estoria | « 004 ⇢ INTERLUDE004.EXE »

Entry tags:

!event,
!interlude

« 004 ⇢ INTERLUDE004.EXE »

Who: These suckers and E R R O R
When: OOC: 5/29, IC: 7/15
Where: CERES Research Tower and Beyond
What: It seems an old friend has decided the situation is progressing too slowly.
Rating/Warning: PG-13: Violence, injuries and inevitable deaths.

▶ ACTION.EXE | IC: 7/15

For those unlucky saps who disappear today, ranging from early in the morning towards the middle of the afternoon, well...they can't be reached by CereVice.

Any attempt to do so will bounce back the message User Currently Occupied.

It's an odd message, and one that's never been used by the CereVice. How strange. It's probably nothing though, right? No contact can be established between groups or from groups to outside people in Cerealia, whether by technology or magic. You're cut off from everyone but those in your groups, now.

Otherwise, all abilities will remain intact.

As for the people who do disappear, well... things get a little hairy really quickly.

▶ RUN.EXE | MOD NOTES

This is the event log for these sign-ups! Your groups have been sorted below; here are a few handy links for you:

Group 01 | OOC plotting
Group 02 | OOC plotting
Group 03 | OOC plotting
Group 04 | OOC plotting
Group 05 | OOC plotting
Group 06 | OOC plotting
Group 07 | OOC plotting
Group 08 | OOC plotting
Group 09 | OOC plotting
Group 10 | OOC plotting
Group 11 | OOC plotting
Group 12 | OOC plotting
Group 13 | OOC plotting
Group 14 | OOC plotting
There is no tagging order, so feel free to tag in whatever way works best for you as a group.

The characters should not ICly be gone longer than 5 hours -- if they survive, of course. There will be mod involvement in each of the threads.

If there are any questions, feel free to ask them here. Please try to avoid asking hypothetical questions (such as "What will happen if my character does [action]?") as that's part of the fun and risk of the interlude! You are welcome to plot with your groupmates in this post. Thank you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

. . . LOADING CHARLIE MAXWELL.$$$ . . . LOADING CHIBI.$$$ . . .
. . . LOADING FLYNN SCIFO.$$$ . . . LOADING SEBASTIAN MICHAELIS.$$$ . . .
. . . LOADING TOUKA KIRISHIMA.$$$ . . . START ESCAPE.EXE. . .

[ Did you... always have that mirror in your room?

It's so strange, really. You can't remember buying it. You can't remember it being there yesterday. But there it is.

Just sitting there, as mirrors do. But you definitely didn't buy this mirror.

Gather your courage, approach, and there's a face in the mirror that definitely isn't yours. The robot lifts a hand, and waves with robot fingers, and then it reaches out from the mirror to grab at a hand or an arm or even your neck, and then it drags you through the mirror.

And then you're somewhere entirely different, and the one certainty is that it's cold down here (because you're definitely underground), and...you're not alone. ]

[As it turns out: checking out that mirror? A bad idea. The worst of ideas. She didn't even have enough time to react, way too startled by the face she saw in the mirror, before the creepy bastard grabbed her by the arm and dragged her to — wherever this is. She has no idea where she is now.

This is off to a good start.

Pulling the sleeves of her cardigan to cover her hands, she's just going to take a moment to look at her surroundings. Notice she's got company while she's at it. Sigh. This is really off to a good start.]

... Hey. [She recognizes like, two of these people. It could be worse.] Do any of you recognize this place?

[fortune happened to smile down on flynn when the mirror appeared. having been in the middle of getting ready for some training, he'd fully geared up in his knight armor while having both sword and shield on his person. any and all luck ended there. right after grabbing his sword, he turned only to find himself face-to-face with the mirror. no chance existed to say anything, to call out for yuri or to even get a solid glimpse of the mirror. the robots appeared and pulled him in...

but to where? some place that definitely shouldn't be on the other side of a mirror, that's where. the ceres alarm bells go off immediately. well, either ceres or the other things on this planet that seem to keep toying with them. whatever this might be, it can't be anything good.

flynn frowns heavily while looking around, immediately spotting others with him and even a familiar face among them. at touka's question, he shakes his head.]

