Riverside 20: Another day, another disaster

[Rebonack]

[Doom Door]

Into the gloom Mister Slash goes.

There's a gravity to this place. An inevitable sense of down.

Grinding.

Draining.

Ash and dust hanging in dead air.

There's something out there in the black.

Movement. Flickering. Twitching. Writhing.

They are watching.

They are curious.

Drink deep and descend.
[Drink Deep and Descend]
Surroundings resolve.
[Drink Deep and Descend]
Slash is standing on a wooden scaffolding, groaning with dry-rot. A great water-wheel turns below him, heavy and flaking with rust. Water rushes against it, driving its motion, draining deeper. Further away a crumbling concrete ledge leads away into a twisting catacomb of corridors. Water drips from the ceiling. And no matter where he stands, Slash will find a single drop plinking against his head.
[Drink Deep and Descend]
Drip drip drip...
[Drink Deep and Descend]
Slash could follow the wooden scaffolding where the scent of desiccated wood hangs heavy.
[Drink Deep and Descend]
Or he could carefully pick his way toward to the tunnels.
[Drink Deep and Descend]
Or he could climb down the water-wheel and follow the flow of water ever downward.
[Drink Deep and Descend]
What does he do?

[Morty]

[Court of the Rat King - Amalungak]

As one of the Gentry, the King in Rags is certainly no stranger to cryptic, poetic revelations. They're a fact of life for the fey. That said, sifting through from metaphor still takes some work...

"I have little use for beasts that don't answer to me. But I believe I know which heroes you speak of." "Hero" is a word mortals use to elevate some conquerors and killers above others in their eyes. But he will pretend it has meaning for a moment. "I have given them weapons to slay the beast already. Are they not enough? What is this new weapon to speak of, and what is the price of obtaining it?" There is always a price.

[Earl of Purple]

Doom Door

Yes, this feels like home. Mister Slash would regret this choice, but he fought his way out of the Tenements once and he can fight out of this place, too. It... does actually scare him. But he's made of fear, and controls it.

The drop against the bogeyman's battered hat is frustrating, particularly the way it seems to follow him around. He looks around, and walks carefully along the scaffolding, heading towards the concrete ledge. If he goes there, he can trust his footing... he stops. That's dangerous; nothing here can be trusted. The concrete ledge could be riddled with concrete canker, or covered in slime. Just because it looks fine and leads to the corridors, which nearly remind him of the rooms and apartments in the Tenements, doesn't mean it can be trusted. He'll stay on the scaffolding, testing each step to ensure it doesn't collapse under his weight. He pulls a jagged length of broken glass from his pocket and holds it ready, like a knife, and moves cautiously along the scaffold.

[Gullara]

[Weird William's]

Kitsuki makes a noise of acknowledgement and then moves away from the bar to seat herself closer to the girl. She only has to get a bit nearer before a feeling of familiarity washes over her. For the moment, though, she finds herself a seat to wait and watch.

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

Later in the evening, at the height of the rat infestation while Ana is undoubtedly hunkering down like anyone else with good sense, she hears a series of small raps on her bedroom window. Pulling back the curtain will reveal a familiar face, Eliseo. He gives her a grin and carefree wink before motioning her to open the window.

[Arkhosia]

Weird William’s

Anastasia doesn’t seem to notice as Kitsuki seats herself closer, looking a tad surprised as the folks around her start to quiet down. She picks up in why quickly enough though, and after picking up her guitar and taking a breath to steady herself, she begins to play. The song is bright and cheery, and although she seems too nervous to try and sing alongside it, she plays well. Once she finishes, Anastasia nervously stands up and takes a little bow.

Foster’s Home and Misbehaving Friends

The sound against her window causes Anastasia to startle - but soon enough she moves to the window and pulls back the curtain, clutching her zweihander in one hand.

”O-oh, uh, hey!” Anastasia moves to pull the window open and let Eliseo in. “I, um, didn’t expect to see you out there,” she apologizes nervously, setting her blade aside with just a bit of difficulty.

