Seaside 5: Kinda like One Piece without the anime

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

"Yup! Come on, vámonos," she says. "Let's go!"
She goes in that direction towards it. "This way," she says.

And, on the way, she adds, "I also saw a trail that goes farther into the island. Was thinking, from the top of the tower we could see if there's anything interesting in the island."

[bc56]

Lost Beach

Selekhael doesn't know what vamanos means. "That's a good idea. We could probably see a lot more from up high." Selekhael, you have wings. Why are you not flying around more? You could have already checked.

The pair reach the tower. It's still there, black stone and rusty steel forming a column that rises from a bleak and forbidding rock in the bay. Selekhael spreads her wings. "Okay, uh, here I go." Does June have anything she wants to say or do before the angel takes off?

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June isn't really sure how easy it would be for her to get over there herself, but Selekhael flying would definitely be easy.

There's only one thing she feels the need to say before Selekhael leaves: "Hey! If there's anything interesting up there, you need to come back and help me get there, okay?"

And she waits.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

Selekhael flies up to the tower. She doesn't seem to be very good at flying, almost as if she's barely done it before. But she manages to land on the top of the tower. She shouts down to June. "Someone left a telescope up here! And there's a hatch leading into the tower!" She looks down. It's a long and dangerous swim and she's not sure if she can carry someone flying. "How do you want to get up here!?"

[Vahnavoi]

[Forgotten Pirate Cove]

The swordsman is committed to his endeavor, so he takes the time to drag the pews across the room and arrange them into a loose pile around the statues. Then he conjures a new ball of fire and keeps it close to the pews untill one of them catches flame. When it looks like the fire can keep going on its own, he starts backing away, retreating to the door he entered this place from the first time. From there, he watches the fire burn, not satisfied before he sees those ugly statues melt by his own eyes.

[Purple Eagle]

[Workout Beach]

Beth nods as she dries herself off and her hair springs back into place. By now, she's at least somewhat used to the various, 'sides,' to which one can be said to go. "Yeah okay, sure! Thanks."

She motions for Karasu to lead the way to the [Huntside Office] in town. Predictably, it's a bit of a hike, but it's a good cooldown considering what they both came here to do. Karasu will probably be the one to introduce the office itself, since she's presumably been there before.

[Workout Beach]

Karasu nods, and begins walking in the direction of The Hunting Grounds. "Never been there, but my big bro has, when he was a girl. I'll call him now." She says, as they leave the seaside.

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June cups her hands, to help her voice carry farther. "Are there any ropes there?" she shouts back. "Maybe we can make some kind of rope bridge, if it's long enough!" Long enough to span from the tower to the shore, at the very least. Plus, extra length to tie around something up there and to tie around...the nearest tree? So it'd have to be pretty long.

"Or!" she adds. "Just look through it and then tell me what's in there afterwards!"

[Earl of Purple]

Forgotten Pirate Cove

Well, that will take a long time, hours at least, and probably more fuel. The swordsman might be able to use the obsidian skull to help the fire heat up or use its fuel slower, so it burns longer than it should.

When the statues do start to melt, however, the orb of light between them flares, and then dims and finally explodes. Molten lead, shark's teeth and burning wood are hurled across the room, with enough force some of the flames are extinguished.

Left in the centre where the orb once hovered is a cracked ball of clear glass.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

"No rope. Uh, what? No! That wouldn't be fair to you! You should get to explore this place too." Selekhael thinks for a little while. "Uh, this is going to be a bit strange, but I think I can get you up here with my powers. Uh hold on." She jumps and glides down to where June is. "I, uh, don't know what this will feel like, so, uh, just hold still, okay?" She holds out a paw to touch June, should she let her.

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June definitely wants to explore it, but "Sometimes, life just isn't fair," she replies.

But.
It seems Selekhael has even more special powers. Some kind of waypoint teleportation, maybe? she wonders. Yeah, sometimes it just really isn't fair. Flight and fast swimming and underwater breathing, waypoint teleports, quest log, quest compass...
Yeah, character creation really just isn't fair.
But!
Just you wait, she vows. Eventually June will figure out what racial benefits humans have that 'angels' don't have. There's got to be some kind of benefit.

"Um. Okay." She holds still, and gets touched.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

Selekhael touches June and nothing happens. June will probably be disappointed by the lack of effect. Wait, when did Selekhael get smaller? June now stands just over 20 feet tall. The swim and the climb are each much smaller by comparison now.. Selekhael calls up to her from a distance below. "Try to get up there quickly, uh, I don't know how long I can maintain this."

