile corpses.

DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Waterlogged Zombies.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    Lanval has an all right time with the impromptu waterslide. He's having such an all right time he's got a kiseru-style smoking pipe that is no doubt totally waterlogged and useless were it not the sort that instead blows bubbles. There are a few along the way to help 'catch' people and slow their fall. He has no idea where they're going to end up... but they don't land on a bed of stalagmites or anything, so that's good, as he smoothly rests upon the top of the water at the end of it all.
     "Mmmm... didn't think that wash gonna happen. Shorry... ha h--" Catenna screams, and both eyes open half-lidded as he gazes back towards the... oh, waterlogged dead human bodies. "Thoshe aren't Hellionsh," he explains to dubious helpfulness, "take it eashy, they won't--"
     The body turns and stares at Catenna, and Lanval opens up both of his eyes half-lidded as more of them rise. "Whoa! What? How're they movin'... hey... hey," why is he trying to talk to dead bodies? They probably can't see or hear him? It's chaos, and for good reason - all Lanval can do is try to guide water with his Seraphic Artes to try and put those dead bodies back on dry(er) ground. Truth be told, he's in as much shock as Catenna is because he's never seen non-Malevolent zombies before and just wants them out of this body of water to be on the safe side.

DG: Seraph Lanval has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Waterlogged Zombies.
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    "Even before, it was difficult to understand what Lucadia may have been trying to show me," she says, pulling her hand away as her spell finishes. "It may be the nature of the Medium. Or perhaps, it may be all she was able to do. I lack the formal training in such things." In profile her expression runs hard, her lips and jaw set. "It must be Mother's awakening. I am no Shaman, but it is the only thing I can think that may have caused such a change."

    The only thing that could affect a Totem Creature, either.

    And then the door breaks open. Avril has a glimpse of a dry other side, has enough time to glance down at her feet, at the trickle of water that's quickly becoming a stream, a flood

    a deluge

    There isn't even room for a scream. She's simply picked up, carried along with the underground waters, born off down the tunnels until she's ultimately deposited with a splash into the pool below. Raising her head from the water, silver hair trailing out behind her, she calls out, "Is everyone all..."

    The question trails out into silence and is cut off as a small tight sound escapes from Avril's throat as she takes in the dead and their reanimation.
    All in the space of a heartbeat.
    Such shock doesn't last or linger. Another heartbeat, and her expression runs grimly. Rising from beneath the water's surface comes Absolute Zero's hilt, as if she'd drawn the blade from the water itself.
    And then she pulls the trigger. Light comes forth, slicing downwards in a deadly arc and for a few moments, the cavern is lit as if it were daylight.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has used her Tool Beam Whip Mode toward her party's challenge, Waterlogged Zombies.
============================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>============================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Waterlogged Zombies *>=======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 2          |
----------------------------< Challenge Information: >----------------------------
 Mining is a dangerous occupation - beyond the monsters that tend to infest
 the darkness, there is the constant risk of rockslides, or deadfalls, or
 poisonous gas, or even sheer madness as the things that go creak in the
 dark.

 Whatever the cause, these four miners you swim up upon have died. But
 unfortunately for you, they haven't really stayed dead. As your light comes
 into view, they rise upward, lashing their arms toward you in an attempt to
 grab and smash - a movement that also serves as a crude and awkward doggy
 paddle.

 Zombies like these aren't usually that much of a threat - but the aquatic
 environment prevents you from using the most potent weapon in the
 counter-undead arsenal: fire. This could get tricky...
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure, Fright=========================================
=======================<* Leck Mines - Flooded - Round 4 *>=======================
========================< Results - Waterlogged Zombies >=========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Layna Manydays                      35 --(0)--> 35                 Pass
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorey                               30 --(0)--> 30                 Pass
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avril Vent Fleur                    40 --(5)--> 45                 Fail
Beam Whip Mode                      3   Combat  Effects: Fanfare
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catenna                             40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Celesdue Medium                     2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval                       40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------< Party >-------------------------------------
Leader: Layna Manydays              40 --(25)--> 65                Pass
Conditions: Fright(2)|Treasure(1)
Effects: Embolden(1)
================================< Dream Chasers >=================================
DG: The party led by Layna Manydays has passed this challenge! The party gained 25 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> Catenna has posed.

