Being the official bearer of the golden bull, Cove pantomimed it making it's bovine way to snuffle Degrasse- the best cure for just about anything was a smile and a laugh, wasn't it? "Moo, sweetpea, welcome to the party!"
"Wanna come help pin the bull on the Martian? We can play it like an official Cosmos embassy to Mars, he'll never know what hit 'im, " He motioned with his thumb hitchhiker style back the steps to where Babylon, Hvergelmir and Kairatos were finishing the sling as he returned back there with less sound effects or acting. Hopefully he's not offended?
He gave the Martian a peck on the cheek by way of apology. Helping out something useful will ease her, its a good cause right? Besides, why not have the page near the two squires of the same cloth.
Now standing back with them, he examined the strapping trying to jimmy it around, keeping the epaulet stable and in place on the opposing shoulder like real squire would in antiquity, "We...cannn..put it on this other shoulder? that way you don't have to just carry it around and it can still kinda do its job? Cutie-Sparkles (Degrasse) can feed the straps under Hot-Sparkles' (Hvergelmir) sling? I don't know how you'll get a raincoat over this."
Shazari
Silverah
Ryuthulhu
AMItotic
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 6:21 am
Hvergelmir finished tying off Kairatos's sling with a knot, drawing it as taut as she could make it so it hopefully wouldn't come loose. "Let me know if that doesn't hold," she said, checking that the cloth had stayed stable. In the worst case, if the fabric was too soft to hold a knot, she could always try to spear it with her hairpin, but she liked having her hair out of her face. (Half out of her face.)
The arrival, and subsequent scream, of the Cosmos page startled her, and she gave a sharper tug than she meant to on the ties of the sling. "Sorry!" she immediately yelped to the Mars knight, hoping she hadn't caused too much pain.
The new page looked so young, though. So incredibly young.
"Hi," Laney offered, after Babylon had introduced them all around. "Why don't we give it another minute, just until we, um -- " She paused, realizing she'd been looking for an excuse to stall a little longer. It was the new Cosmos page that was slowing her down a bit, with that sharp scream -- it had given her the mental image of another tiny teenager showing up after they'd all left, utterly confused and alone. "Um -- after we take stock?"
Yeah, okay. That.
(If she noticed the fact that Cove had referred to her as Hot-Sparkles, it was evident only in the way her face turned pink and she tried not to make eye contact with anyone out of an absolute uncertainty as to how to respond. Cove was nice, but Hvergelmir had never experienced flirting in its corporeal form: only in movies and romance novels. She mostly avoided people taking her seriously when she wasn't in uniform.)
It wasn't too bad, though, the delay -- while she was talking, another knight appeared within their midst. Good: they were still catching stragglers.
Hvergelmir turned both hands in the air until her weapon appeared within them, strung in its new formation. "Okay, so, um, inventory of assets. One distaff, flimsy-ish; one spindle, also flimsy-ish; and, I guess, some thread."
She knew Babylon had his lantern, but the rest of them were mysteries to her.
Mimisbrunnr was most definitely not taking a slightly unplanned nap in the midst of grading a coding assignment when the tug of magic pulled her off to Mistral. Or at least, she was not going to admit that was why she arrived on Mercury rubbing her eyes and muttering about stupid amateur mistakes and broken outputs.
She shook her head to clear out the last bits of sleepiness, and looked around, fascinated by the architecture surrounding her, even if it was a little plain.
"So this is Mercury," she said, and the tone of surprise in her voice betrayed the fact that she still hadn't been to her own Wonder. Then, it seemed to register that she wasn't alone, and she made what could only be described as a squeak. So many people! But at least she recognized one.
"Babylon!" If anyone was going to make sure they got through this alright, it would be him.
"Um!" She looked over at the pretty Squire in the incredibly sparkly dress who had called for an asset count and held up her vial. "One vial of god-knows-what. It glows! And that's about it. Hi, I'm Mimisbrunnr." She was rambling, and she knew it, because people gave her nerves. "Where are we going?"
Silverah
Shazari
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 8:39 am
Niflhel was staring brow lofted at Kairatos with the mention of a 'spare starseed'. "That sounds horribly unsafe." The knight mused for a second but shrugged softly as he watched the others fussing with Kairatos' arm.
