[PQ] better safe than sorry

WESSEX out of the night that covers me Caution prevails. She leads the two of them to the woodlands of the Outskirts, to an abandoned farmstead too near to what was the old Barrier. It’s overgrown, decrepit. Eerie, almost, in the moonlight. The Ascended woman leads them to the middle of the overgrowth and pushes away the shrubbery and vines to reveal a door in the stone foundation of the building. Inside she’s lit two lanterns, enough for them to see by. The basement is dark. Cold. No place for a normal human, but for an Ascended’s safe house - not too shabby. Here, there are several shovels, a large pile of rocks, and some other odds and ends - a spool of super thin, nearly invisible wire, an old table, and a heavy net. All the tools needed to create an alarm and a coffin-type hideaway. Hey. Not everyone can have fancy houses. -------------- This is a PQ to set up a secret safe house for Wessex! Last thing needed to level and I hope to keep it quick, so please join only if you can do that and aren’t in danger of revealing it’s location. Feel free to PP Wessex finding you and asking you to help/leading you here. 1. Deimos 2. black as the pit from pole to pole i thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul

DEIMOS

They believe nothing can reach us
And pull us out of the boundless gloom

Nowadays, he didn’t begrudge anyone who wanted to hide, to remain invisible, unseen, unheard, away from the prying void slinking in amidst their daily lives. He missed the notion of not having any commanding force at all, breathing down their necks, demanding their allegiance; besides a few mobs and riots, or an occasional LongNight disaster, they’d managed to sort themselves out within reason. The present was like walking on eggshells, waiting for the next to crack, to split apart, to become demolished at the seams. The uncertainty, the apprehension, was a waiting, beckoning beacon, begging for someone to do something.

So Wessex wanted a safe house.

His eyes ghosted over the current state: doors amidst shrubbery, hidden by nature threatening to take its wares back, foundations remaining standing and upright, lanterns guiding their sight into the basement. She’d already brought them several tools, which was fine – and he was intrigued by some snare set-up – and likely most things she required he could make from his own incantations anyway. He lifted his stare to her, warrior to warrior, and nodded. “Where do we start?”

They're wrong

what have i become?my sweetest friend—everyone know goes away in the end

Remi assumes that his help has been requested because of his magic. Having him around can make some tasks easier, though rather than being offended at what might be perceived simply as being used, the alchemist is quick to agree. He didn't ask for his abilities after all and still does not feel deserving of them. Helping others is like a temporary respite from the weight that he feels crushing his chest, when he thinks of how fortunate he is. At least in some respects.

"I cannot see—" The alchemist admits. "—not well at least, and definitely not in the dark or where I am not familiar." He adds. In truth he only half-recognizes Wessex as it is. Not knowing the woman well, she is only scarcely more than a vaguely silvery outline in a world that is otherwise black and grey. If she wants his help, she will have to lead him.

"Deimos." Remi whispers a greeting to the larger man. Though they are seemingly quite alone here, the alchemist feels the need for silence and secrecy all around, and tries to oblige.

if i could start again, a million miles away, i would keep myself. i would find a way

Coding base by Sky!

WESSEX out of the night that covers me At the last minute, she’d sought out Remi, remembering his ability to move rocks and earth down in the cave. He is, as always, too kind about requests, so with word of thanks, she leads the two men to her house - one that could not betray her if he wanted to (and Wessex has faith he wouldn’t want to, but his blindness is an odd sort of bonus) and another she trusts as a brother in arms. It’s a safe house for the worst case scenario. With any luck, no one will have to use it. Because you see, it’s not just for her. It’s for… anyone. It’s for when the Hollowed Grounds goes to hell in a handbasket. Where to start? Taking the spool of wire, she hands it to Deimos. “Can you make a trip wire of sorts with this? I’d like a perimeter around the place, maybe a hundred feet out? Enough distance that there will be time to hide if the alarm is triggered. And then run it back through that crack in the stones.” She points to a break in the mortar above his head. “Thanks, Deimos.” In her head it’s for more than just this, but he doesn’t need to know that. Having guided the alchemist here by touch and words (to your left, step high - there’s a log), the Ascended knows she can see well enough for both of them and readily agrees to guide Remi’s work. Why wouldn’t she? He’s saving her a lot of effort. “Of course. I’ll walk you through it. First steps are pretty easy, just a big hole in the ground. Five paces by five paces. Smooth, packed walls, if you can manage.” Reaching out with a gentle touch, she offers her arm to lead him to the center of the room, where the hole should be dug, and then to measure out the five paces, if needed. --------------------- Ok Deimos, go set that trip wire. Should be pretty quiet out there tonight, but you never know. Remi, let W know if you need help or not. black as the pit from pole to pole i thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul

what have i become?my sweetest friend—everyone know goes away in the end

The alchemist is pleasantly surprised by Wessex' willingness to guide him with her voice and her body. Thus far his interactions with the ascended have been mostly perfunctory or surrounding fairly intense topics, so his gauge of her as been rather limited. Given that it is of course in her best interest to help Remi out as much as possible so that he might be the most effective tool for her, perhaps her willingness is not so surprising, but Remi finds himself deeply appreciative just the same.

