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Post by Shehrazad on Nov 8, 2008 20:22:48 GMT 1
The rocks became increasingly slippery as they neared the waterfall, and both Adiyah and Max almost lost their footing once or twice. Yvonne on the other hand seemed remarkably steady on her feet, despite the water.
Adiyah wasn't sure, but she almost thought she could see the shimmering outline of the white stag as if it was standing somewhere behind the falling water. For a few uncertain seconds, Max thought he saw it too.
(This isn't perfect, but it looks something like this:)
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Adiyah
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Post by Adiyah on Nov 8, 2008 20:31:45 GMT 1
"Yes, that's what it looked like, only saw it for a second though."
She pressed on, only glancing back briefly to make sure the others were following. She didn't see anything now and that was disheartening. Maybe it was a trick of the light, maybe hitting the right angle with the water made it look like............no, it had been there.
She kept going, claws digging into the earth and rock. "I don't normally see things that aren't there.....well, you know what I mean. I have to get a closer look."
As they approached the falls she slipped once and as she straightened she looked up and saw it again, or thought she did. "There! Please tell me you see that?"
She was already starting to climb up the rocks, slipping a bit as she did.
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Yvonne
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Post by Yvonne on Nov 8, 2008 20:50:28 GMT 1
Yvonne pauses her steady advance over the slippery rocks to look around the waterfall cluelessly. "I didn't see anything at all, are you sure?" She seems more concerned with watching Adiyah and Max so she can catch them if they fall again.
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Max Heller
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Post by Max Heller on Nov 8, 2008 21:03:56 GMT 1
Max squinted and stared at the waterfall. "I think... maybe," he said. It could just have been a trick of the moonlight.
He climbed up after Adiyah, taking care not to slip on the wet rocks. As they got nearer to the actuall falls, he shielded his eyes from the spray of water and tried to get a better look.
"For a second..." he said. "I saw something."
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Post by Shehrazad on Nov 8, 2008 21:10:43 GMT 1
They continued their slippery and wet climb up the waterfall, and as they got closer, they could tell that there was definitely something besides the rocks behind the water. It looked as if there was some sort of opening in the cliff, like the mouth of a cave, exactly where Max and Adiyah thought they had seen the white stag standing. All three of them were now drenched from the spraying water, and even in their Crinos forms, they were starting to feel quite cold.
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Max Heller
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Post by Max Heller on Nov 11, 2008 13:24:19 GMT 1
"Do you see that?" Max asked, climbing up towards the opening in the rock. He looked back to Yvonne, but she didn't look like she needed any help. In his Crinos form, the heavy curtain of falling water wouldn't hurt him. He pushed through it, giving Adiyah a hand up as he reached the mouth of the cave.
"We would never have seen it if it hadn't been for the white stag," he said, his voice echoing in the cave. He tried to get a look around. "If only we had some sort of light."
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Yvonne
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Post by Yvonne on Nov 11, 2008 15:06:59 GMT 1
Yvonne does her best to futilely shield herself from the water as she pushes past it, and looks miffed as she gets soaked anyway. "Ouwww." While Adiyah and Max are paying attention to the cave she starts squeezing as much of the water as she can out of her fur. She looks up at Max's thought. "I don't have anything."
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Adiyah
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Post by Adiyah on Nov 12, 2008 17:56:42 GMT 1
Adiyah grinned at Max as he helped her up through the water and to the space behind the falls. She shook herslf a bit to rid herself of some of the water, and stopped when she realized she'd just spread it if she kept up, attempting an apologetic look to Yvonne as she did.
She squinted in the darkened space at the mouth of the cave, wondering why they'd been lead here, but not questioning aside from that. "Thank you , great Stag."
She smiled at the mention of the light. "I might be of some help there. One moment."
With that she called upon the gift she'd learned long ago. It wasn't used too often, but it had saved her hide more than once.
(Faerie light)
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Post by Shehrazad on Nov 12, 2008 18:45:46 GMT 1
The white shiny orb popped into existence, and hovered near their heads. It was enough to light up the entrance, and Adiyah, Max and Yvonne found that they were standing in a little cave. The waterfall shielded it from the outside world, but they could make out the moon from behind the curtain of water. A small passage led a little further inside, and ended with a pool of water which seemed to take up half the cave and spread further into unseen parts of the hollow.
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Max Heller
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Post by Max Heller on Nov 12, 2008 20:28:49 GMT 1
Max, who had never seen her do that before, looked mildly surprised for a bit. "Cool," he said. It must be a Fianna thing. He didn't know many Fianna. "Can you move it?"
He stepped closer to the pool of water, and wondered if the light would survive in there. He knelt down and dipped a hand into the pool. It was cold. "When darkness surrounds you and breath fails you, huh?" he said. "Guess you were right." He grinned at Yvonne.
"Now I wish I had my scuba-diving gear. I'll take a look," he said. "I'll be right back."
