Tomb of the Lost

[Vaitris]

[OOC: Since Draggo is the boy he is supposed to keep the white beast away from, Hau will cover the group’s exit from the room. As before, he will fight back if attacked but remains defensive for now. He plans to use his ice to jam the door open for a moment, hoping to escape after them.]

As the thrill of his little victory died, Hau became aware of something else, something lurking and growing stronger.  A danger, a wrongness, awareness of it seeped through a chink in the almost overwhelming will of the pelt to sink into his consciousness, subtle but nagging.  Through his distraction, he noticed Sara and her haggard companions in a rush towards the door and something else struck him unexpectedly, the cold realization that they were leaving and that he was being left behind.

Something worse than panic thundered through Hau, deeper and wilder, it shook the very core of him.  Waking from the hold of the pelt for a moment, he saw with clarity the separate will that was driving him, the foreign presence that had invaded his change, just before it was washing back over him like a wave.  What boy was he supposed to protect?  The one who had been under attack by the grey ooze, who had just transfomed for those few brief seconds?  As strongly as Hau was focused on his opponent, it was impossible not to notice that chaos unfolding elsewhere in the room, he'd just chosen to ignore it.

He and the pelt were united in thought for now, moving towards the door as though pulled after the fleeing group.  Hau placed himself between the white beast and the boy, still on the defensive since that had served so far.  If the wolf monster attacked, and it most assuredly would, he'd try to stab it with his tusks again or bash it with them instead, whatever was more likely to harm.

He wanted to escape the room as well, if not just to follow the struggling group - because he wanted to, very badly, the thought of being left alone only brought that thunderous fright raging back over and over - but also to escape that impending sense of doom.  Something was going to happen, he could feel it, and he knew it had something to do with the use of his powers, as corrupt as they had become.

Once they were clear of the door Hau would try to catch it as the stone slid shut, hold it open but only a little by inserting some ice between it and the jamb like the world's coldest doorstop.  It was a long, long shot he knew but all he'd need was a sliver of space, just enough to squeeze through in his human form because if he could manage the door he was going to try and toss off this beast form.  Already he was feeling it out, trying to find the edges of the pelt, battering against the will that wanted him to attack.

[jarahamee]

[Cassius attacks Hau, aiming for his underside]

Things were winding up, but, it wondered, towards what. It had a master, urging it on. Its sense of purpose felt fulfilled. What other reassurance did it mean? It did not bother to question who or where, there was only here and now. It had to kill the boar, or at least, prevent it from leaving. Its focus was razor fine. 

The thing that was Cassius, the white beast, lunged and attempted to attack its throat, slow it down until whatever was coming could get to them. Slow them until it was too late. They were bleeding and weak now. Soon they would succumb and become sacrifices to this place. That was their purpose, and now, and now, their match was right, and it felt perfect. 

Their dull headache lifted and they felt their body come alive, even as its teeth and mouth hurt. It was not an unfamiliar pain. If anything, it was a familiar one. It would get used to it with time. 

[NightshadeVII]

[OOC: Edge tells Ari that he can’t see Marche flame, then asks the shifter not to leave until he’s all the way down the well, just in case something goes wrong, so Ari can help. Carefully asks Ari to come hold the rope one more time. Then proceeds to check the stones for instabilities with his hand and “space sense” (if they’re loose or flawed), afterwards he secures the rope around the protrusions he deems safest on the well as tightly and securely as he can. He attempts to spatially manipulate the rock to wrap around the rope. Once done, he begins descending carefully and slowly down the side of the well.]

Somewhat satisfied with his find, Edge returned to the threshold leading up to the water room.
“Well, there’s something I can tie the rope too, but I don’t trust it completely, and I don’t think the rope can reach from this doorway.” Edge explained, nodding back at the well, “can you... can you stay here until I reach the bottom? In case something goes wrong with the rope, I need your help, I need you to try and catch it or hold it. I don’t think I’d be able to survive that fall.”
He knew he was pushing it, Ari hated just being close to this room, but if a way out of here was at the bottom of the lake, he didn’t want to risk the rope snapping all of a sudden, or a stone in the well coming loose. But at he looked at Ari, there was a look of pleading in his eyes, desperation and worry all mixed together. He knew he was grasping at straws here, but this was all they had.

“And, I don’t see Marchelute in here, so I think you might be good?”, Edge sighed again, “I’m sorry, I hate to ask this, but could you come hold the rope? I don’t trust these protrusions, and if there is a solution to all this at the bottom of that well, I don’t want to fuck it all up by falling to my death. You don’t have to follow me down there or anything, you can leave as soon as I’m down.”
Edge kept eyecontact with Ari, unable to stop himself from feeling awful about what he was asking the other to do. Then, before he could even think, he added:
“I just want this to end. I want to stop this.”

Then Edge walked back up to the well, beginning to search along the protrusions, feeling for any instabilities or flaws that could result in a fatal fall. Reaching out with his own sense of spatial awareness, he traced the protrusions, the way they connected to the well. No protrusion was left unchecked, and once he found the one he deemed most reliable, he began to set to work, tying the rope around it as tightly and securely as he could. He couldn’t leave any room for error, not now. One the knots were tied, he tugged at the rope a few times, testing.

