[KQ] Big A(spire)rations

A big. Black. Spire. 

It didn't leave the cleanest of imagery in people's minds, but that didn't matter at the moment. It was in the middle of everything and was huge. So why not take a look at it? And who better to observe things than Mimora, who often just sat looking at things cause she would rather not move?

And so She went up to it, finding the square doorlike outline that might mean something. Surely it had to, otherwise, it wouldn't be there. Mimora squatted by it, just looking at it and observing, hoping to learn something about it.

He was not going to let her wander on her lonesome. Not in an unfamiliar place like this. Despite the fact that his brain was reeling and his understanding of the situation was nonexistent, one thing never changed in his person. He was always looking out for others, and if one was daring enough to venture off in the unknown, his conscience would not allow him to let them depart on their own. So when Mimora took up the adventure of wandering to the spire, Moses went after her, but not before he was stopped by his wife.

"Where are you going?" she demanded. A tone of intensity rang in her voice, and he turned to her with the same concerned eyes that he'd give any other. That was a sign to her, a tell she knew all too well.

"I can't let her go off alone," he explained. "Enya, I'm sorry. I know everything is new, but the last thing we need is anyone getting lost, or injured, not when there's so much going on. I couldn't-"

"I know," the woman's eyes dropped, proud but also irritated by her beloved husband. Did she expect any different? He was always so selfless, it came naturally that man, one of the many traits that made him so attractive to her. And yet she too feared for him. Moses tried to reassure her, to tell her that everything was going to be ok. He turned back to Enya, a tender and loving hand placed upon her face.

"You can trust these people, Enya, I promise you that. They are good men and women who are just as concerned and confused as we are. I won't be long."

"Please-" Enya shook her head, removing her husband's hand from her face and placing it between her own. She stared at it for a while before looking back to him, "Please be careful."

"I will be." He leaned forward and gave her a kiss on her forehead before turning and going to catch up with Mimora. Unfortunately, he had no weapons on him, so he would have to rely on the hand-to-hand he'd learned should they come across any danger. Yet, his soul was not stirred in worry. He trusted the woman he would be journeying with, and should any more have decided to join them, it would make for a good group.

"Mimora!" He called out to her when he closed the gap between them, his jogging receding to a brisk walk. He looked back once before turning his gaze to her, still appalled by how small she stood next to him. "Checking our surroundings, then? I'd be more than happy to assist you."

Mimora was slowly sliding a finger along the outline of the not-a-door door when she heard voices close by. She ignored it until @Moses-Joel began speaking to her directly. She looked up the massive man and blinked slowly, mentally identifying him as one of the Bloodfiends that went missing. Another blink and he appeared to be breathing, very unlike a bloodfiend. Interesting. "Didn't you die or something?" she asked, her voice as monotonous as ever. "Whatever. This spire thingy seems important. But everyone seems to be ignoring it. It looks like there might be a door here." she explained to him, pointing the outline out. Maybe you can use your tallness to figure it out." mimora The lily of the water

How could he ever forget the bland, expressionless tone of little Mimora? She was never phased, never thrown or tossed about emotionally. But calling her cold or indifferent may have been a stretch, even to an optimist such as Perfetti. She simply focused her mind elsewhere and had well-maintained control of her person. Such was a thing everyone wished to have.

Her question, while not worded the same way, had the same question. Why was he here? Gracious, if he could answer that question he would've. Not a beat would have been missed in explanation, hoping it would ease the confusion that readily grabbed them all. And yet, there was none that he could give. All he could do was shrug his shoulders and shake his head, defeat resting on his face.

"It would seem so." She'd moved on far before he, her observations of the tower taking over her thoughts. His gaze turned to follow her indications, eyes traveling up and down the spire with growing anticipation. What purpose did it serve, if any? And if it was a relic of its time, did it leave anything valuable behind?

Her assessments of the building had led her to a door frame, closed off and cemented into the wall which held it. He joined her in studying it, seeing if there was any crease, any sliver or weakness for which it could be opened, broken. Nothing revealed itself, and he stepped back to look at its correlation to the rest of the spire.

"Let me see something," he pondered. He dragged his long, loose locks back behind his head, pulling the crown of his hair into a tie to keep it off his face. From there, he straightened back up started looking down the walls of the circular structure. Perhaps a lever, a loose stone, some kind of hidden switch would activate the door and force it open. He wasn't finding anything on his side, and he shifted farther down the tower to look farther. He called back to the Magic Original as he did.

"Mimora, if you can, look on the other side of the door and see if there's some kind of hidden switch. It could be anything, really, but if you find something unusual let me know."

