Seaside 7: Seven's the Shark

[Vahnavoi]

[Expedition into the dark]

Maybe it is Calm Reed's verbal nudging, maybe it's Khafir's brisk clap, maybe it is the intent of their actions, but whatever the exact trigger is, the interior does get less dark. Glowing blue lines appear on the edges of the room and on the pillars holding up the room, making walking inside feel like being inside a very old computer game with monochromatic vector graphics. The exit tunnel is marked with arrows and a helpful icon of a stick figure running towards a door.

The square hall remains a dead end, though. Text appears between the female pictograms: "This entrance has been sealed for inhabitants of Nexus. Proceed at your own peril."

[Reinholdt]

[Beachside Sunset]

"Now that doesn't sound like me," Reinholdt replies with a smug grin, very lightly nudging his companion. Maybe he was lying, maybe he just felt Ukry needed to be awash in youthful energy even if it comes from outside sources, more likely he was just a fool's fool. "You're going to have to let me look through your ritual book table of contents. I'm sure you can find something we'll both... enjoy." Yup, just a fool.

With a little gracious flourish, Rein accepts the strawberry ice cream, giving the vendor a nod in return for the show more than anything. "Thanks," he replies simply until Ukry takes note of the hearts that Rein had missed. He rotates his cone until discovering the indentation and raises an eyebrow. "How quaint. I didn't even see him do that, did you?" Oh gosh, now the vendor's winking at him! What does Rein do? How does one reply to that? In a flustered panic, Rein winks back. Call him some time!

No wait, don't do that! Rein helps Ukry hurry further away for a second before settling on a slower pace that's better for ice cream. His licks are long and heavy, like he's cleaning the strawberry ice cream of any and all dirt, properly grooming the treat. "Mmm..." Rein confirms as Ukry comments about the artistic power of the sunset. He stops messing with the ice cream for a moment, cleaning his lips with his tongue before responding more properly. "I suppose on a dangerous to think about cosmic level we are spellbound in ways. Something made that sunset. Maybe one of your people ascended time and space and created nature?" Rein shrugs a little. Idle, speculative thoughts. Wouldn't be the first time it has happened though. His eyes search the dancing colors of light and life for a moment longer. "Do you paint Ukry?" They've mentioned a few times that the people they still relate to at some level was deeply rooted in artistry. But they had yet to mention which form of artistry they participated in themselves. Unless potion brewing counted, which in many ways it probably did.

Reinholdt turns towards Ukry as they begin to stutter over long term potentials. There was a lot to unpack there, but Rein's energy was largely focused on not showing how uncomfortable he was. Not with Ukry, but with the way the sea was touching his ankles. The water was terrible! Water was supposed to be looked at, not touched. Whoever thought touching water was a good idea was either crazy or a dog. But he would endure this water boarding torture for Ukry so as to not to break the spell nature has cast over them. They were enjoying themselves on a level Rein's getting the feeling just doesn't happen a lot. Like this was something they needed.

So rather than think about the long term consequences, Rein gently shushes Ukry's anxieties by tilting her chin up with a light finger and leaning forward, pressing his lips to hers. His tongue escapes, running over her lips as he kisses her before he pulls free, keeping the touch short, but breathtaking. "You promised a taste of your treat," Rein explains with a soft, genuine smile. "Let's just focus on us, tonight, together, in the present. Perhaps in front of a fireplace?" Reinholdt suggests, the thunder rudely loud enough to interject itself in their romantic evening.

[bc56]

The Great Tail Caper
Jade appreciates being carried, away from the ground where many of the bugs are. She's also glad Tristan thought ahead and brought bug spray, even if it does smell awful it's better than being bitten.
When they reach the intersection, she pushes up in Tristan's arms and points a paw in the direction of the hot, dry path.
She doesn't look forward to the scorching heat, but at least she'll dry out.

[Morty]

[Submarine - Interior]

"Ah, my bad. I assumed you meant the leader of your clan, see?" Chidi winces at his mistake, honest though it might be. "You mean Dipsnig, yeah? I see." He rubs his moustache for a bit, then nods. "So, different ethnicities, or sub-races? We have that too, it's why my skin's dark... but you probably know that already."

At some point, all the pretty fish are joined by some rather orc-like swimmers with webbed digits and mostly green skin. Some of them are just swimming around, others are feeding the fish, others still are fishing. There's even a man slow-dancing with his merman boyfriend.

