[The Forging] Souls

[Yeva]

Nir'wei prayed, Yeva ate, and the others discussed possibilities. While she did not have a diri back at the command, she could hear the tone at which Nir'wei spoke, the emotion laced between his words. Out of respect, she adverted her eyes, but a certain name pricked her ear.

No. She turned her head, Surely not again?

Yeva finished the next ration and felt her strength returning, already reaching for her gloves. Apparently, lunchtime was over. Nir'wei said her name and tossed her more rope and the redhead tugged her gloves back on, Hart and Woe looked like they were about to throw a small stone down the passage and she visibly tensed, "S-stop it." she tried to say, but her throat felt tight. She knew why they did so, and did not blame them. It would give an idea of depth, of whether the bottom was solid ground of water. It was their fault that previous unfortunate experience and the memories quickly stole her breath.

Or perhaps that was just her body's natural response when a certain someone came emerging from around the corner.

Speak of the devil.

His voice was rich and filled the room amply, agreeing with the folly of the oath.

Yeva shouldn't have been surprised and yet she was, "Cassion?"

"Hello again, beautiful."

She pretended not to notice, although the pink of her cheeks gave her away. How the domain of adventure led to becoming a shameless flirt eluded her. He greeted the others, requesting their attention for a tale. Not surprising. Yeva listened with the others and then it was time to get back to work. Hart, who apparently had no experience climbing, had an awful lot to offer, "That's quite the impressive guesswork," she added, smiling, "I've been climbing a few times before. We'll need to make some harnesses for our chest and waist. Using the rope attached to the pillar and pitons in the stone, we'll be able to levy ourselves down without wasting time with knotting a hundred feet of rope... Sorry, no offense." Yeva gathered the rope but she also dug through her gear to grab some climbing tape and doubled it over on itself. At the end of the tape, she attached a climbing carabiner clip. Rope could be used instead, but the friction on itself could cause it to snap making it more dangerous. If they had the gear, they should use it. Attaching the carabiner to the end of the tape, making a large circle, she stepped into it, looped both ends around her arm, then drew each loop higher, over her head until a nice X of tape was bound against her chest and ended the harness creation by taking the carabiner and hooking it at the front, good and ready to be secured.

The whole process took a few bits.

"We don't know how wide the hole is, or if it narrows at the bottom. More bodies... less room." They knew next to nothing, actually, "I'm not worried about falling," with the pillar, pitons, and time to prepare, she was far more concerned about what could wait for them at the bottom. Yeva calculated the likelihood of monsters and fiends, stopping to run a hand along the inside of the hole to test its smoothness. It was likely to have holds that could be used. Then again, nothing was quite as it seemed, "If Tamsen can fly, they would be better served either scouting before any of us go, or staying here and making sure our knots remain secure," He had said she was strong. Speaking of which, Yeva had begun tying a harness for her waist, testing the length of the tail using the distance between her pinky finger and thumb. With surprising efficiency - largely accredited to her training as a medic - Yeva was nearly ready, "Do we need to light any torches?"

It was always beneficial to have multiple sources of light. If they had to fight, or were injured, it could mean the difference between life or death. She waited to listen to Nir'wei for any protests, adjusting the plan if necessary.

Yeva would help any of the others with their harnesses if they wished and were willing to wear one. Nir'wei had secured the pillar. She had learned a thing or two, even practice and studied, different knots upon the Libertalia. Sketches and notes were in her second journal, the one that had been gifted to her by Darius' father. That trial had been on their journey home to Rharne, before the war. It felt like a dream.

Cassion asked if he could help and Yeva hesitated. Some things were easier to request than others and Immortal favors weren't exactly things she was familiar with, "You sure you don't want to come with us?" If a mysterious hole opening up in the ground after a book exploded wasn't enough to tempt him, she wasn't sure what was. After all, who knew what danger adventure awaited at the bottom?

Slags Deep and clean-up duty didn't seem to be particularly exciting, but if he insisted...

After a bit of hesitation, she took a deep breath and answered Cassion, while hooking herself up and preparing to take the first steps of the climb "You know," she said, carefully pronouncing the Ancient Tongue and keeping her voice even by focusing on her handiwork. It was easier than looking at him but she was ready to keep moving, "Just in case I don't come back this time, I wouldn't say no to a goodbye kiss," Her whole face burned, but she met his eye.

"Life is so short, after all."

