[OPEN] Mission 155

[soul_mods]

Characters: Open to those who signed up here.
Location: An unmarked cavern system outside Death City.
Rating: Various.
Time: March 18th, sunrise.
Description: Shibusen agents brave underwater caverns to take out the first of three Madness emitters.

Missiongoers pile out of the mirrors early in the morning, just as the first hints of sun start to color the walls of the sandstone canyon red and purple; it'll be the last bits of real light they'll see for at least a few hours. The atmosphere is electric -- there're quite a few new (and old) arrivals who're eager to see some action, but just as many people who're feeling rather more apprehensive… And for good reason.

The only way to their destination is blocked by a few hundred yards of sunken tunnels. Luckily they've been provided with mouthpieces, breathing apparatuses with enough oxygen to last about ten minutes: more than enough time, provided that the guests don't lose their way in the dimly-lit, twisted caverns. It's as easy as following the person in front of them, right?

Upon emerging safely from the pool onto mostly-dry land, they'll find themselves in an immense cavern, illuminated by countless, blue fungi clinging to the walls and ceiling, looking like stars dotting a night sky. Already the first signs of the way Madness has been corrupting the wildlife are evident: the mushrooms exude strange spores that make some people's head pound the same way the increasingly noticeable Madness wavelength does.

As they travel further into the watery caves and explore its many branches, they'll begin to encounter creatures twisted by Madness: moles, snakes, beetles, centipedes, all grown to monstrous proportions, some with a venomous bite that quickly turns their victim feverish and delirious. The more daring fighters can easily dispatch those and delve even deeper, and it's near the source of the Madness, in the chamber housing the emitter itself, that they'll encounter the kishin eggs.

There're dozens of them-- eyeless, white, vaguely human-shaped things, but despite their blindness they have no problem finding their quarry, fighting with claws and exuding their own Madness wavelength. If the missiongoers can stand strong against the kishin eggs and the ever-present wavelength given off by the Madness emitter, Shibusen's specialists will have enough time to shut the machine down for good.


OOC NOTES.
- The event summary post containing all relevant links is located here.
- Make your own threads, but please indicate in your subject line [CHARACTER(S) | LOCATION | OPEN/CLOSED] and, if applicable, if you need a kishin egg NPC!
- The locations are the sunken tunnels, the medics area, the cave system, and the emitter chamber, but only the medics will have their designated sub-thread.
- If you have any further questions, the mod thread on the coordination post is here!

Comments

[conjecture_this]

Give her-- ah yes! While she hadn't had a partner, there was enough to pay attention to during the morning training classes. And given her lending of her magnetite to her demonic partners, the theory had been simple enough to grasp. Concentrate, raise her energy...

It didn't take much for her to match Lezard's own wavelength then. And quick too - Nagi knew enough to sense the edginess on the air. There were things in the dark, she could feel them. Or at least the edges of Madness wavering off of them. What they were were a mystery to her at present.

"Mm, of course."

It was an odd sensation, more invasive certainly than dealing with a demonic partner. It was almost like a wave, a flutter floating through her. So this was Resonance with another?

[lezard_valeth]

A note of gratitude passed between their link as he could 'see' bits and pieces of her soul. Was this like the 'Soul Perception' ability the agents of Shibusen possessed?

No, he thought, surely not. He could not 'see' her entire soul save for the most basic notes of what kind of light Nagi kept hidden deep within. If he could put it into words, he might say he is reading into her nature.

Then, a warmth suddenly flooded him, and Lezard couldn't hold back that small gasp of surprise. With a small gleam of light, a black and green bookmark suddenly sprung into being as if sprouting from between the pages. At the very end of the ribbony bookmark, fine silver lettering snaked against the material to form an 'N'.

"Interesting..." Had he figured it out? The book jumped a little in her hands again as he turned himself to that page.

And the Weapon laughed. Words! He'd finally formed words upon that page, and it was something he recognized. Quickly written in a fine handwriting, his pages detailed what appeared to be a spell, and how it would be cast. On the leftmost page was the name of the spell, Prismatic Missile, and a brief sketch of a robed figure conjuring what looked like multicolored light projectiles.