That looked like an all too familiar scene there. Fairly painful as well, reminding him of the time he'd broken his own arm. "At least you didn't have it in a cast. Those usually go too." He added.
He heard Hvergelmir taking stock of weapons, summoning his own. "One Chain and magic to go with it. I suppose if we have to Indiana Jones it on this mission and swing over pits we're good."
He paused, "Oh and I have a scarf if that particular fabric doesn't hold we can use it." He didn't seem to bother with a raincoat, why would they even need one? He had a hat and a jacket, the knight was debating - he'd be fine without one right?"
He could kind of roll with Cove flirting with every girl in the room, it was entirely different matter to be spontaneously smooched on the cheek by the young man who looked something like a... a... gender swapped mermaid.
"...I... dude... OW!"
He was a little less than prepared for Hvergelmir's sharp tug, but a bit grateful for the opportunity to change the subject.
"I guess...rain coat first... then bull head? We can use it to help hold the rain coat on... I'm... guessing they're still here for a reason." Something about this place was giving him the creeps. It was so sterile and neat compared to the dusty ruins he'd visited... that was probably it.
"I've got a net, not a big one, but a net." He offered, gesturing at the one he carried.
"Any one know what the story is with this place? It's... it's in creepy kind of good shape... Or am I just jumping at shadows? "
Holy Giant Quote list Batman!
Silverah
Shazari
Ivynian
AMItotic
LP
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 9:24 am
"Woah, dude, spoilers," Babylon cautioned Kairatos, but his tone said he was joking. "No sweat, man," he said to Niflhel, happy that they now had three full knights of significant experience in their adventuring party. There was no way this was going to go wrong - right?
"You're right, it was," he confirmed, and missed his old, dark parka just a little bit, in the nostalgic way that you missed something old and impractical just because it was familiar. "But like Kairatos said, one experiment involving sticking my ancestor's starseed in my chest later and here we are. As it turns out, it is possible to ******** yourself up so badly that only Sailor Cosmos can put you right. So, like, for future reference, don't stick strange space junk in your chest."
Which really should have gone without saying, and hopefully everyone who wasn't Babylon wouldn't need to be told that. Otherwise, he was going to start worrying about the common sense of everyone involved in this endeavor.
"One lantern, of the spiny and good for smashing into things variety," said Babylon, adding to the list of powers and weapons they had at their disposal. "Some magic to compel people to tell the truth." Not that he thought they needed it. "The ability to turn myself into a walking graphics card error. One damage-absorbing semi-corporeal snow leopard." Which was possibly the weirdest thing in his entire magical arsenal.
"Oh," he added, glancing to Kairatos's shoulder and the squire strapping the bull's head back onto it. "And I guess I can heal now? So that's kind of cool." Not that he had any idea why he could suddenly do it, but hey, it was useful. He beamed at the newly-arrived Mercury page.
"Hiya," he said to Mimisbrunnr, feeling a bit protective of her - knights of a feather flocking together and all that. "This is indeed Mercury. I think we're heading through that arch up ahead - see on the map?"
With eyes focused on her for a moment, Degrasse retreated even further into her shawl, her face a deepening shade of red. She watched Cove approach with some amount of apprehension: if she were her little sister, she would have scoffed and retorted that cows were for babies, that she was a fiercesome warrior of the Cosmos and that she would not be swayed by such childish displays.
Degrasse was not her little sister, and she giggled so hard her nose crinkled.
"Yeah," the Page responded to Babylon, who seemed to be the Prince of sparkles. She gradually began to unfold from her dress, and after she reached for a raincoat that just about reached her ankles she was quick to nestle in with the other two Cosmos Knights (especially the girl, who looked like she could have been Queen Elsa from space. "I'm, um, Degrasse Page. I was at the secret meeting too."
At the mention of weapons, the girl's round face lit up, and she wiggled in her crystalline flats as she waited for her turn to show. She found herself momentarily distracted by Babylon's list of nifty skills, and her eyes just about widened into dinner plates when she heard the words 'snow leopard', but once the floor became hers she bounced with giddy excitement. "Guys, guys, look at this!" With a perhaps unnecessary flourish of her hands, a pearlescent sphere about the size of a soccer ball blinked into existence, nestled in her hands. "I don't know what it does, but isn't it cool?!"