"I'm actually curious enough to try playing some goblin soccer. How many players per team? Maybe we could get your siblings to join in, see?" He suggests, watching to see how she'd react to the sea orcs.

"Hah. No. Our leaders are... you could call them high matriarchs, I guess? They're not really religious leaders, though they used to be. Long story." Olvisin observes the fish and fishers for a while before she turns back to Chidi. "There's six players per team. The goal is to hit the centre pole of the platforms. The higher the platform, the more points you score. And the ball is small, so it's not always easy to tell who has it."

[Deathkeeper]

Codebreaker's Home

Codebreaker looks as if the woman had calmly explained that she was planning on tying bricks to her legs and then entering the national 50m backstroke competition in order to teach typing.
"What? No. That's stupid. If I wanted something terrible to happen to you it would have happened the instant you entered line of sight; you don't need a friggin suicide pill to do that. Put that away."
Gosh why is everyone from this world a moron?

[Ironsmith]

[Codebreaker's Home]

"Now, what on earth makes you think this is only about you?" The woman raises an eyebrow. "I know full well you could have hurt me if you wanted to. And while I'm sure you know that as well, there's a substantial difference between knowing it to be true and actively choosing to help someone dying on your couch."

She crosses her legs and leans back slightly. "Conversely, you do not yet believe I have your best interests at heart. Be honest with me, if you were to take that pill now, what odds would you lay on my saving you? Fifty-fifty? Seventy-thirty? Ninety-ten? At the very least, you anticipate that I might try to strongarm you into service while you are vulnerable." She sets the bags on the table between them. "But that's the point, isn't it? No tricks, no games. Just a simple question with a simple answer." She slides one of the baggies towards Codebreaker. "...Or would you prefer the more traditional trust fall first?"

[Rebonack]

[The Great Tail Caper]

"Walk in oven it is," Tristan mutters as he heads down the path.

Honestly the heat doesn't bother him all that much.

Y'know, the whole fireproof thing.

But it won't be any fun at all for Jade.

So!

Turns out it is worse than they thought!

As soon as they step down that path they're immediately met with POWERFUL wind. Maybe thirty or forty miles per hour. In addition to being around one hundred degrees or so. It's like walking around inside of a giant hair dryer.

Upside?

Jade will dry off very quickly.

Downside?

Heat issues are a real issue. Also there appear to be a bunch of tendrils here, too. Just... sticking out of the ground. Great big things, rocky and glowing with heat. Tristan is doing his best not to get close to them.

"How are you doing?" he asks of the fox in his arms who hopefully won't be a fox in his arms too much longer.


[Expedition into the dark]

Geneva poofs up slightly at Mia's comment. "We have some conjecture and some inconclusive data. We aren't certain that this structure or whatever might be bound to it is actually self-aware. Not yet. I just want to avoid drawing conclusions too quickly."

Come on, Geneva.

There's no need to get defensive about this.

Be friendly.

But before she can say much more-

WORDS!

Well.

That's certainly helpful.

"Oh dear. That's certainly concerning," she mutters as she watches the feed.

[bc56]

The Great Tail Caper
This sucks, but at least it's dry. It's not long before Jade paws at Tristan's arm. "I'm fine, you can put me down." Humans can sweat, and that's a large improvement over needing to pant to cool down, so as soon as Jade's paws are on the ground, she'll change back to her humanoid self
"That's so much better. Temperature is still awful though, phew."

[Ironsmith]

[Expedition into the Dark]

"Indeed." Khafir confirms, kneeling to examine the text. "Up until now, the possibility has existed that this structure was not built with Nexus inhabitants in mind. That it had been swept up from another world and deposited here." She shakes her head. "This text explicitly discounts that possibility. At a minimum, it should be taken as a sign that we need to be more careful going forward, as our capabilities were accounted for when this warning was given."

Having said her piece, Khafir sits and examines the newly-lit interior of the structure with her clairvoyance. Now that the passages are lit up(?), she's got a lot of mapping to do.

[Rebonack]

[The Great Tail Caper]

"I would say I don't mind it too much, but I can stroll through a burning building without much discomfort," Tristan admits as he sets Jade down and lets her de-fox.

They walk deeper into the blazing hot, desiccated forest. Here and there they'll find that fissures have opened up in the ground, blanketing the surroundings with basalt. Bits of molten rock still vomit out of them now and again, splattering blobs of liquid stone glowing with blackbody radiation.

