InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Echelon"

Sonozaki Renju [園崎蓮珠] (lotus_beyond) wrote in disappear_plot,
@ 2009-12-15 22:30:00

Dungeon Crawl - Crimson Lotus Academy
Who: Exploration Team and S!Renju; individual threads for K1 and Tom
What: Pre-dungeon, such as it is.
When: Early August, fairly soon after the existing Shadow threads.
Where: Multiple locations in Renju's dungeon.
Why: Supplementals.

Since everything that happens in the dungeon (besides the K1 and Tom threads below) will be happening in chat, there will be no "pre-dungeon" in the usual sense. Instead, since Renju's dungeon will be working a little differently from most, I'll be using this space for ground rules.

1. Insofar as is possible, OOC talk should stay in the OOC chat. If you have any questions, please keep them either there or to IMs with me.
2. Speaking of IMs, private IMs will be getting abused, especially during the first dungeon session. Please be aware of this and prepare accordingly.
3. This dungeon will be fairly wall-of-texty. Long posts will be split into chunks with ellipses linking them.
4. Important information will often be communicated via OOC chat. Please either pay attention to both or, if you can't, let me know so I can pass it on individually.
5. Bossfight-specific: Anyone who is not okay with unpleasant but temporary physical things happening to their characters or is potentially squeamish about reading about that sort of thing should avoid the bossfight or talk to me for specific details.

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Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

lotus_beyond
2009-12-16 11:53 pm UTC (link)

The place where Ito Keiichi had ended up was dim, bleak, empty, and (perhaps most strikingly) bitterly, bitterly cold, as sharp a contrast to the warm August weather as one could imagine. There were no landmarks, no features, noway to even mark the passage of time--this last would no doubt be particularly problematic since he still lacked a phone. There was nothing but Keiichi and the ice.

Which meant that it could have been hours or days before a figure appeared to break up the monotony--albeit one that was unlikely to be welcome.

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

keiito
2009-12-17 12:21 am UTC (link)

Time was something he hadn't really thought about since he'd arrived here. His first instinct had been to wander -- if there were shadows, he figured, they'd find him eventually, and he'd have nothing but a kama to fight them off with -- a single kama designed for use by Renju, who was considerably shorter than he was.

The thing that he WAS thinking about was the cold. Considering he was in a pair of flannel pajamas, a thin sleeping shirt, and slippers, it wasn't the most pleasant environment he'd ever been in.

"I hate cold," he hissed, under his breath, as he dropped down to the cold, icy surface to do a quick set of ten pushups. It had been jumping jacks earlier, jogging before that. Any form of exercise or motion to try and stay warm, though any such effort had met with minimal success.

Rising from his set of pushups, he heard footfalls approaching. Kama still clutched in his left hand, Keiichi growled. If this was going to be how everything ended for him, better to face it now. Not like there was anywhere to run to.

Whirling around, he came face to face with...her.

"You again," he said, teeth chattering and making the conversation somewhat more intelligible. "Didn't think you'd show. Especially since you don't have a door to push me into anymore."

He had no idea if the team even knew what had happened. No idea if anyone would come to save him. No food. No water. No phone.

Much as he was trying like Hell to force the thought out of his mind, it kept returning to the forefront of his mind, unbidden: this was the end.

This was going to be where he fell, and never got back up.

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

lotus_beyond
2009-12-17 05:15 am UTC (link)

"It was your own fault."

The Shadow seemed much more confident, at ease, even at home in this place. Despite the size-too-small uniform it wore, the cold didn't seem to touch it at all. Though, really, this was only natural--for the Shadow, it was home.

"You were the one who chose to find it, and chose to fight instead of doing the sensible thing and fleeing." It stopped an arm's length from him, regarding him coolly, and canted its head again. "Why?"

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

keiito
2009-12-18 03:02 am UTC (link)

Keiichi's ensuing laughter was about as barren of true mirth as the environment was of pretty much anything. Even with the Shadow so close, he regarded it with hardened eyes, hand clutched to the kama, but no motion to swing begun.

"Because Sonozaki Renju is my friend," Keiichi said. "Because I have been inside of a demented video game, my girlfriend's idea of a kindergarten game show, and a comic book, and I haven't been stopped yet."

The slightly chilling laughter continued as he spread his arms out, as if encouraging her to take in the scene.

"We *will* get Renju out," he proclaimed, glaring the shadow dead in the eyes. Nothing you can do will stop that. Killing me won't change that. Even if I die here, they will come for her, and they will come for you."

*When* they would come was the question. It had been hours, by his estimation. And with the shadow seemingly holed up, who knew WHEN anyone else would figure it out?

