Ruin's Dawn: Conquering Hive

[Balthazar Black]

35 Saun, 721

As the group moved forward into the dark swamp, Balthazar couldn't help but notice the cat from earlier in the Labyrinth had gone with them. He didn't know why it struck him as strange but as soon as they were in the swamp Balthazar dismissed the cat from his thoughts to focus on the hunt. The place they found themselves in might have looked more interesting to Tor'ree than Balthazar but his eyes narrowed a little and he tried to focus on the details he could see. Darkness surrounded them on all directions but one- forward. Their enemy stood, alerted by Nir'wei's wolves but still seemingly unaware of the party moving in to stop them. There were darker patches in various places which Balthazar realized was water when he saw the black mirror stretching out between them and those they were after.

They'd probably have to touch water to get close to the enemy and doing so would give away their location to anyone with vision like Tor'ree had if they were observant. Water caused ripples and now that the burning men were on edge from the first attack Balthazar assumed they would notice. He held up a hand to indicate the group should stop where they were because he thought they should try to plan ahead a little now that they'd seen what they were working with. Hearing about it and seeing the situation first hand were very different things. Still, given that he could hear the conversation of the two on the other side of the room standing just free of the water, he wasn't sure speaking was the best idea.

Fuego, you go first, you're the only one who won't make any noise. Distract them. Fortunately Balthazar and Fuego spoke telepathically so no noise was made by them coordinating.

How? It was a fair question. Balthazar's brow furrowed and he looked down at the flaming rock. He had an idea but it was not perfect in any way. Fuego looked somewhat like a smaller magnim- a flameborn from Rharne, and that seed sprouted the plan Balthazar gave the diri.

Materialize before them, pretend to be a boon from Faldrun while we move in.

I don't... I don't know how to do that.

Just wave your arms a bit, be brave, little friend. You don't need to distract them long, just long enough for us to cross the water. Ralgar and I will be right behind you. Fuego looked up at Balthazar and then across the water and nodded his body before his stubby legs took him away. Only the Forged could see Fuego unless he chose to materialize to others which would, in theory, get him across the water and to the little portion of raised land the burning men were on undetected.

He wanted Ralgar to come with him and Tor'ree to go with Elisabeth which he communicated by first tapping Ralgar's shoulder and then gesturing between the two of them. He estimated that made it clear he wanted Ralgar to come with him but he didn't know how to say he wanted Tor'ree to go with Elisabeth without first saying what he and Ralgar would do so Balthazar went from gesturing to Ralgar that he wanted the man to come with him, to pointing down the direct path towards the two on fire. There was more water there than if they chose another route but Balthazar figured it would be safest for he and Ralgar to go that way and draw attention. There were other considerations that lead to the pairings he'd chosen. Tor'ree had the superior sight to avoid tripping over little things that he or Ralgar might have if they tried to sneak around. He also knew Elisabeth could defend her and assist in a quick decisive strike from behind once they made it to the target. She didn't fight often, but she trained a lot. Hopefully it was good for something in the heat of the moment.

Once he'd tapped Ralgar, gestured between them, and then pointed down the clearest path to the two flaming men, Balthazar gently tapped his fist on his palm. He meant to indicate that they'd be the distraction but he might have instead accidentally conveyed that he meant for them to strike first. Then he pointed to Elisabeth and Tor'ree, making sure they saw him gesturing, and he moved his hand in a hook shape in front of himself- trying to indicate he wanted them to move around the room and strike from behind. He brought a finger to his lips in what was a fairly universal sign that he wanted them to go as quietly as possible, then he dragged the finger across his throat. He did not want to kill the Aukari he knew little about but he knew no other way to convey that he wanted Elisabeth and Tor'ree to strike while the aukari were distracted by Balthazar and Ralgar.

As soon as he thought the message was understood, Balthazar gave a broad, more sweeping gesture to indicate they should move. He took the lead, mostly because he wasn't sure if the gestures were getting the point across and if not, moving was probably the best way to force the rest of them to move. They were all there under the mutual agreement to go after Faldrun's minions so if the message didn't get across, stopping the minions was still a good plan.

At the edge of the water, Balthazar stopped again and would hold an arm out to stop whoever came with him. If a group followed his advice and tried to move around the water to take the Aukari from behind they wouldn't have to worry about the timing as much so he was not concerned with stopping them. Ready, Fuego?

Ready. And as the little diri passed that thought, it appeared on the ground before the two Aukari, waving its arms in the air to get their attention as its little fire burned around its body much like their fire was burning around their bodies. While Fuego tried to distract them, Balthazar moved towards the Aukari in the most direct path. Balthazar put his hand on the handle of his sword but he didn't draw it because he knew the blade would give them away if nothing else did. If they got close enough without being noticed and his plan turned out to be unnecessarily complicated for two goons, he'd strike to disable- but they were still on the approach and anything could go wrong.