No, not at all. It isn't a location I've been to prior.

[Robots. Okay.]

[Chibi has to look, of course, has to get his face up nice and close to see what this robot has to give him - and then he squawks as it yanks him in.]

[Well, there's the thing he was expecting to happen... except not the exact thing. He'd imagined ViViD going awry again, not. Robots. Well, he figures they'd want to reach out.]

[And he isn't alone. He checks his crevice - can't call anyone to warn them. Damn it.]

Not a clue... but it seems those robots have another message for us. [Sigh.]

[ Charlie's natural curiosity would get the better of him, wouldn't it? The appearance of a strange mirror was enough to warrant an investigation, but the image of the robot was what prompted Charlie to get close, half a dozen questions ready to spill out.

He didn't get the chance to ask any of them before being yanked through.

How very Alice in Wonderland. You know, if Wonderland was a... whatever this place is.

He's got the clothes on his back, the small bandoleer of throwing knives on his belt, and his iPhone and CereVice taking up residence in his pockets so... could be worse. ]

Another for the "no" column. Did you guys get sucked in through a mirror too, or am I just lucky?

[ Granted, the mirror does look like something he would buy, so really, Sebastian wouldn't have questioned it if not for a simple fact that he wouldn't have forgotten buying it in the first place. It's a point that gets him to pause before it long enough to be sucked in, though if nothing else, he puts up quite a fight before he's dragged in. His hands grip at the walls outside hard enough to leave holes (that he'll unfortunately have to repair later, alas), but it matters little.

After all, he's found himself in quite the odd place.

As he looks at the rest of the people gathered, his gaze is rather sharp and stern, at least until he sees Touka. While they could barely even be called acquaintances, he does recognize her, and that's enough to slightly set him more at ease. After all, that's more likely to mean that everyone else here is in the same situation he's in. Rather than focusing on everyone else, Sebastian's gaze instead wanders to take in the sights of the ruins around them. ]

My goodness...

[ It's all he says at first, since it is a bit to take in, but ultimately, he shakes his head. ]

Why, no. It is quite new to me as well.

[ Though he does pause in looking around to address Chibi thoughtfully: ] "Another," you said?

[ Honestly, chatting is all well and good, but you probably shouldn't stay here too long. The ceiling doesn't seem all too stable here, and neither does the archway in front of the only door. The rest is stone walls, so if you get blocked in, that might suck a bit.

One of the blocks is even going to fall right in the midst of the group, so watch your heads. ]

[Falling blocks. This is okay. This is fine. This is alright.

She's pretty much jumping a foot back as the block falls, and then she's quickly looking up towards the ceiling. That... does not look stable at all. Not really. Neither does the archway in front of their only way out of this room, now that she gets a better look at it. Well.]

We need to get out of here. I'm not sticking around if the rest of the ceiling decides to fall.

[She barely survived having her apartment crumble down on top of her when the flood happened. She's not taking her chances again here, so. She starts moving towards the door, gesturing them to follow as she does. Let's not get caved in, guys.]

[one block falling usually means more are sure to follow. the block slamming down a distance away doesn't startle him, but it does raise concern about how safe this cavern is. after taking a glance at the ceiling, the answer quickly becomes very clear: not safe at all.

his frown deepens before he turns his attention back toward the group.]

Agreed. The stability of the whole area seems questionable at best. We can speak properly once in a safer location.

[...if they find a safer location. considering how these things tend to go, a safer location may not actually exist. staying here means getting squished so leaving needs to happen no matter what. great. just another day of being someone's plaything. complaining will come later. first thing first, get out of this in one piece.]

Goddess, not this shit again. [This shit would be the falling stone, thunking against the ground as it does; Chibi seems less alarmed than simply irritated. The Eliatrope people have dealt with a few crumbling temples in their time, and it is not too big a deal for a portal-jumper.]