A sense of dread had covered him like a smothering blanket, it reached into his bones and made him feel uneasy. The idea of risking it all like this, going down this well, wasn’t exactly something that brought him a sense of peace of mind.
But he didn’t exactly have anything else to do.
Edge took a deep breath, and then began his descent into the well. He moved slowly and carefully, careful not to move the rope around much, so as not to risk straining it more than necessary. The Darai focused on the moment of his body and his breathing, instead of the gaping abyss beneath him. The latter wouldn’t do him any good.

[Pearl Dragon]

[Kira offers for the white-faced boy to come with her.  She then will proceed to the tunnel as before, while watching the old man.]

Kira lowered the key slightly with a pained wince when the old man refused to move or act, didn't even breathe, at her gesture.  His presence was confusing and Kira could only stare at the open gaping maw facing her, wondering if he was even real and pulling in half-sobbing breaths.   She gave the room one final sweeping look and spotted the white-faced boy.  Her heart lifted ever so slightly, ears perking at the sight of him.  She wiped the tears and grime from her face with an arm, still wincing at every little action.  She had remembered that he helped her and was glad to see him, but the way he was hunkered down in the water in a hiding manner did worry her.  She glanced back at the old man, wondering if it was him or this place in general that had the boy so afraid.  A sharp pinching pain stabbed constantly at the broken wing bone, keeping her well aware of her new injury.

"C-....Come?"  She managed to whisper to him, ears half-drooped and good wing held slightly out.  She didn't want to just leave him here with the old man, but wasn't sure if he would come with her.  Still, she let the offer hang in the air for a bit.

If he began to approach, she would keep low as well, ears swiveling every so often to remain alert for sounds of movement.  If he didn't readily approach, she would point to the tunnel and begin to make her way there nonetheless.  Her eyes would mostly remain on the old man, watching for any signs of motion or aggression, and would eventually lead the way into the tunnel.

[kilnarak]

[ Ari hates himself, but he'll hold onto Edge's rope. ]

Ari balked at the entrance of the room, leaning against the wall just outside the door. Every time Edge voiced his mate's name, the shifter flinched, his breathing hitching to something near a sob. Still he waited and he watched, his eyes scanning the room for that green flame - but it was gone now, vanished or moved on to haunt someone else. For some reason, that only made him feel worse.

When Edge asked him to come in, to hold the rope, Ari hesitated then reluctantly moved into the room. His whole body tensed as he crossed the threshold, anticipating a blow that didn't come. He moved to blinding lip of the well slowly, his head turning to and fro in search of any hint of the flame-ghost.

He didn't trust himself to speak, and as soon as he was in place near where the other had tied the rope he dropped to crouch near it, holding it. Looking at the rope meant he didn't need to look at Edge, whenever he realized that the other was watching him it made him feel like he was being judged. How could Edge trust him to do this? The man knew that it had been his fault, that he had hurt him, had killed his own mate. He was a liability, worthless - not even worth the time to kill.

"G-Go, I-I'll be-be here," he mumbled finally, hunching his shoulders as he reached to hold onto the rope.

[MP]

ALL: A black pang sweeps through the tomb, and something in the air seems to tear. Seems to push through. The feel of the place is sickening, crawling with an ancient sense of hunger and - for the first time - malice.  You can feel the eyes throughout the tomb, firmly fixed on you now. It doesn't need your powers anymore.

((Sara, Draggo, Hau, Cassius, and Sarkany can feel it coming from the game room))



Sara, Draggo, and Sarkany:
Sara's items: damaged spear, seeing stone, human effigy, runed heart
Draggo's items: broken flint necklace
Sarkany's items: simple knife, human effigy

The group moves not a moment too soon. A sheet of ice has appeared in the door, laced with residue. The grey crust boils out from the spot, pustules hardening and piling into a crudely humanoid shape. The entity seems to be pulling up from the floor - up from the residue - and its half-formed head turns after the group as they pass.

They're standing at the left end of a small, rectangular room. The wall to their left - the nearest - The right end of the room is piled with furs, skulls, sealed black jars - apparently a hunter's trove. It's much darker here than in the previous room, harder to breathe. Sarkany seems to recognize the feeling. He freezes in the doorway, eyes darkening.

His gaze is fixed on the right end of the room, where a statue stands against the back wall. There are two hounds at its feet, mummified skin and yellowed teeth and sightless, hollowed eyes. Their bodies are too withered to possibly be alive. But they stand at attention, shrunken ears pricked, watching the statue's arm. 

There are fissures down the clay. Cracklings from within. As the group watches, an entire section falls away, and blackened fingers flex in the open air. There's is an arm inside the statue, pulling free. It rises to the statue's mouth. Holds there oddly, fingers curled as if holding something to its lips. Whatever rested there before, the hand is empty now. It lowers after a disappointing moment and begins tearing at the rest of its clay shell. The hounds are watching it, tense and waiting, as if for a master's word. The group may be able to sneak past before the thing within the statue breaks free. But there's something else in the room: another grey creature, by the lefthand door. This one is different.

Its movements are smooth and confident, nothing like the sluggish movements of its fellows. Where the earlier greys had formless blobs for torsos, this one has a pair of muscular arms and well-developed legs. Its head sits on a proper neck, the silhouette of it looking eerily simian - familiar. It could be Grace standing there, if not for the crusted skin.