► Show Spoiler

For Reference: Fuego looks like this.

[Elisabeth Black]

Arc 721, 35 Saun

Well, that had escalated quickly.

Elisabeth wasn’t exactly sure what Nir’wei was speaking of. Just a few moments earlier, he stated he was making a choice and suddenly, it was indecision? She wasn’t following his line of thinking, but it wasn’t her business either. The young woman couldn’t control another’s actions, nor would she – she could only control her own.

The Labyrinth hadn’t hurt any of them. Her faith was with the Labyrinth itself, and the people she was with, Nir’wei included. He felt differently about their situation, and moved to exit the area, remarking about her necklace on the way out.

Quickly thinking about it, Elisabeth wasn’t sure if his assessment was correct. The necklace was an object that originated outside of the Labyrinth, and things that they had brought from the outside hadn’t seemed to be affected by the place. The mage may not have known much about the necklace, but she felt she knew enough to judge its actions – it was reacting to the eggs.

Glancing at Balthazar, Elisabeth knew that the delay was bothering him. They had been together long enough that she was aware of how much he disliked inaction, or the appearance of such.

There was a part of Balthazar, however, that was like her – trying to figure out the logic of the Labyrinth. He didn’t think it would keep them apart with physical barriers, and Elisabeth wasn’t so sure. There was an element of chaos in the Labyrinth that made it unpredictable, certainly, but she didn’t believe that the Labyrinth couldn’t distinguish between their good intentions and the nefarious ones of the other group.

She believed that. Hope was a powerful emotion. Elisabeth knew this to be true, having seen it with her own eyes.

Balthazar’s irritation was increasing – she heard it in his words to her about ‘hurrying up’ with her investigation between the eggs and necklace. What did he expect her to be able to do? It wasn’t as if the necklace was chatty about the things it liked or disliked. Elisabeth knew there was something to the reaction but everyone else seemed to either not care or want to dismiss as some weird byproduct of the Labyrinth.

Sighing softly, the mage nodded. She hated the idea of walking away from the only clue she had gotten in a long while as to the necklace’s identity – and perhaps hers - but her needs were not important in that moment - she knew that. Right then, however, she did wish that someone would've listened to her words instead of simply hearing and dismissing them. None of them realized the importance of what she was choosing to walk away from - Balthazar included.

Out of an abundance of caution, her hands gently unfastened the necklace and secured it in her pocket, just in case it reacted to anything else and decided to show its explosive side again. “I’ll figure this out sometrial. Just not this one apparently. There have to be more clues out there somewhere.”

It was hard to explain how she felt about the necklace, and obviously she hadn’t tried hard enough with Balathazar. Her fault really – the past was not something she wished to talk about. Everything before Rharne was dangerous territory for the young mage to speak of. The necklace represented everything Elisabeth didn’t know about herself. Not knowing where one came from was to live life with a piece missing, but at least with the necklace, she had someone. One clue. Balthazar had given her a few more, and the eggs another, but their mission was time sensitive and no time to investigate or gather information.

Balthazar began speaking of his thoughts about the Labyrinth and the mission they were on. Elisabeth wasn’t surprised that their thoughts on most things aligned. The man she loved was trying to convince Ralgar and Tor’ree to continue with him, and she simply listened. Balthazar, in his time, had seen horrible things happen, and he believed himself in a position to perhaps prevent another terrible event.

Both the woman and Ralgar spoke their support, moving into the passageway with Balthazar. That left her, glancing one more time at the eggs before moving away from the nest.

Elisabeth didn’t speak. It was perhaps telling that she didn’t, but there would be little outward indication as to the reason for her sudden silence.

The cat wriggled and wanted down, prompting her to release it. Balthazar briefly acknowledged her, then turned to go down the path of the hunt. She walked over to the Explorer, kneeling next to him and laying a gentle hand on his arm before departing. “Do you wish to stay here, or come with us?” She didn’t wish to leave him alone, but if that was his choice, she would abide by it. If the Explorer came with them, Elisabeth would take guard next to him, attempting to keep him and the others safe.

Taking up the rear of the group, Elisabeth determined logically that Balthazar would want Tor’ree near the front and everyone else between the two of them.

The path before them was every inch the swamp they had been promised. The cat traveled with them, and Elisabeth focused on trying to see issues before they became issues. Her eyes tended to be better than Balthazar’s, although in the low light, Elisabeth wasn’t so sure. Regardless, she kept her eyes and ears open, hoping to find something to help them out in the new environment.

Before long, they came upon the Aukari, and were halted by Balthazar. Elisabeth’s sword was ready at her side, waiting to see what he decided to do. She had three ‘weapons’ at her disposal – blade, unarmed and Defiance. All three she would employ to protect herself and others.