The other side of the door...? Wouldn't that entail her getting inside? She tilted her head in confusion, just staring at the square. And why would the switch be on the inside? The more she thought about it, the more confused she got. So she conjured water using her water conjuring ring and began to try pushing the water through the cracks to see if she could reach an inside switch that way. And then it hit her. The side of the spire opposite the door. Mimora dropped the water she held in horror at herself for being so stupid, her face still as blank as ever. Only the most observant would notice her eyes turning grey. mimora the lily of the water

Hungry. Hungry. It did not walk or jump. It merely dropped, a grey and withered thing {WARNING - MAY BE SPOOKY} that had been watching, clinging to the side of the Spire with splintered and sharpened fingers. What might have once been a breath whooshed out of its emaciated frame as it landed between Mimora and Moses-Joel, effectively trying to cut each one off from the other. The stench of rot rolled off it, and it opened its maw - a maw spread into a leathery rictus grin - and screeched. Congratulations, you're in a Key Quest now! This quest has four open positions: 1. Ashetta Valentus 2. Ronin Taliesin 3. Koel Ambray 4. Roana Steadman Moses-Joel and Mimora must respond before anyone else may join - they may choose to run or to participate. Please remember that KQs are dangerous and may cause death or permanent changes to your characters! whatever doesn't kill me better run

At first, there was silence, the curiosity of Moses' gaze scanning whatever he could. A look back and he saw that Mimora was taking her own initiative, trying some techniques of her own. He returned to his observations, his fingers running along whatever anomaly protruded or retracted in the stone. Unfortunately, he found nothing. But it was the sudden thud of splashing water that turned his head back to the Bloodbag. She remained frozen, like a statue, and it caused his actions to slow to a stop.

"Mimora, what's wron-?" A clambering thud and a heavy woosh of air cut off his words. An ugly, insidious thing fell from the sky and divided them between itself. Moses staggered back defensively. His fingers grew numb and color drained from his face. It reeled up and stood tall, a disgusting array of teeth lining a head-consuming mouth. Yet without eyes it stared him down, burned a hole in the Original's chest and shook him to his core. This wasn't a second chance at life. This was the first stage of hell.

"Ssssshit," Perfetti mumbled. But then his eyes caught the curling red hair of the Magic Original and his dread skyrocketed. They had to get out of here, now!

"MIMORA, RUN FOR IT!" he ordered. He turned on heel in the split of a second and lunged forward, his legs carrying him with a swiftness he'd long forgotten. She spared no time, either, as she met him quickly in their departure from the beast. Without even thinking, he placed a hand on her back and pushed her ahead of him. He only looked back once, maybe twice as the thing stood menacingly. He hoped, prayed to whatever was out there that it wouldn't follow!


(bunny permissions granted by Glasspuzzle)

@Moses-Joel asked Mimora what was wrong. Crud, she didn't want him knowing she did something dumb. But then there was a thud. Looking up revealed something ugly and smelly. Okay. Good. She can use this thing as a coverup. Mimora began winding herself up to fight the thing, pulling the water she dropped from off the ground when MJ rushed in and pushed her. Being as small and lightweight as she was compared to the man's strength, she ended up flying a fair distance away and landing on her back with the second thud in the last minute or so. mimora the lily of the water

Mimora and Moses-Joel's story continues here -> Too Early for This

Ashe had been glancing at that spire from the corner of her eye since the moment she awoke. She didn't like the discomfort that coiled in her every time she looked at it, and internally her hackles were rising. She focused her efforts on anything else. Searching for shelter, searching for others she knew, trying to make sense of this terrible place.. that spire loomed, however, spearing darkly into the sky.

She'd seen the recognizable Mimora and.. five hells, it still rocked her to her core when she set her sights on MJ.. but they had approached the spire, poking around that door-shape at its base. She watched them for a moment, and then… then there was that thing, that ear-splitting screech, and the pair were running headlong away. ”Fuck,” Ashe breathed. Her heart started pounding as she beheld the grotesque creature, like something from the depths of her night terrors, and Reckoning was unsheathed with a clear ring. ”Shit. Shit!”

It was most certainly herself she was cursing as she made her move. The raven haired girl lunged forward, racing at the beast from the spire. She knew that hideous thing was bad fucking news…

She raced past Mimora and MJ. In her right hand was her sword of darkened metal, the left… without needing it already present, lightning snapped, crackling to life. That was new. She decided not to look a gift horse in the mouth. Not when there was that thing's mouth full of ravenous teeth. Instead, she heaved a deep breath and plunged into her power. It felt.. different. An ocean of storm, of flickering ember and cloud and ravenous lightning. The beast growled within her.

As Ashe closed in, she loosed a pillar of lightning from her hand, bolts coiling together with a deafening crack! and a brilliant flash of blue as it snapped at the spire beast.

R O N I N

---

Ronin had not noticed MJ or Mimora heading for the ominous spire that seemed to oversee their new lives in this place. He had noticed Ashetta , however - the former Captain of Training hadn't had a chance yet to speak with the woman he had come to see as a sister. And he had a lot to share with her, it seemed. Before he could call out and approach her, though, a horrific screech racked through the air and the Assassin in Blue broke into a run. Ronin was left feeling thoroughly confused... until he saw the two other figures fleeing in the other direction.

"What's going on?" he called, not that he really needed that question to be answered. Trouble. Always trouble. And as he ran past MJ and Mim, the nature of the trouble became very clear indeed. Ashe had just launched herself at a monster that seemed to be more teeth and leathery skin than anything else, and he couldn't allow her to put herself in that kind of danger alone.

