Into the Dark

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

3 minutes ago, kenod said:

Are the helmet lamps actually waterproof?

Quote

Yes, they are!  

 

[kenod]

Quote

Alright, that's nice. Now lets hope we don't get eaten. Again.

 

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

The icy shock of the water would have driven all the breath from Corette's lungs - if she'd been holding her breath. As it was, the Cadmium torque around her neck allowed her to hold her breath indefinitely. She braced against the frigid water, letting it flow around her body, allowing herself to become familiar with its cold sting. The headlamp had nearly slipped off in her dive, and she pulled it back into place snug around her forehead before turning first left, then right, getting her bearings.

Her body sank slowly, and she pushed a few more bubbles of air out of her lungs to speed the process. Then, when she was about fifteen feet below the surface, Corette kicked off to her left, hoping to find the cavern wall.

A dull splash echoed above her, and Corette turned, the beam of her headlamp bending oddly in the water to illuminate... Karin? She wrinkled her nose, but kicked towards the woman; at least it was another DA member. If this dive turned out as she suspected, she didn't want to have to deal with another guild so soon. She waited for the bubbles surrounding Karin to clear a bit, then beckoned to the woman before pointing down and towards the left - towards the cave wall.

Follow me. Then, she turned and began to swim, kicking through the cold, inky waters.

@kenod

[Voidus]

On 21/11/2019 at 1:44 PM, Invocation said:

"Perfect!" She dragged Myriad down the tunnel, leaving the rest of the scouting group behind. They walked for a time, talking vaguely about Epic powers, until they came to a split in the tunnel. "You continue on, I'll start looking around this turn-off. Sound good?"

@AonEne

"Maybe a sample of the shoes, too, hmmm? Would probably taste better than some of the food I've had here!" Okame laughed. "Lead the way, then, O Cave Exploress."

@ZincAboutIt

Once more Laurelai was tempted to hit Okame with something. There were many in the Dark Alleys who had a somewhat jovial side to them, but most of that was a darker sort of humour the kind that didn't quite match with normal reality and served only to put people on edge rather than make them relax. But Okame seemed nearly perpetually buoyant, as though even the weigh of the Alleys and all that they contained wasn't enough to drag him into the darker depths of reality.

But he's a radiant isn't he? Something must have broken him at some point.

Laurelai watched the back of the large Horneater as he made his way through the caverns, following him out of the other exit where the moss continued for a little while before it suddenly stopped as though sheared off by a knife. She would have investigated that a little more, but Lita was right, they could come back and collect samples for R&D later, nothing here seemed like it would be likely to threaten them later so there shouldn't be any issues with leaving it behind.

Not like all the other issues you've left behind? The ones that will come back to haunt you. The ones you hide from.

Shaking her head once again, Laurelai refocussed on Okame and voiced some of her earlier curiosity.

":How did you join them?" She asked, trying to keep a steady voice. "The Radiants? I was on Roshar for a while so I know a little, you just seem too..."

She left the sentence trailing, unsure of how exactly she intended to finish it. Too hopeful? Annoying? Whatever it was he didn't exactly seem like most other Radiants she'd seen in the city.

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Lita smirked a little at Laurelai's open-ended question. She knew what Laurelai was thinking - Okame was odd, and not in the typical way of the Alleys. Lita was never sure if the Horneater was constantly just playing everyone for a fool, or if he really was as upbeat as he appeared. Either way, Lita actually believed him about eating the shoes.

"No one is eating any shoes," she said softly, regaining the lead again, ears picking up the sounds of water trickling somewhere down the tunnel. An underground spring? Lita wondered if they might find some kind of Invested water down here. Now that would be a treasure indeed.

You're starting to sound like a scholar now, the voice in her head mocked. They'll need to get you a desk, soon. Maybe you can ask Mac for a cubicle beside Laurelai in the Records Department.

Lita rolled her eyes at herself, though her musing did catch on the edge of something that had been bothering her for a while. Mac... now that she thought about it, it had been a while since she'd heard from him. That wasn't entirely unusual - Lita was generally left to her own devices unless she had a job, but she'd sent him a message about exploring the caverns at least a day ago now. She'd have expected him to at least say something, even if it was his usual 'Report anything useful.' Complete radio silence wasn't like him.

