FINAL INVESTIGATION

[strangerpeople]

FINAL INVESTIGATION


[Fifteen X-Passes. Six weeks. Freedom at last.



But it's not the end. Of course it's not. There are questions to answer, and souls to save. And now that the group is outside, they can see where they are.

They are inside a massive cavern, illuminated in an eerie green light, standing on a stone path. On one side is the ship-or rather, a massive, ship-shaped tangle of bloody branches, the trunk-like roots snaking out and into the river its buoyed on, as well as into the ceiling of stalactites. Said river is wine dark, but it's clearly not water. No-it is blood.

And on the other side of their little pathway? A root-encrusted palace. It sits over a labyrinthine city, bathed in emerald, and all is eerily silent save for some sounds coming from within the castle. It's clear the infestation somehow started here. And it is here that answers are likely to be found.

The doors are right in front of the group-and they are already open, covered in branches. From the outside, it seems little more than a ruin. Once everyone goes in, though?




It's even worse. The tree has taken over. Whatever lives here is no longer in charge. There's no easy way to disentangle the Qilphoth from this place. But there is life here, somehow. You can see figures entangled within the roots as you explore. And-they are still, somehow, alive. More than alive. They are beings that bleed ichor instead of blood-beings of incredible divinity and power. They are gods. And they are hostage to the tree, forever and ever, trapped in induced ennui, unless something is done.


So welcome, Strangers, to the House of Hades.]







[Once you enter, the investigation shall begin.


Good luck.]



((OoC: And here are team assignments!))

Comments

[hatesdeerstalkers]

.....Yes. As the name of the dog is Cerebrus.

[THE DEVS OF YOUR GAME, MAN.]

[somuchshipping]

[Hermes attempts as carefully as he can to reach through two roots to scritch Cerberus on the chin.]

That's kiiiiinda weird, but I think I can see the appeal in a three-headed version of them. Still, do they unfuse whenever they all want to go do their own thing?

[hatesdeerstalkers]

Er, no, not normally. Cerebrus is, traditionally, always like that.

[Which is kinda awful for the puppos, but it is what it is.]

[superstylishsquid]

Doesn't look quite like the Cerberus I know, but...different underworld, I guess. Any Cerberus from my Hell would be yelling right about now.

And the tree just backhanded Roland both times he used holy water. I don't think it's enough of a threat to provoke a serious attack.

[hatesdeerstalkers]

Of course, given you seem to be considering it as a Species and not a single Divine Beast.

[He sighs.]

I was more worried about you, you idiotic devil. You'd have the equivalent of a severe burn if it'd spilled on you, would you not?

[superstylishsquid]

Depends on how much of it and how concentrated the spill, but...yeah, it's a bit like acid to devils.

But seriously, I'm not some low-tier devil that can be wiped out with a single splash. Stronger devils have more tolerance to it.

[somuchshipping]

Wait... We're devil arms. Would it affect all of us?

[superstylishsquid]

I don't think so. You're all still mostly mortal, and Roland's been able to wear his rosary without a problem.