CitW: Round 2: The Brave

[Pegasus]

Was it something that you said?

Round like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning on an ever spinning reel
Like a snowball down a mountain, or a carnival balloon
Like a carousel that's turning running rings around the moon

Like a clock whose hands are sweeping past the minutes of its face
And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind!
Like a tunnel that you follow to a tunnel of its own

Down a hollow to a cavern where the sun has never shone
Like a door that keeps revolving in a half forgotten dream
Or the ripples from a pebble someone tosses in a stream
Like a clock whose hands are sweeping past the minutes of its face

And the world is like an apple whirling silently in space
Like the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind!
Keys that jingle in your pocket, words that jangle in your head
Why did summer go so quickly, was it something that you said?

Lovers walking along a shore and leave their footprints in the sand
Is the sound of distant drumming just the fingers of your hand?
Pictures hanging in a hallway and the fragment of a song
Half remembered names and faces, but to whom do they belong?

When you knew that it was over you were suddenly aware
That the autumn leaves were turning to the color of her hair!
Like a circle in a spiral, like a wheel within a wheel
Never ending or beginning on an ever spinning reel

As the images unwind, like the circles that you find

In the windmills of your mind!

120th Ashan, 719. Midnight

The First Shard.

The Brave

Simple it's not, You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.
You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you'll be best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don't.
Because, sometimes, you won't.

Each of them found themselves here in the blink of an eye and the flutter of a butterfly's wings. The first thing that they might notice was that it was dark - so very dark. It was a room that was more of a cave that they were in. The back of the room was cave-like, dark stone walls and water dripping. But somehow it merged and blended into the front of a living room sort of area. It was dark here, pitch dark like midnight in Cylus and there was only the glow of a low-burning fire casting red shadows around the room. It was the only light, other than the small glow of the cherry of the cigar which the Caterpillar was smoking. Perched on the mantel, he was the size of a large caterpillar, but still was smoking a normal-sized cigar.

Somehow, it even fit together. As he puffed and blew a smoke ring, he looked at them gathered here.

"The Brave. That's what you are. The Brave. There are others, each group has a chaperone. Except you. So brave, you don't need one, do you?" He smiled at them and then gestured. "Everything needs light. Everything. Even darkness. " He looked at them and they might notice that his smoke rings sort of.. gestured... around. "Light. You need to bring sunlight here. It's here somewhere" Then, as though he'd never been there, the Caterpillar was gone, leaving behind a single smoke ring.

Down a hollow to a cavern where the sun has never shone.

Objectives & Rules

Congratulations. This is your group for this event. I hope you're all comfy. Ok. So, the objective you have in this room is to find the sunlight. It's hidden here. Somewhere. What you have is a square / rectangular room which "melts" into a much more nasty cave. This needs exploring.

Here's a map!

You each have 3 actions. Each "action" is to investigate a square. But each square is more, or less, difficult to explore. So, letters are easier than numbers, and light is easier than dark.

Light Lettered Square = costs 1 action to explore.
Dark Lettered Square = costs 2 actions to explore.
Numbered Square = costs 3 actions to explore.

Everything here has consequences. They will not always make sense.
PLEASE NOTE: It's fine for more than one person to explore a square.
Each square has one of three consequences. Good. Neutral. Bad. These are randomly determined at the time of response.
But one of them has the sunlight in it. That is not random, but has been pre-determined.
You have a fairly normal, quite large living room (with furnishings) and a cave where people have camped, visited, performed ritual sacrifices, etc. You must describe whatever you want to find in there. But be careful... nothing here is what it seems.

!	Message from: CAN DO OBJECTIVES
	There are 2 hidden objectives here. I'll let you know if you meet them.

[/tab]

Dates & Deadlines

You need to post here by Friday, 22nd Feb. If you have not done so, you've missed the round. I will be locking the thread at that time.
I will post on Saturday 23rd Feb.

[Nir'wei]

Nir'wei stumbled and swore silently to himself as the staircase he'd been about to climb vanished in front of him. At least, he was pretty sure that was what happened, since he couldn't feel it anymore. He couldn't be certain because the room had been plunged into such an intense darkness that his own hand waving inches before his own face was little more than an amorphous blob. He turned back and forth, trying to find out who'd messed with the lights, or messed with the room, until his eyes begun to adjust and an odd, slightly worrying realisation slowly settled on his shoulders. This wasn't the Waiting Room anymore. Was this The Exit? Was he back home?

