ElephantEarwax

Outside the Departyment building, Adren waited for the rest to arrive. In his head a high pitched voice was practically screaming, Mercy was so excited to finally be allowed to visit the Departyment and Jethro was less thrilled, but didn't want to miss anything funny that may happen.

"I don't know why you would never let me come and party. You didn't even need to take me. I could have gone with anyone, but you wouldn't take me out of your ear, just for one night. There are plenty of nice people, like the ones we're waiting for."  Mercy trilled into Adren's skull and anyone around who was willing to listen to her. 
"Why don't we be a little quieter and then we can be loud when we go into the party"
"spoilsport" 

Not plot here, but I didn't know where to put it. From the depths of the archives comes an ancient document. Lost for the last few hundred years it just turned up behind a cabinet in the R&D lab. The original recipe. 

This thread is out of the canon plot, any characters can visit at any time.
          On the edge of the business district in the Alleycity is a large office building, no one is particularly sure of its size. The top of the building is obscured in a multicolored cloud, not unlike a fog cloud that shimmers like a mirage, and anyone that has tried to walk to the top loses count on the way up and gets waylaid as they go. The building itself is a fairly standard office in design, but it seems to be in the process of deconstruction, with doors enlarged and the lower windows broken and repaired with any materials possible. The entire block leading up to the building has been abandoned, not because of the look of the building, but the rhythmic thumping coming from the building around the clock. The windows of this building are constantly flashing and shaking in time with the beat of the music. Entering the building you immediately are bombarded with the sweet smell of a ransacked table covered in platters of cookies, constantly being replenished by a flow of department staff.  The sweet smell of pastries is in full war with the other smells, coming from the mass of jumping, moshing, dancing, sweating bodies, coming from the floor and the ceiling. The room is coated in a light fog coming from the DJ booth, with a set of covering the entire back wall of the room and wrapping around the corner to the next wall. The DJ himself, a tall man, with sharp hawk-like features standing behind the fog machines and flashing lights, just working with his mixing table and discs to create the soundtrack for the party. The pale lines on his arms flashing in the changing lights of the rave, His light blond hair shaking every time the bass hits. Each floor of the building is much the same minus the DJ, rows of speakers, tables everywhere with all kinds of confections and bowls of metal powder and an impossibly large amount of people. To accommodate a party of this size the interior walls of the building were removed, although not by a contractor, just by the party goers as the party got too big for the space it was inhabiting. At one point the elevator was broken by the rave and removed along with the walls, but the shaft was kept as a means of transport. The walls having their own gravity that everyone can walk on, the same method that allows the party to extend to the ceilings of the building. Coming in and taking the sights of this place in is a shock to the senses but a welcome one.

Welcome to the DA Departyment.

6 hours ago, Thaidakar the Ghostblood said:

Thaidakar teleported into a new adventure.

Thaidakar ate some Elephant Earwax.

I eat you back. 

Holding the helmet of under his right arm, Adren nodded to the other denizens.  "Here is the atium we gathered." 

Walking over to the leader and slightly wincing from the movement on his left arm, whispering, "Professionally, everyone here worked hard to get here, and through pain and loss to obtain the atium." Gesturing to his arm covered in the recent gouges from the crystals. "I am going to keep a few beads for awakening research, and I would highly advise that all the members of the expedition are allowed to keep some, it will help keep everyone content, and could be seen as a gesture of goodwill to the other guilds." 

"Once this is over then what will we do? Can we go find more monsters?" Mercy said to Adren. 

Subvocalizing his words back, "Maybe we can. You need to ask Jethro if he is up to fighting one though."

@kenod @Sorana @Ookla the Maybe-Existent

Quote

timeskip makes sense

On 1/7/2020 at 3:26 PM, AonEne said:

Fair  

Yes I did  I guess I just asked the wrong people. 

