Nihilus

The Pyramid

Sorry for the late reply guys. I've been out all day today and will be tomorrow, so I will be slow in posting.

The Pyramid

Daboia clung to the side of the other creature's pod, thankful that its noise had quieted. She didn't notice it disguise itself, as she was too focused on the creature moving steadily closer towards where the two of them remained. It said something, its voice loud as it moved closer. The language sounded vaguely like common speech, though the dialect was off. It was primitive, and she had not tried speaking it in years, but at least the monster was somewhat understandable. From what she could tell from its tone of voice, it was calling to someone down the hall. The Gorgon had a feeling that it knew it was being watched. It was calling to her.

Pressing her talons into her knife, she debated whether or not to move. The monster seemed to be angry, full of rage. If she revealed herself, she would most likely be in massive trouble. Maybe she should let it pass through. Maybe it wouldn't notice her and the other creature, stuck in its pod, if she simply didn't speak a word. Below her, her tail coiled itself, keeping her rooted firmly to the ground. However, she wanted to know why she was here. There was a chance this huge monster knew something, and could be a prisoner too. She was desperate for answers about the Pyramid. And she did have a weapon to use if things got hostile.

She took a deep breath, then slowly, she began to slither into the main hall.

In full view of the beast, she held her knife at her side, the blade pointed towards it. She didn't make any move to fight, but held the blade at the ready. The Gorgon attempted to speak to it in common, though her accent made the feat quite difficult to pull off.

"What are you?" She demanded, "What do you want from me?"

The Pyramid

Meanwhile, the Gorgon still had not looked away from the line-up of pods spaced along the hall. Daboia raised a claw to her face; Unable to scream, she managed to gasp instead. It was a menagerie, with creatures of every shape and size somehow contained within the thin glass rooms. Some had bestial heads and multiple arms. Some had large, membranous wings on the backs of their body. Several of them had the same squashy-flat faces that she remembered noticing on the creature beside her. No Hydra graced their head. Only a few even resembled her own species, and even then the comparison was vague at best. It was as if she'd stumbled into an alien zoo. Were any of these entities from anywhere near the planet Drellm?

It almost felt like a perverse fascination. She couldn't look away from them, but felt guilty for staring, despite them all being unconscious. Of which she couldn't understand why. It was only her here, in this cell, she realized. For all she knew, she was completely alone...

A loud noise caught her attention. Glass broke from a pod several yards away. Daboia stiffened from her place on the wall. It seemed she wouldn't be alone for much longer, for even from her distance, she could see some sort of monster emerging from the pod. It appeared as a blot from where she stood, but she could hear it. It made a lot of noise. Growling, barking... it sounded like some kind of animal. From here she couldn't place it, but the sound filled her with a sudden deep, intrinsic terror.

Immediately, she ducked down behind her pod. She hoped she still had her bag. Somehow, the Pyramid might have picked it up with her during ascension. Maybe they'd place it inside the pod, or underneath it. She had left her knife in there. What little means of protection it would grant her, would probably help her more than nothing now. Unbelievably, she found it hanging from a metal shelf above. The Gorgon would have shouted out in triumph if she wasn't trying to hide from what could be a monster down the hallway. Rifling through, she scoured the contents before finding the knife, and shockingly, the scripture, still inside the bag.

She pulled out the knife, a very standard defensive weapon of her tribe's, and readied it by her side. If it came to physical violence, she was -somewhat- prepared. The blade shimmered, catching green and silvery light, and she wondered if it would be enough.

Behind her, she heard something knock against the glass. Startled, the snake-woman twisted around. The mutant-creature had awakened! Approaching the case, she tapped the glass lightly with a claw, before pressing one finger up in front of her lips.

<Shh, quiet Tribe-less. You'll alert something far more dangerous than I unless you hush.> She snarled, speaking lowly in her society's native language. It hadn't occurred to her yet that the other creature might not understand her, but for all she thought, the other was merely some sort of mutated Gorgon, and not an extraterrestrial itself.