After a moment to collect herself after such shamelessness, Yeva rubbed grit and chalk on her gloves descended into the shifting dark. And so the journey continued.

ooc

Yeva had Competent Climbing before the skill scale down, but now has Expert Athletics. She has gone rock climbing before, so I thought she would know a thing or two now. Let me know if I'm wrong or I missed anything.

[Nir'wei]

Cassion's voice suddenly sounded much closer than it had a moment ago. It was also, quite clearly, talking directly to him now, not those in Command. He turned towards the voice and watched the Immortal himself walk straight through the doorway as casually as one might enter a house from the garden. While it wasn't exactly much of a surprise, thinking on it for a few moments, that the Immortal could cross such distances with incredible ease and speed... well, it did only serve to exacerbate his frustration in that moment. He didn't like feeling trapped. Unable to go where he wanted and do what he needed to, in that moment, was a rather alien concept.

Still, as Cassion did 'that Immortal thing' of going around and addressing each of them individually as they tended to do whenever before an audience, Nir'wei remained silent. Even when asking for their attention and spiralling off into an explanation, meandering as it was, he kept his peace. It was good to hear that at least one of the Immortals had a modicum of sense, though. At least one was willing to put their foot down and do something meaningful when all of their lives depended on it - and more importantly, the many more lives of all the mortals that would inevitably be caught up in this nonsense. It didn't do anything to temper the red-hot anger currently boiling away inside him at that moment, realising that everything was due to little more than reckless incompetence; but it did cool his tone when he interjected, not really in the mood for explanations, or apologies, or defensive statements like these. "I'd feel a lot worse for her if her first instinct wasn't to kill us all and destroy our home." That was the line; he was perfectly capable of understanding and even supporting those affected by personal tragedy, or loss, or who knew what other sorts of deeply intimate problems. The simple truth was, sometimes, revenge was warranted. Sometimes the ends justified the means. But when their rationalisations led them to commit atrocities, mass destruction on innocent bystanders... he drew the line.

There was something else in his speech that itched in his head. "We are mortal. The standards of mortals are all we know." It was simply beyond comprehension to imagine that these beings of such immense and complete authority in the world could be so completely hamstrung by their own power into weakness, even outright helplessness in moments of potentially world-ending importance. The way he said it almost made it sound like it'd be better if they all gave up their power and just handed it over to mortals, so that they could use it better. If they really were no better than the domains that they embodied, they were even less useful than basic tools... not only exclusive in their purpose but completely resistant to applications beyond that purpose.

Cassion must have been wrong. He must have been. Karem, after all, was more than just the sum of Survival and Hunt.

"I won't keep you any longer. Slag's Deep will need you." He'd also expressed no desire to help either of the other groups and already refused Nir's request, along with Ashan, to break free of the fog prison. He wouldn't waste breath asking for it again under different wording. At that point, there was nothing to do but to wait and hope that the others could recover their Chainstones in adequate time. As far as he could tell from the ongoing conversations in Command, they remained the most successful team at that moment, with all members accounted for and one Chainstone under their belts. Without any way to help the other teams, they could afford to slow down and take things with a more cautious and thorough approach. Well, slow down, at least. "I've never climbed before." Yeva had, and Hart had some very astute observations and suggestions, so that meant they'd take point by default. "I'll leave it up to you. No offense taken." Returning the 100ft rope to his backpack and stepping away from the conversation, he offered nothing more than polite nods as Hart walked through the various things they'd need to assemble and Yeva went about making them. It all went over his head, frankly. Why climb rock faces when one could just summon a Sohr Khal and fly up it?

There was just one thing that concerned him as Yeva and Hart prepared themselves. "You... shouldn't be fixing everyone to the same anchor point." He pointed over to the pillar in the middle of the room. "If that becomes unstable or collapses, it could take everyone down at once. Each new line should be anchored to a different point around the hole." He had no understanding of climbing, but that seemed like common sense. Which was why when Yeva came to him, offering to make a harness from the ropes, he refused. "If it comes down to it, I'll make my own way." Without asking or mentioning it to the others, he sent Gaddwin into the hole to check for a floor at the bottom that he could set a wolf down on to check the surroundings with Enhanced Senses. He also wanted to check Sense of Prey for any other creatures down there if he could, to make sure he knew what Yeva was walking into.