There are oozing holes through its torso. Gashes along its lower neck and forearms. The right arm is dangling by a thread where something has cleaved through the flesh. But the creature seems not to notice the injuries. It's hunched over an empty spot on the floor, hands curled as if holding something down. A shapeless mouth works at the empty air. Its body pulses, leechlike. On closer inspection, the group can see a metallic gleam beside it - a sword lying discarded behind one crusted foot.

Despite the tarry grey ichor along its edge, blade surpasses anything Sara has previously found in the tomb. It's beautifully inlaid, a trim and lethal silhouette. If she's fast, she may be able to seize it before the entity notices them. On the other hand, there's currently a clear path to the lefthand  door - an opportunity which may not last once the dogs, the statue, and the entity finish what they're currently doing.



Cassius and Hau:
Cassius' items: w̷̘͉͕̐̑h̷̯̺̾i̷̞̺̰͌t̶̛̯̲̂̕e̶̡̝̅ ̴͈̽͛̈́p̵̖̔e̷̟̭̾l̴̡̦̈̿t̸̰̙̾̕
Hau's items: m̴̖̈́a̵̧͍̒n̷̩͌̋ë̸̛̜̭͖̈́̀́ḑ̸̜͙̱̓̽͊̈́ ̷͈͈̿͂̆ͅp̶̛̘e̷͖̽̔̀͝l̶͆́͝t̶̑̑͌͝ͅ

As its prey escapes toward the door, the white beast lunges forward, and the two collide with a meaty impact. The white beast scores a deep hit across his enemy's belly, slashing furrows down the side. But the black beast's retaliation is just as vicious. It manages to gore its attacker's gut before he can spring away. They separate with matching wounds, scattering thick droplets over the stones. 

The two can feel the pelts stirring over their skins. Restless, but not quite ready to release their hosts. Blood loss and torn muscles are beginning to take their toll. Each beast senses that the next blow may be enough to end this. But the door is open, held by Sara's powers and by oddly tinted ice. More importantly, the room is changing. 

Grey residue is boiling out from the patch of ice, darkening the clear crystals to the color of coals. Crust forms over the ground; dust sweeps outward. Something in the air ticks over, and a second grey creature pulls itself from the ground and the building residue. 

If the beasts continue their battle here, they may be caught between the distorted grey in the corner and the newly formed grey blocking the last remaining door. Both are moving forward, blind and sluggish, towards the beasts. The rivalry seems not to concern the entities at all.



Ari
Ari holds the rope as Edge lowers himself into the well. In moments, the light has engulfed the Darai, and only the juddering, swaying movements mark his downward progress.

The rope strains ominously beneath the weight. It's slimy to the touch, the fibers slick with mud and damp. With a slithery rasp, the knot slips an inch from around the anchoring tile it's tied to. Unless Ari keeps an attentive grip, there's no guarantee the rope will stay secured. Should he call out to Edge, the sound seems to muffle through the light. The only answer is the occasional groan of the rope. After another minute, even that stops. The swaying slows. Then the rope goes ominously still in his hands.



Edge:
Edge's items: chipped knife, simple knife, silver chain

The stone bricks pass disorientingly in the gloom. In the harsh light, each one looks exactly like the last. Soon they white out all together, leaving only the texture of fraying rope to guide Edge's descent.

Without warning, Edge's feet splash down into water. It rises up past his legs, his waist, stops midway up his chest, thick and tarry. The air is humid, rank, and uncomfortably hot. The light is everywhere, a blazing presence that sets his eyes watering. That seems to soothe them, draw his gaze, like a flame before a moth. There are shapes within it, vague and moving. Taking shape.


He's back at the lip of the toothed well - only, there's no light in this vision. It's a normal room, lit only by the torch of the old man and the boy he holds in his arms.

The boy is limp, unmoving. Scratches down his arms and a red smear down the side of his head. There's no tenderness in the way the old man carries him. He stops at the edge of the well. Glances around, a guilty impulse, though there's no one around to see. The general, Edge understands, is already dead. And the king is waiting. The old scholar opens his arms and drops the boy down the long, black fall.
 
A blink. And Edge is back in the flooded pit of the well - a high square room, he can see now, with a gaping stone idol in the center. The light has dimmed, and the old man is stooped over the water, pressing something down. His features are waxy and sunken, eyes blank as marbles, hair drifting like cobwebs from his skull. But recognizable. A small white hand churns the water beneath him, feeble, and he pushes it deeper beneath the water.

There is a small tunnel in the far wall. And the rope is still behind him. If he's careful, Edge can easily sneak around the old man and make for either exit. 



Kira:
Items: carved fragment, ornate key

Kira's whisper echoes hollowly in the dark space. Water crawls around her, matting her fur and trickling down her ears. Neither figure reacts. She might as well be speaking to statues.

Then, with a crackle, the yawning face turns. White eyes roll towards the corner, following Kira's outstretched claw. Something falls from above and hits the water with a thin splash - a rope trailing down from the ceiling. And now the old man is moving. Gliding towards the corner. Towards the boy. 

The room darkens around the burbat. The familiar sense of breathlessness, of a stifling, living presence, closes off her throat. She can still just breathe - just barely see. The old man has the boy by the arm. Then by the neck. He forces the small white shape under the water, blank eyes staring as a small arm reaches and grasps at his own.

It's a clear path to the hole in the wall, should Kira decide to flee. The old man is distracted and out of the way. But now the rope offers a new avenue of escape, if she can manage the climb. The air is so thin and the ceiling so dark that flying seems too dangerous to risk.

