Player Plot: The Crystal Temple's Secret

[princeandscholar]

Who: Characters signed up for this quest
When: 12th
Where: The Crystal Temple in Sen Devadatta
What: The Heroes of Light vs. Bahamut's Temple
Warnings/Notes: None


IC | Arrival

After a long flight to the Empire, a visit to Parasraya, and a meetup at the capital, the expedition members are loaded onto vehicles and delivered to their destination: the magnificent Crystal Temple. Alas, there is no time for a leisurely tour as the company gathers outside with caving gear and weaponry.

Once all party members are assembled, Orcelito addresses everyone:
"Thank you for coming. I know it was a long flight and there was a lot of preparation. Your presence here is appreciated, and we will be underway shortly.”

He gestures towards the Crystal Temple. “Two teams will be escorted into the basement of the temple. The rest will travel into the forest to look for a way in through the network of caverns. We have leads on where to start searching, so we can make the most of our time.

“As mentioned in the letter, the ruins have deteriorated over the years. Bahamut’s Temple is ancient, and parts of it are no longer standing. I’ve been told that some areas may be flooded or unstable.”

Orcelito pauses, scanning the group. He lowers his tone as he adds, "If you find evidence to suggest someone has tampered with the ruins recently, let me know. As well, please refrain from disturbing the ruins more than necessary. We are here on the Empire's good grace, after all."

And one more thing. "I understand it will be inconvenient, but the order not to use the Mognet is especially imperative while we're here. If you need to send a message to another team, ask one of the Moogles. They are here to help."

From where she hovers by his shoulder, Marigold waves the free paw that’s not clutching a lantern. Those traveling with their Moogle companions will notice they've been given similar lights.

Finally, he smiles; Orcelito may not know everyone here, but he's committed to leading each of them out safely. “Don’t take unnecessary risks. Look after each other.”

Once the orientation is complete, the parties are split. Orcelito turns to lead the way into the temple where a researcher stands ready to guide them to the basement. The other group will find a vehicle waiting to carry them to the forest nearby.


Team Thread Links
Team A thread: Orcelito, Tidus, Rutile, Naoto, Snow White
Team B thread : Ashelia, Castor, Terra, Klonoa, Frisk, Madhuri
Team C thread: Finn, Regis, Adrien, Sephiroth, Ursula, Papyrus, Kanji
Conclusion

Comments

[neverbeamemory]

Sephiroth had also covered his face somewhere in the crook of his elbow as the slab of rock had collided with the wall and erupted all sorts of rock dust into the close air. Slowly he raised his head from it and cast a careful look around in the darkness, the haze from Jennifer's mog-lantern floating like an iridescent misshapen orb of light nearby as she caught up to the group. He waved his hand at her, which followed with that light being extinguished as well. Better to have naturally adjusted low-light vision than the lanterns in the haze they were left in, a pity however that adjustment would take a few moments; given human limitations.

The crunch sound immediately pulled Sephiroth's sharp attention from others, back in the direction of the archway. What he wouldn't give for the superhuman senses that he'd once taken for granted, those clicks certainly don't sound like a machine of any sort...but then that led to trying to guess what manner of creature they were about to encounter.

"...curious sound." He mused lowly, ensuring to keep his voice as low and quiet as possible.

[modelcivilian]

Adrien took off his hat to try gusting away some of the dust around his face, coughing at the bit that still managed to get into his nose and mouth. Not at all pleasant - he didn't even notice Blanc's light go out, but that was probably for the best.

A knock to the head from the large moogle, and Adrien listened closely to the strange sound ahead.

"... Pincers?" he questioned just above a whisper though that wasn't all that could make a clicking noise. He put his hat back on and got ready all the same. Whatever it was, it was probably going to attack them.

Final Summary for Team C

[princeandscholar]

The heavy crunching and intermittent clicking draws closer… and moves further away. Keen eyes may detect the shape of something large moving beyond the archway, easily ten feet long and taller than the party members. Whatever it is, it seems to be examining where the slab of stone it threw broke apart; there is clattering as debris is shoved aside and snuffling as the remains are nosed through. (Fortunately for the party, the mud they accumulated during their spelunking and the cloud of dust are covering their scent. For now.)

-

Whether the party chose to engage the Boss, or the Boss chose to engage them, they finally get a good look at each other.

Covered in scales the color of dried blood and ridged along the back and tail with spines, the beast is easily ten feet from snout to tail tip, standing higher than the party members on muscular hind legs. Raptor? Wyvern? It's a little of both, but definitely suited to the earth. The sinuous body with a wide, powerful chest and shoulders support thick arms and claws suited for digging. After so long in the darkness, its pale amber eyes squint shut at the party's offending lantern lights, and the beast repeats the curious clicking noise from its throat.

While the claws may be blunt, its teeth are definitely not, and the party gets a good look at them as the creature snarls. (It’s not a wholly unhappy snarl… I mean, who turns down free food?)

As expected, the beast puts up a furious fight, and it takes some doing to finally defeat it.

Once they're no longer fighting for their lives, the party can examine the beast's work in the room. Set within one wall of the spacious chamber is a great fireplace… which has been aggressively hollowed out. Seems your scaly opponent was illegally excavating a historic site ripping the stones out of the mortar to get to the area behind it!

With effort, the party will be able to finish breaking through the remaining wall into a new room! It's dirty in here, as wet and cold as everything else has been, and the doorway needs to be cleared. But once they're out and shining a light into the main passage – hey, are those footprints passing through here? They are! And following them leads to familiar voices and warm lantern lights.

Congratulations, Team C, you've entered the main part of Bahamut's Temple! Teams A and B have reconvened and are ready to tackle the final area together, so why don't you join them?