Well, no. Idalos didn't have talking caterpillars. The cherry-red glow of the slow burn campfire did nothing to ease his straining eyesight, but it lured him closer like a moth to a flame, stumbling through the cave-like room to squint through the dull twilight glow at its plump cigar and swirling smoke rings, animated in such ways that no smoke ring had right to be. Where had the squeaking and awkwardness gone, and since when did it smoke? So many odd and confusing questions to ask, but it was gone before he could even open his mouth, swallowed by the room's tenebrosity without even a pop. Archailist settled on his shoulder and Greyhide's head pressed into one free hand. At least in their shared unease, there was the comfort of companionship to lean against. Troubling trials they might be, but that hadn't changed, at least.

"The Brave, it called us," Archailist spoke suddenly. "Why... why did that not feel like a compliment?" Indeed, the way that the caterpillar had said it, he'd almost call it ominous. Foreboding. So brave, they didn't need help. So brave, they didn't need their eyes. It all sent shivers down his spine. If they weren't being forcibly held here, he might have chosen the next nearest exit and used it, with considerably more force than the last. Was that really so brave, or cowardly? It didn't really matter. He had an exceptionally bad feeling and it had only grown in the past however-the-heck-long they'd been here. Without knowing why they were searching for a way to bring sunlight to a cave, it might have been better to take a seat at the fire and do nothing.

His hand slid down the side of Greyhide's head, scratching an ear playfully. "Go find us something so I can see where I'm going, would you?" The wolf padded off, sniffing the ground in a hunt, and later returned with an old metal lamp, a half-burned candle still sat in its middle. He lit it using the choked embers of the campfire and held it aloft with one hand, though it hardly made a difference to the oppressive pitch of the cave-room. It helped him see the faces of the others a little clearer, though. Nobody he recognised, none from the room he'd been in before. Another foreboding tidbit. Great.

"I'm off. You're welcome to join, or split up, if you want. Anyone finds trouble... uhh. Scream." With that, he turned and left them, heading deeper into the nasty cave below, immediately heading for a dark, rocky section to begin his search. It seemed like the most reasonable place to begin, after all. As if anything in this damn place was reasonable.

Map Choice

Nir chooses to explore Numbered Square 3.

!	Message from: Pegasus
	Nir'wei has experienced a BAD reaction. This is a shame. As he explores Square 3, he realises that he is, in fact, shrinking. I mean, he was small to begin with, but this is getting silly. By the time you've finished reading this, Nir'wei would fit in the average human's pocket. All his equipment, and familiars, shrink with him.

[Kesindir]

Strange, wasn't it? Things singing, screaming, ceasing, people entering and vanishing. This place was weird. Though, Kesindir didn't have that much time to see much of anything. He'd touched the sphere, without so much as a second thought, and the moment his fingers touched the sphere, it shattered. A gasp from every talking, semi sentient thing sent shivers down Kesindir's back. What had he done? It hadn't been broken intentionally, at least not by his own intention, but perhaps ... perhaps that wasn't entirely true either, was it? Had he wanted to break it? Was there something in the back of his mind that wanted ... no decided that sphere should break?

Kes didn't have much time to think about that though. Seventeen blinks of his eye, or the caterpillar's eyes, he was gone. No longer in that library, The Waiting Place. No longer trapped, and the caterpillar spoke to him. Just to him. "Well done! They're not trapped anymore!" Who were they? Why did he sound so pleased? Another shiver, though brief this time. Now where was he? Some cave, dimly lit with a poor excuse for a fire. He wasn't alone though. He could hear others, sense others in the dim light, and someone else spoke. A voice he did not recognize, and only a short while later, a light. The man was short though he certainly looked as if he belonged in a dark cave, save the pajama's. The other three were also foreign to Kes.

