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The Drowned Undercity

Scene details

Setting: Beneath Aurita Meloda, something stirs.

The party returns to the ruins of the ancient beastkin metropolis refreshed and resupplied after their time in Zerhem, prepared to seek the third arm of the Crux of Creation in the flooded network of canals buried under the city streets. They bring with them the two fragments they currently possess, now crafted by Ivo into a somewhat functional relic, and the Ophidian Totem, lent to them by the lizardfolk priestess Cutini Nak. The half-Crux has allowed them to restore Kernunnos to limited but adequate strength. The Totem will supposedly open a path deeper into the undercity.

However, the hardscrabble denizens of Aurita Meloda inform our heroes upon their arrival that the underground canals, already plagued by hazardously unpredictable surges of water, have only grown more dangerous in recent days. In exchange for the party's previous assistance, the party will be led through these treacherous tunnels as far as possible, to where the Ophidian Totem will likely be necessary to proceed any further.

What lies beyond? What has caused the recent tumult? How did the third fragment of the Crux of Creation come to rest beneath this forsaken city? What curse befell Aurita Meloda that left its ocean barren? And what, if anything, remains in the undercity of its golden age?

These questions and more shall be answered as we reach the thrilling conclusion of the Elemental Chaos Mini-Arc of Star Chaser Story: The Legacy of the Star-Crowned, "The Drowned Undercity." True rebels never die.

Log

Without a guide, this might have been impossible.

That is the thought most likely to sink in as the party is led through the serpentine nest of dripping tunnels below the coastal ruins of Aurita Meloda. The sound of the tides seems both near and far, echoing incomprehensibly, joined by the quick patter of their footfalls. Their otterfolk guide, whiskers twitching, alternates between rushing them on and stopping them abruptly. At one point, during a particularly lengthy wait by a fallen pillar at a dark and moldering juncture, our heroes are treated to the justification for these tense pauses: in what seems out of nowhere to anyone both those with the keenest senses, a veritable horizontal geyser of water, enough to sweep away the party and more besides, blasts down a hallway mere meters away from them.

But the years spent and sacrifices made by the motley inhabitants of this abandoned city, seeking the treasures rumored to lie beneath, may finally pay off.

"At last... I can... catch my breath."

Their interminable journey comes to a close, and their real adventure begins, at the end of another dank hall festooned with mildew, illuminated only by shafts of light reaching through the rubble that forms one of the walls enclosing them. Contrasting with that rubble, the halls ends in a smooth circle of stone as tall and wide as the party stacked together, decorated with four equidistant blue-hued glassy orbs surrounding an odd notched stone stub in the center. Ivo, hands on his knees, takes some deep breaths before straightening to examine the artifact as their guide, watching curiously, steps back.

"So this is as far as they've gotten, hm?" Ivo runs a gloved hand along the polished stone surface. "Only one of many mysteries in this place, I'm sure. But you think the fragment is this way, Kernunnos?"

"I know so," Kernunnos affirms. "Beyond, and beneath." The eidola speaks from Reize's flickering pendant, voice strong and sure. It seems as though Ivo's contrived half-Crux successfully performed its function of transmuting elemental aether into the domain aether of Creation that Kernunnos requires for sustenance, at least enough to make him less concerned with remaining silent to conserve energy.

> Kernunnos's Summon Gauge is at 25%.

"Beneath, you say?" From his cloak, Ivo draws a polished stone rod expertly crafted to resemble a snake. It looks heavy. No wonder he was short of breath. "If the priestess is right, and the Ophidian Totem opens the way, then--"

Without seeming hesitation, Ivo inserts the rod into the center notch. He is rewarded with the loud grinding and groaning of gears as, before the party's eyes, the large stone wall begins to lean back, lowering until a new domed room opens up before them with the circle now as its floor. The rod sticks up from the center at a slight angle, the orbs remaining dull. It is not clear how to continue any further.

"Well," the Cosmopolitan remarks, "we're in the right place."

Upon reflection, Reize takes the time to consider how much of a group they have been compared to the adventures within Cosmopolis, where it was mostly him and Lily scouting the spots for Ivo and the others. In that respect, Reize is very thankful. The boy is also under the gratitude of their otterfolk guide who have been keeping guiding them through the treacherous path of the coastal ruins. It had been too long since Reize had to rely on instincts and no guidance. It is a breath of fresh air. The guide had thankfully kept the party out of the reach of the horizontal geysers, which would have not been great to deal with. It also does not help that the boy cannot swim.

As their journey transitions to what may be their beginning, the boy gazes along the dark halls that have faint lighting. He carefully looks over the structure of the ruins.

He closes his eyes, slowly drawing his boomerangs in hands. Given how his previous trips in these ruins have gone, the boy figures it is best to be battle-ready. He listens to both Ivo and Kernunnos.

After Ivo manages to confirm the way with the partially reconstituted artifact, Reize looks over to the path of the domed room that opened. "Well, let's head this path!" The boy steps towards the newly opened pathway that is the domed room.

Ruidosa La Crima has come along. She has her sun-blocking parasol up because it's probably leaky and damp down there and she doesn't wanna get wet. And indeed it pays off when geysers go off and the way is dangerous and wet and soon they arrive to a place where Ivo inserts the rod of the totem into a center switch and a new path opens up.

She frowns a little as she looks up. "It appears so!" she says. "I'm not going first." she says. "I'm better. Um. Back here." she insists. Look she's a caster. She has a point!

She smiles at Reize as he takes point and follows after. "There we go." she says as she looks back at Ivo. "Do we uh."

"Do we take the totem with us?" she asks.

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Well, this is something.

A place where you can get blown away just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Lovely. Definitely 100 percent kosher. The one time she winds up accompanying these people and it's to a place like this. No problem, right?

Right.

