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stormy distance: 32 (eaten; belated reaction post)

Some part of her had hoped he would join her: it was tiring to always fail alone, to the point that even having Gale stoop down to join her gave her a morbid sense of comfort. Whatever happened, at least they were together. At least he seemed to understand: being with her inevitably meant being dragged down by her, one way or another.

Others were swallowed up as he slid down, among them her cousin. It should have caused more alarm, but that too in a way gave her some hope. Maybe Noemi would die before she suffered at Deus. Maybe it wouldn't hurt her nearly as much as the island would have. It was an undignified way to go as a soldier, being eaten alive by something they couldn't possibly beat themselves, but then again life as a hunter really had no dignities to speak of. Maybe Noemi would be saved all that trouble.

As Gale joined her, Stormy let go of the raft of corpses that had been slowly bearing her towards the center and fell in with him, not bothering to hide the look of a deathseeker shining in her eyes. Thane was summoned as they were swallowed, the dracolich's demands practically unignorable imperatives on her weakened system. She would fight to keep Gale alive, if such a thing was possible now, but only just.

It was surprisingly easy to pull himself over the edge and onto more sturdy sand, once he made it past the rows and rows of teeth (and rows and rows of bodies). Edgar took a deep breath, full of sand again, and searched towards the portal in an attempt to locate something that might be helpful.

Distance: 0
Roll: 3

Are you certain, my prince?

Is she worth it, my prince?

It might free you from the binds of your affectionate attachments, if you leave her behind. You would prefer to choose someone worthy of your devotion after more consideration, would you not, my prince?

It was not unusual for Edgar to disagree with that soft, encouraging voice in his head, but this time it was met with fervent negativity. He shook his head, even though the gesture was meaningless, and frowned at the toothy pit beneath him. She was still down there. She needed him.

The choice was an easy one. He stepped back onto the declining slope of shifting sand and fell until he could find her, striking the edge of a tooth on his way down. He dug his feet into the sand, slowing just enough to lodge Caoimhe into the tooth nearest Shu.

Then he smiled at her again, as charming as he could be in these circumstances, and held out his hand.

"Might we have the honor of thy company, fair princess?" he shouted, voice trembling with remnants of anxiety.

Distance: 10
Roll: 5
HP: 35

The smell hit Noah first, the death smell, the unmistakable sweet-sick stink of rot and heat. He swallowed the urge to gag, pulled his scarf up over his nose and mouth. That turned out to be a good idea for more than one reason as the sand began to whip up into the wind, battering against him in a relentless stream of grit. He hadn't known sand could hurt.

There wasn't enough time to get more than a glimpse of the sand-hazed surroundings, barely enough time to know which way was up, much less get his bearings, before the sand started to slow under his feet. He staggered, found himself sinking and sliding, and the shouts and screams around him told him that everyone else was having the same problem. He held the scarf across his face with one hand, grabbed futilely at the sliding, tipping sand with his other hand. Where was Peyton? He'd followed her, but he couldn't see her now.

Looking down and ahead again as the wind ebbed briefly, he saw the creature, the rings of teeth descending down the sandy pit, and for a single breathless instant, he couldn't help it. A disbelieving crack of laughter escaped him. A Sarlacc?? Seriously?

But it wasn't funny at all. He couldn't stop himself from sliding down the slope and into the creature's mouth, his feet and hand slipping first on sand and then on the gross, spongy, slippery stuff under it. The first tooth he grabbed at quivered, and he lost his hold instantly, skidding down and then dropping hard onto the next ring. He scrabbled for purchase, finally managed to shove himself sideways enough to get a relatively firm hold on one of the teeth and push himself onto its uphill side to brace himself from descending further.

There wasn't going to be a Han Solo to throw him a rope. He, and everyone else in this horrifying gullet, were going to have to claw their way out on their own. He looked up to see if anyone higher could give him a hand, then down to check if anyone was below him -- and felt his guts turn to ice as he spotted Peyton at last, way too far down for him to reach, and even as he leaned and stretched after her as though he could somehow reach across that impossible gap a wave of sand cascaded onto her and she lost her footing, slid. Vanished.

He was aware distantly that he'd screamed something, hoarse and cracking. No. This couldn't be happening.

CLIMB, Laz urged him impatiently. YOU CAN'T HELP HER NOW. GET YOURSELF OUT.

Distance: 13
Roll: 0

Once Jack had scrambled up closer to safety, Noah scanned the maelstrom of sand and teeth, looking for flashes of struggling white. There. Someone else, someone he didn't know; didn't matter. He braced his feet, gripped Laz's handle to brace himself, and caught the back of the guy's coat. "GRAB ON TO SOMETHING," he shouted, and pulled, keeping the guy from sliding long enough for him to regain some ground and get a firmer hold.

Distance: 13
Roll: 2

A man skidded down past Noah, yelling; Noah caught his coat at the shoulder, and the guy barely kept himself from falling towards the next ring of teeth. He said something, but it was lost in the roar of sand and wind; then he started climbing.

WE SHOULD CLIMB.

I have to help. One more person, then we'll go.

Distance: 13
Roll: 4

How could he say no to that? His urge to follow the rest of the hunters inside was heavy, and pulled to him. Jordan was in there. Everyone was supposed -

But Mimsy said, don't.

"I would prefer to go literally anywhere else than inside that portal." He admitted with such guilt, such shame, that he had to whisper it in case anyone was listening. His hand pressed down against her lips, stopping her from pulling the ******** it."

He'd listened to their orders for three years. Maybe he deserved a day off.

She managed to catch on to something. It was soft, like fabric, yet solid enough for her to grip on tightly and pull herself up. It almost felt like she had grabbed onto someone's wrist, but it was cold and clammy and--

Kylee Chang screamed.

She had seen pictures of bodies. Dead bodies, head smashed in by various objects, as they were lectured on the shape of the wound and how it matched the murder weapon; bruises coloring the bodies that had fallen from a few stories high. She had been conditioned to put these normal fears aside, and yet, seeing it up close? Clinging onto a body that once lived and had perished to this... monster, made her realized that she was in a terribly precarious position herself. "Oh my god." She whispered, trembling. "Oh my god."

"Steel yourself." Akila's sharp voice in her mind forced the tears back. "You're not going to die. Not if I can help it."

Distance: 5