She pulled out her pen and spun it between her fingers, sending a quick message to Laurelai as they walked. It wasn't that she distrusted Okame, but, well... he wasn't in her department. If Mac were away on some secret errand, she didn't want to broadcast it to everyone.

Have you heard from Mac lately? She sent, pressing her other hand against the cavern wall as they walked. He's been uncharacteristically silent on my end. Is he working on a new project? I heard he'd bought a boarding house sometime over the last half-year, but I can't imagine it would take up that much of his time.

@Voidus

[Voidus]

Laurelai's eyes shifted to Lita's back, the woman gave no obvious sign of the message she'd sent but she was an accomplished denizen who'd worked with acquisitions as well as the DoCI before. Laurelai frowned slightly as her own pen began to spin from one finger to the next in a slow but elegant twirl.

Mac? Nothing recently.

She paused, trying to recall when she'd last heard from him. In spite of her recent stint in the department of records she had kept some occasional contact with Mac, and to his credit the Department Head had usually made time to hear her when she'd asked or requested something. He'd always been more approachable than most of the other department heads as well, a little less... ominous. Perhaps due to his own experience in blending into a crowd when he needed to, unlike figures like the Stranger who would be unlikely to pass unnoticed no matter what forms of Investiture they used.

In a meeting perhaps? I'd heard he'd- that he'd been visiting Voidus a bit.

She glossed over the short hesitation in her reply, the sudden stiffening of her usually nimble fingers when she thought once again of that figure, cloaked in ominous darkness and exuding a pressure that could snuff her life out with as little effort as blowing out a candle.

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Lita frowned in the dark, chewing her lip. A meeting? Yes, maybe. Who knew how long a meeting with Voidus could last? For all Lita knew, Voidus could stop time or rewind it or create pocket universes to hold as long of a meeting as he liked. 

She didn’t miss that tiny stutter in Laurelai’s transmission at the mention of Voidus’s name. Her father’s name. As far as Lita could tell, no one else knew that Lita had discovered that particular secret.

Probably why I’m still alive, she thought darkly. Lita felt an old nudge of guilt at keeping the knowledge from Laurelai. She had been so close, the night of the invasion; it was a miracle she hadn’t let it slip. So much wine... too much. Too careless. Laurelai had the right to know about her father, but was it worth Lita's life?

No. No, it wasn’t.

Maybe we’ll finally get that pay raise when we inevitably find something spectacular down here, she sent instead. We could ask for offices. You know, I’ve heard that the EHD actually has an interdimensional coffee maker? Supposed to be incredible.

@Voidus

[+Invocation]

3 hours ago, Voidus said:

":How did you join them?" She asked, trying to keep a steady voice. "The Radiants? I was on Roshar for a while so I know a little, you just seem too..."

Okame's face darkened, reliving his bloodsoaked past. "This is not a question you are prepared for me to answer." He reached his hand to the side, unconsciously forming his grip like he would summon his Blade, but instead running his hand along the cave wall. Disapproval echoed along his bond, unable to hide from his spren what he had almost tried to do. How much longer would be be able to resist? He was weak.

And growing weaker.

8 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

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

Eos cursed. Corette wanted to leave her there to watch over everyone else? Absolutely not. She walked to the ledge, specifically not stopping anyone just to spite her. She decided she would take it one step further. "Sounds like she wants everyone to jump in."

[Voidus]

Introspectively dwelling on her own problems, Laurelai almost missed the sudden tightening of Okame's posture. The none-too-subtle disapproval in his tone as he replied to her question. She abandoned her reply to Lita part way through, interesting as interdimensional coffee sounded, anything in the EH department was not something that a wise woman got tangled up in. But Okame's reaction was more immediately interesting, here was a final sign of the usual dark and brooding character of many of the Knights Radiant. The hidden pain, promises of some dark and regretted past.

"I apologise if I upset you." She said, bowing her head slightly in apology. "I didn't mean to cause offence, I was just curious. As I said you're not exactly like most Radiants."

As her head bent down she kept her gaze locked firmly on Okame's hand as it opened for an instant before he seemed to force it against a wall. She was all to aware of how dangerous he could be if he had a mind to, with the amount of time that she and Lita would have to react in this small a space they'd likely find their spines severed within short order, eyes burning out.

