Lumiere

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

The foreman shook his head, "Neh, then fek 'em. Ne'fek'n about when y'got places ta be. Ain out th'woods yet, eh?" they spoke, preemptively declining the notion before it was even presented as an invitation for them to leave the storeroom. "Yeh, neh, all roads, so is said..." they seemed to muse, taking a contemplative puff before Jericho mentioned weapons for himself. "Atch! Finally finished fekin' around? Got a fek a'thought in ye fek?" they barked before appearing as though a thought occurred to them. "Yeeeehh...might just'a had a thing y'd be lookin' feh. One a tha new king's bois fek'd off with it" They answered with mild curiosity before turning back to the storeroom and simply barking, "Blades!" to the sound of scrambling, the workers already ahead of him as they wheeled a rack of arms out. Mostly shortswords and hand-axes with a few daggers at an end. "I'll get y'name eventally. Foreign feks usually get nick'd. Help y'self-" they started with a tone of annoyance, though, given the context, it was likely directed inwards. They had paused their invitation as the corpse lady staggered their way to a conclusion.

The foreman hobbled over to her side and give a few enthusiastic slaps on the arm, "It IS your...anchor! Now it is...suppose" they shrugged, looking down the length of the tool of destruction. "Aye, don' go fekn' it o'er ya shoulder f'th'first hunk-a fek ye find, ah!" they boisterously teased, giving her arm a bit of a shake before looking it at their hand and wiping it on their apron before continuing with a gesture as if wiping away a tear, "Tha bois put'n good work to tha iron, eh?"
With that, they gestured to the newts who blew away the filings after tapping in what looked like an angular depiction of the head of a rabbit set in a star emblazoned with wings on either side. A small inscription above it could be made out following the top arch, 'Timore Nocturno'.
"T'would break m'heart if ih'ended up at th'bottom ofa lagoon er some fekery like that" they warningly sighed to Gangreana, looking back up at them before stepping back to where he previously stood. "Now, this's the 'coalworks' of tha spire...or it was, until w'got fek'd n'take stock a'feks and aahhh-feks" they explained, waving their arms around in a dramatic manner while supposedly mentioning 'affects'. "Suppose y'd need kit n'supplies, s'well. Fek all d'ya come from an'need it" they commented, pointing to crated near the door. "Tents, bedrolls, tha like. W'don do food 'ere, but lighten tha load, if ye please" their voice came as they took a few more steps back, implying they were attempting to disengage. "Tha bois can 'elp y'out"

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

The Stranger hesitantly paced, having not expected River to step between themselves and a Uriel who required words.
"Sir Pox-" They began, taking a small step to a side and looking in their direction as they began to speak. While the small figure was seemingly about to attempt to formulate a question, they spoke about having a hypothesis. These very words silenced The Stranger who very intently watched the person, shamefully retreating behind River. However, they took a few steps away on the mention of their pain involved in being cut down, placing a hand briefly on River's shoulder as they passed, the face of their mask having never lost focus from the holes of Pox's.

"If I can make an assumption" The Stranger mimicked, stepping closer before stumbling a small step to the side to pause before gingerly descending a single step towards the table. "-this force can cross worlds- but do not despair- it's frustrating being in the dark like this" they spoke with Pox's recently provided words and a repurpose of River's defense as they lifted out a foot before losing the conviction behind planting it on the same level as the mess.
"Uriel- we should be closer to the exit- That is- a massive- coincidence that- this world- connects at least in that way" they managed to speak mostly in more of the doctor's recent vocalizations, finding the will to instead quickly skirt the mess in the direction of the bunks that Pox was. At the personal risk of others' ire, they approached the man and quickly dropped to a knee, holding both hands over where most would anatomically suspect their heart would be before they stood once more. Hesitating awkwardly with arms reached out towards them, they instead withdrew the gesture and curled their hands back to their chest, offering them another nod before turning back towards the table in the center of the room.

"I- can- write" they mused before taking a deep breath and gently stepping down with dull clicks of their boots against cobblestone even while they took deliberate steps around the mess on the floor to lean close to the table.
A metal-tipped finger hung poised, an audibly shaky breath being drawn from The Stranger before they drove their finger down into the mess.

