:quality(75)/curiosity-data.s3.amazonaws.com/images/content/thumbnail/standard/e08157f8-0b8b-495b-ba6e-af374c49d84b.png)
the depths below.exploring the caverns.All of you will have the same entrance into the caverns -- it will involve going underwater and traveling about one hundred feet through a tunnel which breaks into into a massive cavern, full of air. The breeze is mysteriously fresh, for being both underground and underwater, and before you are three massive dark tunnels. It's hard to decide which one to go toward, but inevitably, you are drawn toward a specific tunnel.
For your top level comments, include what group you are in your subject line. . You will be in the caverns for roughly one week's time in order to get to the information at hand. That doesn't mean you have to stay below that long, but be prepared to pack whatever you need in order to live down there for that long There will be fish to hunt in the waters and the water itself is fresh, but sleeping on the cold marble-like surface might suck, especially if you're wet. And . . . once you get into the meat of things, what are you going to find? group a.
The tunnel by which group A travels down is narrow, to the point of claustrophobia. And along the way, you will run into several obstacles. You will have to travel through underwater tunnels that, again, are narrow and claustrophobic. Stalagmites and stalacites make navigating through the waters treachorous, and getting stuck is not an impossibility.
Additionally, as you move through the pathways (both water and not), you begin to notice little lights flickering in the water. At first, you think it may be crystals sparkling in the water . . . but upon closer inspection, you begin to realize that they are bioluminescent eels. How cool! However, about halfway into your journey, you begin to notice that theyre getting a bit . . . larger. And, should you allow yourself to be attacked by them, not only do they bite, they seem to suck out your energy. These eels feast on magical energy, and suffering a bite from one of these eels will completely eradicate your Astoria granted powers for five hours. Have fun with that.
Finally, at the end of your journey, you will reach what feels like a dead end . . . in that you come upon a small alcove type area, with no discernable exit. And, upon the far wall, you see what appear to be cave drawings. Intricately carved into the stone, with a language surrounding the pictographs that no one understands, are what appears to be two women. One has longer hair, to her shoulders, holding a white orb in her hand. The other, with cropped hair, appears to be holding a blackened orb in her hand. Their arms are intertwined, connected, but there is a large fracture in the rock, scorched across the woman drawn in white, as if someone (or something) has attempted to blast it to bits.
Eventually, upon some investigating, you come across words that you, somehow, do understand, scrawed in a messy text, carved into the stone. Those words?
group b.
The tunnels that Group B heads down are considerably wide, all things considered. Most of the journey in the tunnels for Group B is above-ground and doesn't involve going underwater . . . which may be a good thing, as the water pathways in this tunnel are deep. The water is still crystal clear, but you somehow still can't see the bottom of it. It looks as if it goes on forever . . . and ever . . . and ever . . .
Eventually, though, you come into a second massive cavern, with a huge underground lake. The lake is full of dark shapes that dart underneath the surface -- horses, with the tails of fish, as they pop up to the surface for a gulp or two of air. But when they notice the strangers on the shores of their territory, they circle ranks and edge themselves closer . . . and if you get too close to the shore, you may feel teeth sink into the edge of your coat and an abrupt tug to be pulled into the water.
To be clear -- the kelpies themselves are not particularly violent. However, they've never seen otherworlders like you before, and are definitely scared. Not fighting against them will ensure their slow trust, and they will generally leave you alone. But if you attack them? They'll fight back, and they will drag you down to the depths below without a second thought in order to protect their own.
Eventually, you come across a third massive cavern, with another underground lake. The water seems to sparkle with energy -- tiny lights dance across the water, skipping across the surface without a care in the world. Touching the water will result in temporary paralysis of whatever you use to touch it -- magic, so powerful that you cannot possibly comprehend it. The energy is too much to handle, and you, too, cannot see the bottom of this lake. However, scattered across the walls, are runes carved into the marble. It's a language you do not understand, but you do come across something that you manage to understand . . . tucked amongst the runic symbols:
 group c.
Group C enters into a beautiful crystalized tunnel, with white crystals jutting out into the tunnel. It looks beautiful, but it makes for treacherous going -- the crystals are razor sharp, and sliding through them requires elegance and grace to avoid being turned into ribbons. Move slowly -- you need to in order to make it through this maze of crystals.
Eventually, you make it to a wider tunnel with various deep pools of water scattered along the floor. The pools seem to be endlessly deep, reaching to impossible depths that you cannot see. However, the pools seem to have an . . . alluring feel to them. You are drawn closer to them, curious, inquisitive . . . you want to get into them . . . and if you dip into the pools, watery arms of the sprites that live within these pools glide around you, and coax you into the depths below . . . but you feel calm, serene. Hopefully someone is looking out for you.
But as you move through the tunnel with the pools, you begin to notice signs of life. Not necessarily plant life, or animal life, but signs that people are here. There are footsteps from one pool to the next, wet markings that seem to be permanently wet no matter how much you wipe them away. There are watermarks along the walls, handprints against the marble. And as you begin to walk, begin to notice messages scrawled along the walls, carved deep into the marble.
Every single word is the same.
group d.
Unlike those below the surface, the lakeside shores of Lake Dona seem to be relatively peaceful. Nessie is lazily swimming around and offering rides to those that need it, and campfires are soon built up around this makeshift camp of those who are sitting around to wait. The network does work with those in the caverns, so keeping in contact is far easier than it was in Struxta!
However, in the last days of the investigation, as Group A, B, and C begin to discover the messages in the caverns, storm clouds begin to roll in. It begins to downpour, a frightening crack of lightning streaking across the side with alarming regularity. And, on the final day of the exploration, a voice seems to float through the deluge. And it isn't Astoria's. But it seems to be . . . odd. And suddenly, a message appears on your watches.