One more person to be afraid of.

Wincing as she tried to squeeze the voice out of her mind she remained silent.
@ZincAboutIt @Invocation
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Whisper caught the eye of Wes for a moment as his gaze lingered on her, she let her own stare pass over him as her eyes wandered as though lost, but using her peripheral vision she kept an eye on Althea and Wes as they spoke. She had avoided keeping extended contact with any one person during the trip so far, trying instead to familiarise herself a little with as many people as she could. Friendly, helpful but not someone that anyone would look for or notice too much as she moved around. That was usually ideal. But Wes had spent a decent amount of time talking to her back during the hiring process. That might be useful, he seemed to have a good impression of her at least, either that or he was a much better liar than she'd given him credit for. But eyes staying on her for too long would be restrictive.

Her gaze passed over them once more, lingering for just a moment on Althea, taking stock of her quickly. Whisper did not doubt that she would not have an easy time if she picked a fight with one of the leaders of the Ghostbloods, but how attached was Althea to this underling of hers? What would she risk? Whisper had already watched them both with some interest throughout the trip, in their own ways they were both vulnerable. She hadn't been intending to act with them immediately, but should she accelerate things a little?

Whisper forced a shiver as she looked over towards the body once more and wrapped her arms around herself, either for warmth or comfort. As she did so she checked once again that the spikes were still in place, ready as ever in case she needed them.

Satisfied she slowly made her way over towards the pair of Ghostbloods before holding up a canteen towards Wes, offering him the little water she had left. Wiping a tear from an eye would have been a bit too much to try in these circumstances so instead she simply kept a solemn expression on her face and sent a regretful gaze towards the body once more.
@Sorana @I think I am here.

[+Sorana she/her]

Althea watched Corette jump down into the well and took a few steps forward, looked around the cave. There were little holes all over the place, scattered on the walls, high enough that you could only reach them with difficulty. She noticed them and looked away again, was about to head over to the water, when she noticed the little Kalea. It had lifted it's head, smelled the air curiously, pressed to one side of it's cage. Something was here, something it knew, it recognized. She looked around again, her eyes returning to the little holes and she remembered the spren. The spren that had shown the future. A possible future.

With a flicker of her fingers she sent Brashen up to take a closer look at the holes and her spren oblieged, while she mentally wrote a list who she should contact. Max. He could help should this lead to a war. He could put a stop to this right here and now. Zokora. She could deal with the official stuff, keep an eye on those above. Brashen returned and gave a curt nod, confirming her suspicions, although she would have to talk to him to be sure. Still, to be wrong, it was unlikely.

Max. She reached out for him. Do you keep an eye on the other guilds? Will you know should they ready their armies? I think we found something that has the potential to cause a conflict of some sorts.

She was about to speak when she noticed the girl, Wes walk over to them offering her Wes a canteen. She kept a solemn expression, but Althea wasn't sure wether to believe it. She had sorted the girl to those to keep an eye upon, she seemed to be perceptive and quiet. Probably dangerous.

For now she kept quiet, only answered Wes fleeting gaze with one of her own. If the girl decided to pick a fight, so be it, although hopefully she could be diverted. They should deal with the contents of the cave first.

Edited November 26, 2019 by Sorana

[+ElephantEarwax he/him]

Watching as the lights disappear into the depths of the well, Adren began looking around the cavern. Noticing cracks and holes in all the walls, blue crystal fragments underneath some of them. "Blue crystals..." he mumbled to himself.
 

Walking over to Althea, "These blue crystals...cracks and holes in the walls...the well...if this is what I fear it is...How do you believe this will go Althea?"
 

"What do you think it is?" Mercy said

"Something dangerous. Something that shouldn't exist." Jethro whispered back at her.

"But what is it?" Mercy insisted. 

 

@Sorana

Edited November 26, 2019 by ElephantEarwax

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Lita began burning Pewter the moment she saw Okame tense beside her in the tunnel. She knew that if he summoned his blade, it would take him all of a second to sever her soul like a bit of string; she could maybe jump backwards in time. Maybe. There would be no hope for Laurelai.