"The brave," Kes mused as the man with the lantern wandered off. He had the right idea at least, to have some source of light as they traversed the dark damp cave they could now call home. Kes moved about the room, using the dim light to find himself a wooden, albeit in very poor condition, chair. It'd suit his needs for the time being. He lifted the chair and brought it swiftly to the ground, a loud crack echoing off the cavern walls. "Sorry..." he said looking back over his shoulder at the others, before returning his attention to the broken mass of wood. He knelt down and took one of the sharper smaller pieces and proceeded to cut and tear a piece of fabric off of the toga he was wearing. He took up one of the legs of the chair and wrapped the piece of clothing around one end and moved over to the small burning fire.

"So, we need to find sunlight. We can cover more ground if we split up, but like the short man said," Kesindir stuck the homemade torch into the fire, the clothing catching quickly, "just scream. Name's Kes." He didn't wait for any introductions from the others. It seemed as if though time was of the essence, and Kes didn't want to waste too much time with formalities. With a curt nod to the rest, Kesindir set off in a direction different from the short man, his light slowly fading from the others view as he plunged himself deeper into the darkness. With any luck, they would find the sunlight quickly, and get themselves out of this strange place.

Map Choice

• Room A for 1 action
• Room E for 2 actions

!

Message from: Pegasus

In the first area that he explores, Kes finds a small bottle. It is the kind of small bottle that ladies might keep perfume in, and it's very old-fashioned in it's design. Written on it, in large letters are the words "Drink Me." Shortly after finding that Kes realises that he's completely naked. Which is odd, in and of itself (and a little chilly, too) but, for the next post, he'll find that everyone he's ever met (or so it seems) is with him. All laughing and pointing at it... him.

!	Message from: ALL PLEASE NOTE
	You can (those of you who come after this intrepid pair) see these things happening. If you wish to, you may go on to the same square as them to help. What this will do, of course, you do not know. Thank yo for flying Emea airlines. You all have a nice day, now.

[Nox Cross]

One minute he was jumping out of a window, the next minute he was in a library filled with talking animals and furniture and he was dressed in a ridiculous attire. I mean what sane person would go out dressed like that?

Last thing he remembers was stepping on the stairs then everything went dark. Not that he lost consciousness, but it was literally pitch dark. It was like the inside a cave, but then it was a room.

What the fuck? What kind of trickery is this? A talking caterpillar who also loves to smoke?! The Brave? What is that little insect is talking about? Well yeah, everything needs light, that’s why we have the fucking sun? Bring the sunlight here? Is it mad? Well, guess I am the one who’s going insane, since when do caterpillars talk? Right, as if I could just call on Daddy and ask him to bring the fucking sun here. It’s the fucking sun, how could you even hide a fucking sun or sunlight?

Nox walked closer toward burning fire. The first man already went ahead along with his lantern. The second person introduce himself as Kes and then he makes himself a torch and head off in the other direction.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Nox replied.

“There’s a source of fire, you could just light up the whole place on your own. No need to find the sunlight. Anyway do you even trust a talking caterpillar? Or we could follow one of them and then play with them for a while?” Lyn whispered to Nox

“Shut it, I’m not in the mood,” Nox replied

Nox went to grab some of the fire, he needed the source of light and he is not in the mood to look around the room for lanterns or made a torch when he could control the fire.

Turning to the other two remaining people, Nox said “Well, just scream or burn something and we could see you from a distance.”

Nox made his way deeper into the darkness, when they are out of earshot, Lyn said: “Let’s hide somewhere and if one of them follows us we could, you know, play with them,”

“I’ll put that in consideration,” Nox replied

Off Topic

1 Action Point used: Explore room D
2 Action Point used: Explore room G

[Mute]

"Silence Reigns . . ."

I found myself in a trill's breath in a new and dark place. And I was not alone. It was difficult to make out the figures that stood alongside me in the near pitch black darkness. Not that they were the focal point, of course. No, that honor belonged to the caterpillar resting on the mantel piece above the dim fire, cigar pressed against its lips. They were inconsequential compared to this dapper insect and his choice of over-sized narcotics . Though this title he laid upon us, The Brave, was worth considering. Perhaps I would be forced to consider them allies before the trial was done. But only if necessary.