Not too much longer they find something pretty odd.

"Well, I guess we know where all the heat is coming from."

Pipes.

There are exhaust pipes of some kind sticking out of the ground, blasting searing heat into the air. Some kind of vent mechanism for geothermal power?

Or something else?

There are more of those weird tentacle things sticking out of the ground here and there as well.

[bc56]

The Great Tail Caper
Jade shies away from the tentacles. She doesn't want to get grabbed by whatever that is. "Looks like something in here makes a lot of heat." She looks up towards where she knows the fortress is. "We should probably climb up here. It'll be out of the heat too."

[Deathkeeper]

[Codebreaker's Home]

"Now, what on earth makes you think this is only about you?" The woman raises an eyebrow. "I know full well you could have hurt me if you wanted to. And while I'm sure you know that as well, there's a substantial difference between knowing it to be true and actively choosing to help someone dying on your couch."

She crosses her legs and leans back slightly. "Conversely, you do not yet believe I have your best interests at heart. Be honest with me, if you were to take that pill now, what odds would you lay on my saving you? Fifty-fifty? Seventy-thirty? Ninety-ten? At the very least, you anticipate that I might try to strongarm you into service while you are vulnerable." She sets the bags on the table between them. "But that's the point, isn't it? No tricks, no games. Just a simple question with a simple answer." She slides one of the baggies towards Codebreaker. "...Or would you prefer the more traditional trust fall first?"

Codebreaker's Home

Codebreaker takes the bag-
-and throws it across the room into a nearby trash can.
"I don't have odds in my head about this, because it is [fudge]ing stupid. I'm not going to let someone kill themselves in my house, and I sure as hell am not gonna do it. What is wrong with your world? Does everyone there pop crazy pills?!"

[Ironsmith]

[Codebreaker's Home]

The woman frowns and reclaims her seat, staring at the trash can. "...No. No, this is me getting stupid and rusty." She grumbles. "Of course you weren't going to go for the pills. Why would you? It's literally insane." She massages her forehead with her fingers, tossing her hat aside. "That's what I get for relying on forecasts so much. Come on, Toni, think for yourself every now and then."

[Deathkeeper]

Codebreaker's Home

CB raises an eyebrow, now thoroughly confused.
"Uh, you need a moment, lady?" he asks. That sure was a swing. She went from confident to talking to herself in ten seconds flat.

[Ironsmith]

[Codebreaker's Home]

"...Yeah. Yeah, that would... yeah." The woman sniffs, pulling out a tissue and dabbing at her eyes. "...A minute would... would definitely be helpful, yeah." She leans back in her chair and lets out a little sigh. "In a minute, one of the other mes is going to have this all figured out and I can just copy what she does. Or maybe I'll be able to look past the desync window to something helpful. I can slow down and just... take a minute." She takes a deep, calming breath and massages her temples. "Just a minute... it'll only take a minute..."

...

Nope. Her state does not improve over the next sixty seconds.

[Rebonack]

[The Great Tail Caper]

"This is obviously an evil fortress which should have, by extension, evil minions. So where are all the evil minions?" Tristan wonders aloud as they skirt around the tentacles.

Really.

When it comes to defenses great big tentacles sticking out of the ground aren't great.

Unless, of course, there are so many that they can't be easily avoided. But that clearly isn't the case so what's the deal here, exactly?

Before long they're find themselves at the foot of the EVIL VOLCANO with the incredibly conspicuous SKULL FORTRESS built into it.

But...

STILL no evil minions?

What is the deal with this place, anyway? It's like a giant movie set with no one around. There appears to be a winding path up the face of the mountain that leads to the fortress, but that would be the OBVIOUS way to go, right? So is that really a good idea?

[bc56]

The Great Tail Caper
"Probably inside in the air conditioning," Jade jokes. Tristan's right though. There's no activity here, it's all quiet.
Since there is no one here, Jade doesn't have any problem with taking the easy road. They'd just get spotted anyway if they went a more difficult route (assuming someone is watching).

[Morty]

[Expedition into the dark]

"Concerning indeed. Will we have to break out way through? Let us try this first." She raises her head. "Your warning is noted, but we do need to pass through." Will the structure obey this request?

