DUNGEON ♛ GISELA TOWERS

[boardmaster]

GISELA TOWERS
20 MAY (VALLARIA) 2016

High in the skies, the howling winds tangled around the Gisela Towers make it difficult to hear anything. The monolithic structures believed to exist only in legend or harpy memories loom over you. The thick ropes of ivy crawling up the length of each tower is the only sign of life. Every now and then, shadow seems to pass overhead. It might just be a trick of the light.

Instead of the usual suspects, another familiar face comes forward to greet our Heroes: the devil-may-care Lei, captain and commander supreme of the Airy.

Lei Nervous that your commanders ain’t here? Don’t worry, you’re in good hands. So! Here we are at this… thing. Something something tragic romantic tale about a dragon and a phoenix. Anyway, it’s stupid and you don’t gotta know. Ask one of your commanders later or bribe me with a drink. Now for something more important— [ the winds roars loudly, muting lei’s voice. but heroes can watch his hand gestures and actions as he teaches them how to use the grappling hook: aim and shoot the gun. maybe twirl it with a fancy flourish first ] —did you get that? All right, good! I don’t have enough hooks, so you’re gonna have to share. And take good care of them, I want them back! Now get in there and clear it ASAP! I ain’t got all day to fly you all back home!

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 ♙
One does not simply walk into the Gisela Towers. The only way in is up the long and weathered staircase that wraps around the structure. However, the thing is riddled with missing steps, weak stones and slippery condensation from the cloud cover, so you’re going to need a little help. Should you attempt to climb the stairs, they will crumble beneath your feet at best and bury you beneath their rubble at worst.

This is where Lei’s newfangled(?) contraptions will come in handy! The pockmarks and small ledges created by weathering in the first tower’s structure could prove useful. There are, of course, a limited number of grappling hooks available, so you’ll have to partner up if you want your party to get anywhere. Parties of four are given two of these guns, while the poor souls with less party members get one.

Gisela’s gale-force winds will knock you around and make it seem like the towers are close to toppling over. However, as you make your way up you’ll see that the towers are actually far from abandoned.

MONSTER ♟ Ocypete
Weak against Lightning	Strong against Wind	Immune to None
Regarded as abominations of the avian world, ocypetes are BIRDS the size of horses, which would be incredibly advantageous if they had wings. The offspring of a human and a harpy, ocypetes have HUMAN ARMS that they use to scale surfaces and strong TALONS that can crush rock. They don’t fly, but they do RIDE THE WIND with the use of their long tail feathers, which possess magical wind properties and are nearly twice as long as they are tall. They would look almost elegant if they didn’t have a tendency to flap their arms while gliding. Legend has it that when the phoenix left the towers, the ocypetes were accidentally left behind because dragons plucked their wing feathers, making them look kind of funny. Now with a few millennia’s worth of abandonment issues on their semi-feathered shoulders, they’ll seek to prevent Heroes from ascending the towers by any means necessary with an odd variation of Airy MARTIAL ARTS. Their TAILFEATHERS may be acquired as loot.

What will Heroes encounter once they finally make it inside? More broken staircases, more monsters, even stronger winds blowing in from cracks in the walls and the foot of the tower (which is open to the air), and no floor whatsoever. Gisela’s Towers are hollow! The only footing to be found is on small ledges: some similar to those outside the tower, some that look more artificial; and intact sections of the stairs winding around the walls. You’ll need magic or some ingenuity to stay on your toes—literally! If you lose your grip or footing, it’s a several thousand foot drop back to Gresser. The quickest way down… and the deadliest.


TWO ♙
The treacherous and exhausting climb brings you to a more sturdy area that looks a little less like a wrecking ball just passed through and more like some kind of hive. Blocking your way are dozens of sturdy-looking nests suspended like particularly ugly balls of twine from the walls. These are home to the insectoid Aellos. Tearing the nests apart for loot is only a good idea if you want angry swarms after you.

MONSTER ♟ Aello
Weak against Fire, Lightning	Strong against None	Immune to Wind
Aellos resemble large eagles more than the DRAGONFLIES they’re supposed to be. Mature Aellos can fly, but the flightless and fuzzier larvae are just as formidable. They can HYPNOTIZE with their dozen kaleidoscope-like eyes, rendering targets IMMOBILE but still aware of their surroundings. In order to free them, a fellow Hero must gaze deeply into their eyes for at least 15 seconds. These monsters are also able to SPIT a gelatin-like substance that will stick Heroes to any and every surface and also each other. FIRE will reduce its stickiness. The larvae use hit-and-run tactics: they hunker down in their nests, peek over the edge and launch gobs of spit. The flying aello like to drop their SPIT BOMBS from above and occasionally also release a POWDER that ruins visibility and makes you sneeze. Feeling adventurous? Why don’t you give the spit a lick? It’s actually totally EDIBLE, tastes like jello, and is filled with mana. Just be sure to heat it up so you don’t get your mouth stuck shut. Their GELATIN SPIT and INSECT PARTS may be acquired as loot.