But he didn't tell her. Mostly because he wanted to see what she'd do with the moment of authority. Out of everyone there, she was the one who knew anything about climbing. They were reliant on her to navigate them through this obstacle... and up until this moment, her behaviour had rung alarm bells in his head. To the point that he sent a new message to Command - one explicitly to be shared between Squeak and Phelan, that way that only Velduris wolves could. When additional Elements were assigned to the islands, he wanted an extraction crew for one, on standby. Recalling the information gathered in the reports for Balthazar Black, referencing the incidents of Rharne, Yeva's title of 'the dead' was one she'd earned, but perhaps not one to be proud of. He would not draw comparisons between what happened then and what happened now, but he shared with Kura in that moment the incident on the lake, the split at the gateway, and now, with the journal, and now the hole. The pattern of behaviour was... well, he was no psychologist, but he could feel something was off. Despite that, he wanted to see how things played out, just this once.

[Pegasus]

When Hart asked if there was anything Cassion needed, the Immortal smiled at him. "It is a rare mortal that asks that." he said. "But no, I am here merely to aid as best I can." He looked around. "This place, it resonates." To Ralgar, he nodded his head once, shaking the offered hand. "You do me honour, Deathkissed. I thank you. "

Yeva flirted with him, suggesting a goodbye kiss and Cassion laughed with delight. "You mortals! So very funny," he said. "But sweet thing, we have no time for you to be kissing me," If she had planned on it being secret, it seemed he did not. Also - everyone heard exactly what she said, even in the Ancient Tongue. It seemed that the very boon which was helping Ralgar understand and be understood scuppered her flirtatious subterfuge. "Although your offer is tempting, we have a longer journey to travel, before that adventure."

But his gaze turned more stern as he continued to speak to her. "And, I am sure. The after effects in Slags Deep will resonate for a long time. It is where the ScalvFlame burns, after all."

He looked at Nir'wei then, as the son of Ashan spoke. "You are angry." he said. He gazed at Nir'wei for a moment. "Fury boils in you. It won't help, not here." He paused and looked at Nir'wei, with a calm and friendly gaze. "If it helps to be angry at me, feel free. Interpret 'can't do that' for 'won't do anything', if it helps. Better to deal with the actual cause of it though and not behave like an ass to someone helping you. But. Give me a nudge, if you need help with that." He regarded Nir'wei with tired eyes.

"It seems like my help is neither needed nor wanted" Cassion said, and he stood. "I will see you when you have succeeded here, as I am sure you will! Slags Deep has lots of prisoners, and we need to make sure that they don't all just pour out into Scalvoris." He smiled and he was gone.

They began the climb. Yeva had experience, and Hart had good ideas and Nir'wei was right about not tying everything around one pillar. Between them, they managed to descend. They found that there was a point (about 20ft down) where they literally disappeared from view. As they climbed, first their foot and then leg got wrapped in almost-liquid shadows and they felt their limbs pass through something cold.

Very cold.

Yeva was the first one down, and she saw it. She saw that her foot had descended into blackness. While it was far from light in this hole, there was a lantern and she felt the sensation of ice-cold water on her foot. Looking, she saw that it was like she'd dipped it in inky black water, even to the point of lapping against her.

But if she pulled her foot back out - it wasn't wet. It didn't feel cold to the touch. But she experienced it.

Any part of them, anything they dangled down, went down into that inky blackness and disappeared. It could be pulled back out. But - what would happen if they put their faces in it? As they would have to.

A further decision, it seemed, awaited them.

Info & Rules

• This thread is for those who have gone to Scaltoth in direct response to this thread
• Ok, lovelies! Please remember that this is as cold as Ishallr normally is.
• Due to the time-sensitive nature of this, I can not hold out for people to post. If you miss a round, there will (I'm afraid) be consequences.
• This style of event moderation - with objectives etc - was taught to me by a dear friend and one of the most talented Storytellers I've ever known. With thanks to Crimson / Straylor.

!	Message from: Reminder
	There are no required skill levels for this. It is - undoubtedly - dangerous. It's a war. What will get you hurt is NOT if you are low skilled. What will get you hurt is doing something foolish. There's plenty for everyone to do. Equally, being highly skilled is not a guarantee of anything. This will need teamwork and smarts.

Current State

!

Message from: Current State

Group Arrived at destination Met Ralgar Assigned a group leader Got ready to go across the water Noted the unusual phenomenon Noted the water as frozen solid Made their way across Arrived in the ruins. Explored the ruins. Gone down into the ruins. Noted the carvings Found a chainstone Found a plant Discovered inky blackness. Individuals Woe You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You not hungry. Hart You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry. Ralgar You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry. Yeva You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry Nir'wei You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry.

