Lunar Interlude 4, Part 2

[balancemod]

Now is the winter of our discount tent. NAVIGATION 1. THE TOMB OF HORRORS "The Tomb of... Horrors?" "Yes. It's a tomb. And it's filled with horrors. Lucas, were you paying attention at all during the staff meeting yesterday afternoon?" "Yes, but... that doesn't... sound very safe, Lucretia." "The Space Mittens. The Architect's Pen. The Yarn of Earth's Binding. They've already faced way worse than what's down there, Lucas, and it's mostly harmless. Just a few exercises to get them closer to each other. Learn to work as a team. Build rapport. Support the new Reclaimers. It'll be safe. Edhyln's been working on it for weeks." "Edhyln?" "Yes, our Bureau Beholder Best Buddy. He actually likes to be called BB, for short." "Our... WHAT?" A. COME ONE, COME ALL Lucretia stands in front of the Tomb of Horrors. Several Reclaimers have done their best to help clear the path from the main campground straight to the mouth of the cave. She stands in front of it, explaining how this works. Essentially, you form a team- the makeup is completely up to you- and go through the tomb. It's meant to build character and bolster relationships between the Reclaimers. Mostly, it should be challenging, fun and edu-taining at the same time. You look up at a pretty dingy sign that's been painted onto wood, hanging above the portcullis that keeps entrants out. It reads, "Enter Colleagues, Exit Best Friends." Lucretia states that the tomb can only hold one team at a time, and it takes a little bit of effort to set it up in between runs. Fear not! You'll all have your chance to enter. Lucas has created some really cool technology to live stream your encounter onto these floating orbs that can be viewed from the campgrounds. They connect to your bracer, too. You can provide live commentary if you'd like; it'll appear inside the tomb itself as floating digital chat for everyone to see. Lucretia's not incredibly happy about this new invention and worries that it'll hamper the experience a little bit. You, on the other hand, are almost duty bound to make her regret her decision to allow it. Before you enter the Tomb of Horrors, a wooden box is neatly organized for your team. The lid is left open, and you're instructed to leave all your magical items behind. The focus is teamwork, after all- not cheesing it with OP artifacts. OOC Note: Feel free to set up a separate top level for interactions from other Reclaimers who might be watching your trial. The top 3 streamers who receive the most comments will receive a Fantasy Gachapon token each! We will stop tallying comments on May 31st, at 11PM EST B. THE FLOOR IS MADE OF LAVA (Note: Image over there not an accurate representation of this trial; I just thought it looked super neat.) Room 1 of the Tomb of Horrors is carpeted in a red, soft texture. There's a leader board that appears on the other side of the room that states: "THE FLOOR IS LAVA," and the second you and your team enter, pixelated faces of your countenance will appear below the warning, and a tally of points will begin. You'll notice that once you've entered, the portcullis drops and you're essentially forced to undergo the trials within until you've reached the final room. About 6 inches off the ground is a series of five 6½ foot long planks of wood, the ends of which are resting on small, circular metal pegs built into the ground. They make a zigzag pattern over a span of 30 feet, and you notice that below this series of planks, or essentially this low ropes course, is that soft, plush red carpet. This seems really, really easy. What gives? Lucretia's designed way trickier Tests of Initiation than this. However, if you... for any reason, touch the red carpet even once, the screen on the other end of the room will flash and tally a point deduction from your team. You'll earn one TEAMWORK PENALTY (TP). This seems silly. When everyone is across, you'll hear a noise over the loudspeaker remark: "we all walk the same path in life, and it's easier with help from your friends!" C. THE WOODEN WALL Room 2 contains the second trial: a giant, 15 foot, 7 feet wide, several feet deep wall made of wood. There's no way around it, as it seems to vivisect the entire room. It also doesn't come with rope, anything to help you climb over it, and honestly? It's a little on the slippery side. Getting above and beyond it is your challenge. If someone falls down from the wall, you'll earn one TP for your team. At the end of the trial, you'll hear a similar voice from a loudspeaker: "sometimes life throws obstacles at you, and it's easier to get over them with your friends!" D. THE TOTEM OF CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM The third room of the Camp Balance teamwork exercise leads way into a circular room with a small metal statue on a wooden pedestal. The statue depicts cartoonish representations of your party makeup, and when turned over, you see the familiar logo of Fantasy Costco written smack dab on the bottom of them. The far side of the trial reads: "THIS IS THE TOTEM OF CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM." In order to pass, you must give at least one piece of helpful criticism to your teammate. You'll take turns, and if the criticism comes from a place of pure personal truth, it'll light up gold. If it comes out of mockery, disdain, or condescension, it'll glow red hot- to the point of burning your hand. You'll also earn one TP for that one. Once all four totems are lit, the exit becomes apparent. "Good advice makes for good friends!" E. THE ARENA You step forward into the next room, and it looks very similar to the arena back on base... only it's been retrofitted to look like a McDonald's ball pit instead. You wade forward, as someone stands in the middle, a sheet over their face to make them appear to be a spoopy ghost. Oh no! It can only be vanquished by true teamwork! What will you do? The figure flings