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tushanshu_logs2014-09-30 04:21 pm
ironwood) wrote in tushanshu_logs2014-09-30 04:21 pm
EVENT | INTERMEZZO | Palace Exploration Log
Characters: ALL!
Date: Sept 28 and onward
Location: Palace of the Landed Sky, Keeliai
Situation: In the wake of Malicant's bold taunt, and the death of the Emperor and five hatchlings, the Palace is left abandoned and open for the Foreigners and kedan alike to explore.
Warnings/Rating: CONTENT WARNINGS are noted in the various subject headers, please take note of them!
---
zwischenzug | (ˈzvɪʃənzuːɡ) | intermezzo | n. (in chess):
1. A tactical move interpolated into an exchange or series of exchanges to improve the outcome.
2. "in-between move". An unexpected move tossed into an expected series of moves. (German)
---
Where once the Palace of the Landed Sky was a majestic and beautiful thing to behold, it now seems to pulse with negative energy. The outer walls are crumbling in most places, unsteady and fallen into disrepair. The walls of the Palace itself remain for the most part sturdy, minus a few fallen stones and the ruins beside the Courtyard.
The Palace is empty. Though some bodies can be found scattered haphazardly about the halls, most of those who were working in the building have disappeared entirely. There’s no question as to whose doing it was.
Small groups of kedan have also ventured into the Palace in order to loot whatever rooms they can get into, feeling confident that the reward will outweigh the risk of facing off against Foreigners who may feel the need to repel them. Mostly they'll be in groups of 3-5, though individuals or larger can be encountered as well. Some will engage the Foreigners in hostilities and some will grudgingly be sent on their way without challenge, depending on how bold they feel.
No banners, rugs, lanterns, or furniture within the Palace remain in pristine condition (with the exception of Eshai’s room). Everywhere one looks, items are torn, scratched, or smeared with blood. Even the interior walls are often cracked or caked in what one hopes is only blood. Perhaps more unnerving are the ‘veins’ that run through the walls, floor, and ceiling. These thin black tendrils, equal parts within and without the surface they spread across, are textured and feel like pine needles to the touch. These veins run throughout the Palace, yet never seem to thicken, intensify, or coalesce in any one room or area.
Though the walls are still made of white marble and the floor remains interlaced with rose quartz and mother-of-pearl, the shine has gone from them and something of the life and light they brought has withered away. Though the structure remains intact, it feels in some areas as if the walls have closed in, making the previously grand rooms now seem shrunken and constrictive. An air of eerie calm and discomfort can be felt from the first step on. The building is not the Palace anyone remembers.
LINKS
Throne Room | Eshai's Room | Storage Armory | Library
Ritual Chamber | Prison | Courtyard | The Turtle's Head
OOC NOTE
The Palace becomes available to explore as of the 28th, but will remain accessible until further notice. Please direct any questions regarding this log to the QUESTIONS section in the original OOC post.
There will also be a State of the Shell post coming soon to address the current status of the city and its key players. Thank you!
Date: Sept 28 and onward
Location: Palace of the Landed Sky, Keeliai
Situation: In the wake of Malicant's bold taunt, and the death of the Emperor and five hatchlings, the Palace is left abandoned and open for the Foreigners and kedan alike to explore.
Warnings/Rating: CONTENT WARNINGS are noted in the various subject headers, please take note of them!
---
zwischenzug | (ˈzvɪʃənzuːɡ) | intermezzo | n. (in chess):
1. A tactical move interpolated into an exchange or series of exchanges to improve the outcome.
2. "in-between move". An unexpected move tossed into an expected series of moves. (German)
---
Where once the Palace of the Landed Sky was a majestic and beautiful thing to behold, it now seems to pulse with negative energy. The outer walls are crumbling in most places, unsteady and fallen into disrepair. The walls of the Palace itself remain for the most part sturdy, minus a few fallen stones and the ruins beside the Courtyard.
The Palace is empty. Though some bodies can be found scattered haphazardly about the halls, most of those who were working in the building have disappeared entirely. There’s no question as to whose doing it was.
Small groups of kedan have also ventured into the Palace in order to loot whatever rooms they can get into, feeling confident that the reward will outweigh the risk of facing off against Foreigners who may feel the need to repel them. Mostly they'll be in groups of 3-5, though individuals or larger can be encountered as well. Some will engage the Foreigners in hostilities and some will grudgingly be sent on their way without challenge, depending on how bold they feel.
No banners, rugs, lanterns, or furniture within the Palace remain in pristine condition (with the exception of Eshai’s room). Everywhere one looks, items are torn, scratched, or smeared with blood. Even the interior walls are often cracked or caked in what one hopes is only blood. Perhaps more unnerving are the ‘veins’ that run through the walls, floor, and ceiling. These thin black tendrils, equal parts within and without the surface they spread across, are textured and feel like pine needles to the touch. These veins run throughout the Palace, yet never seem to thicken, intensify, or coalesce in any one room or area.
Though the walls are still made of white marble and the floor remains interlaced with rose quartz and mother-of-pearl, the shine has gone from them and something of the life and light they brought has withered away. Though the structure remains intact, it feels in some areas as if the walls have closed in, making the previously grand rooms now seem shrunken and constrictive. An air of eerie calm and discomfort can be felt from the first step on. The building is not the Palace anyone remembers.
LINKS
Throne Room | Eshai's Room | Storage Armory | Library
Ritual Chamber | Prison | Courtyard | The Turtle's Head
OOC NOTE
The Palace becomes available to explore as of the 28th, but will remain accessible until further notice. Please direct any questions regarding this log to the QUESTIONS section in the original OOC post.
