Fantasy Ascent into Madness

[Jeda Teq]

Feeling the strong tug Kniges quickly turned with a hammer fist intended to crush someone's hip, but his fist merely 'whooshed' through the air. "Not so fast, My lord" The red eyed woman had addressed him, and the rest of his party before she briefed them about their suits. He crossed his arms and half listened to her words. His eyes pinned to his rocket. "Hrrnn..., Why do people like you always have to talk so much? Prolonging the time it takes for me to get MY SWORD and MY SHARDS." He continued to make his way to the rocket stomping his feet. "Where's Geratitude? I'm not splitting my shards with that woman. She's not even apart of the guild!" Despite his selfish words he was anxious and excited to make it all the way to the surface. Acquiring more things just happened to be an even larger bonus.

 

[Lexielai]

Lyro Absurdisan Enkerzed

Vaila Sonata

Location: Outskirts of Loyeqris

Vaila rolled her eyes as she sauntered behind the professor. “Now I see what this is all about. Jealous of my youthful spring, professor? Your creaky old joints just couldn’t keep up anymore, ey?” she taunted. As she turned the corner, Vaila nearly walked into the large half-orc Faelan. Quickly stepping onto her back heel to avoid impact, she raised her eyebrows and hands in surprise.

In their hands was the faun, looking all too much like a puppy that didn’t like it when its owner dressed it up for Hallows Eve. Her lips split into an uncontrollable smile as she put her hands on the side of Xhin’s head. “Oh my Odin, you are so adorable”

She almost turned giggly until she sensed someone addressing her. A new woman appeared with a cigarette held in between her fingers, her red eyes meeting Vaila’s. The redhead shrugged, mildly surprised that this woman didn’t recognize her right away. But surprised in a pleasant way.

Vaila decided she wouldn't mention it; hopefully maintain her anonymity for awhile. “I have no idea,” she said. “The blueprints got tossed somewhere back there.” She pointed backwards with her thumb thrown behind her back towards the changing room.

“Besides, engineers like you are the ones who keep the equipment and mission going; I’m just here to play some music,” she said playfully. “I’m sure you’re much more competent at this than I.”

 

[Enkerzed]

"So that means you're coming with us?" he asked her, more curious than the Professor, but also not having made up his mind either way on whether he'd appreciated the thought or not.

Rico nodded in reply as she drew in the last bit of her cigarette before flicking it away. "Like I said," she began as she exhaled slowly, savoring the nicotine in her mouth. "I'm here to see how my suits hold up. Just a personal rule of mine. Anything goes into production, I go with the first batch. See how they handle the real shit."

Then as the professor made his comment and turned away, Rico did not so much as spare him a glance as she muttered under her breath, "And I've been dealing with bastards like you my whole damn life," before addressing the redhead.

"Well let me know as soon as there are any problems, coz whoever made your suit was clearly thinking more with their balls than their brains." Rico then took the time to look the woman up and down, and up again, wishing she still had a cigarette in hand as her eyes lingered on the suit's... shapeliness. "Yeah, definitely more with their balls."

Suddenly aware that she had been staring, Rico tore her eyes away whilst coughing once or twice, then noticed the dragonborn shouting to no one in particular and asked, "So what's the deal with scales over there?"

 

[TripTripleTimes]

Faelen quickly snuffles a laugh as soon as the engineer, Rico, comments about Vaila's suit. Well, Rico is not wrong, most likely, but in all honesty, the bard's suit looks much more comfortable to be moving around than this chunky thing the rest of the part is hauling around in.

"As much as the protections of your suit is well received, I would like the professor to create a spell to modify the suit for more mobility," The half-orc puts in their two cents in. With the Fauna still in their hands, Faelen moves their shoulders up as a tiny example of the suit's mobility, which isn't much. "I can tell that swinging my sword in my current state will be troubling without some adjustments."

Ze then peeks at the direction where their scaly gecko absconded to. "Don't worry about him. He's just excited to go back to the higher levels. Poor thing hasn't been on the lower levels before 'til few days ago." The half-orc cracks a large grin.