A
H
N
C
I
E
L

|
V
*An arrow being drawn back to themselves*

Ahnciel recoiled, nearly about to wipe off their finger on their robe before catching themselves and instead clenched a fist with their other hand. They made a rather painful swallowing sound before putting metal back to blood and wood.
"FOR THE INTEREST OF TIME, IT SHOULD BE CONDUCTED THUSLY. IF I MAY QUICKLY APOLOGIZE: I AM SORRY. BLOOD IS NOT MY CHOSEN MEDIUM AND THE-" was about as far as they got before violently shuddering, shaking their hand in some primal need to free the gore from their metal fingertip before emitting a soft hissing sound. Discomfort permeated the local area while Ahnciel continued to clutch their other hand to an ever more tightening fist and held it across their chest, their other hand out as far as it could reach. They looked between local people before continuing. "MESSAGE SHOULD BE QUICKLY DESTROYED. REASONS. A GATE TO THE ELSE FLOOR OF NEXT IS NEAR. GROSS. GROSS. ELSE. WORDS THERE. ELSE. THERE" their message continued along what space they had before deteriorating into blatant hemophobia, reflected by how 'The Stranger' now introduced as 'Ahnciel' shook their hand and scrambled back a few steps and inelegantly tumbling up the steps they'd descended.
Desperately, they proceeded to try to scrape the mess on their fingertip off, onto the wall.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

The foreman seemed genuinely about to turn away upon the conclusion of their business with Jericho, once they'd taken the box. However, the question caught their attention in probably an unexpected manner as they abruptly stopped and looked over their shoulder at them in near confusion.
While the foreman stared, four newts emerged from the boxes to take notes on what Gangraena described, nodding to eachother and showing notes before one slapped their forehead and pulled the others close before drawing something. All of them gave a collective "Oooohhhh" besides the one who'd drawn the example, instead crossing all four of their arms and nodding broadly in admired triumph. They all scurried off in the same direction, slamming of metals and grinding noises rising from what was very quickly becoming their apparent workshop of sorts.

"Fek...it...oll..." The foreman started in disbelief before his hands raised from his hips and clapped before giving Jericho 'fingerguns'. "Neh-neh-neh-neh, fek y'll if y'wan mi ta'b-liev!" they chirped, their head lowering to look at Jericho from under their brow, their eyes visibly looking them over before they shook their head. "I thot ya-e'll a fek toll! Fek! Na way th'fek a fek fekin' about!" They coo'd and barked before turning back, "Aye, who free'd ya? I need a hand ta shake!"
Their demeanor shifting, wholly aware of the details without anything being said, the newt jived a bit before tossing a bit of their fuel into their pipe mid-drag and snapped back to Jericho with a point. "Thay told ye fek-about...OLL tha fek, ah? Ya need ta know!" they chirped, looking to them, expectantly. A glint behind their eyes immediately replaced their jaded stance not even a minute prior.

"And...With- yeah! That! Curves and...th-" A newt barked in the backround, slams of metal on metal and sparks flying across the floor accented the foreman's abrupt interest as work was no doubt being conducted in the back with disgusting efficiency. One of the salamanders was already lugging something across the floor, giving it a turn and pushing it back while clad in long, thick-looking gloves appropriate to the red-hot metal they handled.
The foreman spoke and a few blurs skirted dull red lights around until a loud HISS cut through the tension. Six salamanders carried out something in the shape of an anchor. One on each end of the arch at its base, one at each end of the cross, one at the 'bottom' to aid and one quickly giving the end after the 'top' ring a proper wrap as well as an equal bit after the cross to give it a more comfortable grip if the wielder wanted to choke-up on the...
Well, it was in the shape of an anchor, though after the grip and the handles it was tailored about as sharp as a splitting maul.

