When reality reforms itself, the Exalts find themselves in what feels to be a natural cavern of stone. It is pitch black, though it feels to be a large space.

It is peacefully quiet here. Mostly. One can intermittently hear the sounds of water dripping, or earth shifting; now and then chitinous taps and chirps, suggesting the existence of insects in the area. Sometimes the ground trembles, but not in a fierce way -- more like a gentle rumble. Almost soothing, to those who do not fear the dark, anyway.

One would at least assume this is somewhere in the District of Earth. But it is difficult to tell exactly where. If the Gatekeeper is to be trusted, though (and likely it is, it would have taken immense energy to move people upward like this), this ought to be a safe place to rest. The less reassuring thought is that it is all but impossible to tell from here just how successful the Gatekeeper was with the floors below.

The first priority would be for a light source, likely (which an anima would do well to provide, should one have Essence to spare). Perhaps then some exploration of surroundings, or searching for supplies.

Or rest. Even the earth seems a restful bed, after the intensity of recent events.

Third inhales as it triggers its anima, filling the caverns with a soft golden glow of daylight, something that may have never touched this place. It slowly stands to its feet. 'Third trusts in our companions to survive. For now, the most important goal is to find out more about the situation." it says softly, matter-of-factly, standing. The passion is, for the moment, muted... But it is visible, there in the Solar's eyes. The glory of the sun is dawning in it once again.

[Private to GM: Personal 19, Peripheral 19, Willpower 7, spending 4 experience to raise Charisma to 2.]

Nanaret takes some time to acclimate to her new surroundings, even before Third 'turns on the light'. Her nocturnal eyes see perfectly well in any lighting, so she is standing by the time the Solar's anima sheds light on her, pacing around the space of ... wherever they have ended up. She engages her every sense in exploration: smelling the air, touching the earthen walls, scooping up a bit of dirt and tasting it gingerly, listening keenly to the sounds echoing from the corridors beyond. Her eyes glance about for any danger, or any sign of where they might have ended up.

"I am depleted in Essence." It appears her voice is that of 'normal' Nanaret again; Ranavalona is... quiet now. Tired, perhaps, or just idle now that her voice is not needed. "But this not seem comfortable place to rest. I can look around, maybe find better. Maybe food." The Lunar shrugs helplessly; she feels much more weary than hungry, though.

[Private to GM: 3 sux on perc+aware roll.]
This message was last edited by the player at 20:05, Sat 31 Jan 2009.

Nanaret senses nothing that she can consider dangerous, at least not immediately. Third and Higura, though they do not put such a concentrated effort, notice no hidden traps or attackers, either. It appears perfectly safe, which could either be a relief or a cause of suspicion. For now, the Exalts ought to count their blessings.

Third's anima sheds light on the immediate surroundings for everyone. They are in a large chamber dug out from hard packed earth -- deliberately, not by mere elemental wear, though all three hear the sound of water nearby. Likely an underground stream of some sort.

Initial inspection suggests the room may have been dug as part of an underground mine -- the walls are reinforced by metal bars and bolts, indicating this room was probably once a central area for miners to gather. But the room itself has been abandoned, cleared of any mining gear or implements, or signs of life. There are, however, tunnels leading elsewhere: a larger passage opening out from the middle of one wall, and another pair of tunnels heading out at roughly 90 degree angles from the larger one.

The trio has little time to familiarize themselves with the area before they find their present company rapidly growing. The new arrivals appear much as they did: as minute pinpoints of blue-green light, yawning open into clouds of billowing Essence.

From the brilliant displays come familiar figures in their midst: Danae raising her firewand as if ready to fire again; Dashu in a ready stance with his dragon claws outstretched; Dena holding her manacles and staff as if to fend off attackers; Xurizu with his jade bow, ready to nock another arrow. Turtle arrives with one beam-seared, useless arm, the other clutching an unusual prize: a highly customized Essence cannon. Its barrel is short but wide in diameter, and the size of its body and energy cells contribute to a weight that would be unwieldy in most hands. (OOC: Something like a multi shot grenade launcher in size.)

Tycho and Saffron appear with the group of bewildered refugees. The former Peace Officer stands with several who until now had been grasping at emergency valves, attempting to control the streams of water they'd released. The healer is still kneeling, her Essence all but spent right now, attending to a woman lying in the same prone position she'd been in on the floor of the central core. Others appear sitting up, mostly healed; a few have more recently been burned or shrapnel-cut, holding wounded arms or sides.

But they are all very much alive.

---

OOC: You're free of time constraints right now, so you can socialize, exchange notes, make plans. There's a lot to consider besides rest and training time: food and water, medical supplies, sleeping arrangements, guard duty and keeping discreet (never know if you'll be hunted for), scouting ahead to figure out where you are in Coils, or to find the next way up.

Eventually you'll want to split tasks into smaller groups or even solo. Some may be inclined to stay and rest a while, while others more inclined to explore. Future threads will be made according to those inclinations I see represented strongly.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:39, Fri 30 Jan 2009.

"... Wait...  We're still in one piece?"  Danae began, looking baffled for all of a few seconds before sheepishly lowering the firewand.  "That's...  Actually a pretty good thing to know I guess..."

Taking a couple glances around with everyone else, Danae seemed to be assessing the situation in a way...  teetered over in place, then fell flat on her face.

"I can't believe we actually made it..."  She says--the adrenalin rush that had been pushing her up until this point wearing off at the first sign of safety.  "Or rather...  I can--but..."  She shook her head.

"Alright...  First things first... I'm going to take a rest--feel like I could sleep a year frankly, but I likely won't go longer then a couple hours...  If anyone's interested after that--we can talk putting some gear together with the stuff I scavenged on the way up...  Speaking of which--you might want to figure out who among here's half-decent at making things--I can sort of work without it--but if you guys want quality gear, I'm going to need some assistants to do some of the legwork frankly...  Though if any of you guys can find a nice foundry abandoned down here--or even just a minor workshop, that'd be grand..."

She yawned once, made sure her Firewand was properly emptied of incendiaries, then propped it up to use as something vaguely resembling a pillow--or at least some kind of neck support.

She wasn't really picky right now, truth be told--and the last half hour had pushed her 'Well' beyond what she'd normally consider a sane limit...

Turtle blinks several times at the rapid change in scenery, then shakes his head, his deep bass voice holding a note of sorrow, "Hmm... I hope, the Gatekeeper knows, what it is doing...  So many people, in the Water District."  He blinks again, noticing the missing Celestials have managed to beat them there, and an approximation of a smile appears on his reptilian features, "Ahh... friends.  Looking tired, but not much worse, for wear.  Good!"

As he speaks, the seared wound destroying most of Turtle's arm closes up with the same speed as any other injury, though the limb still dangles uselessly at the turtle-man's side.  He doesn't seem worried, however, and his fingers begin twitching slightly as severed nerves begin to connect much more slowly.  Carefully setting down the oversized energy weapon he seized at the last moment, he nods slowly at Danae's suggestion of rest, "I, hmm, think I also need an hour or so, before my arm can move right again.  Time enough, to sit and think, and make some sort of plan."

Settling down heavily, he nods again, responding to one of "And, hmm, I used to be a builder.  Nothing fancy, though, just structural supports, housing, that sort of thing.  I don't know, how much I could help, with complicated things."  He gives a half-shrug, the most his physiology can handle with his thick carapace, and falls silent for the moment.

Xurizu has started to raise his bow before he realises where they are, that the threats have gone, lowering it quickly and looking around him at the variously injured and exhausted people around him.  Then he lets out a sigh and the lanky man sits up against the side of the tunnel with a small clank of jade armour and a sigh.

"Well, we all made it, it seems," he says, as he takes note of all those around him.  I wonder how the sisters are getting on ... hethought of the pair that had left them just before they had entered the elevator, so many floors below.  I suppose with the purge cancelled they have a real chance.  "For now, taking a rest sounds like a great plan," he says with a nod.

"I have no real skill at crafting things that I'm aware of, but when I've rested a little, I would like to take a look around up here.  Perhaps we can find a workshop of some kind." I only have a few memories of my time up here.

"Which floors did you others come from?" he indicated the group that had joined them in the core, and Danae too.  He knew where Dashu came from, after all.

"That was... new," Dashu says after he both rematerializes and checks to make sure he's in one place.  He feels just as exhausted and slightly disturbed from the last half hour.  Alot happened and he needed time to digest it all.  That, and he needed time to sleep and gather his strength again.  He immediately shifts back into his cool exterior and says to the group "I can take first watch if needed, but I need to rest soon.  I don't know if I'll be much help in getting food and water but if we find human habitation then I can help in getting information that we might need."  He then thought for a moment and gathered the Exalts together away from the hearing of the mortals and said in low tones, "By the way, I think you should know that I've managed to deduce from my exchange with the Gatekeeper in the Water District, that there was no system wide failure of the essence suppression devices.  Whatever set us free specifically targeted our collars  to release us.  Someone has some agenda which is forwarded by our roaming around 5 Coils, and I probably don't need to mention that it's not necessarily an agenda which we, as a group or free individuals, would approve of.  I'm telling you this now, for a couple of reasons.  One, if any of you have any ideas or information, let me know.  Secondly, however we proceed from here on end, it should be done with extreme caution."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:06, Fri 30 Jan 2009.