Ha! So he was a spellbook! All he had to do was determine the nature of the soul of the one wielding him. The knowledge was etched into his mind, never to be forgotten.

"It would appear you are capable of casting one of my spells," Lezard explained gleefully, and in that soul space he extended an arm as an unseen wind rustled his short hair, focusing his soul wavelength now, pouring it into his weapon form.

"The method is simple: Direct what you wish to use through the opponent... not into it. -- Ah! What perfect timing~" With a hiss, a very large something arrived in their chamber, all legs and chitin. That centipede was unusually large for this environment. They would simply have to put it out of its misery.

"Recite the name of the spell!"

[conjecture_this]

It was both surprising and thoroughly mesmerizing for the teenager. She hadn't fully expected the 'touching' of souls to feel precisely like this. In working with a partner, she had partially assumed it would be near the same as with demons. This was quite an inter-connective process though, much more so than even with her High Pixie. They were still two entities, yes, but this Resonance seemed to allow for deeper connection.

A brief wonder of whether it would be the same with others was interrupted by Lezard's gasp. Nagi watched the bookmark spring into being and the pages turn in quick secession. Prismatic Missile. She ran her gaze over the sketch - a light based spell then? Pixies were electricity based and so she gravitated more to that field usually.

Nagi took an inadvertent step backward at the hiss. Bugs had never scared her really... before the Tento Lords. They left her with a sense of unease now and she couldn't help the slight step in response.
This wasn't the time though. Cast through, not at. Instead of relying on her partner themselves to cast, she in a sense cast through them then?
She gave a quick nod at the thought, set her expression into something more determined and gestured forward with her free hand much as she might have done with her kodachi or her kuga tubes toward the centipede. The creature responded with another hiss, curling around to face the pair.

"Prismatic Missile!"

[lezard_valeth]

A-ha~, but should she inquire later, she'll find that Prismatic Missile - despite the name - is actually a lightning-element spell!

In fact, she'll have herself a demonstration before her very eyes. As Nagi recited the name, Lezard felt his power build, then leave him. The tome grew warm in her hands as multicolored orbs of light leaped from his pages, emitting sparks that drove away the dark. They were prepared quickly enough, before shooting away like comets. The centipede had nowhere to hide, and the shift from vague blue light to those vibrant colors were enough to temporarily dazzle the beast before the missiles carved into and through the creature.

As the screams of pain filled the chamber, the sorcerer's laughter rang through their resonance as he clutched his temple. Maddened excitement flit through his mind. He could use his magic! It was viable here! All it needed was a human 'focus'!

[conjecture_this]

Nagi was all eyes as light sprang forth and deluged the centipede before them. It was a quick and dazzling burst of colors and light, a shriek and then no more. The attack was surprisingly quick and effective, both of which Nagi greatly appreciated.

The tome was still warm against her arm as Lezard started to laugh. It rang through her in time with the cries from the dying creature and she couldn't help but turn a surprised glance at the tome and Lezard himself. She felt the Maddness as much as he did but for Nagi, it was the creeping tendrils of cold fear, of other's disappointment in her deeds, in her own inabilities and lack of experience. There was nothing of his apparent glee and it wasn't for the first time that Nagi felt a cool wave of emotion filter through her.

"Lezard?"

[lezard_valeth]

It wouldn't stop. Something was just so funny about this discovery, and he would never admit losing his magic not only angered him, but filled him with a very mild and irritating fear. He'd worked far too hard on bolstering his magic only to have an artifact pluck it out of him. But here? Now? He'd just destroyed a centipede with a single Prismatic Missile, and the body was twitching on the floor in an amusing manner, legs curling inward.

More. He wanted more of this. At the sound of his name, the ink drawing of Lezard's upper body looked up, and adjusted his glasses. The corners of his mouth felt sore now, and they twitched now and then. "Just a little excitement, nothing more. What a fascinating concept..."

"Let us move on. It would appear this large insect is not our main target, though we should take care to eradicate the local fauna as we come across them." He wanted to see a Kishin Egg up close. Twisted beasts that were once human, eh...? He wished to know what they looked like, how eating an innocent soul changed them.

"Proceed down the passage from whence our centipede friend came. I feel something different from down the leftmost tunnel."