The young mage could see Fuego and suspected that Balthazar was forming a plan that involved the diri. She considered Fintan but decided against the idea for the moment.

Then, Balthazar began his series of hand gestures, causing Elisabeth to furrow her brow a bit. They were fairly straightforward although the hook took her a bit to logic through. She wasn’t sure where the edges of the room were but heading to them and trying to come up behind the pair of Aukari seemed to be a plan, and her and Tor’ree needed to get going if they were going to accomplish it.

Touching the woman’s arm, she pointed to the edge of the room, jerking her head gently to indicate they should depart. It would take them a few moments to get into position in her estimation.

Regardless of if Tor’ree accompanied her or not, Elisabeth departed, carefully attempting to work her way through the vegetation, to circle behind the Aukari, thinking the entire time about what she would do when she got there. There was no desire to kill anyone, only cease their activities. If Ralgar and Balthazar managed to distract them, Elisabeth would attempt to disable them. Their fire was an issue, but she had Defiance as a counter there. She wasn’t entirely sure how their fire worked, but she had access to a natural source of water, and perhaps dousing would be a good idea.

If she made it to where she was headed, Elisabeth would crouch down, hidden, waiting for a sign that it was time to approach.

[Nir'wei]

He didn't look back, but Nir'wei knew he walked alone when he left the Labyrinth. It didn't make a move to stop him from leaving, or passing through the same rooms that he'd passed through on his way inside. Most of them. There was no snow-filled room, nor a dungeon. He suspected the skulls and bones had something to do with it, which of course only raised further doubts about the giant skeletons and their options. He wished the rest of them luck in it, though he could no longer tell them as much when he finally stood outside again and sucked a slow, deep breath through his mouth. He was outside. Really, properly outside.

Except, now what was he supposed to do?

"Collapse the entrance," Cold said at once, glancing back to the carved stone of the entrance... and then up higher, to the overhang of carved stone that balanced directly over the ornate gateway. "Weaken the structure. Collapse the overhang, the surrounding stone of the cliff side, and the stone entrance." It was the simplest and most direct option. It wouldn't be outright impossible. Probably. What about other exits? "We'll search for them next." What about the Aukari trapped inside digging their way to freedom? "Through solid stone?" Possibly. "If they can do that, there's no chance we could handle them in a direct fight anyway." The more he thought about that, the more he had to agree. There was still one question left, though. What about the others?

Greyhide lifted his head to Nir'wei, then looked back towards the Labyrinth entrance. "They made their choice knowing the consequences. We can now only honour it." It took a moment for understanding to click, but when it did, he sighed. "Do not dishonour their sacrifice with doubt." Greyhide looked back to him and their eyes met, each glowing the same silver hue. "Collapsing the entrance is a start. We don't have time to waste."

Admittedly, he had absolutely no idea how to destroy an entire rock shelf like the one looming above. He recalled how Maxine was able to summon a storm large enough to cause a landslide, but that much was well outside his power. Instead, he spread his wolves around the surrounding area, to explore around the rock shelf and above it, mapping out its geography in their shared consciousness. Two squads of three circled left and right and each spread out from that point - Cold leading Squeak and Castile while Myrth led Kin and Sovar. There was a clear plan to find the weakest points of the sculpted rock overhang from above, gather all of his wolves and Vabina in a line along its edge, and begin using their combined strength and weight to create a fracture line. Their weights were not insignificant, with Vabina alone weighing some several hundred pounds before her tripled-over enhancements. Nir'wei, however, remained underneath. The Bow of the Eternal Hunt in both hands and the Storm Quiver on his back, he tested his grip and exhaled slowly, trying to calm his nerves. "It's the first time trying this out," he told Karesh, "but I hope you'll be able to handle it." She should, surely. The bow was of Karem herself, and of the highest quality and enchantments. Still. Firsts always made him nervous.

Especially when it involved making full use of his Enhanced Capability and fuelling every bit of his strength into his bow for the first shot into the underside of the rock shelf, slamming the first arrow into the stone with more strength than any mortal could produce. The second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth landed in rapid succession afterwards, arranged in a neat line.

If push came to shove, he knew the arrows would not run out. It was a hail mary, and he knew it. But there were at least a few more to run through before he truly ran out of ideas - and Cyshe and Gaddwin separated for the moment to begin pursuing the next. The two winged spirits floated high into the air to survey their surroundings and determine exactly where they were on Rynmere - Nir'wei was quite familiar with the island, having spent a good couple of arcs travelling over its surface by foot. In particular, though, he wanted to know the distance to the Sunset Isles - and the Stone Garden. After all... if he could not produce the strength necessary alone, there was still a chance for reinforcements.