This was so cool. Everyone was so cool. And she, however small, was one of them! How could she not wiggle around?
As the first member of the party steps through the arch, they hear a long, thin whine--an engine, powering up. It is the only warning the party has before the silver tower at the center of the room lights up with brilliant white electricity. With a loud screech, a long arc of lightning lashes out at the party! If hit, it feels akin to sticking a fork in an electrical socket: painful, causing numbness and extremely interesting burn patterns.
Along the floor, a thick cabling stretches from the pylon to a panel on the wall, which glows blue with the same delicate script as was seen on the blueprints, though written in a different hand. There is also a large container of a thick, viscous substance that glows vaguely blue, that seems like it could be disconnected from its socket, with a little work...
There are three doors on the left side of the room. The southwest corner leads to room 5; the middle to a small, vaulted hallway; and the northwest corner leads to room 3. You may also take the northeast archway to room 2, or the secret passageway to room 6.
The small, vaulted hallway, sticking with the group's original plan.
Hvergelmir was grateful that their group was not only sizable, but seemed pretty genial, too. They had three knights with them for strength and experience, which was good -- plus Cove alone seemed to have a natural buoyancy of spirit that would no doubt keep the group's morale up, and Mimisbrunnr ( -- another Norse well! Hvergelmir would have to say hello -- ) was an adult and a Mercury knight like Babylon, so she could hopefully provide a dose of wisdom. Only Degrasse really gave Hvergelmir worry -- not because she seemed to be a detriment to the group in any way, with her catchy enthusiasm, but because she was so small and so green and so, so young. Even Kairatos, who was severely injured, made her feel less uneasy.
"Hey Degrasse," she said, "do you want to carry the map and be our navigatrix for a while?" Hvergelmir looked naturally to Babylon, her friend and thus her nominated group leader, for confirmation that that was okay. It'll keep her off the front lines, she tried to signal with her look.
Stepping through the archway, the group immediately ran into trouble. Hvergelmir did, at least. She'd put on the blue raincoat in the entryway, and buttoned it all the way up -- but her uniform came with bangle bracelets on either hand, and they drifted just below the raincoat's long cuffs. The metal acted as an immediate attractant for the lightning machine in the room, sending an intense shock followed by a numb tingle up her left arm. She choked on a pained noise, grabbing at her left arm with her right. At least it had been brief -- not a long enough, powerful enough strike for the lightning to seek a point of exit through her foot and to the floor. She looked around to see how the rest of the group was faring, trying to ignore the faint halo of her own hair in her peripheral vision, slightly jumping with static.
There was a large tank of something liquid in the room with them, too -- but Hvergelmir was wary of touching it. Liquid was extremely conductive, and the last thing she wanted was a big broken tank leaving them all standing ankle-deep in water if lightning decided to strike again. There was writing, too, elsewhere that she could see -- but Hvergelmir figured it was best left to one of the knights of Mercury to investigate.
Silverah
Shazari
Ivynian
Ryuthulhu
AMItotic
LP
Songstress Kitsune
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 1:10 pm
The small, vaulted hallway, all according to plan.
Babylon tried to push himself in front of the group, but not before Hvergelmir was struck by a beam of electricity. Fortunately, she appeared to still be alive, along with the rest of their group. For the moment.
Spotting the electrical panel on the far wall, Babylon made a dash for it. He'd learned well enough that traps on Mistral could always be disarmed, provided you knew where to look, and disabling the arc reactor seemed like the best idea right now - once they were safe, it would be easier to cross the room as a group and check out that alcove.
A beam of electricity struck him, and Babylon tumbled across the floor, his head ringing, his arms stinging. He pushed himself back up, legs trembling with numb, static noise, and slogged towards the panel. Despite being from the same family tree, none of the doors in Mistral had ever responded to him and he didn't expect it to start now, but none the less, he started to fumble with the panel.
When that did nothing - and honestly, he shouldn't have expected it to - Babylon called forth his lantern and swung. If you couldn't figure it out, beat it up - right?