"Miss! Miss!" the salamander in the back chirped with determination, their scales bristling as they gave the blade which, in its pristine namesake that was justified only by the de-burring that they gave the freshly-crafted mooring nightmare. Their voice was guttural and wrought with determination as they so eagerly smoothed the contours of Gangraena's answer. The guttural tone was merely a layer of excitement and anticipation, dropping their end to run around to the front in order to personally hold up the handle for her to take. "Please...Slay many traitors with it!" they implored, dancing with enthuse. Even the other creatures who held the rest of the armament off of the floor watched, eager for the corpse-lady's approval for providing something that they thought was an 'anchor'.
It was! If...there ever was such a massive axe to be tailored in the shape of an anchor. It was not exactly the anchor she may have been looking for, but why would such heavy, rusty junk make its way into the storeroom to begin with? The workers overheard, and at the mention of rust, the crew replied. Before she could even take it, the two lizards at the bottom set the end down and began etching foreign writing along the end.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

"I fek'd a care 'an snapped it over m'fekin knee!" The newt spat, its two lower arms resting their hands on its hips. "Yeh! Yeet it in the fekin sewer wi'ol the fek n'blegh bleh bleh..." They started before trailing off and snapping their fingers a few times. With that, One and Two withdrew and the sound of crates being opened and rummaging started up in their direction. "Y'luckeh fek. Yer girlfriend's made er mind up 'fore the feks got packed up n'fek'd off fer oll th'good ya lot are!" They continued before shouting up at the other newts on the shelves who grumbled to themselves, earning a dismissive wave from the foreman who turned their attention back to Jericho and Gangraena. Taking a long drag, they narrowed their eyes as they looked between them and listening to the request for the anchor. "Tha fek's an anchor?" they asked before shaking their head, "Na. Look, yeh know if the fek-head is done wi'is fek? Tha fek wi'this war n'oll tha crap 'is boys drag back" they grumbled before leaning back with a stretch, popping their spine with a groan before looking over their shoulder and tapping a foot, impatiently. "Th ol king, rest 'em n'bless 'em, e'd 'ave none of it...probably why- Ey! Any o'ye feks 'eard of a anchor!?" they barked after musing to themselves, the onlookers muttering between themselves before shrugging. "Iz eit like a big hook?" a worker called back and the foreman turned back to Gangraena with a shrug with their free hand and an emphasized expression of cluelessness with raised brow ridges, hoping she had an answer.

A worker briskly approached the foreman from behind, placing a wooden box in his shrugging hand. "Oh. Well fek me..." he lightly chuckled, chomping on the pipe to use the hand and take the top off to reveal Jericho's pipe set into a red fabric. "Shwat y'lookin foh?" he asked, pipe hanging from its sideways mouth.
_________________________________________________________________

The Stranger had sunk against the wall while the group rested and rummaged, getting acquainted. Quietly, they watched while sitting on the floor, arms around their knees and appearing to be paying attention to the conversations taking place. The clattering of Uriel's sword made them jump a bit and they stood, taking a step closer, curious what the commotion was before Uriel's rant. Their approach made them nervously retract that step, uncertain how to give them an answer they'd be satisfied with. "Apologies... I- need words. I am unsure how useful I- can- be- right- now" they replied with a myriad of voices, their arms defensively curling up to their chest.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

The Stranger turned to the sound of more voices emerging from their cells. The reanimated creature of armor paced by them before snapping in the direction they were looking, hissing a soft, "Whhoo?" with an ambient rumble of bellows against coals. The tone of the beast was unable to be distinguished as far as motives were concerned, though it was considerably calmer than it was in its previous form. The Stranger lowered a hand to in front of them; a closed fist before extending a thumb and an index finger as if counting. After a brief pause, the fiery construct tilted to a side before rumbling, "Ooh...mooore!" The Stranger nodded to the creature, clapping lightly and gesturing eagerly with both hands for Damien and Pox to follow them.

It was the creature that seemed to perceive River's question about the cells. "Thhheey whhoo hooolldsss...ahh...tooowwer...taaall...and...deeeeeeep" it rumbled as if to impress upon her the indescribable dimensions with low fluttering tones, The Stranger having folded their arms and started off around the corner at the mention of this 'They Who Holds'. The creature seemed to take notice of this and 'looked' between River and then the others before sauntering off to keep pace with The Stranger Who gestured to them with a twirl of a finger and then a gesture of 'four'. In response, as it walked, its back end tilted up to Nale before saying, "Aaalll...hooolllow poteehhnnntiaall. Vooiids...tooo be fiiillled" This response did not seem to please The Stranger who made a sound akin to sighing. The closest thing to a voice from them so far, the sigh was less annoyed and more...sad. Like a disappointment in the explanation being a far cry from what sentiment they hoped to convey. They knew these people deserved answers for what they've been through to reach this point, but their own words and bare metaphors offered by a guard was hardly appropriate.