Objectives

The wand chooses the wizard. Get a Harry Potter reference into your next post. (Can-Do).

DiriCom

This round:
All diris are communicating loud and clear - you know what's happening everywhere (please note Ishallr)

Next Post: Sunday 20th June

[Yeva]

30 Vhalar 720

Cassion's near announcement of her request didn't seem to bother Yeva. In fact, more than anything, she found it funny. Should she have been surprised that the Immortal of Stories was all talk? In another time and place, she might have teased him as if they were friends, but that was not a road to travel down at the moment. Time and place and all that.

Oh god, she suddenly thought. If Cassion kept good on his promise at Faldrass and told her parents... My father will hear about this.

Nir'wei said not to use the pillar as the sole point of weight-bearing, "We aren't," she clarified, brow furrowing. She was using it, yes, but her plan had deviated from Hart's a bit and she nodded, "That's why we anchor the pitons in the stone and floor; It will help distribute weight..." she looked at the others, judging their weight. Nir'wei was one of the smallest, matching herself in height, "But we certainly should not all go at once. One at a time. Two at most. Then, when we know it is safe and will not be overcrowded, the others should join."

They were all ready to go it seemed.

Yeva held up each piton, analyzing its material and strength. Some metals were better than others, but these looked good. Using the hammer in her gear to drive a few test runs, she tied them to rope and gave a full-bodied yank on each until she was satisfied with its strength, using the hammer again to test it through how it hit, how it sounded. Yeva might have been impulsive in offering her own experience (and life), but she was methodical in this. Using the rope and materials to finish setting up their climb and using the pillar as back up, she took her first step over the hole, leaning her weight back with slow, steady breaths. It was imperative she remained calm. Keep a level head.

Yeva knew the risks. More than likely, they were far beyond any stretch of her imagination. But she also knew if anyone had to succumb to a deadly fate, she'd rather it be her than another suffer so. If that was madness, so be it. That was how death had changed her and she did not care if others understood. The memory of Vega came to the forefront of her mind and she smiled, her body dipping below the mouth of the hole and she made her descent.

Now... Was she nervous? Of course.

As that above began to disappear and the darkness deepened around her, she guided her light stone around, looking for details in the rock around them. She could see no floor - just murky darkness and then, as she went to step down again, her boot brushed against something that was not solid. Not...

Well, she wasn't sure what it was, "Wait," she ordered, the cold seizing her ankle through the boot. She recoiled, but nothing gripped her. The black... almost-water stilled, "There's something down here..." there was a pause as she shifted, holding the rope in one gloved hand and putting the light stone between her teeth. A temporary measure while she drew an empty vial from the front pocket of her medical kit. When she had it opened, she carefully lowered it into the cold shadow to see if it could be bottled. She plucked the Lightstone back out of her mouth, eyes adjusting, "It's like water, but a shadow. It's freezing cold...Like ice,"

Cassion had said Audrae had been handled, but was this her influence?

If the substance could be trapped in a container, she would try to seal and pass it to anyone above her. She tried to find the truth. The book had exploded in strange flames of ice, "See if it reacts to fire," she called out, following the action by carefully holding the light stone closer. Did the barrier react? Did the light source get devoured into the strange cold? Could she see it below the surface?

"I..." she hesitated, as any sane person would see what the others would say or do. Then she closed her eyes and reminded herself what was at stake.

The fate of Scalvoris.

If no one stopped her, or offered a better plan, she'd swallow, offering a prayer to the Mother of Life.

Moseke, I don't want to die again. She didn't know how deep the murk was... Yeva thought of the blessing she had been given, the seedling on the center of her chest. Wiggling the bottom of her palm from her glove, she pressed her exposed palm to the stone wall around her to feel the earth, appreciating the trials she had been given. If this was her alst one, she would savor it. Little by little her outer face turned to rock, appearing as if carved of stone.

What had the old woman said? Be the storm? No half measures? If you're going to act, act, "...I'm going in."

ooc

She's going in unless ordered to stop. I figure someone's gotta bite the bullet eventually. To Peg - If Yeva dies again, no hard feelings. I understand. But for story and character and because I've run out of ideas, here we go!

As for the Harry Potter reference, it was Draco's classic, "My father will hear about this."

