Scene #5992: DUNGEON: Sei's Tomb

Owner	Pose
Asellus	The Region of Shrike is home to two sets of ruins. Tombs for ancient kings. After perusing a book store in the middle of town, Asellus came across a tourist brochure concerning them, as well as a book of legends that hinted at some great treasure lurking in Sei's Tomb, to the north-east. It has been so long that it's unlikely anything of true value is left, but in places of ruin, monsters tend to gather. It can't hurt to do some training if Asellus intends to protect White Rose, right? Especially in light of the fact that Orlouge is apparently sending strange Mystics after them to take White Rose back. 'Sages' who are willing to kill anyone who try to stop them. So, after a few days of 'down time' after that encounter, perhaps meeting up with Theurgus during that time, she has invited her friends to come with her for support and companionship, to plumb the depths of Sei's Tomb. Perhaps they can all get stronger together. It's not an extremely long walk from the civilized portions of Shrike to the ruins of the tomb at the base of a cliff, grown over with trees and bushes, and on the other side of a stream. But it's sufficient that by the time they step through the stone-lined opening and into a den of dust, dampness, and death-scent, they should be warmed up for what comes next.
Josuke Higashikata	Josuke is of course going to help out. He's kind of in this as long as Asellus will have him. That's just the kind of person he is; he considered Asellus a friend, and he doesn't want to abandon her. Besides that, having thought her dead that one time, he really doesn't want to feel that he's let her down again. Though he's got some breathing protection as he shows up -- just a good quality filtration mask, from the Speedwagon Foundation. It's white, and the round filter casings at the front bear the SPW logo on them -- the wooden wagon wheel. He isn't wearing it just yet, but he's holding onto it. If the dust is particularly bad, he'll put it on, even if it clashes with his dark blue jacket and pants. "Probably not surprising that it smells like something DIED in here," he notes. In fact, it probably smells like something is STILL dying in there. Hence the filter mask!
Theurgus	Theurgus is here with Asellus and White Rose, she chats idly about the sights she's seen in her travels. She seems to be rather distracted, mostly talking to herself, expounding greatly. Meanwhile, a younger looking girl trails along behind a bit, shuffling a deck of cards and looking pensive. The cards crackle with magic, each one describing a differnt element with an esoteric symbol.
Asellus	Asellus recently discovered that she has about 12 years of missing time to catch up on, so she listens to Theurgus's tales as much from a need to find out what she doesn't know as out of curiosity. White Rose, having spent most of her life as a Mystic inside a box or doing whatever Orlouge wished to 'use' her for, is likewise paying attention. She makes sure to keep an eye on the fifth member of their party, the new girl she isn't sure of the name of, and leaves blazing a trail through these ancient ruins to those more suited to it. "Areas steeped in death tend to attract creatures of the same." White Rose cautions. Almost as though she had made it so by speaking it, the sound of shuffling footsteps ahead in the darkness indicates they are not alone. Down some steps to a corridor that terminates at a dead end to the left and continues down to a corner at the group's right, there's something that looks like a fairy fluttering in the air. When it spots them, it attacks! In the process, it morphs into something other, a towering red-skinned woman in rather revealing valkyrie armor. She is flanked by an orange mini-dragon that hovers at her side, a green-skinned and red-haired Banshee in a ragged gown, what looks to be some sort of... Dog-person in a pope or head-priest-like outfit, and finally a harpy-like being with sword, shield, and helmet, flapping its huge wings to stay in the air. It's somewhat off-putting to get attcaked right off the bat, but Asellus mutters, "Well, this is what we came for." She charges into battle, swinging her sword twice and releasing a pair of wind blades at the harpy to keep it from doing any big multi-target attacks.
