< The Fight Ends For Now | Ex Pulplogs | Have We Met? >
ST In the aftermath of the battle with the Dragon-Blooded guardians, there are just a few things to notice. First of all, Carmine is encased in crimson armor made from her own coagulated blood and her Castemark is flickering strangely. Second of all the forgetful and inquisitive Myrrh is heading right for the black-sealed door that, when last touched, threw everyone backwards and awoke the guardians.
Xar`Rex "Carmine? Are you okay?"
Corve stands, and walks over to Carmine, raising a brow. "Carmine?" His own concern is obvious.
Carmine "I ..." She looks down at herself, and back up at Xar and then to Corve "..."
Corve frowns a little. "I take it wasn't deliberate, then?" He doesn't know the full extent of her Charms, so there's always the possibility it was on purpose...
Myrrh examines the seal on the door. Such amazing artifice...
Carmine "I wanted to protect myself ... not cover myself in blood..."
ST Fortunately, Carmine seems to have done both!
Corve "Well... it looks like you managed to uh... do both." Corve twitches his lips for a moment, and runs his fingers down the side of the blood carapace on her.
Xar`Rex "Are you ill?"
Carmine "I don't feel ... ill." She twitches herself a little. "This blood doesn't feel ... right though"
ST The bloody armor feels slick and chill, some of it coming off on Corve's hands and leaving them with the sticky red stain of old blood.
Corve "It looks like it coagulated to protect you," Corve says grimacing. "Strange."
Xar`Rex sniffs the blood to see if it smells like her
Carmine pushes the essence she had called to protect her away from her, the blood flowing off her to pool on the floor, which she regards with some disdain.
Myrrh resorts to the most scientific of methods and pokes the door with a stick.
ST The door ignores being poked with a stick.
Corve eyes Carmine warily, tough really, mostly he eyes the blood on the floor. He reaches over, taking her hand. "You OK?"
Carmine "I ... feel okay."
Xar`Rex "It must be this place."
Corve nods softly, squeezing her hand and looking over at Myrrh. "Yeah, must be." Back to Carmine. "We'll... talk about it later." He seems concerned. "Come on."
Myrrh gives up until later. He heads back to Carmine and notices the pool of blood on the floor. "Is everyone ok?!"
Carmine nods "Later"
Corve "Everyone's fine, Myrrh." Even Corve himself is healing nicely, thanks to Carmine's healing charm.
Xar`Rex "Let us leave this place before stranger things happen."
Carmine "We need to get what we came in here to find."
Myrrh "Oh...alright. Well im not sure what's going to happen with the door...last time we tried to open it in flung us all over the place."
Corve "Last time it had guardians," Corve states matteroffactly.
Myrrh "Maybe...Xar should try opening it? It has a black sunmark. Maybe it's made to blast any solar who touches it?"
Xar`Rex "I too am chosen by the Sun," he replies, affronted. "My powers do not cause black marks."
Myrrh "Well yes but I don't think they built a complex tomb just to keep YOU out, Xar."
Xar`Rex glares, then turns away, stomps forward and punches the symbol on the door.
Myrrh "Xar I didn't-Xar!"
Corve looks over at Myrrh and rolls his eyes. "Way to go, genius." He turns back to Carmine to give her a kiss, short against her temple.
ST The door does have a reaction to Xar simply punching it. The door makes an angry-sounding noise and flashes bright white. When Xar's vision clears he seems to have a problem in that his claws have melted into the door.
Xar`Rex mutters and flexes his claws, trying to pull them free
Myrrh "Xar! Maybe punching it isn't a good idea!
Corve "Ye think?" is Corve's commentary, but it's a low whisper. He picks up Judging Thunder and holsters it, heading over to Xar, Carmine gently towed along.
Myrrh rushes over to help his impulsive lizard friend!
Xar`Rex "Let me be, I do not need your help." He scowls, bristling.
ST Xar's claws refuse to free themselves from the door.
Xar`Rex concentrates on walking THROUGH the door
ST As Xar awakens the power of his Wall-Walking Stone he finds that it's fairly easy to push further through the door, his claws sinking easily into the black stone. It feels just like wading into water or pushing his hands into clay.
Xar`Rex pauses and attempts to go in reverse, pulling his claws *out* before he fully commits
Carmine "Xar ... are you okay?"
Corve is carefully watching Xar. If the Dragon Kin gets stuck, he may have to shoot the door into pieces to get him out...
Xar`Rex "I said I need no help."
Art Badger Xar finds himself unable to back out of the door and now his attempt to Wall-Walk through it has left his arm encased in black stone up to his wrist. As much as he struggles and strains and flexes, the stone remains resolute and unyielding, refusing to give up the hand Xar has forced into it.
Corve "Xar?" Corve sounds a bit worried and wary now.
Xar`Rex shrugs and presses forward, figuring he'll either come out on the other side, or become stuck and die horribly. Either way it doesn't matter to him.
