Deep Dweller: Start

[voidtreckermods]

After the dreams some of the voidtreckers report on day Four of Grasshopper those that have been on the train for a little while will be expecting what comes the next day. Their SCA's glow with the colour of the void and a holographic image will appear.

Preparations and Arrival

As promised the dressing carriage is opened for optional extras. There are flight suits, similar to those they wore into space but without the helmets. There are instead hard hats and some basic climbing gear as well as bags to put supplies in. There are even a few red tents if any of those planning on tackling red's mission want to grab one, they hold six people in two inner compartments and are relatively easy to put up and take down.

They have a few hours of preparation before the announcement comes. Soon approaching system #789327772. Planet Terra. Drop order: Orange, Red, Blue, Purple. Orange to doors. Leaving the void in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. A sharp jerk, a judder and the view from the window changes from the void to dark cloudy skies and very red sand.

They land smoothly, and indeed it seems they have landed on train tracks. A few moments later they pull up outside a huge metal and glass building.

Orange Team

Arrival

Jumping down from the train they will find themselves outside large metal gates. Noticable is the spotlights that shine even in the day time, reflecting oddly off the red sand. It is hot and dry outside, a slight breeze sending red dust rolling around their feet.

The gates aren't locked. There is no lock though they will notice devices that are probably security cameras. The doors are glass and inside is light and airy. They enter into a large lobby, a large circular desk in the centre and a glass walled waiting room to the side.

It is empty. No people at all. All the lights are on. Time to explore.

Exploration

Going up two floors and down five the lab is large and full of all manner of interesting things. Scientific equipment, monitoring stations measuring chemical levels in the air, temperature, water levels. Where to even start is a good question. The lights remain on, which might be annoying at night.

Red Team

Arrivals

Red team to doors. The train continues travelling along the train tracks, looking out the windows they will see endless rolling red sand. Factories rising up from the ground, dotted across the landscape. As the train gets close the air outside seems hazier, through the fumes. They may even see in the distance, strange silver floating orbs.

Eventually it pulls up at a station. Just a raised block really, but easy enough for red team to disembark.

The land stretches out around them. Train tracks criss cross the surface but apart from that there don't seem to be any boundaries. No fences, roads or sign posts.

It won't take them long to find the first orbs, strange silvery spheres and seem almost liquid, until they are not.

Night Time

It grows dark quickly after sunset here, which might take them by surprise. Taking them more by surprise however may be the scraping, scuttling noises in the dark. Skittering close. There is no light out here on the surface, they are far away from the research facility that Orange found themselves in.

If anyone manages to catch a glimpse they will see grey, long limmbed creatures. They shy away from light but anyone in the dark is likely to be attacked. They fight with claws and teeth.

When the sun rises they are gone.

Blue Team

Arrival

Blue team to doors. The train continues across the landscape, passing more orbs, just floating there silently. It stops at the entrance of a cave.

The cave slopes downwards into darkness and soon turns into small tunnels. They don't need to go far when they meet the first ground of Gry. A group of young Gry, practising with spears in an wider section of cave.

Despite being very surprised at the sudden visitors no weapons are pointed at the voidtreckers, instead they are met with curiosity. They are soon led further into the tunnels and soon come to the living areas.

The Gry lead simple lives but they are all pretty fascinated to see their visitors and will allow them to look around their home and answer any questions they have.

Night Time

Most of the Gry sleep in a large communal sleeping area and the Voidtreckers are welcome to join them, though the Gry won't be insulted if they choose to seek out a more private area.

If the Voidtreckers awake in fear in the night, after strange dreams they will find they are not alone. Many of the Gry have awoken too and will reassure the Voidtreckers, tell them it is an honour to communicate with The Burrower.

Purple

Arrival

Purple team to doors. The train continues on the tracks and soon enters a tunnel itself. It's a bit of a bumpy trip, this train was clearly not made for warren systems but after some uneasy twists and turns they pull to a stop.

They are at a train station, not that it's easy to see because it is pitch black. But it is clear there are people around, some looking very confused at the very odd train.

Once the last of those going on the mission leave the train it speeds off into the darkness.