The thought of Laurelai dying - really, truly dying, sent a small but white-hot lance of panic shooting through her. Her fists clenched instinctively, ready for --

For nothing. Okame pressed his hand to the wall, and it seemed that he had mastered himself for the moment. Lita let out a tiny breath she didn't realize she was holding, then turned back towards the tunnel. The shadows across the ground up ahead deepened oddly, and Lita burned more Tin.

The light in the tunnel moved towards something akin to evening, and the shadow on the floor resolved into what it truly was: a massive rent in the ground, easily fifteen feet across. The dripping, trickling sounds of water echoed up from the hole, and Lita thought she could detect the faintest blue-white glow reflecting off the moist black rock.

"There's a chasm up ahead," she said, a little louder than necessary, hoping to distract Okame and Laurelai from their own tension. Lita moved forward, reaching the nearest edge of the chasm and looking across.

She could jump it - possibly. And anyway, Okame could easily Lash them all over the pit. But something drew her attention down, instead of across. Now that she looked for it, there was definitely something glowing down there, faint and luminous as starlight.

"Okame, can you take us down?"

The words were out of her mouth before she even realized she was speaking them, her heart beat picking up as she continued to stare down into the abyss before her. Lita's hand strayed into her pocket, and she slipped the Coin out into her palm, studying its face. As she looked, the Spiked Skull on one side seemed to wink out, replaced by the image of the Sun. The light of truth...

Lita cocked her head, bringing the Coin closer to her face to get a better look, but the symbol vanished to be replaced with the Skull again. She turned it over, but no - it was just the Skull, as usual. Surely, she hadn't just imagined it?

She pocketed the Coin again, looking down into the chasm with a renewed fervor. "There's something down there," she whispered, and her voice was hungry and cold. Lita looked back over her shoulder, pupils wide with Tin, smile sharp. "I can feel it."

@Invocation @Voidus

[+Invocation]

22 minutes ago, ZincAboutIt said:

"Okame, can you take us down?"

He nodded, pushing both of the others off the edge with a just-shy-of-half Lashing, cancelling enough of their weight that they would still drift downwards but not enough to hurt them at the bottom, then jumped off himself, free-falling until he Lashed himself just enough to touch gently down on the ground below. "You are all so slow. Fall faster."

[kenod]

23 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

The icy shock of the water would have driven all the breath from Corette's lungs - if she'd been holding her breath. As it was, the Cadmium torque around her neck allowed her to hold her breath indefinitely. She braced against the frigid water, letting it flow around her body, allowing herself to become familiar with its cold sting. The headlamp had nearly slipped off in her dive, and she pulled it back into place snug around her forehead before turning first left, then right, getting her bearings.

Her body sank slowly, and she pushed a few more bubbles of air out of her lungs to speed the process. Then, when she was about fifteen feet below the surface, Corette kicked off to her left, hoping to find the cavern wall.

A dull splash echoed above her, and Corette turned, the beam of her headlamp bending oddly in the water to illuminate... Karin? She wrinkled her nose, but kicked towards the woman; at least it was another DA member. If this dive turned out as she suspected, she didn't want to have to deal with another guild so soon. She waited for the bubbles surrounding Karin to clear a bit, then beckoned to the woman before pointing down and towards the left - towards the cave wall.

Follow me. Then, she turned and began to swim, kicking through the cold, inky waters.

@kenod

Karin felt a shock run through her from the cold of the water, her clothing both wallowing out in the water as well as making it hard to move. She looked around, but couldn't see much, even with the lamp, the water stealing most of the light away. Suddenly from the darkness another light appeared though, followed by Corette a few seconds later. Karin sighed in relief, and started swimming towards her. Corette gestured at her though, pointing towards what Karin figured was the direction towards the wall, and swam off in that direction. Karin nodded and started following her, hoping Corette knew what she was doing.

Karin looked around while she was following Corette, noticing her own low speed. She thought for a bit, and then she altered her hands and ankles, growing large fins to help with the swimming. Currently it seemed everything was still going well though, with no dangerous things having appeared yet, and she started to appreciate the silence, now that she had gotten used to the cold. She hoped that the people topside would remember to get some blankets or other source of heat before they got back though. she wasn't sure if the water was cold enough to cause hypothermia, especially once they got out and stopped moving, and she wasn't sure Corette would have some way to deal with that.