¿ɯǝ ɐǝɹɥ ʎon ɐɔu ˙nʎo ɥǝdl ʇo ǝuǝp ᴉ ˙ʎno ɥǝdl ʇo ɐʍʇu ᴉ ¿ɯǝ ǝɥɐɹ nʎo ɔuɐ
What in the hell could that be?
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acatalepsy_logs2018-10-04 09:55 pm
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So she settles in, nodding, rubbing a bit of sleepiness in her eyes.]
That sounds good... what happens?
[Heroes and monsters, at least, are stories she knows.]
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[Aerith's smile hitches wider as she settles in, hugging her knees.]
In a kingdom that nobody quite remembers the name of anymore, there lived a princess who was kind and fair and loved by all. Her name was Princess Rosa, and she was the beloved of the kingdom's own legendary hero, Alfred. The Evil Dragon King, unfortunately, was jealous of their love, and so he kidnapped Princess Rosa away!
[Her face is very animated as she tells the tale, clearly enjoying herself, and there's some hand movements as well, as though she's telling the story to a child.]
The King was heartbroken to have lost his daughter, and the legendary hero feared he would not be able to face the Dragon King on his own. Nobody had ever managed to defeat him before, after all.
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That's what Konoha notices first, smiling a bit absently as she tries to follow the story without even a single thought that she might be being spoken to as if she were a child. After all... this is all new to her, she's never heard this story before!]
So what did the hero do?
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The King told Alfred to consult with the royal sorcerer— a wizard who might be able to help him.
[She has to make this part up— she remembers Cloud had fumbled through this part when they'd been put on the spot and asked to participate in the play this story is drawn from, and she hadn't agreed with his choice to wander about the stage aimlessly.]
The wizard said that true love would be the key to defeating the Evil Dragon King— that he would be so repulsed by an act of true devotion, he would have no choice but to let the Princess go.
[Which— hmm. Why had he been so jealous in the first place, then? Who wrote this play, anyway?]
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[Now that there is something not quite so familiar to Konoha, far more used to stories in which the hero did marry... but it was usually to some princess or noble lady he won as prize for his deeds, not so much... actual romance.]
Like... how do you show that to a dragon?
[At least the distraction is working???]
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[Her smile turns a little lopsided as she watches Konoha's expression shift.]
In the version of the story I saw, I think the hero was supposed to kiss Princess Rosa. [She pauses, her smile fading slightly before morphing into a scowl.] He kissed the wizard, instead.
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[Wait a minute...
Wait a minute...]
Did that... work?
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Not really.
[Ugh. Everything had been going so well until that point, too.]
I mean, a little bit— the Evil Dragon King was at least surprised and let go of the princess as a result.
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[It's not a very noble tale, that... But maybe the moral of the story is that it didn't matter how it got done as long as it did?]
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[She closes her eyes for a brief moment, her nose wrinkling— even just thinking back to that 'performance' has her peeved.]
I don't think the friend playing the part of Alfred really had the gift for epic storytelling. What should have happened is that he should have marched in and declared his love for Princess Rosa, then kissed her and shown the Evil Dragon King that their love was strong enough to conquer him.
[Clearly!]
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[So a story and a performance? It's definitely way more exciting than the plays she's seen, which were... simple pantomimes at best.]
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[It was supposed to be romantic.
Honestly, it fell a little short.]
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[Konoha's never been in a play before... not even a simple one, and this sounds so complex...]
Were you the princess?
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[Well. Sort of. It depends on how one defines 'princess material.']
I'm sure it would have gone a lot smoother if they'd just left it to the professionals, but— even if my friend made a few missteps, it was still fun.
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[... Is that what makes a princess??? Konoha is going for it.]
I've never been in one, but I guess it must be fun?
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I don't know if I liked it enough to make a career like some people have, but it was fun, just for that one night. I'd probably do it again, but for the most part, I think I prefer being in the audience.
[Fewer opportunities for your date to embarrass you that way.]
Have you at least been to a play?
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I've seen some pantomimes before... like the religious ones? And some shrine dances during festivals? But nothing so fancy like your play.
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[That catches her interest; they certainly don't have those in Midgar.]
We don't see much in the way of festivals where I'm from... not a lot to celebrate. I don't think the play was all that fancy; a shrine dance sounds much more interesting!
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[Or... She guesses she didn't know?]
There's bells and music... and they look really pretty, in their long sleeves and nice hair...
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[She's curious, however, and Konoha has her full attention.]
It sounds like they must be incredible to watch... I love music and dancing— but people don't have much reason to dance where I come from.
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[Konoha's expression turns a bit bittersweet, a bit nostalgic despite her intent to not make herself any more homesick than she already was.]
Maybe you can dance here... ? I'm sure someone must know how to play something...
[Right? Hopefully?]
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[She smiles kindly, and of course that suggestion begs the question:]
Do you dance? You certainly have the legs for it!
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[Beginning to grow a bit sleepy now that she's feeling more comfortable, not so scared of the cave with company, Konoha blinks... just to rest her eyes.]
I can do... the Bon dance? And a few others... but I guess we need a drum...
[Did anyone have a drum???]
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Hm...
[She leans back against the wall of the cave, her eyelids starting to grow heavy.]
I'm sure we can find one somewhere once we get back. If nobody has one, someone must be able to make one.
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[Her voice slips into a distracted murmur, still just. Resting her eyes. Not sleeping... maybe slipping into sleep...]
Let's do that when we get out of this cave...
(no subject)
<3