StormLord Posted March 8, 2018 Author Share Posted March 8, 2018 Underground Pond(Kusuke & Satomi): Kusuke grabs Satomi and they blink through space-time, teleporting forward over the pool several times and eventually making it to the lower shelf on the other side. Behind them is the pool then an almost sheer cliff leading up to the ledge and opening to the upper caverns. A feint slapping sound reveals the presence of an almost cantaloupe size slime that somehow managed to survive their onslaught, trying to climb onto the bank and attack them. Opposite the entrance was a smooth rounded cave wall, off to the left a bit there was a short and narrow crack in the wall the led off into the darkness. Beyond it Kusuke can feel an almost pulse-like pounding of magical power, whatever he's looking for he's close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powder Miner Posted March 8, 2018 Share Posted March 8, 2018 Satomi wheeled her arms outwards for a moment to keep her balance as she reoriented herself -- she'd had Kusuke's power applied to her multiple times by now, but that really wasn't going to save her from the brief dizziness of being wildly teleported over the pool. "Whoa..." she muttered, before she managed to straighten herself out, letting out a little exhale when she did. Then she looked around the cavern, squinting as she did, until she spotted the little slime still trying to get them. "Oh... heh, it looks like I missed one." Satomi pulled the bow off of her back, and with a little self-satisfied smile she loosed an arrow directly at it. Then she turned back to Kusuke. "Well, alright! I suppose I don't see much else to go to besides that crack, but I must admit it does make me a bit nervous to think about just heading in there -- it seems to me we would be vulnerable in there... though we also could teleport back if we needed to, hmm?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevaleresse Posted March 9, 2018 Share Posted March 9, 2018 "Well, I can probably get through there without too much trouble. I could scout ahead, and then if I don't pop up back at the entrance looking spooked then you'll know it's safe." He wondered what could possibly be giving off that strong of a signal. It occurred to him that it might have been a good idea to ask around about that sort of thing before running headfirst into it, but it was a bit too late now. "I've also still got the pickaxe, so we could just widen it up until we can actually stand up inside and go forward." He took one of the torches from the supplies he'd grabbed and lit it. "But first. . . " He swung the arm with the light underhanded a couple times to get the motion down, then tossed the torch into the crack underhanded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 9, 2018 Author Share Posted March 9, 2018 The torch illuminated the crack briefly as it flew past, revealing it to simply be a short passageway that led to another chamber, where the torch landed. Standing on this side of the crack in the wall Kusuke and Satomi could see that the next room seemed to be larger than the one they were in, dry, and mostly circular. At the edges of the light cast by Kusuke's torch they could see the shape of a small structure like a house or cabin made of wood and stone and in severe disrepair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevaleresse Posted March 12, 2018 Share Posted March 12, 2018 "Seems safe enough. . . Still have any misgivings?" Despite his words indicating that he might be awaiting a response, Kusuke proceeded forward toward the crack, a curious expression on his face. The structure's presence was strange, to say the least; a cabin like one would find in the woods somewhere, but deep underground, past a mine? Though with the dangers he'd both seen and heard of down here, the likely fate of the builder and resident (because someone who would have a cabin built this far underground in a place like this likely wasn't the type to have it done by anyone but themselves) wasn't difficult to guess. Perhaps it was some sort of magician, who'd come down here to find guaranteed privacy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powder Miner Posted March 16, 2018 Share Posted March 16, 2018 Satomi peered through the crack, shaking her head when Kusuke asked her his question. "No, this is more than fine. I'd not like to act as if I have a deficiency of Courage." Satomi put her bow back across her back, and as she squeezed through the crack she held her hands near her katana's sheath in case anything popped out, at which point she intended to execute an iaijutsu strike -- it did not pay in the tunnels under the Kaiu Wall to be unprepared for battle, and Satomi carried her habits from home with her here as well. When she actually passed the crack and noticed the condition of the building, her lips immediately curled into a disgusted sneer. Rotten wood, a hole in the floor, moss-covered stone, and though Satomi really couldn't see the structure in much more detail than that, given her great familiarity with buildings, she didn't particularly have to. "I recognize that this place is a ruin, but..." Her tone of voice was one of moderate revulsion. "This offends my pride as a builder just to see, I'm afraid. A place that truly hasn't stood the tests of time." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 20, 2018 Author Share Posted March 20, 2018 Now getting a closer look they could see that the building had two floors as it was built on the side of the cave wall. The lower floor had a stout and sturdy door the looked like it was still locked as well as the owner had left it. Right next too it was a large rotting hole in the wall, big enough for either of the to squeeze through. The upper floor had a set of stone steps that led to another door on the side of the building, from what they could see from below the second door hadn't fared as well as the first and had been reduced to little more than a couple rotten boards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevaleresse Posted March 20, 2018 Share Posted March 20, 2018 "So, what, you're an architect back home?" Kusuke moved forward, picking up the torch and moving it so it would cast some light into the hole in the wall. He took care to not get it too close; rotten wood might not be the most flammable kind, but he didn't want to risk it anyway. "I thought you were some kind of weapons engineer. Unless you were both?" He wasn't actually clear where the line was when it came to something like siege engines. Once he had the gap illuminated as best as he could, he moved into the house, peering about before seeing if he could unlock the door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 20, 2018 Author Share Posted March 20, 2018 Inside the room Kusuke would see cobwebs and dust covering almost everything, as well as evidence of some small animal having lived here in the past. On the back side of the door Kusuke see a complex and intricate lock that(at first glace) makes absolutely no sense what so ever. He also notices that the hinges are barely holding together and a gentle kick or perhaps breathing too hard near it would bring the door down. The surrounding structural supports appear to be in at least somewhat better condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevaleresse Posted March 20, 2018 Share Posted March 20, 2018 Kusuke elected to ignore the door entirely for the time being, and simply started to poke about the house, seeing if anything interesting lay beneath the thick layer of dirt and cobwebs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 20, 2018 Author Share Posted March 20, 2018 Search: 15 vs 4, Kusuke notices the box-like shape of a chest against the back wall of the room, half covered in assorted debris and caked with dust. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powder Miner Posted March 21, 2018 Share Posted March 21, 2018 Satomi stepped into the house with Kusuke, a frown once again curling the sides of her lips as she observed the various signs of the great disrepair. Gigantic rotting holes in the wood... eugh. The condition of this building was a shame, to be true. So, partially in order to distract herself from the manifest squalor of the cabin, she answered Kusuke’s questions. ”Yes. I believe that when I explained the purpose of the Crab Clan families earlier, I explained that the Kaiu family are the ones responsible for the maintenance of the Kaiu Wall. Both the construction of the siege weaponry atop and under the Wall and repair and reconstruction of pieces of the Wall are within the Kaiu family mandate, and indeed the Kaiu are the best in all Rokugan at both of these areas of engineering.” When the two of them came upon the door with the intricate lock, it was only natural that Satomi’s attention was immediately piqued — she adored everything of an intricate mechanical variety, after all, and with her training and intellect she usually found herself able to figure them out, especially with her natural talent for keeping track of how multiple things work at once and in relation to each other. The lock, then, was a fascinating chance for a puzzle to her, and Satomi immediately zeroed in on it, precisely taking the door off the hinges and laying it onto the ground, then continuing to speak to Kusuke as she closely examined the lock, examining the individual pieces and occasionally prodding at it. ”You see, most samurai find such tasks as construction and siegecraft as demeaningly menial, and not refined enough for a samurai, so while you may sometimes have a skilled architect outside of the Kaiu, you will not find a proper school devoted to it elsewhere. Since we Kaiu both have a very important duty with engineering, and since we are not too prissy to do any actual work because we are Crab, we’ve collected many techniques around it, and the Kaiu are trained in both construction and siegework, as we are the only ones among the samurai who truly specialize in either craft. We do also get training in tactics and in smithing, for that matter, but those are more common in the Emerald Empire.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 21, 2018 Author Share Posted March 21, 2018 Underground Cabin(Kusuke and Satomi): Int check: 10 vs 13. Satomi looks closely at the lock, bringing the fine clockwork-like machinery into focus. It's roughly the size of a saucer and vaguely triangular, strangely shaped pieces of metal of a different composition from the main body protrude from each of the points. Two of the metal pieces Satomi deduces will react to heat or cold, expanding or contracting within the lock respectively. The third piece however(a strange sort of coil, not dissimilar from a spring) baffles her, she simply can't think of anything that it would do, it doesn't rotate, or slide, or twist, or move in any way, it isn't "springy" like she would expect instead it's wrapped around and fused to a rod. If triggered properly Satomi figures the lock would've separated into two pieces, leaving two-thirds on the door frame and the other third on the door itself. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dye Trader(Alyssa): The Dye Trader looks extremely surprised, not in a way though. He reaches one hand up to his beard and strokes his chin while he speaks. "My, my, you are a special one. I wonder..." With a snap change of focus he drops his hands and starts walking towards the back door of his house before turning around to face her. "You can call me Hiram, and please follow me, I've got something spectacular to show you." Assuming Alyssa follows she would be greeted by a room of dye making equipment and then further into a storage room with dozens of sealed bottles on the walls, each labeled with the ingredients and date they were made. Hiram walks over and moves a small stepladder into position before climbing to the top of one of the shelves, he removes two bottles and climbs down before ushering her back into the dye making room. "I've only ever found the ingredients to make these dyes once, do you think you could copy them with that brush of yours?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irbsandcheese Posted March 21, 2018 Share Posted March 21, 2018 Alyssa follows him into the back room and looks curiously at the bottles he presents. "Quite an impressive collection you have, Hiram. Though, I must ask. What makes this particular dye so special?" She examines the coloration of the dye as she avoids the question for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Powder Miner Posted March 25, 2018 Share Posted March 25, 2018 Satomi nodded and put a hand to her chin, fascinated. It looked like these pieces of metal were situated to make use of the minute shrinking and expanding that came with the temperature. Then, when they were triggered, the lock would split into thirds. It didn't take a Kaiu Engineer to reason out that the lock had to be activated either by making it hotter or by making it colder, but she couldn't figure out what in the world that middle piece was, and it was driving her nuts. So she promptly pulled the lock out of the door and showed it to Kusuke. "Kusuke-san, I took a look at the lock, and I mostly figured it out. I think we just need to change the temperature near that other lock and it will split into three -- see the way those metals are composed? It works with their expansion or contraction, I'm sure of it. I can't figure out what this middle component is," and here Satomi pointed to the coil wrapped around a rod, "but I am fairly certain I know how this works overall. Therefore..." Satomi walked up to the sturdier door and made an attempt to test her hypothesis, by taking one of her flaming arrows and lighting it, holding the flame near the lock on it and then exploring the area beyond if she managed to successfully unlock it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 25, 2018 Author Share Posted March 25, 2018 Underground Cabin(Kusuke and Satomi): Kusuke can tell that the coil looks perfect for an electrical current. Satomi climbs up the stairs to the other door intend on trying to unlock it only to find that it is in fact less a "Door" now and more like a pile of rotting wood with hinges and a fancy lock. Time clearly hasn't been kind to it. Her attention(and probable disappointment) drawn away however. Inside the house she see a skeleton sitting and leaned over what look to be the remains of a chair and desk. Countless ruined papers are strewn about along with various apparatuses for lab work of some sort. What real caught her attention wasn't the body or assorted junk, but what was growing out of the body. A large rose colored crystal mass that grew to about eye level and ended in a sort of "cradle", in the cradle was a perfect crystal heart, Satomi swore she could feel it beating despite it staying perfectly still. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dye Trader(Alyssa): Alyssa would notice that the labels on the bottles read "Negative" and "Twilight" respectively. "They were made from magically infused specimens of several of the plants I use to make more mundane dyes." He set the Twilight dye down on a small table and opened up the bottle of Negative dye. Inside Alyssa saw a liquid that looked almost transparent if it was for the fact that everything seen through it looked like a photo negative. "Well what do you think?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevaleresse Posted March 25, 2018 Share Posted March 25, 2018 Kusuke followed Satomi in her explorations. "That's a solenoid, I think. You run electricity through it, and it makes a magnetic field. Weird, I wouldn't have expected that from a place like this." It occurred to him that Satomi likely didn't know much about electricity or magnetism, but his attention was drawn by the thing that was the source of the feeling that'd led them down here in the first place. "What is that?" he asked, not really expecting an answer. It had to be pretty damned magically powerful in order to get his attention from so far away. He briefly considered leaving it alone, but figured he could just reset if anything went wrong. Kusuke takes the heart, but rewinds if anything horrible happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 25, 2018 Author Share Posted March 25, 2018 Kusuke lifts the heart gently out of the pedestal and as he does the pedestal quickly turns to dust, fading away in a nonexistent wind. Kusuke gains one: Spoiler Perfect Heart Crystal: This is a single use consumable item that can be used for one of the following effects: Grant the user a trick that increases their MHP by 15 points, takes no action slot, and cannot be improved. Full restore the HP of one target, bringing them back from almost certain death. Reverse a wound(and the deathcounter tick that comes with it). Removing this item from the Terraria world will cause it to weaken slightly. Tampering with this item will cause it to crack, vastly reducing power and perhaps causing other side effects. Satomi gains two: "Old Elemental Locks" Also found(in the chest on the lower floor): Spoiler 8 Lead bars, 3 lesser healing potions, Spoiler Restore 