2020-03-15: Darkness And Light

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DG: A party led by Seraph Harmaus is now entering The Shadow Vault.
DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
========================<* CHALLENGE - The First Step *>========================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 1          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 The Shadow Vault is a shrine dedicated to the Guardian of Darkness, Leitea
 Salk. Though it has been sealed for as long as most can remember, the
 entrance lies open now. Fittingly enough, no outside light is able to reach
 its interior, shrouding the entire shrine in darkness. Strange things roam
 its halls of smooth black stone, and stranger things still occur within
 them. Darkness seeps from the open doors, spilling out like water.

 A series of Symbols running along the base of the interior walls once
 provided light to the temple, but they have long since been scratched and
 broken, and no longer provide the safety they once did... and in this
 temple, your light is your lifeblood: as much a way to allow you to see as
 it is a way to fend off that which resides within.

 Therefore, before you enter, it is imperative that you prepare your own
 supplies appropriately to ensure that you will have enough light to make it
 through safely, even if it means retreating temporarily to acquire more
 supplies.
=Dungeon Conditions: Reckless=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Harmaus has posed.

    Purest dark wafts out of the halls of the unsealed temple, pluming upwards until the light consumes it.

    The man that stands before the entrance now stretches out a hand as if to clasp the billowing shadow within it; the darkness wefts through his fingers instead and soon evaporates in the light.

    "'Where there is light much, the shadows strong yet'," he so seemingly quotes aloud, though having arrived here alone, with his back turned to whoever might venture here today, is he speaking such words to thin air...

    Or is he aware, now, that he is not here alone?

    "We would corrects it," he continues, regarding the darkness within.

    "Where strong shadows, light makes it all."

    A pale -- like the northern lights on a dark night, milky white with the faintest shimmer of greens and purples -- roiling sphere manifests in an outstretched palm.

    "This, our light. Light enough to burn. Will it follow," he continues, without turning to regard any of them.

    "Or will it fears the dark?"

DG: Seraph Harmaus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The First Step.
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.


Rikku in her search to learn more about this Otherworld has hired herself out in a rather mercenary way. Though she has more motives than simply monetary gain obviously. A trip to salvage in this place of umbral worship aligns with her interests quite well.

As the Seraph speaks aloud on the nature of light and shadow, Rikku finds herself stopping to listen.

"Pretty..."

She comments mildly, her reaction subdued to the spirituality inherent in the statements, seeming more impressed with the pale light the Seraph manifests.

Rikku takes this opportunity to take stock of her supplies that she has on hand in her various kits.

"Light Curtain - Check!"

"Shining Gem - Check!"

"And just in case of an emergency - Electro Marbles! They work in a pinch..." She chuckles nervously. "-k-kind of..."

Digging through her pouch, she takes out a candle???

"Oh I guess I have this too. Found it near a skeleton that had a rusted knife sticking out of it?"

Well that doesn't sound ominous at all. Probably just an ordinary candle. The spiritually inclined though might note that it's a little bit off, like it carries a hint of a lingering grudge.

"Guess I could just light it up. Kinda boring though..."

Rikku notes, as if she suddenly thinks the spooky murder mystery candle is pretty boring compared to the roiling sphere of light Harmaus summoned.

DG: Rikku has used her Tool Al Bhed Toolkit toward her party's challenge, The First Step.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

The Shadow Vault - this was a place that held great significance for Clarine. There was a part of her that still feared it - feared it for what it represented. But, she had faced those fears, and while they would never fully go away, she had no intention of letting them control her.

And so, after steeling her nerves, she comes here today in the presence of friends!

But when she arrives, it's to the sight of a couple of familiar faces.

"Ah... hello there..." Clarine greets, with a polite bow of her head. "Are the two of you delving into this place as well...? Please allow me to help. I am... familiar with it."

At these words she draws forth from her sleeve a sphere of pure, clear crystal. Upon focusing her power into it the orb it releases a warm, pleasant light.

DG: Seraph Clarine has used her Tool Brilliant Sphere toward her party's challenge, The First Step.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel doesn't know Harmaus well but she has had an adventure with Harmaus before. She doesn't know Harmaus is Harmaus. But he's definitely something, and something is far better than nothing.

And more to the point, her pal Rikku is here! And Marivel desperately needs a break from ARMS' business as usual. She is quiet, reflective, and uncharacteristicly silent. She seems troubled but is also, apparently, ill inclined to talk about it.

She reaches into her pouch and draws out an actual flashlight which she flicks on. She's a vampire so this is wholly unneccessary for her but she seems to be trying the team player thing for the moment.

"Oh hello Clarine." She says. "How are you?" Going through the motions.

DG: Marivel Armitage has used her Tool Wisdom of the Crimson Nobles by M. Armitage toward her party's challenge, The
First Step.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

Eleanor Klein can't really complain too much anymore about mercenaries--not that she could for a while. Before she joined ARMS she consulted for a number of Drifters, after all. ...Well maybe she could, but she still doesn't. She would rather complain about...

"There's no sense in trying to scare ourselves before we even go in," Eleanor says with a frown at Harmaus. "Besides, we do have a lot of light." Eleanor holds up a couple of glowing objects, including a pendant, a ring, and her boomerang that she did in fact manage to recover. All of them are currently lit.

"...I suppose those might work too," Eleanor mentions to Rikku thoughtfully, and then--looks back at Harmaus again.

"Don't worry, Clarine. I'm with you."

Eleanor is not in the best mood, but she seems much more at ease today than she has been lately. At least for the moment. She holds up the glowing boomerang helpfully.

...She, also, could use a break from ARMS business. But she happens to scoot closer to Marivel than to Harmaus.

DG: Eleanor Klein has used her Tool Hunter's Boomerang toward her party's challenge, The First Step.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
========================<* CHALLENGE - The First Step *>========================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 1          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 The Shadow Vault is a shrine dedicated to the Guardian of Darkness, Leitea
 Salk. Though it has been sealed for as long as most can remember, the
 entrance lies open now. Fittingly enough, no outside light is able to reach
 its interior, shrouding the entire shrine in darkness. Strange things roam
 its halls of smooth black stone, and stranger things still occur within
 them. Darkness seeps from the open doors, spilling out like water.