[kilnarak]

[ Ari is not well and does not know what to do with himself. He checks out the books and waits by the rope. ]

Ari kept ahold of the rope, trying to focus on the feeling of a pull and of weight on it - it gave him a sense that Edge was still climbing. It was something to focus on that wasn't the dismal thoughts crowding inside his head. He sniffled, shifted his grip on the rope, then hunkered down and made himself small, all but curling forward over his grip on the rope.

There was a building sense that something watched him, that building pressure headache behind his eyes - but that wasn't anything new here. He was half certain the flame would appear behind him again, a hand would close about his neck and toss him into the well. He half wanted it.

His fingers twitched against the rope, curling about the slimy, fraying mess of it. He wouldn't have trusted it with his weight... He gave an experimental tug to the rope and felt the weight on the other end, then stilled to wait a little more. He glanced back over his shoulder - no eyes back there, nothing watching. He shivered and held his breath. Another test-pull on the rope, but this time it was slack, lifting a little under his grip. He hadn't felt anything different in it, hadn't heard anything down the well. Had it snapped? Or had Edge climbed to the bottom?

He leaned forward a little to peer down, but he couldn't make out anything of use. Should he pull it back up? He wasn't sure what Edge had wanted from him, other than to hold it while he climbed down. His use was done, and now he was abandoned here. His fingers twitched again and he withdrew from the well, from the rope, moved to poke at the ruined books that had been left here. Useless. Trash. He moved to the well again, leaned over. "H-Hey? A-Are-Are you c-coming back?"

He waited a few moments, but there was no answer. Nothing but silence from the well. He withdrew again, sniffing, then moved toward the door into the water room again, hesitating uncertainly by the exit. He wasn't sure if he should go that way, or perhaps back into the collapsed hall? Maybe he would get lucky, the rock-work would shift, and he would be crushed? He shivered at the intrusive thought, tears building in the corners of his eyes, and forced himself to focus on something else. To go back to the well and wait. He crouched down again and reached for the rope again.

"If-If you hear me, p-pull the rope, okay?" He called down again, giving a little tug on the rope then letting it fall slack again. He didn't really expect a reply, but what else could he do?

[NightshadeVII]

[OOC: Edge tugs at the rope to give Ari some sort of signal. When he notices the man, he first tries to talk to him, telling him to let whoever’s underwater go. Then attempts to pry the old man away from whoever is under the water.]

[tsukikoko]

[OOC: The shifter releases her mental hold on the door, spends a moment to wonder what happened to Hau and then, having seen someone through the seeing stone, Sara leaves the spear, seeing stone and runed heart with Draggo and Sarky and tells them to go for the lefthand door. She then runs for the discarded sword, hefts it and attempts to swing upwards and through the goo creature's neck.]

As soon as the shifter and her companion's are through the threshold of the door, she releases her mental hold, allowing it to unfold from the origami shape and back to it's original form. Only, there's ice in the doorway now, a sheet of it that catches Sara's eye enough for her to look back. She sees the greys, sees the fighting beasts and for a moment Hau's name slips from between her lips as she thinks on what could have happened to him. Had the black-furred creature consumed him? Had he managed to escape through the tunnel? A part of her wanted to search for him. An intrinsic part, the one that always sought to help and protect those around her.

The weight upon her limbs seemed to become fractionally heavier, reminding the shifter of her two injured companions. They needed her too.

Unfortunately, the group were not given respite. The room they found themselves in contained others and none seemed particularly friendly. It was only timing and perhaps some form of twisted luck, that they had not yet been spotted, that the dogs were focused on whatever blackened abomination was making it's way out of the statue. Thinking they should move, but not wanting to draw attention with sound, Sara nudged her companions towards the left-most door. It was close, they should be able to reach it before anything noticed them. But, just in case, she found herself reaching for the seeing stone, even as they made efforts to leave.

Somewhat awkwardly, given how she currently had hold of Sarkany and the young dragon, while juggling a number of items, Sara raised the seeing stone to her eye. It was near habit at this point, checking over each room she came into, looking past the veil at what lay beyond. Especially considering the darkness, how much more difficult it was to breathe now. She thought back to Edge and Marchelute, wondering if they had made their way to this same space. Could they see the dogs too? The reanimating statue and grotesque grey creature? Had it grabbed one of them? As she tracked her gaze round, heart in her throat, it soon became apparent why the grey, crusted creature had not yet turned to face them - why it was so focused upon a spot on the floor.

A man lay beneath it.

With a haste that bypassed any sort of rational thought, the kind of haste borne of a life-and-death situation, Sara thrust the spear and runed heart into Draggo's hands (using the stone to help her see where to do so). Then, the stone itself she gave to Sarkany. If nothing else, he would be able to see his youngling now.
"Gan through that door." She hissed beneath her breath, already turning to run. "I'll catch up."
The shifter inhaled a large lungful of breath, knowing from prior experience that the further she traversed into the darkness, the more suffocating it would become. She was running next second, sprinting across the room towards the grey creature and it's captive. Her gaze fixated on the sword, running through in those precious moments what she would do.

Sara didn't even know who the scarred man was. But, in that moment, it didn't matter. All she saw was a person in danger and she threw herself into the fire, without a second thought, to help them.

Not a moment after her fingers curled around the handle of the sword, Sara hefted the blade, turning it's edge towards her target. At any other time, she might have marvelled at it's beauty, at how perfectly balanced the weight felt in her hand. As it was, she thought only of how she was about to use it.