Catenna can't answer right now. She's too busy trying to stop her heart from beating its way out of her chest.

The good news about zombies is that, even in water, they're not all that tough. One of them goes hurtling away from Catenna as she conjures up a bit of Arcana. It hits the ceiling and splatters there, stuck to the rocks by a stalactite that's dug through its midsection.
    Sorey finds his zombie easy to cleave. It makes no sound as its bloated flesh tears, the zombie almost seeming to collapse in on itself. Another is split as he smites it with ease. Cyre pushes more of them away from him with a watery surge, then impales them, while Layna blasts one into a wall with her wind. Even Lanval gets in on it, hurling water, mostly pushing zombies into Sorey for him to strike down.

Avril has a little more trouble. One of the zombies jumps on her from behind as she goes to swing. She has to wrestle it off, but eventually is able to slash her whip through it.

Only when it's all said and done does Catenna react. She swallows the lump in her throat and begins to float forward again.

"It... it may be that you were never a Zoa Priest. I think," she manages as she approaches Avril again, though she's still pale and frightened.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has drawn a new Challenge.
===========================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===========================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Move at Sonic Speed *>======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 2          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 It has been a really long time since the last air pocket, and you're
 starting to rather urgently feel the need to breathe. Fortunately, you spot
 the tell-tale shimmering of a reflective surface - it seems a rather large
 pocket is about twenty or thirty yards ahead. Can you make it before the
 music's up?
=Dungeon Conditions: Hesitate, Fright=========================================
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    It snags a hand around her arm. The beam projecting from Absolute Zero's hilt has no chance to make contact with her target of choice; she struggles with its grip, directing unto it a stare that would have frozen a lesser, living man in his tracks...
    but which has little effect on the undead.

    Eventually she prevails, slicing it in two before the sword's light fades, one charge expended.

    And then she takes a moment to breathe, her gaze taking in the extent of the cavern they've landed in, lit poorly by the Symbols around their collective necks. "Is everyone... quite alright?"

    Perhaps a question best asked later.

    "...No. I do not think so, anymore," Avril answers Catenna, before turning away with a kick across the water's surface, before she dives down.

    It's perilous going even under the best of circumstances.

    But it's been some time now and no surfaces have presented themselves. There's no means to head back, only forward, in the hopes that something might present itself.

    And indeed it does. The water seems to ripple a ways off, a patch of lighter dark against the dark of the waterlogged tunnels. But it's still a ways off.

    Avril's hand closes around the Medium she bears. Without a word, she thinks an invocation to the Guardian, to borrow Lucadia's grace and most importantly speed at a time like this. Light shimmers about her, dully.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has used her Tool Sea Medium toward her party's challenge, Move at Sonic Speed.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 This stretch of the mines is certainly not the most appealing - the distance under water is going to be a problem for some members of the group. Even Sorey is going to get challenged by the lack of air eventually, and he's moving along and stringing up a guide rope for people to follow so they don't lose their way forward or back. Being able to have Mikleo go back and release it is a useful little trick as well, since the Water Seraph more or less swims like a fish, but Sorey is worried about the rest of the group.

 He gestures for people to keep moving along - this has been an unusually long stretch and anyone who ends up taking an involuntary breath underwater is going to really regret it, even if they do apply quite a bit of healing.

 Pneumonia is not fun folks.

DG: Sorey has used his Tool Climbing Kit toward his party's challenge, Move at Sonic Speed.
<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Catenna blinks at Avril a couple times. Colour is beginning to return to her cheeks, though in the light of the symbols, she still seems wan.

Eventually they're going to have to dive, though - and dive she does. It is a much longer dive than she might have truly liked.

Fortunately, Catenna's a strong swimmer and has a good set of lungs on her. She swims along behind Avril, weaving through the cavern, sliding around obstacles - but her lungs are beginning to ache for air. She takes a quick look around.