a ball at you, and depending on the color, you feel a light effect that resonates with a similarly colored element: ○ Red for fire ○ Blue for ice ○ Yellow for lightning ○ Green for wind It's not hard to take down at all. Have a little fun with it, why don't you? Or don't. The person under the sheet is getting a little ticked off with how you're not taking this trial seriously. If your team managed to score even one TP, he'll stop midway through the fight and rip the sheet off. You know those weird feelings you've been having at night while wandering around the campsite? That's because BB, the Buddy Beholder, has been around, watching all of you and trying to have a good time. He's not a very good beholder... in that, he's not very great at being a beholder. His eyestalks emit a kind of nauseating feeling that can cause confusion, blindness, paralysis- the same things you experienced back at the cabins. One of two things happen, here: "You're not taking this seriously! You were supposed to walk out of this becoming better friends. I think I know just the thing to help you become closer." (You've scored at least one TP) "Congratulations! You've earned the grand prize!" (A treasure chest drops from the ceiling, and when opened, shows a banner with the word "FRIENDSHIP!" printed onto it. This, too, has a Fantasy Costco logo on the bottom right of the flag.) Either way, the ground below you begins to tremble, as it seems all the balls in the ball pit start to suck through a vortex and the floor gives way. You're about to experience the real Tomb of Horrors. 2. YOU'VE REACHED.... THE END? For those of you who clearly did not take BB's cooperative training program seriously, he is extremely insulted!! Some of these tasks were meant to be interpreted more metaphorically, something to consider while forging stronger bonds with your colleagues, not just stomped through or made fun of. This is IMPORTANT. This is FRIENDSHIP. (Note: He is not mad at all of you sweet Reclaimers who enthusiastically tried your best at his workshop. But this is a team-building exercise, which means you all MUST do everything as a team). And clearly, as a team with the majority sorted into the fighting-based paths, the only thing you lot will respond to is actual danger. F. COME ONE, COME ALL... AGAIN? The little kid gloves are off — or, at least, they're off as far as a kind of ineffective beholder is concerned. The moment you regain your bearings deep down in the Tomb of Horrors, you'll find yourself in a dimly lit, dank corridor. The air is thick and unpleasant to breathe, like it reeks of magical energy, like maybe this tomb actually belongs to someone more sinister than a kind of goofy eyeball monster (Let's be clear about something, though: Goofy eyeball monsters are usually a lot more dangerous than BB is). You'll have to make your way to the end of the corridor, fumbling your way through the dark as the ground slants downward, deeper into the tomb — because any path action you have that might conjure light curiously doesn't seem to work in this area. It'd probably be best if you all held hands or found another way to safely navigate the corridor. Or not — because at some point, one or more of you will misstep, or suddenly, it will become apparent that the corridor, twisting far above the bottom of the tomb below, doesn't actually have any walls. And just like that, one or more of you will suddenly be gone. G. BIG BASS FISHIN' That's how easy it is to die and throw an entire mission off balance, isn't it? Maybe that's the actual message that little exercise was meant to convey: that you must be willing to keep moving forward even when your teammates have fallen. But luckily, much like the Bureau has plenty of diamonds on hand for Revivify, that fall wasn't fatal. It was pretty painful, though. Also, you're soaking wet, because you fell in a lake. It's cold, expansive, dark as all get-out down there and a little bit salty. In any case, those who slipped to their Tomb of Horrors death and those who managed to squeak down the corridor themselves will be able to reconvene at said lake, their lightbearing spells intact again, and have a rest at series of stones set up as a seating arrangement. There's even some fishing gear there, since your next trial does involve some BIG BASS FISHIN'. After a little while of reeling back and reeling in some ... honestly pretty boring baby bass that wouldn't even make it to the pail for measuring, something appears to emerge from deep within the middle of the lake. Something ... about human-sized, actually. Something kind of pissed. And it is intensely focused on you. That sure as hell is a Skum: A dangerous aquatic monster that specializes in biting and raking with any number of sharp appendages to eviscerate its foes. For this encounter, though, the Skum is going to pick only one target to attack, and will continue doing so. Your job here? Work together to protect the person who was unlucky enough to be spotted first. H. FREAKY FRIDAY Perhaps the most egregious of exercises puts you in a plain stone room, split into four stone hallways, effectively separating you from the rest of your team. It seems innocent enough when you pass through the entrance to your hallway. At the end is a door, with a speaker — approach it, and a pleasant-sounding voice will ask the following question: What is it that you value most? Maybe that question sounds familiar. But if you haven't noticed already, it'll suddenly become apparent when you try to answer: You are not currently in your own body — it seems you've swapped bodies with one of your teammates. Which means, of course, that your own, personal answer, the thing that you value most, isn't going to cut it. You might want to break out your bracer for this one and message your other teammates. Because this exercise is kind of a really weird way of forcing you to learn more about each other. I. BB The final