Into the Dark

[+ZincAboutIt]

Corette twisted instinctively as Eos grabbed her, dancing backwards a few feet, her mind reeling a bit as she tried to process the woman's message.

Myriad? She blinked once, twice. Then, she took a deep breath, recalling the group in her mind. Myriad, the woman with the odd, echoing Investiture. Yes, now she remembered her. The rest of Eos's words caught up then. Dead. A message.

Corette said nothing, but she pulled her long, sharp dagger into her hand and started in the direction Eos had come. The others could follow, or not. A fork in the tunnels. That would lead further down, down towards the Well. She burned Bronze, Seeking forward, trying to catch anything that might be up ahead. There was a strange, warped feeling around a nearby cavern - the Mirror Cave? Maybe. A deeper, more distant sensation tugged at her, off to her right. She looked towards the fork in the passage, then up at the form of Myriad, hanging on the stone wall like an insect pinned to a board.

She looked at Eos. "You two went ahead - what happened? Aside from - " Corette gestured towards Myriad's body with a wave of her hand. 

Someone else is down here, she thought, reading the message scrawled above the dead woman's head. Someone who doesn't want company.

"Did you see anyone down here, any signs of life?"

@Invocation

[+Invocation]

1 minute ago, ZincAboutIt said:

"Did you see anyone down here, any signs of life?"

"Me? No, I went down the other tunnel," Eos said, gesturing to the turn-off to the Well. "Only thing down there is some water. Myriad took the other tunnel."

[+ZincAboutIt]

2 minutes ago, Invocation said:

"Me? No, I went down the other tunnel," Eos said, gesturing to the turn-off to the Well. "Only thing down there is some water. Myriad took the other tunnel."

Corette looked down that tunnel again, feeling... something. It was faint, and strange, like a whisper half-heard, or the sense of deja vu. 

"Only water?" She said, stepping around the blood that had pooled beneath Myriad's body. The image on the cave wall came back to her, the painting of all of them gathered around the edges of the water, gazing down into the deep blue with an obvious reverence. "Nothing else?"

The logical portion of her mind told her she should be more concerned about whoever had killed Myriad. She should be cautious, maybe even sad, about the woman's death. But Corette had never been quite like other people in that regard. She hefted the dagger in her hand, remembering the slick warmth of that man's blood on her hand, all those years ago. Even then, death meant little to her. Now?

Well, now it was simply a feature of her job. But, this wasn't a job, this was her vacation. She was off the clock. Follow your fear, Corette. Whatever had killed Myriad didn't frighten her. But that second passage, that deep, half-remembered feeling. That did.

"You're sure you didn't see anything else down there? No life, no plants? Nothing... growing?"

[+Invocation]

Just now, ZincAboutIt said:

"You're sure you didn't see anything else down there? No life, no plants? Nothing... growing?"

"Not that I could see. There is this odd purple light in it though. Made me want to break something," Eos said, unconsciously clenching her fists with the memory.

[+ZincAboutIt]

2 minutes ago, Invocation said:

"Not that I could see. There is this odd purple light in it though. Made me want to break something," Eos said, unconsciously clenching her fists with the memory.

Corette cocked her head, thinking. Purple light? Not more mushrooms, she hoped. She'd had quite enough of that.

"We should warn the others about that Mirror Cave, I suppose," she said, still burning Bronze. "Whoever killed Myriad, they don't seem fond of trespassing."

And just one more reason to go down that other path. She let a hungry little smile play over her mouth, though she covered it as she walked back down towards the scouting group.

"There's been an incident," she called, hoping to get everyone's attention before more people wandered off and got themselves nailed to the wall. "Whatever is in that mirror cavern isn't keen on visitors. Myriad's been killed, and we've been warned off entering the mirror cave. Any of you are welcome to go there, but you do so at your own risk. I'll be taking the formal group down the second tunnel, down towards the Well."

It's about time we find out why we're all really down here, I think.

"Stay alert, and follow me. Keep your headlamps on, and no wandering off. Unless you don't mind painting the wall with your blood, of course."

@Sorana @kenod @I think I am here. @ElephantEarwax @Rushu42 @I ♥️ Rashek

[kenod]

Karin reached the group just in time to hear Corette call out, and the first thing she noticed was Myriad's body nailed to the wall. She almost asked what happened, but bit that question back just in time. The gist of it was quite clear after all, and it was obvious from Corette's explanation that the others didn't know what had happened either. She stared at Myriad's body, expression bleak, and her eyes started flashing around the area around her. She had joked about people being down here, and the dangers, but she had never seriously thought about what that meant, that the people she was with might die, that she herself might die. She stepped in line with the rest of the group, face serious, and followed Corette, looking around for any sign of movement.

