Active [Frontier] Ruining, the Fun! 1

[Gwen_Temi]

Ordella
​

Languages: Common

Ordella was promptly made aware of her own shortcomings as an Undertaker.

The [Seance] went off without a hitch. The reception of the spirit's words was another story, entirely. Never before has she spoken with an ancient. And a tinge of sorrow swept over Ordella as she failed to comprehend even a single word that he so passionately spoke. All she she had to bring back to Lord Holston from the ritual were the vague interpretations of an uncovered mural and a broken sword. A fraction of the history that the fallen one had detailed. The weapon had no use on the battlefield, but perhaps a historian could find great value in it.

And so she took the broken blade and stored it in her vestments for later.

Not long after that, Hideki and Tomo came strolling in from the exact opposite direction that they'd last disappeared to, and revealed a path into the inner chambers of the ruins. And, not long after that, she found herself surveying a room covered in glowing runes with a golden half-mask resting atop a pedestal. Unsurprisingly, Ordella found that to be just as suspicious as Tomo had.

So she kept her distance away from the mask, at the edge of the room, and used [Spirit Vision] to scan the area for danger or any foreign presence that may be lurking about.

Actions:
1) Moved to the edge of the inner chamber.
2) Used [Spirit Reading] to scan the are for danger or foreign presence.
​

[Spirit Reading]- Sixth Sense E (Souls/Magic), Appraisal E, Empathy F, Insight F, Magic E, Magic Range F, Energized E- Through her sorcery, Ordella can analyze the environment around her; picking up on souls and magical effects around her all-the-while. Not only can she glean information about a subject's physical condition, but also their emotional state and where on the spectrum of life and unlife they exist. Additionally, she can rely on her Sixth Sense to detect entities that would otherwise go unnoticed by mundane senses by locking onto their very souls or lingering magical effects that they may carry.- Range 30 ft- Grade E- 0 post cooldown.

Vaudivolt StarPrincessVal Moonberry​

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[StarPrincessVal]

Sealed Section, Target of the Expedition​

As Ordella examines the mask with her Spirit Reading, she can sense an aura of magic emanating from the mask, though it does not appear to be a malicious one. The arcane veins seem to root the mask to the pedestal, their tendrils wrapping around the base. It is clear that removing the mask will trigger something, though you can't tell what and it does not appear to be harmful.

Mentions: Gwen_Temi

 

[Gwen_Temi]

Ordella

Languages: Common
​

Upon inspection Ordella sensed quite a bit of magic flowing through and around the mask.

And yet, she could sense no danger. Something was going to happen but, at the very least, it didn't seem like it was something that would immediately hurt her. No way to uncover intent until she figured out just what that was. Truth be told, from what she was sensing in that mask, she almost wanted to try it on and see just what the enchantment was. Almost. For now, though?

"I don't sense any malicious magic on the mask. There is an enchantment set to go off as soon as I pick it up, but it doesn't seem inherently dangerous," she reported to her comrades, "I think we're okay to pick it up."

Time was running short on their expedition. Even if she wasn't sure what would happen the moment she picked up the mask, at the very least, it didn't seem immediately harmful. So she decided to trust her senses. To take a leap of faith. Perhaps her comrades would follow her in. Perhaps they would wait behind in caution. Either way, Ordella walked up to the mask-

-gently wrapped her fingers around it-

-and picked it up.

Moonberry StarPrincessVal Vaudivolt

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[Moonberry]

Hideki ​

Hideki ambled alongside Tomo, his strides a casual mimicry of nonchalance. To any onlooker, it would appear he merely sauntered at his own leisure, yet Tomo, unwittingly or not, carved the path ahead. The air around them thickened with enchantment as Ordella wove her sorcery, each gesture weaving invisible threads through the charged atmosphere. Hideki found himself momentarily entranced, his gaze locked on the dance of power before him, a ballet of the arcane that drew his world into a quiet awe.

As Ordella's hand reached out, deliberate and graceful, to tame the wild magic, Hideki's intrigue twisted into alarm. His ears flattened, melding into the silhouette of his head, and his tail, a barometer of his fear, tucked itself securely between his legs. His muscles coiled like springs, tension singing through his frame. By the time her fingers clasped around the pulsing energy, Hideki was already a blur of motion, his body hurtling towards the promise of refuge in a practiced leap of escape.