Well, she takes it in stride, arms crossed behind her head as she ambles along. "Hm. It is pretty impressive that the ancient people could control this place." The redhead muses aloud in a non-committal manner, and then she glances on ahead as they reach their destination. Ivo seems to have things well in hand here, so Priel stands back, watching and waiting. She seems relaxed, but she's prepared to move in case anything goes wrong.

Knowing these people, something will at some point.

But for now, it seems that all they'll be treated to, is the sight of the mechanism reacting to the insertion of the rod, causing the area to shift and opens up a new way forward. "Heh." She rolls her eyes and straightens up, walking after Reize. "Well, let's see what happens, huh?"

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Anna is here! To her credit, the Suryle princess doesn't complain about the horrible drippy wetness of the ruins. She invested in a waterproofed cloak before coming, and a new set of boots! Everything should be fine, everything is fine, really.

"Is this some kind of puzzle? I've read in books that old ruins like this have puzzles and secrets to unlock."

Poor poor sheltered princess.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

"The weight of the object would suggest that it is not intended to be carried for long periods." Argent suggests as she steps up towards where Ivo so recently used the totem, head tilted first left and then right as she gives it a brief examination. "Ah. This is not certain, however, as it is possible that the original users of this mechanism may have had other means of conveying the object." A blink, a moment of thought, and then she adds. "Such as a specifically designated individual who's role it is to carry heavy weights for long periods of time."

It's at this point that the homunculus turns to look right at Ivo.

"I'm already brilliant *and* handsome," Ivo retorts to Argent, still slightly short of breath. "I can't be expected to be a muscleman too. Oh, speaking of which--" He pauses in his curious scanning of the room to draw a waterproof pouch from his cloak and examine its contents. "Good, looks like they survived the trip. Argent, a gift."

He smiles with relief, and not just from being able to rest, as he turns to their homunculus companion. As he offers her the pouch, the contents clink together gently, and from the opening between its loosened drawstrings emerges a faint and hazy rainbow.

"These are lesser elespheres: purified aether stabilized between solid and gaseous states in our laboratory. Think of them like eggs of magic, concentrated but non-volatile. When they break, just a puff of aether comes out. But if I understand how the Star-Crowned used their athame, if you crack one with the dagger, you should be able to attune to the element immediately before it disperses." His smile broadens. "It won't be as effective as properly tuning, but it'll make you less dependent on the environment... I think. Give it a try."

> Equipping the Lesser Elespheres in a Tool slot unlocks Quick Tuning.

> Quick Tuning enables Aetheric Projection of low-level Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth magic at any time without expending a turn to perform Aetheric Tuning. However, note that Aetheric Tuning enables the repeated use of stronger spells.

The young man's smile broadens into a grin as Reize marches on. Somehow, he feels like they could've survived this labyrinth just on Reize's instincts alone. But not before being forcibly split up by at least one geysre. And then running into the one mimic in the world that trained as a professional oil wrestler in Ashald. No, it was better this way.

Well, drier, at least.

"Good question, Rui," he then comments, heading into the room proper to approach the rod-like totem again. "The angle is conspicuous, isn't it? I wonder..." He runs his hands along it, pushing and prodding, before furrowing his brow, gripping it at the top, and pulling it hard. It shifts with an audible click, and the entire floor sinks slightly. Ivo's eyebrows raise and he glances about. "Well, then. Speaking of muscles... would a couple of you mind helping me with this?" It looks like the makeshift lever is rather stubborn.

The role of the orbs, if any, remains unclear.

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d2.

Comment: Come back (1) or separated as they try to pull up the staff (2)?

Roll(s): 1. Total result is 1.

Reize would continue onward onto the path until he does hear Ivo ask for assistance. Luckily, since that they were at an earshot, the Reize is easily able to rejoin with the group. As such, Reize approaches Ivo and the others as his older companion tries to get the makeshift lever back up.

"Sure, I'll be glad to help!"

He looks over at Anna, "We'll likely need your help as well, Anna!" He brightens, ready to pull against their stubborn 'lever'.

Ruidosa La Crima stops and looks back towards Ivo as she looks over to Anna and then follows Reize back to the lever as she watches. She glances around and looks around the room as she gently opens her book and starts sketching or writing something. Maybe the general area of the room.

Maybe she's writing something scandalous about Ivo. Maybe she's just taking notes. Probably notes. She's been oddly laying off Ivo during the serious adventure.

For now.

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Priel pauses and glances back at Ivo calls for help with the stubborn lever.

Naturally, she doesn't help.

"Oh my, Ivo. You know that my delicate maiden arms are unfit for any sort of hard labor. I would be nothing but a nuisance if I were to try and assist you." She says, clasping her hands together and pretending to look innocent and helpless. Oh dear oh my. It looks like they'll have to handle it themselves.

But it's okay. THey'll be fine.

Probably.

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

There is a lever! A lever that needs pulling! That's... Pretty trivial for a puzzle, Anna thinks. But she's not going to complain as she puts her hands on the lever.

And her eyes go bloodshot as soon as she starts pulling right away with everything she has.

And she has a lot.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

After examining the odd little objects Ivo handed her, Argent tucks them away for later. There's far too much going on for her to experiment with them right now. Best learn to do it later, in some inevitable emergency that's going to happen. As for this business with the lever, alas, Argent isn't exactly a towering pillar of muscle and sinew. Shows of strength are far from her forte. Still the homunculus steps up to the rest of the group, leaning over to examine the stubborn lever. "While I cannot contribute entensively, I believe that I can assist in another way."

While Anna is busy raging against the injustice that this lever has wrought, the homunculus gets down on her hands and knees, bringing her face right down to the base where lever meets mechanism. Her lips move, and...well. A glob of what is hopefully some sort of lubricant is promptly spat at the base of it all.