"Fall back!" he called to her after she had unleashed her lightning, the ex-captain charging forward in her stead and leaning down to snatch up a sharp bit of flint from the ground. He swung at the monster with it, aiming a blow square in the side of its grotesque head.

koel tryin' to take what's lost and broke and make it right Koel also hadn’t been paying all that close attention to the spire. Oh sure, he’d been watching it off and on—it was impossible not to, given how prominent it was in the landscape—but after the initial shock of it had worn off, it had sort of faded into the background. Still, it was close to where they’d chosen to take up residence, so when a familiar flash of lightning appeared out of a clear sky the eagle immediately knew that Ashetta was up to her new tricks. While sometimes the so-called Assassin in Blue blew things up in a fit of pique, sometimes there was actually a method behind her madness; moreover, anything unusual in this new environment warranted investigation. Therefore, he snatched up a bow and a quiver of arrows (he was ‘borrowing’ it from a Northavener who’d actually brought one over until he could get a new one) and rushed towards the spire. Once he got there, he was glad he’d shown up. They were facing an opponent out of their worst nightmares. Apparently the mage had hit it with her best shot. Time for his: he nocked an arrow, pulled back the string, and fired straight for the center of the monster’s chest. Although Koel didn’t know if this thing had a heart, he was hoping to pierce something. However, as he saw Ronin’s familiar figure charging straight for the beast, Koel’s heart sank; that was reckless and his friend was going to get himself killed. "We need help." Something deep within him called out with need, for something, anything, anyone, to show up in this fight. And for a wonder something did: a hawk plunged from seemingly out of nowhere, talons raking for the creature’s eye. It was followed by three pigeons, which, while less effective, did their best to harass the monster, pecking at its face. Finally, and most surprising of all, a small group of what looked like five starlings swirled in a cloud around the beast, chirping and flying in a disorienting pattern; it might not be doing damage but maybe it would distract the creature. Koel’s jaw dropped. He’d never seen anything like that before, but he could feel some sort of bond with the birds, and he willed them to keep up the fight.

"Fall back!"

Well that was never a good way to start an afternoon. Roana had been patrolling the perimeter of their little base when she heard the shout. It sounded like Ronin, but she couldn't be sure. Her brow furrowed as she looked in that direction and saw some people at a distance sprinting away from the Spire. Something was definitely very, very wrong. Without further hesitation she unsheathed Krosis and sprinted for the Spire. What she saw there was terrifying.

She swore under her breath and darted in, careful to avoid the attacks of her allies...though where the heck were the birds coming from? Anyways. No time to wonder. Roana went straight for the beast, swinging the claymore at it with full force. Best to kill things like this fast if you could.

CREATURE START HIT POINTS: 500 Ashetta: {HIT} - 55 DMG Ronin: {HIT} - 28 DMG Koel: {HIT} - 30 DMG Roana: {HIT} - 33 DMG CREATURE END HIT POINTS: 354 Hungry. Its eyeless face whipped towards the sound of footsteps, some fading, others growing closer. Fangs clicked against a leathery and reptilian tongue and it launched itself after its intended targets in a leap that left scars in the earth. But instead of meat dripping fleshy ribbons sweet crimson sucking the marrow it found the bite of lightning instead. The shriek it let out this time was higher and louder, the sound ringing around the Spire in a pitch that was near painful on the ears. The stench of cooking rot rose in heady waves from the spiderweb of burns that the magic left on its skin - it reeled, staggering back. Then, near simultaneously, something sharp and hard drove into its temple, an arrow buried itself in its chest and a claymore, the blade keening in the ashy light, hit its mark and caved through one of its shoulders, rendering the arm all but useless. Only one arm, though. Hungry. The howl it unleashed this time was all animal, frenzied and starving, and it rounded with wicked claws to slice and rip at the fleshbag holding the sword. With a claymore still buried in its shoulder and shining, black blood gushing from its various wounds, it used its working arm to rake a deep slash across Roana's middle, intent on spilling guts and so much more. One more hit like that would certainly kill her. POST ORDER 1. Roana 2. Ronin 3. Koel 4. Ashetta Remember: You may run at any time. whatever doesn't kill me better run

The pain made Roana gasp, her side tearing open. But that wasn't going to stop the ex-Captain. No-siree. This was the same woman who trained at the same level as the most elite men. This was the same woman who fell seven-stories off the wall and lived. Roana Steadman was many things, but a quitter was not one of them. She would survive by sheer grit alone if she had to. And given the strength of this beast, if it wasn't going to weaken or bleed out from that wound, she just might have to.

She quickly tugged Krosis free from the beast's shoulder, twisting away. As she did so, she drew the broadsword on her back and slammed it down towards the creature's opposite shoulder as a counter attack. But its accuracy would be in question given she had bigger things to worry about - like getting out of reach of this thing.

Whether her broadswors connected or not, Roana made quick work of backing up, out of reach of the monster. She leaned slightly to staunch the bleeded, teeth gritted. She was in serious pain but she was still focused, holding her swords at the ready to defend herself should the beast come for her again.

Ronin