Nanaret's monkey-ears prick up as the rest of the group materializes in the room. Her first instinct is caution, still wound up from the dangerous situations of before. She whirls from the wall she was inspecting, her body in a ready crouch and her hands on her hook swords.

Then she relaxes, when she starts to recognize the people there. Saffron in particular, but the others as well. They'd all run and fought and survived together, and the part of her inclined toward social interaction is pleased by that.

Ranavalona, true to her nature, wouldn't care less.

The Queen is still dormant though, so her 'puppet' rises fluidly to contribute to what the others have to say, answering Dashu first. "If there is purpose to our freedom, hard to know if what we do help this 'someone' or not. I think Gatekeeper of Water not know about it. Though now it believes --" she downplays her role in the convincing "-- the Dragon-blooded deceived it to use for their own ends. Once, millenia ago, it served Celestials. Perhaps it continue do so today."

Her yellow night-vision eyes flick toward Xurizu then. "Ah. Introductions. I am Saina Nanaret. I was employed in fighting pits of Floor B30. I am sad for the creatures there. Many mutants and beast-hybrids, rejects of experimentation. They were made to fight. I was made to kill them." The Changing Moon's hand rises to touch her neck guiltily, though the collar is no longer there. "When I and Doctor Higura and Healer Saffron left, they were freed somehow. Causing harm to the populace."

"But they know nothing else." Nanaret shakes her head, obviously troubled, but turns her attention to more immediate concerns. "I take second watch. During first watch I make initial scout, short distance. Water source is nearby. Later, can look for other facilities."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:05, Sat 31 Jan 2009.

"The Gatekeeper will do what is right, and it will ultimately triumph." Walking seemingly out of nowhere, the form of the doctor walks among the rest of the group, and a smile plays on his features as he sees all of them are safe. "The Terrestrials might have scrambled its sense of purpose for a while, but they never managed to truly erase its duties from it. Ages ago, it was no warden - it was a Guardian, like all the other Gatekeepers."

Higura's smile only widens as he scans the room, seeing the familiar faces of Nanaret and Third, but also that of Tycho and Grinning Turtle - and he takes some time to nod warmly at Saffron and the refugees as well. He does not address them directly, but his eyes tell it all. I am glad you have all made it.

The doctor then turns towards the other group, the one that joined them in the Gatekeeper Core, and makes certain to acknowledge each of them in turn. "I am also glad you all survived - I am Doctor Yaishin Higura, Assessor of the Coils under the jurisdiction of the Fate Engine Prochorus. There are those that would say that my work is over now that I am a fugitive... The truth of the matter is that it only has just begun."

"It seems the Gatekeeper placed us in a position that will expose us to little immediate danger. I suppose the important part will be to rest first, and then establish living quarters that will allow us to stay sheltered and subside for a little while, as we form a plan of action."

He shakes his head at Dashu's words, and his expression grows a bit more somber for a moment. "I do not really have anything new to bring light onto this matter, sadly. Even Prochorus itself is unaware of the reasons leading to this targeted liberation. All it could sense was the opportunity within the ripples of Fate - that is why it sent me. The notion that someone sees a purpose in our liberation is perplexing and alarming; I suppose it will be our duty to make certain our escape is not only another kind of imprisonment, in the end."

Dena groans as she settles down on her heels, dropping her warform, taking on the form of a striking woman, her heart-shaped face currently spoiled a bit by the wide spreading bruise across her temple, and the fact that sections of her hair have burned away.
"That was just in the nick of time, I was getting close to my limit.  I'm Tervila Dena, Full Moon of the Lunars.  I didn't have a fixed place on the lower levels, I was used as a message carrier due to my high speed and ability to fly, so I was sent all over the place.  Before I exalted I was a construction worker so I know a little about building but not anything like what Danae does, just throwing together buildings and such."
She rolls backwards and sprawls on her back, breathing deeply and concentrating to ignore her wounds.  "I've got a theory on the failure of our control collars.  The Terrestrials like to play political games jostling for power.  I'm guessing that one bigwig's trying to humiliate another one.  It fits what I've seen so far, a few Anathema get loose, a big emergency, a sudden purge wiping out another family's holdings in the lower level, and whoever saves Five Coils from the monsters gets a lot of political power while hurting a rival.  We need a plan to see who was on the bottom, maybe from the symbols on the stuff we snagged, I bet that family's rivals are behind this."

Danae rolled over once, then sighed, looking generally upwards. "My name's Danae...  Normally, I was supposed to do a lot of tech support and construction up in the District of Fire--with a side term in the odd bit of law enforcement, and the obligitory 'Let's get ready to take back the surface!' propaganda I suppose--but I was 'Convienently' brought down here just before the collars deactivated--Tepet Amon seemed to know it was going to happen though, if we're getting into the whole conspiracy angle--he brought me to a warstrider hangar right before everything went all pear shaped."

"That was... interesting," the magitech cyborg says mildly as he slowly comes around to the shift in time and place, gently catching one of the more bewildered mortals as they threw their weight against a valve that was no longer present. He steadied the mortal off-offhandedly, then promptly abandoned them all to find themselves.

"Alus Tycho, former Peaceforce slave," he offers, keeping his own introduction brief. "And not to speak for the rest of you, but I can't say I really care about who set us free or why."

Tychodraws closer to the rest of the Exalts, stiffly rolling his shoulders and probing the deep gouges under his arm where the Immaculate had damaged him earlier. Every few seconds, something in his lower abdomen went click! embarrassingly loudly, though he does his best to ignore it. He looks around at faces both familiar and strange, though apart from the Inspector, everyone there was barely more than a stranger to him. "I'll admit I'm curious, the rivalry theory doesn't sound too far fetched either, but it doesn't really matter what their intentions might have been. They took the shackles off, lifted up their heel. Good or ill, they gave us our freedom. I'll happily die before I let anyone put any sort of collar on me. Particularly the big gold one that says 'obligation' on it."

"The same might as well be said for all of us too," he notes, vents near his hips letting off low blasts of steam as he eases himself down onto the floor, his legs arrayed in front of him in a careless fashion, like a doll tossed into a corner. "Mutual protection is handy for a while, but how long is that glue going to hold? You people keep saying we need to worry about who set us free. Who says we don't need to worry about each other just as much? For all any of you know, one of us somehow turned off the collars and is just using the rest to keep themselves safe until they accomplish whatever they're out to do, ready to toss us like scrap to the furnaces as soon as no one else is looking..."

His hand starts to wave in a dismissive fashion, then jerks abruptly and locks half-way through the air. Tycho glares at it a moment, then sighs. "Not that I'm saying that's so, but it would do wonders to put my mind at ease if we had any sort of collective goal here, beyond navel-gazing about what might have set us free in between moments of trying desperately not to die horribly."

Nanaret considers the family angle, her brow creasing in concentration. For now she keeps memory of the name: Tepet Amon. Perhaps he would be someone to seek. "Not certain it is mere family rivalry. Five Coils, it have its nobility. But in essence is a military facility, however lovely they make it look up above. We are not only toys, but weapons."

Now her nose wrinkles distastefully. "I do not think even the nobles be so stupid as to play with pawns so dangerous. But maybe they think we are so far below, we never reach close enough to snap their pretty necks. If they make a game of us... they will regret."

"Tycho. We survive. We escape. Avoid being used again. These are both sure goals between us, yes? Unless one wish stay here forever. No. From here could be twenty, twenty five floors. Time now is to rest and plan, get to know what lies ahead."

"Real question is..." The blue-haired Lunar tilts her head thoughtfully, staring up at the rocky ceiling. "Whether we escape for ourselves, or for all who wish freedom. Whether we free ourselves or Free Five Coils. For the machine, too, is alive. I spoke to part of it."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:06, Sat 31 Jan 2009.

"A hive lives by it's workers, not just the queen." Dena answers Saina, having thought it over a few moments.  "We have to escape for all, if we go just for ourselves we'll leave too many enemies behind us who will hunt us down in time.  The first Gatekeeper is with us now, if we get the others we can control Five Coils itself and have our own military fortress and production facilities, rather than leave them to slay us from behind."