Aided by her upward momentum, pivoting into the strike in a manner she hoped would confer force and using her tail as counterbalance, Sara swung the sword in an upward cut, aiming straight for the grey creature's neck. Ironically enough, it's more solid, more complete shape, made her aim easier. She hoped to sever it's head straight from it's shoulders. She still had hold of the effigy, ready to use it's power to erect a barrier between herself, the hounds and their master, if she had to. Though she wasn't focused on them, they still lingered in her peripherals, another potential threat.

[jarahamee]

[Cassius decides to beat a strategic retreat through the middle door towards the 4-way hallway, attempting to avoid the gray creatures.]

They were blooded, victory was close at hand, and yet... And yet... they would be doomed if they stayed here too long. Things were changing, and even if they were not human anymore, they were human enough for the creatures of this tomb. To them, it was nothing exciting, and yet, it was still fragile and mortal enough. Soon, the creatures in this place would close in on them and end them completely. It was not ready for that yet. It needed to finish its task, and its task was not over yet.

The white beast looked about the room, untangling itself with an agile leap away from the black beast, making a dash towards the now obstructed center door towards the 4-way hallway. Graceful, powerful, but not like a deer, rather, like a carnivore. Faster than it could have ever hoped while it had been a human. It panted while it ran, slaver dripping off its jaws. It was good to be alive, even as it bled.

It will attempt to avoid the creature blocking it and make its way down the hall, scenting anything of note as it goes. It currently pays no heed to the way that the others are moving, though if the darkness is no longer in the other room.

Anxiety and annoyance rose in its chest. It was not to be obstructed. It would obey its master. It would find the rest and destroy them. That much it knew. It lifted a bleeding lip in distaste.

[Pearl Dragon]

[Kira does a brave and goes back for the boy.  She will come up behind the man and attempt a leg-stab then try and pull the boy towards the tunnel]

Kira winced again as another dark stab of pain out of nowhere suddenly seized her. Her gesturing hand lowered to her abdomen and she doubled, trying to bear through it. Her wing throbbed in unision and when it finally subsided some, she huddled by the corner.

A splash as something falls from above, and then a crackling sound drew her attention back towards the two figures. She noticed with some surprise that the old man had finally begun to move. He was headed straight for the boy, and a suffocating heaviness once again descended all around her. She watched, breathless and panicked as the old man came down on the boy, grabbing the young figure by the arm and then the neck in a choking grip. He shoved the boy into the water, and Kira just about barked a retaliatory "-stop!" as the boy went below the surface. She stood, whimpering and pleading like she had for the man Sarkany. However, unlike before, this one certainly didn't' seem on friendly terms at all. She couldn't just stay there, couldn't just watch as another ally met their potential doom after they'd helped save her life.

Fighting with all her might, Kira broke through her hesitation and began to wade her way back towards the struggling figures. She pushed her way quickly through the water, breaths labored and fruitless in the suffocating air, and lunged at the man's legs. Her good arm flew forward, aiming for the back of the man's calf or thigh, whatever she could get at first and let the bur within its sheath stab forward. She stayed low, eyes turned with terrified disbelief at what she was even doing up at the man, hoping that if he turned on her then she could duck under him and make a grab for the boy.

If successful, she would try and get the boy up, then head for the tunnel again to get away from both the old man and the suffocating darkness. "..'urry!" she croaked.

[Vaitris]

[OOC: Hau wants to finish this. He coats the door and the floor around it with ice as the white beast has to push it open, trying to surround him and force him to slip or to touch/get burned by the gray goo.  If he succeeds in ending the fight or the white beast still manages to leave the room, Hau will make a break for the right-hand door. Rolled a 14.]

As gray bubbled out of his ice, Hau's heart sank.  He hadn't at all expected that to happen and he hoped fervently he didn't just make the situation on the other side of door worse for Sara and her companions.  He didn't want to sic more monsters on them with the state they were in.  Though, on the plus side, he'd cut the white beast off from pursuing them. Only an idiot would attempt to push through the gray after seeing what it had done to the boy.

But he also had a way to control the spread of that horrible gray scourge and he was quick to decide on a way to use it.  He had tried and failed before to hit moving targets less agile than this beast, so he fell back on old tricks.

The wolf monster was turning to flee out the center door so Hau threw his ice all about the door and the floor around it just as it would be pushing it open, trying to trap the white beast.  If it slipped in the ice it would be prone long enough to freeze.  Or perhaps the gray ooze would cover it and sear it, finally ending this fight.  If that failed he'd continue his icy assault, cutting off the white wolf's access to the doors while Hau himself backed up to the hole in the back of the room, reserving that exit for himself only.  But if the beast somehow managed to escape he'd run for the right-hand door instead and flee while there was still an opportunity to do so.

[Sharei]

[OOC: Draggo picks up Cassius' discarded bag on the way into the room, sees the grey, and packs Sara's items away into the bag. He leads Sarkany away toward the door Sara indicated. ]


The run from the game room to the treasure trove couldn't have been more than a couple of dozen steps and yet the screaming agony in his back suggested thousands. He could feel the creeping burn of it, soothed only by the figurine his father proffered, but it was only a minor respite from the pain. Every movement sent a new wave of tremors through his legs, and it was hard to blot out.