They would apologize, if they could.

Reaching the barracks The Stranger took the first two steps down to the lower region where the table sat below the beds, for obvious reasons as the stains painted the steps and floor before draining in through grates at either end. Though it all seemed dry...if not crusted...The Stranger recoiled, stumbling back at the sight and tripping on the top step before collapsing on the ground and scrambling to the wall on the other side of the hall. "A moment to catch your breath should be okay" The stranger seemed to agree in spite of their episode. They tapped their fingers on the ground and appeared to take a deep breath before standing and shuddering but remaining where they were, leaning against the wall and holding their mask with hands over their eyes.
The creature, meanwhile, strode over past Nale explaining the bit about a construct, pausing to lift a hand in greeting before continuing to pace the room around the room as if on patrol.
_____________________________________________________________

The door to the storeroom swung open, clattering off of the stone on the other side of its hinges. From deep in the recesses of the storeroom, a few voices chattered before one spoke up. "Fek y'oll want? Late?" the voice came with an dry croak. From an alcove waddled a newt-looking figure clad in leathers. Four eyes, two on each side of a broad head sporting a vertically-split mouth that puffed on a strangely familiar looking pipe for Jericho. This one, however, looked fresh, like a recreation newly made to exact dimensions. Comically, they bore an eyepatch covering one of the eyes on their left side. "Blegh! Close th'door, fek! Let'n fek'oll tha smell a fek'n about meh fek!" The old toad rambled, waving a hand before a third and fourth hand reached from around their back to unscrew a small ornate wooden box. Swiftly, the series of fingers tapped and packed the pipe before holding a flint and tinder to a wooden cup of wooden fibers. With a well-practice strike, it only took a second before they dumped a curled ember into the pipe. "Well? Need som'fin made or y'checkin out mi'tits?" The newt barked, a few heads poked out from around where they'd come. Similar faces with different patterns on their flesh, about four that hung back.

"Boss, eeh..." One chimed in, pointing to Jericho before Two added, "We...k-keep eit down?" Three glared at Jericho and his corpse-y entourage, "Neva seen 'em before..." They narrowed their eyes before withdrawing.

Neatly stacked boxes lined the shelves running across the walls. Shortly after Three disappeared, the sound of grinding could be heard from a ways back.
The main hall extended for nearly two-thirds of the storeroom's space, likely considering a mirrored setup from the neighboring barracks setup. It ended in a cross shape before extending into a second cross shape and ending. From the noise of the assumed foreman shouting, other small faces emerged from crates and farther down the hall around corners.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

People began moving and that seemed to be enough of a cue for The Stranger to proceed with the events they'd hoped the others could take care of. Being unable to really follow without dropping the spell, they did so. The serpentine spirits immediately snapped to attention, a few of them blinking out of sight while several others hovered with mouths agape, slowly nearing members of the group and shaking violently the closer they became. However, by whatever structure their snake-like spines held the head up by, it served as an anchor at the same moment, locking them to individual bricks in the arching ceiling. By their pace and this fact, running would not be such an implausible strategy by consideration.
Regardless, The Stranger seemed intent on both options as well as a curious third. Jogging after Uriel, they looked over their shoulder to gesture for the rest of the group to follow. At a point, they stopped and extended a hand in their direction, palm facing them before dropping their hand at the wrist for the fingers to face the floor. Arching their wrist as if their fingers were once more stuck, they made a trembling motion with their arm as if dragging something upwards.

The armor which had laid limply began to shudder, the spikes of fire retracting back into it and the darkness from inside of its...holes...coming alight like a furnace. Shakily, one of the arms reached into the air and planted a palm onto the ground, dragging itself toward The Stranger while other segments twisted and appeared to gain motility. It was soon walking like before and then running. However, The Stranger stomped a foot, clenching their outstretched hand to a fist before once again displaying a palm, causing the golem to screech to a halt. The Stranger snapped their fingers on their outstretched hand and pointed to the floor where the creature immediately crouched down to rest.
The Stranger clicked one of their heels and it once again stood, dominance made clear as they looked from their thrall to the group before chirping, "Guards"

The Stranger gave the creature a shove with their boot as they turned to walk down the hall to the left and it responded with a step back before following with a dull roar of air passing through the fire that now burned inside it.