[Ralgar Warborn]

Leaving Nir'wei behind was far from the option Ralgar wanted to take, but it was what he felt he had to do now, more than anything. He had seen Nir'wei, how competent the man was and confident with his pack. If anyone could survive on their own it was him. He was confident in that. While he had faith in the group he was with, they needed him more now than Nir'wei did. While Nir'wei had some certainty in his route out of the labyrinth, the others were going into a danger they could do little to prepare for.

Once they made their way through Ralgar felt a small tap on his shoulder, Balthazar gesturing for him to follow. Enough time in the jungles of Scaltoth meant he understood the basics of what he meant, nodding as he kept his head low, club in hand, being careful not to let it drag on the floor. The tall man was in no way stealthy, though it wouldn't take long for the group to realize that much. Perhaps it wasn't necessary, as whatever Balthazar gestured after confused the man a little more. A fist on the palm, the man pondered for a moment, before simply deciding he would follow the lead of Balth and leave it to that.

Better safe than sorry.

After all the gestures were made, Ralgar following quietly as Balthazar had gestured for them to do, he did his best to sneak behind the man that was now leading the group. While it wasn't entirely evident from such a small encounter, Ralgar would have bet his cloak that Balthazar had military experience or practice in some sort of group of fighters. It was hard to tell off a few experiences, but the man knew what he was doing, which made the situation feel more under control. It would make a difference against an enemy they knew so little about, the Deathkissed believed.

When they made it to their spot Ralgar finally understood, as the Diri appeared and started to cause a distraction, the man gripping his club tight in case they needed to fight. Should Balthazar move on an enemy Ralgar would do the same, attempting to use his club as a bludgeon, hitting one in the back as hard as he could. A part of Ralgar felt an adrenaline rush at the thought of a fight, but another knew better. If things went bad and his powers become necessary, things would get out of control fast. The last thing he needed was a rampage, to go berserk in a place like this. Even if he wasn't as good with a weapon as the others, if he turned on them in his moment of adrenaline it wouldn't matter, the invincibility making him dangerous.

So he was determined to make sure that didn't happen.

~~Haltunga~~ Common~~

[Tor'ree]

The woman followed the two men as they made it to the room which held the confused and on edge Aukari cult members. She got low and took her time looking around the room to see what was hidden within the darkness. It was a surprise that the light from across the water did not bother her. When Balthazar began to motion for the girls to go around the back while he and Ralgar distracted them, the woman grabbed their arms. She wanted to make sure they knew exactly what was within the water. A staircase going down could be a game changer if the pair went down on accident and ended up in another room.

Tor’ree kept her voice as low as possible while drawing out the biggest water in front of them on the diagram he had made of the plan. She made lines that appeared to be descending into the water.

“There are stairs going down into the water. If you go that way you must go around one way or the other. There are bushes and trees here,” Tor’ree whispered and drew them on the map as well, “we will get behind them and wait for your signal. Be safe and make sure to keep the water from rippling too much.”

Tor’ree looked at Elisabeth and began to make her way around the back with her. She stopped and checked on where the Aukari was before continuing. It took longer than the woman would have wanted to make it into position. Hiding in place, the Sev’ryn took out her whip and kept it prepared to use. Though the woman made sure not to let it fully hang loose before it was time to strike. If it became tangled up on her limbs, the other woman, or the environment that would leave her vulnerable.

[Basilisk]

Raskalarn's team split in two and went their separate ways. Nir'wei returned to the entrance and set his plan to bring down the entrance to the labyrinth into motion. It took a bit for his familiars to find a weak spot, right above the entrance to the labyrinth, but once they did, their combined weight and strength was able to open a wider crack. The arrows Nir'wei was shooting into the crack helped as well, and of course the bow was able to handle his enhanced strength. It took ten arrows, and a lot of exertion from his Spirits, but part of the shelf did eventually collapse over the entrance. It wasn't enought to completely block it, but it was enough to make getting out without assistance a proper pain.

The remainder of the team stayed inside the labyrinth and went to attack the Aukari. Balthazar had a plan, but there turned out to be some flaws with it. Namely, he wasn't familiar with the abilities of his companions, or their limitations. If he was, he might have worked out that neither Elisabeth nor Tor'ree were particularly stealthy. Of course, a distraction wasn't necessarily a bad idea, but there were other problems.

When Fuego appeared in their midst, that did distract the Aukari long enough for everyone to get into position. If they'd actually attacked instead of waiting to see how their distraction worked, their plan, rough as it was, would probably have worked. Instead, between the pause and the not very stealthy sneaking Elisabeth has 0 stealth and Tor'ree has 5 from Tor'ree and Elisabeth, the Aukari recovered and got the first move. Since they were outnumbered two to one, or more if you counted the caretaker who had followed them in, they decided discretion was the better part of valor and promptly bailed, heading for the exit on the opposite end of the room.