Fear was the key factor in doing so, thankfully, and that was in no short supply. Fear for his father, who was as badly burned and suffering; fear for Sara, the only able-bodied among them, but oh so easily changed; fear of the creatures pursing them which could not be cut or harmed; fear for Cassius and what might have happened to him. All of these passed through his mind as they ran, and that fear gave him the clarity to act in the moment.

He scooped up Cassius' abandoned bag as they passed through the door he had only just recently vacated and threw the strap over his shoulder. None too soon, either, as Sara dumped her items on him and sprinted off to do - something. He called after her, a warning of alarm, but there was a creature forming behind them and something clawing out of the statue, and they didn't have time to sit around and talk about it. Sarkany came first. 

"Be careful!"

With Sarkany supporting him as much as he was supporting Sarkany, the dragon packed away what he could in the bag, hefted the spear and helped turn them toward the door Sara had indicated. 
 

[MP]

ALL: The air pulses in a sickening, steady rhythm. It pounds in your ears, squirms in your chest, an oily intrusion into your thoughts. It's everywhere in the tomb now, a constant presence. It's hungry - so very hungry. Waiting for more. 



Ari: 
Several moments of silence pass after Ari's words. Air moans through the mouth of the well, brushing through the raised stones and over his hands like hot breath. No movement. No sound. 

Then an answering tug. 

The strands of the rope groan and jounce as the climbing resumes. The swaying of the rope tells Ari that the weight is somewhere far below. Getting closer. Through the blazing light, the shifter can just make out a silhouette, moving hand over hand up the rope. 

But there's still no response to his call. The climber doesn't acknowledge him, and the weight on the rope is off. It's far too light to be the darai. The silhouette is getting closer. Its proportions are too shrunken, its limbs too thin. In another few moments, it will reach the top. The light of the well is almost blinding now, making it impossible to see the climber's face.
 


Edge and Kira:
Edge's items: chipped knife, simple knife, silver chain 
Kira's items: carved fragment, ornate key

The burbat's spur sinks through the robes and deep into papery skin. The knee splits open like a wasp's nest, belching forth an oily column of smoke that Edge may recognize. The old man feels like one of the pustules. The sight of him, the unnatural movements of his body beneath the rags, leaves the two with the same sickening, unclean feeling. 

The old man turns with a crackle of bones. Stumbles as his spewing knee folds in on itself. He's pulled sideways and into Edge, his weight bearing the two of them down into the water. The Darai is submerged in the tarry sludge, trapped beneath the mass of rags. Disorienting darkness around him. Below him. Everywhere but above, where a pair of blank white eyes stare back at him.

The old man's mouth is open, a black pit in the water that draws no breath and makes no sound. Black, inhuman rage is written across his face. Spidery hands find their way around Edge's throat, forcing his head deeper under. There's a horrible strength to the old man's grip, far beyond what such a withered body should be capable of.

There's no sign of the boy in the water. The old man doesn't so much as glance at Kira, now that he's found another target. It seems that the burbat is reprieved. Forgotten, for the moment. The tunnel mouth is waiting, should she choose to take it. The rope still hangs from the ceiling, swaying gently, as though it's been recently used.



Sara, Draggo, and Sarkany:
Sara's items: human effigy, 
Draggo's items: broken flint necklace, damaged spear, sturdy rope, scholar's note 2, scholar's note 2, hideous cake (4), runed heart
Sarkany's items: simple knife, human effigy, seeing stone

When Sara's fingers close around the sword, the ragged pulse in her head subsides to a dull backdrop. The weight feels natural in her hand. Almost friendly. The motion of the slash feels familiar to her, and she has an instinctive sense of where and how best to strike. The edge falls cleanly, lopping the head of the entity from its shoulders. 

The grey mass goes rolling and splattering over the tiles, trailing flakes of crust. It rolls to the feet of the dogs, which are still watching the black arm as it claws apart the head and shoulders of its shell.

The entity doesn't fall. It pauses. Turns. Despite its headless state, its movements are precise. It rises from its crouch and starts toward Sara. This is no mindless, sluggish pursuit. Its holds its damaged arm before it in a defensive gesture, angling forward as it breaks into a charge.

Looking through the seeing stone, Sarkany can see what it was the creature was crouching over. There's a man lying in the once-empty space, sprawled and unmoving on his back. His body is a mess of old scars and blackened flesh. His one remaining eye is glazed, only the faint movement of his chest and a dull twitch of his fingers indicating he's alive. Sarkany watches Sara's charge. Watches the grey turn. He utters a small, short breath and sets his shoulder to the lefthand door. Checks through the open sliver.

"She'll be along, pup." What he sees on the other side seems to satisfy him. Sarkany presses the figurine into the dragon's hand, ushering him onto the gallery room and its statue columns. "I'll see her through. Do what you can about the far doors. We n-need to be ready to -t -" He pauses, eyes blackening.

The dragon feels it too: the terrible pulse in the air, like a heartbeat overlaying their own. As if in response, the pain in his burns redoubles, his vision blackening with the initial shock. He can feel the burn resuming in his flesh, slowed only by the figurine in his hand. 

Sarkany is still standing. But he's curled in on himself, fingers white around the door, holding it for support as much as to hold it open. A fresh line of blood has broken down the corner of his mouth, and when he raises his eyes, the scleras fluctuate from white to grey and back again, unable to stabilize. 