Other cells in the hall the group had been picked from contained figures either standing or sitting, but lack of features due to a pervasive darkness that obfuscated distinction. None of them moved a single inch, though there was an eerie feeling of being watched.

To the right at the intersection was a hall of similar design, though its boundless length held a sense of vertigo from how it continued off to a single point on the horizon as if peering over the edge of a cliff. Small lights in the distance swayed to-and-fro, likely whatever it was that had come after the group before being...dealt with.
Conveniently to the left was maybe three more passageways to the left before reaching another T-intersection. Left lead to another row of cells while the right was another corner leading to the right as per The Stranger's earlier instruction. The way lead to what appeared to be a tall barracks, though currently abandoned and lack of the foodstuffs one might have found commonplace in the busted larder or on the curiously red-stained tables. Instead, a metallic scent of blood filled the room. Alcoves held bedding and bunk beds lined with ladders which may have reached maybe ten layers up and ten across in a semicircle from the central area which held the massive, presumably blood-stained table. An alcove across from the bunks seemed to be deeper, like a storeroom of sorts.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

"You! You!" The amalgam greeted the corpse-lady in an almost friendly manner, weapons raised in a more focused stance, eager for her to draw close enough to be made an example of. Surprisingly, snuffing the fire out on the mass of protruding arms managed little more than a few twitches of fingers and a muffled roar of enthuse turning to anger as it brought the weapons to bear. Unfortunately, as soon as it had tilted back for the momentum to 'give her the grease', it was instead bound up in powerful undead arms that dragged it forward and up. Its weapons clattered to the ground as the grayscale washed over its hands, seeming to drain the strength even from its grip. Corpse-lady, however, felt little resistance as she brought the thing down to crunch against the stone floor.

The Stranger intently watched even as Jericho sank their own torch into the vacant neckline of the creature's back, though it was not the action they paid such attention to. The creature twitched in a pool of smashed wax and a viscous black ichor, a sizzling arising from its form before glowing orange and yellow spikes erupted from the gaps in its armor, similar to the fire from the torches before being pulled from their sconces. "F-found..." It started, its voice a quiet groan while a hand tilted in the direction of The Stranger, "...yoouuu"
The protruding arms went limp and rapidly began to putrefy.

"I think that others may have heard it's cries, why else would it scream if none of it's allies were nearby?" The Stranger mimicked, still seemingly transfixed on the shambled armor which had quickly began to give of an unpleasant stink of rotting flesh to rival the corpse-lady's. The Stranger somewhat stood, lifting their other hand and clinking their index and middle finger together twice before releasing their first hand and promptly striking a third chime.
In the brief second of color snapping back into the world, the skeletal snake spirits arched back towards the party with burning lights in the hollows of their eye sockets. Whispers pervaded the air, bouncing off of the walls in a similar voice to the thing that laid presumably dead. A mess of words spoken by the same light echoes that accompanied The Stranger's mimicry all fought to speak at once, becoming instantly jumbled and nonsensical. They looked between the members of the party before taking a running stance as if hinting to their next course of action upon popular suggestion.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

The Stranger appeared to listen closely to Nale before putting their hand over their chest and bowing their head in an apparent expression of gratitude. "Maybe- no" They replied before looking down the hall in the direction of more faint lights, back out to the connecting hall which no doubt would lead to another cell block. "Forward, left, forward, forward, forward, right, right, forward, left, forward...up" they mimic'd back before another curious reverberation of an echo almost sounded as if it added, "Iz down...iz up...iz down..."
The voice was androgynously light and made The Stranger looked up and as if having just noticed it, and not expecting it.