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"Please don't stab me to death. I swear I don't mean any trouble." Eliseo holds his hands up in mock fear. He laughs quietly and crawls in through the window. "It's a total ****show out there." He pulls a bass guitar off his back and puts it on her bed. "So this is the new place, huh?" He looks around her bedroom.

[Arkhosia]

Foster’s Home and Misbehaving Friends

”Heh! I dunno if I could, like, actually stab someone with this thing.” It looks like something you would swing around to Ana, at least. How could you manage to impale a person when it’s so hard to hold up extended?

“Yeah, it’s... alright,” Anastasia responds with apprehension. The room is indeed not bad at all, fairly small but well-made. It might be a little less impressive than Eliseo’s home, however.

“So, like, did you wanna play something?” she gestures to the instrument Eliseo has brought along. “Because I think they’d figure out you’re here.”

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"I dunno. You said you played guitar so I figured I'd bring it anyway." Eliseo shrugs and plops down on the edge of her bed. He swings his bass around and starts idly tapping the strings. Soft, aimless notes provide background. "Besides, I bet they can't tell the difference between a bass and guitar anyway."

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

”I-I guess,” Anastasia answers, moving to hurriedly slide a cheesy romance novel under her pillow. “S-so, hows it been for you? Crazy how school keeps getting shut down, huh?”

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"Yeah I guess. Less boring class is fine by me, though." And rats are way less scary than what's happened before.

Eliseo raises his eyebrows she she sits down next to him. He definitely saw her push something under the pillow. She's not nearly as sneaky as she thinks. "So I'm guessing you're not allowed to have boys over in your room. You're not worried about getting caught, right?" He strums on his bass a little louder.

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

Ana doesn’t seem to catch Eliseo noticing her - probably because she’s too busy looking fairly anxious as he starts to strum his bass with a bit more zeal. ”No- W-well, I mean, I’ve never really asked? You’re kinda, like, the only boy friend I have.” a beat. “I mean like, friend who is a boy, not- agh, you- you know what I meant!”

She fidgets a little nervously. “Although, I’m- I'm not sure that gender really matters. I mean, you have two moms right? Though uh, dunno if I like girls too or not.” all the girls she knows tended to pick on her back at school.

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"Oh, so I'm your boyfriend now?" Uh oh, Ana has made a horrible mistake. Eliseo leans in toward her, wearing a smug smile that only a teenage boy who knows girls like him can muster. "So tell me..." Very close now. "Is that why you're reading this?" He suddenly grins as he reaches past her and snatches the book she hid. He leans away and flips it open to her bookmark.

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

”Wait, no!-“ Oh dear. Anastasia’s eyes widen as he snatches the novella from beneath the pillow, too quickly for her to intercept anything but air. “I-If you were my boyfriend I wouldn’t be reading romance novels, would I?” The kitsune crosses her arms churlishly, tail wagging snappily. Hopefully her foster parents didn’t hear that.

The point which Eliseo turns to seems to be where the brooding hero attempts to distance himself from the young heroine, claiming that a romance between a powerful demigod like him cannot be with a mortal woman like her.

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"So you just want me to be your boyfriend." He observes while skimming the page she was on. He stands up to avoid any potential book snatching.

"I promise that this will be the last time you’ll see me. I won’t come back. . . . It will be as if I’d never existed." Eliseo reads aloud. "Don’t worry. You’re human — your memory is no more than a sieve. Time heals all wounds for your kind."

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

”Hey!” Ana fails at an attempt to snatch the book from his hands, blushing furiously. Y-you jerk! Why should I ever want to date you if you act like that?!” Aggravation fills her face as he reads aloud, glaring at him. “A-are you even here to do anything other than be rude to me like this? B-because I don’t think this is how friends are supposed to treat each other.”

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"Aw come on, I was just playing." Eliseo closes the book and holds it out for her to take. "You're not mad at me, right? I didn't mean it."