The instructions from the creature was both vague and straightforward, a jarring combination. Light and darkness could be both physical attributes and philosophical opposites, so it was hard to say what was necessary in a place like this. My companions seem to think it was the former and set off in various directions in search of this sunlight. So be it. Only had even bothered to introduce himself, which was fine by me. Kes was welcome to such trivialities, but I and the other two who broke off were not interested. Brave or not, we had all made our choices individually, and individuals we would remain.

Even if they screamed, I wouldn't come. Why be so generous when I couldn't even cry out for myself?

Staring off into the darkness, I made the conscious decision to see just how far this room went. My companions could hover near the light; I intended on pushing the boundaries further. Seem like the quickest way I was going to find this sunlight and move on with the journey. Snatching up a chunk of wood from where Kes had gone, I crafted a torch in similar fashion by ripping away some of my sleeve. Then, without a backwards glanced, I headed into the deepest darkness of the room, hopeful that nothing terrible awaited me.

But that felt like wishful thinking.

Map Choice

3 Actions to Explore Square 4

[Toraj]

Perhaps it was a strange and curious thing that Toraj didn't feel intimidated by the darkness. Not as much as another would've. The caterpillar's words didn't hit home, the man not quite finding it in himself to understand the meaning of them. Though this hadn't been the first time he was thrust into the dreamlike reality and subjected to its rules (or lack thereof), he had no further understanding of it now than he did before. He'd have to play this by ear and trust his instincts, whatever they were, and perhaps rely on the support of the Hare still cradled in his arms. He stroked a hand over the creature's head while watching the others as they scattered out to start searching for the sunlight that the caterpillar had tasked them to find.

The darkness... felt so familiar. Eerily so. Yet, he felt at peace knowing that there was an absence of watchful, sadistic eyes waiting beyond it. What memories he'd recovered in the Maze had shown him the shadows of his former demons hiding away in the darkness of the underground that he lived in at some point in his life. He remembered it clearly, now, and he scanned his surroundings in search of the telltale glints that he'd grown so accustomed to seeking. Nothing. He couldn't help but feel relieved.

As the rest started to spread out to search the rest of the cavernous chambers, he headed out in kind. Hugging Spirit the Hare closer to his chest, he accounted for his belongings and struck out into the darkness without a guide and without assistance, beyond his pair of darkness-adjusted eyes. It wouldn't necessarily help him now with this oppressive shadow wrapping around all of them. At least he knew how to steer his feet, however, to avoid pitfalls. Like a couple of others, he headed into the deepest and darkest corners to search one of the rocky, difficult areas. He let his feet steer for him. He'd learned to put his faith in Fate, when all else failed.

Off Topic

Using all actions to explore Square 2.

[Pegasus]

Any way the wind blows

Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide
No escape from reality
Open your eyes
Look up to the skies and see

I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy
Because I'm easy come, easy go
A little high, little low
Anyway the wind blows, doesn't really matter to me, to me
Mama, just killed a man
Put a gun against his head
Pulled my trigger, now he's dead
Mama, life had just begun
But now I've gone and thrown it all away

Mama, oh oh
Didn't mean to make you cry
If I'm not back again this time tomorrow
Carry on, carry on, as if nothing really matters
Too late, my time has come
Sends shivers down my spine
Body's aching all the time
Goodbye everybody I've got to go
Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth
Mama, oh oh (anyway the wind blows)
I don't want to die
Sometimes wish I'd never been born at all
I see a little silhouetto of a man
Scaramouch, Scaramouch will you do the Fandango
Thunderbolt and lightning very very frightening me
Gallileo, Gallileo, Gallileo, Gallileo, Gallileo, figaro, magnifico
I'm just a poor boy and nobody loves me
He's just a poor boy from a poor family
Spare him his life from this monstrosity
Easy come easy go will you let me go

Bismillah, no we will not let you go, let him go
Bismillah, we will not let you go, let him go
Bismillah, we will not let you go, let me go
(Will not let you go) let me go (never, never let you go) let me go (never let me go)
Oh oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no
Oh mama mia, mama mia, mama mia let me go
Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me for me for me

So you think you can stop me and spit in my eye
So you think you can love me and leave me to die
Oh baby can't do this to me baby
Just gotta get out just gotta get right outta here
Oh oh oh yeah, oh oh yeah
Nothing really matters

Anyone can see
Nothing really matters

Nothing really matters to me

Any way the wind blows

120th Ashan, 719. Midnight

The First Shard.