There's that telltale glint. Avril is heading that way and Sorey is gesturing too. Catenna nods after him and pulls something out from her inventory.

It's another rope, with another grapping hook. Gripping it tightly and catching it in a hand and with both knees, she lets it go with her other hand.

The grapping hook falls upward.

It's a tricky invocation of Guardian magic. But it does what it's supposed to. The rope unravels towards the ceiling and pulls Catenna up with it, practically yanking her out of the water towards wherever the hook managed to latch on.

DG: Catenna has used her Tool Grappling Hook toward her party's challenge, Move at Sonic Speed.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

So, remember when we said Cyre was a cheatyfaced cheater?

Well here he is again. Cheating like a cheatyface. He (and whoever else might have decided to take advantage of his hospitality) would have the pleasure of making their way down through the drowned tunnels in a makeshift bathysphere formed through the use of a few relatively heavy chunks of rock and his trademark Baskar-brand parachute.

It's filled with air, you see. That really does help quite a bit when you're trying to make your way through a bunch of waterlogged tunnels. And when the oxygen starts running low, and carbon dioxide begins to accumulate, Cyre whispers a quiet spell, sucks in one last breath and uses the remaining air in his parachute to create a makeshift vapor-jet engine to propel he and his passengers further along...!

Cheating is great fun when it works out to your advantage.

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has used his Tool Reverse Parachute toward his party's challenge, Move at Sonic Speed.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    Lanval keeps his eyes half-lidded as he eyes the destroyed dead. It's another facet of Filgaia that astounds and makes no sense... he's never seen anything like that in all five hundred plus years of his life, and he is shaken enough that his ambient giggling goes to a minimum as they drift through the water anew. A long stretch of no air pockets in which to surface...
     ...
     He reflects on the dream he had near the Umbral Mirror. The first time he experienced that sensation of 'drowning,' which would otherwise be totally foreign to him. He looks among the gathered present, who are more corporeal individuals that require a steady intake of oxygen to live where he seems to do that just out of habit and/or fun.
     Many have countermeasures in place to help see them ascend to the glint of light above that promises a pocket of air, but even he can't daydream out of how long they've been under on this particular dive. The kiseru-style pipe comes out again, which will never look right underwater because the concept of an underwater smoking pipe is absurd.
     He drifts along placidly. He could use the moment to calm down - but more importantly, to be of aid to the mortals who need the air. He's either been lazy or ignorant of times where his, uh, expertise might have been more useful in some situations, but one thing can be taken for sure about him.
     An annoying, needy pest he can be to his acquaintances, he doesn't want to see them hurt, or dead. He's heard all the talk about the Guardians' voices being weak. Something happened (Mother awakened, he needs to pay more attention to that detail!). He already went through the effort to stand up for Celesdue against the Red Priestess Mauri - and by extension, the Goddess herself.
     Why not help see their Chosen - or at least their devout - through? With an underwater sigh, Lanval produces copious amounts of air-filled bubbles that flood the underwater passage for others to take for a temporary breather. The bubbles might not carry them all the way up before popping.
     But it will give them a bit more time.

DG: Seraph Lanval has used his Tool Bubble Pipe toward his party's challenge, Move at Sonic Speed.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

"I'm alright here, lass." Layna replies with a nod in Avril's direction. Right now, she was more worried about Catenna. Fortunately she was probably in good hands, though she does spare a glance in her direction to see how she's recovering after...well, what happened.

It's time to keep going further, though. Layna dives in after Avril, swimming at speed. She's a notably strong swimmer too, having lived most of her life at sea. Of course, even she had her limits - it wasn't as if she could just breathe forever underwater.

Layna swims toward the nearest, coming into contact with it...and then kicking off of it at high speed with the aim of sending her flying through the water toward that air pocket. She aims to pass through one of Lanval's air bubbles on the way there, to give her a bit of leeway just in case.

DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Move at Sonic Speed.
===========================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===========================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Move at Sonic Speed *>======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 2          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 It has been a really long time since the last air pocket, and you're
 starting to rather urgently feel the need to breathe. Fortunately, you spot
 the tell-tale shimmering of a reflective surface - it seems a rather large
 pocket is about twenty or thirty yards ahead. Can you make it before the
 music's up?
=Dungeon Conditions: Hesitate, Fright=========================================
======================<* Leck Mines - Flooded - Round 5 *>======================
=======================< Results - Move at Sonic Speed >========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Layna Manydays                      35 --(5)--> 40                 Fail
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorey                               30 --(0)--> 30                 Pass
Climbing Kit                        1   Agility Effects: Cleanse
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avril Vent Fleur                    45 --(5)--> 50                 Fail
Sea Medium                          2   Agility Effects: Quicken
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catenna                             40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Grappling Hook                      2   Agility Effects: Quicken
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Reverse Parachute                   1   Agility Effects: Rally and Quicken
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval                       40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Bubble Pipe                         3   Agility Effects: Rally
-----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------
Leader: Layna Manydays              65 --(20)--> 85                Pass
Conditions: Fright(2)|Hesitate(2)
Effects: Cleanse|Quicken(1)
===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Layna Manydays 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> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    It would take minutes to swim on its own. But they don't have minutes. At times like this, the body starts to panic.

    At least, for those who need to breathe.
    Or those who haven't managed to bring a little air with them. Lanval and Cyre respectively drift along and speed on by, which leaves Sorey, Layna, Catenna, and Avril to struggle on through the flooded tunnel.
    One of them is an excellent swimmer. Layna presses on ahead of the remaining three--

    And of those three, two of them make use of their respective kits to drag and pull themselves along.

    Which leaves Avril.

    Her lungs are bursting. Even with Lucadia's enchantment propelling her onwards, it's just not enough on its own.

    Perhaps this too is another effect of Mother's dampening of the Guardians.

    She reaches out for Catenna's rope, wraps her arm in it, and as her last breath bubbles from her lips, pulls herself along until she finally breaches the surface. She gasps, then coughs.

DG: Seraph Lanval has drawn a new Challenge.
===============================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===============================================
======================================<* CHALLENGE - Water Falls, Everyone Dies *>======================================
|Type: Final       |Dungeon Ability: Brute     |Challenge Rating: 2          |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
 As you approach a junction in the tunnels, you feel yourselves being pulled
 forward, as though the water was flowing of its own accord... which is
 exactly what would be happening if, say, you were approaching the part of
 the mines that water was now flowing /out/ of, possibly dumping into a
 giant, bottomless, spike-walled pit or something.

 /Greeeeeeeeat/.

 The next few seconds are key - if you can power through the current or
 somehow blast part of the tunnel around the corner, you may be able to get
 fast before the current sucks you down... and then out.

 And then waaaaaaay down again.
=Dungeon Conditions: Suffer, Tire=============================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    They do make it up to air. Sweet, sweet, stale underground air! But it's air. Oxygen!
     Lanval surfaces up with the rest after being absolutely certain that everyone gets up there alive. He leaves no one drowning. "Mmm... the currentsh're pickin' up."
     It's nefariously subtle about it and he's not speaking the obvious this time. There's no sound of water rushing forward like it ought to, they just... are, like there might be some other force in play aside from physics. Lanval goes inverted and opens his eyes half-lidded to the distance ahead.
     "Wow... I don't even shee anything ahead... ha ha ha! It'sh crazy, lemme tellsh ya all... it'sh goin' shomewhere, right?" The water picks up. "But there'sh nothin' elshe ahead! I've no idea where it'sh gonna go--"
     Beat.
     "Oh. Pro'lly a real long drop... that shoulda been obvioush, come ta think 'bout it--" THERE'S NO TIME FOR THINKING OR CHEWING THE FAT THEY'RE ABOUT TO BE DUMPED DOWN A GIANT WATERFALL THAT IS WAY WAY WAY TOO QUIET AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
     Can they physically fight the current? Can they create a blockade? Can they bust through that wall there, hoping it's thinner than it appears? Whatever their gameplan, they'll have to think fast, fast, fast, fast-- Lanval that's not thinking fast, that's smoking out of the dumb bubble pipe which doesn't answer any of these other than getting bubbles everywhere--
     Well, maybe that's a safety net from a death by an untimely drop from far above but that's not the best kind of helping they could have!!