Josuke Higashikata	Josuke is loathe to interrupt Theurgus, to be honest. Perhaps that's the reason, that he knows that Asellus and White Rose have a lot to catch up on, for various reasons. Or maybe he just wants to let the girls talk in peace! That's something any man learns early -- don't interrupt girls when they're talking! So instead he looks to Theurgus's companion. And he blinks a little at the card-shuffling companion of Theurgus. Not in confusion. He's actually really impressed with it! Sleight of hand is always really cool, particularly when there isn't any real magic behind it. Though the crackling does give away the presence of at least a LITTLE magic, it's still awesome to watch! White Rose's words of creature of death here get a nod. "That's why I'm glad I'm here," he notes. "I actually thought the Mystics were vampires... so I asked an ancestor of mine to teach me a technique he used against vampires. I'm a little sad it didn't work on the Mystics -- it's like the whole bunch of them are cheating, getting all the benefits of being a vampire with none of the weaknesses that come with it!" Pause. "Present company excluded of course," he adds, meaning White Rose; she's a decent sort so far! But of course, just because it doesn't work on the Mystics so well doesn't mean it's completely useless. Like with this. That Banshee might be a good target. They're undead, right -- spirits of death whose scream can kill? As Asellus is getting in close confines, Josuke is staying back for the moment. He empties all the air from his lungs, before refilling them quickly, sucking in air with a 'koooooh!' sound. Golden energy seems to crackle around him, as his Stand looms up over him half-way. He passes the Stand a handful of wooden pellets, and then thrusts his arm out towards the Banshee. But it's nothing from his hand that flies her way. No, it's the now Hamon-charged wooden pellets he'd handed Crazy Diamond a moment ago.
Theurgus	Theurgus pauses at the shuffling sound, her voice falling silent as she wordlessly summons two things from inventory. Her staff in her left hand, and a silvery spike in her right. "Arcana. Go time." she says, not looking at the girl as she rams the spike into the ground at her feet. Light engulfs her as the enemy party assembles from the darkness, producing from within the, by now familiar, form of Diamond Soul. Her processors gleam green in the darkness. Her staff twirls as she follows Asellus' attack up with whorls of cutting winds, aiming for the dog-person that looks suspiciously like a healer. Arcana, the strange girl, nods wordlessly, putting the cards back in a holder on her belt and drawing her sword from the sheath next to it. When she speaks, her voice is deep and detached. "Access." Mirroring Theurgus' transformation, a pillar of light engulfs the girl then fades, revealing a woman with metallic hair that shifts hues between all colours, and strange irises that appear to shimmer and ripple with colours, like an oil slick on water. Her processors are shiny, and chrome, little gems glowing orange-yellow in the darkness. She follows up Josuke's attack, surging forwards with an upward slash, a card popping out of the holder, lofting in the air in the path of the blade's strike, and imparting a flaming aura on the blade as it's sliced in two. Arcana, or Diamond Sister now, is aiming for the Valkyrie, sensing a danger to the non=frontliners in the group.
Asellus	Just as it was in the basement of the Lord's Manor, the Banshee is weak to Josuke's hamon, taking extra damage from it and being defeated by the barrage of wooden pellets charged with life energy and golden radiance. The other enemies don't seem to be undead, unfortunately, but eliminating the one capable of wide-range supernatural scream attacks is still critical to surviving the battle. Too many enemies in Region Space are capable of devastating area and fully-party-wipe attacks, the same as the heroes are. The harpy is eliminated thanks to similar foresight on Asellus's part, only managing to get off a blade strike against Josuke before the Swallow Swing attack causes it to dissolve and vanish. The Mini Dragon surges forth and chomps down on Asellus with oversized jaws for its diminutive snout, before retreating to its own team so as not to be isolated in combat. But White Rose soon calls down a shaft of sun light to speed-heat and sear the flesh of the Mini Dragon, eliminating it from the enemy line-up. Theurgus takes out the Wonder Dog before it can do anything, and that leaves just the 20 feet tall valkyrie, who endures the attack from Arcana or 'Diamond Sister' now, though seems to take a large degree of damage. She retaliates with the very attack that Asellus was trying to prevent from the Harpy, a wall of wind forming around the giantess, spiralling upwards at high speed, and then getting flung out in the form of potent wind blades at each party member! It sucks when the enemy uses some of the best moves the PCs have, like Gale Slash! The amount of damage it deals is a bit beyond Asellus's maximum HP, accounting for the damage she has already taken, leaving her and White Rose both K.O.ed for the moment. Healing will be needed to get them back on their feet if they're going to contribute further in this battle.
Josuke Higashikata	Being concerned with the Banshee, the harpy's blade strike is true... though the Stand still takes the brunt of it. Doesn't mean Josuke isn't hurt too, just that he's not immedately sliced in half. He grunts as a slice opens up on his chest where the strike hit Crazy Diamond. But the harpy's down, so there's that. Of course, THAT doesn't mean they're out of the woods yet. Josuke manifests Crazy Diamond before him to try to intercept the valkyrie's Gale Slash with crossed arms. He'll succeed... but like the harpy's attack, Josuke's still taking damage from it. In fact, he takes enough damage that both he and the Stand go flying! He gives a yelp of pain and surprise, before falling onto the ground and skidding back. More blood starts to stain the inside of his jacket, and on the inside of his sleeves, since the brunt of the attack landed on Crazy Diamond's arm. And Josuke takes the damage that Crazy Diamond does. "Nnng... ow..." Josuke groans, shifting to get his bearings again. Once he realizes what's happened, he'll head for White Rose and Asellus, and try to shield them from any further attacks from the valkyrie. Of course, he's having to leave his back open to attacks, since he's trying to heal Asellus and White Rose! Not with his Stand, no. With his Hamon.
