Player Plot: Downopolis

[umslay]

Who: Everyone that signed up for the Downopolis pot
Where: City of Downopolis, Cult Base
When: October 1st-7th
What: With the threat of the Cult of Narayana looming in the distance, a band of Heroes travel to Downopolis to infiltrate their base and discover the truth
Warnings: Violence, more to be added

They had been preparing for today. They had Biggs' approval, half a month to prepare, and much to lose if they were to sit back and hope that the Cult would disappear from relevance. Ales was not going to allow himself to sink into complacency. He spent late nights going over maps and intelligence gathered from Ellie's mission and the most recent one, formulating plans to present to the others. They had assassins and warriors, they were going to succeed.

Heroes, whether they had visited the Sage a few days earlier or waited in Mysidia for the mission day, gathered just outside Downopolis on the early morning of the first day of October. The air was chilly, but Ales hoped that the underground hideaway would rectify that.

With their lives on the line, they would find the leaders of the cult. The fate of the world rested on this mission

Comments

[shinrasfinest]

[Being near the back of the group makes it so that that while the Earthquake shakes him enough so as to have to take greater care to keep his balance, it's not enough at that distance to knock him off his feet.

Once stable again Sephiroth silently glances at each of those three soldiers that are with him, reading faces and listening carefully to try and pick up anything that's not the Golem's loud thundering steps or the others' banter.

He doesn't really like the idea of the others attacking so recklessly...just because it sounded heavy and lumbering didn't mean the Golem wouldn't be able to charge at them-

He's keeping at least a fraction of his attention in their direction though, so that he knows what comes of it after Johnny's attack]

[umslay]

[Johnny's attack, while powerful, does not defeat the Golem. The sound of rumbling rocks vibrates from it as a sort of roar, and it clambers towards them slowly but menacingly.

The commotion has gotten the attention of a blue Bomb in the next room. Spotting the Heroes, it floats down the hallway. Without the Golem's natural slowness and a Stop spell, it manages to catch up with the other monster.

The Doom counter ticks to 2 minutes.]

[gorgeous_sin]

[Lust's gaze shifts to the floating blue bomb...and her eyes narrow before regarding the Golem again.]

Neither of those creatures should be here. They're native to the Lost Continent.

[So where did the cultists get them? Are they dealing with a Beastmaster? Doubtful, she's sure she would have caught sight of someone summoning their monsters to fight the Heroes. These monsters seem like they've been here for a while. She can believe a Bomb could be sedated and transported, but a Golem? That would prove far more difficult.]

[Either way, bombs don't move as slowly as golems do, so she'd rather not give it four minutes to do as it pleases. Instead she creates Copies of the Heroes to surround the golem. Perhaps she can tempt it into self-destructing while it's next to its bigger and sturdier companion, while also giving the golem plenty of reasons to remain where it is.]

[charming_jerk]

What, seriously? they gotta import monsters to fight us?

[Johnny wasn't sure why someone would bother, or what it meant. Now that there were two enemies on the scene, it was time to let loose a Cresent Wave attack to hit them both at once.]

[umslay]

[No one said Golems were clever. It strikes at the illusions of the Heroes, growing angrier as its hits do not kill them. The Doom counter ticks down to 1 minutes without fail.

However, just as the Bomb turns its attention to the illusions, the Crescent Wave strikes and knocks it away from the group. It grows larger and sets its sights on Johnny.]

[gorgeous_sin]

[By now Lust is no longer concerned about the golem. It will expire on its own much faster than anything the rest of them can do. But if that bomb goes off, it's going to draw a lot of unwanted attention to their current location. ...That is, if the earthquake didn't do it already.]

How bothersome.

[It may not work, but she'd really rather settle this as quickly and effortlessly as possible. Which is why she casts Death on the bomb to see if she can just make it expire on its own before it self-detonates.]

[shinrasfinest]

[Watching from the back, Sephiroth had near enough winced when he saw Johnny's Crescent Wave connect with the bomb and saw it get knocked back rather than being defeated in one strike. You really have to strike hard and fast with those critters, he knows them well enough from experience, or risk a literal explosion to the face-

But that blue color-

Less than a moment of hesitation though, as off the back of Lust's Death spell, Sephiroth conjures Flame Tongue around Masamune, lighting up the gloomy cavern walls as he then readies and charges for that physical-fire attack at the blue bomb.

His team fall in not a few paces from Lust, ready to follow up with heals or further attacks as needed.]

[umslay]

The Golem lives out the rest of its short, violent existence swinging at imaginary enemies. If it weren't a deadly monster, it would almost be pitiable in how futile its efforts to stave off destruction were. It collapses on the ground once its final minute it up, leaving nothing behind. No drops, no gil, no key.

The Blue Bomb, on the other hand, rushes towards Sephiroth in anticipation of erasing the Hero's life, but as the fire attack hits, the monster hisses in pain and recoils back. The troops follow up with spears and swords, giving it no time to grow.