Cassius and Hau:
Cassius' items: w̷̘͉͕̐̑h̷̯̺̾i̷̞̺̰͌t̶̛̯̲̂̕e̶̡̝̅ ̴͈̽͛̈́p̵̖̔e̷̟̭̾l̴̡̦̈̿t̸̰̙̾̕
Hau's items: m̴̖̈́a̵̧͍̒n̷̩͌̋ë̸̛̜̭͖̈́̀́ḑ̸̜͙̱̓̽͊̈́ ̷͈͈̿͂̆ͅp̶̛̘e̷͖̽̔̀͝l̶͆́͝t̶̑̑͌͝ͅ

(Cassius: 11; Hau: 14)

The glimpse of hallway closes off as ice crackles over the door frame. The stone slab, already a heavy obstacle, is frozen in place when the white beast reaches it. It refuses to budge, and his last escape lies past the righthand door and the black beast that guards it. 

But from the moment the ice touches stone, the spread of the residue in the room begins to accelerate. The mass in the left corner has grown to monstrous proportions, and the entity forming in the righthand door has bloomed from a doughy lump into a full-formed humanoid in moments. The ice Hau placed over the center door is already greying, bristling with crust. A third grey mass is swelling there, reaching out. It latches onto the white beast's left forelimb, pinning it down, and the beast can feel a steady burn creeping through the fur.

All three doors are now guarded. The crusted faces are turning toward the room's two occupants, oozing forward. The lefthand mass, the largest, is closing in the white beast and the budding entity holding him. The righthand entity is closer to Hau, and it seems to sense it. It steps from the doorway, blind and swaying, and begins to move toward him on sluggish steps. 

[kilnarak]

[ Ari realizes whoever is climbing up the rope is not Edge, and retreats across the room with a book. If whoever it is comes at him he's gonna chuck the book at them. ]

Ari found himself a little comforted that there was an answer to his shout in the tug on the rope. He gripped the rope and the stone lip of the well, steadying it as Edge climbed up from below. He tried to keep the rope from swaying too much, although as the other slowly ascended he found that the weight on the rope seemed... lighter? than it should have been.

"H-Hey? C-Can-Can you hear me?" He leaned over to peer down again, but the light was too much for him to see far. Eventually a vague silhouette began to appear, as if moving through a white mist. It was far too small to be Edge, skeletal. It made him think of the mummies that had been jammed into those tiny alcoves in the hallway. He felt his hackles rising at the sight of it, and he withdrew abruptly from the well, backing away toward the far wall.

He wondered if he should have slipped the rope free, let it drop - but Edge was still down there and might still need it. He looked around, then scrambled to snatch one of the books before retreating again. It wasn't much of a weapon, but maybe it would provide enough distraction for him if he needed to bolt.

As whoever it was began to climb up over the well, he flinched and squinted his eyes against the blinding brilliance of the disk, holding the rotten book as if ready to throw it. "W-Who are you? S-Stay back."

[NightshadeVII]

[OOC: Edge is fucked. Fights back out of sheer panic and attempts to slit the old man’s throat with the chipped knife (rolls 10 for this). Then proceeds to follow up with the other knife, using this to stab at the man’s face (rolls 2 for this, like an idiot). If neither work, he will attempt to wallop the old man away with his wing (rolls 3 for this, because now he’s just being dumb).]

There was a moment of chaos, and then... darkness. A suffocating weight above him, holding him down, water all around, muffling every sound, pressing against his ears, into his eyes, blurring his vision for a moment. Just for a second he got ready to push himself away from the old man and get out of the water.
Then he felt hands around his throat, thin and sickly, but unrelenting, strong. Pressing down on his airpipe, holding him down, under the water, keeping him in the darkness, denying him the air above him. Panic began to spread through his body, lighting blood on fire, sending electricity through his muscles, making his thoughts run so much faster. Every thought revolved around the hands around his throat, the choking him, suffocating, drowning him. Keeping him down.
There was a face above him. White eyes, a black mouth open unnaturally wide, yet somehow, still recognizable as the old man from before. But it had never been an old man. This was a monster.

This was how he would die, wasn’t it? He had survived something he shouldn’t years ago, and now, the world was catching up, to restore balance, right the wrongs and take his life, like it had tried to so many years ago. Still it was... quite the contrast to the first time. The opposite element even. He was suffocating instead of bleeding out this time too. It was almost ironic.
For a moment he almost accepted it, this death, almost put his head back and closed his eyes, stopping the struggle. He had lost all he cared about in this place anyway. And he had never belonged in this world. He was an outsider, broken, a little mistake. He was supposed to have died years ago, so he was in no place to object now.

No.
No that wasn’t how it was going to end. He had survived this before, and he’d do so again. There were people who counted on him. Faolan and Ari. He couldn’t just give up on them. And he couldn’t give up on himself, this was his life to lead, his life to fight for. And he didn’t want to die. He didn’t want to die all those years ago, and he still didn’t want to die. There was so much good in his life. Family, friends, people that cared about him and he cared about in return. This couldn’t be the end. Even if this was just a nightmare, like Ari had said, even if he was just going to wake up after this, he wasn’t about to go down without a fight. Like hell he would. He refused to just accept this, he had done that too many times before.
This monster wasn’t going to be the death of him. He had survived worse than this.