Holding on to her, Remi squints into the darkness of the room. There is fairly little that he is able to make out, but seeing isn't really necessary when it comes to moving the earth. Through a mixture of earth magic and telekinesis, Remi is easily able to create the space in the ground that Wessex has asked of him. "And the remaining earth? I could fashion it into ... chairs or so, I suppose. Or simply move it outside and spread it around so that it does not look obvious." Though she hasn't said as much, a house in the woods without a deep hole in the ground seems like the sort of thing that is meant to be kept quiet.

if i could start again, a million miles away, i would keep myself. i would find a way

Coding base by Sky!

DEIMOS

They believe nothing can reach us
And pull us out of the boundless gloom

One of Deimos’ many abilities, not concerning efforts in mayhem, menace, and oblivion, was silence. He wasn’t one to spew out discourse at random intervals. He wasn’t one to fill the room with noise. He wasn’t one to even want to expel and exert constant diatribes. But it also enabled him to be a keeper of secrets, remarkable things contorted and coiled in the back of his mind, not revealed, not displayed, not released for the world to know. The shielding house, its construction, its location, and its traps were safe with him.

Remi was a welcome surprise, and he bestowed a quiet nod to the man, before adhering to Wessex’s tasks. Inveigling a trip wire was amusing to him, and he took the object with a dastardly wake, nodding his confirmation of the order to Wessex, turning his head before a visible smirk managed to finagle its way to his features. It’d been a long time since he’d set up a snare, figuratively or literally, and he strode along the outskirts of the house, setting up a perimeter some distance away.

It would have to be enough to alarm someone that another was coming, providing them an opportunity to get away, or defend themselves. His gaze snapped back and forth from the house to the grounds surrounding it, maneuvering slowly, carefully, quietly in the dark. All along his movements and motions, he ran the wire across ferns and brush, shrubs and trees, difficult to see unless one was truly looking for it. Once he’d finished it around the sanctum, he dragged the remnants of the line over to the main threshold again, plucking the remains into the cracked stones.

They're wrong

WESSEX out of the night that covers me If it were just for Wessex, she’d ask for dirt-weapons and leave it at that. Alas, on the off chance that there are others who might need to seek refuge there, she must also think of them and the space limitation. With a grim sort of chuckle, she replies to Remi, “Unless you can make something comfortable, might as well spread most of it outside. Leave enough for a roof over half?” Which brings her to the table. Unsheathing her talons, she takes two whacks at the table legs, effectively making it a door of sorts. Something that can settle into a hole and have something dragged over it. “Here’s the door,” she offers, pulling it towards the hole. “It’s about half my height and two wide.” Big enough to get in and out. It would be dark inside, yes. Cold, yes. But those things can be easily fixed. Upon Deimos’s return, she takes one edge, cuts it from the spool and ties it to one edge of the net, then hands the small amount back to the big man. “Can you tie it tightly to that hook over there?” Hopefully the plan would be clear. It would hold a net with a couple of bigger rocks in it up. If triggered, it would make the net fall and the rocks hit the ground - loud enough to warn someone within but not so loud as to tell the approaching person that there’s someone in the house. After that - it’s all up in the air. She gathers the rocks and places them in the net, waiting for Deimos to finish his part. black as the pit from pole to pole i thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul

DEIMOS

They believe nothing can reach us
And pull us out of the boundless gloom

His eyes followed the netting nuances, the things left unsaid. He presumed it was another trap, another snare, another way to irritate an adversary closing it. It reminded him of hunting, of setting out ruses and schemes for the wildlife to investigate, be caught and tethered, food for the future. Whether or not anyone stumbled upon this place, and what for - hidden into the depths, sheltered from prying eyes by the mere distance and fortitude of existing brush and timber. But that was what made it a sublime outing – to stretch out into the furtive nature, to exist beneath the laws’ noses; for whomever, in their cluster and circle of friends, comrades, and allies.

He followed her directions, taking the thin wire and tying it around the designated hook, tightening and tightening, pulling and tugging on the net a few times in order to ensure it maintained its space, its place. The reticent depths of the Reaper’s stare roamed back to Wessex, giving her an affirmative nod, ready for her to put the rocks in their proper setting.

They're wrong

what have i become?my sweetest friend—everyone know goes away in the end

The alchemist nods. Following orders comes second-nature to him, and after all of the chaos and decisions surrounding Zariah's ascension, selfishly, Remi is happy to simply do as he is told.

