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.