 A series of Symbols running along the base of the interior walls once
 provided light to the temple, but they have long since been scratched and
 broken, and no longer provide the safety they once did... and in this
 temple, your light is your lifeblood: as much a way to allow you to see as
 it is a way to fend off that which resides within.

 Therefore, before you enter, it is imperative that you prepare your own
 supplies appropriately to ensure that you will have enough light to make it
 through safely, even if it means retreating temporarily to acquire more
 supplies.
=Dungeon Conditions: Reckless=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    "Heehee, I'm practically a walkin' light bulb if I need t'be!"

    That's Gwen there, holding up her gloved left hand, before making a quick assessment. Harmaus knows, Marivel knows. Eleanor knows. Rikku... well, this may be the first time she and Gwen have really gotten a good chance to see each other, face to face. Clarine.... wasn't there a time they battled together...?

    This, she ponders on, as her right hand searches for that belt buckle, finds none, due to it being the wrong hand. It's a quick correction, with Gwen glancing at her left hand, confused, then switching to her right hand, which, unbuckled, produces a small amount of electric light.

    That was embarrassing.

    Turning to regard the unusually quiet Marivel, then Eleanor, Gwen blinks, then decides not to ask. They're both in ARMS, so maybe it's ARMS business? Who knows. "Ah, I got some matches for that candle, if y'need." Gwen takes out a matchbook to display to Rikku, the battered cover advertising a hotel in November City.

DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Courier Kit toward her party's challenge, The First Step.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
========================<* CHALLENGE - The First Step *>========================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 1          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 The Shadow Vault is a shrine dedicated to the Guardian of Darkness, Leitea
 Salk. Though it has been sealed for as long as most can remember, the
 entrance lies open now. Fittingly enough, no outside light is able to reach
 its interior, shrouding the entire shrine in darkness. Strange things roam
 its halls of smooth black stone, and stranger things still occur within
 them. Darkness seeps from the open doors, spilling out like water.

 A series of Symbols running along the base of the interior walls once
 provided light to the temple, but they have long since been scratched and
 broken, and no longer provide the safety they once did... and in this
 temple, your light is your lifeblood: as much a way to allow you to see as
 it is a way to fend off that which resides within.

 Therefore, before you enter, it is imperative that you prepare your own
 supplies appropriately to ensure that you will have enough light to make it
 through safely, even if it means retreating temporarily to acquire more
 supplies.
=Dungeon Conditions: Reckless=================================================
========================<* The Shadow Vault - Round 1 *>========================
==========================< Results - The First Step >==========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Harmaus                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rikku                               0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Al Bhed Toolkit                     2   Wits    Effects: Enlighten
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Clarine                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Brilliant Sphere                    2   Wits    Effects: Enlighten
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gwen Whitlock                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Courier Kit                         1   Wits    Effects: Resilient and Rally
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eleanor Klein                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Hunter's Boomerang                  1   Wits    Effects: Cleanse
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marivel Armitage                    0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Wisdom of the Crimson Nobles by M.  3   Wits    Effects: Fanfare
-----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Harmaus              0 --(20)--> 20                 Pass
Conditions: Reckless(2)
Effects: Cleanse|Enlighten(1)|Resilient(1)
===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Seraph Harmaus 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> Seraph Harmaus has posed.

    As it happens, Harmaus has been in the presence -- at the very least -- of all of those now here with the exception of Rikku.

    It's towards Rikku alone that the Seraph goes so far as to turn his head, regarding the young woman with perhaps a measure of curiosity for a time, his gaze coming to linger on, of all things, the candle.

    "Ah. Restless light," he remarks, perhaps seeing something about the candle that the less spiritually-inclined may miss.

    The others, he knows.

    Of Marivel, he knows the least, arguably. "And a deep red mystery, here and back again? Into the very depths of dark it goes!" he remarks, once she makes herself known to him and checks for her own lightsource.

    Clarine may as well be kin, if not a sibling, as Seraphs term it at least. They are cut from the same force. "Clarine. We meets again."

    Eleanor, too, he has experience with; he halfway shifts upon hearing her voice. "Jaeja, scares ourselves? Is not scares us. Is it scared? Darkness, darkness, yes, but we has light."

    And then there is Gwen.

    "Body is lights? Is ours, too. Useful." Glimmering sphere in hand, he takes a step forward, approaching the gate of shadows. The darkness seemingly parts, billowing away from the light in his wake.

    "We goes. It follows or it stays!"

DG: Seraph Clarine has drawn a new Challenge.
============================<* The Shadow Vault *>============================
====================<* CHALLENGE - Hunters in the Dark *>=====================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 2          |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Many creatures are said to call this place home. They seem to feed on
 darkness itself, but are not averse to obtaining more solid fare when they
 can. Some of the inhabitants come to greet you now; striking quickly and
 with very little warning.

 In the darkness their form seems indistinct, but they strike with claw and
 venomous stinger alike. Fight them quickly, but carefully, or else risk
 leaving yourself weakened for further predators...
=Dungeon Conditions: Wound====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

"I am doing well, thank you..." Clarine replies, offering Marivel a thankful bow of her head. To Eleanor, Clarine offers a smile. "Thank you..."

To Harmaus, Clarine offers a pleasant smile.

"Indeed... it is good to see you again." She replies, offering the same polite bow of her head. She nods to Gwen and Rikku in turn, as well.

A part of her can't help but wonder how Harmaus would handle this place. A place that feeds on light... for beings of light this might pose a problem, but he seemed to possess a bit more confidence about it.

With that, they've prepared as much as they can. And so, they enter. They moment they step through the door, they find themselves cut off from all outside lights, leaving only the various lights they brought with them to help them along. And it's this light that will help them catch sight of the first obstacle on their journey into the Shadow Vault - briefly, in the corner of one's eyes, they might catch the glint of light off of something akin to scales before something comes rushing in.

"A-ah! Get back!" Clarine warns, retreating backward. "These creatures... they possess a debilitating venom. Try not to let them sting you... but if so, I have some curatives to help counteract it..."