doors swing open, and as you pass through to an empty room, the final area before the exit, you'll feel something of a snap, as you're returned to your body. That's not disorienting. Neither is coming face-to-face with the mastermind behind the very clearly aptly named Tomb of Horrors himself — BB, a beholder, an enormous floating eyeball sporting even more eyeballs, because all the better to see you, and all the exercises he built to encourage cooperation, with, of course. And look at how or mildly surprised/vaguely pleased with himself all those eyeballs are at your success. "You made it! Oh cripes, I'm not supposed to be in this room right now?? So ... that's pretty much ... it? I've got a comment box over by the door if you want to leave some feedback — I don't claim to be a dungeon master or anything, but I thought some of these exercises were pretty all right, and. "............ "Oh, what am I saying. You're going to want to fight, aren't you?" You have a couple of options here: ○ Yeah, you can fight BB if you want! Just a word of warning, though: Even though he is kind of terrible at being a beholder, subverting the usual alignment, uh. beholden. To beholders. He is still a beholder. When he decides to fight, he can be incredibly dangerous. You'll want to mind the lasers and the biting, but where BB shines in particular is his wide arsenal of status effect spells. He is the one responsible for all the weird effects happening overnight at the camp — and if you can think of a weird effect, any at all, he's likely got a spell for it. Don't kill him, though! He's got more Reclaimers who need to make their way through the tomb. Actually, he'll probably make a hasty, floating exit if you harm him too much. ○ You can leave a comment in the comment box. Positive or negative, you'll be receiving a reply in the form of a dramatic retelling of your adventure through the Tomb of Horrors in a large and very loopy script. It's unclear how exactly BB wrote it. Regardless, when you do leave the Tomb of Horrors, you'll find a box with a tag addressed to you on a table by the doorway. Inside is about 300 GP — plenty enough to buy yourself a new weapon or way too many snacks from Fantasy Costco — and a note. "This all seemed awfully silly, didn't it? But I do hope that you were able to learn a little bit about each other today." 3. THE GREAT BONFIRE J. THE END OF CAMP BALANCE Now that we've sung camp songs, played potato sack races, enjoyed a month of relaxing with friends, and made some good (?) memories down in the Tomb of Horrors, it's time to wind down from the activities of Camp Balance. Lucretia calls everyone around the campfire the night before return- and it's meant to be a rather joyous occasion. Food of innumerable styles and quantities are laid out and kept fresh with a charming ward- burgers, fruits, veggie dip, a jello mold that no one will probably touch... you name it, it's there. Tonight's celebration is one to mark unification. She thanks everyone for everything they've done up to this point, and humbly asks that they continue to do the outright unbelievable things that they've accomplished since coming here. It marks a half way point for the war she's waging to rid the world of the Grand Relics, and more than that, it marks almost 6 months since some of you have come here. Through bonds, new and old, and through hardships shared and vested similar passions and goals, you've made this journey possible. And she wants to reward that. There's music in the air as Johann plucks some spiriting songs on his violin. Spears for s'mores run iron hot in the huge bonfire centered around the midpoint of Camp Balance. It's a calm last farewell to the month you've had here- enjoy it in the hot springs. Go for a walk and take in the clean, crisp sea air that envelops every direction of the land. Swim in a nearby lake. Find some new friends, old friends, romance, good discussion. The world's your oyster. And as one last treat, Lucretia pulls out her staff, and stamps the floor. Into the sky shoot rockets as fireworks explode into blooms at the skyline. They'll make you feel somewhat nostalgic, and whether that's by the magical entrails they leave behind as they die out, or the warm feeling it brings in your chest to see them. Either way, it's a night to remember, for sure. K. AN OMINOUS VISION And just at the tail end of the celebration, as if bad luck waits for no one, there will be a deafening silence that pervades the entire camp. A gut feeling will fill your heart with dread, something that you recall, something that you're familiar with... but maybe can't place your finger on it. It seems as if the entire world comes to a still: no wind, no rustling of grass or sounds of crickets in the forest. It stops, and so do you. As you look up into the sky, where there should be a canopy of now-familiar stars... are eyes. Millions of them in varying sizes and widths. And they watch you, unblinking. The intensity in which you feel your very soul pervaded into is terrifying, and almost as quick as it started, it ends. Looks like we've been found, adventurers. The Hunger knows we're here. 4. OOC We hope you enjoyed this month's corporate retreat, and that you learned a lot about your fellow Reclaimers! You'll note there's no RNG thread this go-around. That's normal! We are working on your next mission, so we need a little bit more time to work on that over the next few weeks. Don't forget, there's a reward for the top level that gets the most amount of niconico video flyby's, in the tune of 1 gachapon token to the top three livestreamers. Also, please remember to turn in your activity for May — you have a little over a week left! As a reminder, you can turn in two bonus threads for two path actions this month. New players only need to check in, but you can also claim your small reward for the initiation thread as well as two bonus threads. blurb code by photosynthesis