The Terran's are large and tower over most of the voidtreckers but they are friendly enough, if a little confused, once it is explained that they are here to help. They will be led over towards the collapsed section of city.

There is a lot of activity. People digging at rubble, others using their sheer size and strength to hold up beams. There is an array of rescue equipment and a group of official-looking Terran's holding large devices that are comparable to a tablet-computer and discussing solutions.

There is plenty to do to help, smaller rubble to clear, injured people to tend to. Worried Terran's to calm and reassure. Those brave enough can volunteer to use their smaller size to help get supplies through to those trapped and those with any scientific know how, great strength or magic can put their skills to good use.

Rest Time

Throughout the day people are rescued and other parts of the tunnels stabilised. There is more work to be done but the Terran's seem to be working in shifts and they will encourage their surprise allies to rest as well. They will offer to host them.

They live in large groups and will happily invite the voidtreckers into their homes. They will be curious about the voidtreckers but will also answer questions. Telling them about the strange storm and the collapse of the tunnels. They are urged to sleep early and the next day it will be back to work.

(OOC: Information is here)

Comments

[blitzcheer]

Setting up tents, who cares about setting up tents? There's the weight of the set hanging off Tidus's shoulder by his other bag, but he doesn't care, adjusting his arm and following and joining Xue Yang's step, not about to be left behind.

He has a weapon, too--visible and its blade shimmering like contained water, but he keeps it secure at his side by a loop, not wanting his hands any more filled than they were. And it didn't seem immediately important, with nothing but the orbs for anything close to interesting surrounding them.

Tidus keeps quiet for the most part of their walk, though eventually asks in a neutral--or close to flat--tone:

"So, you got any idea of figuring them out? Or are you more used to dealing with people."

[xue_yang]

"I'm more used to dealing with the dead." So not really people..but in a way also still people. But the dead don't talk back or argue or feel pain. Tidus can ask him to clarify if he so desires but Xue Yang doubts he will enjoy the answer.

"those are unlike anything I've seen before but with enough information, I'm sure we can figure out what we are dealing with."

Xue Yang has often been considered pretty smart in regards to figuring things out. He learned dark cultivation basically on his own. These orbs might be slightly outside his specialty but that doesn't mean he isn't curious.

[blitzcheer]

It's not completely unfamiliar to Tidus, remembering that their talk went onto that of the dead, a world that sounded like something close to Spira--if with more human-shaped figures than the forms that fiends took. But it doesn't matter right now than what Xue Yang continues on with, and so Tidus gives a short hum.

Once they've reached closer to the orbs, Tidus drops the red pack for the tenting gear to the ground, rolling his shoulder now freed from the awkward weight. Spheres shimmering like a silver liquid, and they almost remind him of some fiend, if less..transparent in body.

He's thinking, without getting too close to it. Wondering if to touch it, which isn't as off-putting an idea as maybe it should be. Even if those labs blew up, they had to transport them somehow, right? ...and the only other options he had in mind were to attack them.

But for the meantime, he looks at Xue Yang to see what he might do.

[xue_yang]

Xue Yang is fairly hands on and as someone who does deal with a lot of dead, he isn't squeamish about much of anything. And so he pushes his hand right against it, pushing into the orb to try to understand the texture and consistency of it. It's not solid but not liquid either.

He closes his fingers around it and pulls his hand back out, watching as a piece of the orb comes with him. He rolls it around in his fingers and lifts it up to get a closer look.

[blitzcheer]

"...well that's something."

Alright, well. He wasn't expecting their limbs to burn off or anything from engaging with the orbs, but if a guy is going to go up and touch them, Tidus comes up to it too, gently nudging it with his fingers.

It moves some, but his fingertips start to slide it, and Tidus pulls them out before they can go any deeper. The orb doesn't seem to react in any sense to their presence, only in the way a gelatinous floating orb might to being scooped and prodded.

"You wanna see what magic does to it, or we wanna ask if we actually have anyone on this team who has any way of-" he gestures to the orb "-analysing goo, I guess."

Who knows what people can do around here? Kimahri could scan fiends back in Spira--might be someone else more suited for weird blobs.

