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[ ENTERING ]

Fallow had not been walking for long before he'd come upon the only other place that seemed accessible by visiting students for the moment. His ears perked towards the sound of noises, and picking up his pace, he trotted with a languid speed to the entrance of the Open Dens, slipping into them with a quietness he'd obtained only from days and days of practicing entering and exiting the tea ceremony rooms of Conquest without disturbing the... ah, peace. Flicking his tail back and forth as he came upon the messiness of the hall. It seemed like a dining place, and Fallow quickly recognized the two that he'd seen at the Oasis, and others that he was not quite sure he'd ever met.

And then there was the girl from the Oasis he'd seen! His tail swished back and forth in intrigue; she seemed to have only just arrived as well. Rumbling softly, Fallow trotted closer to her. "Hellohello," He said, tapping her on one shoulder even though he appeared beside the other. "I do hope you are - ah, ahhh - unharmed from your Oasis trip. It seems the water is hnn not so very nice after all, yes?" The Púca smiled toothily at Shehk before his attention diverted to the others in the room again, ears folding forward and pulsing a neon glow.

Keening softly, the Púca lurched forward to greet them, to say hello, to ask how it was down here where it seemed at least a bit less sandy. He was stopped though, of course, but the sound of something... odd. Something strange. And then there was something in the corner of his eye; cloaked figures? Fallow's muscles seized, making him tense and nervous and excited all at the same time. What was this now, what was this? He turned, only catching the glimpse of glowing runes and large flat tablets before they... before they disappeared? No.

Fallow stalked closer. There was a door half hidden in the wall. A door that he had certainly not seen there before. And the Púca could be credited for many things, but his observation skills weren't that bad. Swaying his tail from side to side, Fallow caved to curiosity, an ear swiveling back to listen to the noises of the students talking somewhere to his right. But they were not of interest now. Not compared to this. Be careful, you know what happened last time, the wiser part of his brain told him. The less wise part of him just pushed it back down and egged him on, closer and closer until he could see the set of steep stairs descending downwards and into the dark. Something crawled up his spine; excitement, maybe. Fallow refused to believe it was anything else, and slid without thinking into the door to investigate.

The descent into the darkness was terrifying in some ways, with his fingers reaching out to find walls he could not see. But what was even more terrifying was the noises coming from below; the sound of whispers and words. Just whats down there? He mused to himself, Hmmhmm, I suppose I will find out.

Which of course, was probably not a good thing.

She entered the den with practiced silence. It almost felt odd for the cu sith to walk quietly without the use of her natural ability, but a childhood spent in the hills with an uncontrolled ability helped greatly. Dev threw a wary glance to what appeared to be a dining room. The structure at least appeared to be unique and piqued her interest. She tentatively reached out toward a pile of food before someone swooped in. Immediately, she stepped back and moved on. She was not particularly hungry at the moment anyways. She continued forward on her search for Fallow, the pesky little puca who had decided to up and leave suddenly. Her tail swished at the thought.

Her ears picked up noises, unusual noises. What was even more unusual was that Dev could physically see the sources of the sounds, figures in dark cloaks scurrying to and fro like ants, rune-covered tablets in their grasp. She only managed to watch them for a fleeting second before they disappeared completely. Dev blinked as everything grew quiet again.

Then there was the door. She stared at it with suspicion clear in her glowing eyes. It was familiar although she was now on a different isle. She had felt the old FEAR before and as she recalled her encounter in the mysterious room she seriously considered not investigating.

Well, that was before she heard Fallow in the stairwell. Frowning, she walked over and bopped him on the back of the ears. “Hey! Ye! Left us behin’, huh?”

So it looked like Dev was going to do some investigating.

---

Hearing a few more noises, Shun turned to see where Temes was wandering of to. There was also Shehk going towards it. It was faint, but there was something familiar about the fear leaking out of the area they were moving to.

Quickly, his eye narrowed.

"Let's get going. I don't like the vibes I'm getting from that," he murmured before taking Mitsu's hand and heading out. A part of him wondered if it would be worth attempting talking to Invictus at all about everything.

Would he even give any answers?

((Exit))

[Entering]

Bongani couldn't say that it was rough going trying to get to the den, but there were definitely too many clanspeople that he had to avoid. The dining room was an utter mess and he nearly turned back around before he had to remind himself that he was coming to find Dev and Fallow. Oh, the trials of having friends, he thought in his usual pessimistic manner. So, Bongani drew himself up and entered the dining area. He stepped carefully, avoiding any spilled food or rambunctious person. The further he got into the den, the less and less people he encountered. The strong presence of fear was unsettling and Bon stifled a shudder.

The witch doctor wasn't sure where he was going exactly, but he seemed to be pulled in a particular direction and in no time he found himself in front of a darkened doorway. The only reason he proceed further was because he head the familiar voices of his friends and the sound gave him courage enough to take the first few steps down into the darkened stairwell.

"Dev, Fallow," Bongani greeted in a hushed tone, coming up behind Dev on the stairs and peering over her shoulder at Fallow. "This place gives me the creeps. Do either of you know what's here?" It seemed that Bongani would be investigating.

Chuppi had missed the farewells and wishes of Mitsu and Shun, the monster already in the darkness. She could barely see anything and yet she was unafraid. The darkness was a strange and welcome comfort though she could sense a faint glow from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder and was pleased to see that it was Shehk, nothing more, and her gaze returned to the dark expanse ahead.

There were voices inthat darkness and the creaking had lead her here. There would be no turning back but the chupacabra shook off the doubt. In the darkness there would be answers. In the darkness she would find the truth.

The thought she might find her death had not yet occurred.

Blinking at the sound of Dev's voice, Fallow curled his ears back, turning to her in the dark of the stairwell and nearly slamming his back into its narrow walls. "Oh, hello again." Rumbling softly, he flicked his tail back and forth, glowing like a neon bright flashlight. "Well, you seemed rather busy and I do so hate sand," He explained, whining when she hit him. "You did not seem like you would like to be bothered, and I did not go far!" He protested, keening softly as though he were an abused puppy. Of course, his attention was twisted away from Dev by the Pricolici's sudden glow.

"Oh," The Púca's ears shot up and quivered in delight, "ohhhhhh, you glow too! How fascinating, hmm, so interesting yes." He rumbled and looked over at the other that seemed to be exploring too, waving at Chuppi before his attention turned back to Shehk and grinning carnivorously at her, his neon markings pulsing eerily in the dark. "Well then that is good to hear, though I am still no fan of the sand up there, or the... ah, accommodations the water seems to have." He flicked his ears backwards at the thought of the strange kelpie plants that he'd watched go after not one but two others, his entire body convulsing with a shudder like a horses would.

When Bon arrived, the Púca immediately perked, lurching forward to barrel into the other and rumble pleasantly at his... well, presence. "It took you long enough," He saidd, huffing at the other in irritation, "why are you so late? Did you sleep too long? Though I cannot imagine how, those hammocks were... ah, hnn, difficult to stay in." For the horse at least. "No, I do not, but that is why we are going down, I suppose," He answered with what seemed to be a very big lack of concern for his personal safety.

Turning his eyes back to the small group now huddled in the stairwell, Fallow frowned. "Perhaps we should, ah, see where it leads instead of sitting here..." He rumbled to no one in particular and everyone all at once. "If anymore people join us, we will be all squished up against the walls trying to accommodate them."

It peered into a bucket of liquid next, and realized after prodding the surface that what was on tap was apparently... oil? Did they drink this oil? If Malodore had a nose capable of wrinkling, it would have wrinkled it. It could think of so many problems with this diet... though primarily, it never wanted to find the Famine privy. Ever.