Their attention was drawn back to the group as the towering corpse of a woman then approached. The questions earned only a blank stare from the cat-like slit eyes behind the mask. A knowing, hesitant look. One that had no words or want for answers to give.
The Stranger's affliction was convenient in this instance along with the revenant's attention span as they made to retrieve a torch from the wall, abandoning the question in favor of another. "Guards" they simply replied with Jericho's voice whom they'd seemed not the least bit surprised by their announcement.

Distant echoing clunks of heavy metal scraping along cobblestone directed The Stranger's attention down the hall to the T-intersection they'd said to turn left at. From the right came what looked like a suit of armor...or more like two suits of armor. The arms and legs joined to form four long bulky legs running from two cuirasses fused together at the waist. Wax dribbled down its form from a series of candles in various states of use on its back, though as the substance dripped onto the floor, it evaporated into audible sizzles of steam.
It lumbered down the hall before stopping at the intersection and shifting to face the group as if it were casually patrolling until very clearly noticing the group. It let out a sound akin to a low bark mashed up with a tortured scream before the opening that should have once held a neck sprouted a series of clawed hands and arms with enough force to bend the metal around it. They gripped and rent at the air before charging in a gallop, grunting and giggling with malicious excitement until leaping for The Stranger, still stuck in their maintenance of their spell.

The armored hands stopped first, the grayscale washing from the tips of the long appendages before overtaking the sprouted arms. All the while, its momentum sharply cut down until there came a noise of cracking and grinding metal from its front half being frozen by the same spell that bound the spirits. "Found! Found it! It! Kazzok! Found!" it madly barked in a guttural bass, even the sound slightly dampened by whatever it had become stuck in. Well, half stuck, as one of its back arms reached into the neck-section of the other piece of armor, drawing a mace and swinging it into the grayscale as if testing, careful to keep its hands out. The other hand repeated the movement, drawing a longsword for more reach as it swung at the air in the direction of the rest of the group though falling short by at least five to seven feet.

The stranger quickly looked between the present 'heroes' and then back to the other open cells before nodding. "First- Leave... Appreciate yer 'elp- all- guards to come knockin', aye?" They echoed Uriel and then Jericho in cut up fragments, the pace of speech quickened with alarm.

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

@Veradana
You're aware of the answer (Just leaving this here so people don't think I blew you off ^^;)

@Vega7@ShwiggityShwah
I am going to start moving the IC and was wondering whacha up to?

Unheroic: The Fish and The Falls [Closed]

Wishes answered, it would seem. Questions and voices from more sources drew The Stranger's attention first to the towering undead woman. Silently, with their free hand, they offered a small wave in greeting before curiously tilting their head as if not understanding one of their questions. They did their best to respond, however, by miming; their hand flat with the palm facing down, then lowering it a measured inch before stopping. This gesture repeated a few more times before they slapped their palm onto the floor and ground the metal tip of their index finger audibly against the stone. They raised their hand once more to maybe depict five; their fingers spread...or...no? They turn their hand back and forth to show the back of their hand and then the palm a few times before sighing and relaxing, apparently giving up in frustration. The Stranger was wholly aware of the complexity of what they were trying to explain, but probably not the best at miming it out with only one hand, if at all.

The Stranger eased back a bit away from River as she approached. They held up one finger and pointed to their other hand still locked in place. They made a sweeping 'behold' of a gesture to the faint ghostly forms of the remaining spirits also seemingly stuck by the same power. "I- can walk..." They replied with words River had just spoken before a faintly distant sound echoed back from them a soft "Eehhm..." in response to the offer to being carried before holding a hand to wave in rejection of the offer. "Thank you...miss" came Nale's voice from The Stranger, next, thankful that they'd used such distinctions to better politely decline River's offer.

They lifted their hand to their own throat, "Kazzok...hurt...my...talking" they explained with the echoes of Nale's, River's, Gangraena's and then Lia's voice in that order to form the comment before making a gesture of grabbing hold of something and pulling it away. Bringing an index finger back to the tip of the beak of their mask in an 'shh' gesture, they conclude with River's word, "Here."
Surely the group would have felt it by now, seen the spirits suspended by The Stranger's spell and gathered from their behavior that this was a world of curses. There was so much The Stranger wanted to tell them all, and that was very likely the specific reason his voice was stolen. The conclusion of the thought, however, was lack of immediate context.