On 12/19/2019 at 8:19 AM, Sorana said:

Her warning echoed in her head while she watched Adren draw his fingers along his bandage, his hand twisting in pain. The sight hurt, touched a memory of herself burried somewhere deep in the folds of her brain and she reached into her pocket, wordlessly offered him some painkillers. She didn't smile at him, but her face softened just a tiny bit. "I agree on the sample part. The species in this cave are fascinating." her head nodded towards the beads on the ground. "You are right, we should." She agreed, but didn't kneel down again to start counting yet. Instead she wanted to give Max a chance to voice his idea first.

@ElephantEarwax

Reaching out with his injured arm, Adren accepted the painkillers, tucking them into the bandage on his wrist. Making eye contact, he nodded a thanks. 
"The bio-luminescent plants here are very interesting, there aren't many others. I wonder if they are related to the fungus in the field of rebirth."

"Isn't that fungus called perchwither?"

Still speaking out loud, "That's right, it is perchwither, thanks Jeth."

"The DA is the only place I can think of that it would not upset the balance besides destroying it. And even to do that I believe we would need Voidus."

Adren ran his right fingers over the bandages on his arm as he spoke, causing his hand to curl at the small spikes of pain.

"I would also like to get some more samples on the way out of the caves. Maybe take a bath in that hot spring."

Looking down at the beads in AIthea's helmet, and smiling slightly, "I suppose we should get counting then, "

"Why do you keep touching your bandages, doesn't it hurt?

"I always do it with scars. it makes them go numb."

"But doesn't it hurt?"

"Not anymore"

@Ookla the Dreamer @ZincAboutIt

On 12/12/2019 at 11:27 PM, Ookla the Dreamer said:

Althea looked over at Adren. "If there really is a fitting charity -"

"I am not informed on the politics of the city enough to make that call. But the amount of Atium is so large, do we risk any charity or charities becoming as powerful as the great guilds?"

Shifting his gaze around thee room and still flexing his hand. This could cause the collapse of the city's politics again. Was that worth the risk. Leaving was possible, but avoiding everything was not longer a good option. It was time to stay and work.  

Try your hand at the creepy and eloquent. Make your own death rattles and post them.

Here is my go. 

Quote

"A man sits, fearing the past. Failing to act, he allows the past to repeat itself."

-Collected circa Tanat 1173. Subject was a lighteyed carpenter.

Quote

"I feel the burning poison flow through my body, moved by my heart and the life it brings. It cannot be stopped, not now, not ever"

-Observed Ishi 1172. Subject was a young darkeyed boy found lying in an alley.

15 hours ago, Ookla the Dreamer said:

The Underling was right. They all had an agenda. Everybody here, including herself. "I'm not sure if a real neutral party exists." She told him quietly, but still inclined her head in agreement.

"There are still buildings, that were severly damaged during the last invasion." She followed his trail of thought. "If we create a council of some sorts, dedicated to use the atium for the repairs, all of us would be in control, all of us would know what happens with it."

And yet, nobody could decline that there was the huge chance that it would be sold the guilds and in the end, it would still end up somewhere. But at least, maybe it had at least done something good before upsetting every balance they had. They were at a standstill - Karin had expressed openly that she wouldn't make any decisions for the DA, TUBA wasn't here - at least not officially, that left her. And if she decided for them all - she couldn't. But as long as nothing fundamentally changed the situation - they would remain like this. In the end, the only sure thing was to destroy it all.

Clenching his fist repeatedly, working through the burning in his arm. Adren looks up at Wes and Althea. "That is a good plan,to rebuild the city would be a way to use the atium well. But are there any true charities around?" 

The area that had been emptied of atium was dwarfed by the size of the cavern and The Well. There is so much atium hidden in these walls. A treasure that could buy a guild. And it needed to not be used to do that. 

"Are we not going to keep it?"

"Probably not most if any. It will cause problems as is."

Glancing up, "Destroying the crystals makes sense, but so does having a neutral party mine it. And of it is collected, any good that it could be used for will still be on the table." Adren looked around the group, noticing Althea glancing at him, not sure of the expression on her face. 

"Destroying it would allow the city continued peace." 

