pawnstorm | DUNGEON ♛ LEBEDCHE LAKE

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DUNGEON ♛ LEBEDCHE LAKE

LEBEDCHE LAKE
20 JANUARY (DIANTHE) 2016

Commander Lisbrand greets you with a grim expression when the Heroes gather outside of the forest cave. The Heroes are tasked to set up anti-magic explosives provided by Lisbrand Technologies and Gammon at the entrance. On the commander’s signal, loud bangs fill the air, shattering the barrier. A freezing wind howls like a banshee, sending chills down your spine as if to warn you. Turn back now.

Lisbrand remains steadfast. Judging from what her scouts brought back, she informs the Heroes that this dungeon is unlike the others they’ve faced. Mana activity is off the charts, only one scout made it back alive from recon, and… her brother’s in there. Please bring him home safely.

Basic info on the dungeon can be found here. Dungeon mechanics can be found here. All OOC questions about the event may be directed to the thread below.

ONE ♙ Mirror Mirror
According to Commander Lisbrand, anyone carrying large amounts of mana can now enter the dungeon. Not only that, but you are also able to see every other Hero who entered too. Convenient, but peculiar. In any case, with the help of mana crystals provided by Gammon, Lisbrand’s coming with you.

The path beyond the chamber where you found Alumina is decidedly different. As you proceed, the rock walls turn brittle and clear. You are now in one of the glass tunnels located underneath Lebedche Lake. Dusty footprints are on the glassy ground.... Someone has been here before, and very recently, too.

The glass creaks underneath your weight but it holds. For now.
Follow the footprints and you will reach a spacious intersection. There is a figure calmly waiting for you on the other side with their back turned. No matter how sneakily you approach, they whirl around and you come face to face with… yourself?

MONSTER ♟ Chilling Reminder
Weak against What you’re weak against	Strong against What you’re strong against	Immune to Water
This ice monster is best described as your own reflection. They know everything about you, from the way you talk to the way you walk. They know every skill and spell in your arsenal. Whatever your weaknesses and strengths are also their own. But they also represent THE WORST IN YOU. They constantly CONFUSE others and TAUNT you, reminding you of your ugly, shameful soul. Beware: they can also transform into your other allies in the middle of a fight. Watch out as they try to SMASH the glass tunnels around you for a decisive end to this battle. Strangely enough, the surrounding water will not seep into the tunnels. Instead, it will suck you in and DROWN YOU IN AN INSTANT, and your allies will have no way to get you back. DROPS: Ice Shards, Broken Mirror, Fake Weapon Fragments, Illusion Powder

Once the last monster has been defeated, the deafening silence returns to the tunnels. Take a moment to breathe, heal and check on your fellow Heroes. If you see someone shivering and shaking, help by warming them up or drying them off. You don’t want to remain drenched in the freezing temperatures.

TWO ♙ All the world’s a stage
At the end of the winding glass paths, you reach the underside of the crystal swan which recently appeared. There, you find a theater stage, and the curtains turn into solid blocks of ice once Heroes enter. It will take more than a powerful fire spell to get out of this one.

The black swans outside are still circling the construct above, but you are safe underneath the surface of the lake. If you look past the glass walls, you can watch the fish swim by sunken boats. It’s eerily calm, almost beautiful especially when snowflakes begin to drift down from the ceiling somehow.

A shattering noise sounds behind you and several crystal staircases appear. On top of them you will find…

MONSTER ♟ Pas de Deux
Weak against None	Strong against None	Immune to Attacks
A troupe of disfigured ballet dancers that come in pairs. Parts of their body are missing or bent in unnatural ways. Their feet bleed as if they’ve been DANCING FOREVER. Their morbid dance HYPNOTIZES their audience to face the same fate. Attack them normally and they will instantly TELEPORT to the other side of the room. The key to victory in this battle is dance itself. Together with your comrades, you must DANCE WITH FEELING. Only by dancing as you attack them will you be able to land a hit. But if you do not take this seriously, painful CUTS will mysteriously appear on your body. Don’t get served, Hero! DROPS: Tin Soldier, Tin Heart, Crystal Spangles, Book of the Eternal Dance

As the final curtain falls for the dancers, the crystal ceiling will shatter, opening the way to the crystal swan above. As you try and catch your breath, the frozen curtains melt to reveal Alumina and Lisbrand.

	Lisbrand Alumina, it’s not safe here. This dungeon is an anomaly; we don’t know what might happen to us. Come with me!
	Alumina Fleur? …No! I need to find Ledo and Nerea! You should go back! I’ll be fine. This is something I have to do. Unlike you, I’m... [ runs away ]
	Lisbrand Alumina! [ runs after her ]

Where are they going? Alumina is a civilian, so you must send them out. But as you try to follow the pair, you lose them in the light...