DG: Seraph Lanval has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Water Falls, Everyone Dies.
<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 This is probably not the best place to find out that the water is draining out of the mine somehow.

 Really, it's not a good place. Because there is precious little to grab on to here, with mine shafts often being nothing more than chiseled rock corridors with only a few supports installed every once and a while. Sorey notices the water starting to pick up speed - but it rapidly starts becoming something more than just 'fast moving', and he's having to struggle to keep from being washed away. "Hold on everyone!" he calls out, doing his best to keep from being pulled away by the current!

 ...there's really not that much Sorey can do in this situation other than employ BRUTE FORCE. As well as try and hold out for other people to grab onto! The good thing is if they can resist the pull of the water, it might drain away enough to allow them to walk rather than having to swim through all of this? "I really hope this drains out soon, because if it doesn't getting back to the last intersection against this current is going to be... a little... challenging...!" he manages in a deliberate overuse of understatement.

DG: Sorey has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Water Falls, Everyone Dies.
<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

Popping up to the surface with a gasp, Catenna clings to her rope a moment more before finally retrieving it, but only once Avril's safe.
    She bobs along in the current for a moment, just collecting herself and taking stock of everyone. Cyre's the biggest concern, and she looks over to him with a bit of worry. "Are you alright?" she asks him.

And then Lanval makes an observation. Catenna looks down towards the water. Then she looks towards the wall. "We are certainly moving a little faster," she says. "And I can hear water rushing. And it does seem like there is a bit of a dro--"

Catenna pauses - and then she gasps.

"Oh no... oh no!!"

The one thing Catenna has going for her is that she's a strong swimmer - but that alone might not be enough. Spells won't help her here. She certainly can't ask Lucadia for a hand when the line of communication is so tightly pinched off. All she can do is swim for her life. Pulling herself through the water as she swims desperately, she makes her way over to Sorey.

She looks at the Shepherd wide-eyed as she keeps on swimming. "Hope and swim at the same time!" she urges. "I'll even help!"

DG: Catenna has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Water Falls, Everyone Dies.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Layna might have over done it a little. It's a good thing she chose to pass through Lanval's helpful bubble, otherwise she might have to take more than a few minutes to recover and catch her breath. That's time they don't have, especially as the water current begins to pick up.

They all seem to come to the same conclusion at the exact same time. Layna doesn't say anything, she just sighs with resignation and brings out her drill again.

"Hold on, let me just...!" Layna slams her drill into the wall and begins to rev it up. She plants her feet against the wall as well in an attempt to keep herself stable as she tries to help force open another pathway.

DG: Layna Manydays has used her Tool Arm-Mounted Drill toward her party's challenge, Water Falls, Everyone Dies.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Success! And sweet, vital oxygen. Cyre takes a deep breath of (relatively) fresh air and flashes Catenna a grin when she swims on up. "Ah, I'm fine! I'm fine. I brought my own air with me, you know? How're you doing though?" Concern bleeds through his cheery facade as he paddles against the current. Why's it getting harder to do that? That's weird. This is weird. "Those zombies were kind of... a thing. You doing okay?"

Beat.

Wow. It's... It's really getting hard to swim now. Uh. What's going on--

"WHAT--" Cyre yelps in Lanval's general direction as mere limb-strength is no longer sufficient to keep him from slipping along with the current. "What do you mean a 'real long drop--'"

Oh no. OH NO.

You know, it's kind of hard to be optimistic when you're being dragged into the unfathomable depths by a current racing faster than is ever or at all reasonable.

Cyre tries not to scream, but only because it'd waste his breath. Instead he reaches for his tried and true censer and...

What is that even supposed to do here!?

HOW IS BREATHING SMOKE GOING TO HELP!?!?

It's not. But the thing IS secured to a hefty chain. Cyre reaches to try and snag hold of Catenna's waist and then goes to slip that chain around a conveniently placed surface stalactite. "Hold on!" Cyre gasps, "And pull! We need to get to someplace we can use to slow ourselves down!"