The Pyramid

Ah okay. :)

The Pyramid

Actually, I think Runo was still asleep. That's why he didn't react when Daboia noticed him in the pod. :S

The Pyramid

I hope you don't mind, but I had Daboia interact a little with Runo. ...She's not sure what to think about his lack of head-snakes. XD

The Pyramid

Once they were awake, Daboia could feel her Hydras sliding across her head-crest, their worm-like bodies stretching out and tasting the air with long, silvery tongues. The parasites were just as disoriented as their host. It had been a struggle, but the Gorgon was now seated up on the edge of her pod, her claws gripping the side to keep her from falling to the floor. Her head swayed back and forth in vertigo, or the worse migraine in history. It would take awhile before her eyes adjusted to the lights. They were so alarmingly bright, now that the glass wasn't there to cover them up. Black spots dotted her vision whenever she raised her head, which felt as if it weighed a thousand pounds. An immense pressure had built up inside her scalp, and it wasn't because of the snakes that currently adorned it.

For some reason, Daboia couldn't help but sense some sort of urgency building up inside her. It was a primal reflex, maybe, but for some reason she knew she needed to heal up quickly. Needed to get out of here. It didn't make any sense to her; She'd wanted to discover the Pyramid herself, and now here she was. Why run away from what her decoding had all boiled down towards? Still, Daboia didn't seem to have a choice in the matter. Something was very wrong about this place. Whether a creation of the Goddesses or something far darker, her own life could depend on her means of escape.

Placing pressure on her tail, she made to stand up and leave, and instead crumpled to the floor. She hissed in pain as she slammed against a tiled, metallic ground, her tail limply spread out behind her. The sudden impact shrank back her Hydras, reacting to the sharp sound. The Gorgon stayed that way for quite some time, her breathing shallow and tired, suddenly exhausted despite however long she'd been contained in the pod. Her claws groped against the ground, straining to find a hand hold on the slick, smooth metal under her. She found the leg of a pod adjacent to her own, and leaned against it before pushing herself upright again.

This time she coiled her tail under her, balancing her weight. She ran her hand across her forehead, a cluster bomb of a head ache beginning to pound through her skull. It was then that she noticed the figure in the glass she stood next to.

<What is this?> She spoke aloud, for the first time in ages perhaps. Her voice was weak and dry; It hurt to talk and she clutched at her throat for a moment before looking back at the figure. It was asleep, much like she had been not long ago. A strange creature with a single tail much like her own, but its seemed far less sinuous and strong. Its tail was split at the end into two fins, the same sort she would have seen on a fish or some other sea critter back on Drellm. She approached its resting place warily, unsure what she was looking at. It lacked a chest, having a flat, wide front. Its arms ended with hands that had far too many fingers. And its head... she wasn't sure what to compare that to. It looked squashed for some reason; Its eyes were far too beady.

What drew her attention most was the complete and utter lack of any Hydras. Not a single worm had grown from its crest, which she assumed were the two little prongs on either side of its head. Instead, a thick matted tangle of moss or fur coated its entire scalp. This made her reel back in utter disgust.

<Tribe-Less!> She hissed, nearly collapsing over her tail again. <Mutant monstrosity. How could the Goddesses take you too?> Of course, she didn't recieve an answer. The other being seemed to be completely unaware of anything she did. It was still asleep, she realized, stuck in a similar pod to her own. <Perhaps it is for the best. I don't imagine it'd survive beyond its pod. Such a strange anomaly. A mistake to take you..>

With that being said, the Gorgon twisted around to lean against the wall, further away from the odd creature in the other pod. As she did so, she caught sight of many other glass capsules just like theirs, lying in great number across the entirety of the room. Many of the lids were closed, but some, she observed, remained open, vacant. The ones that were closed were full of other anomalies, of so many differing sizes and shapes.

None of them, she noted - in a mixture of awe and fear - had a single Hydra on their head.

The Pyramid

Haha, thank you, Katherin.

I just started rp-ing here, nerminator, but thank you. I appreciate it!

The Pyramid

Above her were stars. Through the eye of her telescope, she saw them, strewn out across the sky. In her telescope's viewfield, they appeared to be contained within a round mechanical hole. If she swivelled her telescope, adjusted the knobs lightly like so, she could point out constellations. To her, the constellations were the Goddesses' work, their hands playing, assembling the stars into a myriad of shimmering, twinkling images. She marvelled at their beauty. But she knew she couldn't focus on the stars. No, she was here to search the stars, to find something much more exciting.