Oh! Since she was awarded it in the expo, Yeva's gonna try using

Sru'Alubosa (Minor) Standing for 'nature form,' the user is capable of turning small portions of their body into stone or wood. They must be in direct contact with sturdy, natural object containing stone or wood. Other natural objects such as earth and sand are not encouraged, as a low-level user is unable to maintain the form of the body part.

on her face, since at the moment, I think it's the only exposed skin of her body. From my knowledge, the walls of the hole are stone, right? Otherwise... damn. I fucked up.

[Woe]

Woe had a second thought, to let Hart climb down. He didn't feel entirely safe letting the other man hang onto his back now. And so he'd have to climb in turn with the others.

In the meantime, Woe had begun scaling the hole, not using a rope but using his arachnid's grip ability to adhere his feet and hands to various parts of the wall leading down. He let the others have their peace with Cassion. He had no connection to the Immortal. And though he'd done some traveling of his own, he never really gave a second thought to the Immortal. He'd barely been aware of his existence, in truth, until this moment.

The Mortalborn went carefully, feeling comfortable enough in his environs. He went along on the opposite side of the hole from Yeva. He did not think it was a good idea to share the same rope, and so relied on Sintra's blessing to climb down. This went easily enough. At will, he could adhere any part of the skin of his exposed hands and feet to the wall, and detach also at will. He was strong enough to make the climb and skilled enough generally in athletics that he can easily accomplish it.

The descent into the inky blackness went for a while. Woe found his thoughts darkening to match the light that died at a certain point beyond the twenty feet. He thought of his time in the Andaris Dungeons, inevitably, a darker place he hadn't known. The Caverns of Rhakros. The snowbank in Viden where he'd buried himself to die. As his foot touched the inky black liquid, he felt it all rush back to his mind. Sintra hadn't heeded or cared to respond in any way to his prayer. Such was his lot, barely acknowledged, foisted upon some anonymous bastard in Andaris to toil until he earned some measure of freedom.

He felt his blessing which allowed him to cling to the walls. It seemed they'd need to enter that inky blackness. Was this the only way?

Woe thought he saw Yeva taking a sample from the water, and shook his head. It was cold, his foot was cold when it plunged into the blackness. Yet it came out fine when he dragged it back out. Sighing to himself, he felt a callback to the snowbank in Viden where he'd almost died. His grip, he began to feel sliding off the wall for lack of concentration, remembering that incident. He slid a bit further, losing his grip by inches, but at the last moment caught himself. He watched helplessly, however, as Yeva dove into the waters.

[Hart]

30th Ashan, 721

Yeva had experience climbing, and Hart listened quietly but intently as she spoke. He nodded when she spoke of harnesses, and looked intently at what she was doing when she demonstrated how to make one.

When Yeva climbed into the hole, Hart looked quietly after her. Yeva had said that Tamsen should look after the knots in the ropes, but with a glance at Yeva descending into the darkness, Hart murmured, "Go with her."

Tamsen glanced at him. Then she went with Yeva.

Quietly, Hart looked through Tamsen's eyes. Yeva had the lightstone, and as she descended Tamsen descended with her. The light of the lightstone wobbled as Yeva climbed down, making the walls around her seem to wobble in the darkness.

Because of that, they didn't see the darkness until Yeva's foot plunged into it.

The darkness was absolutely dark and cold. Yeva was quiet for a moment; then her voice drifted up. She said that she was going in.

"It looks like water, whatever it is," Hart said to the group. "But it's not water; it's not wet. And it's dark; I don't think we'll be able to see, when we're in it."

He didn't like that Yeva was going into the darkness. She was going in with Tamsen for support; but Tamsen was one emeyan, and if they weren't able to see in the darkness, then Tamsen's ability to support Yeva would be limited.

Woe said he would be able to climb down, and he climbed down the side with hands and feet, without the rope and without a harness. It seemed like he had some sort of ability. If he did have an ability, Hart hoped -he prayed- that the ability wouldn't fail.

If the ability failed, Hart didn't know if Tamsen would be able to support him. She was going with Yeva.

Hart didn't like this.

Hart would have liked to go down with the others, but he didn't think that he would be able to. Assuming Nir'wei and Ralgar weren't able to climb down like Woe, then they would need to use the rope. Hart would need the rope, as well.

If the rope wasn't able to hold more than one or two people's weight, and Hart wasn't willing to assume that it was, then they would need to go slowly. It wouldn't be safe for Yeva and it wouldn't be safe for them if they didn't go slowly.

Hart wasn't willing to assume that Yeva would be safe in the darkness. But he was willing to assume that Yeva would be less safe in the darkness without the rope, than with it.

Like it or not, he thought, and he didn't like it. They would need to go slow.