She had to do something with her ARMS paycheck, after all - she might as well use it to buy medicines for her mortal friends!

DG: Seraph Clarine has used her Tool Panacea Bottle toward her party's challenge, Hunters in the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.


"Guilty!" Rikku responds to Harmaus, "I just have to keep moving." Does she know what he's talking about at all? "And good to see you too Clarine! You think?" She asks of Eleanor for validation. Before to Gwen, "Sure! I could use one. I think the things I'd use to light it otherwise would be overkill."

"Hmmm."

Marivel is greeted to the sight of Marivel examining her face every now and then.

"That doesn't look like your game face Marivel."

The Al Bhed idly notes. It is a serious set of ruins after all, but this level of somberness feels strange to her.

She doesn't actually pry though on what's causing it.

"Sometimes - when I've got a lot on my mind. It just helps to go..."

Rikku inhales sharply.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

She suddenly shouts into the darkness.

Maybe what happens next is partially her fault. Maybe. But she meant well!

The shadowy void monsters go snikt snikt in the dark unseen, and as they're ambushed Rikku- "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" It's a different kind of shout than the one earlier, promise. Maybe it's because Clarine told her about the venom and she nearly got stung

"Stop!" As she strikes a match, "Just stop! Here - Take this and leave us alone!"

Rikku suddenly lights a candle.

Then sends it skittering across the floor with a jingling bag of gella.

The restless light of the candle flickers oddly and it doesn't feel like it illuminates the spilled over coins at all.

When the light goes out... well who knows what could happen?

DG: Rikku has used her Tool Bribe Budget toward her party's challenge, Hunters in the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel notices Eleanor moving in a biit closer to her. She seems surprised, honestly, and her cheeks gain a bit of a blue-ish tint as she glances away a bit, then down, then she exhales a bit and smiles at Eleanor. She places a hand on her arm, just for a moment, in a show of support.

"I'm glad you're here." She says to her with upmost simple sincerity.

Creatures of the darkness strike! Marivel slips between assaults, swaying away from stinger and claw as if she can sniff 'em out. Or see them.

...Oh her eyes are glowing a bit. Maybe she CAN.
Shehe draws out her microphone and brings it up to her lips and ushers in a command.

"Turn on each other." She says as she channels her voice through the power of her microphone.

She lowers the mike and nods once to Clarine. "You seem quite relaxed here now, you know? You've grown so much, become so brave since I've met you. And you were always so brave."

DG: Marivel Armitage has used her Tool My Mike toward her party's challenge, Hunters in the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Harmaus has posed.

    Into the darkness they go. Despite this being a place that seems to want to consume light -- as the light above consumed dark -- the Seraph seems almost eager to be in here, his gaze tracking hither and yon as if in search of...

    Something.

    And then, into this, Rikku screams. In a manner akin to a startled cat, Harmaus jerks to one side, away from Rikku.

    "Jaeja..." murmurs the Seraph, recovering in the wake of Rikku's scream to then but shake his head at Clarine's remark on the creatures. "Ah ha... darkness lurks and darkness strikes most insidous! Then we not lets it does so," he finishes, but rather than draw a weapon or shoot beams of light at the creatures, or anything else much at all--

    Harmaus slips a hand into a pocket, a movement that seems quite nearly out of place considering the danger that is upon them.

    Until the thing he has palmed slips from his grasp, dangling from a single red cord.

    It is but a tiny golden bell, and as it swings from his grasp, it rings but once.

    Perhaps it might have a somewhat placating, soporific effect on the creatures, leaving them open to blows from the others.

DG: Seraph Harmaus has used his Tool Amulet Bell toward his party's challenge, Hunters in the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

"What?" Eleanor asks Harmaus with a frown. "You were the one talking about..." She shifts away, uncomfortable. "Instead she looks at Gwen and smiles at her. "Well, that's an improvement, isn't it?" She doesn't seem to notice Gwen's emb arrassing gaffe or maybe she's just polite.

Instead she smiles at Clarine too and--"Me, too," to Marivel. But s they enter, the outside lights gone--there is a scaled thing... Clarine knows--

"Oh! I'll be careful!" Eleanor hops backward as she hears Rikku call out again, but instead of an attack, she pulls her flute, and begins to play an eerie, unfamiliar tune that rolls and rolls forward low...

It might go nicely with the bell, even.

DG: Eleanor Klein has used her Tool Eerie Flute toward her party's challenge, Hunters in the Dark.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    "A nice shout'd do you guys good." Gwen nods, though this motion might be lost in the darkness of the space. "Somethin' t'cheer you guys up! A little bit of shoutin'll do us all some good, I say-"

    where did those creatures come from

    "I can fix this real quick-like," Gwen states to Clarine with a confident stride towards the darkness, a confidence that briefly flees as Rikku lets out her second bellow of not-so-much-encouragingment-as-outright-yikes.

    Then, with the sound of a bell, a flute, Marivel's single sentence (which can count as lyrics)

    As well as that candle and the sound of gella hitting the floor.

    "Welp, if that all didn't work I'll just try on some good ol' fashioned brow-beatin'!" Gwen thus pounces forward, her fists out and at the ready, using the light of Rikku's candle as well as the rest of the effects of the impromtu performance to guide her.

DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Full Metal Courier toward her party's challenge, Hunters in the Dark.
============================<* The Shadow Vault *>============================
====================<* CHALLENGE - Hunters in the Dark *>=====================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 2          |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Many creatures are said to call this place home. They seem to feed on
 darkness itself, but are not averse to obtaining more solid fare when they
 can. Some of the inhabitants come to greet you now; striking quickly and
 with very little warning.