Quickly, he grabbed the first knife in his belt that he could get his hand on, the chipped one, and brought it up in a fierce swipe aimed at the old man’s throat, aiming to slit it. Without even thinking he followed it up with the intact knife, aiming to stab at the other’s face. There was a desperation to these movements, fast and almost animalistic, driven by a will to survive.

If none of this worked, a wing would sprout from Edge’s back. Black feathered, iridescent, massive. With this he would try to whack the old man away.

[tsukikoko]

[OOC: Sara moves back and sideways to avoid the creature's charge, before slashing down it's back from shoulder to opposite hip. She continues to move back, staying light on her feet, trying to move it away from the fallen man and the door her companions had moved towards.]

The sword felt wonderful in her hand, flowing almost of it's own accord through her foe's neck. She felt lighter, more free of a headache she hadn't realised had become so bad, until it abruptly faded. But, while the blade gave her a sense almost of friendship, it could not dull the fear. Because, despite her drive to save the scarred man and her fierce, steadfast rebellion against the events of this Halloween nightmare, the shifter was afraid.

She was afraid when the headless, grey creature turned to face her.

She was afraid when it charged for her.

But the fear didn't matter, she surged past it regardless. Because the monster's victim was free now.

When the creature charged for her, Sara did not attempt to stand her ground, or slash at it as it came forward. Instead, as light on her feet as she could be, the shifter darted backwards and to the side, aiming to dodge out of the way of the creature's initial rush and move around behind it. Only when she had a shot at it's back did she strike. Letting the blade guide her, she swung down, cleaving a line from the grey's shoulder to it's opposite hip. She thought back on her sessions with Aaron, where he'd tried to teach her to fight. She might have been flirtatious and played around more often than not, but some of the lessons had sunk in. Such as the need to keep moving, to not be overwhelmed.

If her attack was either unsuccessful, or didn't stop the creature, Sara moved backwards, leading her opponent away from where she had last seen the man to lay and from her companions. It couldn't chase them, not in their condition.

[jarahamee]

[Cassius would attempt to free his paw and retreat through the righthand door. 18. He has abandoned trying to move the center one]

The white beast felt its foot fasten to the door. Worse, a grey being appeared before it and took hold of its leg, searing the flesh there. The pain was sharp, and its withdraw response was immediate, and yet, the foot was stuck. The white beast whuffed with distaste and annoyance and gave the leg a mighty tug. It would come free and then they would escape out the last door. The one that the black beast stood before.

Its bright, hungry eyes narrowed as it measured up the other creature. It did not have to finish the other by attacking it. It would be killed if it remained here with the gray creatures. Perhaps this was the best course now. Then it could find the others, fulfill the will. End this cycle of torment.

The creature gave its limb a mighty pull and then dashed towards the black beast, feinting towards it. Its body was strong, quick, it could easily move past these things. It could out-run the black beast. The creature's sharp toothed jaws slavered as it snapped at the air, attempting to lure the creature away from its door. If it only moved a little bit...

If the black beast wished to summon all these monsters, it could die in here with them.

[Pearl Dragon]

[Kira thinks old-man has the boy still and climbs onto his back to do more stabby-stabs at his back and hips with an arm bur and both leg burs]



Kira felt her bur connect, sink effortlessly into the man's leg and knee. She pulled her arm back again as he dropped and immediately skirted around him to make a grab for the boy. But, she was shocked to see he had vanished. Kira swept an arm out at the water to check, make sure he wasn't still submerged but there was nothing but the murky liquid and no small body below to grab. She turned towards the old man and gasped at the airless darkness as she saw him still working in a struggle with something below the surface. She surmised that somehow, he still had the boy and was now under the water with him. Kira clambered towards them, grasping and pulling at the man's back in a climbing motion and jabbed her arm forward again once she was about mid torso. Her aim was for center mass, his spine, or anywhere that would cause enough damage for him to stop. Her leg spurs also stabbed into his hips and sides as she climbed, more damage to distract him or possible disable him from his attack. Her heart was a stampede in her chest the entire time, and her body fought to pull away and flee rather than attack.

[Vaitris]

[OOC: Hau will freeze the white beast itself and trap it where it stands. If it manages to free itself instead, he’ll try to prevent it leaving the room by icing whatever floor is left between it and the right-hand door and/or fighting it off.]

Hau was disgusted to see his beautiful crystalline ice distorted by the gray blooming from the surface of it like mold. And he didn’t miss the way the other bulbous masses in the room were reacting to the use of his abilities. Growing, bloating, forming into new threats. A humanoid figure, closest to him and the door, was staggering in his direction. But it was slow, and it was a peripheral concern. The white beast came first. Always first. If it escaped the room, it’d hunt down Sara and the others and it would kill them. He wouldn’t let that happen.

For the moment it was trapped, caught by the gray ooze seeping out of the barrier he placed on the middle door. And it was still enough now that Hau could grab it, enfold it in his ice. Once it was frozen, he’d let the grays finish it off.

But the way the wolf was struggling, pulling like a feral animal with its leg caught in a hunter’s snare, Hau was afraid it would wrench itself free too quickly. So he braced himself in front of the right-hand door. He wouldn’t give it up. He’d ice over the right-hand door too just to keep it in here if he had to. But that was a last resort. If it freed itself he’d turn the floor between them into a skating rink. Speed and agility would only count for so much in such a condition. And to leave through this door it’d have to go through him. His tusks were red with its blood, it had already felt the force of them two times. He was ready to make this the third.