And indeed, thanks to the efforts of Sephiroth's troops, it falls to the ground, dead. No key is revealed.]

[gorgeous_sin]

[Lust stands there, tense, for a few moments longer until it becomes quite clear that neither monster is getting back up...and that there's no treasure to be had either. This was a waste of time and resources in her opinion, and the dirty look she shoots to both empty spaces is probably clear evidence of her resentment.]

...It seems as if the majority of the monsters lie in that particular direction. I suppose that's where we'll have to go if we need to seek out the key indicated in the drawing.

[She brushes some of her hair back with a light toss of her head.]

Assuming we can trust whoever drew it, of course.

[Lust sure doesn't, but she'll still play along for lack of anything else to do.]

[charming_jerk]

[Really, nothing? Johnny grumbles.]

We could be at this all day, and yer right, we don't even know if one of them'll have it. But it ain't like we got a lotta options, either.

[shinrasfinest]

[Standing around and complaining about having to work for the way forwards and how it hasn't just dropped into their laps on the first try earns a mental facepalm in Sephiroth's mind, though he manages to keep his voice well-measured and free of any hint of eye-rolling.

Too professional to be that petty.]

Well if either of you have any better ideas, now's the time to voice them.

[He'll just press on forwards with the small group of troops around him.]

[shinra_dog]

Just 'cause there's a key doesn't mean a monster's gonna drop it.

[Reno shrugged, stretched, and moved ahead.]

Could be anywhere. Monsters could just keep us from reachin' it. Or maybe one does have it.

Won't find out 'til we keep goin', yo.

[gorgeous_sin]

If it was cleverness you wanted, you could have asked me to teleport all of us right back to the top again. I doubt they had any contingency plans made for Illusionists being part of the group.

[Lust idly examines her nails, rubbing the tip of her thumb lightly over the heel of her palm.]

But if you prefer the simple-minded method of hacking through everything in our path, then by all means, lead the way.

[That said she turns her gaze toward Reno with a light shrug of her shoulders and a little smile before her heels click over the echoing stone of the dark corridor stretching out before them.]

[umslay]

[It doesn't take long for Lust to spot another monster. In the back of the connecting room, a large shape darkens the walls lit by torches. Even from a distance, it's clear that a Behemoth is waiting for them.

Thankfully, while it has been alerted to the sound of her footsteps, the monster can't tell where she is, much less fit through the hallways.]

[gorgeous_sin]

[Lust actually comes to an immediate halt for this one, her flippant nonchalance suddenly dropped as she throws out her arm to keep the others from moving forward.]

Wait.

[Her eyes narrow. How many times had she gone up against this creature in the arena, only to be killed again and again and again? She knows exactly what that thing can do to them, even if it can't squeeze its sinewy mass into the corridors.]

Don't get close. It can cast Ultima, so it's pointless to think we can move past it unscathed.

[She can cast Doom at it, but from prior experience, it always kicked her ass before the timer reached zero. And that's if the spell even sticks. She's leery of using up all her magic before they even reach the end.]

Suggestions?

[Though the question is directed at all of them, she's looking directly at Sephiroth since he thought to chide them earlier about choosing this path.]

[charming_jerk]

Shit.

[Johnny freezes in place, and thinks for a few moments, but he doesn't have much.]

There's no way that we can drop that thing, even with an ambush. What do we do?

[shinrasfinest]

[He doesn't need Lust's arm to be thrown across to stop him from moving forwards as Sephiroth also stops once he spots the oh-so familiar mass of a behemoth in the connecting room. He doesn't seem to get nervous over the fact like the others though, the same calm, collected and in-charge as he silently looks to each of the troops around him and even throws a glimpse at Reno.

It was almost a hobby before, pitting himself against this particular monster, even if in comparison the Crystallis version when put next to his nearer-human capabilities did make them harder to slay.]

We have superior numbers, shouldn't be a problem.

[He's then looking around from end of the hallway, to pinpoint where the connecting passageways were. If there were more than one, a diversion tactic might be the way to go.

So long as the others stood and fought it and didn't just flee.]

[shinra_dog]

[Reno grit his teeth as Lust talked down to him, choosing to outright ignore her as he walked ahead. What if there was something else important down here? ... More importantly, what if his pride refused to let her "save" them all?]

[He stopped immediately as he noticed the Behemoth ahead, watching its head sway as it attempted to pinpoint the echoing footsteps.]

Shit...

[Glancing at Sephiroth, he found the other man already looking at him. Reno was surprised... then smiled. He had to admit, it felt good to be "consulted," or at least deemed competent by the other man, even if there wasn't such a vast strength difference on Crystallis.]

You heard the man. We got better mobility, too -- Lust, use your flyin' thing, he won't hear you then. Go check out the other passageways t' make sure they're empty -- make sure we keep that advantage.