 In the darkness their form seems indistinct, but they strike with claw and
 venomous stinger alike. Fight them quickly, but carefully, or else risk
 leaving yourself weakened for further predators...
=Dungeon Conditions: Wound====================================================
=======================<* The Shadow Vault - Round 2 *>=======================
======================< Results - Hunters in the Dark >=======================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Harmaus                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Amulet Bell                         2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rikku                               0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Bribe Budget                        2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Clarine                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Panacea Bottle                      1   Combat  Effects: Cleanse
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gwen Whitlock                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Full Metal Courier                  2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eleanor Klein                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Eerie Flute                         2   Combat  Effects: Stalwart
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marivel Armitage                    0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
My Mike                             4   Combat  Effects: Efficient and Fanfare
----------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Harmaus              20 --(20)--> 40                Pass
Conditions: Reckless(1)|Wound(2)
Effects: Cleanse|Embolden(1)
==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Seraph Harmaus has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use
party management commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
DG: Gwen Whitlock has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
=======================<* CHALLENGE - Darkness Within *>========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute     |Challenge Rating: 2          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 As you travel through the corridors of the Shadow Labyrinth, a side-room
 beckons your interest. It is plain and empty save for a single black chest,
 inset with rubies that glittery ominously with the light you provide.

 The moment one attempts to open it, however, darkness upon darkness begins
 to rush out. It threatens to consume your light...and you as well, if you
 are not careful. Destroy the source, and you may yet be able to claim its
 contents for yourself.
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure, Exhaust========================================
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Rikku shouts suddenly!

"A-ah!" Clarine yelps in surprise. She's even more surprised when the monsters show up! But, fortunately, they're on the ball.

Rikku is right on top of things, tossing out a lit candle and a bag of gella. The light flickers oddly, attracting their attention... they seem more interested than that than the coins. But then, Marivel brings out her microphone, giving a command. And, fight each other they do - several of them start fighting over each other for the right of claiming Rikku's bribery!

That still leaves the others, however, edging around the party carefully as the prepare to strike. But then, Harmaus draws out a tiny golden bell. It rings once, but that single ring has a pronounced effect, halting the foes in their tracks. This effect is magnified by the tune that Eleanor plays on her flute, leaving them wide open for Gwen to charge in. It is perhaps incorrect to say that she punches their lights out, considering that they're creatures of darkness, but either way they're dealt with pretty quickly.

"That certainly would fix it with haste..." Clarine comments in approval. With the foes taken care of they're able to move on, though Clarine pauses and looks toward Marivel as she addresses her.

"Ah, do you think so...? Thank you... I have been try not to let my fears get the best of me..." Clarine replies to Marivel, beaming - in both senses of the term, it puts a smile on her face and the light around her brightens up a bit. This'll certainly help them find their way forward.

<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    "I got an idea." Faced with the dark corridor ahead of them, Gwen pulls up the sleeve on her right arm, exposing the dimly pulsing lines of the weapon underneath, providing a light source as she concentrates and holds it up. "A-ha. Hey, gimme a sec?" Still flush with their victory only minutes before, that's the only warning the courier gives before disappearing into a sideroom that may or may not have been all that obvious from the corridor the party had been walking down.

    See, there was something that glinted off the light of one of her companions' sources of light, something that seemed very, very much like treasure. Or simply a reflective surface of otherwise useless material.

    Ah, but thankfully the courier is a fan of colorful baubles of any sort, precious gemstones included.

    Like this single black chest, set with some very lovely red stones. Rubies, perhaps? "... Could be a trap," she says with belated caution, studying the chest from what feels like a safe distance.

    If no one else proves faster or less cautious than Gwen, the redhead is the one to attempt to open it, darkness spilling over the gap between the lid and body. "Ghh!" The very light issuing from Gwen's ARM seems to be sucked up by the billowing plumes(?) of dark upon dark, drawing a sharp intake of air from Gwen as she struggles to close it. "Be careful- I don't know if it's just reactin' to the light of my ARM or if it's grabbing at somethin' else!"

DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool ARM-ored Fist toward her party's challenge, Darkness Within.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel Armitage adds to Rikku, "Oh, it has been a month, Rikku. Tis unlike me, but sometimes we have to be unlike ourselves to give our true selves a bit of a break." She smiles faintly. "I suspect you understand a bit about that with how kind you are."

DARKNESS ATTACKS.

But Marivel is ultimately maybe kind of a bad person to throw at FIGHTING THE DARK or HITTING THE DARK REAL HARD because, well, she was born in it, molded by it. She didn't see the light until--

--anyway, she is offered the opportunity to just scream into the darkness.

She considers it now that she has a moment. It is a bit unlike her to scream but, well, she did just say she was taking a break from her true self.

"Alright." She says.

She takes in a deep breath.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!" She screams admirably at the darkness for 4d6 sonic damage.

DG: Marivel Armitage has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Darkness Within.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Harmaus has posed.

    "We fears darkness not. Does it?" Harmaus asks Eleanor, casting the young woman a look that is perhaps irritatingly nonchalantly curious her way. "We speaks to facts. And we would know what lies in the dark. Bring it kicking out into the light!"

    With that he ventures into the darkness within the temple.

    Whereupon they are, yes, soon set upon by creatures.

    He palms the bell about as soon again as it has rung out, slipping a hand -- and it -- back into that pocket.

    "That is that," he remarks, once the things are felled. "We go."

    Though he takes the moment to regard Clarine almost curiously:

    "It fears the dark? Why?"

    He seems almost genuinely baffled by this.

    Gwen soons spots something in the darkness.

    "What finds it," he remarks, in the moments before she lifts the lid and--

    "Ah," remarks the Seraph, as the darkness lurches out. Flattening away from Marivel as she, too, screams (perhaps the Seraph is not fond of sudden loud noises) he slides a vial from a pocket, downs the contents, and stalks off towards the chest, that sphere of light he summoned at the entrance following after him almost like a lonely shy puppy as the darkness nips at it.
    His next action, if he can reach the lid, will be to slam it down.

DG: Seraph Harmaus has used his Tool Titanforce Extract toward his party's challenge, Darkness Within.
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.


"Hmm." Rikku considers the wisdom of Marivel's statement. Then she shrugs with one arm, while standing on one leg off the ground. "I guess I do." As she accedes to Marivel's point, with a smile, but then says, "I just try to be me as often as possible."

As the party encounters TREASURE, "Ooo! A treasure chest!" She says while rubbing her hands together, "I wonder what's inside!"

She's about to do just that... but given that the party is not her usual one, she tries to give her party member ability.

"I can get that for-!"