Dashu's eyes cock up and he smiles.  He had been so desperate to get his deduction out to the rest that he had forgotten to make his introduction.  "Sorry, I should have said this at first, but I'm Peleps Dashu.  I was an investigator used by the Peace Keeping Forces."  He then responds to Nanaret saying, "I hadn't considered that angle.  I'll keep my eye's open for evidence which could indicate that.  Personally, I had been leaning more towards a different theory.  I think they let us free so they could have a good excuse to wipe out the Water District.  5 Coils is a sub-terrestrial base so that means it's got limited resources and every now and again they might like to kill off the inhabitants of the Water District.  After all, it's the poorest of all the districts so they wouldn't care as much about the inhabitants.  Unfortunately, I don't have anything to prove or disprove that right now."  He then turned to address Tyco's statements.  "Well you know me and you know it's not my style.  I wouldn't select only a few of the slaves to free.  I hated being collared as much as you.  I'm getting to the surface and helping any former slave get there too.  Actually, if they want to tag along too," Dashu nods his head in the direction of the mortals, "they're welcome for all I care.  There's no long term safety as long as we stay in this fortress.  If it turns out that the surface isn't a viable option for one reason or another, then I'll look at other options.  This is something I think we'll need to deal with eventually, though?  I have no love for my slavers or the society that allowed them to collar me, but I also have no desire to let them use me as an excuse to massacre an entire district or any other atrocities.  I wish for my freedom to be freedom in fact and not just a tool they use to their own ends.  After his little speech, he stops and regroups himself.  "But none of this effects the here and now too much.  First thing's first... food, water, and rest.  After that we can work on finding out how to get out of here.  He finally asks Danae, this Tepet Amon.... where does he normally reside?  He might be able to answer some questions."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:20, Sat 31 Jan 2009.

"That's well said Dashu, we have more immediate needs to take care of.  I need to rest for now and get back some of what I've spent getting here.  Once I've recovered a bit I'll be able to cover a lot of ground fast to hunt for what we need.  I'll take the third watch." Dena suggests, before covering her face with her hands in an apparent plan to simply sleep on the floor for now.

Xurizu listens to the discussion about their goals and possible future actions.  "Ah, I suppose I should have introduced myself, too.  I am Ledaal Xurizu," he says.  He doesn't mention what he did, both because he still isn't entirely sure, and because those bits he does know ... well.  There were six faces he could remember very well.  "I am a sorcerer, although I do not know many spells." Just the one, in fact

"I agree we need to more than just survive, though gathering what is necessary to do that should be our immediate priority, after some rest.  I will be able to help with gathering the supplies we need, I am sure, once we've rested a little.  I think before we know what to do, we need to know more information.  We should find this Tepet Amon and ask him what he knows.  Those of us who look normal and don't have their Exaltations to hide should start to talk to people in nearby settlements," he speaks quietly, but with certainty.  "Once we know what the situation is here, we can start to think about what to do for the whole of Five Coils--whatever that ends up meaning." We should talk to the seventh face too.  Wherever they are and whatever they are called.  There must have been a reason I was set upon them.

Xurizu hesitates then, before deciding to say something else.  "I will sleep now, but if you would wake me after your watch, Dena?" he asks, and then starts to remove his stolen armour.

   Saffron has been focusing exclusively on making sure the woman who needed her was well cared for. While, she heard peripherally what was said, she wasn't going to process it quickly. Add to this her habit of remaining quiet so she could listen better and it made for long periods of time in between speaking.

   Finished and satisfied her patients would do well with more rest, she rises. She speaks quietly, but her voice carries, "I apologize for my concentration being elsewhere. I am Healer Saffron. I can craft a little, particularly medicines and I am can blend into a crowd if needed. I can speak with speak and negotiate with whoever needs it. I can keep watch and raise an alarm, but I have not the skills to take a life, only save them.

   "For our immediate concerns, I am nearly depleted in reserves, but I can speed the healing of someone who needs it badly."

Danae nodded from all the discussion, and seemed to be rolling over to get to sleep--when something suddenly occured to her--sitting up and turning over to Turtle, Danae gestured to the large cannon he was carrying.  "Actually, do you mind if I take a look at that?  I want to make sure that there's no method that our opposite numbers can use to track it before we try carrying it arround very far..."

The doctor listens carefully to the other stories related, and nods in acknowledgment to each and every one of them. "There is certainly a lot of merit in each of these theories. There is likely fragments of truth in all of then, whether it be whole or not. And I also agree that the goal of our rise towards the surface should be outlined - some of us might simply wish to escape with their freedom, and that wish should be honored. I, for one, know I have another mission to accomplish, one I was sent to ultimately do; it is my burden to carry, however, and none of us should feel obligated to participate in such operations. The purpose of freedom is to keep about free will, and that cannot be maintained if the path of those who are free is enforced upon them"

"It would seem that combined, we possess many leads worth checking into. That in and of itself is a blessing, although we should be careful in how we investigate each one. Some of them might be red herrings set there to make us misstep, and so we should likely proceed with vigilance."

"I agree however that our priority for now should be rest. We will have to establish quarters and facilities if we are to use this area as a headquarter, even temporarily." He nods, then looks around carefully, squinting slightly. "Once again, I believe that if we are to combine our strengths and specialties, we will find ourselves able to establish something of the sort with positive results."

"I don't know, inspector," Tycho, pausing in his fight to lower his metallic arm, mutters thoughtfully and he tilts his head towards Dashu and eyes him with mock-suspicion. "I wouldn't count you out of the running. Who better to make a criminal mastermind than crimefighter?"

There was a tremendous metallic crack! as Tycho gives his magitech arm one last and frustrated pull. The limb loosed at once, maybe even too much. His forearm was drifting a little as he moves it experimentally, spinning and shifting against the ball-joint at his elbow. Fantastic. "In all seriousness though, unless we have something we really need them for, we'd be better off just slipping that group quietly in among the local population. The Terrestrials wouldn't be keeping as close a watch on them as us. One mortal mostly looks the same to them as the next, so they should be able to blend in alright. They've been a brave lot, but look at them," and he does so himself, casting a look back at the mortals as they collapse and huddle together tiredly for warmth. "They barely made it this far. That was one section of the Coil we made it out of and if the plan to this point They're not suited for any sort of long-term journey. Not unless someone toughens them up a lot."

"If they stick around down here, I can give them a few pointers. Write a few words for them to say, teach them how to stir up trouble in the communities. It might be good, to give the Terrestrials something else to worry about beyond the escaped Celestials. Like open rebellion on an entire floor. You talk about bringing the establishment down, this is how it's done."

Ting!

"Hey," he says suddenly and turns back, looking down at Danae. "You said you scavenged a few things. Any tools in the pile? My bodies going to get a worse for wear if I don't get some maintenance done soon."

"Don't need any tools" Danae handwaved.  "They just make things work a bit better--I can probably fix up any of your problems once I've had a chance to recover some Essence though--I focused on getting Magical Materials--given how delightfully hard it will be to scavenge any we can actually make the best usage of in the future"
This message was last edited by the player at 01:38, Sun 01 Feb 2009.

"Many of you are in dire need of rest - I will round the watch, and take the fourth quarter. I can remain for a little while, if need be. Besides, I would have a word with the refugees - I have not had the chance to speak to them much since we left the Gladiatorial Arena."

With that, the Doctor walks up to the group he knows has weathered much to make it here, and makes it his duty to try to soothe their spirits in the same way Saffron heals their bodies.

Third lifts its head as the others appear. " Third Beneficiary of Orderly Knowledge. Third worked as intelligence maintenance and Akashic Record." It looks towards Tycho, as it talks about a goal. " You all have undergone an extreme shock. Thirty minutes ago we had been released, and were on the verge of death. That is the sort of thing that you will need time to come to terms with. We are also all in need of rest." Third rather less, in both categories, than any of the others. The Solar has been marshalling its essence quite carefully. It also seems to have picked up the idea of 'we'.

" As with any important problem, our stock of information is too low for a conclusive answer. Third recommends that the only reasonable approach to solving who set us free is to continue to escape. As we make our way upwards, they will undoubtedly show their hand, either to aid us, or to stop us." It looks towards Danae. " Third's own knowledge of crafting is minimal, and is only in matters of delicate works. But Third is willing to offer what help it can, particularly if you are able to forge a new sword. The one Third found earlier gave its life in the service of our escape." It looks towards the others. " What transpired in the Core? Did the Gatekeeper survive? Your state seems to suggest there was an unpleasant fight." It almost looks worried. Leave it to Third to be the one to worry about the intelligence.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:06, Sun 01 Feb 2009.

"Should not underestimate them so much," Nanaret says of the mortals. Her monkey-tail swishes back and forth. "They seen much more that most citizens see. Much was even new for us. And we not very certain we would survive either."

"Of course, should be their choice to stay or come."

The monkey Lunar's face splits into a smile as Saffron finally takes a breather from her work. "Healer Saffron. Thank you much. I am wounded, yes, but is seems to me there are others who hurt worse. The one called Turtle, and the beautiful one." She points to Dena, who has already all but dozed off.

[Private to Saffron: I think that Turtle can actually regenerate himself, but I remember he nearly lost a limb in the battle. And Dena was the one who got electrocuted!]
This message was last edited by the player at 03:03, Sun 01 Feb 2009.