While all this was going on, however, something else was happening. Deep in the labyrinth, a gilded shield lay on the ground next to a truly massive fly egg. Though there was no one to see it, the shield was filling with energy and glowing brightly. Then it filled to capacity and let out a soft clicking sound before vanishing in a rush of energy. As it did so, a bell-like chime sounded throughout the entire labyrinth, so that everyone in it could hear. And when they heard that sound, a vision filled their heads.



Three people stood on the shores of an island, though only one of them looked like a regular person. That was a tall man in polished armor with a heavy fur cape. He was a big man, tall and broad, though he gave off the appearance of being well muscled. He looked old as well, his hair and beard both a snowy white, and his face was lined with sorrow and regret. Next to him was a woman that many Idalosians would recognize. She had long dark hair, pale skin, and red eyes. She was wearing polished gold armor, though she was bare headed at the moment. Her most defining feature, however, was the long chocolate brown tail she had in place of legs. Ethelynda was almost unchanged, but she looked somehow younger and less worn, and she lacked her Fracture Scar.

The person standing across from Ethelynda and the armored man, however, was the least human of them all. It was, in fact, a Dragon. A massive, four winged beast with lightning arcing across its body and long horns that towered over both of the others. Then, the Dragon lowered one of its claws and held it out to Ethelynda, who held out her hands. Four spheres quickly transferred from the Dragons claw to her hands, where they seemed to vanish into her.

Ethelynda pulled back her hands and looked at them with a shocked, sad look. "So few?" she asked, looking up at the Dragon, which shook its head. "There were never many of us. We were fifteen, once. By the time you arrived, only ten remained. Now, there are only four. We retrieved four souls, but two have been lost, perhaps forever." the Dragon said, his voice clearly male. Then, he turned and looked at the old man. "It is done. Keep your promise." he said, before he took off, flying back towards the interior of the island.

Ethelynda looked at the man, her expression saddened. "Do you really have to do this, father?" she asked, sounding almost as if she were ready to cry. Luesco reached out and patted Ethelynda's shoulder, his face saddened. "I wish we didn't have too, but Anox and Cierel would not stop until they exterminated the last Dragons. At least this way, they'll survive until we can guarantee their safety in the world at large." he said, before turning back to his task.

With a deep sigh, Luesco raised his hands a spoke a word in a language long since lost, his tone a clear command. At his word, there was an enormous cracking sound, as if the world itself had split apart. Then the island began to rise out of the sea, and others rose alongside it. Ethelynda and Luesco were left floating above the ocean, which quickly filled the gaps the islands had left, as the Iulure Isles took their place in the skies, where they would remain for millenia to come.



As the vision passed, it became apparent that not much time had passed, only a few seconds, and everyone had seen it. The Aukari were both shaking their heads to clear the vision, as was the caretaker. Even Nir'wei, who was just barely outside the labyrinth, and his familiars had seen it. Then things began to go sideways as a deep rumbling filled the labryinth, as if something large had just growled, and the fly eggs, which Elisabeth and Tor'ree had seen a lot more of as they explored, began to hatch.

The creatures that hatched from the eggs were insectoid in appearance, but they were also much larger. Chitinous black armor, dragonfly wings, compound eyes, and a pincer mouth definitely said insect, but the overall structure of the creature was something else entirely, something far more draconic. The Dragonlings shook themselves, then looked at the mortals roaming the labyrinth. There was a moment, just a moment, of hesitation, and then they began to breath out a sweet smelling purplish mist. If anyone remained in it, they would notice that they felt their will start to drain away, and something else began to connect to their minds.

The only one who wasn't affected by this was the caretaker, who smiled at them. "Don't fight it. We don't want to hurt you. The labyrinth and I have been part of this for so long, and it's beautiful. Give yourself to the Hive Mind, and become part of something greater, something so much more than anyone can be on their own." he said, his tone gentle and encouraging. None of the Dragonlings made a move to attack, they just kep breathing out that mist. The Aukari, of course, were having none of this and began to attack the Dragonlings, who started trying to pin them down so they couldn't escape. The other four still had their choice to make, though. Would they become part of the Hive Mind, or would they fight it and try to escape that fate?

Things weren't going any better for Nir'wei, though. While there were no Dragonlings, his own shadow and risen up and begun to envelope him. No power he possessed was able to drive it away, nor were any of his familiars able to help him. While there might be others who could drive the shadow back, he was utterly alone and cut off from any help. In only a few seconds, he was gone, taken by his own shadow.

However, if he looked up before he vanished, would see the skies above Idalos turn purple and begin to crack as if it were a glass pane. As he did, every sleeping person on Idalos woke up screaming as their dreams fractured in their heads.

!