Comments

[gambolshroud]

[He is so, so very lucky that she hadn't heard that particular tidbit— but it's a narrow miss, as almost immediately after, Sun will hear his own voice coming out of his Bureau bracer, though it's a little bit pitchier than normal and bordering on panicked.]

Sun, can you hear me?!

[His voice cracks. Blake is not handling this particularly gracefully, in fact.

She'd tried walking again, and it had been a mistake.]

[bromeo]

[okay, so this is just part of the test. that's fine. it means that whatever is happening here is reversible.

just give him a second or so more to get used to the fact that he's hearing out of a completely different set of ears than normally, and everything is so much louder and off center than he's usually used to.

Sun looks down at Blake's bracer- or, Sun in Blake's body, or SiBB for short.]

Loud and clear. Can you see anything where you are? Is there a flashlight on this thing?

[SiBB, on the other hand, has a tone that's at least one octave full lower in voice, and that surprises him too.]

Just take a deep breath, Blake. Admire the amazing abs you have right now if you need a distraction, we'll figure out how to undo this.

[gambolshroud]

[Blake in Sun's Body— BiSB for short— is having a more difficult time keeping her cool here, but the fact that Sun attempts to soothe her with the mention of his abs means she's suddenly too busy being embarrassed to panic. Had he meant to do that? Honestly, she's pretty sure it could go either way.]

Sun!

[She can feel her cheeks burning, but even so, she steals a glance downwards. It's not like she's never noticed them before, but— this is a completely different angle.

How did he even manage those in the first place?

She exhales slowly, trying to collect herself.]

It's a stone hallway. There's a door at the end of it, and a speaker, but nothing else. What do you see?

[bromeo]

[oh, completely intentional. look at these bad boys. mt. everest, mount fuji, the swiss alps, denali, the rocky mountains, and kilimanjaro. his six friends, all just residing on his torso in permanence.]

Hah! Making you yell at me is always the best.

[it's also... highly weird that he has boobs now. has this been mentioned already? it feels like it ought to be mentioned again. he should really pay attention to the other side of the hallway, though.

hands outward, SiBB is guiding himself along the wall to the other side. he sees... pretty much a mirrored version of what BiSB sees, which makes him think that this is part of the clue.]

Exact same thing!

What is it you value the most?

Uhhh...

Blake?

Are you hearing this too?

[gambolshroud]

[She can't help but roll her eyes.]

You must like it, considering how often you make it happen.

[Sometimes he does just step in it, she's pretty sure, but he's also an expert when it comes to provoking a reaction out of her. If nothing else, it's good at dispersing fear, tension— anything uncomfortable or undesirable, really, only to replace those feelings with embarrassment and mild panic.

Theirs is an interesting friendship.