"Yeva's descending on the rope," Hart said. "For Yeva's safety, and for ours, I would advise we descend slowly. We don't know how much weight the rope is able to hold."

The problem was that it was difficult to see when it was safe for them to descend. The darkness made it difficult.

The moment before Yeva went into the darkness Tamsen landed on her shoulder, the size and shape of a tunawa, and held on. Tamsen with Yeva, Hart looked through the emeyan in an attempt to determine where she and Yeva were. They would also be able to speak, their voices drifting up and down to determine location, assuming that they were able to speak in the darkness.

Hart let Yeva descend. He attempted to determine her location and safety, through Tamsen. Then slowly, and with difficulty, he descended the rope. Assuming he got to the darkness at some point, Hart would go in.

He didn't like it. The darkness was icy cold like Yeva said, and Hart grimaced. Why was it cold, and why was he able to feel the cold? But though he didn't like it, Hart held his breath as long as he was able. Shutting his eyes, he descended into the dark.

[Nir'wei]

While the others prepared themselves and begun their expedition into the 'bottomless' hole that awaited them, Nir'wei took the time to sit cross-legged next to the strange Ashan-spawned tree. "Good. In that case, I will stay behind." He had a lot to think about after all... and mostly, he just wanted to see what would happen next. He had his own opinions. Frankly, from the way Cassion had spoken during his arrival and the few things he could piece together about the hole that had formed, it was in his opinion that the hole was not the bottomless pit it appeared to be, but likely shrouded by some thin film or enchantment that gave it the appearance of such; the next chamber below would contain the other two Chainstones. Much like the mist that they had passed through upon entrance into the island, those that passed into the hole would likely not be able to return until the Chainstones were broken. It was, like everything else in these cursed ruins, some strange puzzle that scattered loose pieces everywhere, to ensure that no one adventurer could accidentally release the Induk, but only a competent team... potentially with the help of an Immortal or two, since he had no other idea how to handle the chainstones.

Oh, good grief. He looked to the strange plant. "You did all remember to take a leaf for yourselves, before climbing down that hole, didn't you?" How else were they meant to retrieve the Chainstones? "Everyone should take one, if they haven't. There's no telling who will find the next stone, or where it will be." He plucked an extra two leaves from the plant just for safety's sake and pocketed them as he said it, of course. Though he didn't really intend to jump down the hole after them, there were contingencies to enforce. "Also... Hart, it would be easier if Yeva left her spirit outside the portal, rather than trying to rely on yours to maintain communication. Mine cannot pierce the barrier." They'd already tried to slide down the hole and met resistance. Again, just like the fog barrier. "It's very possible that she will slide entirely into the place below, while Tamsen will be repelled, because the two do not share a link."

Yeva and Woe going together, down the hole, was... also unnerving. "Hart, please go with them straight afterwards. Leave Tamsen when you go down. Yeva and Woe, please wait for Hart before you do anything or touch anything. Listen to him before doing anything else."

Apart from that, however, he didn't stop Yeva. She'd volunteered herself to go first and appointed herself as the one with the most climbing experience, so she had the floor. Frankly, if at any point she'd changed her mind and retracted, he wouldn't have thought of her any less for it either. This was a trying and uncertain time. Nobody could do everything or be everything, otherwise they'd have all been redundant from the start. All that said, though. He still hoped to Karem that Hart could join them as quickly as possible. Really, he'd have preferred that Hart go down the hole first with Yeva, but the cards had been cast and he wouldn't interfere now. At least she was showing considerably more caution than before. Even if it meant she'd be going backwards, if she'd gone any slower.

He just hoped Kura would forgive him should anything go wrong on his watch as a result.

[Ralgar Warborn]

At Cassion's thanks, the Mortalborn nodded his head in respect and stepped back as people spoke. Ralgar had said his piece and let the others speak, the Deathkissed deciding to step back. Everyone seemed to have something to say to Cassion, their own thing. Some perhaps knew the Immortal. It wasn't Ralgar's specialty, dealing with Immortals. Even his own Immortal parent had never spent time with him or raised him. So he took a step back and waited for everyone to say what they were going to.

As he listened somewhat, Ralgar glanced back to the wall of symbols, uneased by the entire thing. But now wasn't the time to dwell on it, he reminded himself. There was plenty to be done if they were going to save the Induk, starting with climbing down the hole they had been shown. Others went down first, one by one, than Ralgar offered himself. Tying rope to himself and being cautious, the man followed behind Hart, leaving Nir'wei and the translator up top. "I will go down with them, keep safe brother" Ralgar spoke to his translator, nodding to him and Nir before following behind Hart.