 

[Vaudivolt]

Tomo
Languages: Common, <Beastial>
While Tomo dug through the shifting earth and stone, a thought crossed his mind. It had been a while since digging had been this interesting – or rather be interesting altogether. In his previous life, it had been a means to an end for the longest time. Something that passed the time and staved off boredom as he searched for the non-existent treasures beneath the earth. Back then, it had been the make-believe, but now, things were different. And that slowly began to dawn on him.

One more drag of his paw and the open passage revealed itself – with Mimi greeting them from the other side of the rubble. And Tomo's tail could not resist wagging from her smiling face. “We found ways through now,” he said, glancing back at the pedestal and half mask that glinted in the light of day, “ye all step light, though. There flows magic here.”

After providing a vague warning to the group, Tomo took an interest in Ordella approaching the mask. He joined at her side and sat down on the stone floor. His head cocked to the side. “You think it safe, or you know it? I have still a good few years and all!” Tomo questioned, then insisted as Ordella's fingers wrapped around the mask, “Oh! That is class it is, that, it, is--” He barked and backed up a couple of feet. His ears lay flat as he kept an eye on Ordella lifting the mask. A mixture of concern and curiosity filled him whole.

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Interactions: StarPrincessVal Gwen_Temi
Mentions: Moonberry

 

[StarPrincessVal]

Sealed Section, Target of the Expedition
​

As Ordella gripped the mask, she noticed something off about it immediately. It did not move like something loose lying on a pedestal, but felt rigid and affixed in place. As she lifted, it felt as though a weight was holding it down, though not locking it in place, merely giving substance to its invisible tether. As she lifted it further away, it got easier to move until it came free, causing her to stumble back lightly as the final resistance caved. As she held it to the others though, they seemed transfixed on the spot she had just moved from. "Don't just stand there, pick it up!" The excited words of the wolf girl broke the silence to the necromancers confusion, and when she turned back tot he pedestal, she was greeted to the sight of herself gripping the mask between her hands.

While the necromancer struggled to rationalize her experience, to the rest it merely appeared she had paused mid task, as though waiting for some sign before continuing. All three sets of canine ears perked simultaneously as a rhythmic clicking of metal on stone suddenly began to echo through the strange tunnel at the back of the room. As it grew louder, several more sets of clicks began to join it. Clearly something was coming.

Spoiler: Mission Status

Time Remaining: 5 hrs

Available Objectives:

• Search around the outside rubble
• Search the unobstructed interior
  • Keep the Implements (A)
  • Use the Implements (A)
  • Open the Panel
  • Smash the Idol (B)
  • Take the Idol (B)
• Attempt to enter the sealed sections of the temple
  • Force open the secondary door uncovered in the interior
    • Take the Golden Mask
    • Explore the Tunnel
    • Examine the cave in
• Regroup and discuss

Remaining Supplies:

• Excavation Tools (+1 to Effectiveness for check)
• Excavation Tools (+1 to Effectiveness for check)
• +Skeletal Arm (+1 to Effectiveness of Ordella's Spirit Reading)

Recovered Artifacts:

• Standard: 2
  • Ancient Dagger
  • Ancient Wine Container
• Unique: 1
  • Ancient Silver Plated Crown w/ Precious Stones and Bone

Mentions: Vaudivolt Moonberry Gwen_Temi

 

[Gwen_Temi]

Ordella
​

With a steady pull, the mask came loose from its pedestal.

Ordella paused for a moment to see what spell she'd set off as she freed the mask. Nothing, it seemed. She studied it within her hands for a moment before presenting it to her allies. Allies who seemed to be far more preoccupied with something other than the relic.

"Don't just stand there, pick it up!"
​

The Undertaker's head slowly tilted to one side as the confusion set in. She pointed towards the mask in her hand, just in case it wasn't blatanly obvious. No response from any of the once again. Her eyes darted back and forth between her companions in disbelief.

"Um..." She walked over to Mimi, put her hand on her shoulder, and watched it pass right on through without resistance, "...what?"

She glanced down at her hand that, at the very least, seemed completely normal. Then, finally, she turned her attention in the direction that everyone else had been looking and caught sight of her own body still holding a duplicate of the very same mask. Truthfully Ordella wasn't exactly certain what was going on, but her line of work gave her some immediate assumptions.

"Out of body experience." she surmised, "Am I dead?"

She tried it with her other two companions; phasing through them both with ease. Then she walked over to what she could only assume to be her own body and looked it over for signs of life. A beating heart and warm breath, to be exact.