"Though if you're here to kill me," Keiichi amended, forcing a grin onto his face, "you're going to have a harder time than you might expect. I'm a stubborn bastard when I want to be, and with my life on the line?"

It was essentially his forced bravado, but minus all of the laughter, minus all of the jokes.

Survival instinct in a place like this was impossible. He was alone, and he was freezing, but he wasn't helpless.

"Are you ready for the last thing of worth you'll ever accomplish," Keiichi asked, hand tightening further on the kama, ready to lash out at a moment's notice.

Ready for the fight of his life.

Ready for the fight *for* his life.

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

lotus_beyond
2009-12-28 10:11 pm UTC (link)

The Shadow took all this in with an equanimity that may or may not have been surprising if one considered its earlier behavior. Indeed, it seemed almost amused by the prospect. It had accepted the fact that the team would come long ago; it would simply make them wish they hadn't, and force them to depart with a far better understanding of what they'd foolishly been trying to save. Duty or not, surely they wouldn't be so stupid...

It had been about to impart this to Keiichi when he'd started in on his sudden insistence that it was going to kill him. This actually brought it up short for a moment. "Kill you?" Distortion warped its short, sharp laugh like a ripple through still water. "You flatter yourself. Whether you live or die couldn't matter less."

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

keiito
2010-01-03 02:02 am UTC (link)

"So calm," he replied. Paradise had irrevocably altered him. It gave him constant adrenaline jolts, even moreso now, here in the middle of Lord knew where, and with no guarantee he'd get out. "Especially considering there's no guarantee you walk away from this, either."

He gripped the single kama he held tighter. "They may not come for me. And if they don't, that means one thing. I come for you. If you don't fight me here, I'll find you wherever you run off to, and you will have to kill me if you want peace."

The words sounded so odd to his ears. Heroic, almost. Maybe the entire Captain Atomic thing had rubbed off on him. Maybe it was bluster. He didn't know. He didn't care.

But if this was it, his was a volcano god.

A blaze of glory it would be, rather than a whimper.

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

lotus_beyond
2010-01-10 05:49 am UTC (link)

"They'll come for you," the Shadow remarked, its voice carrying a hint of what could be called sourness. "And they'll come for it, too. It's what you do."

It turned its head slightly, seeming almost thoughtful to look back over its shoulder at--was that a landmark, far off in the distance, across the frozen plain?--but there was no trace of that thoughtfulness in its cold, empty yellow eyes. "But it doesn't matter. Even if they find you, they won't reach it. And if nothing else, this will make them understand." It looked at Keiichi out of the corner of its eyes. "You sooner than the rest."

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

keiito
2010-01-10 05:56 am UTC (link)

"You're so very confident," Keiichi hissed, shivering from the cold. With cold to shiver from, the probable fear was buried somewhere behind it.

"It? I don't refer to people as "it." If anything here is an "it," it's you," Keiichi...almost sneered, as if any such gesture could be taken seriously. "You're not a person. You're a Shadow. We specialize in killing those. And you seem very unwilling to kill me, which is a rather...bad decision on your part, really."

Was he trying to talk the thing into attacking him? The fact that it hadn't yet was somewhere unnerving. She knew that the team would come; why not weaken it?

"I told you already. If you don't kill me, we'll kill you. You don't have a chance in Hell of getting away with this."

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

lotus_beyond
2010-01-10 06:06 am UTC (link)

That faint trace of a mirthless smile returned to the Shadow's lips at that last phrase, albeit for just a moment before falling away. "Again. Whether you live or die doesn't matter. Perhaps not even to them. It won't change anything important.

"However, you are right about one thing," it admitted, though it doubted Keiichi would understand which, why, or just how right he was. Soon enough. It wasn't its job to explain, after all--and so with that, it vanished.

Once more, Keiichi was alone with the ice and darkness, and, far beyond, the sound of rushing water.

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Re: Pre-dungeon: Keiichi

keiito
2010-01-10 06:12 am UTC (link)

Before Keiichi could open his mouth to say anything else, the Shadow was gone, and Ito was...displeased.

"Figures," he grimaced. It was freezing in here, and there were no discernable landmarks, best he could tell. He had no idea which way was forward, and which was back towards a possible entrance.

"Water, in a place like this?" He was confused. How could water run in what had to be freezing temperatures? It was the only thing he had to go on, though.

And so he trudged towards the sound, wandering through the wasteland.

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ofmanydevices
2009-12-17 03:36 am UTC (link)

Tom had finished his search of the outlying areas of Paradise. And Keiichi wasn't there. He'd made sure to outfit himself in his long black coat, his pair of leather gloves, and a scarf. Even still he felt the cold. It'd only made his developing cough worse, and he could feel a runny nose coming on, but still he continued.