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

4 minutes ago, Ookla the Foxed said:

with no dangerous things having appeared yet

Quote

Are you interested in having something dangerous appear, or would you prefer a simpler time?  

 

[Voidus]

"Okame, can you take us down?"

Laurelai nodded, turning towards Okame before realising just exactly what it was they were about to ask for.

"If you push me I swear I'll-" Laurelai cut off suddenly as a firm, insistent shove moved her off of safe ground and into free fall.

There was an instant and intense experience of vertigo and nausea as she suddenly found herself falling, but not at the rate her brain was usually used to. The disconnected sense of almost-weightlessness and the reality of the large drop underneath them caused a spiralling panic that she had to seize control of before she started screaming.

Keeping her jaw locked to avoid giving any satisfaction to Okame, Laurelai glanced over towards Lita, doing her best to keep from having too undignified a posture as they fell. She saw the moment of startlement in Lita's expression as well, but it was almost overpowered by something else, her burning and boundless curiosity and hunger for secrets.

This is your fault. Laurelai sent as they slowly descended. You asked him.

She heard Okame's voice calling up down below, added it to the mental tally of recompense that she owed to him at this point. Arranging her dress so it stopped fluttering about, she landed as lightly as she could manage when they reached the ground, not losing her footing or falling over at least. Then shot an intense glare towards Okame.

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Lita bit off a scream when Okame shoved the both of them off the ledge, the moment of disorientation compounded exponentially with her Tin on. She was halfway down the long drop when Laurelai's message came through.

This is your fault. You asked him.

She looked up, meeting the blonde woman's eyes, and sighed. I know, she responded.  I suspect I won't hear the end of this for a while, which is only fair.

Lita burned Pewter as they touched down, the hot fire within her fortifying her body and perfecting her balance. She landed gracefully, then joined Laurelai in glaring at the Horneater.

"It really is a wonder," she said acidly, "that you have yet to make any friends amongst your new guild. You're ever-so fun."

With another, louder sigh, Lita straightened her shirt, tucked a few stray hairs back into her braid, and checked their pack. Blessedly, nothing had fallen out. Satisfied, Lita slung the pack back onto her shoulders and took a good look around.

The chasm had bottomed out into another low tunnel of black stone. Gravel crunched beneath her boots, and the air smelled wet and chalky and cool. The echo of falling water whispered around them, and that luminous blue-white glow was stronger here. Lita extinguished her Tin for a moment to gauge the true darkness of this place, and was pleased to see that even her companions could find their way around.

She nudged her Tin higher again, and the cavern brightened to something like daylight - if the day were lit by a cold, blue-white sun. Laurelai's breath was coming a little short, surely from their fall, and Okame breathed easy and deep. With her senses so refined, the sound of water seemed almost deafening.

"There's some kind of spring up ahead," Lita said, stepped forward with a crunch that roared against her sensitive ears. "Maybe a waterfall?"

She handed Laurelai a torch, then moved ahead, recalling that momentary wink of the Sun on her Coin. It had been a long time since the faces had changed - not since that night when the Stranger had offered her that choice. The night of the Alleystorm, when everything had changed.

What are you telling me? She thought at the cold disk of metal in her pocket. What is waiting down here for us?

@Voidus @Invocation

 

[+Invocation]

Okame chuckled, completely unphased at the glares. "Should have been more specific. At least you got to experience the glory of wind around your body, even as short as it was. Plenty of fun."

@Voidus@ZincAboutIt

[Voidus]

Laurelai contemplated a jibe about how much she'd enjoy letting him enjoy the glory of the wind when he didn't have any Stormlight. but she settled for a sniff instead, looking around the cavern that they'd landed in and straining her ears to hear what Lita had mentioned. She could hear it, though at first she'd thought it was simply wind moving through tunnels. But the constant sound definitely seemed more like water than wind, and Lita would be able to hear it much more quickly.

"Waterfall?" She asked cautiously. "Great. More falling."

She threw Okame another look before testing the torch that Lita handed her. It let her see more clearly, but even without its light she would at least be able to avoid tripping over anything. Hopefully.