The staircases at this altitude are in better shape than the ones you have—or haven’t—been using. That doesn’t mean they’re any less dangerous. Not only do the Aellos chase you down here; traps are hidden in the steps as well. Some may act like quicksand, trapping an unwary Hero halfway into the stone. Others are enchanted with wind spells that can toss you up in the air, the long way back down to the ground, or blow your skirt upward. There might even be some that provoke the pesky bugs even more!

This floor has flowers and trees creeping their way in from the outside and covering every inch of the place, including treacherous weaknesses in the path. Behind these overgrown plants is a mural depicting a sensual dance between a dragon and a harpy. In order to advance, at least two Heroes will have to mimic the dance painted on the walls to open the door.


THREE ♙
A barrier prevents you from progressing any further. Magic, physical attacks or sheer willpower will do nothing. To dissolve it, you must create a concoction from the random ingredients available on the table and splash it on the barrier. There is no set recipe, so trial and error and a little creativity will be your friends! Along with your trusty party Bishop, of course. (You did bring one, didn’t you?) Those not well-versed in alchemy may end up with potions that explode upon completion, splashing party members standing too close with a variety of strange side effects ranging from mild body horror to a bad case of halitosis. The unfortunate effects seem to differ from Hero to Hero, and they last for a few minutes to a couple of hours.

Once your party crosses the barrier, you will find yourselves outside. The skies are darkening, but you’re still able to discern another tower wrapped in the clouds. A bridge once connected the two structures, but most of it is missing. Use those grappling hooks!

Upon entering the second tower, a marble floor at odds with everything from the last tower will greet you. Lift your head and you’ll find that the rest of the tower is also hollow all the way up; those heights allow room for fountains and waterfalls. It’s a suitable area to replenish mana and rest. Parched throats can be quenched with the sparkling water all around you, but approach any waterfalls and they will start moving in a very unwaterlike way.

MONSTER ♟ Celaeno
Weak against Lightning	Strong against Fire, Earth	Immune to Water
Possessed by pride and cursed by the phoenix’s wrath, these dragons are nothing like the ones you encountered before. Celaeno resemble huge snakes made of water and possess ENCHANTED SCALES that float through their bodies and render them extremely RESISTANT to both magical and physical attacks. You will have to find WEAK POINTS in their protective aura. Hopefully you have a Knight or Bishop on your team to find those weaknesses as soon as possible! Each dragon’s weak points differ. Fortunately, all Celaenos go down easily once you find that soft spot. They use their long, slender tails like WATER WHIPS to knock down or douse their targets; the force of a tail may equal that of a fire hose at full blast! The only time it sheds its armor is to shapeshift into a WATER PRISON that can trap one or more enemies. Try not to attack it while a Hero is trapped inside; it will hurt your friend as well! Use STATUS EFFECTS to confuse or distract them so the prison loses shape. Their ENCHANTED SCALES, SMALL GEMS, and DRAGON WATER may be acquired as loot.

Without any stairs in sight, the way up lies in those dragons. After their defeat, their magical scales can be put together to form a boat that can ride the waterfalls upwards to the top floors.


FOUR ♙
The skies continue to change once you reach the top. Black clouds begin to close in, stray bits of land that have broken off from the main island hover nearby, and a sudden torrent of powerful mana may disorient your party. A storm is approaching.

Just as the first chunk of hail falls from the sky, a mighty roar reverberates through the darkness. Something very large lands on the walls of the tower and causes a tremor that whittles chunks from the tower and actually rolls the clouds back; is that the toll of thunder, or just more roaring?

Finally, an impressive three-headed dragon emerges from below. Once it has perched itself on the tower, one head speaks in a rumbling growl.

BOSS ♟ Tianya the Thrice-Scorned
Weak against Lightning	Strong against None	Immune to Wind, Fire
“Did that phoenix send you?! Tell her she cannot return! Not even over my dead body!” Unsurprisingly, Tianya ─the dragon once wed to the phoenix─ is more than just a legend. He lowers his heads and another loud, guttural cry fills the skies. For now, he remains STATIONARY at the top of the tower. All three heads attempt to SWALLOW a Hero whole if they get too close. Should you go on the offensive, you may be able to chop off at least one head before he’s pissed off enough to move. The fallen head writhes in agony as it moans: “It hurts… it burns…” At this point, Tianya takes flight. The strong GUSTS from those wings can launch a Hero right off the tower. Use your grappling hook(s) to play floating island hopscotch: evade devastating dive attacks and run from the MANA BEAMS shot from his mouths. “You’ll never understand! I never wanted her!” As you travel from island to island trying to get close enough to deal some real damage, Tianya hides in the CLOUDS to launch ambush attacks. Eventually, a PHOENIX descends from the heavens in a burst of fiery light. However, it’s not the phoenix of legend; it’s actually one of Tianya’s spells, and it will burn away most of your mana if any of its flames make contact. MANA EXCHANGE may be the only way to continue this battle... Once Tianya is down to one head, he will immediately rise higher into the sky. “My last words are for her and her alone.” After Tianya is defeated, the storm clears; Enprise’s twin suns shine once more. That precious DUNGEON CORE floats down, blanketed by a SINGLE LARGE FEATHER, golden and shining in the light. “It’s warm… She was always warm…” A SCORNED DRAGON HEART and a MYSTICAL PHOENIX FEATHER may be acquired as loot.