"Then we definately should keep this place around." Mercy yelped 

Thinking at the both of them, "I know Jeth, but a part of me can't forget the resource that's here."

16 hours ago, Ookla the Dreamer said:

 Adren adressed her, asked, if she could take someone with her when she elsecalled and she moved a little, so that she could see both him and Karin. "Yes, I can. Why do you ask?"

 

Setting the helmet of beads on his leg, right arm taking the weight off his injured left, "When we figure out what do do with the Atium, If you are willing, you and another person could take it there, if it is a single place. But that should be a last resort. I believe the whole team should bring it out if possible." Looking down at the beads in his lap, Adren began idly counting them to himself.

Adren shook his head, and cleared his throat, "Each person here worked to get here, and should take a few beads. maybe 5... That shouldn't start a guild war and we all worked to get here, but that wouldn't account for all the Atium. Althea, when you elsecall, could you take another person with you?"

"What are you going to do?" Jethro whispered silently.

"I'm not sure yet." Adren thought back.

@Ookla the Dreamer

Granted, but the destination is random.

I wish for lopens arm

Balancing the helmet on his right arm, carefully using his heft hand to tilt the helmet towards Nekorb and the rest of the group, "Atium is Ruin's godmetal. It is powerful in all three Scadrian magic systems and  hasn't been tested well in others because the supply has basically been nonexistent."

"Look at that atium,that's enough to buy most of the city, and it's not all of it around." Mercy's shrill voice whispered in his ear.

"Merc, stop it. He isn't taking it, at least like that. You were told already." Jethro retorted loudly, in the cacophony of thoughts bounding through Adren's mind. 

"I have many of ideas for what to do with it, but all of them have an overarching danger. This atium needs to not go fully into circulation. We could end up with another Manywar or 7 day war." Looking around the gathered scouts, at each person in turn.

Momentarily shifting his attention to his bag, Adren got out a cookie, and began to eat it.

10 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

 

Corette finished scrambling up the side of the ledge, the many cuts on her arm stinging and dripping blood, her body so cold she was sure she'd chip her own teeth shivering. She still clutched the bead of Atium in one fist, barely sparing a glance for any of the others as she made a beeline for her pack and the blanket roll she'd strapped to the bottom. Only once she had wrapped the cloth around herself and rubbed a little warmth back into her limbs did she glance around.

Althea had already filled half her helmet with Atium beads, and the rest of the group was standing around gawking as Adren threw geodes down onto the ledge.

Well, there's all hope for stealth gone out the window. She felt even better about her decision to immediately contact the DA leaders; surely at least the Ghostbloods would know about this already now too. Corette moved towards Althea, Wes, and Whisper, careful not to let her eyes linger too long on the girl. Appearing unaffiliated with any guild would likely be an advantage now more than ever, and would allow her to hopefully gain valuable information on the plans of others in regards for this new resource. 

"I see you found a drier way to gather those," she said ruefully, lifting the bead of Atium - and her bloodied forearm - out of her blanket.

@Ookla the Dreamer @Ookla the Maybe-Existent

Scaling back down the wall, bloodied left hand and arm struggling to hold on from the bleeding cuts running along them. Stumbling as he hit the floor, having dropped the last few feet, Adren walks over to his bag and pulls out a length of bandage, a handkerchief, a water bottle, antibiotic ointment and a cookie from the small bag. Immediately putting the cookie in his mouth, he begins dressing the wound. Wiping down the cuts with the water and handkerchief, and applying ointment to each cut and wrapping his whole arm in the bandage. 

Drinking the last of his water, Adren clears his throat, "Not the most effective way, as you can probably guess." Gesturing with his right hand to Corette and his own arms. "This is a valuable place to the entire universe, we need to preserve this place, allomancy will break it if we aren't very careful."

Taking a couple geodes from the pile he had dropped to the floor, and cracking them open easily on Jethro's blade, Adren stared at the silvery atium. 

"Its so shiny, can I have some?" 