[Rushu42]

6 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

"There's been an incident," she called, hoping to get everyone's attention before more people wandered off and got themselves nailed to the wall. "Whatever is in that mirror cavern isn't keen on visitors. Myriad's been killed, and we've been warned off entering the mirror cave. Any of you are welcome to go there, but you do so at your own risk. I'll be taking the formal group down the second tunnel, down towards the Well."

Sarah gasped. Myriad? Killed? She had been lost in her own thoughts, idly admiring the beauty of the caves, but this jolted her back to reality. A seed of determination began to creep into her mind, strengthened by anger. Her expression hardened, taking on what her father had always referred to as her "battle face". She pushed past the others and peered into the cave. Sure enough, there lay the body of Myriad, surrounded by blood. The message above the corpse taunted her, and she nearly marched into the cavern to confront its author. Something, though, (perhaps the remnants of her common sense) stopped her mid-stride. The rest of the group was going in a different direction - did she really think that she could handle whatever had murdered Myriad on her own?

A long moment of hesitation followed. Finally, reluctantly she turned back to the group, and began to follow Corette. "What did that?" She wondered aloud.

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I'm going to attempt to rejoin this plot (if I can). I'd like to apologise to Oduim's Chmapion for dropping the ball on this one. If you'd like to write up a post where you retroactively godmod Sarah, that's fine with me. Luckily, she's a minor enough character that I don't think her absence affected much else. Regardless, I'm sorry about that. In case of another vanishing on my part, go ahead and godmod. (You could even possess her if you want, Ene.)

@Oduim’s Chmapion

[+ElephantEarwax]

Seeing Myriad's corpse, as Corette's warning rang out.

"Can we go see the blood painted wall?" Mercy asked quietly

"It was a warning. Not a option. And you can see an example of it here." Adren responded somberly. 

Walking over to the corpse Adren reached into his bag and placed a  bright colored handkerchief on the ground at her feet. "May you ride the Iridescent Tones peacefully to the beyond, friend."

Adren walked over and followed the group down the other tunnel.

Edited November 25, 2019 by ElephantEarwax

[I think I am here.]

23 hours ago, Sorana said:

“I was more thinking of a rotation. You could take a look at that department, see where you might find some knowledge you might benefit from and study it for a while." She explained and then added. "But there are a lot of good books on the topic, so if you prefer reading, that can be easily organized."

“I, a rotation works very well too, I’d be very grateful for an opportunity like that,” Wes said quickly, didn’t want to discredit the Righthand’s idea. He still had no idea why she was doing this all for him. Allowing him to ask questions, saying she had an assignment for him, offering him a way to learn more about Investiture. This was to Wes, only one step above underling thanks to the promotion, from the Righthand herself.

“Thank you,” he said. “I n—”

He turned the corner and his eyes widened at the mirror cave. Myriad, pinned to the wall, blood in a pool all around her, a message written, above her. Myriad... so lifeless, dead. He’d known her. She’d been part of their group, which the Righthand wanted to bring back alive. So much for that plan...

Subconsciously he moved closer to Althea and held his Kalea close to his chest, hands shaking. A message, written in blood. Myriad pinned to the wall. This was far more than a simple animal. There was something intelligent here. And it had the advantage of having the home ground.

[+Sorana]

Althea suppred a groan at the sight of Myriad. She had run ahead, but still. She would have prefered if they all made it out alive. Wes moved closer as she inhaled, stormlight like a tempest in her veins. Mentally she reached out for him, wrapped her mind around his body to make sure she could get him out of the way should the need arise.

Most of the group continued on their way, left Myriad's body where she was. Wordlessly she elsecalled the corpse to the ground and then soulcast some air into a piece of cloth and covered it carefully. It felt respectless to leave her hanging like that.

The message indicated a thinking, intelligent enemy and she turned to Wes. "Can you remember the name of the person Myriad went ahead with? Did you see them again?" She asked him calmly, somehow hoping that they made it out alive. Corette and Karin were already heading on, to stage a rescue operation with only the two of them - dangerous but possible.

[xinoehp512]

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I'm lost, Nekorb's lost...  Help.