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has used his Tool Invigorating Vapors toward his party's challenge, Water Falls, Everyone Dies.
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    "Where shall we head now? Would that tunnel over there help us reach where we must go?" Avril asks.
    Something... doesn't seem right about this direction, runs the nagging sense though.

    'The currents are picking up', Lanval notes. Treading water as she moves along down the partially airy tunnel that presents itself before them, Avril doesn't at first notice the ominousness of that statement.
    It after all takes some time for the current to really get moving. Before she notices the way it's dragging her along down the swiftly draining tunnel.

    Before Lanval comments on just how this sounds that it's going to end in a bit of a drop.
    Nothing immediate presents itself as a handhold.

    "No," Avril utters, and it's as much as a gasp of shock as it is a denial.

    One dripping hand brings forth a very simple looking cube. It opens, with a flick of her thumb. Inside is a flat disc. A button.
    She presses it.

    The low rumble is the first warning.

    There is no second warning. Through the wall, an enormous Golem's entire upper torso, sans head but with a left arm, rockets across the waterway in last-gasp dive of an attempted save, quite possibly making for the oddest but hopefully sturdiest barrier against getting swept off that could be hoped for under these circumstances.

DG: Avril Vent Fleur has used her Tool Remote Golem Override toward her party's challenge, Water Falls, Everyone Dies.
===============================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===============================================
======================================<* CHALLENGE - Water Falls, Everyone Dies *>======================================
|Type: Final       |Dungeon Ability: Brute     |Challenge Rating: 2          |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
 As you approach a junction in the tunnels, you feel yourselves being pulled
 forward, as though the water was flowing of its own accord... which is
 exactly what would be happening if, say, you were approaching the part of
 the mines that water was now flowing /out/ of, possibly dumping into a
 giant, bottomless, spike-walled pit or something.

 /Greeeeeeeeat/.

 The next few seconds are key - if you can power through the current or
 somehow blast part of the tunnel around the corner, you may be able to get
 fast before the current sucks you down... and then out.

 And then waaaaaaay down again.
=Dungeon Conditions: Suffer, Tire=============================================
==========================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded - Round 6 *>==========================================
========================================< Results - Water Falls, Everyone Dies >========================================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Layna Manydays                      40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Arm-Mounted Drill                   3   Brute   Effects: Fanfare
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorey                               30 --(0)--> 30                 Pass
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Avril Vent Fleur                    50 --(0)--> 50                 Pass
Remote Golem Override               4   Brute   Effects: None
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Catenna                             40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     40 --(0)--> 40                 Pass
Invigorating Vapors                 1   Brute   Effects: Cleanse
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Lanval                       40 --(5)--> 45                 Fail
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
-------------------------------------------------------< Party >--------------------------------------------------------
Leader: Layna Manydays              85 --(35)--> 120               Pass
Conditions: Fright(1)|Hesitate(1)|Suffer(1)|Tire(2)
Effects: Cle
DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success!
DG: The party led by Layna Manydays has successfully explored Leck Mines - Flooded!
===============================================<* Leck Mines - Flooded *>===============================================
=======================================<* CHALLENGE - Secrets of the Past (2) *>========================================
|Type: Discovery   |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1          |
-----------------------------------------------< Challenge Information: >-----------------------------------------------
 After making it past the fateful junction, you force your way against the
 current and through a crack up ahead, from which the water is pouring... and
 then suddenly, you're breathing fresh air! You emerge in what can only be
 described as a river, flowing through an enormous underground cavern -
 almost a mile across, with a ceiling hundreds of yards over your head. Even
 more strange, upon reflection, is that you can /see/ that distance; for the
 first time since you entered the cave, your vision is not obscured at all by
 darkness or water or anything else.

 It is then that you realize /why/ this is - every surface of this cavern is
 glowing, pulsing with light. The effect is not synchronized - different
 sections of the place are pulsing at different rates, with different
 intensities, but the net effect is an omnipresent, omnidirectional aura of
 light... and of power. Whether you rely on senses mortal, magical,
 technological, or spiritual, you can be sure of one thing: something
 enormously significant happened in this place a long time ago... so
 significant that this cave is still bathed in its echo to this day.

