Heroica RPG - Quest #99: Six Thousand Feet Under

[LordoftheNoobs]

Grimwald ponders the question thoughtfully. "Hmm... well, I suppose it is. I mean, you can hardly identify something you don't see in front of you, and seeing things in front of you is at least kind of experiencing it..."

[Endgame]

"STATEMENT: As a rebuttal, to see someone in pain doesn't neccasarily mean that the observer is currently in pain. ELABORATION: Every analysis of Brittany, Derrek, and Charles proved I was able to identify those miners as "happy." QUERY: If I am able to identify such an emotion, is it a possiblity that I am capable of experiencing such a phenomenon?"

Edited May 16, 2014 by Endgame

[The_Customizer]

"Minoid, I believe that whatever you put your mind to do, you should be able to do. If you identified them as being happy, then surely there must be something inside you that prompted you to thinking they were happy, at the same time, understanding the meaning of being happy. So yes, I believe at some point you will be able to experience happiness."

[Flipz]

As the party walks along Arthur sighs. Maybe it wasn't the right time to reveal it to the others, but he didn't know when a better one would come up. "Minoid, I'm the last person you should be asking about the definition of humanity." He holds his hand out in front of him and allows it to turn to ink, a bit of the substance dripping away before he wills it to re-solidify. "All I can say is this: if you ever do transcend your limits and find your humanity, don't give it up. Don't give it up for anything--it's not worth it."

[Endgame]

"...FURTHER ANALYSIS: REQUIRED. Your points will all be heavily factored in in my continued observations."

The party forges onwards. With nothing of note in view, they practically race down the scaffolding, finding themselves on the left side of the lower ridge. They spot two familiar insignias...

"STATISTIC: There is a 96.75867797% chance that those footprints are those of the giant's. Moisture of the dirt beneath the prints implies these are fairly recent, likely after he sliced the bridge."

The party follows the footprints, finding themselves at the mouth of a rather foreboding cave. There are a variety of signs plastered over it, bright yellow tape strewn across the entrance: "DANGER! Keep out! Up ahead is unknown territory! Most of the warnings could only be half read, the signs chopped cleanly in half. Even all of the warning tape was slashed, th scarps hanging pathetically. Expecting the best and fearing the worst, the party steps inside the "spooky crypt thingy..."

All heroes cough as they walk into the dark chamber, the atmosphere here almost strangling the heroes. Even the Minoid sputters a bit from the stale air. Blades of every sort, as sharp as ever, line the walls, giving a warning to those who dwell here. It reeked of death as well, the setench only adding to the sense of fear. Smething was wrong with this place. Something evil

dwelled here, onc eupon a time... The front of the room had a huge door - the left, three pedestals sunk into the wall. The right wall had a rather bizzare insciprtion...

What will the party inspect first?

[The_Customizer]

"Something seems evil and wrong here, let's just explore and poke everything we can!" Erdathcath inspects the door, the pedestals, and the inscription.

[Flipz]

"Belay that, let me check them for traps with my Magnifying Glass before we touch anything."

[Endgame]

Arthur inspects the sinister corridor with his magnifying glass. Some sort of auxillary security system lurked in here... Whether or not tripping the system was required remains unknown.

Erdathcath first inspects the door. It was locked tight, several feet thick and made of some of the most sturdy material. Without proper procedure, opening it would likely be impossible... the druid next turns her attention to the left wall.

There are three small openings in the wall, likely meant to hold something. On the opposite wall, there is an inscription:

"A ASTCEL SRKUL LBEWO

BLEEEF USN HNIESS FOF GRIDFI CIE

EH HOW SSPOESESS A TSATREDHE ERTAH NADWERS EERH

TNFIA IGLTH, FUOCAFSTED YB NSDAKREE

EAREBW, RFO HTIS SI TEH DMIANAO FO ETH HWIET LVDEI."

[Flipz]

Arthur inspects the shield with his Magnifying Glass, attempting to gauge its strength. As he works, he puzzles over the inscription, eventually working out the solution in his head and reading it out to his companions.

"A castle lurks below

Feeble sun shines off frigid ice

He who possesses a shattered heart wanders here

Faint light, suffocated by darkness

Beware, for this is the domain of the White Devil."

"Hmm...has anyone heard of a White Devil before?" Why does that title seem so...familiar?