OOCly, a tutorial pops up, as ICly Rikku approaches the chest and takes a swipe at the chest: 'Use the Steal Command to Open Treasure Chests without a Trap going off.'

"-us."

Darkness billows out - TUTORIAL BETRAYAL!

"Never seen that happen before!" Rikku squeaks, at the unfamiliar darkness trap.

Rikku hears Marivel building up to something, and so Rikku uses a cloth to silently pull the pins on a half dozen grenades.

She then drops then hurls them in the direction of the treasure chest in the midst of Marivel's scream.

Adding another 6d6 damage of close range explosive power, as if she sneakily tried to make it seem like Marivel's scream caused that to happen.

"Wow you really needed to! Keeping all that tension bottled up - was only a matter of time before you blew your top!"

DG: Rikku has used her Tool Far Too Many Grenades toward her party's challenge, Darkness Within.
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

"It's not unreasonable to be cautious about a place where you know things are lurking in the dark to come after you," Eleanor counters Harmaus with a frown. It is super irritating how nonchalant he is about it. "Anyway it's not that I'm afraid. And even if I were, maybe we should drag out the things hiding in the darkness!"

She huffs, and deliberately focuses on Gwen. "Hmmm," Eleanor says to Gwen after they get a little more calm. "Maybe a little shouting might, but I can't exactly say I'd like to try it at the moment..."

"It's been a month all right," Eleanor agrees then with Marivel, and considers what she says about being other. As they find the chest, though--"Oh, isn't this pretty?"

"Oh, and you've been doing great, Clari---aaaah!" Eleanor jumps back as Gwen starts struggling and she sees the light being drawn in. The darkness lurches, and there's not much that Eleanor can actually do about this here. Brute force is not her area of expertise. ...But she does pull a little gem of her own and toss it, letting it burst into earthly power because as it turns out she grabbed an Earth Gem.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Harmaus asks Clarine a pointed question. She goes quiet for a moment. A part of her thinks it might be best to just skirt around the question...

"I was... trapped in a dark place for a long, long, time... Unable to move, unable to escape." She replies her head, and smiles faintly. "...But, that was a while ago, now. I have been... working on it, with the support of my friends. They-"

Clarine pauses as Gwen calls attention to something - something she hadn't spotted before.

She follows her into the sideroom, where they find... a treasure chest! And a rather pretty one, too - Clarine, summary, is fond of shiny things, regardless of their actual perceived value among mortals.

"A-ah!" Clarine yelps in surprise at about the same time as Eleanor does as it is opened, and suddenly begins to release a cloud of darkness! She reacts almost instinctively, retreating back away from the grasping cloud and bringing her hands before her before shooting off a burst of light toward the chest.

DG: Seraph Clarine has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Darkness Within.
DG: Eleanor Klein has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Darkness Within.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
=======================<* CHALLENGE - Darkness Within *>========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute     |Challenge Rating: 2          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 As you travel through the corridors of the Shadow Labyrinth, a side-room
 beckons your interest. It is plain and empty save for a single black chest,
 inset with rubies that glittery ominously with the light you provide.

 The moment one attempts to open it, however, darkness upon darkness begins
 to rush out. It threatens to consume your light...and you as well, if you
 are not careful. Destroy the source, and you may yet be able to claim its
 contents for yourself.
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure, Exhaust========================================
========================<* The Shadow Vault - Round 3 *>========================
=========================< Results - Darkness Within >==========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Harmaus                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Titanforce Extract                  3   Brute   Effects: Fanfare
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rikku                               0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Far Too Many Grenades               3   Brute   Effects: Rally
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Clarine                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gwen Whitlock                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
ARM-ored Fist                       2   Brute   Effects: Strengthen
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eleanor Klein                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marivel Armitage                    0 --(15)--> 15                 Fail
Force                               0   Brute   Effects: BASIC
-----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Harmaus              40 --(25)--> 65                Pass
Conditions: Exhaust(1)|Treasure(1)
Effects: Strengthen(1)
===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Seraph Harmaus 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> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    Gwen breaks a moment from examining the corridor ahead to glance back towards Clarine as she makes her confession.

    "That's..." Her eyes travel downwards towards rge floor, her mouth set in a grimace.

    "...N' now you're here, facing it. That's... pretty remarkable, considerin' all that," she softly comments, turning back. Question is, who would do that to a person, willingly?

    Such people are better off...

    ....

    The rubies are a welcome distraction, after those thoughts. Rikku's hands are on the chest as Gwen tries to open it, throwing the room into a void, the source of it all consuming all light that manages to cross into its reach.

    At first, Gwen tries to force it closed, but when Rikku brandishes a fair amount of grenades, the redhead scrambles to get out of the way, hopping backwards with a look of panic still on her face as the bombs explode.

    Marivel's scream to the darkness does not seem to do much, but hopefully she feels better from doing it.
     
    An Earth gem and a burst of light are cast towards the chest in turn, the latter providing a far too spicy an item for the chest to snack on, damaging it with the earth gem's magic instead.

    Then, with the power of the void temporarily lessened, Harmaus and Gwen pounce in, slamming the chest shut.

    "...." Gwen's breath can be heard in the dimly lit room. "... Okay, let's... just forget this is here n' move on."

DG: Rikku has drawn a new Challenge.
============================<* The Shadow Vault *>============================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Protect the Flame *>======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 2          |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 A fell wind blows through the party. Gradually, your light source begins to
 flicker and dim, as the Shadow Vault begins to feed upon it at an
 accelerated rate. You will need to protect it or determine a way to rekindle
 it quickly, lest you leave yourself vulnerable to that which lurks the
 halls.
=Dungeon Conditions: Injure===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.


"Forget its here? Can we come back later and take it with us? Think about how hilarious it'd be as a prank!"

Nope Rikku. Spooky Darkness Chest is lost forever. And ever.

Internally: .oO(Awwwww)

As they move along through the vault, the blackness seems to stretch on forever. The next room appears to have multiple passages cut in for ventilation high up.

Yet not a single one casts light.

Abruptly a black wind howls throughout the room, slamming into them instantly, a current that makes it difficult to move forward.