[Now, whatever else is coming... Well.]

[To Sebastian:] I will tell you later. [Then, to the whole group:] Stay mindful. [And rather than walking, he pops up a portal under his feet, then one straight outside the door. --And he slips right through. Best to get right the hell out of there!]

Edited 2016-05-29 05:38 (UTC)

[ Charlie does jump, and he mentally reaches for the spell tattooed on his arm on instinct- the spell that will instantly halt any inanimate object in his immediate area- but he stops himself from activating it. The stone already hit the floor, and trapping the people around him in their clothes wouldn't help anyone.

He doesn't know if the portals are safe for anyone to use, so he'd rather not risk it and makes for the doorway quickly like a normal, non-portal-spawning person. ]

If the ceiling comes down, I have a spell that can save us from being crushed, but you all need to stay close to me for it to work. Don't fan out too far.

[ The ceiling is definitely going to come crashing down on them if they stay there too long; thankfully, stepping through the doorway should save them from the majority of that, though their path behind will be blocked off by tons of fallen stone.

Forward's the only way to go now, but it's pitch black. There doesn't appear to be any source of light in this tunnel at all -- and they're in a tunnel for sure. The air current would mark them as being underground, and it comes from directly ahead of them. ]

[ It's fair enough to save conversation for later as the area starts to crumble, and Sebastian really has no objection there. As the ceiling starts to fall, his gaze snaps up, but he avoids it by also leaping back. After that, it's time to head forward and pointedly away from this area.

As they step into the darkness, it's not too much of a hindrance for Sebastian, since he's able to see in the dark roughly as well as he can in the light, since demons are cheaters. He starts to look around to see if there's anything here to note, but he's still rather guarded about what he is and his abilities, so he doesn't exactly mention that he'll likely be able to see quite well. ]

Does anyone have a source of light, by any chance?

[It takes some fumbling around in the darkness, but she pulls her CereVice out of her pocket. A quick glance shows that it's useless for communicating, like all the other times they got dragged somewhere like this, but... the screen does give off a faint light. And assuming it has a flashlight function, she'll use that to look around the area. If not, then she'll at least use the glow of the screen to figure out how close to the walls they are, or if there's anything on the floor immediately around her.

Either way, using the CereVice as a light source isn't going to be very effective in the long term, depending on how long they're going to be stuck here.]

This is the best I have, sorry. [Something brighter that doesn't run on battery power would be ideal.] Is everyone okay?

[a flashlight normally is something flynn brings with him after several darkness adventures. normally doesn't apply today since he didn't manage to grab it due to sudden grabby robot friend. there's his light magic, but that doesn't last long enough to really help.

so by the glow of the cerevice might be the only way to go. not the best source, but they at least have more than one. flynn checks his own for service only to get the same results. no service. typical.]

Not anything that is sustainable for a prolonged period of time. And yes, I'm allright.

[getting out of there so quickly helped them get out of there without much trouble. good start to their little adventure.]

I am fine. [Chibi waves an arm to demonstrate that no, he has not been crushed. Portals: maybe they're cheating, but they're damned useful, in any case.]

[It's dark as hell, though, and cold; Chibi finds himself huddling into his cloak without really meaning to. And all they have is... Cerevices. Chibi brings a hand in front of him, breathes in, breathes out; above his palm, a little blue orb forms. (If anyone can sense that sort of thing, they will be able to tell that it - like the portal - is made out of life force. Wakfu, his people call it.) It's enough to light a few meters in front of them, albeit not too brightly.]

It is the best I can do, for now. [At least, without exhausting himself.]

I'm okay.

[ For his own part, Charlie bring up a hand, sketching a runic looking mark in the air with his fingers. Ice blue light flows from his fingers, hanging in the air in front of him and illuminating the area. Usually, the marks vanish when they're completed, but he leaves this one unfinished so they can use the light to get a better look around. ]

I've got this. It won't follow us, but I can probably work around that if we need it.