"I am certain the Gatekeeper will be safe, friend." Higura already had grown to appreciate the one called Third Beneficiary of Orderly Knowledge - they had virtually no time to speak, but there was a certain kinship into the execution of their functions that Higura learned to appreciate.

"The part of my mind that is Prochorus remembers the times before control of the Coils was wrenched away from Celestial hand. The Gatekeepers were proud guardians then, ancient spirit machines that oversaw every mundane detail in the structure. In their hubris, it seems that the Terrestrials have forgotten this fact - that the gatekeepers are infinitely more ancient than they. In his district, the Gatekeeper is master of his domain. Have faith, I am certain the Guardian of Water will emerge victorious. It will take time, but I believe that one day the District of Water will rise again, under its guidance."

With that said, he nods and heads over to the refugees, pausing only a moment to gaze over Nanaret. We shall speak later, the gaze seems to tell her. Over time, Higura had been the one to help the Lunar come to terms with the embrace her former self holds on her - and now that the Queen had emerged more often than he had observed in months, he thought it appropriate to try to speak of it with her.

Dashu responded to Third cooly, "Yeah, a couple of guys in armor busted into the room after the three of you vanished.  The really wouldn't have been all that hard to take down if they hadn't had a small crew of suicidal sycophants getting in the way of our attacks.  They weren't in great shape at the end of things either.  Don't know what the Gatekeeper did to them after it threw us out.  Turtle over there got the weapon from one of them.  And we can work together on the intelligence gathering.  I have a feeling we've both got talents the other lacks.  Anyway, I'll be at the mouth of the cave keeping a lookout.  I'll wake the next shift when I'm done."  With that, Dashu went out to keep his watch for the group.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:28, Sun 01 Feb 2009.

Third bows its head. "Third will need to have confidence in the Gatekeeper of Water, then." The Solar looks towards Dashu. " Third apologizes for our disappearance. Third had not expected the disappearance. Third will be willing to take the next watch- Third has managed to avoid overt damage or Essence loss." The mechanical speech patterns. There's a hint of personality flickering there now, but it's faint, like a flame that could be snuffed out with a strong wind. It nods politely towards Higura, doing its best to return the friendly words.

   "Thank you, Nanaret," Saffron nods to her. "I believe the refugees should be allowed to decide. They chose to live and as long as they are willing to learn, walk, and carry on, they should be allowed to do what they feel is right.

   "Turtle," she asks offering her skills to him first as she is loathe to wake the other unless she has to.

The refugees being talked about at the moment have, for the most part, already fallen asleep. It's eye-opening seeing them for the first time out of the context of running for their lives. They have all come from five floors below: the absolute dregs of Five Coils society. They have seen, as Nanaret suggested, many things that no other ordinary citizen may ever see.

They are men and women forgotten or abandoned by the Five Coils system. They all have their stories. A few were gladiators themselves, like Nanaret, forced into one of the many barbaric methods Five Coils society gets rid of their 'excess' in the name of entertainment. Some of them... served other purposes. Prostitutes. Refuse-disposers. Grave-tenders. (Dashu and Xurizu would remember the endless stretch of graves at the bottom of Floor B31.) Some had once lived on upper floors, but for whatever reason lost favor or got on the bad side of the law, shunted down below ground.

These ones would be the prime example of Dashu's theory about the collars. But with men like Tepet Amon and Pale Gaze about, Lady Misa and Lady Sienna, the Equalizers with their vague allusions to a grand design, who knows what other purposes could have been woven into the act of their escape?

But as most have conceded... it is irrelevant. For now the refugees sleep, patched up and cared for by Saffron's gentle hand. Some remain awake for a little longer. Drachma is one of them, staring into the distance; a few follow suit, as if their minds are too busy adjusting to all they had just experienced to really sleep. Some are sprawled on their backs, gazing blissfully at the ceiling as they start to nod off. They are alive -- and in a place that looks, of all things, relatively normal! Yes, they cried and they prayed down there, but what else could they have done then, faced with the incontrovertible fact that they are but an iota in the great machine?

Most people need more than 30 minutes to come to terms with that -- to develop the voice that would challenge their station, and the physical and spiritual strength to climb far above what they had once known.

While the others start to rest, Danae stubbornly pours the last of her energy into inspecting Megaera's chorus cannon. Unfortunately, what she finds is that getting into the sensitive portions of the weapon is simply impossible without tools, and her Essence stores are too depleted for generating them. So she cannot make a thorough inspection of the cannon at this time.

The best Danae can think of doing, for now, is disconnecting the Essence tanks serving as the power supply. Basically, shutting it off completely in case there really is a transmitter on the weapon.

However, she also finds out a few interesting things... [Private to Danae Adela: You believe this 'chorus cannon' is one of the many inventions resulting from the Dragon-blooded experiments on Celestials. It produces a destructive sonic effect on par with high-level sorcery -- in fact, it could be said that the weapon replicates the process of casting a spell, fed by the Essence-respirating tanks. In place of an AI, or a true Celestial, the wielder controls the effect through the switches placed on its grip. Whatever spell (or spells) are actually locked in there, you've no idea, and would be better off asking a true sorcerer about it.

It is very likely a prototype. Nonetheless, it is disturbing proof that the Terrestrials of Five Coils have come a long way toward possibly mass-producing what is essentially Celestial or even Solar-level Sorcery in a controllable machine.

You also find some markings. LETO-OO1 'ARCHICHOROS'. The official name perhaps. They are in High Realm and not Old, dating this as a recent invention. Undoubtedly it employed Celestials in its making, and the best of facilities Five Coils has to offer, given its adamant, jade and orichalcum construction. However, you have never heard a thing of this Leto project before, despite your previous duties while enslaved.]

Third may feel uncertain in the presence of so many humans, those who have retained their feelings, their identities -- but it also feels Harmony's presence, resonating to it through the orb it has pocketed. Perhaps that may offer it some comfort. INITIAL-ANALYSIS-COMPLETE, she informs Third mentally. 99.6%-CERTAINTY-THIS-IS-EARTH-DISTRICT-FLOOR-B25, SOUTHWEST-QUADRANT. EXACT-COORDINATES-UNCERTAIN. THIS-AREA-IS-OUT-OF-LIMITS; NO-LATENT-INTELLIGENCES-OR-SENSORS-EXIST-IN-THIS-VICINITY.

FURTHER-PROCESSING-NEEDED. PLEASE-REST, SHINING-EYE. IT-IS-EFFICIENT-TO-RECHARGE-WHEN-ONE-CAN.

---

OOC: ok, now that I'm done with some textspam, do your last bits of conversing/interacting before the rest if any. I'll fast forward as soon as the last bits of conversation/analysis/etc. resolve. (Tonight, if possible.)
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:14, Thu 30 Apr 2009.

When Danae asks to view the captured weapon, Turtle blinks slowly, then passes over the oversized cannon, "Ahh, hmm.  Well, you can have it, honestly... I took it to keep it, away from those maniacs, not because I wanted a... whatever it is..."  Gesturing to two other weapons that ended up nearby, a shock pike and an essence lash, he continues in his deep bass rumble, "Hmm.  The same is true, of those.  Took them, because I didn't want them stabbing me, when I was running away.  Anyone who can use them, is free to take them."

Turtle attempts a grin at the healer, along with an awkward half-bow, "Ahh... hmm...  thank you, Healer Saffron, but I recover quickly."  Indeed, the arm that was little more than a charred mass of flesh minutes earlier appears largely healed, though still paralyzed by the trauma.  Physically propping it up with his good arm, he wiggles the fingers slightly, "See?  Good as new, hmm, in a few more minutes."  The grin reappears, no doubt less comforting than intended, given that the tortoise-man's massive beak is lined with sharpened silver.

Dropping his voice down lower to avoid bothering the sleeping mortals, Turtle continues to anyone still awake, "Hmm... I think I've introduced myself to everyone, at least briefly, but... I'm Grinning Turtle.  The Dragon-Bloods, they just had me move heavy things, and sometimes draw plans, for new residential areas... public areas... administrative buildings...  He appears slightly uncomfortable talking about himself, and the half-shrug he gives reinforces that impression, "Nothing fancy.  And, I'll be glad, to take a shift in the watch rotation.  Just let me know, when my turn comes up."

Third nods its head. 'Thank you, Harmony. You are not impaired by your battle with the Gatekeeper of the Water?" Third looks up. " We are currently in a blind spot in the senses of Five Coils. We should be safe here. We will want to be careful when we venture out." It says curtly, before lying down, curled up on the ground to rest, eyes closing almost immediately.

  The healer nods at Turtle and returns to the people to settle next to Drachma. With the beautiful one already asleep, she wasn't going to introduce the woman to Saffron's style of healing.
   "We should rest, Drachma, while we can. We have come far and have further still to go. We will need to find out who wishes to go on and who we will need to find a place for. I would like to help you and these people as much as I can."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:26, Sun 01 Feb 2009.