[xue_yang]

"Isn't analyzing it kind of what we are supposed to be doing? I'd say blasting it with some sort of magic to see the outcome is exactly part of our task requirements." Which is doesn't have magic so that is on Tidus to do. So he will step back with the goo ball he still has in his hands. He can give this to someone who might be able to figure out the sciencey part of things.

[blitzcheer]

There's a mumble and a shrug, an indifferent response to show that Tidus isn't going to argue Xue Yang's point. He takes a step back too, not wanting anything of the substance over himself if it does explode. ...though getting messy will be better than a literal explosion, considering the state of the labs.

Tidus clenches his left hand, a small burst of wispy lights in the colours of white and the aurora borealis dancing around his body and gathering to the fist he brings close to his chest. A few seconds and then he throws out his open and springs out his fingers--and in the motion, a rupture of water blasts itself in front of the sphere and into it, sending a splatter as it pushes back the sphere some.

But there's a sort of resistance, that despite its soft texture before keeps it from bouncing, or moving very far. The sphere's body is rippling, water clinging to it. ...before slipping off, dripping to the ground.

"...Well. Didn't care about that."

[xue_yang]

"Perhaps we need to heat it up in some way. Melt it down or heat it to a boiling temperature." If water doesn't work then try fire. He holds up the small piece in his hand.

"We can use this to experiment with. If it works we'll just build a bigger fire to use on those."

[blitzcheer]

Tidus puts a hand behind the back of his head. "I can make a small flame, but you wanna drop it first?"

Considering Tidus doesn't really want to burn the guy's hand. But if he should, the tiny piece will float in air like the rest of its orb-y brethren.

[xue_yang]

He lets it go and steps back behind Tidus so that he can observe without getting in the way of the flame. He will be watching it very closely to see if it has any sort of effect, even a short term one.

[blitzcheer]

It bothers Tidus the way it floats separately, small and tiny, though not to the point of unnerving him. With Xue Yang of the way, he brings his hand out to the side of it, a second taken to decide that, and then the same small wispy lights circling around his hand before a small flame ignites in the space between his palm and the tiny sphere.

The light of the fire ripples through it, shimmering all over. But as for the fire itself...it doesn't seem to do anything to the orb. As if it wasn't even there.

[xue_yang]

"So no to water and to fire. Wind or ice part of your repertoire by chance?" Might as well try everything. Something has to eventually work. Otherwise they will have to let anyone who knows more specific methods of experimentation to work.

[blitzcheer]

"Just lightning," he says with a tone already resigned to trying it, and so comes--with Tidus taking another step back--the same small build up and the same hand thrust, a bolt crashing from somewhere above the small sphere and lighting it up.

And that's it. Still it lingers, as mysterious as the rest afterwards, no different.

"Great. So magic does nothing, but you can just scoop out a piece and make a mini-sphere."

This was already making a load of sense.

[xue_yang]

"Even failures are still successes. It tells us what doesn't work so no one else has to waste their time."

But doesn't really get them closer to an answer.

"Perhaps this is not their normal forms. If it has a different shape it takes then it might have a vulnerability. This might just be a cocoon to something inside."

[blitzcheer]

"Eh?" A cocoon? That makes Tidus look back, especially to the smaller one.

"...did you feel something? When you scooped it away?"

Tidus reaches out and takes a feel, pressing in his fingers. It lets them in, and Tidus gives a small, "ugh, gross..."

[xue_yang]

"I didn't go particularly deep. If there is something on the inside, I'd rather not lose an arm to it." If there is something on the inside then it means they may have to just wait until it hatches. But there is no way of knowing how long that will be..and the thing inside could be even worse. So it would be better to destroy it while it sleeps.

"Any other ideas on what to destroy it with?"

[blitzcheer]

...And if Xue Yang didn't want to lose an arm, Tidus also didn't want to lose his sword on the idea of trying to stab it in, in case anything happened to that. So that thought comes and goes, and he decides with a shake of his head-

"Let's ask some of the others and see what they're doing or done. I'm not really looking to lose anything I have either."

Attached to him or on him.

[xue_yang]

"Maybe someone else has had more luck." He turns to continue back to the camp. Might as well see what others have attempted and add their knowledge to the list.