As soon as both core and feather touch the tower, an ominous rumbling and shaking begins. The Gisela Towers are falling apart and it’s now a race to escape before you’re buried under the rubble.

And don’t forget the grappling hook(s); Lei wants them back.


FIVE ♙
All that’s left of the Gisela Towers is rubble. The dungeon has been conquered, the island reclaimed, and the ruins of the old regime can now become the foundations for something new: the site of the harpies’ homecoming after hundreds of years.

LOCATION ♟ Gisela

An ancient sky island that has existed since time immemorial. What enables Gisela to RIDE THE CLOUDS may be an even greater mystery than the mechanisms powering the Airy. The island appears most frequently above Gresser, though its extraordinary altitude makes it DIFFICULT TO LOCATE. The landscape of Gisela is overgrown with JEWEL-GREEN FORESTS, crisscrossed with gorges and dotted with networks of small caverns. But its crowning glory is the THIN GLEAMING WATERFALLS that flow from its edges and into the sky beyond. The water is embraced by RAINBOWS and condenses into CLOUDS when Gisela is high enough, lending to its unusual weather patterns. Although the island initially seems largely uninhabited apart from the Gisela Towers, there is a SEALED OFF AREA that, when viewed from the air, looks suspiciously like LUSH, TILLED FIELDS. Should you ask Lei about this, he will only give you an unusually stern warning against disturbing it. Looks like you’ve solved the mystery behind the pai tiles. Now that the menacing Towers have been demolished, a variety of animal life — usually airborne — will begin to appear on the island. Some of them you’ve never seen before! The fall of the Towers also uncovered the existence of HOT SPRINGS below; newspapers speculate wildly about the source, but most agree that it must have something to do with the renewed vows between phoenix and dragon. The few structures already in place on the island have been speedily converted into BAZAARS manned by Airy harpies. Most specialize in legal alchemical gimmicks, but there’s always another side to these things. Everyone’s here to soak in the breeze, and by that we do mean everyone. In response to the tourism boom, NEW AEROPORTS have also opened in both Gisela and Gresser to provide reliable transportation between the two locations.

Comments

LAUGHS AT THIS ONE WORD

[hoasen]

[Jae-ha's mana had always felt like freedom, and so she feels light, despite the weight of their bodies pressed together. Her body is in his hands right now, as the dance itself, some form of courtship, also relies in her trust in him. And it's fine, or at least, that was what she thought.

As directed, her body arches easily, her fingers lacing through the strands of his hair, though she's careful not to undo his ribbon. This of course, was not the part where she started to feel her chest beat harder, her body heating up as she feels his lips trail down, his head hovering between her breasts. He probably would be able to hear it, her ragged breathing and heart beating.

Breathlessly, she nods.]

Continue. [She says this coolly, despite her face burning up and the grip on his shoulders tightening. And the thing was, it wasn't out of discomfort.]

WOW LOOK AT HOW OLD THIS IS

[flirtations]

[ It was difficult for him to conceive that so much power could be contained in her body, which felt as light and as delicate as a feather. But he knows better than to see her as delicate, and with each step they take further, he relinquishes just a little more control; leaves it open to improvisation on her part, because the etchings on the wall don't actually provide much direction.

Nothing more than the basics, and the rest comes merely from feeling.

His body temperature rises as he feels Vietnam's hands gently lace through his hair, his gaze lowering downward to try and hide his immediate reaction. It's not her fault that she inadvertently happens to caress his hair; a particularly sensitive part of his body. Jae-ha can feel the rising of her heartbeat through the tip of his nose, the light rest of his cheek along her ribcage, and he wonders if she's merely feeling nerves. Could it possibly be something else, too?

He nods, finally raising his gaze to meet hers again, perhaps looking a little more ashamed than he should. Still, he manages a twinge of a smile before resting his hands along her waist, then lifting Vietnam high into the air. He twirls her, in their smaller version of a pair in flight. ]

NAH WHAT OLD.