Theurgus	Diamond Soul smirks. "Wind attacks? You vastly underestimate me!" she taunts the Valkyrie, erecting a shimmering barrier that absorbs a good brunt of the incoming damage, her Processors flaring their green gems to reinforce the barrier. The crystals crack and sputter afterwards, but retain some of their protective properties, even if overwhelmed by the powerful magics. "Golden caged radiance. Effervestent divinity of the Grand Spark. Heed thine name and come forth, Rend upon this corrupted vessel a measure of thine fury, smite upon them so thy might shall be known. Impedeus Acheictus!" As White Rose called sunlight into this place, now the Drive Core Controller calls a bolt of lightning, aiming it solely at the Valkyrie with all the intensity a lance of pure plasma can bring. Diamond Sister, meanwhile, is right in the Valkyire's grill when she uses Gale Slash. She erects her own barrier, the blue hexagonal plates forming, then instantly shredding and shattering into nothing on impact, barely blunting the strike at all. Her Processors flare, and the gemstones shatter, exploding in their mountings. The sword-using DCC slams back into a wall from the impact, grunting in pain as her defenses fail. Arcana isn't out of the fight yet though. They build them tough in The System, it seems. She sees Asellus and White Rose go down, and Josuke going to help them, and like any good Knight, interposes herself between the Valkyire and her allies. Sword in hand, she bellows a battlecry, and uses three cards, combining elements into a Light/Flame/Wind combination within her sword-blade, and launches a beam of this mix in time with Theurgus' bolt, to make sure the monster goes down. "Traigeo Refine(gris)]"
Asellus	Josuke manages to get the Mystic and Half-Mystic back on their feet with his healing, enabling them to benefit from the resulting defeat of the Valkyrie when Diamond Soul and Diamond Sister team up to perform a Combo Attack, with Lightning, Flame, Wind, and Light. This seems to be enough to destroy the giantess, allowing her energies to revive and refresh everyone, and to be absorbed by Asellus and White Rose so that they actually gain something from this other than a reminder of how low their HP maximums are right now. "I'm still... Not strong enough." Asellus says frustratedly in the aftermath of battle. White Rose puts a hand on the green-haired girl's shoulder sympathetically. "It will come in time. Perhaps we should retreat for today, and rest." Asellus shakes her head. "I can push a little further. Being taken down right at the entrance is too much to back down from." She then moves ahead, deeper into the tomb, one hand to the wall to help navigate in the gloom. White Rose looks worried but follows along after, turning to nod her thanks to Josuke, Theurgus, and Arcana. The next room is a simple chamber with what seems to be three pedestals situated around the room, and a marble slab in the middle. No monsters, at least. The next room is much larger, with doors leading in different directions, and apparently strange glows of different colors coming from each exit, as well as some passage way entrances that are simply dark. Asellus, walking ahead determinedly, falters here. She chews her lip, unsure where to go.
Theurgus	Diamond Soul and Diamond Sister meet up, the elder smiling encouragingly at the younger. Theurgus nods back to White Rose, then picks up the Relay spike, carrying it along as the pair float a foot or so off the ground. Arcana's Processors still look worse for wear, the energies that rejuvinate probably not working so well on the outsider, but she seems strong enough still. When the group enter the large room with the many openings, the two Drive Core Controllers pause and weigh up the options. "Perhaps a choice baed upon your strengths... or weaknesses." suggests Theurgus, tapping her chin thoughtfully as she dismisses her Staff for the time being.
Josuke Higashikata	Josuke breathes a sigh of relief when he realizes Asellus and White Rose are back on their feet. And they're awake again just in time for the valkyrie's defeat, too! "<Great> shot!" he offers to Arcana and Theurgus. Now, he's a little concerned about Asellus and White Rose, but if they want to go one, he's willing to go too. Sadly he doesn't have much in the way of protect-type abilities, otherwise he'd be of more help in keeping them from getting taken down. But he nods. "I'll help however I can," he promises. The next room gets a blink, and he pouts thoughtfully at everything. "Pedestals? Maybe there's something we're supposed to put on them?" A pause, and he looks around. "Maybe whatever that is that's glowing is what we're supposed to put in here?" he suggests.