Nanaret does not lie down right away. She meets Higura's gaze, briefly, seeing the meaning in his eyes, and nods slightly before moving away from the light ignited by the first watch's anima.

The Changing Moon's sensitive ears follow the sound of rushing water, and she moves in that direction with careful, quiet footsteps. Her yellow night-seeing eyes pierce the darkness, looking for any sign of useful food or supplies close by. She won't go further than would take her to get back in time for her shift, though, so after an hour out she will head straight back regardless of what she finds.

Once her watch is over... assuming it is over without event... Nanaret sleeps soundly, curled on the ground with little more than her arm as a pillow.

(ooc: if I remember it's still pitch dark in these caves, so..!)

Nanaret's initial search is quite fruitful. She moves undetected through winding corridors, and finds the water source. It's an underground river that has eroded through the earth in this area, or was perhaps diverted this way to give the miners' clean water to drink. At least, to Nanaret's taste it looks perfectly clean.

She finds nearby a series of natural caves that served as miners' quarters. They, too, have been abandoned. Not a single living thing is left here, not even vermin. There are, however, insects. Mostly of the crawling variety, beetles and ants and spiders. Not exactly appetizing, to most people, though to her totem form, they would be.

On some of the miners' beds and pillows, she finds neat piles of white dust. It stands out to her so she inspects it, but she isn't sure exactly what it is. She does also find a storage area of well-preserved rations... not exactly appetizing fare, but it'd last their group a week or so if they rationed it out, assuming they're still edible. She also finds a lantern and some tinder, and some other basic items.

Moving beyond these quarters Nanaret finds even more to explore: the quarters were only part of a small underground mining community that appears to be completely deserted. But her time runs short before she can really look into that, so she hurries back the way she came to take the second watch.

Dashu's watch passes quietly. He gets to 'turn off' his anima when Nanaret comes back with the lamp. If she wishes, Nanaret may relate to him or Dena (the watch after hers) whatever she has found during her brief foray.

During third watch Dena stays awake with Saffron, who heals her wounds to the best of her ability. Dena finds the environment to be oddly comfortable to her; the area, apparently, has a great affinity for insects. She finds they gather near her, not in a swarm or a threatening way, but they like to be close to her. There is a particular breed of ant with an iridescent blue carapace whose scouts entice her with their erratic movements. Almost as if they are communicating with her.

Fourth watch is shared by Higura and Xurizu. They may talk quietly as they please; it turns out that the two of them, among all the escapees, are the ones who have traveled the widest range of floors on 'duty'.

By the time Turtle wakes for his turn, he is already fully healed. Patient as he is, he endures the entirety of his watch in uncomplaining silence. He, too, enjoys the proximity of the earth, but not for any love of insectoid creatures; rather, it makes him want to sleep for longer, for it evokes a feeling of safety in him.

Third's watch is the final one. Harmony 'wakes' with him, and reassures him that she has recovered her full capacities after the battle with Gatekeeper of Water, and together they recollect some more interesting facts about the area. [Private to Third Beneficiary of Orderly Knowledge: This area had apparently been a lucrative mine for precious metals and minerals. The last record was of a mining accident that forced the Gatekeeper of Earth to seal off the area. During that time the entire area went mysteriously offline. Blacked out to all sensors, wiped out from memory. Only rogues like her or Akashics like Third might have retained any memory of it. But there is no name left to call it by. They are truly the 'lost corridors.']

Danae dreams. Her unconscious mind is filled with clockwork visions and the irresistible desire to build a masterpiece of form and function. Most of the others sleep too deeply to remember dreams at all, their minds too weary for more.

12 hours later, everyone is awake and finally rested. It is time for the group to divide up the tasks they will do this week.
This message was last edited by the GM at 08:05, Tue 03 Feb 2009.

Dashu wakes up and stretches his limbs.  Then he realized, that this was the first time in several years he's woken up without a collar around his throat.  His hand instinctively goes to feel for the piece of metal, but once he realizes what it's doing, he stops and chuckles to himself.  "This might take some getting used to,"  He then turned to make sure the rest of the Exalts were okay and nothing had happened to them during the night.  On the whole, everyone seemed to be doing better than when he had gone to sleep.  He took some modicum of comfort in that.

When everyone had woken, and were deciding on tasks to be divvied up, he decided to throw his two bits in.  "I'm all in favor of finding habitation and trying to glean information.  I can help when we get there but I'm afraid I won't be of much assistance finding anything.  I've got sharp eyes, but I'm more at home in a city than the wilderness.  When I'm not doing anything, I'll happily stand watch though.  Once we get to city I'll be able to ask questions and get some reliable answers.  I also might be able to... go unnoticed if need should arise."

OCC:  High Awareness, Interrogation, Medium Stealth (until i learn my form charm, then it goes higher), no Survival
This message was last edited by the player at 15:03, Tue 03 Feb 2009.

Early on in his watch, Turtle shifts back to his human form, an older, stooped looking man that gives the impression of slight confusion.  Before age began to set in, he must have been quite large, as he is still a bit above average height.  The more strong-minded Exalts in the group notice a network of brown lines marking his bald head, making out a clear tortoiseshell pattern.

Nodding at Dashu's suggestion that civilization be contacted somehow, Turtle's voice doesn't have the same deep bass ring as in his hybrid form, though he does retain the unusual rolling speech pattern.  "Hmm... Well, I was thinking I'd take it easy for a bit, just walk around, look for food, that sort of thing.  I'll keep an eye open for people living nearby, a forge... anything else?"  The slow blink is the same as well.

OOC:  Unless presented with a compelling argument why something else should be done first, Turtle will be spending the first week exploring.  His highest priority is finding a food supply, but also investigates any signs he finds of any fairly recent human habitation for salvageable supplies, forging equipment, or anything else useful that might be lying around.

Decent Lore, Craft: Earth, and Survival.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:11, Tue 03 Feb 2009.

Tycho sits motionless throughout the night, yet does not truly sleep. His pale eyes stay open and stare blindly into the dark and, bloodless as he seemed to be, could have just as well been a corpse strapped into that mechanical body. Powered down, ever single function of his body not strictly required for life shut off, it was close enough to death. His thoughts float through an empty blackness, void of all external sensation. A dreamless, restless state that comes to an end only when his essence-reservoirs tank off, more by coincidence than design bringing awareness back to the Solar as the others start to awaken around him.

Well, here I am...

His first act is to go to Danae and pester her for the repair work she spoke of the night before. "Sorry to press you about it so early in the morning, but I'm hours overdue for maintenance by now. I don't want pieces to start falling off."

The situation isn't as dire as all that, but for the past several years Tycho had been use to chemicals baths, morning tune-ups, even polishings. Less than a full twenty-four hours without them and he can feel the wear. Feel every speck of grime and dust, every joint out of alignment or poor lubricated. It makes ever part of him that isn't metal itch. As the others speak, he stands and submits himself to her care at her leisure.

"If either of you do find civilization, could you try to pick up a few things for me?" he asks Turtle and Denshu and gives off a short list of chemical compounds. Nothing that would be difficult to find, most of them chemicals used in factories or even ordinary cleaning agents. They seem to have little in common with one another. "I'd come with you and get them myself, but going into any sort of inhabited area isn't an option for me. As I'm sure you can imagine, I tend to stick out."

"That's why I'm going to stay around here, maybe find a way to keep the children entertained," he says with a nod that indicates the rousing flock of mortals. "If they stay on this floor or follow us up, and again for the record I'm in favor of leaving them here, either way they're going to need to learn out to fend for themselves or at the very least how to keep out from underfoot."
-----------------
OOC: Tycho, as Drill Master, intends to be spending the week doing whatever he can to pound some survival and urban guerrilla tactics into the mortals. Probably not much in a single week, so he'll focus the most on using their numbers to swarm and cause damage through confusion rather than fighting. He'll also single out the former gladiators and try to drill them more intensely on direct-combat, with shields particularly if he or someone else can scavenge up anything that will make for a passable ones.

Xurizu had spoken a little with Higura during his watch, though he had keep quiet about just what had sent him all over Five Coils, instead talking with the doctor to try and map out what they new of the structures above.  Xurizu couldn't help too much with the task, and it was probably fairly swiftly obvious that the lanky man was missing significant sections of his memory.  He tried not to let it affect him, instead taking what more Higura might tell him to try and figure out some of the holes.

"Good morning, all," he said when he finally awoke, a faint smile on his face.  "I'm sure I can manage wherever I find myself, out here, or in the city.  On the other hand, I wouldn't have the first clue with what to do with a hammer.  Still, I think our first priority should be, as a group, to find somewhere to stay.  Perhaps the mines Nanaret mentioned."