[Zefir]

[Expedition into the dark]

"Ms Geneva. I know from the data you can obtain this is your conclusion, but I have other ways that your devices can't read. Trust me on this, it lays in my expertise." Mia says.

To Khafir "As far as I know it is rather common that people, land or more arrives in the Nexus as it is the nature of it. But we do agree that this building isn't meant to let Visitors in. The question that bothers me is. What is inside that we are forbidden to see?"

[Rebonack]

[The Great Tail Caper]

"And away from the bugs," Tristan says, waving away several more biting flies.

He's the lucky one, of course.

You know what having a hide that can't be pierced means?

Means no insect bites.

Hopefully Jade isn't too envious of Tristan's power set right now. It's coming in really handy on this miserable hike.

And assuming someone is watching? That's about right.

Up the trail they got, one sweaty foot in front of the other. The island isn't that huge, but they've been at this for a couple hours and the heat and humidity haven't made it nice by any stretch of the imagination. Why couldn't this guy have set up on a temperate island instead of a tropical one? There are probably temperate islands with volcanoes of doom, right?

About half way up to the fortress they encounter MORE of those weird tentacle things sticking out of the rock wall flanking the path. Stony looking things with great bony clubs at the end. The wave in the air menacingly, but it's hard to tell if they can even see our heroes or not. They could go around, but that would involve climbing over the edge of the path and shimmying along the rock fave for a good two dozen feet.

[bc56]

The Great Tail Caper
"What's with all the tentacles? You'd think they'd want more mobile minions," Jade wonders. "We can climb around them this way, come on!" She drops from the ledge and begins climbing hand over hand across to the other side. She's practiced maneuvers like this as part of her training, it won't be hard for her.

[Purple Eagle]

[Submarine - Interior]

"Hah. No. Our leaders are... you could call them high matriarchs, I guess? They're not really religious leaders, though they used to be. Long story." Olvisin observes the fish and fishers for a while before she turns back to Chidi. "There's six players per team. The goal is to hit the centre pole of the platforms. The higher the platform, the more points you score. And the ball is small, so it's not always easy to tell who has it."

[Submarine - Interior]

"Hmm..." It's all Chidi says as he joins her in looking out the window, regarding the subject of high matriarchs.

"I see..." He turns back to face her, as well. "That's a unique way of playing soccer... I actually want to try it." He says, grinning as he imagines it in his head. "The soccer I'm used to has 11 players max on each team, including a goalkeeper. See, the goal is to kick the ball into the opposing team's net."

One of the sea-orcs looks into the window of the sub as they pass by, grinning and waving once he catches them looking.

[Vahnavoi]

[Expedition into the dark]

Mia should keep her question in mind. If she is right and this building is self-aware, she might be able to ask it directly for the answer.

In response to Calm Reed's plea, the warning on the wall fades and the blue glow forms a circle, three meters in diameter, on the wall. A sudden change in air pressure tells her that it isn't simply a cosmetic change, the area within the circle is moving and forming into a tunnel. Soon, blue pulsing light can be seen at the end of it, a short walking distance away, with arrows on the tunnel walls pointing towards it.

Khafir may want to scout that tunnel first. It open up into a roughly oval room, its interior surfaces made of some spongy, greyish material. Some of it looks a bit like cables or tubes. Periodic flashes of blue show movement of liquid within the structure. On the wall left to the entrance, there are two round screens. They are showing only darkness at the moment. In the middle of the room, facing the screens, there is a chair. It looks a bit like a dentist's chair or some other torture device, with restraints on the arm and foot rests. It is similarly absolute black as the walls of the previous room. Next to the chair, there are two floating devices. One appears to be a tool rack, holding a collection of what appear to be syringes, connected to the floor via flexible tubes and full of flowing blue substance. The second is just a square slate, half a meter tall and wide, ten centimeters thick.

What's curious is that if examined more closely, the slate appears to display an animated instruction manual of sorts. It shows stylized Calm Reed sitting on the chair, stylized Mia and Khafir fastening her restraints, then stabbing the syringe into her left temple. The last picture is of something projecting out of Calm Reed's eyes on to the screens.

If Geneva's drones are let into the room, their scans reveal a bit more about the room's underlying structure. The whole room seems to sit inside a facsimile of a giant human skull, with the entrance tunnel piercing into its left temple. There appears to be some symbolic recursion between the shape of the room and the instructions on the slate, the seeming message being "plugging this syringe into your head will connect you to the structure in the same way the tunnel you came from connects to this room".