Before stepping into the dungeon, he pulled a pad and pen.

Couldn't find Ito outside of the dungeon. He couldn't be too far in. Will check first floor, if I don't find him, I'll wait for you before continuing."

Tom taped the note nearby where the team might find it, and set out to look around the dungeon.

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	lotus_beyond 2009-12-17 05:35 am UTC (link)
	The corridors were, for the time being, empty. There was no sign of Keiichi, nor even of his passing. Indeed, it was some time before there was any sign of anything besides Tom himself. When it came, it was as sudden, sharp footsteps on the tile close behind Tom, followed by a familiar but warped voice. "You came back." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

ofmanydevices
2009-12-17 05:43 am UTC (link)

Tom froze. He really had hoped to avoid the Shadow's attention. And now here it was. Tom tried to calm himself. Reminding himself that the shadows had never demonstrated the ability to shift into the monster form without the victim present. It didn't mean that they couldn't, just that it was unlkikely. The real danger was the environment. The shadow could warp that at will.

He turned to face the shadow, fingers slipping into his pocket and touching his phone. He coughed for a moment and then fixed the shadow with a neutral expression.

"Did you honestly expect me not to?"

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lotus_beyond
2009-12-18 12:53 am UTC (link)

"No." The Shadow seemed displeased by this fact, but it was true. Expecting any of them to stay away would be mere wishful thinking.

It stopped not far from him, its arms folded, fixing him with a faintly disdainful gaze. It was a look that Renju had directed at others before, though never aimed at Tom. "Why did you come back alone? You know how dangerous it is here."

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	ofmanydevices 2009-12-18 01:13 am UTC (link)
	"I wasn't going to force the others to face your world unprepared. But if Ito-san is here, then I need to save him." Tom turned away from the shadow to continue moving, then paused for a moment and looked back at her. "I'm going to save him, and Renju." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	lotus_beyond 2009-12-28 10:11 pm UTC (link)
	The Shadow simply stood back, eyes barely peeking out from behind the curtain of hair that hid them. "Whether you find Ito doesn't matter." The corners of its lips turned up just slightly into a mirthless semblance of a smile that was far colder than their surroundings. "But you won't find what doesn't want to be found." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	ofmanydevices 2009-12-28 11:26 pm UTC (link)
	Tom turned and looked at the Shadow directly. "Renju. I am not going to leave you. No matter what you say to me, or do, I will never give up on you. I promise." He turned and started to move on, back into the frozen wastes. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

lotus_beyond
2009-12-29 01:04 pm UTC (link)

One moment, the space in front of Tom was empty. The next, the Shadow was standing a few feet in front of him, looking distinctly unimpressed. It seemed that it wasn't about to concede the point that easily. Then again, it had all the time in the world to argue--or at least two weeks...

"You don't seem to understand," it responded, sounding faintly annoyed, and leaning on the last word as it typically did. "You care about something that never cared for anyone else, least of all you. Don't you remember what it said to you and your true self in your home, when the others were talking about how you're all nakama?"

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ofmanydevices
2009-12-29 04:29 pm UTC (link)

Tom slipped his hands into his pockets and took a step past the shadow. He continued walking, but spoke as if the shadow was with him the whole time.

"I'm pretty sure one of us lacks the gift of understanding, but I don't think it's me. But here's the thing. Before, I never asked. When I wanted to be on the team, but refused to be, it was because no one ever invited me."

He turned to look at the Shadow then,

"But I never asked either. And even with that, you were still there, telling me to be part of the team, to take care of myself. I understand that you don't feel the way I did, and I don't care. You came to save me. You still came into Paradise with everyone else and brought me home, you wanted to learn how to fight so you could deal with this.
So you think don't have a strong emotional connection to anyone. But you're actions speak differently. And maybe I'm wrong about that, but you and I can talk about it, when it's not so cold."

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	Dungeon log lotus_beyond 2009-12-17 05:05 am UTC (link)
	http://kettledragon.net/kondohole/conf-crimsonlotusacademy.html (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: Dungeon log lotus_beyond 2009-12-18 12:15 pm UTC (link)
	Log updated for floors 2-4 pre-midboss fight. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: Dungeon log lotus_beyond 2009-12-22 10:48 pm UTC (link)
	Log updated for remainder of dungeon. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	Re: Dungeon log lotus_beyond 2009-12-25 06:24 pm UTC (link)
	Log updated with private IM contents: http://kettledragon.net/kondohole/CLAlog.html. Any line preceded by a * is from an IM. (Reply to this) (Parent)