 

[C.DEX]

Cyell shrugged, looking briefly to Kytrek. "I don't know. She could be a masochist, or delusional. It's not really my business whether she likes wearing it or not." He said, with no lack of disdain for the Professor's comment. He'd been put into a relatively foul mood, but it was no comparison to the ride on the elevator. Really, if their employer had been so ... unhinged, it was a wonder any of them were there in the first place, but then again, they were all unhinged. He looked to the half-orc, who had been cradling the faun like a child; the fairy, who looked like a small child, and the elves, which had bantering between each other about nothing. Then, Kniges.

"I'm not sure what his problem is, but it probably won't be ours for long." Cyell replied, to Rico. He was kinder than his counterpart, but it came off more as indifference than anything. "He won't survive." he stated, bluntly, a ways less optimistic for the dragonborn than Faelen. "You might not either; but we all might not. I'm not sure how good of a business practice that is, but I guess it gives some motivation for these suits not to be shit if you're trying to survive in them, too, so I'm partly thankful for that."

His shoulders dropped slightly as they came upon the bottom of the massive rocket. They weren't quite there yet, but it still dwarfed all of them by all means. The spire of the rocket was tipped with a gigantic drill, larger than the rocket itself. The boosters that hugged the sides of the rockets were massive as well; at least seven or eight times the size of himself. The sight of scientists flitting around the thing was slightly reassuring, but not by much, as they kept their steely gazes down to their papers or each other in final preparation.

He stood in place, looking at it for a good moment, while the others caught up.

Lyro Enkerzed Jeda Teq

 

[Lyro]

Prof. Kytrek Rhodius
Mentioned: C.DEX Jeda Teq ​

The corridor was describing a semi-circle around the rocket now that its end was approaching. The windows were wider and less spaced-out now, allowing its occupants full view of the massive machine they were walking next to. Occasionally some of the engineers and technicians glanced their way, and one even gave them a tentative thumbs-up at some point, but by-and-large their presence was ignored as the crew focused on its last preparations.

Now that they were closer, the adventurers could also spot several technicians who seemed slightly different from the rest. Their clothes were much heavier, made of similar fabric to their own suits, while their faces were completely covered up by heavy hoods. Their eyes stared out of two small glass-covered orifices, while their mouths were covered with something resembling the end of a gas mask. All-in-all, they were an unsettling sight, and were almost all busying themselves with tests to the rocket's engines.

Kytrek watched all of this in silence, wondering at the colossal resources that been poured into this enterprise. He was no stranger to machines that melded magic and physics, but this was on a much grander scale - both in terms of the size of the machine and of the work that must have gone towards developing it. The monetary reward they had been offered was a generous tip at best in comparison - these people had been spending fortunes on this for years, if not decades. How had no news of these efforts ever reached him? Or anyone else, for that matter?

"Yes,"

he agreed distractedly, his attention still focused on the rocket as he kept walking.

"He probably won't."

The service elevator which would take them to their cabins was in sight now. They would be split into two groups, he remembered that now, both of them located towards the middle of the rocket, where the vibrations would be less pronounced.

"And enough about the suits,"

he added as he redoubled his efforts to move quickly.

"I'm more interested in the thing it's supposed to protect us from. Get a move on."

CLEAR

 

[Dalamus Ulom]

Dalamus' time during the three days had been rather uneventful, filled mostly with boredom and cheap dwarven B-movies. His mana suit was not as rough around the edges as most of the others, but definitely wasn't a masterpiece by any standard, but it would do. Moments later, the suit was on, and he was checking the rest of the box for anything interesting. Inside, he found a few little trinkets. A small flask with a purifying rune on it, a rat skull made from 14 karat gold, a handmade child's doll of what seemed to be a drow in chains, and a single scrap of paper, with only two words written in drow upon it. Good luck. The gold rat skull would have some string wrapped around it, before being attached to one of the straps on his left arm. The rest went into the bag of holding on his hip. Dalamus had listened in silence to Kytrek's bellyaching.

Now, they were stopped at the doorway by a young kitrye vlos, doubtless not even a hundred, and yet another company member. A gods damned fey. Worse, it was a fairy. "By Tzeentch, we're all going to die," He muttered under his breath as he attempted to stay out of the little contest of wills between the kitrye vlos and the deep human. Dalamus would stick close to Shigi. . . no, wait, he was Figi now. Not the best personality for such an exciting moment, but it wasn't like they had much control on the order they took. All in all, Dalamus would be uncharacteristically quiet, especially compared to three days before hand.