[hoasen]

[Did she know that it was a sensitive part of his body? Who knows, even though she could understand how touching one's hair would always feel good, it was a trait she shared. How did she feel? Was it something else? That was definitely a question that needed to be asked here. Vietnam isn't someone who thinks about these things until it starts to happen. All she knows right now is that he makes her feel. Even physically, it's strange, and it is not something she could hide from him. And as duty will make her see this dance to the end, it means that he will find out a good deal more.

Like how she calms, just slightly, despite the redness of her face, after he gives her a tiny smile. And of course, she trusts him as he lifts her into the air, and she rests her hands on his shoulders to keep steady.

Not that she really needed to. Throughout this, everything happened because she trusts Jae-ha completely.]

[flirtations]

[ Surprisingly, it's this part, the part in which she flies apart from him, symbolically flying away from him, that is the most difficult. Immediately, he misses the feel of her warmth against his, the way her body and mana feel along his own, the cool river to his warm breeze. ]

Are you feeling dizzy yet, Sen-chan? [ He asks lightly, trying to ignore the dryness in his throat and the self-assuredness his voice lacks. Finally, Jae-ha brings her back down, nearly sighing in relief as he settles back against Vietnam and draws her close, embracing her. His feet still move, slowly, but this is a moment of rest before moving on to the next movement. ]

[hoasen]

[She didn't realise how much she missed him until he draws her back in once he puts her firmly on her feet again. What a strange feeling. Like this is how it should be. Was this what the dance was all about? It was a rather close dance between a dragon and a phoenix. One that was able to bring about all kinds of feelings.

Instead she hides her head into his chest like she's embarrassed. Because let's be real, she probably is.]

Not even close to being dizzy! [Hahaha oh Vietnam.]

[flirtations]

Really? Maybe I should have gone faster. [ This light banter between them helps keep Jae-ha somewhat grounded, helps him ignore the rapid beating of his heart when she buries her face in his chest. Despite the shows of strength she's displayed, both here and otherwise, he can't help but feel an overwhelming urge to protect the small woman in his arms, to envelop her away from whatever harm might befall them. He fights that urge every day, and even now, as the form dictates their steps have to slow even further. Once more, only clothing keeps them modest, the curve of her inner thigh dangerously close and growing ever closer.

Now it's his turn to run his hands through her hair, fingertips lightly treading along the edge of her scalp and curling at the nape of her neck. He leans down to lightly rest his lips against the top of her head, closing his eyes as they take these final steps. ] We're almost finished. [ He murmurs lightly, in what he hopes is a reassuring voice, and definitely not a trace of disappointment. Never that. ]

[hoasen]

Maybe you should have. You underestimate my tolerance, I thought you would've known after you flew me across the water. [That was fast and exhilarating! She wasn't dizzy after. But yet, it felt like time stop, this recent one. How? When did that even change? What is she noticing about him?

She grips tightly around him, hands bunching up his clothes like she doesn't want to let to, but her body is a lot less tense. It could be something to do with his touch.

But her grip only tightens more with his words, and she didn't even notice.]

I wonder if this will work. [She doesn't want to look up, knowing how he rests his head atop her head.]

[flirtations]

Really? I just remember you yelled a lot when you thought we were going to fall. I don't really remember anything else. [ He chuckles at his own joke, making his body shake lightly with the slight movement. He still feels a little guilty for that one, but not really, because it gave him so much insight as to what kind of person Vietnam was. It, like most others that he's shared with her, is a fond memory, one that warms his heart.

Enough that he forgets to filter his thoughts for a split second, and he says, just low enough that Vietnam might miss it if he's lucky: ]

Part of me doesn't want it to.

[ Because it means that they have to depart from this, have to face the reality of battle and strife, rather than selfishly indulging in enjoying her company, and the closeness this dance demands of them. It may not be so bad to remain in limbo forever, if he didn't have to face such a fate alone.

The meaning of his words sets in, and almost immediately, his hands grow tense along her back again, uncertain. He wants to take them back, but rather than clarifying, seeks to once more hide his heated cheeks along the curve of her neck.

This time, he misses. Or rather, he follows exactly where instinct and desire leads him, to lightly press his lips against hers. ]

[hoasen]

That was to save you! [GOD JAE-HA, she wasn't afraid of falling like she was of him hurting himself. Now it should be fine. Now she can fly like he can, and with enough mana, she can take him anywhere. Such jokes won't even be a problem anymore.

She swore she heard something. "Part of me doesn't want it to." Then she realised with how she grips onto him, that she doesn't want to either. Is it trust? Is it more than just trust? Her eyes search around them as his hands tense up, and she can see him coming closer.

She doesn't pull back when he kisses her lightly. Rather, before she even realises it, she gives him a gentle one back, defying her usual instinct of throwing him down and beating him up.]