Descent into Darkness

[bravenewmods]

As the characters arrive, they will find what appears to be a rather deep cavern. Upon entering, the caverns are quite narrow, with twists and turns everywhere and different tunnels that all seem to be interconnected. As characters travel deeper within the caverns, reality around them will start to warp, they will start to see and hear things that aren’t necessarily there - images of old enemies, past failures, voices of condemnation, visions that strike at the soul and core of the characters. Once this begins, it will only increase in power and volume, demanding it be confronted, lest they be trapped within these caves forever.

[OOC: This event will run for a week. All characters who enter the caves will be subject to some of their deepest fears, darkest demons, and most abject failures. To overcome them, characters must help each other out, finding their purpose through strength of character and resolve to move forward. In general, these visions should require characters to come to grips with themselves. Illusory images and voices can and will appear and can take any number of forms, depending on what is most appropriate to a character. Additionally, characters may thread with each other and are encouraged to help each other out to overcome these personal demons. For those who wish to take part, they are able and encouraged to narrate their own personal demons, which will be on display for everyone who enters their thread. IC threads may be made in this post.]

Comments

[morituri_nolumus_mori]

[ Rincewind was lost. He had been for a couple hours. Anxiety settled neatly in the pit of his stomach. He kept up a mild jog, eyes squinting into the ink-stained darkness. Every sound ricocheting magnificently off stone formations and cavernous walls. With every step, a cloud of dust rose. He hadn't recognized it at first, too bewildered to even consider the idea, but there it was, floating resolutely in the hollows of his memory. ]

[ This was one of the libraries of Sanctuary. He'd know the heavy, dust-laden smell from anywhere. The air tasted of magic and weighed with centuries of heavy-bounded knowledge. A palpable silence, so familiar he could close his eyes and remember the feel, draped over him and hushed every step into a whisper. ]

[ He passed through aisle after aisle, drawn to a flickering light and two shadows dancing in its cool glow. ]

[ He drifted close enough to hear and nearly walked right into a bookcase when the sever tone of voice sternly slapped him upside the head. Rincewind was from a Magi family. He hadn't ascended the echelons of society himself, but he knew well enough who to avoid and who was safe. The man scolding Waver now was one of the ones he did his damnedest to avoid, but it might be too late to turn around. ]

[untalented]

[No, there was still time for Rincewind to flee if he so chose. The man in question, an Archmagus and senior lecturer at the academy, hadn't noticed him.

Yet.

Perhaps Rincewind, like Waver, was blessed with the dubious trait of being invisible unless he happened to speak up loud enough?

Waver visibly shifted under the apparition's chilling gaze, as if he were little more than a primary school student preparing himself to be punished for not clapping the chalk dust out of the erasures properly, or spilling ink all over important documents. He didn't dare lift his eyes from the ancient, faded carpeting beneath their feet.]

Nothing, really. It's too advanced for me to really get, anyway. It doesn't matter.

[The shadow tutted, slipping into the role of a nightmarish school master with little apparent effort on his part.]

"Oh, but you're wrong. It does matter. Those are the working drafts for my most recent project, you understand.

"No one is to know of it."

[Waver looked up now, fear glittering in his eyes. That didn't mean what he thought it meant....did it?]

[morituri_nolumus_mori]

[ Rincewind's face mirrored Waver's. He didn't doubt the elder magus could kill him. Magi valued knowledge. They horde it, embracing every sentence of power like lovers. Rincewind, gnaws on a knuckle. He didn't want to get in the middle of this. It would be terrible, he just knew it. Bad things always happened to meddlers. Meddling, especially when Magi were involved, meant trouble. ]

[ He grips the shelf next to him, half-hiding behind it, half-using it as a shield. His eyes alighted on a thick almanac. ]

[untalented]

I'm telling you -- I didn't read it!

[The understanding of his own mortality and fear of meeting it far sooner than he wished was enough to loosen his tongue enough to argue that much. And, it was true; why would he keep reading further in a subject matter that was beyond the advanced levels of practice and something far more arcane? He was still trying to figure out how to light a simple fire without burning the entire forest down!]