Message from: Basilisk

Hey everyone, I'm interrupting because we're moving into the general endgame phase of the event. For those curious about the quest to stop the artifact, I'm afraid the event was never really about that, that was just the IC intention. The Ascension post will have the answers as to what happened to the Artifact. Nir'wei, you've been pulled into Ascension and will be posting there from now on. Ascension can be found here: viewtopic.php?f=414&t=27131&start=10

[Balthazar Black]

35 Saun, 721

There was a very brief moment when it seemed like the plan might work. Fuego had the attention of the two Aukari and everyone was moving into position. He and Ralgar had almost reached them when it seemed the minions of Faldrun realized what was happening and made a quick retreat. Balthazar hoped he could have done more to inspire the others performance but without words his communication had been hindered. It wasn't the worst thing that could have happened- the two deciding they were better off running. If the four meant to stop them they would have to give chase though. Fuego returned to Balthazar who was preparing to pursue the Aukari who he was sure he could catch when suddenly a loud bell-like chime ripped through the air.

Balthazar's attention shifted to his group for a moment. He searched Tor'ree, Elisabeth, and Ralgar's faces to see if they'd heard the same noise and before he even made it to Ralgar a vision filled his head. There were being on the shore of some island Balthazar didn't recognize. A younger looking Ethelynda, a man in polished armor with a fur cape, and a... dragon? Lightning arced around the massive, four winged creature with large claws and somehow the most remarkable thing about it was how it spoke to them like any other race would. It spoke a language they understood, or perhaps only understood because of the vision- or for the same reasons they understood Ralgar now. Four spheres passed from the claw of the Dragon to the Immortal and it spoke to the man of a promise that had been made. Etheynda was distressed, the dragon departed, and the Immortal's father returned to whatever task they were being shown.

Then it was over and they were all still in the Labyrinth. Balthazar seemed to recover from the vision a little more quickly than some of the others. He noticed the Aukari and caretaker who'd followed them still seemed to be shaking off the effects. Balthazar grabbed the handle of his sword and began to draw the red hot blade from the sheath. Inaction gave the Aukari the chance to slip past them the first time, he couldn't let them recover before- suddenly a rumbling filled the Labyrinth like some massive creature bellowing. The bellow was followed by cracking, lots of cracking and Balthazar slid his blade back into place in the sheath. He felt safer with his hands free for the moment. His eyes searched the darkness and found large creatures emerging from the eggs that had attracted Elisabeth's necklace a few bits prior.

"Everyone together!" Balthazar said loud enough for Tor'ree, Elisabeth and Ralgar to hear it. He began backing towards the body of water with the stairs Tor'ree had told them about while the rest of the group hopefully came closer to him. "Tor'ree eyes open for an exit." She'd mentioned stairs in the water but Balthazar wasn't sure stairs meant an escape. The Aukari had just lost their place on his priority list when strange dragonling insects hatched from a bunch of eggs immediately after the whole room had a vision about an Immortal, their father, and a Dragon. The creatures that had emerged gave a small shimmy and turned to watch the group for a few trills. They just watched, they didn't lunge or advance or attack really until they began to breath out a purple mist. There was a little space between the creatures and the group but not so much that they had a lot of time to think before the mist would reach them.

Then the Caretaker, the Explorer, whatever he was called, began to speak and Balthazar hoped he might say something helpful but instead the root of the madness they'd all suspected was revealed. It seemed he'd become no better than those who'd been infected with the Creep in Quacia but this group was far too small to employ any tactic like he had in Quacia. The group was too small, and he had much less magic at his disposal. They were outnumbered as well and as the Aukari who could immolate their entire bodies proved resistance would be difficult. Judging by how they flailed against the creatures, Balthazar thought that he might have a better chance but he really did not want to find out. The Caretaker had smiled, he spoke in a calm voice with clear words. It was more unnerving than when he'd seemed mad. Impulse told Balthazar to fight and society always told him his impulse was wrong so he gave one chance for negotiation. One chance to see if they were receptive to it.

"No one has to hurt anyone," Balthazar said first, hoping he hadn't completely wasted his time saving the man's life, "but none of us want to join your hive mind." He could stall, but he couldn't stall forever and the mist was coming. He didn't know what it did yet but he was not looking forward to finding out. The Aukari were pinned but Balthazar noticed the creatures were not trying to kill them... probably because they wanted to convert them but Balthazar was trying not to think about that. "That doesn't mean we can't work together but we four are more use to everyone with our own minds intact." Balthazar said taking a step back into the edge of the water, hoping to get a few more trills before the mist reached him as well as to inch closer to a possible cover, "Stop this mist and lets discuss it. You said yourself you wanted us to become something greater than anyone could become on their own, but being part of one mind is being on your own. There are advantages to outside perspectives."

[Elisabeth Black]

Arc 721, 35 Saun

They weren’t very quiet, but everything seemed to have gone according to plan. The two young women had managed to get in place, arriving without detection where they were supposed to be.