The inadequate illumination in the domed room is soon compensated for by the light shining in Ivo's eyes as, beaming at the maidenly Priel, he places a hand to his chest. "Fear not, my sweet," he gushes, one hand lingering on the lever, leaning more than pushing. "I, your gallant knight, will labor in your stead, and for your honor." Distracted, he does little to help as Reize begins to earnestly pull, and doesn't seem to notice as Argent hocks a loogie at the base of the lever and Anna marches up looking like the puzzle kicked her dog. "I ask only for the privilege of kissing your hand, and maybe also yo--"

The princess pulls. The lever shifts, then snaps. Ivo falls over.

"--ur tailurrgh--"

The party is surrounded now by the sound of grinding gears as the circular floor begins to sink, slowly but surely descending into the depths until the otterkin peering over the ledge disappears in the dim light. Anna is left with a sizable stone rod in her delicate(?) hands, but the functioning of the platform itself seems none the worse for wear. Everyone can breathe a sigh of relief. Ivo certainly does, as he begins to get to his feet.

"That was surprisingly sim--"

The gears scream. Metal crunches. The floor stops. Then plummets.

Ivo falls over again.

The party's hearts will leap into their throats as they all begin to fall with the floor, their velocity rapidly accelerating, plunging into total darkness. There's nowhere obvious to escape except up for those capable of flight or something comparable. But the fall will only last for five or so arduous seconds. The floor will hit an unseen surface with a shuddering splash. And then, as their eyes adjust to the return of faint light through rubble again, the party standing on the orb-decorated stone circle will find themselves moving.

Rather quickly, actually.

( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tOg5SQQi9o )

Our heroes are floating on a canal alongside elaborate residences hewn from the cliffside stone itself, long since abandoned to the elements, the murky water overflowing with a swift current. Before anyone can speak, the stone circle on which they all are borne shudders again as it slams against a barely-visible chunk of rock, a pillar fallen into the canal and mostly submerged. Chunks of the stone on which they stand are scraped off as their wall turned floor turned raft begins to spin confusingly, the four dull orbs whirling.

> Vessel Durability: 85%

"Champions!" Kernunnos can be heard calling, in a sharp and clarifying tone. "The arm of the Crux is close now. Left-- you must move this vessel to your left!"

Indeed, those who can gain their bearings sufficiently to take stock of the situation can see that the raft, though now careening, is being pulled toward a juncture in the canal between going left and going straight ahead. But a couple problems present themselves. First, the strong current is clearly going to pull them straight ahead, not left. And second, it is also going to pull them directly into another fallen pillar just past the juncture, which they are going to slam into in seconds.

"Reize!"

Ivo, eyes flashing with alarm, calls a warning as he rises again.

"Don't vomit!"

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d20.

Comment: CON Save.

Roll(s): 17. Total result is 17.

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Anna rolls 1d20.

Comment: Strength check!

Roll(s): 16. Total result is 16.

The good thing is that Anna has the strength for all of them combined. This is enough to have the boy flail as he is flung across. "Gaaaaaah!" He lands harshly on the ground, face first.

An arm lifts up, presenting a thumb's up for 'I'm okay'.

Upon recovering, he is treated to the sight of the circular floor sinking. "...Whooaaa." They were originally treated to a simple descent until---

-- the gears give out and they quickly plummet. "Gaaaaaaahhhh!" His eyes widen, he holds on as tight as he can as they descend.

What is their platform is now a makeshift raft.

...Make shift raft... moving along the water. The boy's face turns pale and then green. His eyes swirl as he hunches over.

WHY ARE WE STILL HERE?! ... JUST TO SUFFER?! EVERY NIGHT!

He is rummaging through his satchel to procure anything to help shift them over. Failing that, the boy frowns. "...This is where we could use Lily's wind arts to help propel us..." He grunts, trying to stand up to his feet.

He is wobbly, but he does move over to the left, shifting his weight in order to veer the vessel to the left.

Ruidosa La Crima rolls 1d20.

Comment: Jealousy Save

Roll(s): 19. Total result is 19.

Ruidosa blinks when the floor breaks away and she suddenly SLAMS the book and holds it to her body with all her might as the platform turns raft and she ends up falling down onto her butt a moment as she closes her eyes tight a moment. When she opens one eye experimentally, they're on a canal and there's an order barking out to go to the left...

Ruidosa ums and raises her hand from her sitting position and blasts a quick few dark blasts into the air to the right, hoping there's recoil to move them a little to the left. Not quite air, but.. one can try, right!? Maybe she just got jealous enough when Reize mentioned that girl again and now she's trying to outshine someone she never ever ever met yet! Look.

At least she's keeping her mouth quite about it during the moment. Right?

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Pride does not always cometh before the fall.

Sometimes the fall just happens.

For a beat, Anna is left blinking at the wrecked shaft of the lever in her hands.

"A-ah... Oo--OOP!"

She was about to say 'oops' before the floor falls out from under her but is left kicking and flailing in the air with a squeal for the duration of the fall before the floor hits water. And starts rushing along.

"W-weh...!" She blurts at the landing.

Before Kernunnos says to go left.

Anna immediately jumps off the right side of the flooring and grips onto the edge-- and starts kicking as hard as she can to force the vessel left-wards.

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

The jokes die as the rod snaps, and then proceeds to dump the lot of them downwards with the plummeting platform. "Ah." Well, this seems mildly bad. "Hup." Without considering assisting anyone else, the dragonkin hops upwards. Just as a pair of red scaled wings seem to unfurl from her back under her jacket and start to flap. Taking flight, she descends downwards at a less disastrous pace, watching below what happens. "Wow, this s going swimmingly, isn't it?" She mumbles to herself, cracking an amused smirk at the whole situation.