However, as he passed by the partial drow girl, he would state in a rather quiet voice, "Be careful, lotha dalninin. That man's bark may be far weaker than his bite." before quickening his step to catch up with the others.

Enkerzed

 

[Jeda Teq]

Finally, Kniges confronted the last thing before he got into his rocket. An elevator. Suddenly a look of disdain slathered his face. "Oh, screw this." he said as he attempted to spread his wings only from them to be restricted by his suit. He applied so much force that he made himself lose balance. The thud of him hitting the ground was drowned out by all of the activity taking place to prepare the rocket. He laid on his back looking up at his beautiful sword that would take him to the surface.

 

[Totorokoro]

MAPLE​

Three days ago, if anyone had asked Maple if she wanted to embark on the journey to a new land- one above the surface, her answer would have been a diplomatic one. Did she want to go? With all her heart. yes. But Maple wasn't sure if her specific set of skills would have come in handy for the mission. What can I do? She had thought, as she spent one entire day wondering how she could contribute to the cause.

She wasn't an academic who could contribute with her wits, nor was she a fighter who could use her brawn. She did excel in stealthy operations, speedy getaways and sabotage. But how would that ever help? Maple spent her second day wondering what would happen if she followed her desire and went anyway. She knew close to nothing about the worlds above, and her imagination promised to make it all worthwhile. On the third day, she decided that there was no harm in trying and set about packing all the equipment that she would require. The faun had little idea as to what she would actually need, however. Surely the surface isn't the same as... down here, she thought as she bit her lip. Would my equipment even work up there?

