⇨ HELL

[ringleaders]

Who: Vampire prisoners and rescue squad.
When: Evening Day 67 - Day 68
Where: Vampire Hell
What: The rescuers go to hell. Top levels are in approximate chronological order.
Warnings: Violence, torture, tryhard demons who aren't very creative.

RESCUE MISSION: HELL↴ The air smolders as you travel through the star-shaped portal the Ringmaster has opened - the gateway to the hell dimension that has taken so many if you. Ahead, you can see the grand entrance to Morningstar's fortress, a single point of civilization in the center of a barren, lava drenched hellscape. Of course, you won't be entering from the front. That would be stupid. The Ringmaster's plan is simply in explanation but far more difficult in execution. Her instructions are that she will attack the fortress directly, and that the rescue team is to enter inconspicuously and rescue who they can while she engages Morningstar. She has provided you with silver weapons - daggers, swords, and some projectiles - which you may or may not choose to use. Shedding a trail of orange and green embers, the Ringmaster will sprout her dark, feathery wings and take to the air, leaving the rescuers to contemplate their instructions now that they've arrived. The fortress is large, and as such there are many potential side entrances to find. It will take some doing, but the group will be able to accomplish it. Meanwhile, many of the vampires within will be distracted by the Ringmaster's now very audible arrival, and don't seem to be expecting a secondary attack. The initiative is yours, and the captives are there to be found... but will you succeed? ► GATEKEEPING: For those who don't trust their mettle enough to travel all the way to hell, there is an important job to be done back at the carnival. The Ringmaster's obsidian daggers have opened a portal there, but while the rescuers enter that portal must be protected - both to keep it from collapsing and stranding everyone there, and to prevent anything demonic from escaping onto the carnival grounds and causing havoc. If you need to take it easy but still want to help, this is a good place to be. It's also a good place for nervous hand-wringing about whether any of your friends will make it back alive. ► PLAYPEN: The cavernous pits where the neonate vampires are dumped, in order to engage in a survival of the fittest style battle royale where only the strongest and most cunning will emerge. Those that were turned during the masquerade were dropped down here a couple days ago, and so someone needs to go collect them. Try not to get eaten by the hordes of other starving neonate vampires down there while you're at it. Maybe you could even try to save some of them, if any seem worth redemption. ► CAPTIVES: While the supervisors were initially all caged together in large cell surrounded with a moat of lava, it seems that most of them have now been moved elsewhere. Where they have ended up is a puzzle you'll have to solve quickly - there are plenty of vampire sentries about to try to get in your way, and some of the prisoners may already be significantly worse for wear. If anyone has any powers that help them find people, this would be the time to use them. ► MINIBOSSES: Unfortunately, the enemies here aren't only capable of damaging the body, but the mind, too. In these particular cases, that corruption of the mind has been used pointedly to Morningstar's advantage - two of the carnival's most dangerous members have now been turned against it. If you want to get out of here alive, you'll have to go through them. If you're really lucky, you'll get them out alive, too. ► BOSS FIGHT: Before the rescuers and the rescued can escape, Lord Morningstar will arrive to corner them, with an entourage of elders. Let's hope that she gloats long enough for something to turn the tables.

Comments

[starseedling]

"Um!" Steven takes a quick step forward, trying to think. He might have just the thing... he can get it to work. "I... I might have something. Just... let me..."

Steven raises his hands, and tries to form a bubble around the cloud of her body - except, it turns out to be a strain to try to make it big enough to encompass her whole self. The bubble stutters in its form, and the strain on Steven is obvious.

"I can't... I can't reach all of her! Can you... Zecora, please pull yourself together!"

[zebrarhyme_everytime]

Zecora tried.

The cloud that was the zebra healer visibly condensed, down into a smoky equine shape that looked much like the deepest and darkest of thunderclouds, before it slowly began to grow stripes. This was taking a great deal of time, though, and faint noises outside hinted that they might not be alone too much longer -- did Steven want to bubble her in that smaller form, now? Compressing her would be easy...

[starseedling]

He can see and sense her attempt at cooperation and, thankfully, it's enough. As she makes her cloud smaller, he manages to stretch his containment bubble large enough to encapsulate all of it, without risking cutting any parts of he cloud off. Once the bubble is sealed, he'll reduce it down to a more manageable size.

In the end, he's left with a much smaller bubble, filled with zebra cloud. It's sort of odd, but it's good enough for now!

"Phew," Steven says, wiping away from sweat. He's getting really tired. At least when she is clouds, though, nobody has to deal with the blood holes in her mouth. "Thanks, Zecora. I'll let you out as soon as it's safe."

[whattaprick]

It's a far neater and kinder solution than what Lambert could have offered, which is for the best -- particularly as his ears pick up on the sound of noise in the corridor.

"Good work," he offers, but that's all. Lambert's not good at dealing with kids even under regular circumstances. Still, Steven stepped up when there was a chance to-- he'll remember that.

For now, the witcher steps ahead towards the door, drawing his sword again and looking over at Scout and Steven. "Let's get out of here. Stay close."

[stillwinningthehardway]

Well, all right. People here have some very strange abilities. She wants to ask questions, but this is so clearly a bad time.

Scout takes her lightsaber in hand, unlit for now. She wants to fight, she's ashamed to realize; fighting is almost never the clear, clean thing she wants it to be, with good obvious courses of action, but it's better than waiting. "I'm with you. Steven, you can move her right?"

[starseedling]

Steven nods - as he moves his hands, the bubble will float along with them, supported a few inches into the air. From the confidence in his movements, he's obviously used it like this before. He rubs the last of the tears from his eyes, and raises his shield again, ready to go.

If only he could just send the bubble back home like he can on earth. He's not sure how that would work, outside of the carnival, and he can't afford to risk it.

"I've got her!" he assures them, and moves to follow Lambert, as ordered.