"You think I'm to trust one who lurks in the shadows of the libraries, stealing every scap of detail he can lay his hands upon?" [The specter hissed, and Waver physically flinched backward at the ferocity of those words. There was no denying it, not when he did withdraw books for short durations, so he could make copies for his own use later.]/small>

[morituri_nolumus_mori]

[ The struggle was real. Rincewind's battle of morality and mortality could've made a magnificent click. Rincewind struggles with the growing idea of heroism. It was an awful thought that was already nestling itself in the throne of his mind. It had even donned a cape. With a self-depreciating curse, he grabs the almanac and slips around the corner. ]

[ Rincewind, neither thief nor assassin, had a lot to learn about stealth. His form was sloppy, even a toddler was sneakier, but necessity, at least, cushioned his footsteps. He makes a note to thank the carpet later. He approached the backside of the scolding Magi, almanac clutched between his hands. He lifted it above his head, lips pursed, and brows knit in serious concentration. He visibly shook. ]

[ He looked like he was going to piston the tome over the other man's head. He also looked like he was about to piss himself. ]

[untalented]

[The struggle to not react was as real for Waver as Rincewind's childish gesture of heroism. Frozen on the spot, Waver dropped his gaze and held his breath as soon as he saw Rincewind's approach, praying to any god who happened to be listening that this meager act of rebellion would be enough to save both of them.]

N-no, [he finally bit out, spitting out the word as if it were a glob of stunlutefisk that hadn't been rinsed enough before cooking and serving.] I don't expect anything out of you. At all.

[The silence was near deafening between the two of them, until the elder Magus spoke.]

"As it should be. You're too far below to even catch anyone else's notice. But, that still leaves one problem unsolved."

[Waver bit his lip, sucking in a breath before speaking again.]

...And what's that?

[The question, innocent enough, was met with a dark chuckle.]

"The stolen research, of course."

[The words froze Waver to his spot. He always returned everything that he borrowed, so what could he possibly be talking about?!]

[morituri_nolumus_mori]

[ It sure would've been nice to hear about that research, wouldn't it? ]

[ However, Rincewind had other plans. He had to act now. Not because of the obvious bait set by the higher ranked magus, but because Rincewind would lose his nerve and probably die via heart attack or somehow muck it up in the worst way possible. He'd rather that not happen. ]

[ The book comes down with a heavy THUD. Rincewind cracks it against the man's skull and desperately prays it was enough. He doesn't wait to find out. He's already darting towards Waver and very ready to sprint into the distance. ]

[ The Luggage hobbles after its master and makes it a point to trample the (hopefully) unconscious man. ]

[untalented]

[Oh, the man is down all right! Waver loses no time scrambling to his feet and gets a mild jolf of catharsis when he sees the Luggage trampling on the lecturer as he slowly disintigrated into dust.]

Rincewind! [He called, stumbling as he was dragged along,] What were you even thinking right there? We'd both be dead of this were Sanctuary!

[Torn as he was between fury at all of the mistakes made and gratitude for his friend's quick thinking, Waver settled on his default reaction: bluster]

[morituri_nolumus_mori]

I wasn't! That's the point!

[ He's going to keep running, dragging the younger magus along if he had to, unless given a good reason to stop. Rincewind, after all, makes it a point to never look back. It also meant he'd missed the spectacle of the miraculous, disintegrating lecturer! What majesty! ]

[untalented]

That's crazy! You're crazy!

[Honestly, there was nothing to see. It was merely any bad student's fantasy to see their most hated and feared teacher vanish into the abyss, never to torment them again.]

[morituri_nolumus_mori]

I'm still alive, aren't I?!

[ the scenery whipped past in a blur. Rincewind was really getting his run on. If there was anything Rincewind knew he was good at, it was running from his problems, and it didn't have to be his, either. He was just as good at running from other people's problems, given a decent head start and an opening. Up ahead, he could almost make out the break in the paragraph. It looked to be a doozy. ]

[untalented]

Well, yes, but--!

[But there were no 'but's, nor any good way to argue with Rincewind's logic. Running effectively turned any potential for a closure to a sentence or paragraph into a semi-colon; though cowardly and irrational, there was no denying it's efficacy.]