[Vahnavoi]

[Forgotten Pirate Cove]

When it starts to look like the pews might not be enough, the swordsman takes out the piece of obsidian and weighs it in his hand. He has little idea of its nature, but he figures it has at least a symbolic connection to those fiery creatures. So, he holds it in his hand and repeats his spell, fueling the flames with his magic again.

When the orb between the statues flares, he instinctively dodges into the corridor, pressing himself flat against the wall. He's not sure what is happening, but figures that whatever that ball of light is, it's becoming unsteady due to the fire. He is hardly surprised when it finally explodes, a sharktooth flying into the corridor, narrowly missing him.

He peeks back into the room. Seeing that the scattered embers of the fire are all that illuminate it anymore, he stuffs the piece of obsidian back into his shirt and considers his job here done. He resumes his journey back to the surface, walking all the way back into the chamber where watee covers the floor.

[5a Violista]

Lost Beach

June waits for something to happen.

...
And she waits.
And waits.

!

"Oh! Um. Yeah. Of course," she says, after realizing that something happened.

She goes as fast as she can to cross the waters without stubbing her toes (oh no, her pajama bottoms are wet) and climb up to the top.

[Earl of Purple]

Forgotten Pirate Cove

The ghost turns as she feels her bones enter the room. "You found my bones! Oh, thank you. Carry them to the surface, please." If he does go up the stairs, the bones get heavier as they go up the stairs, and when he's at the top, the bundle is much heavier and has grown. Does he open it, or set it down and step back?

[bc56]

Lost Beach

June, thanks to her large size, can cross the water and climb the Tower. Selekhael was right. There is an old, grimy telescope up here, and a sealed steel hatch leading down into the tower. A few seconds later, everything gets back to normal size. Selekhael flaps her way up a moment later. "Are you alright? There aren't any side effects?"

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June goes over to the hatch and sees if she can try to open it.

Once Selekhael's up here, she stands up and thinks.
"Well..." Side effects, side effects. "I think I might be better at sports now. Does that count as a side-effect?" The experience of being so tall definitely made her want to be taller, too.
She looks down at her feet. She stands on her toes. "Also, I want to wear heels now. Is that normal?"

She stays on her toes for several moments, and then smiles.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

Selekhael laughs when June mentions wanting to wear heels. "I, uh, don't know. That's the first time I've, uh, ever done that."

The hatch is rusty with age and the sea-spray, but its handle grinds round until it opens. A musty smell wafts up from the ladder leading down into the darkness of the structure below. Selekhael folds in on herself to human shape and peers down.

[Vahnavoi]

[Forgotten Pirate Cove]

The swordsman doesn't ascend the stairs quite yet. "I found your bones allright" , he says the ghost upon meeting her again, "but I found something else too. Was this yours?" He sets the sack of bones down for a moment and pulls out the knapsack from the folds of his shirt, presenting it to the ghost.

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June coughs from the smell.
"Ugh, that's gross," she says when she notices the smell.

She looks down to avoid watching Selekhael fold in on herself. "So, you got a flashlight?" she asks. Since it's still day, she should be able to see, she figures. Actually, though, it's nowhere near as dark as she expected it to be. This is, of course, from the increased night vision part of the blessing, but of course she still hasn't realized that.

"Or maybe there's a light somewhere down there."
She starts to climb down the ladder, looking down in case a rung is missing. Climbing ladders with missing runs is the worst.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

"A what?" That answers that. Selekhael follows June down, but seems unable to see. "Wow, it's dark in here." She draws her flaming sword, illuminating the room in dim, flickering light. June will be able to see pretty well, although Selekhael still needs to squint at things.

The room is full of pipes and machinery. A workbench cluttered with parts and tools stands against one wall. The top half of an ominously human, rusted steel manikin rests in one corner, its mechanical guts trailing out beneath it. A water clock that has long ago run dry sits in another, with a rusted spigot and valve next to it. Another ladder leads deeper into the structure.

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

"That works fine," June says about the sword. It had completely slipped her mind that Selekhael had that. Of course it was a good idea. She definitely should have suggested it first.

She first goes up to the manikin to touch it and feel it. "This is pretty cool," she says. "Some kind of...inventor, or something, lived here," she deduces.
June looks around, and spots the ladder down: "I'll look at the workbench before we go down, okay?"