"If you try to push us into a lake." She warned, looking over shoulder. "I will endeavour to come up with an even more creative means of vengeance than I already have."

She followed after Lita, trying to still her emotions to keep from being too riled up. She didn't know how the Horneater had managed to so consistently get under her skin like this but she needed to be calm if they were proceeding into the unknown. Unflappable.

"I've currently decided on placing spikes in a particularly unusual spot." She continued. "And not one that has any bindpoints."

Unflappable.

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Lita sniggered at the obvious irritation in Laurelai’s voice. It was almost impressive how quickly Okame was able to get her all riled up - the woman was usually a glacial vault. 

“That would certainly be an interesting experiment log.” She knew Laurelai wouldn’t miss the wry humor in that statement. “Just one more in our legacy, hmm?”

The black stone continued on, narrow, jagged and rough, almost as though they were moving through a crack in the earth instead of a true tunnel. Lita had to dip her head and twist a bit around some corners - she could only imagine how hard it would be for Okame to get through this last bit of tunnel.

Somehow, she couldn’t muster much sympathy for the Skybreaker.

”I can see something up ahead,” she whispered to Laurelai, shimmying around a particularly narrow bend. “Some kind of chamber?”

The little alcove beyond the tight bend in the rock was small - hardly bigger than a coat closet, and seemed to be nestled into a little bubble of a cavern, the sides a bit smoother than the stone of the tunnel. Lita caught her breath; at last, this was the source of the blue-white light.

A gentle stream of water poured from a crack in the ceiling, falling like rain into a pool about two feet across. The surface of the water betrayed no ripple as the stream of glowing liquid hit, though everywhere Lita could hear the gentle echo of falling rain. Something was carved into the stone above the entrance to the little cavern, words in a language Lita didn’t recognize. 

Words...

Lita started, flaring her Tin to get a better look at the scratches. Yes, that was definitely a language. She thought she recognized one of the characters, something she’d seen once as a girl in the memorial at the heart of Elendel...

”Laurelai,” she whispered, reaching out with one hand blindly, her eyes still glued to the stone. “Laurelai, come here. Can you read Old Terris?”

@Voidus

[xinoehp512 he/him]

"Hello?" came a voice, a muffled echo. "Anyone there?"

@wherever Nekorb comes out

[+Sorana she/her]

13 hours ago, ElephantEarwax said:

Watching as the lights disappear into the depths of the well, Adren began looking around the cavern. Noticing cracks and holes in all the walls, blue crystal fragments underneath some of them. "Blue crystals..." he mumbled to himself.
 

Walking over to Althea, "These blue crystals...cracks and holes in the walls...the well...if this is what I fear it is...How do you believe this will go Althea?

@Sorana

Adren. She liked him, but in the end he was DA. Althea ran some possible replies in her head and then finally nodded. "I fear, that it will to fights." she replied, her voice projecting a careful calm she didn't really feel. "Depending on how we react to it, it is entirely possible that some will start a war out of greed or because they hunger for power."

Slowly she touched the wall again, partially elated, this was a treasure and you could do so many incredible things with it. It was pure power and money - and at the same time she knew that everybody would feel like that. They would see the treasure and they would try to get a part of it for themselves.

She soulcast a part of the wall, to create a little platform for stand on and then elsecalled up there, reached into a hole until her fingers touched something in the middle and she broke it out. The stone cut her skin open, but she ignored the pain, the shallow cuts immediatly starting to heal again. Calculating she considered her next action, then she repeated the motion, plucked another one before returning to the ground. Her arm had healed completely when she was back with Adren, Wes and the girl. "Here." She handed Adren one of the two, and then took a close look at the one she kept for herself. She had seen it before, but it was rare, so rare that to hold it in her hand was elating. The thought alone what she could learn about it, what they could do with it.

"The last invasion is six months past." She said after a while. "And now we find that cave full of one of the few things able to upset our delicate balance." It was a balance between all guilds except for the DA. The DA could kill them all and that kept the others in check. At least it had more or less since the seven day war. Pondering she looked back up at the holes, pocketed the bead. If she wanted to keep the balance she had to change the equation. And there were only two ways to do it.