"Once we know where home is, we can start to make the things we plan to make, or visiting the towns and cities around here to find information.  But first we should know where to come home to," he looks around the waking people.

OOC: High awareness and Occult, reasonable socials, survival, lore.

The Solar wakes the others at the end of its watch, standing, having spent the time discussing and recollecting memories with Harmony. As the others prepare for their tasks, it nods. "Third will investigate these caves while formulating a plan for escaping this district and moving upwards. These caves used to be well-used, but they were abandoned for unknown reasons. Third would prefer we find the cause, before the cause finds us." It stands, gathering itself to begin the day's explorations. " It may also be worth Third's time to attempt to make it into civilization, so as to discover a Library link. Third does not wish its information on Five Coils to become obsolete.'

It will spend its time searching for traces of what might have caused the closing off, including investigating the white powder that Nanaret discovered, when it finds it, and in the 'evenings', while resting, it spends its time using a small chunk of jade, borrowed from Danae, on one of the walls where they are staying, slowly carving out a map of the District of Earth, and examining it, plotting out possible courses. It's also more than happy to hear any comments from the other Exalted on its planning, always willing to fill out more information.

OOC: Very high Lore, decent Occult and Craft: Air, and it can offer some help with Medicine, at that.

   Saffron spends her time tending those still in need of her care. She scouts around, when she has time, for anything that could be used in her medicinal compounds. And takes the time to speak with the refugees on their plans or needs for the future. Of those still weary of the exalts, she speaks with them, questioning their beliefs in a non-confrontational way, and breaks down their objections to the smallest parts. Then, she takes the time to rebuild their argument. She isn't argumentative or demanding of a change in their attitude. She also does her best to "inspire" one of refugees to learn some of her mundane ways of treating wounds to alleviate some of her duties.
   For the good of the group, she organizes refugees into groups that can cook and clean up and even takes on the some of that herself. She also volunteers to go into town for those that need it because she can blend well into a crowd.

OOC: Medicine, Craft: Water, and Perception.

Dena rises up and stretches, popping her stiff spine and flexing her arms as she wakes.
"We have got to get some facilities, sleeping on a rock is no way to live." she grumbles.  "Right after we find a supply of food.  So, you said you were going to scout Turtle.  I'll head the opposite direction you choose and do the same.  I've done some smithy work before, mostly making chains and nails, so I'll be able to recognize a decent forge if I see it."
Pulling her tight muscles one more time, Dena unravels the jade staff she'd taken earlier and tosses it near to Danae.
"This thing just doesn't suit me, it isn't flexible enough.  I guess I just don't work well with rock.  So I'll give it back in case anybody else finds it more to their liking."
Dena spends her time searching for tools, and if they are found switches to working with metal bits to help Danae.

OOC~ Little Lore and Survival, Craft Earth and Fire, and good but not astounding social skills.

Now--first order of business now that she wasn't in a horribly unpleasant position anymore...  Danae was quick to patch up Tycho's most egregrious damages--admitting freely at several points that 'She's not really good at fixing PEOPLE', but her skills utilizing a rock, two pieces of twine, and a great deal of panicked prayer, was good enough to fix the worst of the mechanical damage.

Still, once she had a few minutes to herself though, she was quick to drag over the scraps of magical material she had 'Acquired' into a relatively out of the way corner of the room, and immediately began work at putting some reasonably useful trinkets together for the rest of the group--dragging any smiths or other workers who were able to work along for the ride.  Truth be told, artifice normally took a long time, and a number of useful tools...

But as soon as they began--with a quick flashing of golden essence, Danae seemed to physically grasp the pieces of metal, practically shaving off the bits she needed with a combination of willpower and good old fashioned hard work.  That some of the shavings could be used to fashion some primitive tools for everyone 'Else' to assist by grinding down the metal was a nice bonus...

OOC:
((Aside from combatty stuff, Danae has high Craft in Air, Fire, and Magitech, as well as some backing in Craft: Earth.  She also has the Charms to back all of these :D))

[Private to Gatekeeper: And a 'Spectacular' opening roll for my crafting!
13:20, Today: Danae Adela rolled 6 successes using 6d10 with the White Wolf Exalted system with a target of 7 with rolls of 8,10,10,6,8,5. Craft: Fire (-2 for 'Poor Tools').

+4 successess for Second Craft, +1 for an extra WP, and (If there are enough helpers), +1 for the mortal helpers, and +4 if Dena decides to spend the week helping, totals to an initial success rate of a whopping 16 before stunt is added!  I'll use this to make the first Orichalcum Fivefold Harmonic Adaptor, leaving me with 8 successes left over, allowing me to crank out the Moonsilver adaptor as well!  (Diff 3 leaves the 5 successes needed after the fact)]
This message was last edited by the player at 21:25, Tue 03 Feb 2009.

Higura has spent most of his awake time speaking with his fellow escapees, forging links and establishing connections with as many of them as possible. He gets to know them, their names, and the stories until this point, or at least an abridged version of it. He mostly listens to others' tales, and is a good conversationalist. He makes certain to mention he will be available to those who wish to speak of their mental conditions, although he never mentions it more than once, and does not push the matter in the slightest. Those who would ask for his advice will do so completely willingly. That is a perk that freedom grants him, and he is more than happy to be able to fulfill his work this way.

AS everyone wakes and start to state their areas of expertise as well as their goals, Higura makes his first priority to organize this effort into a coherent whole by collecting everyone's needs into a single list, organized by order of priority. He makes sure to leave he roughly carved list out for everyone to access and add to, so that all can see what needs to be taken care of, and add their own thoughts as well. This is the beginning of a collaborative effort, the first breaths of a new collective, and Higura does his best to make certain that the people who used to be strangers learn to function with each other as best as possible.

He spends the rest of his time helping Saffron with healing duties, as well as keeping the refugees in high spirits, and taking some time to speak with anyone who would wish to speak with him. Otherwise, he also helps Third with his assessment of the area, takes care of some scouting duties, and supports Dashu's investigations by providing counterpoints and observations of his own.

OOC: High Awareness, Medicine, good lore and investigation. Stealth, and some bureaucracy and socials.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:19, Tue 03 Feb 2009.

Nanaret stretches, taking some time to fully wake, listening to the others.

She raises her brows at the jade staff Dena discarded. "It would be useful to me. A shame it is Jade." She picks it up anyway, testing its weight gingerly.

"Those of you who wish to explore mine facilities, I show you there." She nods at Third and Xurizu, already stretching and rising. "Please come with me. Turtle, Dena, Dashu, you go separate ways, yes? We spread out, we find more. But still, maybe better go in pairs... bad if you get caught alone, unless you are good keeping out of sight." Her brow furrows at that thought, but she is not enforcing, merely suggesting.

When she is not exploring the mines, she talks with Higura. Their 'therapy' sessions have already been established since before their escape, though she keeps insisting that she is fine, and Ranavalona is under control.

Rana, of course, dislikes talking to Higura at all and that turns the Changing Moon's mood rather dour. If the doctor tries to push too hard at her mental defenses, Ranavalona lashes out in anger. Her bursts of anger are now and then heard echoing in the corridors; fortunately, that sort of occurence is rare, but more than enough indication that Nanaret's mental state is more volatile than she lets on.

Nanaret will also use at least one and up to three days training, depending on how much time she can spare.

OOC - well Nana is good with Dexterity, Manipulation (her best attribute, actually), Wits. Good Perception, mostly with hearing, also has night-vision. Ability-wise she's best at MA, then Performance at 4 (she's a great liar :P), then Awareness, Athletics, Larceny, Survival at 3.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:35, Wed 04 Feb 2009.

The first week of freedom is a busy time for new discoveries.

Dashu, Turtle and Dena begin their individual scouting missions. (Go to: Floor B25 - Exploration and Civilization)

Xurizu, Third and Nanaret start together, to explore the nearby abandoned settlement and hopefully make it livable and safe. (Go to: Floor B25 - The Old Mining Settlement)

Tycho, Saffron and Higura begin shaping up the refugees. (Go to: Floor B25 - Building a Revolution)

In the meantime, with help from Dena and a small group of mortals tasked to her, she completes some of her minor crafts. She can distribute those, then decide whether to continue crafting (thus spending her second of three crafting attempts for the next two weeks) or use the last couple days this week to involve herself in what some of the others are doing. [Private to Danae Adela: You can just post more craft rolls here unless you think you'd like another thread for that, that can also be arranged once people find a suitable workshop for you]

---

OOC: Post back here if you want to report to others what you did/found in the subthreads listed above. This is more or less the 'congregation and planning' thread for everyone, so people can regroup, request aid or set off on a different task.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:07, Mon 09 Feb 2009.