THREE ♙ The Swan Prince
In the chamber of the crystal swan, pale sunlight filters in, illuminating three figures. An angry Nerea and a crystal projection of an amused Princess Katya seem to be in the middle of a one-sided argument. Nerea’s voice rises, which makes the beautiful white swan huddled nearby flinch back. It weakly lifts its head towards the Heroes, pleading with far too intelligent eyes for an intervention.

	Nerea This isn’t what you promised!
	Katya Oh, but it is. You wanted Alumina to yourself. I gave you a love potion.
	Nerea That killed her.
	Katya So I gave you her mana, which you put into an automaton you stole.
	Nerea Made me steal.
	Katya Haha. [ smirks ] You wanted Ledo out of the picture. Again, I gave you a love potion. Made him a swan. You wanted to bring Alumina back to life, so I asked for thirty eyes, forty limbs, fifty hearts...
	Nerea But Ledo’s as well?
	Katya I do not see the problem. He was to marry your beloved Alumina, no? So get rid of him. Marry him, crush him, take his company and give it to me. That was the deal. See it to the end.
	Alumina [ enters with Lisbrand ] Nerea! Ledo!
	Lisbrand Ledo? [ glowers ] Princess Katya… Explain yourself, Nox!
	Nerea It’s not what it looks like! I’m— I’m trying to save Ledo! Alumina, Fleur, please… Please believe me!
	Katya [ cackles ] Oh, that’s rich! Nerea, hurry up and kill that swan! Before he takes your beloved Alumina!

As Nerea hesitates, a relieved Alumina rushes towards the swan. Nerea falters.

	Katya Heh. You bore me, Nerea. Here I thought you would get your happy ending. You disappoint me. Ah, but fifty is enough for the next part of the spell. Now, Ledo... Awaken.
	Ledo [ the swan twists its body uncontrollably, screaming in pain. for the first time, it is able to speak. ] A...lu...mi...na… Run...

BOSS ♟ Ledo de Lisbrand
Weak against ???	Strong against ???	Immune to ???
“The real Alumina died. Nerea killed her. She killed everybody. I tried to tell someone—-anyone. But no one heard me. It was so cold. No one listened. I tried to stop them… before their hearts were stolen too.” At Princess Katya’s command, Ledo de Lisbrand has transformed into a grotesque union of a human and swan--Alumina even comments that he looks like an angel. His stances are similar to his sister’s, whom Heroes have trained and fought with long enough to notice. His GUN’s cursed bullets contain RANDOM ELEMENTAL AND STATUS EFFECTS. His SWORD strikes also DRAIN you of your energy. Katya’s hold on his mind is strong… Thankfully, two of the most important people in Ledo’s life are also here to assist: the automaton Alumina with a giant gatling gun she lifts with surprising ease, and your reliable commander Fleur de Lisbrand. Together, weaken him to bring him to his senses! “I’m sorry, Alumina. I’m not an angel. Lisbrand Technologies is my life. Fleur loves this country. Blanc and my family’s legacy… They will not fall by Noir’s hand. I will destroy you all. Katya, Nerea… My Servants, attack them.” Ledo’s AUTOMATONS join the fray. A MECHANICAL BUTLER uses a large iron hammer to crush any living thing in sight. A MECHANICAL MAID stands at the back to throw cursed mana crystals at the Heroes, which will either debuff you or explode! Decommission the pair quickly. “I always knew you were an automaton. You looked like her, spoke like her, and you even had her mana… but you and the Alumina I knew felt different. Even so, I could feel your love. It was so different, yet so real… and I thought that was beautiful.” Ledo will swoop into the air, spreading large weathered wings in an attempt to escape attacks and Alumina and Lisbrand’s gunshots. Aim for those unnatural wings to bring him back to the ground! “You had me drink a love potion, Nerea, but the moment you cursed me, you said that I never had your heart. It was then that I remembered who did…” DROPS: Enchanted Swan Feathers, Mechanical Heart, Noble Cape, Butler’s Suit, Maid’s Dress, Iron Hammer, Cursed Mana Crystals

Finally, Ledo sinks to his knees. He’s shaking, gasping and looking as if he’d just survived a war. Blood, sweat and tears trickle down his face. He coughs and clutches his chest in agony. A dungeon core slips through his fingers and clatters to the ground.

At the same time, Ledo begins to topple to the side. Alumina cries out and catches him before he can hit the ground. Although weak from the battle, Ledo looks at Alumina with a tender smile.