 As you step out of the water, something metallic glimmers in the distance.
 Upon closer inspection, it is the remains of a shoulder pauldron, sheared in
 half by some unknown force. The pauldron is sized for a truly massive
 figure, and is forged of a dark, incredibly hard material that anyone
 familiar with Metal Demon technology will recognize as being of their make.

 You should send in a +request about this Discovery!
=Dungeon Conditions: Secret===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    'No,' says Avril.
     'Rumble,' says the ground.
     'Burst,' also says the ground.
     'Hello,' the Golem doesn't actually say but it may as well, as it parks itself against the current. The entire mine shudders as it makes impact with the opposite wall, sending pebbles and debris falling ominously every which way... but it stabilizes. There's enough give in the Golem's form that the water has some place to drain and go around.
     Lanval, who tends to go with the flow of water by nature, finds himself pressed up against the headless Golem upper body. There's no head, or anything to suggest any capacity for sight, hearing, or even conversation, but...
     "...Wow... thanksh fer the shave...!" He tells the Golem. "Cheersh! Ha ha ha... ahh, a can shee me, right? Jusht..." It's kind of silly to watch, but now it's a matter of crawling out. The rest have their means. Cyre's makeshift grappling hook helps--
     Layna drills into the nearby wall, and the whole thing collapses. Cyre's grappling hook, makeshift as it is, is handy for helping get everyone together while the rocks all pool together...
     And see the headless Golem torso to its demise.
     "Oh noooo!" Cries Lanval, as the dislodged rocks see the Golem's noble action end in sacrifice as he might have to be dragged along by the rest as they all help themselves out. "...I'll never forget ya...!"
     Okay, enough about him, he ceases to be interesting before what's in the next chamber - through a crack, into a gentler river almost a mile across, a ceiling distantly above one's head... hundreds of yards? Yes. Somehow, one (or seven, seven can see) the whole distance. One's vision is completely clear, unhindered by the miasma of the mine's darkness...
     Because the entire cavern is glowing with light. Unsynchronized, but bright... warm. The light lingers and pulses... it's overwhelming. Like they are bearing witness to something truly significant and special, to leave such an effect as the group treads across the gentler river ahead.
     Once they come out, they can see the metallic glimmer of something just ahead... a piece of armor? A kneepad? No, a shoulder pauldron. Half of one, it appears the back half is missing entirely thanks to some shearing force of unknown origin. A shoulder pauldron for someone or something big.
     Bigger than Talise, so next magnitude up. Three magnitudes up. Massive. It's dark-colored, but dense and heavy enough to resist any further attempts to damage it. Some will know immediately what they're looking at.
     This is a Metal Demon artifact of some kind...!
     "I wish they could be here to shee thish..." Lanval says, almost moping for the poor headless Golem that saved them.

<Pose Tracker> Catenna has posed.

"WHAT," Catenna shouts as an entire frigging Golem inserts itself into the situation.

But it works. As Layna starts drilling, Catenna reaches out and latches on to whatever she can.

Namely, Cyre's waist. She wraps her arms around it and buries her face in his hip.

Lanval's being dragged away; Catenna widens her eyes as she looks up and sees it. She doesn't cry out - but soon enough, they're carried somewhere a little gentler. They land in a puddle, Catenna finally letting go of Cyre's leg and dropping down in a heap beside him.

In a room unlike anything she's seen before.

"What in the name of Celesdue," she murmurs as she stares around the chamber in wonder, then looks down at the artifact Lanval has found. Climbing back to her feet, she stumbled over to the item.

"Lanval," she breathes. "This... this is a piece of Metal Demon technology...!"

The Moon Shaman looks up, her eyes wide with wonder. "...What happened in this room," she whispers.

<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.

Layna drills, drills...and drills right on through! She forges her way forward, and eventually she and the others find themselves in a very peculiar chamber.