The Brave

Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow —
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.

I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand —
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep — while I weep!
O God! Can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?

Nir'wei knew that things were Not Right when the world started getting bigger and bigger. Until, of course, he realised that it was not the world getting bigger ~ it was him getting smaller. A lot smaller. He was in a Bit Of A Predicament. He was tiny, and far away from the others. Thankfully, they could see him. Unfortunately, they all ignored his plight. Kes, meanwhile, was naked and being pointed at by lots of people. Again, everyone could see this. Nir'wei didn't find anything, but Kes found the bottle.

Nox explored two areas, finding nothing of sunlight in there. However, he did discover a small, perfect blue sphere. It was roughly the size of a marble and it seemed to almost glow. Also, as he was exploring a bit further on, he found a small silver letter opener. It couldn't be used as a weapon, in all probability, but it would open a letter, should Nox receive one here. There was, however, no sunlight to be found. Toraj, meanwhile, found a single mitten. Possibly left behind from a pair, or someone had only had enough yarn to make one. But one, well made, white mitten.

And then, there was Mute.

With his crudely crafted torch, he stepped into the darkness and, suddenly, was bathed in light. The heat of the sun's rays hit his face and, suddenly, he was completely enveloped in it. From high above, the sunlight poured down over him and, of course, everyone could see it. Suddenly, the whole cave and room was lit up, and it was bright outside the windows, like noon.

As eyes turned to Mute, they attacked. Creatures carved from shadow itself, given form and substance they were the stuff of nightmares. Two creatures attacked each of the very split-up adventurers Long nails, dripping with venom aimed for skin and eyes; Nir'wei was tiny and in genuine danger of getting flattened underfoot and everyone was in pyjamas .... except for Kes, who wasn't in anything at all.

Except trouble.

Goodbye everybody I've got to go
Gotta leave you all behind and face the truth

Objectives & Rules

Combat mode activated!!!

!	Message from: MUST DO OBJECTIVES
	Fight two shadow-monsters. They are creatures which are constructed from your pc's psyche, so are terrifying to your pc. Please remember to play to your skill level. You may determine the outcome of the combat yourself. Or leave it to me.

!	Message from: OBJECTIVES MET LAST ROUND
	Kes wrote the longest post This will have consequences, either during the thread or in the review.

!	Message from: CAN DO OBJECTIVES
	There are 4 hidden objectives here. I'll let you know if you meet them.

Dates & Deadlines

You need to post here by Monday 4th March. If you have not done so, you've missed the round. I will be locking the thread at that time.
I will post on Tuesday 5th March.

[Kesindir]

The torch helped illuminate some things. It still made it hard as hell to meander the cave. Even still, Kesindir managed to find a small bottle. "Drink Me." As if he'd ever listen to a bottle. He went to stick it into a pocket, but quickly remembered he was in some pajamas. At least, he was at that moment anyways. It didn't last long though, and as Kes continued to explore the cave it suddenly became very cold. The kind of cold that bites through your clothes and chills you to the very bone. Causing goosebumps on your skin as your body tries to hold in heat.

"Sheesh it got cold," Kesindir said as he instinctively went to rub his arms and felt no cloth. His chest, nothing. He looked down. Nothing. He was utterly and completely naked. Which was concerning, and confusing, and only slightly... but he didn't have time to finish his thoughts on just how not right the situation was before the laughter started. Laughter aimed at him. People he knew too. Ashan, Korva, his dad and sister. Anyone he'd ever met, even the old lady in Havardr that had told him his father had left that small whaling village. The thrall children, the Elementals, those at the Order that had helped bandage his arm after the thrall attacks. All of them were pointing, mocking, laughing at the young Biqaj.

"Shut up!" Kesindir screamed at the phantoms, though they seemed completely unphased and continued to ridicule the boy. "Stop it!" He started to walk shaking his head, trying to tone them out, but the more he focused on anything else, the louder they got. They taunted him, called him names, things he'd never heard before, and he could do nothing. He had nothing on him to cover himself with, a hand sure, but one was needed for the torch, one for the bottle, and who knew where that bottle had been.