A shoulder-bag rested across her chest. She slipped it off, pausing from her watch to rifle through the contents. From the bag she found her knife, her tablets, the scripture. The latter was what she pulled out; A large, dusty parchment piece. It was covered in symbols, the hieroglyphics of Medusa. Just looking at it gave her a surge of pride and confidence. Scholars had worked over this text for centuries, trying to crack the code of the ancient Goddesses, their languages all differing and ever-twisting to their desire. But she had solved it, had puzzled over this particular script for months before revealing its secrets. And now, she was certain she would discover whatever it was these hieroglyphics had tried so hard to cover up.

She gave it a cursory read through, two or three times just to be certain. On top of this hill, overlooking the capital city of Knossos, once the moon had risen and the stars shone brightest, she would find the Pyramid. A triangular artifact would illuminate itself within the sky, and with it, the Pyramid would come. Within the Pyramid, she would find the Goddesses. And then they would grant her ascension. She would admit, she did not know what ascension was. In fact, she was nervous if she was even truely worthy for that, whatever it promised. But surely, if the Goddesses were within this Pyramid, then it could only be a good thing.

Placing the parchment back into her bag, the Gorgon slid over to the telescope, adjusting the knobs and looking through the viewpiece with growing anxiety. What if she were doing all this for nothing? Would she ever be forgiven for mistranslating it? Her commissioner wouldn't pay her for false information. Instead, she would most likely be discredited and seen as a fraud. No, she needed to be right. She had to search the skies.

It was then she caught it. She recoiled back a little, hearing her Hydras squirm at the sudden movement. The white serpents coiled around her head, and she patted one, reassuring them it was alright. No, she had probably seen just a smudge on the glass, mistaking it for a triangle. She bent down to look through the eyepiece again. There it was. A bright, glimmering triangle, hovering under the stars. Its blue frame shimmered as it entered through the sky. She was suddenly aware of how immense it was, of the sudden pressure in the air as it moved down towards the surface of her planet. She backed up from the telescope, no longer needing the tool, her blue eyes wide as the Pyramid sank towards the earth.

As it neared where she stood, thousands of feet above her head, she thought she saw the bottom open up. The Pyramid seemed to open, its mouth dislocating like that of a snake's jaw, and the inside humming and glowing with bright blue energy.

She held her head, her Hydras squirming under her claw, hissing out as she lost her balance. Her head felt dizzy, and she sank to the ground, curling up as her eyes flickered, then floated shut. Darkness took over her vision, and she felt numb, unable to move, unable to think, the Pyramid floating above her...

---

Daboia awoke with a jolt. Her head slammed against something hard and she hissed, leaning back. Everything in her vision seemed to blur and distort, her breath rolling out like fog, smudging the glass in front of her face. She wanted to raise her hand, but her arms felt like lead, and her Hydras seemed to flop lifelessly in front of her face, blocking her vision. The Gorgon whimpered, her forehead burning from the impact, feeling useless and unable to do anything but lay there. She could, however, toss her head a bit, and that thankfully made it easier to see.

Wherever she was, it was bright, overwhelmingly so. Everything appeared to be a green-blue color, but too mechanical to simply be a part of the jungle. No, this was definitely not the same hill she had stood on moments earlier. Through the fogged glass, she could see strange shapes all around her. It was all vaguely exotic, disorienting, like waking up in an alien hospital. She very much wanted to scream, to panic and slither into a corner somewhere, but she could barely lift her head now, and her tail could only rattle slightly in protest.

At some point, Daboia heard a voice. It did not seem to speak her language, but it was indeed a voice. She wondered if it was a Goddess. Afterall, she could only conclude she was inside the Pyramid now. Perhaps she had ascended. But she didn't feel any different. Once the voice finished speaking, she could hear some kind of gas expel from inside her tank, feel it against her skin. A smoke seemed to fill her tank. The glass squeaked, dislodged, then slid open, landing with a loud bang on the floor as the pod opened.