Climbing out of the hole in the ground, Remi lets Wessex lead him back to the door. Feeling for the earth without needing to see it, the alchemist easily removes what he has excavated. Half is indeed spread innocuously back around the house, while the remaining half is saved for later. Returning, he cocks his head hearing the strange sound of claws against wood. He bristles slightly, nostrils flared as gold encroaches into his sea-glass stare. Though the lion cannot see much better than the man, his predatory nature feels better to be forward in the wake of destruction.

"Alright—" Remi agrees, using his magic to easily settle the door into place. Moving some of the earth to ensure a tight fit, he cocks his head. "I can...change the structure of this, if you need. Add things, remove them.."

if i could start again, a million miles away, i would keep myself. i would find a way

Coding base by Sky!

WESSEX out of the night that covers me She doesn’t like to ask too much of Remi. Call it guilt for almost sucking him dry back in the Greatwood or feeling something akin to shame at being unable to do what he does (which is stupid, she doesn’t have magic, she never will, get over it). There’s just something about asking others to do something she wouldn’t, or can’t, that makes her feel… not great. In this case, she has to push it aside. There are some sensibilities that must stay at the forefront of her mind. She tilts her head to one side, looking at her poorly made (through no fault of Remi’s, it’s all her own rudimentary design) hideout and muses alound. “I’m not sure what you mean… Can you disguise it? Make it look and sound like the rest of the basement floor?” Then her palm immediately goes to her forehead. Duh. He can’t freaking see. “Ah, sorry. I can try and describe the color and texture of the ground…” she says while moving the rocks into the net. Then she gestures for Deimos to switch places with her, to hold up the other side of the alarm, while she ties the wire to it. The test will be when he lets go - will it hold or won’t it? black as the pit from pole to pole i thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul

what have i become?my sweetest friend—everyone know goes away in the end

"I cannot make it sound different, but I can definitely disguise it, if.." Yes. He couldn't see. Luckily, the only barrier to that was how good Wessex was at describing things. And so, listening carefully, Remi closed his eyes and imbued into the wood all that she described. The texture changed to resemble the floor boards, adding knots and inconsistencies as she described them so that it would look as old and worn as the rest.

if i could start again, a million miles away, i would keep myself. i would find a way

Coding base by Sky!

DEIMOS

They believe nothing can reach us
And pull us out of the boundless gloom

He listened, working quietly, curious about Remi’s efforts – disguising doors, pretenses and charades, everything a guessing game for some unsuspecting individual until it was too late. His machinations meandered around the world of masquerades and duplicities, values he’d contorted within: but his were more of the undermining schemes, the machinations, the calculations in their meticulous orchestrations. These could be appreciated as well though – days of sound-proof tents and furtive caverns, temples designed to hide – no longer in the mountains, in the summits, but some of the gestures were still the same, alive and well in other human beings. The laws of deceit and deception always managed to survive.

While Wessex contemplated Remi’s next movements, she administered the Reaper’s in silence – he followed through on the notion, switching places, holding it firm, in place, while she tied wire along it. When she completed her portion, he let go, waiting to see if worked, held itself, waiting for a bombardment to signal its alarm.

They're wrong

WESSEX out of the night that covers me To be honest, she’s never been so articulate about how wood floors look in her thirty-nine years of existence, but there’s a first time for everything, right? And in the end, only knowing where to look, where the entrance should be gives a hint as to where to lift the door from its settled place. She thought briefly about a lock, but then too many other scenarios came to mind, and the Ascended woman figured that if someone makes it this far and figures out where the door is, then fuck, they can probably break through the wood anyway, right? So what’s the point of a lock? “Thank you, Remi.” she says from the other side of the small room, still holding up the net. With a nod to Deimos, she gently removes her hands and watches the wire strain for a moment, but ultimately hold its makeshift alarm up. It’s precarious. An animal could come by and trip it, but that’s the risk she’ll have to take, won’t she? “Looks like that’s it,” Wessex comments with a final look around the room. “I’ll lead you back to the edge of the Woods, so you can know the way. In case - if anyone else gets on Zariah’s bad side and needs to disappear.” She shrugs, not being privy to plans. “As a last resort kind of thing.” ---------------------- And that's a wrap! Thanks for the quick one, guys. Deimos, feel free to know where it is if needed. black as the pit from pole to pole i thank whatever gods may be for my unconquerable soul

what have i become?my sweetest friend—everyone know goes away in the end

The alchemist smiled wryly. "I will keep that in mind. I am working on...an invisibility cloak, I suppose you would call it. It seems like something out of a fairy tale, but apparently those are the measures we find ourselves needing." he said with a slight shake of his head and rueful smile.

Happily accepting Wessex's help back through the trees, Remi did his best to remember the way. Unfortunately, a good sense of direction was not a skill that the alchemist possessed, and with his vision the way it was, the secret-base would likely remain that way. At least if that was the case though, Zariah would never be able to pry that information away from him.

if i could start again, a million miles away, i would keep myself. i would find a way

Coding base by Sky!