Once he made it low enough, he watched as the others as they made their decisions, some descending and others waiting. Ralgar, at first, didn't know what to do. Not until Hart made his choice. Ralgar watched as the man dipped into the darkness, descending, and the Deathkissed knew what his choice was. Hart had been nothing but kind to him and his people, had offered him everything he needed. He would not leave Hart, or any of the others, to go down into this darkness alone. It was safer up top and Ralgar knew it, but this was what they had to do. To explore. Even if it felt wrong to do so.

Once Hart entered the darkness, Ralgar did the same.

~~Haltunga~~ Common~~

[Pegasus]

A message came from the Glass Temple. Kura wanted to know what Ralgar knew - if anything - of a turtle spirit or death spirit in relation to "Death Canyon". This happened while the climbing gear was being prepared.

Then, Yeva went down. She and Woe were there together, and then Hart descended. Woe was clinging to the side of the hole, and he saw Yeva disappear into it. Nir'wei stayed above. Hart and Ralgar, both, descended in their turn. Which meant that three of them were above, three of them had gone through.

Nir'wei and Woe

The two of them remained. One on the wall of the hole, the other at the top. Nir'wei collected leaves for them - and then they waited. Nir'wei saw what was happening, knew what was going on but only once Yeva had gone through. It was odd, but he knew that Yeva had disappeared. Like she'd gone elsewhere when she travelled the black inkyness. Her diri and her, just gone. But as she had done that, the way had opened.

It appeared that he was very right about it being a one-way system. Yeva had opened this doorway for them, but it had sent her elsewhere. They had no means of knowing where at this moment, of course.

Hart & Ralgar

Tamsen couldn't pass the barrier, not with Yeva. But she passed it with him.

So, Hart and Tamsen found themselves passing through the inky blackness. He held his breath and climbed and he found that the darkness was, in fact, only a foot or two deep. By the time his face was fully submerged, and out again, Hart saw that he was mere feet off the floor. Hart got the chance to see that he was in a large room - again, there were windows to outside, but they showed a scene which could not be right. A wide, open ocean like the scene through the porthole of a ship.

Vines grew everywhere here, dark and thick and twisted around things. There was a whole area of the room filled with vines and he would have to hack his way through to see what was behind them.

Ralgar then descended, too, and dropped into the room - the inky blackness looked just like a piece of the ceiling, once they were through it - both Hart and Ralgar had seen that, but the climb and drop was not too difficult at all.

The room they were in had roughly a quarter of it enclosed by vines. Ralgar had never seen them before, even though he lived his life in the Scaltoth. They looked, in fact, like a vine from a tale or a story - to his eyes, they were stereotypes, not reality. But they were very real and would be both difficult to cut down and dangerous, too, as they were covered in thorns.

Other than the vined area, there was a doorway pretty much in the opposite corner to the vines, and there were a number of boxes and crates here. A table with books and papers. As they looked, it seemed almost like this had been, once, some kind of place where people congregated. Where there were maybe scientists or such? They would have to explore to find out more.

Of Yeva, though? There was no sign.

Info & Rules

• This thread is for those who have gone to Scaltoth in direct response to this thread
• Ok, lovelies! Please remember that this is as cold as Ishallr normally is.
• Due to the time-sensitive nature of this, I can not hold out for people to post. If you miss a round, there will (I'm afraid) be consequences.
• This style of event moderation - with objectives etc - was taught to me by a dear friend and one of the most talented Storytellers I've ever known. With thanks to Crimson / Straylor.

!	Message from: Reminder
	There are no required skill levels for this. It is - undoubtedly - dangerous. It's a war. What will get you hurt is NOT if you are low skilled. What will get you hurt is doing something foolish. There's plenty for everyone to do. Equally, being highly skilled is not a guarantee of anything. This will need teamwork and smarts.

Current State

!

Message from: Current State

Group Discovered Somewhere Interesting! Individuals Woe You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You not hungry. Hart You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry. Ralgar You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry. Yeva You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry Nir'wei You feel warm and rested. You are not yet tired. You are not hungry.

