Under the Sea: Mission start

[voidtreckermods]

After fleeing the strange shapes in the sky the voidtreckers are perhaps not looking forward to yet another mission and indeed the first few days of Fiddlesticks go by without any strange dreams, no warning that another mission might be nigh. Yet on the morning of day five their SCA's will glow with the colours of the void and a holographic message will appear.

Preperations

The dressing room is open once again, though the clothes this time are simple in choice. A wet suit for each void trecker as well as a pair of flippers, a helmet and a breathing pack. It at least has instructions and there will be a little bit of time for them to figure out how to use them. Apart from that there are some waterproof packs for supplies to be packed in.

They will have a couple of hours to get ready for their mission.

Arrival: Blue and Red

"We are now approaching world #7625000129523. Drop order is Red and Blue, Purple then Orange. Red and Blue team to doors. Arrival in world #7625000129523 in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one."

The train shudders and lurches as they exit the void, the view from the window goes from the ever shifting void to a beautiful deep blue sky. They fly through the air and swoop down to land on a sandy beach. The doors open allowing those who are taking part in the Blue and Red missions to debark. The doors close and the train swoops up into the air.

The beach stretches from one side to the other, in the distance as the beach turns into sloping green hills they can see a village. Beyond that there is a jungle. Any red team who check their SCA will see four points, the rock pools.

The villagers have noticed the huge train sweeping down onto their island and so contact is made quickly. They will be quite accepting of the help and explain the situation. They will help any of red team to the rockpools if asked.

Red

The rockpools are built up and indeed made so the water will reach a persons waist if they stand in them. The water is cold but not overly so. When the water shoots up anyone in them will shoot up also.

They will find themselves in a vortex of water, with anyone else who enters that rockpool. The water itself seems to be fighting them, tendrils of water reaching out of the whirlpool to try and drag them further into the chaos. It takes a whole lot of willpower to stay in the centre, the water can be fought with weapons, even with fists. They feel as if they are falling or flying, perhaps both. Surrounded by the pure chaos of the ocean.

Blue

Hopefully they spend the day helping with preparations because when night falls the monsters emerge from the sea. Terrifying twisted creatures. The villagers only have simple weapons but will tell them that fire is helpful against these water creatures.

Hold off the monsters and keep the people safe.

Purple

The doors close and the train flies off into the sky, flying over the island to the other side where it lands on a rocky bay, near tall towering cliffs.

"Purple team to doors." The doors open, allowing the purple team to disembark before flying off once again.

In the cliff face there is a large cave entrance, over the entrance there are symbols, translated by their SCA's. Clear mind, clear heart. Come those who seek to serve.

There are six people stood by the entrance, looking quite surprised at the new arrivals. One, a woman with silver hair recovers enough to speak first. "Ah. Void warriors. We are honoured by your help."

Once introductions are made the spiritual leaders will happily accept the escort and their adventure can begin.

Orange

They fly up and out across the ocean, a longer flight than before but eventually they descend and there is a slight juddering before they land, floating on the ocean.

"Orange team disembark, please use luggage or dressing carriage doors only."

They will step out onto an inflated platform that streches around the train. Down below are the depths of the water and their SCA's show them at the point of Bui. It is below them so all they need to is dive.

The dive takes a while, and depends on their swimming ability but hopefully with a bit of teamwork they arrive at the silent city of Bui.

Comments

[aggressivelygood]

She'd calmed down. Good. He squeezed Samata's shoulder, giving her a reassuring smile before his expression hardened at the all too familiar sound of a magical barrier beginning to splinter. He released his grip, backing up close to her for both their security.

"Stay close and be ready to fight when that shield fails," he instructed. "I won't let you out of my reach, I promise."

He held the Petals of Nil out in front of him in the water and pictured a shield in his mind's eye, tapping into the energy coursing through his soul like hot magma and pouring it into the artefact. Nothing changed. Sven tried again, insistent, pushing himself into the small branch as the barrier surrounding them grew weaker and weaker.

The barrier broke. Sven swung out his arm and the burned tree branch in his hand exploded into a giant shield of blackened wood. Embers burst in front of them as Sven absorbed the shock of the current slamming into them like a fist, knocking him back into Samata and shoving them both further from the stream of calmer water. Sven recoiled with a gasp, shaken, only just keeping the presence of mind to grab Samata's wrist and keep her tethered.

"Shit-! Hey, Petals of Nil! Now is not the time for whatever your damage is."

[les_magique]

"I'm not much of a fighter..."

But she was going through her mental list of spells as she said it. Surely there was SOMETHING she could do. Maybe she could prepare another shield.

Oh, he was having trouble with HIS shield, whatever that thing was. She could help with information. "There's something wrong with magic here! Some spells have been limited or even cut off entirely! I don't know what's causing it but that's probably why your shield is having trouble!"