"You don't have any way to use it. at all. What good would that be?" Adren thought at her.

"You could make a small ring and put it on me" Mercy said, a grin in her voice.

"That wouldn't work, but I like the idea of an atium ring or two...." Adrens thought trailed off.

@ZincAboutIt @Ookla the Dreamer @Ookla the Maybe-Existent

3 minutes ago, Ookla the Dreamer said:

"I think you should take them." She said quietly to Adren. "The DA. If you have the stock, they are out of reach for everyone else." The DA could already wipe all of them out with nothing but a wave of the hand of some of their members. Atium wouldn't change that. Add one to infinity and you still had infinity. And yet there was this part of her, that wondered, if she was making a mistake. If this was the right way, if she could give all of that up so easily.

Setting his pack on the ground, "I think giving it to the DA may be best. But how to convince everyone that it is for the best." Adren replied beginning to scale the wall and reaching in with his left arm. Dropping geodes down to the ground at Althea and Wes's feet. "If you want, start cracking them open. Hitting them on Jethro should do it nicely, but don't touch him or you cold hear him for a few minutes."

"Why is it always hitting me on rocks, or stone trees." Jethro complained. 

"Boo hoo." Mercy shot back. "You get to do something."

16 hours ago, Ookla the Dreamer said:

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?"

Breaking it open and staring at the geode and the bead inside, Adren looked around at all the cracks in the walls, each one with many crystals, guessing that there were more in the well as well. Looking back to Althea he whispered, almost reverently,

"I think this could be dangerous. Obviously everyone will tell their guilds and brag about the Atium in the well. It should be collected and if possible removed from circulation. And preferably out of everyone's hands. but I know that no one in the Alleys would want it to be destroyed, myself Included. So I fear for everyone involved."

"How is atium forming here?" Jethro questioned.

"Cause this is the well of course." Mercy replied. "Adren take the atium. Gather as much as you can and run."

"No" Adren responded loudly. "I couldn't do that."

Feeling the rough cracking surface of the wall and staring up at the crystals, Adren began looking for a route to climb the wall.

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

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.

19 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

Corette finished walking up and down the line of scouts, checking the order. Some people hadn't lined up yet; she wasn't concerned. If they didn't wish to come, they didn't have to. She moved back towards the Radiant, Althea, and looked at the boy with her. He'd been clever with the tech - that was it. Corette smiled at him, small and amused. She still had yet to crack the security wall on those ACE documents. They were moving closer towards the Well now, and she could use a heads-up on what they might find down there. If it was interesting enough, Matthieu might even give Corette a promotion.

"Let's go," she said. "These caverns aren't going to map themselves." Then, Corette hoisted her pack onto her back, flicked on her headlamp, and started down the tunnel.

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

Going down the tunnel, Adren's mind began to wander, staring at the stone walls. "The stone here almost has veins..." he mumbled to no one in particular, he drags his fingers across the grain of the wall, feeling the layers of rock.

6 minutes ago, AonEne said:

“Fun, I’m in the middle,” Myriad said nonchalantly. “What are Kalad’s Phantoms?” @ElephantEarwax

"Kalad's phantoms are a Folk tale in T'Telir. Recently shown to have actually been an army of lifeless, that were presumed to be statues around the city." Adren responded. "They are now a strong force in the hands of Susebron, the God-King."

4 hours ago, ZincAboutIt said:

Corette pursed her lips, then looked over the scouting group. She pointed towards Allri.

"Allri behind me at the front - we'll want her Tin on at the very least. Between the two of us, we should catch any surprises. Researchers and those with minor combat experience in the middle of the line. Easier to keep an eye on them that way." She nodded at Althea. "You can stay with them if you wish, it would probably be wise to keep a Radiant with them anyway, unless you want to place yourself elsewhere. Fighters or those with defensive experience should either be up towards the front or in the back. We should keep everyone all going the same direction. No stragglers, no one gets lost." 

 

"This sounds like a solid plan" Adren said, "Lets move like Kalad's Phantoms are running after us."