"What do you think?"

[I think I am here. he/him]

On 26/11/2019 at 0:51 PM, Voidus said:

Satisfied she slowly made her way over towards the pair of Ghostbloods before holding up a canteen towards Wes, offering him the little water she had left. Wiping a tear from an eye would have been a bit too much to try in these circumstances so instead she simply kept a solemn expression on her face and sent a regretful gaze towards the body once more.

Wes nodded at the other Wes’ expression. She understood too. All of the newer ones here did. Himself, Allri, he didn’t know how new the other Wes was but she certainly didn’t command the room around with the authority the Righthand or the Director did. And yet, himself, Allri and the other Wes were the only ones who cared.

Taking a small drink of the water, Wes offered it back and turned sharply at some discovery the team had made. Crystals? Blue crystals. Seeing his Kalea move to the familiar surroundings Wes wondered what it was. It had to be something important, by the way everyone was acting around it.

“What, What do blue crystals mean?” He asked.

[+ZincAboutIt she/her]

Corette kicked towards the wall, looking back once to see if Karin would follow; she did, reforming her feet and hands into flippers.

Well, that's convenient, Corette thought, a little envious as she continued to kick with her inefficient human feet. Still, they did the job well enough, and soon she had reached the rough black stone of the cave wall. The light from her headlamp illuminated a barren landscape, with very little in the way of underwater plant life or fish. As she had hoped, small fissures and cracks pockmarked the stone down here; deep indigo light glittered within, winking in the watery silence.

Corette pulled herself down the stone, cocking her head to get a good look into one of the fissures, when something sinuous and dark whipped out at her. She kicked back from the wall, only her years of practice free-diving keeping her from opening her mouth in surprise. The flurry of bubbles from her motion almost obscured the shape of a long, mottled grey eel slinking back into the hole. It bared sharp, needle-like teeth at Corette, its eyes slightly luminous and a bit too intelligent for comfort.

She eyed the eel with caution, moving to the side a few feet and sliding the long dagger out of its sheath on her calf. Corette gripped it in her right hand, pulling herself along the rock with her left and shining her headlamp along the other fissures to check for other surprises. A few more pairs of gleaming eyes reflected out at her, but eventually she found one that was unoccupied.

Corette squinted into the crack, heartbeat starting to pick up as she saw the delicate thicket of crystals growing within. And there, at the back of the crevice, a fist-sized protrusion of rock. Gritting her teeth at the pain she knew was coming, Corette slid her arm into the crevice. Sharp crystal ripped tiny lines in her forearm and across her knuckles, nicking her fingers as she reached further, further -- there.

Her hand closed around the nub of rock, and with a quick twist of her wrist that ripped a few more cuts into her knuckles, it came free. Corette pulled her arm out, and the blood from dozens of tiny, shallow slices billowed into the water before her.

This might be a problem, she thought, wondering if the eels would be drawn to the scent of blood. One or two she could handle, but a swarm could get a little overwhelming. Still, that possibility was a distant echo in her mind in comparison with the globe of stone she held before her eyes. It looked grey, ordinary, but she'd heard the stories. She knew that there was more to this than appearance would suggest. 

With a sudden crack that warped hollowly through the water, Corette slammed the little geode onto the hard black stone of the wall. A few chips flaked away, and Corette carefully opened the hollow rock with shaking hands to clutch the tiny bead of metal between her fingers. She had never been religious, but as Corette moved the smooth ball into the beam of her headlamp she felt something akin to reverence ripple through her. She smiled, then sheathed her dagger and slipped a tiny spike out of the sheath in its stead, holding it carefully to avoid dropping it.

Alleycant was much harder under water, but she took her time; this was a report that couldn't wait - not even the time it would take to resurface. Corette could see Karin floating nearby as she transmitted the message to the highest level she had clearance for. This was something that the DA Department Heads needed to know. Now.

Begin Urgent Message: Field Agent C605-20, Corette Wainright, beginning report. Rare substance located in the subterranean tunnel network. Initial findings untested but highly indicate the presence of Atium. Requesting immediate action. End report.

[xinoehp512 he/him]

"Hello?"

The voice became clearer as Nekorb walked through an archway into the cavern proper.