So he moved, and focused on his feet, but the phantoms were cruel and finally the Biqaj stopped and screamed. No words were carried in his voice. It was pure emotion. Unbridled fear, hate, and embarrassment all wrapped up in one loud and painful cry as Kesindir fell to his knees, the torch and bottle both still clutched in his hands. "Please stop..." his voice was shaky as tears began to stream down the boy's cheeks. "Stop..." but the voices didn't stop. The phantoms continued to ridicule and laugh at the boy as he sat, hunched on the floor, the light of his torch flickering in the darkness of the cave.

And then there was light. As if someone had pulled back the curtains of Cylus and the sun finally stretched it's rays. The light hit his bare body and warmed him, but only slightly and the voices continued to plague him. He knew he wasn't truly alone here, unless the people he'd vaguely seen around that small fire were just a visage of his mind too. So when the light shown, he looked up, blinking the tears from his eyes, and he saw Them. Not those he was with. No. They weren't that important. One was much smaller than he was prior, one had found the Light, and the two found a ball and mitten. Nothing of real, immediate, use. At least not in the literal sense of use at least. Things here were weird.

But we aren't talking about them. We are talking about Them. The shadows. Each one looked different, but the ones that didn't immediately charge Kes looked like normal shadows. The ones that turned their attention to the Biqaj... well. It was hard to describe what exactly They were. It didn't help that the voices were still taunting him. Pointing and laughing. But this was a whole other level of unholy hell. The deepest fears he'd kept repressed boiled and distilled down into two pure forms of terror. His blood ran cold, and he shivered, as They screamed and charged.

"Shit!" His body moved faster than his mind registered, and he was up and moving. He didn't know which way he ran, but he just ran. He had nothing to defeat these things. The hell could he do? The torch and bottle were still gripped tightly in his hands as his feet slammed into the rough stone floor. He didn't look at the others - he simply ran - and his mind ran with him. Then the heat of the torch licked at his arms and it paused his mind for the briefest of trills. His torch. Would it work? Could he destroy the shadow's with fire? Light didn't seem to work. At least not the light born of the light that the silent one found.

"The Brave. That's what you are. The Brave."

The words of the caterpillar rang through his mind as his thoughts tossed around the idea of fighting with the torch. The Brave. It pricked at the back of his mind like an itch he couldn't scratch as he ran. He should fight them. It was one of the dumbest idea's he'd ever had. And yet it somehow fit. Much like the caterpillar smoking on his cigar in the low light of the fire. So, with the braveness of a salmon headed up stream, he stopped and turned.

They were still chasing him, of course, and the phantoms were still there. Taunting, teasing and laughing at him, but they were no longer controlling him. He turned all that fear, all that rage, the shame and embarrassment, and his hurt pride, into an almost blinding hate. Hate at himself, hate for this place, hate at these creatures that instilled in him fear he'd never felt before, nor knew was possible, and hate for not know what the hell he was supposed to be doing. "I don't know what you are, or what you want, but I'm not dying here!"

So, the naked Biqaj ran, in all his glory, at the two shadow creatures, hell bent on breaking them and showing them what true fear meant, now that he understood. He wasn't a quick kid, nor was he a talented fighter, but he had a torch. And he planned to use it. The creatures weren't dissuaded, there was no moments hesitation in their steps when he turned, and so the ground between them was covered in just a few blinks of an eye. Kes swung his home made club like torch, the fire fanning brightly as he did, at the hands, legs, chest, whatever he could reach of the creatures. He aimed, he swung, and he tried his best to dodge. He'd side step a swing or two from the creatures, but he was not used to the movement of true combat, and as such there was no way he'd come out of this unscathed. He just hoped he'd be alive after it was all over.

[Toraj]

A mitten.

Toraj didn't know what he expected. Perhaps it was appropriate enough to find, one half of a pair. He glanced down at Half---no, Spirit, the Hare. One Half, indeed. He sighed, tucking the mitten with the Hare he carried in his arms and prepared himself to leave, finding nothing in the craggy darkness that could help him or the rest of the group. The light that flooded the area thereafter took him by surprise and blinded him momentarily as it chased away the darknes---well, most of it.