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

”S-sorry, I know,” Anastasia answers awkwardly, shyly taking the book back. “I just... like, that’s something one of the Martelinas would do to me, y-yknow?” Eliseo will probably know the two sisters she’s referring to as she puts the book on her end table, turning back to him.

“...Um, what about you? You sneak into Mary’s window too, or am I special?” She gives him a remarkably vulpine grin and elbows him gently in the side.

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"Uh." The shoe's on the other foot now. Eliseo face flushes, and it's extremely evident against his pale skin. "I mean I woulda used the front door, but you're foster family's probably way too lame to let us hang out." Perfect save, right?

"I definitely came here for music, though." He scoops his bass off the bed. "You wanna hear me play, right?" In his experience, girls usually do.

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

”Oh yes, win this fair maiden with your love ballads,” the kitsune teases, before giving him a gentler smile. “No really, play! I’d love to hear what you’ve been doing!” Her tail, stereotypically enough, wags. Do foxes wag their tails? Who knows, but kitsune do apparently.

[Zefir]

Ruby follows Jaahlynn, as she's clearly connected to all this.
But there's a wordless sense of something being wrong. The fire within her feels the way she's moving and failing to move don't match up with where she actually is, and she notices.
They went middle, left...or was it middle twice? And Jaahlyn refusing to enter? That's not right.
Being lost in an impossible labyrinth could sometimes be an adventure, but here it looks a lot like the trap they're expecting.

"What is this place? Why did you stop?" she demands of the satyr.

Fade has neither a watch nor does he care for time that much. His world didn't even got something to measure time other then years. So he won't be able to tell the time, but he has a good sense for directions.

"Be carefull. Something here isn't right. Those paths have been changed by soemthing. I am not sure we can get out of here by ourself." he whispers in Rubys ears

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

Hah, trap sprung. Eliseo takes a moment to get ready, and then his fingers play over the bass. He plucks and slaps the strings with practiced ease. He doesn't have an amp, so his instrument is pretty limited, but he knows what he's doing. But that's just part one of the trap, because the rest comes next.

When you smile, I melt inside
I'm not worthy for a minute of your time
I really wish it was only me and you
I'm jealous of everybody in the room
Please don't look at me with those eyes
Please don't hint that you're capable of lies
I dread the thought of our very first kiss
A target that I'm probably gonna miss

At this point he's definitely risking being overheard, even if he's keeping it pretty low.

Let's go
Don't wait
This night's almost over
Honest, let's make
This night last forever
Forever and ever
Let's make this last forever
Forever and ever
Let's make this last forever

He jams for a few more moments before closing out. He's wearing a dumb, **** eating grin. "Not bad, right?"

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

Ah, how the turntables. Now it’s Anastasia’s turn to feel her cheeks glow - and though her complexion’s a tad bit warmer than Eliseo’s, it’s no less obvious. ”U-u-um, yeah, that was- that was pretty good,” She answers, fidgeting a little. She peers at him a tad warily. “Wait, was- was that really what you came here to play?”

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

"I know lots of songs. I can play a different one if you want." Eliseo winks mischievously.

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

”N-no that was, that was- really nice.” Shes still not entirely sure if Eliseo’s still just playing with her - but surely he wouldn’t go that far for a joke, right? Or be a big enough of a jerk to laugh at her for falling for it, at least. ”Kinda cute, actually,” She starts shyly, tail wagging again slightly.

Anastasia doesn’t seem to notice, but Eliseo might just barely catch the sounds of footsteps up a set of stairs.

[Gullara]

[Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends]

Eliseo sets his bass against the wall. "Uh, yeah?" He rubs the back of his neck. Oh boy his face is red. It's just hot in here, right?

Then he hears the approaching footsteps. "Oh ****. Gotta go talk later." He runs to the window and bails out of it headfirst.