15 HP, used as a free action, imbiber gains the debuff "Potion sickness: cannot use healing items" for one round. Single use. 2 Archery potions, Spoiler Increase the damage dealt with bow-weapons(crossbows, longbows, ballistae, etc.) by 15% for the duration of combat. Single use. 2 Warp potions, Spoiler Teleports the drinker to the ally they're thinking of when they drink it. The ally must be on the same plane of existence and the potion must be able to actually locate them. Single use. A small pouch full of silver coins, A small mirror with the inscription "Sends you home", Spoiler When used it teleports the user to the location it deems their "Home" on this plane, in the case of the various party members that will probably be the ship they arrived on. The user can choose to bring the mirror with them or leave it on the ground at the location they teleported from. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Somewhere Underground(???): You wake up. Dirt and gravel and sand covers the ground where you're laying. It's humid and hot in here, wherever here is. There isn't any light to be seen and you can hear the soft drip of water falling onto rocks somewhere nearby. Wherever you went to sleep, it wasn't here...not that that matters any more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok97071 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 This is... new. Darkness... all around. Underground. A dungeon? No, the feeling is wrong. No monsters. Her map... no map. No inventory indicators. Just... vision. She could feel them, though, vaguely. Items, gone. No adjustments for perception. Nothing... hm. Curiouser and curiouser. No light Glyph either. Hadn't been crafted. Will have to settle. Luckily, she remembers the sign quite clearly. "Vi" Her finger draws in the air as she speaks, and she feels the world resist her for just a moment, an unfamiliar sensation, but then it passes, the dim light of the Glyph springing up before her. It would do little, but it gave her something, at least, and she could hold the glyph for some time before she had to release it. In addition, it was likely to be useful later, and having it pre-invoked would make the act slightly faster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 Somewhere Underground(River): As the Glyph flared to life River got a dim view of her surroundings. Obviously a cave of some sort, the floor was a mix of gravel and larger rocks in most places, the walls and admittedly low roof were all made of packed dirt and clay. Roots of varying thickness and color dangled down from the roof all around her, water dripped down here and there through the dirt. Coincidentally(or perhaps not) there was a small wooden chest against one of the walls, it looked old and had clearly been there a while to say the least. A small passage split off the cave and continued in the direction opposite the chest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok97071 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Yet more curious things. Well. Might as well make sure. Wait. Blast. No wire. Hm. It doesn't... look cursed, but who knows in a place like this. She approaches the chest, considering it for a few moments before reaching out to lift up the lid, hesitating just a moment, half-expecting it to attack her. After all, she didn't know the rules here, but maybe, just maybe, her stuff is in here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 Somewhere Underground(Rivers): Rivers finds in the chest a series of small plastic tubes about a finger's width around stacked on top of one another in a sort of pyramid, a small black computer tablet, and an unusually thick and large white and red umbrella. The tablet flickers to life as soon as she acknowledges it, relaying a video recording of the "White Room" footage(read until mid page four). Once the video footage ends the tablet shuts off, there are no buttons or switches on the tablet as far as Rivers can tell and it doesn't respond to anything she might try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok97071 Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Rivers is... Well, honestly, she should be horrified. Not, though. Curious, that. She scoops up what's in the box, slipping it into a bag at her waist, which... Huh. Doesn't fit. Usually putting things in there just makes them vanish until she needs them again. Welp! Guess she's carrying the tablet for now. Shame she can't turn that light back on, might have helped. Oh well, she can probably break it down for parts. She slips the tubes into the pouch, picking up the umbrella and balancing it on a shoulder, and turns to head down the hallway. At least she had a weapon, if a... rather bad one, likely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormLord Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 Somewhere Underground(Rivers): As Rivers puts the tubes into her bag she drops one, or it falls out, she's not quite sure, but either way it makes a soft cracking sound when it hits the ground. After about a second it starts glowing a soft green light, slightly brighter and definitely more manageable than the Glyphs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok97071 Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 She blinks. A light orb? No, wrong shape, and it doesn't float. Some kind of... torch-crystal? Plastic, though. Huh. Interesting. She will have to investigate this later when she gets back to the hub. She crouches down, picking up the small tube, and striding bravely into the darkness... keeping her Glyph up, though, now mostly for convenience than light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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