If the syringe is examined, it proves to be competely sterile - and will remain so even with gross mishandling. It appears to be constructed of some glass-like material, but whether it is normal matter at all is dubious. It is both much sharper and less destructive than it has any right to be: if tested, its needle can pierce even through steel with minor pressure, but leaves no physical mark once removed.

That's it, for mapping new rooms the expedition has physical access to. If Khafir is feeling ambituous, she can try to clip through the walls with her clairvoyance to search for other hidden rooms. Going about it haphazardly is likely to end her in unnavigable absolute darkness, but if she thinks to guide her vision along the pipelines directing the flow of the blue liquid, she can trace the outline of some nearby chambers. Designating the tunnel they entered the structure from as "North" and the new room as "South", there are several cubic spaces identical in size to the room with the four pillars both "East" and "West". The further she tries to look, the fainter the glow gets, until she can see no more. She might get the feeling that there is a very long series of these rooms beyond those she can see. Similarly, there are several cubic chambers above and below the room with four pillars. All of these chambers appear to be isolated from each other, with no connecting passages allowing travel by foot from one to the others. Based on what happened in response to Calm Reed's words, they can presume access will be granted only if they ask for it.

Interestingly, though intuition would suggest there is some kind of "heart" or central pumping mechanism circulating the blue liquid, the way the glow fades further away from the new room suggests that this is not the case. Instead, the force moving the liquid around is generated locally and seems to be centered on the expedition members. This suggests there is a limit to how far information of their presence and requests can carry.

[Aurora Alchemi]

Spoiler

Show

[Beachside Sunset]

"Now that doesn't sound like me," Reinholdt replies with a smug grin, very lightly nudging his companion. Maybe he was lying, maybe he just felt Ukry needed to be awash in youthful energy even if it comes from outside sources, more likely he was just a fool's fool. "You're going to have to let me look through your ritual book table of contents. I'm sure you can find something we'll both... enjoy." Yup, just a fool.

With a little gracious flourish, Rein accepts the strawberry ice cream, giving the vendor a nod in return for the show more than anything. "Thanks," he replies simply until Ukry takes note of the hearts that Rein had missed. He rotates his cone until discovering the indentation and raises an eyebrow. "How quaint. I didn't even see him do that, did you?" Oh gosh, now the vendor's winking at him! What does Rein do? How does one reply to that? In a flustered panic, Rein winks back. Call him some time!

No wait, don't do that! Rein helps Ukry hurry further away for a second before settling on a slower pace that's better for ice cream. His licks are long and heavy, like he's cleaning the strawberry ice cream of any and all dirt, properly grooming the treat. "Mmm..." Rein confirms as Ukry comments about the artistic power of the sunset. He stops messing with the ice cream for a moment, cleaning his lips with his tongue before responding more properly. "I suppose on a dangerous to think about cosmic level we are spellbound in ways. Something made that sunset. Maybe one of your people ascended time and space and created nature?" Rein shrugs a little. Idle, speculative thoughts. Wouldn't be the first time it has happened though. His eyes search the dancing colors of light and life for a moment longer. "Do you paint Ukry?" They've mentioned a few times that the people they still relate to at some level was deeply rooted in artistry. But they had yet to mention which form of artistry they participated in themselves. Unless potion brewing counted, which in many ways it probably did.

Reinholdt turns towards Ukry as they begin to stutter over long term potentials. There was a lot to unpack there, but Rein's energy was largely focused on not showing how uncomfortable he was. Not with Ukry, but with the way the sea was touching his ankles. The water was terrible! Water was supposed to be looked at, not touched. Whoever thought touching water was a good idea was either crazy or a dog. But he would endure this water boarding torture for Ukry so as to not to break the spell nature has cast over them. They were enjoying themselves on a level Rein's getting the feeling just doesn't happen a lot. Like this was something they needed.

So rather than think about the long term consequences, Rein gently shushes Ukry's anxieties by tilting her chin up with a light finger and leaning forward, pressing his lips to hers. His tongue escapes, running over her lips as he kisses her before he pulls free, keeping the touch short, but breathtaking. "You promised a taste of your treat," Rein explains with a soft, genuine smile. "Let's just focus on us, tonight, together, in the present. Perhaps in front of a fireplace?" Reinholdt suggests, the thunder rudely loud enough to interject itself in their romantic evening.