Asellus	Asellus scowls around this room with all the exits. The pedestal from they just left might have some secret hidden purpose, true. But if it's as Josuke suggests, and they need to put something on them... "In that book of legends, it mentioned a princess, I think. It said, 'first she took the jewel, then the sword, then stood before the mirror'. I think..." "Then perhaps we shall find those here somewhere. In fact, I believe I see something glittering just around the corner there." the poofy-hatted Mystic says as she points towards a corner in this same room. Asellus walks over there and sees a pair of large skeletons sitting in the corner, one on each side of the confined space, creating a sort of narrow 'path' between them. On the other side, there does indeed appear to be something glittering in an alcove in the wall. "Does that look like an obvious trap to anyone else?" Asellus asks. "If that is the mirror, then perhaps the jewel and the sword are elsewhere. If the princess approached them in a specific order..." Asellus backs away from the corner and looks around again. "Maybe the colors aren't about difficulty but somehow tied to the treasures? Or maybe that's just the color of the lighting and it has nothing to do with anything." She sighs and rubs her head. Compared to Facinaturu, this is far less complex, but because of her experiences so far she's even more wary about making the wrong choice. "Let's just go over there. It's not lit up at all. I'd rather assume the lights are a lure like that mirror for now, and confirm what an unlit passage looks like."
Josuke Higashikata	Josuke nods. "If the book mentioned an order, it might be important," he agrees. "It can't hurt -- might just be a little more backtracking. Better safe than splattered, right?" though he blinks as he realizes something. "...That's interesting though. The Three Royal Treasures of Japan are a jewel, a sword, and a mirror." He would know this, of course, because he's Japanese. Though as Asellus suggests they go there, Josuke offers, "My Stand can go first. <Crazy Diamond> is pretty tough -- he should be able to withstand most any kind of trap this place can dish out. Short of like... collapsing the whole place on us." He doesn't sound like he's just bragging, either. He sounds like he's serious.
Theurgus	Diamond Sister and Diamond Soul nod to Asellus, the pair of DCCs following along. Arcana takes point as the melee fighter, while Theurgus takes a middle position. If anything else has wind element attacks, she'd be a good choice to absorb the hits for the two mystics. The magician lims her staff head to light the way, the pair still transformed and floating instead of walking.
Asellus	They aren't attacked right away or anything after going through the passage. With Crazy Diamond, Diamond Soul, and Diamond Sister all providing protection and support, there is a diamond-hard defense from almost every direction for the squishier members of the team. Still, compared to the fragile girl Asellus was when everyone first met her, she is already much tougher than she once was. And White Rose, a princess best known not for her combat power but her kindness, is becoming formidable as well. As long as they can be kept on their feet and able to absorb energy from the monsters they fight, perhaps they'll be able to fight alongside their friends as equals in the near future. Still, they have a mission this time around. They can always come back to grind random encounters later. For now, they need to find these treasures. Speaking of which... "I've been meaning to ask, what's the Region called 'Japan' like?" Asellus asks of Josuke. If they have similar treasures, maybe there's some information they can use here. White Rose peers ahead with Diamond Soul's light-staff, and peeks around the corner at the intersection they come to. "I can hear the sound of monsters scurrying about to our right. South, I think. The passage to the north, our left, seems clear."
Theurgus	"If treasure is what we seek, then perhaps the monsters guard it. Alternatively, they are merely a distraction and a trapladened passage leads to the treasure we seek." suggests Theurgus to White Rose, while Arcana presses up against the wall to the south, peeking around it before tossing a small device down the hallway, which flares up into a bright light after it's rolled a few yards down. Maybe it'll illuminate the monsters without aggroing them.
Josuke Higashikata	The change in Asellus is noticeable, and Josuke has most definitely noticed it. He hasn't commented on it because he doesn't want to seem patronizing. But he's glad she seems to have gotten stronger. White Rose he doesn't know, he's just glad she seems to be able to support Asellus decently well. He looks up as Asellus asks the question. "Oh, you mean where I'm from? Uh..." He thinks a moment. "It's kind of like... I forget the name of the Region you'd know. Shrike? It's got technology, and cars, and all that. The Imperial Regalia, though... they're ancient, and nobody really knows where they are. The sword, mirror, and jewel are supposed to represent bravery, wisdom, and good will, respectively. And then Josuke nods to Theurgus's words. "If there's one thing I've learned from video games that always seems to hold true in real life? It's that if you encounter enemies or resistance, you're probably going the right way." He squints a bit through the light produced by the staff, hoping he can see the monsters better than they can see him.