	Alumina [ flustered ] Why are you looking at me like that? I’m not the Alumina you want...
	Ledo [ chuckles ] I never said you had to be.
	Nerea [ looks as if she wants to approach, but frowns and doesn’t. she tightens her fists. —which open when Lisbrand cuffs her. ]
	Lisbrand Nerea Nox, you are under arrest for treason, murder and grand larceny. Heroes, take her. [ a couple of compliant Heroes—perhaps you—take Nerea into custody, and she lets them. she stares into the distance as she slowly realizes that everything she’s done has been for nothing. ] I should have known it was you, Katya.
	Katya You should have. I suppose that’s why the swan is inheriting the company. As for Nerea… [ at the snap of her fingers, Nerea disappears from your grasp ] She has a lot of potential. Ahahaha! Heroes, you must be wondering why the dungeons are like this… Or, well, how I know about dungeons at all. Just so you know, you’re not the only ones the gods favor! Ah, you all look as tasty as you did before… I can’t wait to see all your faces in the months to come! [ as she starts to cackle, Lisbrand stabs the mana crystal, ending the feed ]

After Lisbrand puts her gun back in its holster, she and the Heroes prepare to set off with Alumina and Ledo. The army will come to fetch them in large boats at the dungeon entrance, she says. She also reminds the Heroes that Nerea Nox is now an enemy of Blanc. Alumina begs Lisbrand not to speak any further—even the Heroes know what fate lies before Nerea. Lisbrand suggests that perhaps it is best to rest her mind for now. That goes for the Heroes, too.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

i. true to your heart

[Sometimes, self-care is drinking three cans of coffee and then getting into a knife fight with your doppelgänger.]

Oh, come on. You can do better; you never hesitate when it comes to killing people. Not even yourself.

[Hakuno grits her teeth and brings her wakizashi to clash against her strange, other self's mirrored blade, feeling her irritation mount at both the fact that the other is wearing the activated Battle Shift and the faint, mocking smile on her face in equal measure. She had considered transforming herself, but the temperature and the fact that she might need to save her mana for a later fight in the dungeon had convinced her to wait.

They're equally matched, but she has to be more mindful of defense than her chatty twin.]

Work harder. It's an insult to the people you've trampled over if you can't even do this much, isn't it?

...shut up.

[Attack, guard, break.

Slash, parry, disengage.

There's a certain flow to their struggles, but Hakuno's expression seems to be worsening with each syllable.]

Is this really all their lives are worth?

Shut up.

Is this really all Leo died for? Julius? Gatou?

Shut...

Sir Blackmore?

...

[The nerve that her twin is strumming seems to be particularly tugged by that one—though only one individual here might understand why, given that he freshened this particular wound—and it culminates in both wakizashi being wrenched away and going skittering off across the floor. Hakuno bodily tackles her doppelgänger, but only gets a soft, derisive laugh as they start to grapple.]

Ooh, he might not have approved of that underhanded move.

...

I wonder if, without a Servant, you still would have taken out Alice and Shin—

[CRACK.

The doppelgänger finally falls silent, glancing down at the hunting knife driven through her exposed chest. Her smile turns sweet, and a bit wistful.

In contrast, Hakuno's eyes are dark and her own expression is... carefully blank. All she says is:]

Shut. Up.

[And obligingly, when she twists the knife, her mirror image shatters beneath her.

Hakuno kneels there a long moment, watching her panted breaths fog and fan out in front of her. Then, with a deep breath, she pushes herself up and goes to retrieve her lost weapon.]

ii. shall we dance

[If Hakuno hadn't been learning how to dance with Jae-ha, this would be a terrible, terrible situation. As it stands, it's all she can do to keep her feet moving as her eyes stay sharp for any oncoming attacks.

Perhaps she needs a partner to help her properly multitask?]

wildcard

[I'm open for any aftermath or cuddling prompts, and as always, this King is willing to heal up any allies that might need it!]

Edited 2017-01-22 21:33 (UTC)

[Theoretically, Robin could've helped.

Anyone else with a ranged weapon would be rightly concerned about accidentally hitting the real Hakuno, but his bow has a way to get around that. There's nothing stopping him from shooting her double in the face but himself. Maybe he's wrong for thinking this way - it's likely he is, in his own estimation - but this seemed like something Hakuno should've done herself. Or, rather, he wasn't sure she would've welcomed the interference.

He wouldn't have, if it had been him.

Robin unfastens the cloak around his shoulders before putting the bow on his back, wringing the cloth out with a grimace. It's not damaged, not any more than it was before he stepped foot in the dungeon, but it'd gotten wet, and as a natural result had gotten the rest of his clothes wet, too. There's not really any point in wearing it right now, because he'll never dry off if he does.]

Hakuno, are you...

[He calls after her as she turns to retrieve her sword, but cuts himself off before he can finish. Of course she's not okay, but if he finishes the question, she'll almost definitely say she is. They'd just talked about this recently, after all.]

You didn't get wet, did you?

[This is the next best thing. Again, he defers to the situation he'd prefer; ignoring that anything happened at all will always be his favored response when something as heavy as this comes up.