[Beachside Sunset]

Ukry laughs softly. "You wish loverboy. We'll let you see a couple sections of interest, however you are far from seeing the whole table of contents. Well, at least if you want to remain mildly sane." Something about the way the witch says that seems to indicate he wouldn't really go insane, but that there were other consequences to those actions that neither in the pair would really like. The vendor, on the other hand, settles for a facepalm and a wave to get out of his hair as Reinholdt manages to only slightly be a complete social wreck. Can't blame a vendor for trying to help make a couple's evening together, can you? "We could hardly see all of the flips and spins he did with the cone. He must have slipped it in during the middle of one of those... Pretty impressive really." At least Ukry seems happy enough now that they have a bit of sugar.

"Our people? Hardly. As far as we know, we are the closest anything in our species has come to ascending. Ironic, considering they once tried to kill us. However..." Ukry pauses in thought for a bit and thinks. "Though, as we recall, the eldest groveseekers never did need to ascend to make natural works of beauty just as breathtaking as this one. It's no small wonder so many were commissioned for the finest jewelry and the greatest of statues." The next question prompts a soft sigh from Ukry. "Not us. Our art is.... was different. We made magic items, pulling the fibers of the weave into items that combined both beauty and utility. Plates that remove poison in the food placed on them, for example. But... once we were... changed... we moved to things that could hardly be called art any more. The manipulation of the body, of flesh and soul, of curses... Such things are stronger, but the methods we followed in many ways go against the ways of our people. That is why we became... lessor." The masked one frowns quietly for a bit.

The kiss grips their attention away from the long term questions just as Rein wished, and for a moment the witch remains stunned, eyes searching Rein's smile for answers. When none come, and the cat calls for retreat, the witch grabs a fist full of his collar, yanking him down and into an even longer french kiss, showing no remorse as they close their eyes and search for their own taste of Rein's icecream. After letting him go, Ukry smiles softly. "That sounds like a good plan... assuming you can get a fire started in your fireplace as well as in your oven." The witch's sly smile comes half hidden this time, behind the last potions of their cone.

Krak-BOOM Comes the peel of thunder that signals that the last kiss was just a moment too long, and fat, COLD drops of rain begin plastering the pair with no end in sight. Ukry gives a quick cry of surprise, then a laugh. "Guess we needed a shower anyways.... Race you back?" The witch hardly waits for a response, giggling as they bound across the sand, carrying the speed of a much younger satyrlyrri in their prime forward with each step. Equally impressively is how quickly the last bites of the cone vanish during the sprint. It's not fast enough to outrace the sheets of rain and wind, though, and the witch is thoroughly soaked by the time they are at the door to Rein's home.

"B-b-brrrr... o-ok definitely regretting how chilly t-this r-rain is now... heheh.." The witch shivers and shakes, waiting for the door to open as talk to Rein, chest still heaving from the run. Of course, one nice part of the rain was the view of the witch, the water soaked dress leaving little to the imagination... unfortunately this also came with the unfortunate side effect of the witch loosing some of their control over the mask, which makes one elbow dislocate. With a frown, Ukry pops the elbow back into place and gives a sigh. "Great, now we are falling to p-p-pieces... hehehah-h-h.... brrrr." The gazelle's tail flicks back and forth in eager anticipation for a warm fire and a place to dry somewhat.

[Reinholdt]

[Beachside Sunset]

"I should have you look at my extensive jewelry and magic statue collection then. See if any were made by your kind. So you can smash them. With overwhelming nostalgia." Nothing quite like taking a baseball bat to your childhood. Truly a romantic gesture? Or perhaps Ukry will be too overwhelmed by their beauty to bring themselves to cause them injury. That could be a release in and of itself.

Speaking of release, that's the last thing Ukry's doing right now as they capture's Rein's clothes and holds his lips tightly captive against their own. It doesn't take long for Rein to completely drop his ice cream into the ocean (littering!) and wrap his arms around Ukry's waist. He's grinning pretty wide when they pull away and his good mood doesn't even sour at the teasing. "I-" Whatever pithy response Rein had gets canceled by the sonorous thunder. Well ok. Nature can decide for them, that's fine.