She sighed, regretting not placing a request to her employers for certain modifications. "I'll just have to make do," She said, resolute.

~~~~

"Ahhh~" Maple covered her mouth in awe as she glanced up at the gigantic structure that towered above her. She couldn't compare the sight with anything, as she had never even seen a rocket up close before. She continued to walk, tailing the group and resisting the urge to stop and stare at something or another. Not just the rocket, but everything in the base seemed to be on another level. The equipment, the tech, the shiny stuff that she didn't know the name for. I want that... Oh, and that! AND THAT! Her eyes darted all around the place, like a child who was exposed to the world for the first time. Sure enough, being near the rocket and the particular building was a first for her. . . Since breaking into such a place had a) Never occurred to her; and b) was next to impossible with the amount of security the place had.

Walking in a suit was a new experience too. Maple did have some issues while she was suiting up but figured it out eventually. One look in the mirror and she couldn't help stifle a laugh. The suit didn't look as bad on her as it did on a few others. In fact, she wouldn't admit it out loud, but she liked the overall look. And although it was a little heavy, Maple found that the weight of wearing it wasn't overbearing. She did find it a little uncomfortable that she needed to keep her hooves covered, but no pain, no gain- or so she said to herself.

She paused as the group approached the service elevator and turned around to take in the surroundings one more time before she went on board.

Thud!

The soft thud barely reached her ears, but it did. She gazed at the floor at the source of the noise, only to find that it was the dragon-born that she decided to nickname Bob (Since she failed to learn his name). She looked at him in disdain for no more than a second and huffed past him onto the elevator. Maple wasn't happy about their previous interaction- given that he had threatened to eat her (He didn't, but she would hold the grudge anyway.)

Stats

Open for Interaction? Yes
Tagging: -

 

[C.DEX]

"You're not going to get anything out of our employers." Cyell said, as he looked to the technicians that buzzed around them like busy gnats. The tentative thumbs up was met with a slight frown. He didn't know the subject at hand, of course, but that hadn't mattered much as someone else from the background barked an order at him and he tore off to go back to work. While his team in general was ... uninspiring, at best, accentuated by the lizard sprawled out on the floor, the workers themselves almost put reassurance into the small adventurer's team. The tower of a ship itself was a masterpiece in its own right, but something told him that it was a ways more valuable than the people who had boarded it themselves.

The thought passed. He casually stepped over Kniges, learning already to simply put the dragonborn's antics to the side. Another elevator. "Hope this one doesn't try to kill us." he said. "It wouldn't be the worst thing to die from in travelling to the Surface, I guess, but... Actually, it'd probably be the least." he ruminated. Boarded to the elevator, he considered testing the suit's capabilities with magic, but ... "If we're expected to wear these, I'm not going to be able to get to my runes." he said, musing aloud. Then, he regretted it, glancing toward the Professor. He'd already been lambasted for his particular strain of magic before, and if he hadn't moved on, this wouldn't be any different.

"It doesn't matter, anyways." he said. "If all works out, we'll get to the surface without having to expend too much effort, anyways. We're just passengers, aren't we? If all goes well, it won't matter and we'll report back, and get the shards. Hopefully not exploding in our suits or dying to mana madness in the process."

Having stepped foot into the elevator, Cyell remembered the helmet he'd tucked under his arm. He fidgeted with it, attempting to press it over his head and into the slot it fit into on the neck on his suit. With a satisfying hiss, it finally clicked, sealing him in from the outside world. In fact, once they all had their helms on, it was much harder to notice the division between them.

 

[Lyro]

Prof. Kytrek Rhodius
Mentioned: C.DEX Jeda Teq ​

Kytrek walked past the prone dragonborn with an indistinct mutter and moved to stand next to his apprentice, who had decided now was the best time to put on the helmet. Maybe it was - for all he knew, the rocket's interior would be even more cramped than the elevator ride from three days ago. With a quick look to see how it fitted on to his suit, he raised it above his head and gently lowered it until it clicked. The view it offered was actually better than he had expected - slightly distorted around the edges, but for the most part it was unobtrusive. And it was sufficiently roomy to not feel claustrophobic.

"At least one part of this suit seems to be well-designed,"

he grunted through the mask. His voice came out slightly distorted from an electronics box on his chest, accompanied by a faint hiss of static.

"Yes, they don't look very comfortable,"

piped a raspy, high-pitched voice. Kytrek looked up from his suit in surprise, wondering where it had come from, before spotting a tiny figure resting against one of the corners of the elevator.