[aggressivelygood]

"Sure wish I would've realised that sooner...! This place must be blocking my magic from flowing into the Petals of Nil."

Damnation, he should have investigated back when he noticed the artefact feeling heavier than normal, instead of just brushing it off. The Petals of Nil felt heavy for other people to hold, but it was light as wood in his hands. He shoved against the current with his shield, holding Samata tightly.

"If you can't fight, just stay close to me and don't get washed away! We have to get back to calmer water...do you got any more magic tricks up your sleeve?"

[les_magique]

"Depends on how lucky you're feeling! I'm running out of spells, and this one isn't too accurate even in the BEST of situations!"

In the middle of a waterspout while clinging to someone else was NOT the best of situations, but MAYBE phase door would be kind to her and teleport them back into the middle before they got sucked off into the ocean.

[aggressivelygood]

The rope of water reared up and lashed at them again. Sven batted back with his shield, but the weapon's large, blunt form meant it moved sluggishly through the water, creating drag. Sven grit his teeth. How long would it take to change the Petal of Nil's form to something that could cut the water? If they weren't careful, they risked being batted so far off course that they'd never make it back.

"If you think it even might help then do it-!!" Sven took a breath and said a prayer out loud in Celestial. Even submerged in water, a charcoal blackness crept up the bare hand holding onto Samata's wrist. Black wisps curled up from it in the stream, but the colour stayed fast on his skin. Samata will feel a burning sensation--intense, but not painful, like sun-soaked stone--pass from Sven's hand and into her skin, bypassing the fabric of her wetsuit. Sven's magic feels hot as it passes into her veins. She'll feel an insistence from it, whispering to her that whatever her plan is, it will work.

Or, you know. Probably.

"For Luck-!!"

[les_magique]

The part of her mind that loved dissecting everything that happened around her to see how it work burst with curiosity, but she put it on hold in favor of the part of her mind that did not want her to die. "Then hold on tight!"

She clung to Sven with one hand and flickered through hand motions with the other as she babbled out the spell incantation and then-

-Normally, teleportation didn't really feel like anything at all. Just a blink and you were somewhere else. But Phase Door wasn't meant to carry two people, just the caster and their personal effects. There was a moment of...nothing. A moment where both of them were not in any place. They didn't exist. It didn't hurt, because there was nothing left of them to feel the pain, but it wasn't an entirely pleasant feeling either. It felt wrong.

It only lasted for a moment, fortunately, and then they were spat back out into the material world. On the other side of the whirlpool, and closer to the center of the group. Safer. Somehow it had worked.

Samata did her best not to puke in her helmet. "Oh god. I'm never doing that with two people again."

[aggressivelygood]

The inertia of being, and then not being, and then being, but in a different spot than before while water rages all around you and you're still "falling" was something quite unlike Sven had ever felt. And he'd thought using his smoke form was a pretty weird trip.

Fortunately, the primal desire of not wanting to drown really focuses the mind. Soon as he managed to grab hold of his bearings, Sven battered the Petals of Nil out of its hefty shield form and into a sleek dagger. He slashed maniacally at the water, creating a gasp of calmness and pulling Samata through. The two of them popped back into the calmer stream.

Sven whooped, feeling the world spinning a little as he grabbed Samata by the shoulders. "You fantabulous wizard, you! You did it!" He held her at arms length and looked at her with concern. "Hey, uh...you okay? You're looking a little green around the gills."

Honestly, now that the adrenaline spike of their dash to safety was wearing off...he didn't feel so hot either.

[les_magique]

"Phase Door is only meant to work for one person and her personal effects. I would have to do some math to figure out what EXACTLY just happened to us, but suffice to say it's not a state people are meant to be in for any real length of time. I think we'll be fine as long as I don't throw up in this fishbowl over my head."

[aggressivelygood]

"My magic must have boosted the spell's power. Just a simple Luck spell, nothing more special than that."

Now that he wasn't actively using magic, the black coating on Sven's hand was finally lifted by the water, greyish wisps disappearing in the stream. Samata did math regarding her magic? Weird. Curious! But weird. Definitely something Sven would need to question her on at a slightly more opportune time.

"Please don't throw up in the fishbowl. As relieved as I am that none of it would be able to get on me, I'd feel terribly bad for you. I'll keep us both from going off course again if you need to close your eyes a while."

[les_magique]

"Just a SIMPLE luck spell? How did you-"

She shook her head. Now was not the time to discuss how INSANELY complicated that sounded to her. Was Sven a sorcerer? Did he even have to think to cast his spells or did it just come to him? She would have to ask him about it when they weren't quite so busy.

"Nevermind. I'll figure that out later. I just need to focus on getting through this!"