 

[+Invocation]

Just now, xinoehp512 said:

 

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You're in one of the caverns not marked on the map where Malu abandoned you. There's an exit at the back down towards the branch off point between the Mirror Cave and the Well cave where the rest of the crew is that he mentioned to provide a way for Nekorb to get out.

 

[I think I am here.]

22 hours ago, Sorana said:

The message indicated a thinking, intelligent enemy and she turned to Wes. "Can you remember the name of the person Myriad went ahead with? Did you see them again?" She asked him calmly, somehow hoping that they made it out alive. Corette and Karin were already heading on, to stage a rescue operation with only the two of them - dangerous but possible.

“E-eos?” Wes asked.

“The epic with the lasers? She’s over there,” he said, pointing to the woman next to Corette, that animal of hers there as well. Quickly he pried his eyes away as Myraid’s body was covered and laid to rest. Myriad... one of their group. Yes, Wes knew of the others that had died, guards who the worm had eaten without a second thought, but this was different.

“You think she murdered Myraid?” He asked quietly.

[+ZincAboutIt]

The tunnel wound down deeper into the earth, and the darkness surrounding Corette seemed to deepen with it. The light from her headlamp sliced a neat circle into the blackness, but it did little to penetrate the dark. She had known this kind of darkness before - the Alleys were far more dangerous than any of these caves would ever be - but something about this place unnerved her. It was the mural, she decided. Seeing her own future, painted out onto the stone... someone else choosing her path. She rolled her shoulders, trying to work out the knot of unease there. 

What is your fear telling you? Matthieu's voice rasped in her mind, and she could almost see the old Inquisitor pacing up and down the little Alley outside of his office. He had always despised being cooped up in that room, and that was before he'd been promoted to Department Head. Corette couldn't imagine how maddening it must be for him, spending hours and hours sorting through reports and directing plans instead of stalking the streets and alleyways of the city. If her mentor could handle having his future dictated by fate, well, so could she.

The scouting group whispered amongst themselves behind her, surely shaken by Myriad's death. Corette didn't relish the idea of someone stalking her in the dark, but she'd steered everyone away from whatever was in that cave. Whoever had murdered the woman hadn't come into the main cavern, hadn't shown themselves until Myriad had wandered into that Mirror Cave. Well, Corette could respect a boundary; it was the same in the Alleys, after all. No one wandered down there unless they wanted something sharp driven into their heart. It seemed only fitting that the same rules should apply below the surface, as well.

And, she thought, flicking the cork off another vial of Bronze flakes, they'll find me much harder to skewer, if they get hungry for more blood. Corette knocked back the vial, feeling the Bronze flare to life within her. The odd pull on her senses increased, leading her down, down towards this new cavern. Towards the Well, and whatever it was that lay growing under the deep water there. 

[+Invocation]

Eos reached into her pocket, feeling at the little ball she'd found. It intrigued her. Why did it reflect her light wrong? Did it have something to do with that odd chamber that made her want to break things? Was it the only one? Any why, by the Eternal Sparks, did it not get warm as fast as it should? She rolled it around her fingers, contemplating, still staring at Myriad's body. Should have asked her more about the other magics she talked about when I had the chance. Spilled milk, though, at this point, even if it was her that set the path in motion that got her killed. If she hadn't liked it, she should have suggested something. 

But what was that little ball?

And why was it there?

[Voidus]

Whisper followed along behind the main group of scouts, she'd spent too long handling Kemmeth, enjoying the sensation of purpose that she'd felt as the spike had pierced through his heart, an odd mixture of terror and relief fading from his eyes as the life had left him. The others had continued on ahead without her, but given her usual position towards the back of the scouts she shouldn't attract too much attention if she slipped back in, and that along with her tracker that she'd planted on one of the other sleeping scouts when she woke them should leave little evidence that she'd done anything. Corrette might notice or suspect, but Whisper was relatively sure that so long as she didn't interfere with or draw any undue attention towards Corrette then the woman would let her be about her own business.

She walked softly down the tunnel, following the footsteps of 'Karin' who had passed her not too long ago. That had proved to be something of a close call, fortunately Aylitha's look-alike had been moving for speed rather than stealth. Whisper didn't know if Karin would have approved of finding Whisper wandering down the tunnel, still wiping the blood from a spike. And while her Aluminium spike might prove effective against Karin, Whisper still wasn't eager to get in a fight. Fighting was always a last resort, a waste of life. Death with no horror, no fear of the great unknown served no purpose. Wasteless slaughter like that would not hesitate to bring them back.