The constant smothering current threatens all of their light sources immediately, even those that are not simply firelight. Spells find themselves gradually growing dimmer.

ARMS that cast light find their power slowly being sapped out of them.

"Is it just me or are things getting a lot... spookier around here?"

The girl says as she tries to shield her face, her braids flapping in the wind behind her as if trying to move forward in this magical wind tunnel.

Reaching into her pouches, the girl digs around until she finds a flask, and then leans over to shield herself from the wind as she uses a dropper of another substance to place in the flask.

Suddenly getting back up, she hurls it into the wind current. Ice crystals sparkle in the air, before the arctic wind crystallizes into a block of ice.

The wind current smashes into it, suddenly forced to move to the side by the obstacle. Yet it immediately begins... to erode away, like the blackness is consuming even the ice, and does nothing to make it easier to move forward, just giving them a temporary reprieve.

"I'm stumped! Anyone got an idea of how to deal with this wind?"

DG: Rikku has used her Tool Al Bhed Toolkit toward her party's challenge, Protect the Flame.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Harmaus has posed.

    "Cautious, then. Cautious, cautious, is always. Since the beginning, what peoples cannot sees is threat. Yes?" he asks, perhaps just as irritatingly nonchalant about this whole business as before. "Brings it out into light, then! Look at it. Learn it. Understand it."

    And he's off again in front of the lot of them, almost eager in this dive into darkness.

    Which is when Clarine admits to something interesting.

    "Was trapped? In darkness. Jaeja..." he murmurs, folding his arms over his chest. "Then it looks at what traps it. Sees it for what it is. And then..."

    He doesn't finish the remark, for it is then that Gwen finds a chest, and it turns out to be quite a hungry treasure chest, indeed.

    Harmaus moves in at the end and slams it shut, before it can consume more of its light.

    "Mm," he hums, eyeing the somewhat diminished sphere. He touches a finger to it, then shakes his head. "No. Cannot power it more here. Darkness makes light all, here. Too much of it. We continue! Enough light yet."

    As if to underscore that, the mood in the next room is grimmer, indeed.

    "Darkness," the Light Seraph muses, crossing his arms over his chest.

    "Mm. A dark wind. From the other world, perhaps? ...Ah," he remarks, noticing that the sphere of light he had summoned is dwindling further.

    'Anyone got an idea of how to deal with this wind?'

    He reaches out to grasp the pale globe of light; tendrils of it break off and wisp away into the dark, slipping between his fingers. Harmaus brings it close to his chest.

    "We shields it," he says.

    "And it runs with us."

    He does exactly that, bolting off into the deeper dark with his ember of brilliance.

DG: Seraph Harmaus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Protect the Flame.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    "Nope, we're leavin' it right there." Gwen crosses her hands over her chest for effect. "I like rubies too, but I like the normal kind." She blinks. "... They were rubies, right? Not garnets? Or maybe I'm askin' the wrong question here."

    As they talk, Gwen slows her walking pace, glancing about, then up.

    "Huh, looks like some sorta vents up there, but I can't quite see just what they're supposed to be..."

    Raising her arm, Gwen isn't able to produce much light before a dark wind surges through the aream seemingly sucking the very light from her ARM. At first, she glances back towards where they came, to see if it was the chest again, but quickly judges it to be from a completely different direction. "Damn!"

    Harmaus's idea may be their best bet. Forcing the lights of her ARM to dim, Gwen attempts to follow after, using the hard fingers of her ARM to make a hold in the ground if she feels she's about to be blown off course. "... Just power through it, this light won't die unless I do!"

    Which is likely not the source of comfort Gwen intends it to be.

<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

"it's a pretty box, but we can leave it." She pauses, and looks to Gwen and Clarine. "Clarine is quite remarkable." ...And then, the worst thing yet happens: the most awful thing of all:

Eleanor is forced to conclude that Seraph Harmaus has a point. She frowns, the frown practically sideways before she lets out a long sigh. "...Well when you put it that way," the young elf mutters..."

"Wind? Well..." Eleanor considers that for a moment. "Not really," she admits, "But my light source doesn't require air! I can directly counter the effect if I have enough power! Just... let me see these devices..."

Eleanor focuses more firmly on her boomerang in particular, channeling power into its sensor enchantment to reinforce its light. This looks a lot to an outside observer like she's just staring at it with sparkles weaving around her hands, but that's item magic. Maybe she can arrest the loss--

But maybe not. "H-hey! Don't run off on your--"

Eleanor tries to rush ahead, too. She's rather slower, though. Since...

"Gwen!!!" she says, as if taken aback. Not helping!!!

DG: Eleanor Klein has used her Tool Hunter's Boomerang toward her party's challenge, Protect the Flame.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Harmaus's words... Clarine considers them for a moment, frowning uncertainly. She's not sure how to take them - but then again, he hadn't been able to finish his sentence.

The decision is made to forget about the chest. Clarine... has to agree with this decision, even if it's a shame to leave behind the shiny things.

Clarine does smile a little brighter, though, at the compliments from Gwen and Eleanor.

They move on, further, deeper into the darkness... and it is there, that a fell wind begins to blow through them. Clarine staggers back, drawing a pained breath - or at least a Seraph equivalent. The aura of light around her begins to flicker and dim as her power is drained.

She calls her sphere back to her, holding it tightly in both hands before focusing power into it once more. Its light begins to brighten, surrounding the party and giving the black wind something else it needs to feed on first.

"This should... give us a little more time." She says. The wind seems halted temporarily at its perimeter, but it won't last forever - it begins to dim gradually the longer they take.

"...P-please don't die..." She responds quickly to Gwen's statement.

DG: Seraph Clarine has used her Tool Brilliant Sphere toward her party's challenge, Protect the Flame.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel Armitage feels a terrible wind. Her flashlight begins to dim. She shakes it a bit, frowns thoughtfully, and then with the wisdom of her people--

--pulls the batteries out...

...and slides in new batteries before turning the flashlight back on.

"Is it?" She asks. "Getting spookier?" She thinks about this. "I didn't notice."

She smiles a bit and adds, "Perhaps I was sabout to blow my top. You know me well, Rikku. I must've fumbled severely to be so easily read."