Soon enough, she follows after the makeshift raft, and lands on it, looking none worse for the wear. Cheater. "Soooooooo...."

Go left, Kernunnos says.

"Ah." The excitement never ends! Guess she does have to work after all. Using her flight, she moves over to the right side to join Anna in pushing the platform to the left.

It's okay, she's getting paid for this.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Argent handles the fall with the same grace she handles most things, hair streaming upwards as the party and platform plunge downwards while the homunculus herself bears a blank, unsurprised expression.

Too bad she doesn't handle the landing anywhere near as well, falling onto her side and rolling off. ...her hair tangles around her as she goes, leaving her in a messy, slightly useless heap. ...maybe she could use a hand.

You roll 1d20.

Comment: Gallantry check

Roll(s): 4. Total result is 4.

"This must be intentional," Ivo is thinking aloud as he steadies himself, his brow furrowed and mouth obscured by cupping hand. "The stone vessel is supposed to be lowered into a canal... where it floats to other locations where it can be raised again... a gondola operating on multiple axes. Broken, of course..."

The current is too strong. The canal is dangerously obstructed by debris. The chain to lower them was, obviously, out of commission. But the basic idea of how ancient beastkin lived here remains inferable.

"So, then, how did they *control* this thing...?"

Ivo tries to find a relatively fixed point to avoid becoming dizzied and settles on one of the dull orbs. Gingerly he makes his way over to it, joining Reize on the same side of the raft, running his hand along the relic before easing his magitech amplifier out from his cloak, flicking a few switches before shaking his head.

"Not an aether gem, at least of the usual variety... there's no trace of magic." He hesitates, distracted even as their stone vessel seems about to hit another pillar. "Odd, actually. There's nothing at all... Hm?"

Ivo turns to watch in, frankly, amazement as Anna attempts to swim against the current and push their stone raft to boot, only to grow progressively more astonished as she starts to succeed. He really shouldn't be surprised at this point, but he can't help himself. But his gaze is torn away as he sees Rui, looking to him at once determined and a little like she's pouting, fire off some shadow bolts in the opposite direction. Strangely, the raft seems to drag a little the *wrong* way, defying physics -- and odder still, the orb on said wrong side, the one closest to where her magical output impacts, takes on a purplish hue, beginning to quietly hum, both color and sound disappearing when Ruidosa ceases her spells.

"Hmmm...?"

Fortunately, Anna and Priel's collective efforts are able to both move the raft in the proper direction and avoid the submerged pillar. Their vessel is caught by another current, and soon the two powerful women need no longer fight the water.

> The Vessel Durability remains at 85%.

"Good!" Kernunnos calls. "Now, the right!"

*Un*fortunately, there is little respite. The raft soon approaches another juncture, splitting three ways, and several fallen pillars obstruct the way, including one to the right. The raft will have to be maneuvered carefully indeed, which is a tall order.

As if things couldn't get any worse, an odd splash catches Priel's eye. What appears to be nothing other than a shark fin slips above the murky water surface uncomfortably close to her and Anna's kicking legs before disappearing again.

"Argent!" Ivo takes no notice of this, as he is trying to make his way to the fallen silver-haired woman. "I think we might need your and Ruidosa's help!" He reaches out to her. "The orbs--"

With a terrible roar, a razor-toothed ichtyosaurus bursts from the water's depths and lunges toward Priel and Anna at the edge, its massive body bumping against the raft and jolting it, sending Ivo collapsing in a heap on top of Argent.

"Ghhahh!"

Banging his head on the stone floor, the dazed young man is unable to explain any further, doing more to pin her in said heap than to help her up.

As the ichtyosaurus viciously snaps, rustling can be heard in the shadows of the tunnel ceiling above, something, or some things, stirring even as the vessel swiftly approaches another hazardous juncture.

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Anna rolls 1d20.

Comment: Punching the shark

Roll(s): 8. Total result is 8.

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d20.

Comment: Giving Sea Dinosaur Lots of Kicks

Roll(s): 5. Total result is 5.

Ruidosa La Crima rolls 1d20.

Comment: Emperor Palpatining the Shark

Roll(s): 11. Total result is 11.

There is a lot to take in. They are riding on the platform that is their makeshift raft, Reize is actually in the middle of fighting the current post-traumatic stress disorder that is creeping in. Considering that he last fought against the raging river, it was met with failure.

However, it becomes determination. He won't fail again!

One reason of that determination is that he is not alone. There are others who are good at handling the raging water that he may not be able to deal with. Anna, Ruidosa, Priel, he is feeling more confident in their fate.

They will fight against the raging water!

Luckily, it is through that determination that they are making it. However, didn't they end up moving to the right earlier? It is hard to tell as to what happened, given that focusing on the raging water makes it difficult to see what else lies ahead.

That is why the presence of a razor-tooth ichyosaurus, emerging from the water, takes them by surprise. Reize lunges forward to meet half-way with a boost of energy behind him until the weight of the ship sends him spraling off towards the edge, "Gaacckk!" He is hanging onto the edge of the makeshift raft, hanging his head low.

"Nggghh.."

Ruidosa blinks rapidly as the raft goes the opposite way and the orb glows. She 'huhs' and stands up as quickly as she can as huhs. "I think the orbs need a charge... um... Let's try something..." she says as she throws a quick dark bolt into the right orb directly to see what happens. (Hopefully. this doesn't explode it.)

However, there's also a giant dinosaur shark suddenly. She eeps!? "Wasn't the ocean supposed to be lifeless here, what's that doing here!?" she calls out as she raises her arms and mutters something as she scans through her book quickly...

"Cadena De Tineblas...!" she mutters as dark energy sparks out from her hand and she tries to charge a continous stream of it into the ancient shark creature. She may be imagining the shark how she imagines Lily might look, maybe. maybe. She doesn't know how Lily looks.