Hearing voices up ahead, Whisper forced her face to stillness. She struggled to avoid smiling in satisfaction, finally managing to twist the smile into her usual look of polite interest. She took care to move with a mix of caution and confidence, trying to avoid being heard approaching while also not appearing to be too obviously sneaking. She renewed her Lightweaving over herself, ensuring that any lingering signs of blood that she might have missed weren't visible. Stepping out from behind a bend in the tunnel, she hesitated in her stride when she saw the bulk of the scouting forces all gathered around something. She slowly made her way forwards, slipping in between the figures that crowded the tunnel until finally she could see what they were staring at.

Speaking of mindless slaughter.

Whisper had no need to hide her grimace of distaste at the body and the message. They might suit her purposes a little in promoting an even more suspicious and fearful atmosphere, but it was still a waste of a life. She put a little effort into looking more sorrowful than angry, ducking her head to avoid meeting anyones eyes and moving towards the back of the group once more.

May need to accelerate things a little. Better a slim harvest than no harvest at all.

[+Sorana]

16 hours ago, I think I am here. said:

“E-eos?” Wes asked.

“The epic with the lasers? She’s over there,” he said, pointing to the woman next to Corette, that animal of hers there as well. Quickly he pried his eyes away as Myraid’s body was covered and laid to rest. Myriad... one of their group. Yes, Wes knew of the others that had died, guards who the worm had eaten without a second thought, but this was different.

“You think she murdered Myraid?” He asked quietly.

Althea gave a slight shrug. "As long as she is here and not inside there- " she replied and then turned, continued after the main group. They hadn't even stopped, which wasn'T a real surprise either and it only showed her, that if she didn't keep an eye on the Underling, nobod would. Whatever had happened in there, she wouldn't find out while staring at a covered body. "We shouldn't stay too far behind." She voiced her thoughts. "I'd prefer to not be attacked by whatever is inside there while everybody else is somewhere far ahead."

In front of them, the next Cavern waited, the Well, if she remembered correctly. Althea idly wondered where that name came from, while at the same time she suspected that it might be dangerous. Well... as long as it wasn't political. She wasn't really in the mood for careful political treading.

 

[I think I am here.]

Wes nodded, jogged a little bit forward to make up the pace. Walking beside the Righthand he spared a look towards Wes - the other Wes.

“She looks shes the only other one having a normal reaction,” Wes said, looking to the Righthand.

“Nobody else seems to care.” Quietly he looked down, at his Kalea when he realised he was being too loose with his speech again. Even if he had the ability, he shouldn’t have been talking so freely. There was a hierarchy. An order to things. And yet, he was right. No one seemed to care about Myriad, just like how no one had batted an eye for the guards.

Where’s Allri? He wondered. She’ll understand, understand the severity of Myriad being dead.

[+Sorana]

1 hour ago, I think I am here. said:

Wes nodded, jogged a little bit forward to make up the pace. Walking beside the Righthand he spared a look towards Wes - the other Wes.

“She looks shes the only other one having a normal reaction,” Wes said, looking to the Righthand.

“Nobody else seems to care.” Quietly he looked down, at his Kalea when he realised he was being too loose with his speech again. Even if he had the ability, he shouldn’t have been talking so freely. There was a hierarchy. An order to things. And yet, he was right. No one seemed to care about Myriad, just like how no one had batted an eye for the guards.

Where’s Allri? He wondered. She’ll understand, understand the severity of Myriad being dead.

Althea followed his gaze to the other Wes, but otherwise didn't react at all. Whatever Wes was reacting to, she doubted that it was Myriad's death. She couldn't tell the Underling the truth now, so she only inclined her head in agreement. "It seems like she does." She replied vaguely, not quite confirming his words, but unwilling to leave him without any kind of reply.

"Those that are here, I doubt many of them will care if something happens to the others." And with the DA present, it wasn't surprising. "We can take her body with us later on and make sue will be burried properly." She suggested, although she expected ACE to take care of these things. They still hadn't found the bodies of the previous expedition, and she wasn't sure if they would find them later on. Between the predators and whoever it was who had killed Myriad, the chance that there were bodies to find was existing, but small.

"I've found that many people don't care about those they don't know." While her face didn't change, her voice did, it dropped a little, hinted at sadness behind her words. The worlds would be a different place if people looked past their own needs, but she'd realized that only few did it. Most of thost that claimed to work towards some kind of greater good, did it only to fullfil some kind of need of themselves. Not that she blamed them, she was far from a saint herself.