Despite saying this, she doesn't seem to mind at all.

DG: Marivel Armitage has used her Tool Wisdom of the Crimson Nobles by M. Armitage toward her party's challenge, Protect
the Flame.
DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Courier Kit toward her party's challenge, Protect the Flame.
============================<* The Shadow Vault *>============================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Protect the Flame *>======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 2          |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 A fell wind blows through the party. Gradually, your light source begins to
 flicker and dim, as the Shadow Vault begins to feed upon it at an
 accelerated rate. You will need to protect it or determine a way to rekindle
 it quickly, lest you leave yourself vulnerable to that which lurks the
 halls.
=Dungeon Conditions: Injure===================================================
=======================<* The Shadow Vault - Round 4 *>=======================
=======================< Results - Protect the Flame >========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Harmaus                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rikku                               0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Al Bhed Toolkit                     2   Wits    Effects: Enlighten
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Clarine                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Brilliant Sphere                    2   Wits    Effects: Enlighten
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gwen Whitlock                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Courier Kit                         1   Wits    Effects: Resilient and Rally
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eleanor Klein                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Hunter's Boomerang                  1   Wits    Effects: Cleanse
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marivel Armitage                    15 --(0)--> 15                 Pass
Wisdom of the Crimson Nobles by M.  3   Wits    Effects: Fanfare
----------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Harmaus              65 --(20)--> 85                Pass
Conditions: Injure(2)
Effects: Cleanse|Enlighten(1)|Resilient(1)
==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Seraph Harmaus 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> Rikku has posed.


With him pulling strands out of his tendrils of light, and beginning to run forward. Rikku looks impressed. "That magic is so useful..."

Whereas Gwen just says power through it. "Um!" Rikku looks at Gwen's ARM suddenly and how it connects to- "I have concerns!"

And yet, she powers forward like a champ against the sapping Black Wind.

Meanwhile Eleanor channels her magic into her boomerang, and the light enchantment on it, which allows her to take off forward. The light around it pulses but... stands firm.

Clarine though calls up a second dose of light magic, which reinforces their advance forward thoroughly.

"Ehehe-"

Rikku giggles at Marivel's solution of changing out the batteries. "Well maybe that's because you're pretty spooky already. You're just the kind of spooky I like!"

What Marivel says though...

Rikku nudges her in the side with an elbow, "Aw Marivel - don't worry about it. We all do from time to time! That's what I'm here for though."

Suddenly darting forward in the sea of beacons of light against the black wind, she calls back over her shoulder.

"If I couldn't do that much - then I wouldn't be the merriest!"

The Black Wind seems to have trouble, as if its power is diffusing - stretching thin between trying to sap so many sources of light without success. And as they press forward, abruptly, it gutters out.

DG: Eleanor Klein has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
==================<* CHALLENGE - The Seeker in the Shadows *>===================
|Type: Final       |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 3          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 Your journey within the Shadow Vault is at its terminus. Ahead of you, there
 is a light in the distance that yet remains untouched by this place.

 Behind you, however, there is the sound of sudden movement. Something vast
 and formless, yet indescribably real and present, rushes past you, missing
 by mere inches and striking into a nearby wall, leaving a deep indentation.

 The Shadow Vault's master is here, visible only by a pair of crimson eyes
 staring down at you from above. They melt into the darkness pervading the
 temple...and come rushing at you again, from a different angle.

 If you can hold it off for long enough, you may just be able to make your
 way to the light.
=Dungeon Conditions: Suffer, Fright===========================================
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

With the wind gone, there is now a light in the distance, practically tasteable, if light had any particular taste beyond its delicacy. Perhaps it does, and maybe the two Seraphs could mention what it is, but before anyone can try simply to ignore it, there is a sound from behind.

Da-doom. Da-doom. Droosh--

SMASH.

Crimson eyes stare from above, interrupting Eleanor where she was about to comment to Marivel more pleasantly over what she had to say--and forcing the young elf instead to rush to the side away from the shape in the darkness, pulling her flute again.

A lighter, more upbeat, but still undeniably strange tune issues out... And the fight begins. The eyes melt again--

It is still coming.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Does light have a taste? That's a good question! Clarine probably has an answer for it, but it's not exactly the right time for it considering the enemy that appears before them.

"...I-It is here! Be careful!" Clarine warns, gliding back as something in the shadows slices into a nearby wall. She casts a quick spell, and a protective blue light settles over the party to protect them from the Shadow Vault's master. And, if anyone gets hurt, she'll have some curatives at the ready.

For now, though, she lets the others do the fighting... she's not sure she can inflict a meaningful amount of damage on it as things stand.

DG: Seraph Clarine has used her Tool Panacea Bottle toward her party's challenge, The Seeker in the Shadows.
DG: Eleanor Klein has used her Tool Eerie Flute toward her party's challenge, The Seeker in the Shadows.
<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel smiles at Rikku. For a moment the eyes look very tired. "I'm ready, Rikku, to be where I need to be. I just need to be patient."

And with that she dras out her microphone again.

And then she lowers the microphone. She looks at the pair of crimson eyes.

And she bares her fangs that seem just a bit sharper in the moment, a bit more pronounced.

That crimson eyed creature surely can't be one of her people.

But what is it? Well, Marivel still would very much like to find out. Perhaps some provocation will lead to some answers.

Or she's just protecting her friends. So win win, really.

"Eleanor," Marivel says.

...

"I want you to win."

DG: Marivel Armitage has used her Tool My Mike toward her party's challenge, The Seeker in the Shadows.
<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    "Whoah, for the last time, I ain't dyin'!"

    Gwen's expression rockets from almost comedic dismay to a brief cringe of fear as she sees the shine of two red eyes lurking in the darkness, heralding Clarine's warning.

    Her first instinct would be to offer herself up as a distraction, to make her ARM shine up as a distraction and buy her companions some precious time.

    Instead, a newer instinct, only a year old or so old, offers up a different possibility. For some reason, it feels more appealing.

    Perhaps the first idea wasn't so bad. Just, instead of it being a distraction, she'll just change the trajectory, ever so slightly.