Art by C.DEX

"No offense, Rico,"

the tiny pixie continued, turning to look at the engineer.

"I'm sure they'll work just fine. I'm just glad I won't have to wear one."

"And to whom do we owe the pleasure now?"

Kytrek said flatly as he attempted to cross his arms in the suit, then thought better of it. Would there ever be an end to the parade of people joining them on this expedition?

The creature turned her eyes back to look up at Kytrek, and for once he regretted speaking up. Their kind had always unnerved him. Large, black, unreadable eyes stared at him from an unnaturally smooth face, save for the area around the mouth, where the creature's sharp, pointed teeth had accidentally scarred it many times over the years. The fact that she was the size of a glass of ale did little to diminish the predatory impression she gave off. Not an unjustified one, either; far from the saccharine bedside stories, there was compelling historical and evolutionary evidence that they had once preyed on the other races. Of course, these were modern, far more civilized times - what racial enmity there might once have been with pixiekind had long since faded away.

Besides, it wasn't like any of her powers would work down here.

"Gniss Siv,"

she finally answered, while still looking up at Kytrek.

"Pilot when things go according to plan, mechanic when they don't. Well met, Professor Rhodius."

She turned to look at Cyell through his helmet's visor.

"Your apprentice? Master Under."

Her gaze swivelled once more to come to rest on Maple as she entered the elevator.

"And Mrs Rose. Pleasure."

Getting to her feet, she raised herself on the tip of her toes to take a look at the sprawled figure of Kniges.

"Is your friend well?"

"Been wondering that since the moment I met him,"

muttered Kytrek, glad to no longer be the subject of her scrutiny. A pilot, then? So much for the "mostly automated" systems. Still, it was somewhat reassuring to know there would be someone behind the wheel, figuratively speaking. Even if she came from one of the most notorious upper races.

A computer wouldn't have been that bad, though.

CLEAR

 

[Some1]

It took Figi three minutes to realize he was going the wrong way. The sudden widening of the cavern, the armed guards, and the small breeze blowing through gave it away. Before he could go any further, one of the masked guards blocked his way with his gun.

"If you're leaving, leave the suit behind. Unless your intents were to steal it and sell it. But you aren't going to do that, are you?" The masked guard said to Figi, pointing his gun at Figi's head. It was then Figi realized his mistake.

"N-no" Figi stammered. "I assure you that if I was trying to steal it you wouldn't see me. I just got turned around"

The guard only grunted. The guard made Figi uneasy. He couldn't read him through that mask. So he just turned around and made his way back to the chamber from which the group had stopped in. After a few wrong turns, he made it back to the room. At least he believed it to be the room. He counted to three, then kicked open the door, taking a few big strides into the room, and striking a heroic pose.

"Fear not, for I have returned! Now we can start this party!" Figi yelled. But to his dismay, the majority of the group had already left this changing room. He let out a sigh. What a waste of a perfectly good entrance. But all was not lost, for he noticed the doorway on the other side of the room which was open. The group must have gone through there! There was still time! Walking through the door, he noticed not how tall the cavern was, but instead how tiny the group seemed from so far away. He was going to have to enter speed mode to catch up. So he started to run, which was made a bit difficult by the tight suit, but nothing he couldn't handle.

"Fear... not!" Figi yelled as he approached the group, breathing heavily as he quickly shifted into a pose. "I have... returned!"

 

[Lexielai]

Some1 Lyro Jeda Teq

Vaila Sonata

Location: Rocket Station

Vaila quirked her brow. “Welcome...back?” she questioned. Her eyes quickly looked him up and down, and the man looked vaguely familiar. He was one of the quirky individuals who had accompanied her to the first meeting. Vaila almost asked herself how she forgot he was a member of their team, but didn’t because she already knew the answer. It was because nobody was really relevant except her. And Xhin. Exceptions possibly also made for the old fart and his lacky.

She moved back, and carefully stepped over Kniges’ sprawled form, for Shigi--or was it Figi?--to join their little circle around the pixie, who Vaila was delighted to see. Pixies were wonderful little creatures once you got past the menacing tiny teeth and ridiculously powerful magic. Her go-to bodyguard was a pixie named Ralph, and he showed nothing but competence, respect, and a good sense of humor when she worked with him. Vaila was mildly hoping this “Gniss” would live up to Ralph’s example.

“Pleasure to meet you, Gniss,” Vaila said, stepping closer to the pixie so she could give a small bow of acknowledgement. “I trust you will take good care of us on our trip.”

 

[Jeda Teq]