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

'Now to the right!'

Ah, but of course it wasn't going to be that straightforward. Priel would have been disappointed if it were.

Well, maybe she could do without the FREAKING SHARK coming at her and Anna. Lovely. Well! She's not going to waste her time fighting. Nope. Someone's got to keep this thing moving in the right direction. And so, Priel leaves it to Anna and Rui to punch/palpatine the shark creature. She instead takes flight and veers over to the left side, proceeding to push to the right instead now. ...While she does this, she glances at the fallen Argent nearby and quirks a brow. ".... Heeeey, Silver Burrito. You good over there?"

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Anna is pushing and kicking as hard as she can!

Right up until a dinosaur attacks the raft.

"!!??!!"

There is audible surprise as it snaps and the girl instinctively jerks away. Before her eyes get real red again.

Hauling off to lay down the mother of all haymakers at the beast, Anna quickly manages to retract her hand before it's snapped right off- and edges away fast when Rui ZAPS the thing anyway.

For a moment. For just a beat... Anna swears she can see the thing's skeleton as it gets shocked.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

"...that is an unusual creature." Argent comments, one eye peeking through that now rather tangled mass of hair. With a faint hum she tries to wriggle beneath Ivo, seeming unconcerned about how dangerous this situation is. "Ivo. Please release me. It is not required that you add additional weight. I believe I weigh a sufficient amount to remain on this platform without assistance."

There's something he's trying to get her to do, but she can't do a thing where she is. Hopefully that knock on the head didn't KO him!

Ivo, squinting, looks up just in time to see Ruidosa's experimental darkness bolt fired at the orb currently facing toward the right branch of the juncture they are approaching. The continued spinning of their vessel makes it tricky to choose the proper orb at the proper time, but the magical pulse is well aimed. Sure enough, the raft is pulled firmly in the direction of that orb, slipping the vessel into the correct current. However, more maneuvering will be needed to avoid the fallen pillar in the way.

And the party is clearly occupied. The thrashing of the dinosaur almost drowns out Rui's perceptive words. Having regained his composure, if seemingly not in too much hurry to pull himself off of Argent, Ivo's eyebrows shoot up.

"You're right," he murmurs. "Why would there be living things in the water here, but not in the ocean outside the city? Descendents of beastkin pets or livestock? But..." His thoughts are interrupted and his gaze jerks upward as the rustling above gets louder, shrill bird-like cries piercing through the sounds of battle and rushing water. "...not just the water, it seems."

As Reize heroically collapses, Ivo, still basically in a heap, feels a pang of empathy. The sharklike dinosaur attempts to lash after Priel as she withdraws and is about to slam much more forcefully against the vessel, potentially crushing Anna under it in the process, when it seizes up, forcibly stopped and stunned by a stream of dark energy, tendrils of what look like black lightning pulsing about the monster's great form as it shudders and spits from its toothy maw. Ruidosa not only manages to repel it, protecting their raft, but slows it in its pursuit as it takes time to recover.

"Priel!" Ivo, who is now evidently bleeding slightly from the scalp after that earlier head impact, calls out to the redheaded dragonkin as she begins pushing with the aid of her wings. "I think magic is the answer! Can you try tossing some fire at an orb!? If Destruction works, it shouldn't matter what kind of--"

The dragonkin's strength, as mighty as it is, isn't enough to ease the raft perfectly past the broken pillar partly barring their passage down the right fork. With Argent, uh, occupied, the vessel glances off of the stone, chips flying from its side and a crack creeping toward its center.

> Vessel Durability: 70%

Even so, with Ruidosa having already set them on the correct path, the jolt is gentler than it would have been without Priel's assistance. She also manages to slow the spin almost to a stop, making it easier to target the orbs. The passage straightens out, their raft positioned so that two orbs face more or less the direction they are headed.

"Good!" Kernunnos praises them again as Ivo finally rises and begins actually helping Argent to her feet, if she'll accept his much belated gallantry. "We have almost arrived! Now, cross this chasm!"

"Right," Ivo murmurs, "we just have to what this WHAT??"

The sound of rushing water has been getting louder. The dim light makes it difficult to see far down the undercity's canals, so what the party sees first is the mist, and soon they can hear little but roaring. The remnants of a shattered arch terminate in a waterfall that threatens to plunge the party into an abyss. It seems this was once a bridge to where the canal continues on the other cliff. It certainly isn't a bridge now.

"Speed!" Ivo tries to shout over the cacophony, eyes wide with terror. "We need more speed!"

The lip of the arch that remains does look a bit like ledge from which to be launched, but as it is, the vessel will simply slip over and send them all tumbling into darkness.

But the party needs more than that. The ichtyosaurus has shaken off the stunning effects of Rui's magical assault and is trying to catch up from behind them, swimming with ferocious swiftness. And, their cries almost inaudible in the torrent before them, emerging from the darkness above are bat-winged pterodactyls, one of them diving down to attempt to peck at the petite vampire as though threatened by her previous magical display.

Never say it can't get worse!

Ruidosa La Crima rolls 1d20.

Comment: Hey, IM the predator here...! >:I

Roll(s): 9. Total result is 9.

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d20.

Comment: Art - Ricochet Smash

Roll(s): 14. Total result is 14.

There is a disadvantage of fighting in a moving platform within the raging water. The main problem is that in the wrong move, Reize will not survive given his disadvantage to swimming. He is left trying to be more careful than he usually would.

There is a bit of hope seeing Ruidosa managing to shock the creature. However, he notices that it does not seem too worse for wear. "Tsch..."

There is a lot for the boy to take in. He vaguely heard Ivo's mutterings of the living beings out here, "We'll have to find out... but first, we'll have to live through this!"

The good thing is that they are moving on the correct path. However, it is difficult to tell what's ahead given the mist. Rushing water, dim vision, it is all so much to take in as they find themselves what could be an abyss.