The creature had tried to mimic Robin before it realized Hakuno was the more vulnerable target. It mocked him, of course, but it wasn't anything he hadn't thought about himself already. But it had asked him something, just before it changed form. "Do you really think you deserve everything she's done for you?"

If he can't even talk about something that's obviously making her upset, he decides, then no. He doesn't. But it's not like he didn't already know that, either.]

...

[Hakuno takes another deep breath, and when she lifts her head there's at least a bit more life in her eyes. From a distance, at least, she looks calm. As he draws closer, however, he'll notice that her dark, untransformed uniform is darker than it should be, and there's a tremble in her frame. Her hair, at least, escaped the consequence of her... hands-on attack.]

A... l-little, yeah.

[Maybe a little more than a little, given that without the adrenaline and anger driving her, her teeth have begun to chatter.]

Are y-you oka-ay?

[Oh boy. At least she's not trying to play it off like she's totally fine.]

Shouldn't you worry about yourself before...no, I guess you wouldn't.

[That's part of what makes her Hakuno Kishinami.]

...You look like a drowned rodent, come here.

[There's no suitable place to start a fire, and his cloak, wet as it is, is useless as a blanket. They'll both freeze, or at the very least end up with frostbite, if they don't warm up, but there's really only way to do that. It's sort of embarrassing, but embarrassment is preferable to freezing to death, so they'll just have to warm each other up the old-fashioned way.]

I d-don't have to take th-that from a so-soggy leaf.

[Sass aside, she doesn't hesitate to move closer for body heat. She knows a spell for drying clothes, but she probably won't risk it until she can go a solid syllable without stuttering. The last thing they need is a miscast spell on top of hypothermia.]

Sorry that t-took so long.

Oh, do you want to freeze after all?

[He pulls her to his chest even as he retorts, because Robin is a lot of things, but he isn't someone who'd just let a person freeze to death if there was anything he could do about it.

Unless it was someone he didn't like, maybe.]

You don't have anything to apologize about. If I were that rushed for time I would've shot it in the head.

[It would have been weird, though - which, now that he thinks about it, may have been another reason for his hesitation. It didn't...quite feel right to aim at something that looked at her. Considering where they started off, when an arrow through her head was a pressing goal of his, it's a lot of progress.]

[She considers making a joke about how that always seems to be the case, but decides it's in poor taste. With Blackmore's name still lingering in the air, it wouldn't be funny at all. Their banter can be warped, but it's never actually meant to hurt, and there's a sentimental heaviness hanging around her that she's not dumb enough to poke.]

Well, I wouldn't ha-have rejected that, but i-it kind of felt good to do it my-myself.

[She wonders what that says about her, as she wraps her arms around his waist.]

Of course it did. It always feels good to make someone who's badmouthing you shut up.

[He rubs her back, hoping the friction warms her up a little quicker.]

...If it's any consolation, I...just remember it doesn't matter what that thing said, because the only person who got to decide what the old man's life was worth was him.

[He noticed that pause in their exchange, and he can't really speak for anyone else, but he can speak for Blackmore. And while Robin had only known him for two short weeks, there's no doubt in his mind his former Master would be proud of her, and honored to have helped such a fine young lady grow into her own, even if the method was...unpleasant, to say the least.]

True.

[That gets a laugh out of her, short as it is.]

...that does help. Thanks.

[Dan Blackmore had stood and faced his death with a grace Hakuno could only desperately mimic, when it seemed like her time had come. She leans into Robin, quiet and solemn until her trembling finally calms down to a manageable level. Selfishly, she holds off on casting for just one minute more, enjoying the feeling of being supported—she always is, really, but a physical reminder is very nice, especially after what just happened.

The moment passes and she recites the spell, and water wicks out of their clothes all at once and splashes down around them. Their temperature doesn't rise much, but at the very least they're dry now.]

[After the water drains out of his cloak, he steps back for just a moment and gives Hakuno a once-over to make sure she's dry, then drapes it over his shoulders and pulls her back in, wrapping it around her as he does. He'd considered just giving it to her, but it's probably warmer like this.]

You're not shivering anymore. Are you starting to feel a little better?

[Warmer or a little less emotionally compromised, he means to ask about both.]

Getting there, yeah.

[She nestles in, sighing slightly. She's dealt with worse shocks—emotional and otherwise—but that doesn't mean that what just happened is any more pleasant. She's been healing, slowly, but this is a wound that will never fully disappear. She's well aware of that.

They both are, she thinks.]

...this kind of reminds me of our first Dungeon, a little.

How do you figure? We weren't freezing our asses off in that one.

[No spiders either. Thank god.]

Hakuno Kishinami | King

SLAMS INTO I WITH THE FORCE OF A THOUSAND SUNS

I feel like I've seen that in a video game recently

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i /late with preferred shana drink in hand

/late too

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