"Well... That's a decent start then I suppose" Danae concluded, holding up the little circular chip of Orichalcum she had scraped out during the greater portion of the past week, and carefully traced on several geomantically sound designs on it.  "A bit kitbashed, all things considered...  But several of us 'Are' waving around Jade, and this should go a long way towards drawing out the full power of that particular metal...  I've got a matching one in Moonsilver coming together, and should be done in a couple days--after that, I'm going to spend a little time arming those of us who haven't upgraded to magical metals...  And if we're still buttoned away when I'm done with that, I'll get started on putting together gear for any of our little refugee group who needs it--at least that shouldn't take terribly long though..."

After the first day's exploration, Dena returns with a huge jar full of some sort of creamy sweet confection, enough that she elected to use her stronger warform to carry it back after a short distance.  Finding Danae largely to busy to examine jars at the time, she decides to go bother Tycho, Saffron, and Higura instead.  At any rate the refugees are likely to need the lion's share of anything edible anyway.
"So," she explains, "This food was given to me by gigantic brightly colored insects that have apparently built their own city nearby, the tunnels do not look like Five Coils where they are living.  I am unsure of why they gave it to me, but they seem quite skittish and tended to avoid contact, which I did not attempt to force.  I have not been able to guess if it is tribute, a bribe, or an offer for trade.  It is my intention to return shortly and use my spirit form, which is more insect-like, to see if they will be forthcoming to that shape.  I would also like to give them a gift in return but have not thought of what might be useful to them yet.  Are any of you able to learn clues from the jar itself as to why they might offer it to me?"

"Hmmmm..." Though Dena's inquiry wasn't directed at her, Nanaret overhears anyway and interjects. "The caves I am searching, seems people there kept insect as livestock or pets, strange. Perhaps kept them for food-making? But these seem more intelligent than to be kept in pens."

"I am not best at socializing, though. Better at bluff than honesty." She shrugs, giving the jar a cursory inspection, then sampling a bit of what's inside. "Maybe good idea come back with small diplomatic party? Plus combatants, in case they become hostile."

During the week, Nanaret also makes reports of what she and others have found in the mining settlement. First of all, she lets people know that she and Third and Xurizu are working on making sure it is safe to live in, but she also tells them of the facilities available there: a mundane blacksmith's forge, a clothcrafter's shop (containing a weaving loom), a small hospital, a kitchen and mess hall. Once they have the place cleaned up and inspected it would serve as a good base.

She mentions all the supplies found as well, including mining implements that could potentially double as weapons, water-tight containers for water or food storage, kitchen utensils, lamps and tinder, some basic medical supplies, etc. She'll help distribute them when needed, or at least point people in the right direction (especially those with better organizational skills than her.)

"Well, I guess I can take a week to produce some decent weapons" Danae admits after things had been referred to as having some raw materials on that line--and the note that there was an actual workshop was an additional bonus.  "It's not really my first choice, and it'll cut in on my output of the more advanced devices, but I can probably churn out a good number of armaments if they're desperately needed for training purposes."

On occasion, when Tycho has a free moment from his work with the mortals in the evenings, Third takes him aside for the purposes of studying the maps that the Exalt has been continually working upon, planning out routes that, in case of emergencies, the mortals and Exalted alike will be able to use to escape to the next level of Five Coils. The walls near their temporary camp are now decorated with the endless delicate maps of Five Coils, drawn with a hand as steady as the movement of a blade through air, growing outwards from a central point like an exceptionally strange work of art.

Over the course of the week, Tycho periodically takes time out from training the mortals and leaves them in Drachma's care while he goes to find out what sort of progress everyone else is making and update them on their own. So far, the training has been going as well as can be expected. Without weapons, he's been teaching most of them to throw stones and weave through mobs, while drilling the few who still carry spears while simultaneously teaching a handful of others how to work in pairs to take those spears away. They're learning fast and, though he does not show it to them, with his great approval.

"I'll be right with you, Third," Tycho acknowledges the other Solar's request with an upraised hand, then turns to Dena with the same hand outstretched. "Here, let me see the jar?"

When he has it, he brings it over under his nose and breaths deep, feeling a deep pang in the pit of his stomach at the sweetness of the scent. Not that he would ever taste it, safe or no. Neither his tongue nor jaw were deemed necessary to the end result of his procedure, a fact which the heavy respirator thankfully hides from sight.

Tycho has at least some experience with chemicals and alchemy though. He was more use to working with manufactured compounds. Substances pumped out of factories, produced from something natural but refined past the point of being recognizable. Which is why - he holds out the jar and peers inside, dipping a metallic finger in and testing it with a brief stir - he hopes that maybe he can at least tell if the stuff is a natural substance or manufactured one. Perhaps even catch the old familiar tang of danger he'd learned once lurks in anything that you should have care when handling, the heady chemical odor that left an acidic aftertaste deep in your throat or the gritty sandy feel to it scrapping across your fingers.

[Private to GM: His chance is pretty tiny, but would like to try for a Perception + Occult/Lore to try to analyze the substance and see what it's made of. Or at least find out if it's dangerous]

As he tests the substance in the jar out, he tilts his head with the whir of neck servos spinning. "Livestock? That still seems like a rather strange coincidence, given what Dena found. Heh, maybe the bugs grow minds of their own and ran off."

Coming back from one of his excursions, Turtle looks both cheerful and quite well fed, but suspiciously low on food.  Hearing Dena's story, his expression falls, and he asks hesitantly, "Ahh... these insects, just to be clear, they are large, yes?  Not little black things, about so big?"  As he asks, he holds his hands about two feet apart.  "I ask because, I saw some, gathering tubers, and, well... I, well, I ate one."

Dena thinks this over a moment but even for her it's easy to parse.
"No, these creatures were not black, at least none I saw.  They are akin to gemstones in coloration and beauty.  Also I have doubts you could eat one easily, they are as large as my warform though they go about close to the ground rather than upright."
She looks at the jar more closely.
"Is anybody able to tell how the jar was made?  Perhaps if we know if the insects made it themselves, or if a human did, that might provide a clue as to how advanced the insects are, and if they already trade with others."

Turtle's good spirits return quickly, grinning widely at Dena's description of the emerald insect, "Hmmm... good... didn't want to think, I ate a friend of yours..."  Apparently set at ease, Turtle hums quietly to himself as takes a few long moments to consider the jar, tapping it carefully at one point while listening with his ear on it, then running a finger along its rim, and ending by carefully trying to scrape a bit off and taste it.  After these basic tests, he moves off a bit and sits quietly for a few minutes, carefully considering every aspect of the jar's creation before offering an opinion.

[Private to Gatekeeper:  5 successes on Int + Craft Earth.]
This message was last edited by the player at 07:53, Sat 07 Feb 2009.

Third takes a moment after Turtle finishes to inspect it itself, studying the pot silently, rolling it in its hands, inspecting the styles used, the shape of the pot, what information it can glean from the basic properties of the pot, what sort of lineage that these things would suggest, appreciating the brief break from endless carving of maps.

Between the three of them, Tycho, Turtle and Third discover that the jar is just a jar. It's not dangerous... it's not magical in any volatile manner. It's just an inert container, and the food inside is safe for consumption. It isn't actually overly sweet, even -- it's rather nutritious energy food, but nothing any of them have seen a normal insect produce.

More interesting is the make of the jar. Turtle's examination makes him certain the material is not a ceramic, but a wax resin that is organic in origin -- another secretion from the bodies of the insects themselves. Similar to beeswax, actually, but harder and more durable. The shape of the jar appears to have been constructed from the bottom-up: the bottom of the jar was laid out, then concentric circles built atop its circumference, widening or narrowing as need be to form a pleasing rounded shape.

Tycho makes the next connection, backed up by Third's memories of Five Coils lore. This jar was definitely made by a species of manufactured life known colloquially as 'builder bugs'. These creatures had been a part of Coils even before the Dragon-blooded came, deployed in vast colonies around and within the bowels of the great machine to help maintain its structural integrity. Since then their numbers have depleted but the Terrestrials with their Celestial 'help' have attempted to expand on the species to produce a wide variety of materials.

The resin-crafters are only one common form. Evidence so far indicates there are at least a couple other subspecies: one a food producer, another a silk producer. It is unsure yet how the black ones that Turtle had met could be related to the builder species, but they do not seem intelligent the way the bigger varieties are. A rough estimation of their intelligence would be equivalent to at least a human child.

Dashu arrives back after his first day of scouting and relates what he's discovered.  He found a human settlement filled with mostly male miners.  He doesn't think that they would be able to easily hide the women there.  If they need to, then he believes that he could sneak back in and do business to get tools, necessities, and information, however he would need to put together a better disguise to do so.  However the mining town has both stationary sentries and mobile ones and is well lit so it would not be an excursion he would recommend for a large group to undertake as it would be incredibly suspicious.  Finally, he did discover that one of the miner's, drunk though he was, believed that they were getting close to a jade vein because the material was incredibly hard.

After he summed up his adventure, including shaking a sentry off his tail, Dashu retired to practicing his katas and taking his turn at watch.

Tycho, pausing now and then to let Turtle and Third fill in the gaps in his own knowledge, relays to the others what he gleans from his examinations.