What is even more concerning is Ivo shouting for more speed, "Oooi! Rui! Focus on using your magic to get us more speed!" However, the bat-winged pterodactyls attacking Rui earns a glare.

"Oooi! That's my gir---partner that you're messing with!" The explorer's aether flares around him. The internal energy radiates from him, wavey and dancing. With both boomerangs drawn, he takes a leap back and he swings his boomerangs outward, releasing them.

>>> ART - RICOCHET SMASH

It is not just aiming to smack down one of the pterodactyls, but it is striking at the entire group. How? The boomerang would hit one wall, then the cavern's top, then hit the platform that is their makeshift raft. As it hits, it becomes faster in smacking against the entire group. In fact, the ichtyosaurus is in the trajectory of getting hit with the boomerangs. While typically minor in dealing the pain, it can leave a group dazed.

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Anna rolls 1d20.

Comment: Putting on the speed

Roll(s): 8. Total result is 8.

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Priel rolls 1d20.

Comment: SPEED

Roll(s): 2. Total result is 2.

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Anna...

Is starting to flounder a little.

At the call for speed, the princess shifts herself to the back of the raft and starts kicking as hard as she can.

But even her strength has its limits.

Yeah she's not giving much speed there.

Ruidosa ahas! as the raft starts moving in the right direction. So the orbs... are a control mechanism and need magic. Still. She's about to try to shoot another orb when awful, bat-wing pterodactyls dive down at her and peck and ow, ow, hey that's sharp! Ow! she tries to grab out for the necks of these things to maybe BITE BACK, but she isn't able to find purchase so she suddenly takes her parasol and starts thrashing it to try to disperse the crowd of these things over her.

Luckily, Reize is helping! Yay!

"T..thank you, Reizeeee----" she almost says 'Reizey' but she stops herself because she's trying to be serious right now maybe.

She nrgs, the orbs are spinning, so she throws out a blast forward, trying to catch one to 'push forward' which she hopes is. 'Speed up'.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Argent rolls 1d20.

Comment: I sure hope I roll higher for speed

Roll(s): 15. Total result is 15.

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

'We need more speed!'

And then there's this. Priel looks back to see that more new friends have come to join the fun. And then there's the integrity of their foothold as it races along the water towards... is that a drop? That looks bad. Well, for most of them anyway.

"Okay then... let's give it a try!" Priel shouts as she starts pushing with all of her strength! She pushes and pushes and it looks like this is going to go really well! They just might make i-

CHOMP!

"Eh-?"

Priel looks down to see something latched onto her leg. It's ANOTHER shark. A smaller one, but a shark nonetheless. There's a moment of stillness. The shark stares at her, eyes sparkling. She stares at the shark. "....... ......."

And then Priel gets yanked under the water. "-hjbdgjhdfbdghjDBhJFBhjkhfdsbkjhkbhfjsd-"

Thus, was the flame haired vanguard never seen again..... .......

~FIN~

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

While she hasn't been outright told this is what she needs to do, Argent seems to feel it's fairly self explanatory. Shoot orb with magic, platform move fast. There's no outside source of aether, but luckily the homunculus was just a short time ago given exactly what she needs!

It's almost like it was planned in advance.

Now, some might say that it's a bad plan to pull out a blade on a fast moving raft that's being buffeted by the current and pillars and sharks and pterodactyls, but extreme situations call for extreme measures. Without saying a word the homunculus draws that long athame, the tool coming out with a faint 'shlink'. "Ivo. Please move slightly to the right." she announces as her other hand palms one of those odd little orbs he gave her earlier, poking at it with the tip of the blade before pointing it right at the orbs that control the speed of their little raft, just a second or two before a blast of flame shoots out!

...hopefully he realizes that she meant /her/ right.

As Ivo reaches out his hand toward Priel in a mixed attempt at warning and rescue, Reize's boomerangs repel the flock of pterodactyl, giving Ruidosa enough breathing room to focus on pouring magic into one of the two orbs facing the proper direction. When Argent begins to channel fire into the second, the surrounding walls almost become a blur, leaving the thrashing ichtyosaurus behind -- along with someone else.

"Prieeeeeeeel!"

The vessel takes flight.

Soaring off of the lip of the broken arch and over the abyss below, the raft breaks free of water and earth alike, brightly glowing orbs seeming to lead the way. Behind them, the ichtyosaurus turns in a seeming panic, realizing how far it has pursued the party in its frenzy, and thrashes about as it tries too late to fight the current before it is carried over the edge and falls into darkness, pursued at a safe distance by some opportunistic pterodactyls.

And, miraculously, with a fulminating splash and shuddering crash that splits off numerous chunks of stone constituting almost a third of the cracked raft beneath them, our heroes clear the gap left by the broken bridge.

> Vessel Durability: 20%

"Excellent," Kernunnos affirms.

"Was it?" Ivo gasps, chest heaving, eyes still wide. Their vessel begins to slow as the current beneath them tries to push them back toward the abyss, but with the momentum they have gathered, they easily break free after being reduced to a sedate pace. By the time their raft slips around a corner, the water beneath them seems to have almost stilled.

The vessel slows nearly to a stop as the party arrives in a cavernous room, much more expensive than anything they have encountered thus far, and seemingly mostly intact. Light shines through an arched window that reveals the ocean without, the sun caressing still-standing pillars lovingly etched with arabesques. The canal wends around stairs that run the breadth of what appears to be a temple or forum, the raft finally stopping at the building's base, though the canal continues on.

"The fragment of the Crux lies just beyond," Kernunnos adds.