Groggily, the snake-woman found the strength to sit up, her Hydras also stirring before rising up as well, both Gorgon and her serpents alive once more.

The Pyramid

Name: Daboia
Age: Early 30s
Species: Gorgon (Medusa Tribe)
Appearance: A reptilian humanoid, belonging to an all-female race, called Gorgons. Human mythology dictates that the Gorgon is a woman with a head of snakes and the ability to, upon making eye contact, cause a mortal to turn into stone. However, even if she were to try this, Daboia cannot transform a Human into a statue, or any living thing for that matter. She also appears only vaguely human. Daboia is a skilled craftswoman though, and in her home world, she often created marble sculptures of animals and different figures.

She stands around 6', with a strong, slim build. To compare them with Humans, Gorgons have a very human-like torso, if appearing somewhat more elongated. The arms are also extended, ending in a two-fingered talon and one hook-like thumb. Gorgons have long, snake-like tails in place of legs, adorned with a black rattle at the tip, warning of their venomous nature. Gorgons usually move by slithering or coiling up their tails, and are so adept that they may even be able to climb vertical surfaces, simply by using their tails. Typical of her species, Daboia's skin is covered in fine, smooth scales. Her scales are a brown-gold, with darker stripes and spots patterning over her body, especially towards her back. Brighter gold patterns are pigment dyes, used to decorate her scales even further. Ridges and small jagged scales appear as well, small imperfections caused by old wounds and battle scars she's faced during her life.

Though lacking any outward ears, she can hear quite well, and her large blue eyes allow her to see even in near-complete darkness. She has long fangs used for injecting venom, her tongue is forked, and she can dislocate her jaw to swallow prey whole - much like an actual serpent would. Daboia's head is a mix of snake and human, with large natural ridges and spines appearing over her scalp. Between the spines and ridges are the Hydras, or the snake-like appendages that grow from a Gorgon's head.

Hydras are not actually a part of the Gorgon. They are a separate species altogether, a semi-sentient parasite living in symbiosis with the Gorgon herself. They are completely blind, worm-like organisms, burrowing into a Gorgon's head-crest to use as a protective home, usually unable to survive if surgically removed. When a Gorgon is born, a Hydra's egg is implanted in the head to start this relationship, and such was the case for Daboia. Her Hydras are white. Over time, the Hydras grow out like long, serpentine "hair", and can be trained. Like a lot of her kind, she has decorated her own Hydras with fashionable markings, and has tamed them to react to her emotions and act to her command. She wears a simple black tunic with gold bracelets.

Bio: Gorgon society was ruled by three Tribes, named after three Goddesses; Medusa, Stheno and Euryale. Although they lived in a world of advanced technology, even possessing their own networks and computer-like systems, they lived in a deep jungle, and used primitive rituals to govern their people. She was born on the planet Drellm to the Medusa Tribe, in their capital city, Seriphus. The hatchling of a craftswoman, she was to learn the trade at a young age so that she would be able to carry on her mother's work. Daboia was both an excellent sculptor and scribe, a prodigy in her talents even as a mere child. By the time she reached adolescence, many of her works were introduced into art displays, used in ceremonial parades, and she could somewhat decipher the hieroglyphics left by their "Goddesses".

It was this that attracted the attention of the Pyramid.

When her mother passed on at the age of 200, Daboia took over the workshop. She was given a commission to examine a tablet of Medusa, a difficult to read, nearly completely decayed scripture. For months, she tolled at this, before finally solving a piece of the message. Something about a triangle, a pyramid from beyond the stars...

Although it made no sense, the triumph left Daboia in confidence of her abilities. According to the scripture, this "pyramid" would appear at a certain point just outside of Seriphus. With excitement, Daboia packed her sword, the tablet, the scripture, heading out to see if she could find it. At night, she searched using her telescope. Once she saw it, she was filled with glee, hoped to tell the Chieftain of her discovery...

That was the last thing she thought before she was taken. Her telescope had rattled, she suddenly felt extremely light-headed, and moments later, she disappeared from her world.

((Hope I did okay! This is my first time rp-ing here, so I hope I did everything right.))