Art Badger Xar pushes further and further into the door. By the time his entire arm has disappeared into the black stone, he still can't pull backwards and he still can't feel any difference in his arm. If there is anything beyond the door, his arm has yet to pass into it.
Corve "Xar, I don't think..." But Corve sighs. The Dragon King looks mighty determined...
Xar`Rex goes through anyway!
Corve "XAR, WAIT!" Corve starts forward, letting go of Carmine and catching the arm the Dragon King hasn't submerged in stone.
Art Badger Xar is caught before he can push anything beyond his left arm through.
Carmine grabs hold of his arm along with Corve
Myrrh "Xar I think we might want to think this through before climbing through the rocks..."
Myrrh tries pulling on his other arm.
Xar`Rex shakes Myrrh off, and forges forward, taking a deep breath before his whole body begins to merge with the door itself.
Corve "XAR! STOP! I WILL SHOT YOUR SCALEY ASS!" Corve's desperate now, clinging to the Dragon King's arm and pulling furiously. He may not be as strong as Xar himself, but it /is/ considerable.
Corve shoot*
Art Badger None of the Solars is able to prevent Xar from stepping forward in one headlong rush and before their eyes, their long-time companion vanishes into the black stone of the door.
Myrrh "XAR! STOP IT! Getting yourself killed won't help us save Brume!" Latches onto Xar's arm and leans against the door, trying to pull the stubborn lizard free!
Carmine "XAAAR!" Carmine shouts, beating on the door, trying to get it to open.
Corve "Fuck!" Corve is pissed now. This is like the fourth time Xar's disappeared.
Myrrh "XAR YOU ASSHOLE YOU GET YOURSELF OUT OF THIS WALL RIGHT NOW! Don't make me come in there!"
Corve "Fucker..." Corve swears again, pondering if blasting the door open would be a good idea.
Art Badger Carmine's beating on the door and Myrrh's attempts to lean against it to get Xar out have resulted in the two of them becoming just as stuck in the door as Xar was.
Myrrh "Oh for the love of Sol..."
Corve "... this is just not right," says Corve, who is now seriously pissed.
Art Badger Corve does have to acknowledge that Carmine and Myrrh should have known better, just having seen Xar get stuck in the door...
Corve sighs, shaking his head and biting his lower lip. "Great, this is just fucking great." He looks at the door, considering his options.
Myrrh "Well I have to say I don't suggets shooting it since you might blow up Xar.
Xar`Rex emerges from the rock next to the door looking annoyed. "It's all rock. There is nothing there."
Corve looks at Xar, rolling his eyes. "You fucking... I should shoot you."
Myrrh "You know I can't help but feel this is all that stone man's fault...well and Xar's. You know Xar if you take offense to waht I say you should say so rather than try to kill yourself!"
Xar`Rex eyes Corve, "I told you I do not need help. But there is nothing beyond the door, and you cannot walk through stone."
Corve "Pffft." He eyes the stone door.
Carmine "So where are we supposed to go then?"
Xar`Rex ponders
Corve "Try summoning Eminence within the wall? You may be able to cut through it..." But he doesn't sound too sure; his tone, if nothing else, emits warning that it may not be a good idea after all.
Carmine gives Corve a slightly disbelieving look
Corve "...what?" He shrugs. "I'm just tossing ideas."
Xar`Rex "I may be able to bring you out the other side. Just a moment." He carves a Xar-sized tunnel in the rock next to the door, so that it intercepts where the opposite end of the door is.
Xar`Rex "Okay, now you can push through to me. Hold your breath."
Carmine pushes through the door
Myrrh follows carmine in this deep sea rock diving.
Corve frowns. "If either of you die, I will kill you." He considers. "Again." Inside, though, he's worried. He bites the inside of his cheek, wondering why his partners always get into this kind of trouble.
Art Badger With Xar's help, Carmine and Myrrh are pulled through the stone and back out into the room. Carmine comes out just fine, though breathing a bit hard. Myrrh comes through looking somewhat compressed, with bruises across his body and struggling to catch his breath, but he's still conscious and not bloody anywhere...anywhere visible.
Corve "Myrrh..." Corve walks over to his friend, laying him down on the floor gently. He looks at at Carmine, whom he suspect would come out unscathed. "Love... can you..?" He looks at Myrrh again, worried.
Carmine immediately lays Myrrh out on the floor "Just stay still." She admonishes, as she studies him with her essence
Xar`Rex sighs, and returns to the tunnel, digging his way further methodically
Myrrh "ow."
Myrrh lies still, hoping Carmine can cure crushed everything.
Carmine attempts to cure crushed everything
Art Badger As Carmine heals Myrrh's many smooshed parts and bits and ends, Xar continues digging away. The digging eventually bears fruit and the rest of the circle hears Xar's roar of triumph as he finally breaches the stone barriers and enters the final chamber of the Tomb!
Stryck Wiki