Kniges rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up off the ground. His dark fractal like eyes glared intensely at the skimpy bard and the infernal human. They had walked over him as if he were dead. "How could useless things be so disrespectful. Well they do both worship that heathen." He thought before he grabbed the sides of his suit, where his dagger and hatchet would be, and finally realized that he had put the suit on over his weapons. With a twisted frown he shoved his way into the elevator purposly bumping into Cywell's crotch with a hard elbow and stomping on Vaila's foot.

Pouting with his arms crossed Kniges watched Figi run down the corridor and strike pose. "NoOne Cares! If we leave you that's more shards for me!" Kniges barked.

 

[C.DEX]

"Yup." the infernal said, flatly, to Gniss. Her appearence wasn't quite as intimidating to him; after all, his own people had a particularly bad rap amongst the more civilized races. He wasn't sure what to think of her; she hadn't said anything zany or annoying, and other than the fact that she was a pixie, there wasn't really anything off about her. In fact, he related. "Why are you a pilot? Uptrekker, I'd understand, but... aren't you supposed to be magical? I just ... don't understand the appeal of working with dwarves."

Then, Cyell let out a small gasp as Kniges elbowed him. There wasn't much he could do in the way of retaliating, especially in the confines of the rocket, but at the very least, he had his suit to thank for not being instantly crippled. As the dragonborn passed, Cyell spent a few moments, redfaced, attempting to recuperate. Then, he staggered forward and took place behind the dragon. "I didn't intend on telling the others this, but my people's main food source are flying creatures. I think, even once ... well, are all dragonborns as stunted as you, lizard? Because I recall pulling someone that looked like you from the nets before. Of course, we only check them once a week, so... Any true resemblance could have gone away, by then. One of your friends, maybe?" he asked, voice low.

"Just wondering." he said with nonchalance, as he passed him up once again with a longer stride, ever-so-rudely shoving past Kniges to find his place in the elevator. It was a bit of a sociopathic jab, but as far as most beloved people went ... Kniges was not one of them. If he had intended on counting on Cyell for any sort of support - not that he would, of course - that ship had long since sailed. In fact, his very presence made him worry all the more for the mission ahead of them.

 

[Lyro]

Prof. Kytrek Rhodius
Mentioned: C.DEX Jeda Teq Lexielai Some1 ​

"To the best of my abilities, Miss Sonata,"

coolly replied Gniss as she turned to look at Vaila.

"Though much of your safety will be dependent on..."

She flicked a quick glance towards the elf who had breathlessly stumbled in and frowned.

"... factors beyond my control."

Her frown deepened as the dragonborn pushed his way in but she said nothing, purposefully ignoring him to answer Cyell instead.

"And why aren't you tending your nets, Master Under?"

The rest of the adventurers filed in before her, and as the last one entered the elevator she took a final look outside, nodded and leapt unnaturally high into the air.

"Life takes us many places,"

she said as she punched a large green button and began floating back down. With a shake, the elevator's entrance was closed off by a sliding grate and the structure began to move upwards. Looking up at Cyell, she gave him an indifferent shrug.

"It just so happens some of those places are in the Depths, where dwarves live."

"And where the real advances in magic are being made, might I remind you boy,"

added Kytrek sharply.

"She is obviously here because these people know what they're doing-"

his eyes flicked briefly to stare at Kniges and some of the others who had just now entered the room

"- well, some of them know what they're doing. Unlike the loons upstairs."

Gniss inclined her head in a half-nod.

"There might be some truth to that,"

she conceded, before continuing in the same, even tone.

"Or it could simply be because they were looking for someone who would ensure this rocket wouldn't explode mid-flight, and they pay well."

CLEAR

 

[TripTripleTimes]

Faelen looks behind zir as the elevator door closes. The half-orc lowers Xhin down to the ground and just as the boxed vehicle ascends, they clicks their own helmet on in place. They turns their head this way and that, only to grunt softly. The feel and vision the helmet provides is surprisingly alright. Their attention then falls down on the group's tiny, really tiny, pilot.

"Gniss, how do we know that you will not be affected by the radiation in the higher level?" Faelen's heltmet is turned towards Gniss, but the glare of the elevator light obscures their face. "I understand that your kind has a high toleration against the radiation, but I cannot help but wonder when we reach the high level. No offence to you or to the company funding this." A pause. "No wait, how high have you went?"

Lyro Absurdisan

 

[Lexielai]

Vaila Sonata

Location: Elevator

Vaila followed inside the elevator, quickly glancing around the room but keeping her mouth shut for now. All this technological wizardry and magic-babble were far outside her realm of expertise. She wasn’t good at this sort of thing. Engineering big operations and creating historical innovations; bringing humanity to the stars! Woohoo, look at me, I’m a genius! Those things she left to people far smarter and motivated than she.