"Alright, but Priel is--" Ivo hesitates briefly. "--probably fine, knowing her," he concludes with a sigh. "We can't exactly go back for her, so let's hope she catches up." He looks up the stairs. Upon closer examination, the pillar-lined building's stone doors are not only closed, but symbolically blocked off by a fraying rope that threads together paper cards printed with ink, in a style utterly distinct from anything else in the undercity. "What's this...?"

"A magical seal, it seems," Kernunnos remarks. "Though substantially weakened..." The eidola pauses, for the first time uncertain. "Yet it seems both rather recent and skillfully made. It has been worn down by some powerful force, and should be easily broken."

"Broken...?" Ivo steps from the raft and begins to ascend the stairs, but pauses at the eidola's words, before glancing up at the door again. "So this place was sealed recently? And the fragment of the Crux is beyond? Did one of your druids do this?"

"These techniques are unfamiliar to me," Kernunnos replies, "and the seal is more recent than..." He trails off.

"Mm," Ivo shakes his head. "I still don't understand." He glances back toward the rest of the party. "Well, everyone ready for whatever lies beyond? Who wants to do the honors?"

Read: maybe get a curse placed on them.

After moments of the boomerangs moving wildly in various directions, they zip back over towards Reize's trajectory. Given how well Reize had been familiarizing himself with the weapons, they are an extension of himself. The attunement between him and the boomerangs is shown as he easily catches them. After all, there is a strong bond.

He looks more relieved, "...Whew, we did it----huh?!" He hears that one of their companions are missing. "What?!" His eyes snap back before he looks over towards the water, "PRIEL!" He snaps out, then he grits his teeth.

They lost one of their companions. It is that worse timing that the raft soars off, sending them high in the sky.

The landing is a rough one. Given the splash and the shuddering crash, Reize grimaces as he looks at their vessel. "...W--we made it..." He takes the moment to catch his breath, trying to steady his breathing. Once he can finally relax his nerves, he looks back at Ivo, "...Priel should be fine, right?" He asks his older companion.

His head lowers, hearing Kernunnos. "...Yeah." However, as Ivo noted, Priel is missing. There is a faint smile as he looks at the man, "...Yeah, Priel should be fine. She's... tough." He brightens, "Tougher than many of us."

As they focus on what is ahead, he looks upon the stairs and the sight of the stone doors with the fraying rope that threads it together.

"Well, I am not sure if I can, but let's see." The boy takes a step towards the door, touching along the fraying rope. He starts to grip and tug against it, even tugging on the paper.

Ruidosa softly steps off the distengrating raft with gleee and looks back and frowns. "I hope she's... okay..." she says softly as she frowns as she looks back at the others and then approaches the strange seal. She lifts her book and flips through it rapidly, and finds similar sigils and starts reading. Okay. Mom has ''notes'' about something.

"Um. Those would be... Um, an Oracle seal..." she trails off, as she shrugs. "I dunno anything beyond that. Mom didn't like to screw with things. Because seals are meant to keep things out most of the time. She told me not to mess with seals anyways because most of them keep me out anyways." she makes a pout. She ''is'' an undead vampire and seals like this probably won't let her pass or break it easily and ten to one it'd hurt her to touch it. Or maybe it wouldn't.

She'd rather not find out. "I'm not touching it with my bare hands, sorry."

  • Character: Anna
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

"Priel?!"

Anna can only look on in horror as the vanguard is pulled under by a shark. But there's no time to stop and rescue her when the raft----

Goes over the chasm.

The party makes it to the other side mostly alive and mostly intact.

Save for Priel.

Anna splutters, coughing and dragging her waterlogged body onto the raft and sprawls on her back panting.

They are alive... But at what cost?

The others say Priel will be fine but...

"Am I the ONLY person worried that she just got eaten by a shark?"

  • Character: Priel
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

'Am I the ONLY person worried that she just got eaten by a shark?'

Moments after that is said:

KABOOM

What sounds like an explosion in the distance shakes the ruins a little bit, causing dust to become unsettled and small pebbles to rattle on the floor.

And then nothing.

".... Never doing this again." Comes a voice from above, as a flap of wings buffeting air sounds out, followed by a tap of boots on stone. Said wings retract into her back, leaving a waterlogged, but also steaming Priel. Running a hand through her hair, she sighs, and then puts on a fake smile, waving cutely.

"Hi hi~ Priel here~ Still alive." She steps forward, ruffling Anna and Ruidosa's hair both as she rejoins the group. "So, this is it? We done? Please tell me we're done."

They're not done.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

Argent rolls 1d20.

Comment: Argent was holding a knife when they went over the chasm, you know.

Roll(s): 3. Total result is 3.

  • Character: Argent
  • 1 year, 9 months ago

"...I believe I require some assistance." a quiet voice says as the rest of the party compose themselves after their leap over the chasm and subsequent discovery of a seal. Now, it's not really anybody's fault that they didn't notice. Things were quite chaotic after all, and one of their number did just get chomped up by a shark while everyone else was sent flying on a raft that was rapidly falling apart. There were /distractions/.

It's just that Argent was holding her athame when all of that happened, and in all the motion and flinging around, well...

She's managed to keep it from falling into the water, at least. Unfortunately, that's mostly because it's stuck. Right in her thigh.

"It is quite uncomfortable." she goes on, her face not betraying that it even hurts at all.

As Ivo holds his breath in anticipation, the rope seems almost to melt away in Reize's hand, the paper cards fluttering to the ground. The images on the paper are familiar to the boy, inked outlines of fortunte-telling arcana, much like those used by some oracles, as Ruidosa observes. As the seal is broken and the doors swing wide, Reize alone thinks that he, for the briefest moment, hears a faint and familiar melody, a few brief notes of a music box.

"Bad luck for that shark," Ivo is quipping to Anna, obviously not having heard any such music. "She'll cook it from the inside, no doubt--" Then he jumps at the sound of an explosion before grinning lopsidedly to the princess. "Here our brave beauty comes. See, everyone's fine. And at worst, we have Argent here to-- Argent!?"