"...What in the name of the Goddess happened here...?" Layna breathes, stepping in. She could feel that aura of power that suffuses the entire room. There was something significant about this place, though she wasn't sure what yet. But what really draws her eyes is the massive pauldron, cloven in two.

Layna finds herself staring at it for some time before she looks back to the others, offering an uncertain grin.

"...Well, I'd say this was well worth the risk, aye? This...this could be big." She says, turning back to look at it.

<Pose Tracker> Sorey has posed.

 The water eventually loses its power over the group, and their collective efforts seem to have been enough to allow them to pass through into the unusual locale beyond.

 And... unusual certainly is the word for it. Sorey looks around for a long moment, letting out a long, slow whistle. "This is... something," he says. He listens as folks comment on the nature of their discovery, and he nods slowly as he considers that this is Metal Demon based. "But the size - it's like a Metal Demon designed Gear or something. I know that they supposedly had huge Metal Dragons, but... I don't think this looks like them."

 Odjn would probably have mentioned if her ancestors had to compete with a whole bunch of giant super sized humanoid Metal Demons, after all. But Sorey gets out his Celestial Record, turns to a blank page tucked into the back, and starts sketching. They might not be able to haul things out easily, but they can certainly document this find...!

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

This... This is...!

The whole reason Cyre went to the Cage Tower on those fateful visits was to find something that could teach him more of the Metal Demons and their possible weaknesses. Here, in this place deep underground, he's found... Something entirely different. It's almost holy, revered, in a way, by the throbbing pulse of the planet all around them. Cyre is speechless as he draws nearer to the artifact, his fingers brushing gently across the tremendous metal, but...

But something... doesn't make sense...

"Don't... Most Metal Demon-made relics decay pretty quick? I mean-- Their bones and weapons and stuff are how ARMS Meisters make their weapons. But this... This thing is pristine. For as long as it's been down here, it hasn't aged a day." Cyre frowns, pressing his palm firm against the alien steel. "What is this place...? What happened here?"

Those lights, the glowing cavern, the raw thrum of power. It puts him on edge, and yet--

Maybe when they visit with Riesenlied, they might be able to learn more about this relic. Will they even be able to bring it out of the ruins, though...?

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    To be quite honest, how this thing works remains a mystery to Avril. Sometimes the button dredges up the remains of a Golem. Other times, nothing happens.
    ...It's a difficult thing to test, since when it works there's a Golem part to deal with, which is hard to explain to an innkeeper or the town guard (fortunately, no, Avril has not done this in a city, that time under Meribia aside).

    This time around, it's rather more of a Golem than she's typically managed to summon forth.
    Dean would have been sad, she thinks in passing, before with the slowed stream of water managing to pull herself up onto 'shore' and through the crack.

    Down into the gentle river.

    She gazes hither and yon for the first moment, then tilts her head back, gazing upwards at the ceiling.

    "Oh... It's beautiful. I wonder..."

    Her hands tangle, twist, then untangle. Under the flickering lights, she makes her way towards the chunk of metal and kneels alongside it for a moment, tracing its edge with her fingertips. "..."

    There's no mistaking what it is.

    "Something... happened here. Was I..." she trails out, shaking her head. No, it's not possible that she was here once, was it.

    "...I don't know what happened, but I feel as if it was important. Was it something to do with this piece of armor...?"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Lanval has posed.

    Lanval is drinking his little water elemental heart out for the sake of that nameless headless friend of theirs, as Catenna tries to bring to attention how significant this is!
     "Huhh? What ish?" He looks over his shoulder. "The wallsh?" Ugh! He's hopeless!! ...But he doesn't say or do anything that much more stupid as the more knowledgeable proceed to gawk and speculate aloud while he rocks back and forth to stand right back up. Cyre mentions a grisly thing about the way ARMs - what he keeps referring to as fire wands - are made. That's... kind of weird...
     "It'sh armor...?" He murmurs as Avril gives it a more concrete identity. He inwardly wonders if Talise could wear it, she specializes in wearing heavy armor! (No, she could not, but at least he doesn't voice this dumb thought aloud.)