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Post by Shehrazad on Nov 13, 2008 9:46:24 GMT 1
Max dove into the pool. Because he was already wet, the cold didn't come as quite as much of a shock. He swam down, and quickly found that it was only about ten feet deep. There wasn't much of anything down there, except rocks, and he was just about to give up and resurface when he saw the small passage at the bottom of the pool, leading deeper into the cave. It seemed almost too convenient to be true. It was too small for him to fit through in his current form, so he returned to homid and swam up through, using the rocks to guide him in the dark. He was barely within the passage when he realised that if he didn't turn back now, he wouldn't have the breath to make it to the surface should he run out of air. He opted to keep going, however, and he pushed on, remembering Owl's words and deciding this was the right thing to do. His mind started to get cloudy as he deprived it oxygen, and he didn't even realise when the passage started to grow wider and he reached the end. He kicked himself upwards, hoping he wouldn't hit his head against more rocks. Finally, he broke the surface of the pool and took a much-needed breath, probably the best breath he had taken in his life.
(Two levels of lethal damage)
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Max Heller
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Post by Max Heller on Nov 13, 2008 9:53:29 GMT 1
Still in the water, Max shifted to Glabro and took a look around. He could probably grope aimlessly in the dark, but if he really wanted to see anything, he needed Adiyah. Besides, they were supposed to be doing this together. He took another deep breath, and dove back under. The way back was faster, mostly because he already knew what to expect and didn't need to waste any time looking for it.
Soon enough he was on the other side, gasping for breath once again as he stepped out of the water, shivering with cold. "There's a passage," he told the girls. Yvonne was a semi-professional rock climber, he wouldn't be surprised if she turned out to be a perfect diver too. "It leads to another cave. You can probably make it. I say we go like before, if you feel you're running out of breath, give me a sign. If we're almost there I'll tell you to keep going."
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Yvonne
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Post by Yvonne on Nov 13, 2008 15:17:34 GMT 1
Yvonne sticks her tongue out at Adiyah as she's made wet again. The sight of the glowing light distracts her and she looks up at it, totally ruining any attempt at adapting to seeing in the gloom.
On Max's return, she nods in agreement and returns to her own Glabro form. "Okay, how about you lead and I go behind, that way Adiyah can stay in the middle and keep us all lit up." She looks at the water apphrehensively for a second, wondering how much colder she could get, but shrugs away the thoughts of discomfort. It's probably not any worse than when she goes swimming in lakes. Knowing better than to test the water slowly Yvonne sets her mind on going straight for the plunge. After checking the water to make sure the spot doesn't have any large rocks to smash her head on, she dives in with a gentle splash.
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Adiyah
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Post by Adiyah on Nov 17, 2008 2:11:35 GMT 1
Adiyah watched Max disappear under the water and out of the light's reach with growing apprehension. She exchanged glances with Yvonne in the minute or so he was gone, minutes that felt much longer.
When Max resurfaced in the pond, she let out a sigh of relief that he'd returned. She still wasn't sure that one of them wasn't mant to die on this mission. Looked like it wasn't happening yet anyhow.
She nodded at the plan, though she was dreading the water. She shifted down to glabro and after taking a deep breath and a quick prayer to stag, she carefully dove into the pool with the others, and the light followed her into the chilled depths.
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Post by Shehrazad on Nov 17, 2008 11:26:37 GMT 1
Max had been gone for a good ten minutes, giving both Adiyah and Yvonne time to dry a little. So when they jumped back into the icy water, the shock almost stopped their hearts for a few seconds. Max dove under, and guided by Adiyah's light only had little trouble finding the passage again. He swam first, leading the way, and Adiyah and Yvonne followed. Yvonne, slowed down considerably to go at Adiyah's pace, but years of training had prepared her to go without breath for much longer, and so she was patient. Adiyah, however, was not a practised swimmer, and halfway through the passageway, she started to run out of breath. Max urged them to go on, as turning back now would be pointless. Adiyah continued to swim at her friends' encouragements, but they couldn't have known how badly she needed air. Little by little, her mind got foggier, her movements slower, and swimming became increasingly difficult, until she felt she was navigating through a pot of molasses rather than water. The dimming light of the fae was another indication that she was slipping, and Yvonne noticed it as things got dark very quickly. The nagging doubt that this mission brought someone's death was starting to prove true, and Adiyah was now sure it was hers. She didn't even realise that the passage was getting wider. She couldn't move her arms anymore. And just as the little light went out completely, she felt a hand close around her wrist and pull her upwards. The first breath of air was definitely the sweetest breath Adiyah had taken in her life. It filled her lungs and unclouded her mind, and she could finally make out who it was that pulled her up. She coughed and gasped for more braeth as Yvonne pulled her out of the water, helped by Max. It was a while before she felt she could move again.
Ok damage in lethal: Adiyah: 6, will take a few minutes to recover. Max: 2, should be ok by the time Adiyah is out of the water.
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