Soon all anyone can hear is a persistent thrum that leaves hairs standing on end. The air feels somehow electric, charged with a latent energy, as the party steps through the entrance, only to witness multiple marvels.

The room appears to be a natural cove, the ocean water visible moving with the tide, with a ceremonial dias and surrounding benches carved from the rock. But most of the designed portions have been crushed and shattered, pillars toppled everywhere. The debris forming a kind of frame for a wondrous sight: a vast and roiling sphere of water suspended in midair, churning wildly. Closer inspection reveals first that the sphere is drawing up water from the ocean below before spewing it back down, all the while separately discharging pieces of wood and kelp onto a large pile of what first looks like garbage, except that within it some telltale glitters and sparkles can be seen.

"What do you think of Meloda's Blessing?"

But it is the person standing before that pile who is the most striking sight of all. His barking voice suits his towering and muscular physique, his long and tousled hair shockingly blue, his skin glinting in the light with what first seem like scales, in fact with the countless gems studding his powerful body. Facing away from the group and toward the churning orb, his thick serpentine tail can be seen lashing impatiently.

"Messed up, yeah?"

He turns his head to look at them over one broad shoulder, revealing a rakishly handsome face and incisors fearsomely pointed.

"Ka ha ha ha ha ha!"

> THE REVOLUTIONARY DRAGONKIN, DEATHLESS DRAAKEN has appeared.

"It's still going, just like me, the great Draaken," the roguish man continues, not seeming to care if anyone responds. "It and I have a lot in common. That's how I was going to use it to get out of here soon enough. That would've really pissed her off. But that doesn't matter now. Welcome, my first visitors in decades, and my thanks for freeing me. When I'm done conquering the world, I'll give you all an island-- yeah?"

As Draaken steps down from his pedestal, beginning to stride toward the open door, his eyes widen slightly, his fanged grin widening with them, and it begins to seem as though the source of the oppressive aura here is not the roiling sphere of water but, in fact, him.

"Step aside."

"Well," Ivo finally says, halfway through wrapping a poultice around Argent's thigh, "at least give me a moment here first."

"Hmm." Draaken seems to genuinely consider this, before grinning again. "Nah."

He tilts his head to one side, neck cracking.

"I'm bored."

> Challenge Deathless Draaken?

>> Yes

>> No

Ruidosa is reading her book, about the seals her mom encountered once in a different location and she starts reading aloud. "'The Dummy... had to go and touch the seal, and undo it, and it was keeping a two headed were-beast sealed in a room. I don't know. What I see in this boy. I should probably reconsider. My taste. In. Men...'" she says. "That's all mom wrote about it. So maybe we shoul...."

And then Reize touches the seal and it distengrates and releases some sort of beefy, handsome dragonkin who's been sealed down here. She looks at Reize. Looks at her mom's passage. Looks at Reize......back to her mom's passage.

Then she looks at the Dragon kin and she summons up some dark energy in front of her as she opens the book and swallows. She isn't sure the power of this guy but. He's sealed down here, it's for a reason right? Also you know, he gives a world domination spiel, of all things. "Hey uh." she says. "You kinda sound like my grandpa right now. So usually that's a bad thing?" she says. "Blah blah blah, the world is my oyster blah blah blah!" she says in some sort of mocking stern old man voice.

Once the young explorer's hand touches the paper, he notices the unexpected. With the rope melting away and the paper cards hitting the ground, he sees images on the paper.

His hazel eyes widen in shock. A familiar note starts to ring in his head. ...A familiar melody.

In that brief moment, there is a pang in him. It is all that is enough to draw a small tear off the corner of his eye as he appears with shock. That familiarity is enough for the visibility to show his teeth clenching.

~ ...Mother? ~

The thought fades, however, when the door slowly starts to open. And that tear is unconsciously wiped from his eye. The air feels strange, like a pressurizd pulse of energy flowing in the air. Those earlier, lingering memories that triggered fades away as he gazes at the marvel of the cove. "..Whoa..."

The boy gazes out in marvel, but his eyes look in shock at the sight of the roiling sphere of water. "..What is that...?!"

He looks at the figure that stands between them. He sees the towering, muscular physique. He frowns at the figure.

"Not if we have to say something about that. We came for the Crux. However, we're also not going to let you conquer the world."

Challenge Deathless Draaken?

>>>> YES.

The boy takes his stance, the explorer takes an aggressive stance. He narrows his eyes, "We can fix that!" He springs back and he bounces up a few times before taking a step back to his fight.

Draaken's saucy grin wavers, then fades.

"...Grandpa?"

He stares at Ruidosa blankly before looking down at his hands and arms, regarding his own reflection in the gems that stud his skin. For a moment, he actually appears wounded.

"Eh?"

But Reize's resolute stance stirs the unexpectedly sensitive dragonkin from his very late midlife crisis, and he looks to the boy, his grin soon returning.

"What, you again? Wanted a rematch, huh? I get it. Where's your sword? Wait--" He arches one eyebrow. "Wouldn't you be bigger by now? Ka ha ha," he chuckles, waving a large hand dismissively, "you're just some kid. All you humans look alike to me."

His feral grin widens again. Behind him, the chaotic sphere seems to pulse, a sheen of blue light rippling across the gems that stud him from the neck down, the ragged finery that clothes him beginning to sway as he extends his arms wide.

"All that I can ever remember..."

Like a wave crashing on the shore and freezing in that instant, a massive icicle bursts from one extended hand, a terrible sword of ice fused with his forearm. From his other hand manifests a giant gauntlet, its icy knuckles studded with gleaming spikes.

"...is how you fight."

> Warning! A powerful enemy is approaching!