Edited November 25, 2019 by Sorana

[+ZincAboutIt]

They continued on, and soon, Corette could sense the approach of a larger, wider space up ahead. The echoes of her steps became grander, and the air seemed cooler - freer. She stopped, turning to Eos.

"Keep the team back for a moment," she said. "I want to check it out first." She paused. "For safety."

A lie, and a rather poor one, but Corette didn't much care about that. The force tugging at her felt stronger than ever - whatever was in that cavern, it was Invested, though she couldn't place the signature. She wasn't even sure if it had a signature. It was more like a presence, a weight against her Seeking; something that had lain dormant for a long while, waiting. 

Waiting for me. Corette grinned and crept forward the last few yards, then turned the last bend in the tunnel to come out on a ledge. The ceiling soared up a good forty feet, and the floor of the cavern plummeted down, sinking into dark, inky water below. A faint purple light glittered intermittently where the beam from her headlamp passed over the far walls. Something glimmered there, far back in little crevasses and cracks in the stone. Crystals? She flared her Bronze out over the water, trying to feel for something, anything that she recognized --

The high crack of breaking glass echoed out over the dark water, shocking her out of her Seeking. Immediately, the sound ceased, though she thought she caught the glimmer of falling crystal fragments tumbling out of one of the tiny cracks in the cave wall. A prickle broke out over her skin as she recalled the redacted portion of the document cache. Something was growing down here... growing...

The beginnings of a suspicion churned through her mind, and her heart rate picked up as she turned towards the near wall, extinguishing her Bronze completely. There were no pocks in the stone here, and the ledge hung out alone over the water, too far from any other walls, and the walls themselves were too sheer to scale. Corette looked down into the dark water of the Well, then checked her Cadmium minds. Her reserve of breath was still deep and vast - more than enough for a quick look. More than enough to find out whether or not she was right.

Quickly, before anyone back in the tunnel could stop her, she slipped off her pack and began untying her shoes. She shucked them off, then unzipped her coveralls, once more standing in the cold dark in nothing but her underclothes. Corette stood there, shivering, for one moment before sprinting forward, tapping Cadmium, and diving headfirst into the dark, black water.

@Invocation

[kenod]

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Did the rest of the team see Corette dive into the Well?

 

[+ZincAboutIt]

2 minutes ago, kenod said:

 

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I left that up for interpretation! I just didn't want anyone to stop her, but I don't much mind if someone saw her go.

 

[kenod]

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Who was talking about stopping? I was thinking about jumping in after her.

 

[+ZincAboutIt]

39 minutes ago, kenod said:

 

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Go for it!  

 

[kenod]

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Alright, thanks!

Karin walked along with the rest of the group, the silence pressing on her. It almost felt like they were waiting for something, as if they were getting closer to something. A few minutes later the tunnel started widening, opening into a large room. Corette went in first to scout, saying something to Eos before she went, though Karin couldn't hear what she said. She tried to look over the heads of the rest, trying to see what she was doing, though it didn't help that much. Softly she dropped her bag and moved more to the front, trying to move to the side of the group.

As Karin was moving she finally managed to see the room properly. It was a large cavern, with a ceiling far above them and the floor missing, their tunnel ending with a ledge stretching out above what looked like a large lake of water that stretched the entirety of the room. Something seemed to glitter in the distance, but that was all she could see, the cavern lacking the level of light of its predecessors.

Finally she managed to find Corette as well, only to find her in the process of taking of her cloths. Confused she stared at her, trying to figure out what she was doing. It became clear in a few seconds though when she suddenly lept of the side of the ledge she was standing on, diving into the water below. For a few second Karin simply stared at the place where she had vanished, trying to figure out why she had done that. Had she seen something down below? Or was it perhaps something like the worm, trying to lure her down?
She shook her head in annoyance. At this point it didn't matter why she had done that, but if Karin was sure of one thing it was that she'd likely need at least some form of back-up down there, and as far as she knew she was the one best suited for diving. Besides, she was curious about what had compelled Corette to jump in there.
She ran out of the group, ducking away from the others as she ran to the pool. As she was running her hair started moving, the tentacles disguised as hair coming alive again, wrapping themselves around her helmet and its lamp to secure it. I really hope this thing is waterproof, she thought just as she jumped and dove into the water herself, quickly paddling downwards, trying to spot Corette.

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Are the helmet lamps actually waterproof?