There will also be a State of the Shell post coming soon to address the current status of the city and its key players. Thank you!
THRONE ROOM - [content warning: blood, drug references]
This is the only room in the Palace containing signs of damage, yet whose walls, floors, and pillars remain clean, unmarred by the veins of other rooms, and without cracks or similar damages. Every banner in the hall, however, is shredded in a similar fashion and the throne has been scratched with a deep and repetitive ‘X’ pattern across its back, where the head might rest. Its message is clear: your leaders will die.
Upon entering the room, characters may notice that a thin layer of dust covers every inch of the wall, floor, and the throne. If your character chooses to examine the substance, or enters without care for it, they will discover that the sediment is the drug Dust and will, if appropriate, suffer the effects of taking a dose. As a reminder, Dust is a hallucinogen which causes increased violence, disorientation, reduced inhibitions, and makes one generally more susceptible to Malicant.
Closed | Skulduggery | Others to Follow
"So far," She said, leading the skeleton through the palace, not really certain where she was headed. "You are the one asking all the questions."
She was trying to ignore the creepy veins that ran throughout the halls and rooms, the blood on the walls and the bodies strewn around, but failing horribly.
On a whim, she turned to walk through the large doors to her right, entering the grand throne room. It had not escaped Malicant's taint, but was free of the veins. The dull light was tinted red and she didn't really want to know what kind of 'paint' had been used to block the light. "How did you become a living skeleton?"
no subject
"That's a very good question," Skulduggery commended her, stepping carefully through the layer of dust on the floor. "I was murdered, and blocked from moving on. Re-inhabiting my own body seemed like a good idea at the time."
no subject
"What do you mean, 'blocked from moving on'?" She had heard of souls being unable to move forward, but they were few and far between and usually rounded up fairly quickly.
no subject
no subject
no subject
He didn't deny that Valdis had a point about incredibly strong emotions. He also didn't go out of his way to tell her that she did.
A series of carved Xs covered the head of the throne, seemingly the only important thing to discover; but they received only an amused noise from Skulduggery before he went on the examine the back.
no subject
no subject
"And yet," he murmured, "to every rule, there are exceptions. Unless you're claiming I'm a figment of your imagination - which, to be fair, is certainly a possibility." He glanced up. "What is it?"
no subject
"An exception to the rule."
Because she was certain that she had seen a soul beyond that doorway and she had seen it without using soul sight.
no subject
Which was, like the secret passage in the library, both underground and very close to the shell. Skulduggery's promise to Anton barred him from following Valdis, but he had to admit, he was unlikely to have gone even if the promise wasn't a factor. The secret passage in the library intrigued Skulduggery, not the prison.
So he turned his attention back to the throne and let Valdis go with a wave of his hand. "Let me know if you find anything. Or if you run into something dangerous."
no subject
"There are few things more dangerous than I am," she replied, heading down the stairs and into the darkness.
no subject
Probably, Skulduggery answered himself, because that's precisely what it sounds like.
Oh well. Maybe the throne also hid a secret passage. Skulduggery spent a few minutes searching for a lever, came up empty, and then wandered around the throne room, trying to see if he could piece together exactly how a large-scale fight had occurred. The problem was that none of the pieces, none of the signs of damage, and none of the thick layers of dust upon the floor seemed to fit together.
no subject
Tony stepped away from Gene and acknowledged Skulduggery with a nod of his head. "Hey, Skeleton Man. Found anything interesting yet?"
no subject
He still didn't want to be here, but investigating the palace was important.
no subject
Then the other one spoke. Skulduggery let the fire die and nodded back. "Tony Stark, wasn't it? That depends on what you define as 'interesting'."
no subject
"I'd be really interested in anything that could put a hurt on the big guy. But I'd settle for some hints on what the big performance was all about."
He looked around, noticing that nearly every surface in the room appeared to be coated in a thin layer of dust. "Though I think first, I'd like to know what the heck is all over the walls. What is this stuff? I think I'm picking up particulates of it in the air, too. Should we be worried?"
no subject
Well, advice that doesn't really matter - Skul doesn't breathe, and both Gene and Tony are now armored up, so...did Gene just make a joke?
Sick fires, Skul.no subject
Why, thank you."I'll do my very best," Skulduggery answered wryly. He certainly chose to take Gene's warning as a joke. The information that the dust was a drug, though - that was interesting. That was one of the puzzle pieces which hadn't quite fit in Skulduggery's mental representation of what happened in this room. It didn't help to clear things up, but it did help to make things a little less confusing.
He took a deep breath, just to prove he could, before answering Tony's earlier question. "The big performance was most likely a combination of intimidation and distraction, mixed with a hint of finger-pointing. There's nothing here to support or disprove it, apart from some very heavy-handed dramatic licence." The defaced family tree in the library sprang to mind. "As for effective attack ideas, if you really thought our enemy would abandon a stronghold which still held even a whiff of a clue about his defeat, I would have to reserve all future judgement on your intelligence. Or possibly question the purpose of what we're doing here."
no subject
Tony was getting really tired of people making snide comments about his intelligence whenever he asked questions about Malicant and his plans. It might almost be suspicious, except he was pretty sure all the offenders just didn't know what the fuck was going on any better than Tony, and being smug, superior assholes about it made them feel better about themselves.
Personally, Tony thought they might get more done if they spent less time thinking up cute ways to insult him and more time trying to actually find some answers.
no subject
"We know our enemy likes to grandstand - and that usually means there's a likelihood that it can slip up, get overconfident." Not like Gene was speaking from experience on that front! Not at all.