Everything was going according to plan, until it didn’t.

Elisabeth saw the two Aukari begin to run and launched into motion herself. She was strong and athletic, so there was no doubt in her mind that they could be chased down. And then the chime-like bell sounded.

Her eyes searched the room, wondering where it came from, but the expressions on others faces seemed to indicate that they were all hearing the same thing. Before Elisabeth knew it, the visions arrived. “Lovely…” murmured to herself. The last time she had visions, things had turned a bit upside down. Was this a continuation?

She immediately recognized Ethelynda – the Immortal had spoken to her after the events of the Forging, and Elisabeth was involved in a task for the Shieldmaiden. And….a dragon? An unexpected reveal. The scene played out, and subsided, and the room came into focus once again. Everyone had been stopped in their tracks, it seemed, which mean the vision was not specific to her.

Before she could resume chase of the Aukari, a rumble came. A loud, deep one, followed by cracking. Lots of cracking. Casting a glance around, Elisabeth realized that the eggs that her necklace had reacted to in the center chamber were now hatching – all around them. Balthazar’s voice rang out, and she immediately responded, falling back to where he was, understanding the wisdom of the call.

Before she did, however, she glanced at Tor’ree, beckoning her to follow. “Better together.” Only two words, but the situation didn’t really lend itself to long explanations.

Turning her back to Balthazar, she surveyed the room to get a better read on the situation. With Balthazar behind her, anything coming for her would have to get through him first, and vise versa. Whether Tor’ree or Ralgar joined them was their own choice, but at that moment, she felt, they had a better chance together than cast apart.

Elisabeth considered, briefly, bonding with Balthazar using her Qylios' gifted abilities, allowing them to fight more effectively, but she was hopeful it wouldn't come to that and that they could find a way out of the situation without resorting to violence.

The Aukari were busy with the…what the beneath were they? Dragon-insect things? Dragonsects. Good enough for the time being. The Aukari were busy with the dragonsects, who seemed to be spewing some sort of strange purple mist.

And that was when the turn came – the unexpected twist.

Elisabeth knew that the Explorer hadn’t been in his right mind, but she had completely missed the connection between him and what laid within the Labyrinth. Was the madness because of his connection? Hard to say. His voice rang out to her, and something inside her…snapped. Hive-mind? Sheathing her sword, a word sounded in her mind.

No.

Quickly, Elisabeth called upon Ethelynda’s gift to her. Wishing to inspire When this skill is activated, those around the user find themselves able to resist the fears and doubts that plague their minds, allowing them to act in spite of them when they might otherwise be unable to do so. This does not only apply to martial fears and doubts, but to fears and doubts in all facets of life. those around her, bolstering them for what would come, she offered up her gratitude to the Shieldmaiden that she could bestow such a thing on others. Perhaps, just perhaps, if these were dragons, there would be some inherent recognition of an Ethelynda ability.

Then, reaching into her pocket, Elisabeth grabbed the necklace and wrapped it around her wrist a few times. She didn’t wish to risk putting it back on, but it had something to do with the situation and she needed more information.

Her cerulean eyes swirled with ribbons of silver, and she called out to the air around them, asking it to create a safe space for the group in case the dragonsects followed them. Her hands rose, making a pushing motion out to the sides, showing air what she wished, trying to push the mist away from whichever members of the group had assembled with her and Balthazar. It was intended to be a gentle moving of air, and in no way appearing threatening. For the moment, her focus was on protecting the group from the mist, whatever it was, and figure out just exactly what was going on.

Balthazar spoke, and for one trill, she allowed herself to smile. In the middle of chaos, he was trying to reason, and she was proud of the love she felt for him. Well, she always was, but in that moment, even more so.

Maintaining the barrier she was attempting to put up between the group and the purple mist, she had no idea what it did but with the way the Explorer was talking, it couldn't be good, and until she knew more, she wasn't taking any chances.

[Tor'ree]

Tor’ree got ready to move on Balthazar’s signal once they had gotten into place. Of course, just because she could see in the dark did not mean the pair would be any quieter. It just meant they would not run face first into trees, bushes, or the water that lie before them. As the two men made their way through the water, she watched and nodded when the pair made it safely around the area with the stairs. The Sev’ryn really hoped that was not their only way out. She had no practice with holding her breath for long periods of time.

The woman bared her teeth when the Aukari moved; both of the women appeared to have the same idea as they launched themselves forward. The chime of a bell made her stop and look over at Elisabeth. Was it some kind of magic that she had not heard of? Suddenly her field of vision was filled with a time long before she had walked the world of Idalos. Taking a deep breath, Tor’ree stayed still and watched the vision. The trio spoke of protecting the dragons from others that they knew. What could dragons have to do with anything?