She hears the question that follows twice over, both from her own speaker and a tinny echo of it from Sun's end over her bracer.

Hm.]

I'm hearing it.

[BiSB presses her lips together, thoughtful.]

Considering this whole thing is about team-building, I don't think it's actually asking us what we value most. Maybe we're supposed to prove how well we know our teammates?

[bromeo]

[if he had more time, he'd definitely bask in that afterthought for a moment. probably cross his arms and smile cheekily with a heavy intended "yeah," before moving on to their next big thing, but as it stands right now, he's stuck in an out of body experience and he kind of... really misses his tail. that thing has saved his ass more times than he can count, and suddenly loosing an appendage is really throwing him off balance.

he will never tell her about how he was inadvertently moving Blake's butt to move something there that doesn't exist. 1. embarrassing and 2. he doesn't think she'd be happy to know that.]

Your guess is as good as mine, but it seems to check out.

[the whole point of this was teambuilding, right? so it would totally check out if they had to learn something important about the other while going through the challenge.]

In that spirit, I think... just asking you would feel kind of cheap. Do you wanna try it legitimately first? We can always cheat later.

[BiSB can't see SiBB smile, but maybe it's there in his voice. this is also highly unfair, considering that his time in Menagerie has probably given him the answer. but what does she value most? let's see if he can get it right on the first try.]

I value being able to depend on myself without the help of others, but deep down I really want people to understand, love and value me as much as I secretly do them.

[arms crossed, he looks at the door.

did he guess right on the first try?]

[gambolshroud]

[Please, Sun, never tell her about the things you have done with her butt.

There's a lengthy pause before she answers— he's right, just asking one another would be like cheating. It would defeat the purpose of the exercise, and unsatisfactory performance is presumably why they've found themselves dumped down here in the first place.

She sighs, folding Sun's arms across his chest.]

You're right. Let's try to figure it out on our own, first.

[She knows they've spent enough time together that if he doesn't know it, he's going to come damn close— for awhile, she would have sworn he knew her better than she knew herself, when she'd still been in the thick of figuring things out.

At his answer, she can't help but smile just the tiniest bit. Well, he's not wrong— and though she can't see the result, SiBB will see the door in front of him slide open.]

You really were paying attention. [As if there had been any doubt.] Did that work?

[bromeo]

[getting to know Blake from the time they first met to now has been a journey. he's seen inklings of self doubt, he's met her parents, he knows the situation she's been in and why she is the way she is. he's not setting out to change any of that, because honestly? she pretty much hangs the moon for this brightly dispositioned faunus over here. but he does want her to know that she can always rely on him to be there for her. that all of her friends can be. he only guesses right on the first try because it's something he's already said to her- sure, in a little bit of a different way, but the honesty and the admiration is always there. she's so thoroughly kick ass that he can't not want to be constantly rooting for all her successes.

and this trial? yeah, they'll beat it. it's coming up in the green at the moment as there's a loud whooshing of sound as the door slides open. Sun gives a celebratory shout to the world, if that was any indication that he had won- Blake can probably hear it by now.]

Freedom never tasted so good!

[he's smiling, and now he can see the corridor in front of him and how this trap was set up. yeah, definitely makes sense now.]

Your turn, Blake. Or should I say.... Sun? Sunblake. Whatever! You know what to do, right?

[gambolshroud]

[She bites back a smile as he celebrates his victory— that answers that, and the reaction is so very Sun that she can't help but be endeared by it. She's long since given up trying to pretend she doesn't find him charming in his way, though it had taken him some time to wear her down— but they had been friends from the start. Their time in Menagerie, along with who and what they were, meant that Sun would always get her in a way that her other friends couldn't, no matter how hard they tried. It made their bond singular.

She sighs, resisting the urge to laugh at his verbal fumble.]

Blake. I'm still me.

[Even if the body isn't her own. That's still weird, but if Sun had triumphed, then so would she.

She clears her throat, looking up towards the speaker as though it has a gaze she can meet while giving her answer. It doesn't, but it feels right.]

I value my friends more than anything. No matter how hard they try to push me away, I'll never abandon them, because our friends— they're the family we choose for ourselves. Even if they forget themselves, I'll be there to help them find their way again, because I believe we're stronger together.

[She pauses.

Was that... right? She hopes she can guess his on the first try the way he had guessed hers, but even if she hasn't... those are the qualities that have stood out most to her. Without Sun and his tireless persistence and loyalty, she wouldn't even be here right now.]