"Perhaps. Though, it's probably best I proceed under the assumption that I'm not."

Most sane people would've have been as calm as Ordella had been in that moment. But then again, most people didn't surround themselves with and comfort the dead for a living. The fact that The Undertaker was making a conscious effort to keep her cool wasn't exactly hurting the situation either. She'd already deduced that the enchantments on and around the mask weren't meant to do harm. The same couldn't be said for whatever was approaching.

Best to focus on figuring out the mask first and worry about whatever was approaching afterwards.

To that end, she had one assumption in her mind. Whatever this spell was, if it could be broken, then it would most likely require her to either return the mask or wear it. Obviously, the latter was a more attractive option. So, she walked over to the pedestal and performed an experiment based on her current observations.

"Nothing left to do but test the waters."

Assuming that her left hand would pass through the pedestal just as easily as it had the others, she would reach out- palm facing upwards- and rest her hand just below the mask being held by her body double. Then, she would bring her right hand over the second mask, line hers up just above it, and drop it back down. And she had a bit of foresight in this experiment. Assuming that the spell continued even after she released the mask and that the mask was just as intangible as she was?

She had her left hand already waiting below to catch it before it had the chance to fall straight through to the center of the earth.

...

...or wherever it may have ended up.

Actions:
1) Check the other Ordella for signs of life.
2) Position open hand below the mask's resting spot on the pedestal.
3) Drop mask onto resting place and see what happens.
​

StarPrincessVal Vaudivolt Moonberry

 

[Moonberry]

Hideki​

Hideki whined, his ears twitching with every ticking of the trap that was coming towards them. His instincts screamed for him to run as fast as he could. The girl had obviously just set off a trap. But she seemed to be in a daze. Some small part of him screamed that he couldn't just leave a lady behind. Even if he was an almost literal dog. He shook his head, frustration washing over his entire being. His tail flicked from side to side instinctively as his muscles finally started to obey his thoughts, rather than the urge to run. Loping forward towards Ordella, he grabbed hold of the hem of her robe with his teeth. He tugged lightly, growling lowly to try and get her attention. And though she wobbled slightly, she didn't seem to be responding to anything around her. In fact, now that he could see her expression, she looked like she had one of those thousand-yard stares. His ears fell back against his head as the pressure of the urgency began to weigh on him. One glance to Mimi and Tomo was all the time he could spare in thought. Without any further thought, he rushed to grab the first tool he could find, picking it up with his jaws. Then as quickly and carefully as he could with his knowledge of [Traps] and [Physics] Nosed the mask in Ordellas hand away from the pedastal. Intending to nudge the tool onto the pedastal in the masks place.

┌──────── ஓ๑⋆⋅☆⋅⋆๑ஓ ────────┐​

Mentions: StarPrincessVal Vaudivolt Gwen_Temi​

 

[Vaudivolt]

Tomo
Languages: Common, <Beastial>
Tomo watched from a distance as Ordella gripped the mask and held it in place. “Are you right? Is it stuck on top it?” He asked, concerned by Ordella's lack of response to Mimi's excitement. “Oh! This got somethin' cursed about it, does it--” Tomo huffed as flattened ears raised cautiously, his head cocked to the side, “--shite...”

“Della?” He barked and hesitantly approached the still figure, “Better not be pullin' leashes now...” One step further, and Tomo suddenly froze in place. His golden fur stood on edge as a wave of bitter cold washed over him. “Either of you feel that?” Tomo asked as he glanced at Mimi and Hideki, “Sudden freezin', like shakin' hands with the reaper--” He did not wait for a response as his ears flicked toward the echoing sounds of metal on stone filled the hollow hall. “What I say about knowin' it safe?!”

There was no knowing what would happen, but he could not leave Ordella frozen in place and save his own fur. “Next time,” Tomo started as he moved in on Ordella and sunk his fangs into her clothing, “when I sae ifh curshed, if curshed!!” He mumbled through his fangs and attempted to pull Ordella away from the pedestal. Struggling to move her even an inch, he saw Hideki attempt the same thing - until the wolf changed tactics. Fetching one of their tools, Hideki attempted to nudge it onto the pedestal. Was he hoping to reset some weighted mechanism? “I thust you goht that fihured an' all?” It was worth an attempt, but Tomo continued pulling on Ordella's clothing - in case the replacement weight did not stop whatever was coming.

Stats Used: Strength E

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Mentions: -
Interactions: StarPrincessVal Gwen_Temi Moonberry