As the vision ended the woman nearly hit the ground when the labyrinth began to shake. She looked around and saw that the things the woman first thought to be rocks were hatching. Tor’ree fought the innate urge to curse while turning to face behind them. The on-edge woman prepared to crack her whip if she needed to in order to keep anything from attacking her and her companions. When the creatures appeared where she could see them clearly their appearance actually amazed her. She had never seen dragons and insects mixed so before.

“Baby dragons?” Tor’ree asked watching them.

She moved back quickly when they began to blow out some kind of crazy purple mist. The woman was beginning to think that Nir had the right idea to just leave as soon both of the girls were with Balthazar and Ralgar. Tor’ree found herself grabbing on to Ralgar’s arm as a sort of comfort while watching. She looked at the crazy old man that Balthazar and Elisabeth had helped to heal as he walked behind the baby dragons. He spoke of them becoming one with the hive. That they would be stronger that way, but Tor’ree was not ready to lose her will to something she could not see.

“Yeah. No thanks, that’s even less appealing than helping you has been,” Tor’ree said under her breathe where only her companions could hear.

The last thing they needed was for her mouth to get them into more trouble. When Balthazar spoke of finding a way out, the woman began scanning the walls knowing of the stairs in the water. But there was no way they could make it back across the water to the door they had entered from. No matter which way she looked all the woman could see was the way they came in and the water.

“We have two options one I don’t think we can do. Run the way we come or jump in the water and make for the stairs. I can’t see any other ways out,” Tor’ree said wrapping her whip up her arm so it wouldn’t be stepped on.

[Ralgar Warborn]

Despite the group's attempts at stealth, things went bad quickly.

As the Aukari noticed them and prepared to make their move on the group, Ralgar saw the vision. He didn't understand it as he watched what he could only imagine being the past. Dragons. Immortals. Originals. It was a shock, his body tensing up as he saw the vision in full, before being thrown back into his body and looking at the room around. The Aukari seemed just as confused as the party did, all of them equally dazed for a moment having seen the vision. Ralgar looked to his companions to see their response to what had happened, the man not understanding yet visibly concerned. Why had they seen that, why now?

Then the Caretaker spoke, and everything quickly went to hell. Whatever the mist around them was, it concerned the Mortalborn, enough that he stood beside Elisabeth and Balthazar as Elisabeth pushed the mist away with Defiance. Balthazar tried to reason with the man, saying they would be of more use to them without their mind merged with the hive. While the attempt on peace was an idea, Ralgar turned to the others once he was finished, clutching his club tight.

"I can buy us time to find a way out, if you keep the mist off me. These creatures won't be able to harm me, and I can fight them off. Whoever this man is, he's a part of this hive too" he spoke with a harsh tone, eyes checking every hostile in the room. It wasn't often that he would allow himself to go berserk, or that he would even consider the power, but now was a time to do it. Him and the people he had agreed to fight alongside were in danger. "I am Deathkissed, let me show you why. Find an escape, but do not come near me when it begins, or you will die. Just keep the mist away. Once the symbols fade, I'm safe."

Once that was said, the Mortalborn made a move to step out of the bubble of air, hoping Elisabeth would keep the mist off him if she could. If not, perhaps he would be more resistant to the hive mind in his state, he was not sure. Despite it, he stepped forward, looking up to the caretaker and the dragonlings.

"Show me what your hive is worth. Show me what you've got" he snarled out, thick and harsh tone, before he reached for his power as he continued to step to the dragonlings. Dark red symbols and twirls spread across his body from his shoulder, covering the left side of his torso as they spread to his cheek, a symbol appearing under his eye as it changed to a dark red, the twirls branching across his body as he hissed in pain, dropping to his knees for a moment, using his club to lean on. As the pain began to fade, however, his ability activated. The gift his tribe believed to be given by the Maiden of Death.

The Deathkissed rampaged.

As he stood himself up he was no longer his own mind, the rampage taking over his body as he stepped towards the Insect-like creatures with a low growl under his breath. "Your hive will burn" he spoke in a dark voice, as if something sinister had taken over him. The deep tone of Haltunga echoed across the caves, even with the translation making him understandable. The moment he was in range to attack any living being he would, club held tight in his hands. "This cave will run red with your blood. All of you will fall."

As the violence took over his body and he made his way to the first creature, he swung his weapon.

Off Topic

Ralgar used his MB power "Spiritborn Soul", which makes him entirely invincible to physical damage of any kind, only hurt by magic damage or weapons that are magically imbued. This will last 30 minutes and any attempt to mess with his mind will only drive him further into a rampage. He is capable of recognizing friendlies but is in a permanent state of anger and violence, so that does not mean they are necessarily safe! That sums up the power for ya.

~~Haltunga~~ Common~~