[Arkhosia]

Foster's Home and Misbehaving Friends

Anastasia nods, fidgeting nervously. Eliseo isn’t alone in looking almost as bright as her fur, and she seems like she’s worked up some courage as she starts to lean over to him... only for Eliseo to abruptly bail, leaving his instrument behind.

The kitsune only gets a moment to worry that she did something wrong and screwed everything up before there’s a knock on the door, causing her to jump and turn into a fox before scurrying underneath her bed in a panic.

“Ana, is someone in there? We heard voices,” a man’s voice asks gently.
A beat, in which she hurriedly turns back and shuts the window. “It’s ok if there is we just-“
“No dad everything’s fine! I-I was just, um, talking to Eliseo on Maliscord!”
Her foster parent laughs. “You’re really not good at this, you know that right?”

[Shadowcaller]

[Court of the Rat King - Amalungak]

"One of love and compassion." The first child repeats with a nod.

"As opposed to the ones your knights carries." The cold-voiced girl adds in a somber tone.

"The king who stands there at the path, terrible weapons at hand. Why yes, he will be seen as a beast himself." The boy have put down his legs on the cave floor now and his tone is more casual, giving the king of rags a coy smile as he speaks. "At least as bad as the one opposing him."

"But with the right weapon, that can all change. The king knows the terrible power of the siblings Narrative and Perception, yes? The two which caused his downfall." She holds up her hand, showing two raised fingers.

"Narrative put him in fool's clothing and Perception pushed him down a cliff." The boy smiles in a twisted way, his grim voice only making the statement all the more vicious.

The next girl shakes her head at her previous siblings statement. "But as is evidenced by the kings unfortunate past, the two change sides regularly. They served him well in the past and they could do so again."

"The question is if the king could put trust in such fickle beings again?" She strokes her chin thoughtfully.

Her sibling nods in agreement. "It could mean losing what little that remains of his crown." She gives him a worried look.

The final girl shakes her head and speaks for the second time. "Fear not their warnings or wordplay,
noble king. What they mean is that the king should take up the mantle of the hero himself. The one to finally put an end to the beast once and for all. If he finds himself at full strength of course." Then she suddenly raises from her throne and starts to walk towards him. "Thus the weapon I offer to thee is not only of love and compassion for those who behold thee, but also holds Perception's twin, Deception. Though not even I can't tell them apart these days. Unlike the other weapons the king holds it will work in ways that are not always seen. Not even by the king himself. It cannot be wielded and must always remain free if its to its to fulfill its purpose. What this other king asks in exchange is simply to spare a thought once they stand upon the crown of their achievement. To spare a thought of the poor rat that helped them there."

The girl falls silent once more, now standing before the king of rags looking at him expectingly while the others are staring down from their thrones.

[Arik's Place]

"So you don't want to tell me." Arik's voice rings hollow. "It was my only condition so if you're not even going to give me that I'm not sure we can see eye to eye here."

[Tracking Rats - Ruby and Fade]

Jaahlyn gives Ruby a confused look. "What do you mean, miss? I didn't stop and this is just a tunnel." She gestures at their gloomy surroundings as if it was the most mundane thing in the world.
But she almost immediately fall into sudden suspicion. "Why? Is something wrong? The sovereign might be playing with your mind. Their influence is strong here and sometimes they... turn people away. But that means they fear you, miss Ruby which is all the more reason we should continue. It's just a bit further." The satyr points at one of the passages, but not the one she was walking towards earlier. This seems to be a different one.
But it's really hard to tell anymore, all the passages somehow look exactly the same now. This whole place feels unreal, as if they're walking through a dream.

[Descending into Darkness - Flicker & Archera]

The rats don't do particularly well against ice and water, especially when it's directed in such a way.
Flicker won't be harassed by the vermin for now but they are even now trying to climb over one another to get over the ice and the water blocking their path.
The blasting box isn't too heavy for Flicker thankfully so as long as she holds it with both hands she shouldn't have much trouble moving it around.
As for Archera, it does seem like the rats are single mindedly focusing on Flicker at the moment so at the very least she don't need to keep them of herself and her companion at the same time. But there might even be more of them here now as these tunnels seem to be crawling with them.