Instead Vaila was good with people. Always had been ever since she got her first tip playing on a tiny violin on the corner of the bakery and the shoestore in a little town on the sixth level. Her skillset involved music and playing to a crowd. Most of these people instead were accomplished wizards or warriors or innovators, and so Vaila felt a little out of place. She hid her discomfort behind an amused smile, taking it all in with the false confidence being a celebrity taught her.

 

[Jeda Teq]

"Clearly he's too frail to handle the nets." Kniges replied to Gniss' question. "and if you take so much PRIDE in eating winged creatures," He rolled his neck looking at the apprentice, "let's see who eat's who FIRST" The dragonborn threw his fist at Cywell. At that moment the Elevator lurched and began to move up. This caused Kniges to stumble and miss. His fist smashed into the door of the elevator, denting it.

Quickly he turned to face Cywell. Fist ready, his maw bearing his razor sharp teeth, and a clear liquid oozing from his mouth. The liquid was undoubtedly poison and mildly acidic. This was evident as a drop fell to the floor and began to eat away at it.

 

[C.DEX]

"I resent that." Cyell said, smirking sarcastically at Kytrek. "If I were tending my nets, I wouldn't be here, anyways. I'd be upstairs, doing crazy Upper-Leveler stuff, like succumbing to mana madness and getting eaten by giant insects. Because apparently, that's all that happens there." he said, raising his brow to the Professor. He'd disagreed with him, and they had their spats about the very same subject previously, but there was another matter at hand. "And I find it ironic that you believe the better advancements in magic are being made by people who can't even-"

A small thud sounded, once again, as Kniges threw himself onto the floor. Having abandoned the subject for at least a moment, Cyell was surprised to see that he'd finally irritated the dragonborn enough for him to start something. Well, the dragonborn had irritated him enough to spur his own comments. While those were particularly cruel, it did ring as surprising to the apprentice that the almost comical creature had taken such offense that he'd swing at him.

"I'm not going to forfeit my portion of the shards to fight you." he said, gruff. "But feel free to keep damaging the elevator and forfeit yours. I won't complain."

 

[Dalamus Ulom]

Dalamus sat in the corner of the elevator, apprehension slowly rising with the elevator. He disliked tight spaces. And open spaces, for that matter. Though it honestly depended on the circumstances he was in. And right now, he hated elevators with a burning passion, right alongside dragonborn. He especially disliked the combo of these last two, and with acid thrown in for good measure, it became a living nightmare. Because, out of all the thing Dalamus hated most, it was falling.

This thrice damned elevator ride seemed as though it would never end, that they would never reach the top, and all the while the only thing he could do was wait. Wait. Wait. Wait. His vision would fade in and out, and now the whispers were back, though they had never really left. Only gone as quiet as a whispering wind in the very back of his mind. They told him astounding lies and reprehensible truths, demanded him to maybe do some things, and requested him to not question others, and made the simple elevator ride a living hell for him.

Suddenly, she appeared before him. To mock, to chastise, to whip and torture him. Why here, why now, why here, why now, why here, why now. Not here, not now, not here, not now, not here, never now. Stop. Stop. STOP. STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP STOP NOW. NEVER HERE, NEVER NOW. He said it all, but never made a sound, screaming in self forced silence.

If anyone were to look at Dalamus in his little corner, they would see that he was lightly trembling, and that he seemed to be speaking to himself, or maybe someone who didn't exist anywhere but the drow's mind.

 

[Totorokoro]

MAPLE​

"And Mrs Rose. Pleasure." A high-pitched voice greeted. Maple froze in surprise and looked up to see a little pixie. She always liked pixies, they were never judgmental and were always ready to help. Well, the ones she knew anyway. Also, no one had ever called her Mrs. Rose before and she actually liked the sound of privilege and authority it rang. She blushed softly, fumbling for a response, "Ah thank you," Maple smiled sheepishly, before adding with a whisper, "But I'm not married..."
"Is your friend well?" The pixie- who she later found out was called Gniss asked. Maple scoffed in response, he is no friend of mine.

She felt like a tourist on tour in the world of the unknown. Even in a confined space, her eyes settled on every little thing, taking it all in. Who knows, something might come in handy someday... Or I'll find an item that could make me rich. She smiled to herself at that thought. A soft hiss from nearby caught her attention and she looked at the source- the (infernal) human. The sound seemed to be emanating from the object he placed over his head. Was it a hat? Well, if this thing is a hat, it's a rather odd hat. She mused. Her eyes gazed at the others in the room and she noticed that almost everyone had one on. "Why are you wearing that?" Maple asked him with curiosity. She was carrying the object too, but she had assumed it was a bag, or some sort of odd fishbowl.