He looks at the empty slots and sighs, happening to glance at his Gnome companion. "Master Grimwald, I can't make heads or tails of this. Obviously this door has to be opened by putting something in the slots, but I can't for the life of me figure out what. Perhaps you could figure out how--or even if--that inscription is linked to the puzzle before us?"

[Endgame]

The shield in question doesn't appear to be a shield at all. The gold disk emanates a soft light.

[LordoftheNoobs]

"Hmmm... well, the 'feeble sun' I assume has some connection with this golden disk... but apart from that... no wait, I've got it! We need to insert the gems we got off those Oculoids in those gaps! Judging by what the inscription says, we'd need to put the Opal next to the disk, the Diamond next to the Opal, and the Amethyst next to the Diamond."

Grimwald then proceeds to place the gems thusly.

[Endgame]

Grimwald's solution doesn't quite work... The gems slot in correctly, but the order seemed off.

[LordoftheNoobs]

"Hmm... well, we definitely need to slot these in, maybe the order's not right. Any ideas?"

[Flipz]

"Opal, Amethyst, Diamond, perhaps?" As Arthur rearranges the gems, he scrapes his hand on the sharp edge of one of the slots, leaving a splotch of black ink on the stone. "Gah, sorry," he mutters, feebly wiping it off before reinserting the gems in their new positions.

"Thanks for not flipping out on me, by the way," he says, rubbing his wound until the scratch disappeared. "The last Hero who figured out I was...well, not normal...kinda tried to kill me. It's nice to know some Heroes who don't default to murderous 'SMITE EVIL!' mode at the tiniest little thing."

[The_Customizer]

"Sure thing Arthur, as long as you don't try killing me, I won't try to kill you. As for the gems, perhaps we put them in the order that the oculoids challenged us?"

[LordoftheNoobs]

"Heh, don't worry about it. Trust me kiddo, I've seen much stranger and more evil things than a bit of ink. "

[Endgame]

The gems slot into place, the pedestals sinking in. The gems glisten as the floor rumbles... For a second, it seemed like the doors ahead of them would rumble open. Instead, the doors behind them slam shut, two giant slabs of rock colliding into eachother and locking tight! The thick barricade locks in the heroes, a voice flooding into the antehcamber... it is monotonous and scratchy, seemingly old.

"TODAY'S SECURITY QUESTION: What is the name of your creator? 10 seconds to answer..."

Ten seconds?!

[The_Customizer]

"Minoid, act quickly, what is your creator's name?"

[Endgame]

"STATEMENT: Iamtalkinguqicklytomashmyspeechintothis10secondlongtimespan. Idon'tbelievethatmycreatorisrelevant.Ifthisisasecuritysystem,thenitislikelysearchingforthenameofthecreatorofsomeonewhoistypicallyallowedpassthischeckpoint.RECOMENDATION: ANSWERQUICKLY."

Edited May 17, 2014 by Endgame

[The_Customizer]

"Well I guess we won't make it. I have no idea who else would be allowed through here! Arthur, Grimwald, any ideas?"

OOC: Surprisingly enough, that sentence was really easy to read!

[Endgame]

QM Note: My reccomendation is to take this brief moment to prepare, unless you can nail down the answer. (Highly, HIGHLY unlikely.)

[The_Customizer]

Erdathcath quickly consumes a Smelling Salts, and applies a deadly venom to her Handcannon in preparation for the upcoming battle. She also gives Arthur and Grimwald a Smelling Salts.

[Flipz]

"The White Devil! The White Devil! Who is the...?"

Suddenly, to Arthur, the world explodes, and as he falls unconscious his body goes black as ink...

[The_Customizer]

"Wait, do you mean, surely, no, it can't be." Erdathcath pauses for a moment considering the possibilities, then calls out "The White Devil, The Regret, the one who created the oculoids!"

[Flipz]

Arthur's body flickers between flesh and ink, spiritual energies flickering through his form as his consciousness floated between vision and reality--the line blurred, as it had been just days ago, when--

No...

"The White Devil, The Regret, the one who created the oculoids!"

Arthur's eyes snap open, and has body back to normal, in response to the words. The words, and the image of the being behind them, burned in his mind as his fingers clenched around his weapon.

"Regret."

He levels a hard stare at Grimwald, already knowing the doors would open for them. "Be ready. What we've witnessed so far is nothing compared to what we will face ahead."