Asellus	"We're in Shrike right now." Asellus confirms. Going towards the monsters could be good or bad. However, she has to side with Arcana, at least in part. "Before we go directly into the path of an obvious danger, let's search the path that seems clear first. Then we can confirm whether it's the right or wrong way, rather than fighting through monsters first only to discover it was a big waste of time. I want to become stronger, but having better tools to fight with, especially your Japan's lost treasures, can only help with that." White Rose nods and says, "So we should be wary of traps, but take the left-hand passage for now, Lady Asellus?" "I think that's best." The light that Arcana rolls down the hall causes a slime creature to seep up out of a miniscule gap in the cracked stone floor, and attempt to engulf the small device with its body. A frill-necked lizard comes scampering past moments later, and there's the sound of wing beats as well. A very busy passage. And if it's a dead-end, then they'd be taking a risk for nothing. Checking the way that seems unguarded might be a trap, or it might not be, but if they're going to fight something, it might as well be after they've confirmed which is the case. They can always go back and rest if they get too banged up after all.
Theurgus	Theurgus nods to Asellus, as Arcana backs away from the corner. The device is engulfed easily by the slime, turning the white light a shade of putrid green, before the mechanisms break down in the acidic body of the monster, plunging the hallway into darkness once more. The pair float along, lighting the way forwards and checking to see if there's any trigger mechanisms on the floors or walls. "Keep your eyes open for pressure plates or tripwires." says Arcana, her blade held close to the floor, poking ahead before stepping to see if anything gives.
Josuke Higashikata	Josuke nods to Asellus's suggestion. "That makes sense too," he agrees. "We'll need to be careful though -- they might pincer us between themselves and whatever's back there." Admittedly he hasn't seen any enemies with that much capability for planning, but there's always a first time, right? Theurgus's words get a nod... and then Josuke gets and idea. "Oh wait a second. I think I have an idea." He pulls some of the wooden pellets that he's taken to keeping on his person, and hands them off to his Stand. Crazy Siamond proceeds to crush the small handful of pellets into powder. Putting a hand out to touch Crazy Diamond, Josuke pauses a moment, to breathe long enough build up a small Hamon charge, and then passes it into his Stand. The Stand passes the charge into the powderized pellets -- even if powerized, they ARE still wood -- and then the Stand breathes out strongly, launching the powder into the air in front of them. The powder should glitter, being charged with Hamon, and it should be light enough to settle onto any tripwires or into any weird architecture that could hide a device.
Asellus	As they move ahead down the less-populated passage, there don't appear to be any traps revealed either by Josuke's powder or the more mundane method of testing for pressure plates and trip wires manually. They make it into the next section, to discover... Mecs!? A big monster truck-looking robot is idling in the middle of a room. There's an L-shaped passage to their right. If they move close to the wall, and head that way, they might be able to avoid the puttering robot completely. However, at the end of the L-shaped passage is another such Mec. If they rush past it in the right way, in the gap between the passage and the next corridor, it might charge right past them and lose track of them. Based on experience, these Mecs don't have the greatest sensors beyond a short radius around themselves, and their charge, while fast, can carry them right past their target. And, more importantly, beyond the second Mec, there's another of those alcoves, this one with a big, blue, glittering 9-shaped jewel sitting inside of it.
Theurgus	Theurgus and Arcana stop, holding a hand up to pause the group. "Enemy ahead.. carefully move around it... we will attract too much attention and aggro it. You three should be able to sneak past. We will keep the passageway clear for you." says the elder DCC, moving aside so the others can pass.
Josuke Higashikata	"Wha--!" Josuke quickly cuts the sound off, though, realizing that's probably going to give away their position if he's too loud. So he quiets quickly. Theurgus's words get a nod, and he dismisses his Stand, to take up less space. He'll be trying to protect Asellus and White Rose as they sneak past the first one. As for the second? "I'll attract its attention. You two grab the jewel over there." And that DOES look like what he believes is the jewel of the Imperial Regalia... Though right now, he's not going to bother with that. What he's going to do is basically try to blow a raspberry at the Mec at the end of the hallway, and then run and duck out of the way. Just long enough to give Asellus and White Rose the chance to grab that jewel.