The only thing that saved Kairatos, and his extensively conductive armor, was Hver and Babylon going ahead, Babylon actually charging into the room in spite of the electrical blasts.
"Son of a B,,," He only just caught himself, fumbling with his good hand at the Bulls buckle again, even though he'd only just gotten it on. "Get this sh... this dumb thing off! Throw it across the room from Glow Stick! Maybe it'll take the hits!"
He had honestly thought about stealing Degrasses' pearl and hurling it like a volley ball at the tank, but that would have been a better idea if Babylon weren't in the midst of the fray.
"C'mon c'mon!!" He barked to no one in particular, but honestly everyone.
Shazari
Silverah
Ivynian
Amitotic
LP
Songstress Kitsune
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 2:33 pm
Forward to the vaulted hallway!
Mimisbrunnr was lucky, really - most of her uniform's material was pretty insulating. Unfortunately, she still felt a painful shock, and yelped, stumbling backwards. "Oh my god, who even puts that in a Wonder?" She asked, to no one in particular. But there were other people who weren't as lucky as her - and so she ran to Kairatos, fingers fumbling desperately with the buckle.
"Here, let me try," she said, even though she knew she wouldn't be hurling it very far. "If someone else could throw it?" Physical stuff was absolutely not her strong point, which she was pretty sure was why she was a Mercury Knight and not, you know, Mars.
When Hvergelmir offered Degrasse the map, the girl's face lit up in surprise. "I--yes," she proclaimed, making grabby hands for the large piece of parchment. Once it was in her grasp, she instantly brought it to her nose, studying it with an intent expression that included biting the inside of her cheek. The text...was this what Ancient Mercurian looked like? The rooms, at least, were easy enough to figure out, and just as they started moving towards the archway, Degrasse began to formulate an ideal route.
Then again, she hadn't been accounting for traps.
"So there's a hallway on the le--AIEEEEE!" Degrasse hadn't noticed the whip of lightning until it was already lashing across her arms, sending a rush of pain from her fingertips to her shoulders. The page was quick to smash the open halves of the maps into a crumpled mess as she curled away from the lightning, her eyes nevertheless peeking around someone's body to see what was going on.
"The water thing has a plug! What if it's powering the lightning thing?" Degrasse could be observant, she had eyes as sharp as a hawk, but she knew better than to go charging into a room full of lightning. Leave that to the braver folks, she had the map and that meant she was staying waaaaaay in the back with her achy arms.
Shazari
Silverah
Ivynian
Songstress Kitsune
LP
Ryuthulhu
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 8:18 pm
Vaulted Hallway
Niflhel paused staring at the room as the others were trying to figure out things and then he looked at Degrasse. "Why would you ever power electric with water?"
Of course this was a rhetorical question as the knight of Saturn moved into the room and was doing his best to avoid being hit. "Oi, ya'll wanna help I think the Page has an idea. At the very least we should try to yank this out. see if it does anything."
With that he tried to pull the plug. Getting zapped himself so that his hair stood on end and looked more frizzled than normal. The knight mumbled as he felt the numb tingles throughout his body, it was like sticking your finger in a light socket. Only a little more intense.
"If we can't get it off maybe we should form a chain? Wouldn't that help with the current -- some?" Maybe he should've paid more attention in science.
Gold was often used in high energy wafers and computer business, a side knowledge from some relatives that hooked him up with better gear for his computers. Only silver and copper were better conductors per volume. BALLS Cove regretted, as they stumbled into the trap, just how many of them were wearing any metal that was gold coloured and might be actual gold in as much as magical uniform gold that disappeared was real gold. He guessed it must be real gold, because the medallion-scales on his shoulders sure conducted the electricity just fine.
If it weren't for the numbness in his nerves, he was pretty sure the spidering out of burns from just under them would have hurt more than it did right in that moment. Maybe that was the adrenaline?
Babylon was going after the panel, he could hear some yells and screams. He sighted the container of glow-viscous in the socketing, and rolled with his pain before scrabbling up again to try to work it out of its socket. Maybe it was a power source? Maybe the lightning would stop if he could get it out?
AND DON'T DROP IT. Who knows if its poison or if we're gonna need to power something in some other socket later When in doubt ask, "Mercs! Is this a battery?!"