"Builder Bugs," he wonders out loud, looking at the jar once more before handing it off to the next person. "I didn't even think there were any of those left around."

"There was a nest of them, we heard tale on my end of the district, who actually sided with a labor movement that was working up towards unionizing. Bulls broke them up before that could happen. Never heard what happened to the bugs themselves."

As Dashu returns, the mechanical Solar listens to his report broodingly. Something is bothering him about what everyone who has gone exploring has come back saying. Not what they've found, but what they haven't seemed to find. "So do we actually have any idea yet what the Terrestrial presence is on this floor? Is there nothing here? No one has mentioned seeing any Dragon-Blooded, any Peaceforce, any anything."

Dashu (and anyone else who struck out to explore the floor beyond the 'lost corridors') would have seen some Peace Force patrols, but mostly it seems to be automaton sentries taking care of guarding the area. Unfortunately, Dashu didn't stay long enough in his initial visit to the laborer camp to discover very much. And most people had concentrated their first week's efforts more on training, foraging, crafting and generally staying put.

[Private to Alus Tycho: One might interpret that to mean the Peace Force is deliberately staying low key. It would definitely be their 'style' to keep the events of the Water District as hushed as possible, as it appears more or less business as usual even just one floor above. The districts are often disconnected from each other, and its very rare an ordinary person moves from the one they are assigned to. After all, it's much easier to control an ignorant people ...especially one kept content with alcohol.]

While the others discuss their findings, Danae has the time to start up on another project; she may also continue to fit in time for Tycho's maintenance if necessary, as it would only take a fraction of an hour from her day. Tycho finds she is quite skillful at it despite her initial lack of confidence, so as long as she is willing to take the small amount of time to help him, she will be able to take care of any maintenance his basic knowledge doesn't cover. [Private to Danae Adela: By the way, if you do nothing but craft in the next week... you can make *two* more craft rolls, though you can post them separately if you prefer. I should have also given you a couple of stunt dice for the first attempt; unfortunately I rolled it and it gave you no more successes. :(]

---

OOC: round out your conversations and actions for the week, if you have anything else to add. Tomorrow I will post a last summary of week 1 and prompts for week 2.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:39, Sat 07 Feb 2009.

Well, with all that said and done--Danae was left in a position to continue with her prior work--now in a position of much greater comparable comfort then scraping pieces off with her bare hands and hoping for the best--as such, she's quick to polish off work on the moonsilver Harmonic Adaptor--and has an opportunity once again to get cracking on some more scratch-built devices...

Of course, she's not 'Totally' absorbed in the task at hand--when Tycho requires maintenence, she's usually able to set the work aside for the few minutes it requires--but for the most part, unless the situation was critical, she was spending what time was available at producing more and more things...

Right now, for instance, she was busy on something for one of the Lunars of the group.  Assuming she could get Dena to come along as a helper for the week to remain attuned to the materials, so they would properly manipulate in Danae's hands--it would go quicker...  But still, making the interior of the serpent staff out of highly pure moonsilver, as well as several of the striking surfaces, and borrowing a little bit of the honey-resin stuff from the food to melt down to a wax as a 'Grip', it should ideally work out--especially with the actual striking surfaces made from a slightly less pure alloy.

The idea was to get a multi-segment staff that could actually stretch 'Out' somewhat at the user's command, and in doing so, strike from unusual directions, and get the same effect as a more generally hardened weapon...  Hopefully, it would do the trick.

Nanaret decides not to contribute any more to the jar inspection, finding the others are more than sufficient at doing so... She does find the jar's contents to be quite tasty, though, and after taking another sample, she brings it to Higura and Saffron so that they might discuss how to incorporate it into the diet of the people in their ragtag camp.

"Anyone else has found source of food?" she inquires. "Most my time is spent in the close settlement. There are still rations left for next week, but with how many we have, it will not last. Please, if you find anything, should bring it to Doctor Higura or Healer Saffron, they best know of nutrition and organization." The Lunar nods in confidence of their skills, having witnessed them for herself many times before.

"Next week, though, I will help searching this floor. I am good for keeping silent, even help make disguise. I may join one who returns to the human settlement, or a search for a way above."

Turtle nods at Nanaret's question, providing a number of small samples of what he has spent most of the week gathering, "Hmm, I've found some edible things.  Also, some dangerous things, to be careful of.  River fish - good, but prepare carefully, there is a gland, that is very poisonous.  Fungus, the sheet kind, bland but edible.  The mushrooms, one kind edible, the other very similar looking, but will make you sick.  And tubers, all edible.  Insects, also edible... but I think, they would defend themselves, if we made a habit of eating them."

Turtle pauses and considers for a moment before continuing, "So, there is food, for a while.  But I would like to take some time to look for other things, and also consider what I've learned.  Starting soon, I think I will teach some of the mortals, where to look, for food."

Turtle concentrates heavily on bringing back edible materials for the mortal population, but he does also bring back a sample of the hallucinogenic mushroom, on the off chance that either Healer Saffron or Doctor Higura can figure out a medical use for the substance.

He's also careful to show each of the Exalts and any of the mortals who appear inclined to assist in cooking duties how to remove the poisonous gland from the blind fish, as a mistake in preparation could easily kill a mortal.  Like the psychotropic mushrooms, he gives a few of the extracted glands to Saffron and Higura, thinking that they might be able to produce some sort of antivenom from the potent gland.

   Saffron accepts Turtle's finds with wonder and maybe a little excitement, although she doesn't show it too much. Although she strings multiwords together as she thanks Turtle. When time permits, she begins the process of making a preliminary examination of the mushroom and glands. She sketches them for future reference. She doesn't grind them up or mix them with anything during the first week. She'll spend more time on them, as time permits the second week.

While not busy speaking with anyone wishing to talk with him, Higura helps Saffron with some of her own duties, and uses the late-night hours to transcribe his observations to a more polished form. During conversations, Higura is the most likely to be spotted taking notes on what people have seen or experienced. The records he keeps are quick-written and often difficult to understand, hence the necessity to re-transcribe such reports into a much clearer form.

Higura continues to assist Saffron as best he can with the medical duties, especially so when Grinning Turtle introduces the poison gland to them. He is not nearly as skilled as the healer to create tinctures, antidotes and remedies, but he has a very analytical mind, and observes the process closely and intently. He might not be able to reproduce the results Saffron will likely get by himself, but at least he would be able to explain the process and why it works.

The sessions the doctor holds with Nanaret leave him a bit perplexed and worried. It seems the Queen is pushing the spirited young woman further into a relationship of inferiority - the Queen becomes the strong, powerful persona, while Nanaret is relegated to the host who needs Ranavalona's help more and more. Although he cannot yet stop it, Higura recognizes the Queen's tactic; by unbalancing her relationship with Nanaret, she will tip the scales more and more in her favor, until the moment where Ranavalona might be needed at all times. At this point, it will only be a matter of time before Nanaret's personality is completely eradicated by that of her previous incarnation.

And that is something Higura will not allow. He keeps a low profile for now, and continues to play his cards calmly and cooly. The Queen despises him, but she thinks nothing of him, and believes that she can stand up to him with ease. It is this sort of thinking that Higura cultivates, so that when the time comes, his interventions will not be easily defended from.

At the end of the first week...

The training among the refugees has been vigorous but fruitful. Tycho's drills continue to toughen and discipline them into a more organized force, while Higura and Saffron work to strengthen them mentally and emotionally. Higura's attention to Nanaret allows her greater freedom from Ranavalona, increasing her ability to resist the Queen's dominance so long as he keeps up their private sessions or remains in close proximity.

Food sources are plentiful, with fresh food found by Turtle and the so called 'royal confection' brought by Dena to supplement the dry rations. Tubers are common enough, though with their tough skins they require peeling before cooking. Their leaves are also edible, though somewhat bitter. The cap mushrooms are good raw or boiled, while the flatter ones are great pan-fried, and the cavefish requires some boiling to separate the oily fat and reduce its strong aftertaste. Everyone has enough to eat their fill -- the concern now is to provide nutritional variety, and to ensure they do not eat more than needed so that the food lasts as long as it must.

Nanaret, Third and Xurizu's investigation of the abandoned mining settlement deems it safe to live in. Whatever event had killed the people there was not a trap that could be triggered -- no evidence could be found of that. The conclusion is that it was a one-time cataclysmic event likely brought upon them by whatever deeds had led their master foreman to flee. The area has been safe ever since the 'lost corridors' have been cut off, but no one has figured out yet exactly how the area was brought offline.

Gratefully, the group abandons the notion of camping on the hard earth floor for the humbly furnished caverns and facilities of the old settlement.

---

OOC: Closing this thread, the main thread is now "Floor B25 - The Lost Corridors, Mining Settlement". More info for the coming game week will be detailed there.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:51, Mon 09 Feb 2009.