So, she walks over to the workbench, to look at what sorts of parts and tools it has. Presumably it has the parts for the manikin or that water clock...and, presumably, this place is old enough that even opening the valve won't bring water. But maybe the tools would be nice. There could even be some useful tools! Huge equipment upgrade from wet clothes and sticks and rocks.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

The manikin is cool to the touch, rough and pitted with rust. Up close, the not-quite-human features of its face continue to be otherworldly and spooky.

The workbench is laden with parts and tools, all in varying states of rust. There's a number of wrenches, the largest of which is a pipe wrench in fairly good condition. Screwdrivers and alan wrenches of varying sizes make up another large portion, along with a small steel mallet and a miniature prybar. The parts include bits of the manikin, but also what looks like the wing of a mechanical bird, and the jointed leg of a huge robotic arthropod. There are also dusty sketches and diagrams depicting various animals and their skeletal structures. So many in fact, that it is clear whoever worked here was obsessed with anatomy. There's also a discreet compartment in the wall behind the desk, operated by a letter concealed under a pile of springs and cogs. Selekhael, who's also looking at the workbench, misses it, but maybe June's sharper eyes will pick it out?

[Earl of Purple]

Forgotten Pirate Cove

"No, that is not my bag. I was taken from my bed, along with all the others who died that day. Our village wasn't far from here, but... it was a long time ago. I don't know if it still remains. Anything could have happened since then. It was a short journey, though it felt far longer. It couldn't have been, though, for we were carried the whole trip." Probably not the same town that they visited earlier, then. Since there's a sea in the way.

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

Ooh, cool! Anatomy and machines.
Just seeing all these things is starting to get June kinda excited. Maybe there'll be some really good stuff downstairs.

She grabs the pipe wrench and a screwdriver and the mallet and puts them in her pock...
Oh.
Right.
She doesn't have any pockets.
Well, she...sort-of might be able to use that 'pocket' she used for the gems. Putting them half-in. Not for the pipe wrench, though, because it's too heavy so she will just have to hold it.

After looking for a bit longer, she moves the junk to then hit the lever that she found, just to see what it does.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

With a clatter, the panel slides open, revealing a narrow shaft that descends into the tower. A chain descends into it, connected to a hand crank within the shaft. It's far too small for a human to fit through, so it must have some other purpose. Selekhael squints at it. "Wow, that was hard to see. You've got good, uh, eyes."

[Vahnavoi]

[Forgotten Pirate Cove]

"Hmmm... what about a coat of arms?" , the swordsman continues his inquiry. He thinks of opening the knapsack, but decides against it when he remembers the squid is still in there. "A shield with a winged lion on each side, with a badger on top. Ring any bells?"

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June tries to look down.

Nope, too far. Too harsh. Not enough light.

She considers pulling the chain up, but decides the hand crank is probably easier, so long as it's not rusted solid. So, she grabs the hand crank and starts twisting it. "Just a perk of being human, I guess," she says. She sticks her tongue out at Selekhael. "Why, you jelly?"
Finally, there's something that she's better at than Selekhael, so of course she's going to pretend it's a big deal.

[bc56]

Lost Beach

"Jelly?" Selekhael doesn't get it.

The crank turns, albeit creakily, and slowly brings up a metal platform that takes up the entire shaft. It's large enough to fit a good pile of parts and tools on. But what purpose does it serve?

[5a Violista]

[Lost Beach]

June laughs: "Yeah. Like, jam 'n jelly," she says, further confounding the issue that Selekhael doesn't get.


She gets the platform up, and looks at it.
She looks at it more closely.
She looks at it again to make sure she didn't actually miss anything.
"I'm not really sure what I was expecting," she starts, before saying, "but I was kind-of hoping there would be some kind of slime or creature or something on that platform."

She puts the prybar, some allen wrenches, and some random parts on it, then turns around to glance around the room again. "Well, unless you want to try out that valve or something, I can't really see much more to do here other than to go downstairs," she says. "You have the light, so I volunteer you to go first."

[Earl of Purple]

Forgotten Pirate Cove

"Sounds like the crest of House Ashbyrne. They ruled the barony the village sat in. When I lived, the baron was Zymon Ashbyrne, but he didn't leave the manor often. He was elderly, and most of the day-to-day stuff was managed by his steward. His son was... Unpleasant. A lecherous drunk. Nobody was looking forward to the day Zymon died. The son's probably long dead by now, too." So not the ghost's crest, but she knows whose family used the heraldry.