Objectives

You have discovered what (if you explore) will become quickly obviously the half-packed remains of an archaeological expedition who were trying to leave quickly.
Please be clear what you are checking - there are books, chests, crates, etc.
Nir'wei and Woe - you may assume you get down there if you choose to join the others.
Once the last of you is down, the ceiling will seal shut, cutting the rope which will drop to the floor.
The archaeologists were trying to investigate the Ruins of Fei (the paperwork suggests well over 100 years ago) - but they discovered an odd stone. They placed it in the "examination chamber" but there is no indication of what that is.
If you try and cut through the vines - it's incredibly hard. You'll need strength and skill and teamwork to do it.

DiriCom

This round:
All diris are communicating loud and clear - you know what's happening everywhere (please note Ishallr have succeeded.)

Next Post: Sunday 27th June

[Nir'wei]

Yeva, Hart, and Ralgar each descended into the tunnel. Each of them passed some some unseen barrier that Yeva had spoken of. And each of them vanished. It was, he presumed, exactly what he'd feared and therefore they'd just completely lost communication with over half of their team. Hart was down there, at least. Hart and Ralgar both seemed like they'd be able to handle things if they went south. But what happened if they needed the people up above for something to pass some strange puzzle? It wasn't outside the realm of possibility. He couldn't even ask them if this was the case, or know for certain. "Woe. Get out of there." He wouldn't jump in until Woe was clear, since he'd seen the slip and hazarded a guess that Woe, much like him, wasn't a good climber. The last thing he wanted was for Woe to slide down into the hole moments after he'd jumped in himself. "I need you to stay here with the rest of my wolves and Cyshe. Guard the remaining Chainstone and the tooth we'll need to shatter it. Cassion said to do it at the altar, so we'll do it there. Everything we've gathered so far needs to be kept together there."

As he spoke, Nir'wei removed the leaf-shrouded Chainstone from his pocket and the small animal tooth he'd picked from the ground and set them both at the foot of the altar. Greyhide and Sovar took guard over each, his two largest and most respected wolves. Cyshe hovered between them, as did Archailist. Castile remained in her spirit form, but lingered near Woe. "Gaddwin. Cold. Myrth. Kin. Vabina." The fire-bird, Zephyrus, and three wolves gathered around him as he approached the lip of the hole, tied a rope around himself, and slowly climbed down the inside. He wasn't experienced, far from it, but he did his best to keep his composure as the inky blackness resembling water touched his foot... and Nir'wei sank inside, allowing himself to drop straight through the strange water-like surface and into the chamber beneath. Immediately he tried to climb back up the dangling rope to try and return to the tunnel and reach Woe, but fail or succeed, he'd drop straight back down to the floor behind Hart and Ralgar.

Hart and Ralgar. Not Yeva. "Where'd she go." There was nowhere inside the chamber she could have run off to, after dropping in. Unless she'd jumped through a window, or something obscene. He looked there first. Nothing. "Where'd. She. Go." That bottled-up anger was beginning to flare again, but he did a better job of keeping it in check now... ironically with the help of Cassion, and his stern lecturing words on biting hands that tried to help. "Shit," he spat at last. "Something's happened. She might be in another chamber, or... I don't know what she did, but we've become separated now. Woe remains up above with the other Chainstone. We need to find the other two and pass them back up to him through the rope... because I'm betting that we've just trapped ourselves here by passing that barrier. I've left wolves behind for communication." That was, as long as Yeva hadn't triggered some strange kind-of trap. Or she'd been teleported to yet another chamber with a Chainstone of its own. "What is this place, anyway. Are we really not the first people to visit this place?"

Ignoring the vines for the moment, he instead went to the other side of the room and the doorway that stood at it. Wooden crates of various shapes and sizes were stacked high, and he tried to peer inside a few of the ones that sat open to determine if there were any artefacts of importance stored inside. There were books scattered around as well, but he looked in particular for journals, or perhaps reports with dates and addresses upon them, to get a better idea of what information the adventurers before them had gathered. "These dates..." Everything was very well-preserved, for such a long time ago. Perhaps that explained the strange barrier. "One stone is likely somewhere here. Another would be beyond those vines. Perhaps there are some tools over here to clear them. Unless those vines are new additions, the people before us must have at least tried to remove them."

Nir'wei, meanwhile, pushed deeper into the assortment of crates and boxes. Cold went left. Myrth went right. Kin and Vabina remained close-by, and Gaddwin floated overhead, flaming wings fluttering to get a birds-eye view as they scouted for hidden passages behind the stacks of boxes. He wanted, first and foremost, to map the geography of the room and any other chambers, before looking through the boxes and chests themselves for further signs of the missing Chainstones.