    "Come for me," she beckons, softly, holding out her outstretched right hand, fingers outstretched, like she was offering feed to a fawn. Or feeding koi in a pond.

    Like the lure of a deep sea fish.

    And when the thing's maw seems to open wide to snap down upon that tasty morsel, the lure becomes a trap, Gwen's calm face lit by the blast of plasma straight into its core.

    Her next sentence is quieter, easily lost in the noise of the exchange.

    "Come to me, and I will show you mercy."

DG: Gwen Whitlock has used her Tool Full Metal Courier toward her party's challenge, The Seeker in the Shadows.
<Pose Tracker> Seraph Harmaus has posed.

    Just because of who he is, when Eleanor grudgingly agrees--
    Harmaus smiles back at her. It's not a nice smile.

    There is a light in the distance. Perhaps, there, is something akin to whatever it is that Harmaus is seeking in these darkened depths.

    Light continues to stream from the light's ember that Harmaus bears with him, as he rushes off towards it in the depths.

    Only to slow to a trot as Clarine calls out a warning in the dark.

    "Here, yet, yes," he remarks, nodding just the once. "Then it shows itself!"

    He simply glances upwards then, gazing at the eyes that stare down upon them all in an almost fascinated manner. Still gripping the bundle -- no sphere now, that shape that is crunched up and releasing streams of milky-white light in his hand -- he dips a hand in his pocket once more.

    And slowly lifts his hand, unfurling the fingers at long last to release the bell.

    The tiny golden bell dances just the once on the end of the red cord, singing out a single quelling note into this chamber of shadow.

    Shh, it says.

    Shh. Be still.

DG: Seraph Harmaus has used his Tool Amulet Bell toward his party's challenge, The Seeker in the Shadows.
<Pose Tracker> Rikku has posed.


"Okay! Then I'll be patient too." A beat, as her voice changes to being on a perceived defensive, perhaps just from being aware of herself, flaws and all, "I promise I can be. Really!"

Then as Gwen says she's not dying, Rikku hides a few potions behind her back. "I want you to know I had total faith in you."

"Whoa talk about having its eyes on us!"

Rikku screeches to a halt as she notes the Crimson Eyes, back peddling.

"Can I interest you in my rainy day fund?"

And then the girl just starts flinging coins. So many that it becomes a rain shower in the dark, like she's simply dipping into a bag and flinging them out.

It's very distracting. So distracting that it'd be hard to notice the moment she palms a gem into the mix.

The next handful of coins she flings out has a gem coming suspiciously close to where she last saw the eyes in the dark.

And then in mid-air it glows with sudden flare of light...

Before detonating into a sudden inferno.

"Fire is a kind of rain right?"

DG: Rikku has used her Tool Bribe Budget toward her party's challenge, The Seeker in the Shadows.
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
==================<* CHALLENGE - The Seeker in the Shadows *>===================
|Type: Final       |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 3          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 Your journey within the Shadow Vault is at its terminus. Ahead of you, there
 is a light in the distance that yet remains untouched by this place.

 Behind you, however, there is the sound of sudden movement. Something vast
 and formless, yet indescribably real and present, rushes past you, missing
 by mere inches and striking into a nearby wall, leaving a deep indentation.

 The Shadow Vault's master is here, visible only by a pair of crimson eyes
 staring down at you from above. They melt into the darkness pervading the
 temple...and come rushing at you again, from a different angle.

 If you can hold it off for long enough, you may just be able to make your
 way to the light.
=Dungeon Conditions: Suffer, Fright===========================================
========================<* The Shadow Vault - Round 5 *>========================
====================< Results - The Seeker in the Shadows >=====================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Harmaus                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Amulet Bell                         2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rikku                               0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Bribe Budget                        2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seraph Clarine                      0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Panacea Bottle                      1   Combat  Effects: Cleanse
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gwen Whitlock                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Full Metal Courier                  2   Combat  Effects: Embolden
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eleanor Klein                       0 --(0)--> 0                   Pass
Eerie Flute                         2   Combat  Effects: Stalwart
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Marivel Armitage                    15 --(0)--> 15                 Pass
My Mike                             4   Combat  Effects: Efficient and Fanfare
-----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------
Leader: Seraph Harmaus              85 --(35)--> 120               Pass
Conditions: Fright(2)|Suffer(1)
Effects: Cleanse|Embolden(1)
===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success!
DG: The party led by Seraph Harmaus has successfully explored The Shadow Vault!
=============================<* The Shadow Vault *>=============================
====================<* CHALLENGE - Mysterious Experiments *>====================
|Type: Discovery   |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1          |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 You have faced the challenges of the Shadow Vault and emerged in one piece.
 As you step into the light ahead, you find yourself in a room that appears
 to be a laboratory of sorts.

 Shelves, presumably once stocked with all manner of ingredients, line the
 room, and in the center is an old workbench bearing equipment that has not
 seen use in quite some time. The results of the last experiment seem to
 still be present, however...

 A series of clear bottles, each one containing an inky black substance, are
 located on the racks...and there seems to be enough for each of you to take
 one. Study indicates that the liquid inside will create a decently sized
 cloud of darkness when released, perfect for stealthy work.
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

Clarine's warnings are timely indeed, as is her protective magic. Her curatives, unfortunately, will be necessary... but not as much as they could've been.

Marivel--Marivel directs her efforts to Eleanor. To... win. It's a simple statement, and yet it seems to surprise Eleanor. Often, she finds herself at the back, either because she's slower or because she's supporting others--but Marivel uses the word anyway about her. ...Here? Maybe not only...

Eleanor redoubles her musical effort as she seems to decide something looking at Marivel. The other eyes do not focus as Eleanor's do. Perhaps that is an answer of its own.

Gwen's trap leads to it taking a blast full on, though that does not reveal its nature--only drive it backward.

...And for one terrible moment, there is stillness as Seraph Harmaus's bell rings. Terrible, dark stillness.

While Rikku makes it rain. ...Fire. The bribe doesn't take, but after that blast and the moment of stillness, they hold off the thing long enough to make it into the light...

Into a laboratory. How... curious.