The two creatures that burst forward towards him and Spirit made him momentarily freeze where he stood. They were blurred in motion, too quick to see, too dark for him to be able to make out any details even in spite of the light that flooded the area around him. Everything told him that he should be able to see, be able to make out, but the darkness that made up the creatures resisted even the illumination aside from the eyes that pierced his soul. They looked strangely familiar to him, as if pulled from the deepest recesses of his mind. Dread crawled up his spine, and as they descended on him with claws brandished, he did the only thing he knew to do.

He ducked. Claws swiping through the air, narrowly missing his face the first time before the hissing shadows came for him again. They didn't miss a beat, and Toraj hadn't expected to. That's why he ducked, and once he was down on the ground, he curled his body protectively around the Hare in his arms and tucked his head away between his shoulders. Though the claws would rend through his pyjamas and he expected them to tear away at flesh and essence after that, he remained there on the ground and wrapped around his companion like a human shield. He was determined, this time---He couldn't fight them. He wasn't a warrior. He'd learned as much not too long ago, and the idea of holding a knife still terrified him more than even the shadows whose claws bit into skin only moments after the first swipe.

Toraj didn't scream. Clutching Spirit the Hare to his chest and protecting him from all harm, the Son of Light resolved to hang in there. He wouldn't let any harm come to Spirit again. Coming here had been his decision, in a way, and Spirit would not pay for his idiocy. Never again.

[Nir'wei]

He wasn't entirely sure where he was searching in particular - only that it was the most difficult of places to search through, with cavernous stone spikes jutting from above and below that forced him to scurry on his hands and knees to search every last nook and cranny. It grew clear quite quickly however that there was nothing there. Not even a hint. It seemed like he'd made a mistake coming this way, but he didn't quite realise how big a mistake it had been until he turned to leave again. At first he wondered if he was going the right way, since these stalagmites certainly hadn't been as large and imposing as before. The first ones, he could clamber over at least, but these... he had to weave his way between them, inching through the gaps, sucking in his stomach as he wriggled against the cold stone. Dribbles of water flecked down the back of his neck from up above, chilling his spine.

It wasn't until he stopped, checking behind himself to make sure he was going in the right direction, that he noticed the truth. "Uhh." Calling it 'surreal' didn't even come close. It felt like the whole world was pulling away from him as he shrank, smaller and smaller - and he hadn't been a large person to begin with, there was no denying that. Soon it became downright ridiculous though. The stalagmites he'd been crawling over moments ago he could now squeeze between effortlessly, and the tight spots and narrow corners of the cave were of little detriment. However, it didn't change the fact that he was now so small that he could slide into someone's pocket, Greyhide included, and still have room to spare. Walking the cave, let alone what would come after, had just turned near-impossible if he didn't want to end up trekking for breaks at a time the same distance a normal person could make in a few bits. "So, this is what Tunawa feel like." He didn't care for it.

Did this constitute yelling? Probably. But as Greyhide prepared to unleash a howl that could have frightened the mightiest of termites, the cave exploded in light. The abrupt shift from pitch-black to midday sunshine forced him to cover his eyes, blinking back blurry tears and squinting until his eyes adjusted to the new ambiance. Light appeared to flood from both everywhere and nowhere, filling what had once been a pitch-black cave in the middle of nowhere into as bright a place as the middle of outdoors on a bright and sunny day. It didn't really make sense, but his mind skipped over that part as if it wasn't important - and it wasn't, actually. One of them had found the light that caterpillar had been going off about; that was about all they needed to know. It might have helped if he'd hinted about what the new light could bring from the shadows, though.

He didn't notice them at first. The shadows that came for him weren't the frantic, snarling kind after all. They were slow, methodical, almost humanoid in appearance, if with distinctly long claw-like nails dripping with acidic venom. They made no sound, had no scent, blending effortlessly into the dappling shadows of the stalagmites. His only real warning came from the odd rippling of their 'skin'. It wasn't smooth, or glossy, as one would expect from creatures made of pure shadow. It writhed with smoky tendrils rising on the surface, much like tongues of black flame snaking up its arms and legs. When they finally emerged into the full light of the cave, he swore he saw something familiar in their 'face'. The marks of a pointed chin and the outline of intense, burning eyes, intense and stern. Instinctively he took a step back. They approached.