[ As light illuminates the area, there's a brief period where Sebastian's eyes will have a shine akin to an animal's in the dark, but it also seems to disappear only a moment after a light source (or a few) appears. He had been reaching for his own CereVice to helpfully provide a little more illumination, but as Charlie creates a rune in the air, it seems that might not be needed.

This really is an interesting group of people, isn't it?

Sebastian relaxes, letting his hand fall back to his side, but he continues to look around now that the area is better illuminated. ]

Far better than wandering in the darkness, at least. So...

[ He trails off, since the question that follows doesn't really need to be said. Where have they wandered into? ]

[ So.

With the small light of the CereVices, the runes and the blue orb, they'll be able to vaguely tell that they're in some sort of tunnel, of course; there's only one immediate way forward, but it leads in a gentle slope upwards, which might be promising.

Sebastian, with his cheating demon eyes, will be able to see that they're very much not alone, though their friends are not particularly dangerous-looking. They don't light up; they're just lurking in corners, watching. ]

[Ah, much better.

She doesn't notice Sebastian's cheating demon eyes doing their thing, but she does take a moment to observe the orb and the runes as they show up. Huh. One day she'll stop being fascinated by magic. Today is not that day.

Turning her attention toward the tunnel, she frowns as she notices the only way to go is forward. The air current is promising, at least. It means this path is connected to the surface somehow.]

... Looks like we don't have much of a choice.

[Awesome. She obviously won't be able to see beyond what their light sources allow them to see, but she'll be focusing her hearing just in case anything approaches them. It's not as good as Irimi's was, but... it's still better than a human's.]

[full attention goes to the orb and then marking from flynn's end, too. what handy abilities to have. lighting this good will permit a solid look around (nothing of interest gets spotted by his fully human eyes, however). that's one thing out of the way. what a shame they're still stuck god knows where and with god knows what surprises to look forward to.

chances are, the surprises'll pop up regardless of whether or not they stay put. since the path also slopes up that means it might lead to the surface or close to it. given that, moving forward is the way to go.]

We should be fine as long as we proceed with caution.

[not being too hasty with moving forward should help with them getting out of one piece. hopefully.]

Why don't we rely on the orb while moving forward and then we can use that marking whenever the need arises?

[the smaller one is enough to illuminate the path. as long as no one rushes ahead and they all pay attention to the surroundings then it ought to suffice.]

A tunnel. [With a solid shrug and a puzzled look:] Either way, we are going up. I wonder what surprises that robot has for us there?

[Hopefully not ones that are too strange... If they are lucky, at least. Chibi finds himself wondering what is further down, if there are secrets untold within the bowels of this planet...]

[Either way, Chibi keeps the wakfu orb steady above his palm, almost as though he is carrying it, were it not hovering. He strikes off to start ahead with careful steps, walking with eyes and ears open.]

[ Unfortunately for them, no matter how far they walk, it doesn't seem to get any lighter. They're going to be stuck relying on their light sources for now.

But after a good five minutes of walking, they'll find themselves at the first inevitable roadblock.

There's an underground lake cutting off their path, and it's pretty hard to see how far it stretched into the darkness, or how deep it may be. (But it sure is cold.) ]

[ Sebastian definitely considers keeping what he sees to himself for a moment. However, it doesn't really help him to keep it to himself for the sake of keeping his sharper vision a secret. He'll explain that away with a half-truth if need be. He gestures towards one of those corners that's nearest to indicate where someone should direct their light. ]

We are not quite alone, at least.

[ But he'll leave it to others to interpret what those things are, since while he's made a solid effort to understand what a robot is since arriving, he's still a fancy Victorian.

Otherwise, he'll just follow quietly until they make it to the lake. ]

[ When they start moving, Charlie waves away the rune, the light dissipating like smoke. He opts to dig his iPhone out of his pocket instead and uses it to add to their light.

At Sebastian's prompting, he directs his phone's LED light towards the darker corners. ] More robots? I don't think they're hostile, but watch your backs, guys.

[ And then they get to the lake: ] I don't suppose anyone brought a boat, did they?

▶ GROUP 14.EXE

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