The rest of the crew began to file in and she made way for them all. Bob (Kniges) put on another tantrum as he stormed into the small space. Maple scurried over to one of the corners, where she could stay far away from the noisy dragonborn. "NoOne Cares! If we leave you that's more shards for me!" He bellowed at an Elf (Figi). Maple rolled her eyes in mock disgust, If we leave you, we'll have more shards as well as peace of mind. She refrained from saying it out loud though, he might eat her in anger. The elevator soon began it's upward journey and Maple had butterflies in her tummy. She was anxious- because this was a realm she had no idea about. She was excited- because this was a realm what she had no idea about. Either way, she hoped to see some amazing things and be of some use.

Maple wasn't the only one in her corner. She noticed the Drow, Dalamus crouched nearby. She wouldn't have said a word, had she not noticed his apparent discomfort. Was he perhaps nervous about the expedition? She doubted it, he didn't seem inexperienced to her. Maple looked around, wondering if she should approach him. It did seem like a better way of staying away from the fight that might have started.

She placed the hat object on the ground next to her and knelt down on one knee. "Are you alright?" She asked, proding his shoulder lightly with her gloved finger.

Stats

Open for Interaction? Yes
Tagging: Lyro Dalamus Ulom Jeda Teq C.DEX

 

[Lyro]

Prof. Kytrek Rhodius
Mentioned: TripTripleTimes ​

"Your concern is appreciated, but worry not. Those suits come in many sizes.

Gniss stretched and moved towards the elevator's doors as the contraption began to slow down.

"The pilot's cabin also contains extra shielding, being so close to the engine. No, that is not what I am worried about,"

as her glance strayed back to the rest of the group.

Meanwhile, as the dragonborn's tone became more overtly hostile, Kytrek's attention was drawn away from the pixie.

"Watch your--,"

he started to say, before the dragonborn threw a punch, only narrowly missing his apprentice. Momentarily stunned by the creature's impudence, Kytrek's expression darkened beyond his usual gruffness while Cyell delivered an adequate repartee. He then moved to stand by Cyell's side, hand resting on the sling of his rifle.

"You will stop your childish behavior this instant. Or this expedition is leaving one member short."

Gniss watched the scene impassively, rolling her eyes at the professor's comment, then turned to face the elevator's doors.

"Whatever issues you people have, sort them out now. There will be no room for this behavior on board - literally."

As she said this, the elevator's ascent ground to a halt and the doors slid open, revealing a small metal bridge to an entrance in the side of the rocket. The group was about two thirds of the rocket's height up; below them, the activity had greatly decreased since they had begun their ascent, and the ground floor was now being cleared of personnel. The fumes produced by the rocket's engines also seemed to have increased in volume and density, and there was a very faint rumble to the entire structure now.

With a small hop to jump over the tiny gap between the elevator and the bridge, Gniss began to walk towards the rocket's entrance, from which a bright white light was emanating.

"Also, to clarify,"

she added as she walked, without turning back,

"your shares will not be split between the rest of you should one of you fail to return. Find a better reason to kill each other."

CLEAR

 

[Dalamus Ulom]

"Fine fine fine. Acid leaking dragons and elevators are a bad combination." Dalamus stated in a somewhat sing song voice. The moments ticked away more uncomfortably than before, as now this faun was right next to him. As the elevator doors would open, Dalamus would his way out as quickly as possible without touching anyone, and after a moment, he was on the bridge releasing a heavy sigh of relief. Once he had calmed down a little from that experience, he would quickly catch up to the pixie. "Good good. I can rest without having to worry to much as to whether or not one of these people are going to try and kill me in my sleep. Or when my back is turned. Or just about anything. Except for the dragon thingy. That thing's crazier than I am!" Dalamus snorted a little at his own comment.

Lyro Totorokoro

 

[Jeda Teq]

Kniges hissed at Cywell prepped for another attack. Kniges' aggression drained from his body the moment it was mentioned that he could lose the chance to get paid. It was bad enough that he had to share the reward at all. Before Kniges could do anything else Kytrek took to his apprentice's side hand on his weapon like a protetive figure and a threat that was so chilling that Kniges felt ice down his spine. He knew what Kytrek was capable of and to top it off there wasn't enough magic down here for Kniges to even contend. The mana suite also nullified the effect of his scales. Reluctantly Kniges backed down. It almost looked as if he were ready to cry. Though with his scales and spikes his expression was hard to read.

"FINE, but I'm not the one who's going to be giving up my shards!" He replied with thoughts of biting Cywell's neck while he slept. A small smirk crossed his face until the Pixie spoke. He couldn't benefit from killing his own team members this time. Perhaps their employer's did their research on Kniges' quest history and gave him a reason to actually cooperate with his team. Soon tears of frustration began to stream down the dwarfed dragonborn's face like a river.