"Fuck you." The words sounded courageous in his mind, but weak and quavering on his tongue. "F... fuck you!" The Shadow of Faldrun split its mouth into a grin too wide for a mortal, then crouched low like an animal and pounced forward with a rabid screech.

The two stood a head taller than most humans, and given Nir's new size, saying that he was at a severe disadvantage was an equally-severe understatement. Claws nearly as long as he was tall raked through the dirt to his left as he turned tail and fled for the gaps between outcroppings of stone Greyhide and Archailist in tow, hiding like a trapped animal from the creatures of dripping black flame as they made sounds of glass against metal. Were the others facing the same threat, or was this just another problem atop a problem? Surely it didn't really matter at this point. None of them had weapons that he knew of. All he had was a lantern - one that hadn't shrunk with him, and he now had no hope of lifting with his tiny hands. Had they done something wrong, had the caterpillar intentionally misled them towards unleashing their own demise?

A claw stabbed through the gap in the stone and came dangerously close to piercing through Greyhide like a sizzled wiener. "DAMNIT!" Another stabbed further ahead, struggling to rake through the small crevice and crush them against the walls. "We can't keep running!" Greyhide growled, stopping and turning to face the behemoth shadow-monsters moments before a full palm crashed down against the ceiling of shoddy rock, shattering it into pieces that rained down over their heads, threatening to crush the alcove with all of them inside.

"What, you think we can fight that?!" Archailist screamed, bouncing out of the way as another flailing limb grabbed the nearby stalagmite and ripped it straight off its grounding, tossing it carelessly across the cave behind it before seizing the next, tearing what little protection they had piece by piece.

They couldn't, of course they couldn't. So close to them he could feel the eerie heat of the black flames as they writhed over the flesh of the two shadow-Immortals. Somehow he knew that even with a lantern, a torch, anything of the sort, he couldn't fight fire with fire. It just didn't work that way. Another screech echoed off the chambers of the cavern and Nir covered his ears to frantically shield himself from its piercing noise... and then he felt it, tucked against his outer thigh, cool and round. The jar of sand.

"No," both Greyhide and Archailist said in unison. They knew exactly what his mind was thinking, but then again, he knew what they thought too - and they didn't have any better ideas. But Karem, it was stupid. It was incredibly stupid. Really, he didn't want to be here anymore, he realised. He really didn't. The Waiting Place didn't seem like such a bad place in comparison. His own bed sounded even better... but, staring down at the jar and unscrewing the lid, hearing the beasts up above prepare for another assault as their claws scrabbled against stone, hissing from their acid touch, something within his gut hardened. Horrid memories. Bitter truths.

The rock he'd been hiding against split in two with an earth-shattering crack and the beast scrabbled over it, flaming eyes boring down from above like twin lighthouses. "FOR KARLIAH!" Nir'wei screamed at the top of his lungs, flinging the open jar of sand straight at the creature's face, splattering it with sand that clung to its body and doused the black flames of its form. Immediately the creature reared back, and for a moment of spine-chilling fear he wondered if it was rearing to deal a fatal blow. But its mouth, once curved in a toothy smile, lay open in horror as the sand sunk through its body, turning the writhing tongues of fire into a smooth, glossy glass, black as midnight. He flung more, and more, dipping his hands into the jar to fling at the beast until most of its body had turned to stiff glass... and, with a hard shove, it toppled over backwards, shattering into jagged fragments of sealed shadow.

Galvanized, he spun on the second creature, that had watched from the side but now burst forward with a frantic run, until Nir gathered a handful of leftover sand from the ground and sprayed it loosely before himself in a swathe. The second beast recoiled as well, and he launched forth with more, and more, picking handfuls off the cave floor to toss at the creature when his jar ran empty. Hardened pieces snapped off its body one after another, broken away by the searing touch of the sand, until its remains fizzled away. Only when the last tendrils had vanished did Nir'wei collapse back onto his rear, panting heavily with exertion, his mind and body equally worn from such an experience. Something he'd treasure forever. He might never get revenge on Faldrun and that smug grin of his... but hell if he couldn't kick the shit out of his hideous clones. "Fuck you," he spat at the smoldering remains.