A shower?! No way! Rein was perfectly cleaned and cologned for tonight, he doesn't need something as impudent as mother telling him what to do or how to be! "You're on." Rein says, his hand flicking and a large umbrella opening in his hand as he holds it overhead to protect himself. He'd offer it to Ukry but they're already bounding ahead, more comfortable dancing through the rain he suspects. Rein's entire personage turns pink as he floats out a few inches above the sand and hovers after Ukry. Flying has the advantage of not running through wet sand, which does eat up a lot of effort. It has the downside of struggling with the wind, which honestly tries to rip his umbrella out from him too.

So getting to his door doesn't quite have the same flair as he might have initially imagined and he ends up almost as soaked as Ukry. Rein almost stops just to look at his date in their new waterlogged state, but doesn't linger, even as he has some questions about their elbow. He is far too busy pushing the door open and sweeping inside with a pained gasp. Accursed water, trying to kill him like holy water might to a devil. "Well at least get inside so I don't have to scoop those pieces out of the sand," Rein insists, ushering Ukry in.

A flick later and his umbrella is gone completely once more. He's already even peeling off the outer layers of his clothes, especially the top. "You don't mind I presume?" The question's practically hypothetical as he advances further in and gets some logs onto the fireplace, making sure the flue is open. He produces a small red crystal and taps it against the wood and the entire ensemble sparks to fiery life, a burst of heat at first almost too much before settling into a warm crackle. "Don't worry about the floor. Would you like a blanket?" Reinholdt offers, having at least a few that would be big enough to share.

[Morty]

[Submarine - Interior]

"Huh. Must get kind of crowded on the field, especially with bigger folk," Olvisin observes. "But it's also simpler."

[Deathkeeper]

[Codebreaker's Home]

"...Yeah. Yeah, that would... yeah." The woman sniffs, pulling out a tissue and dabbing at her eyes. "...A minute would... would definitely be helpful, yeah." She leans back in her chair and lets out a little sigh. "In a minute, one of the other mes is going to have this all figured out and I can just copy what she does. Or maybe I'll be able to look past the desync window to something helpful. I can slow down and just... take a minute." She takes a deep, calming breath and massages her temples. "Just a minute... it'll only take a minute..."

...

Nope. Her state does not improve over the next sixty seconds.

Codebreaker's Home

Codebreaker taps a paw against the floor.
"Okay Miss, I can see you're having a night. Maybe you ought to go home for the night? Call me in the morning? It's still kind of you know. three in the morning?"

[Rebonack]

[The Great Tail Caper]

Tristan does a pretty decent amount of climbing himself. The whole volunteer fire fighter thing pretty much ensures it. Climbing along cliffs is... A little lot different.

He scoots over the edge and begins shimmying along next to Jade.

"Maybe they aren't minions? Maybe they're just part of the island?" Tristan guesses. They're quite odd. The one in the water. In the forest. In the fire fields. Up here. Just tentacles sticking out of the ground. But why, though? What purpose do they serve? Not mobile enough for guards. Not even terribly threatening if you can just go around them.

So that makes the most sense, right?

Just some weird part of the island?

"Wha-"

That's a sharp tug on Tristan's leg all of a sudden.

Oh.

Now he's airborn.

Huh.

The tentacle wrapped around Tristan's ankle smashes him into the rock face a good twenty feet below and then hurls him off into the canopy of the jungle. Just as quickly it lashes out to try to seize Jade by her tails.


[Expedition into the dark]

Oh.

Well now, isn't that interesting.

The structure continues to respond to commands.

But why?

For what purpose?

Thus far they haven't found anything to suggest what the intent of this strange device is.

The purpose of the chair is far more obvious, however.

"That's some sort of interface," comes Geneva's voice over the communicator. "Though I'll admit that I'm a bit skeptical about the idea of plugging alien technology into your nervous system."

Usually getting stabbed in the brain by alien machines is bad.

[bc56]

The Great Tail Caper
"Tristan!" He's really tough, he'll probably survive that. Right?
No time to worry though, because Jade is getting picked up next.

Who am I kidding, she's still worrying.

"Tristan!" She's hoisted up by her tails kicking and screaming. "Tristan! Let go!" Suddenly she explodes with blue fire, her rage powering her magic beyond what she's usually capable of. "LET ME GO!"

[Morty]

[Expedition into the dark]

"A bit skeptical is an understatement." Calm Reed's skepticism is palpable. It can be palped without effort. "I think I speak for all of us when I say that doing what the structure appears to be suggesting is a bad idea."