[Tracking Rats - Tarim & MERC]

Tarim's expression is once again unreadable. It doesn't convey emotions like a human one does and that helmet he's wearing isn't helping either. "I can't shrink. Could widen the passage but it doesn't look like it will get much wider from here." He observes thoughtfully while staring into the tunnel.

[Xar'cha Telephone]

"Ilpholin, that was meant to be polite." Cessie replies dryly. "It's a common phrase, I thought- never mind. I'm sorry. You said samples? What sort of studies are you planning to do, Ilpholin? I mean, what's your intended goal with your studies? And yes, I am afraid I'd need to ask these questions. I think you'd be pretty mad at me if I didn't." There's a subtle mirth in her tone.

[Rebonack]

[Doom Door]

Along the scaffolding he goes.

The wood creaks and groans under each step, dust and flecks of wood shaking off into the gloom. The footfalls disturb tiny, crawling things burrowing through the scaffolding and making it all the more dangerous. Should Slash stay in one place for too long, he risks the creeping, scuttling, gnawing nightmares creeping and scuttling and gnawing on him.

He really shouldn't let them do that.

It would be awful.

Soon Mister Slash will come upon an interesting sight.

A spiraling set of wooden stairs festooned with downspouts rises up into the darkness, water pouring from the rusted pipes. The wood looks spongy and water-logged in places, having suffered the worst of both dry-rot and dripping decay. Up is good, right? Up means out of this pit. Up means away.

But that isn't the only thing to be seen. There's also a hunched figure sitting atop a slab of stone draped in a rough burlap robe. They're lumpy and misshapen, a spidery leg protruding from one of the sleeves, uneven and numerous eyes peering out from under a hood. Maybe the figure could provide some useful information?

Further away, however, lights can be seen. Electric lights. Low, flickering, but unmistakable. There appears to be a settlement some distance away atop the scaffolding.

What does Slash do?

[5a Violista]

[Tracking Rats - Tarin & MERC]

Holly sighs.
"Yeah. If you tried to widen it, it would probably collapse in itself," she says.

If she's going to do this, she'll need her hair out of the way.
Holly ties her hair back, and then goes into the passage.

[Earl of Purple]

Weird William's

Ana finds that there's quite a few things put in her guitar case by the appreciative patrons. Money, of course; plenty of coins, mostly copper, none of silver- the closest is a coin made of nickle, which shares the colour but not the mystic properties of that precious metal. A bundle of notes, British ones, held together with an elastic band; counting it out, there's two hundred pounds there, but the notes are old- paper twenties, not plastic, and they're riddled with spelling errors, typos and quality issues. Maybe half are good enough to pass casual inspection. A necklace of fangs, small fox teeth, large wolf teeth, curved shadowcat teeth, even bigger bear teeth and some massive direwolf teeth. A stake of hawthorn. A silk handkerchief, printed with a crude, but understandable, map to a place called 'Cap'n Tomb-Blade's Cove'.

Doom Door

Up would be good, but Mister Slash didn't come here to go up so soon. Although it'll probably be a trek no matter which direction he goes. He walks quickly enough that the nibblers and gnawers shouldn't be able to catch him, but not so fast he risks slipping and falling. A delicate balance, but one he's practised.

At the choice, he stops, kicking at any of the horrors that get too close. There's a way up, or the figure- a bogeyman, like him? Somehow doesn't feel like it, despite the similarities in where they are to the Abyss he came from- though his patch was nothing like this one. Or there's a settlement, away over there. First, though, talk to the Lost, see what it has to say- if anything. "Hi, there. Can you tell me anything of the community, away over there? I have... Coin." He reaches into his pocket, with the hand not holding his glass dagger, and pulls out a bent penny, a hole stamped in it for a string.