Firefly Lake

Before you enter, you may bring 3 things with you. These may include companions, accessories, and the like. Please list them at the start of your thread. There is great risk involved to all that you bring along as well as your chosen character, though you may find there will also be equally great benefit.

Any rewards gained in your adventure will be account bound and therefore not tradeable unless simply gems. A handful of the benefits will be for the character you bring only.

Your choice in character, companion, and accessory will possibly impact your story. Different attributes and aspects of your character, companion, and accessory will provide risks or benefits depending on the various encounters, and where one wolf would fail a situation another wolf might pass it with ease.

As the story progresses, encounters will become riskier though you can choose to abandon the adventure at any time. If you choose to remain, you do so understanding the risks!



Coming to this area, the sun rests low in the horizon and many fireflies are just starting to light the sky in its stead. There is nothing inherently spooky about these scenes, however the complete lack of the usual chittering of birds and rummaging of creatures puts even the most steadfast of visitors on edge. The water calls to you, reflecting the last luminescent rays of the golden sun as it sinks into the horizon. It seems as if every step is blocked off by a wall of fireflies which seem unpassable.

How do you attempt to get through?

• Barge your way through
  
• Eat the fireflies
  
• Leave
  

Lurid brings with her: Samael, the augur buzzard, her armor & her serrated mouth-guard.

Sunset was when the white brindled woman was finally able to take the full glare of the sun in her lightly colored eyes, and so she was able to explore a bit more. Having set Ilyn and Alastor to babysitting duty, Lurid went out to gain some individual peace-of-mind. Kichi had been doing better with the distractions of Alastor, but he still had Lurid worried. Samael stayed with her, however, soaring above in the skies to keep an eye on the evil empress-in-rising. At Alastor's request, Lurid was dressed in her diamond-studded armor and carried her mouth-sabers with her to protect herself. There was a slight nostalgia for when she hadn't had to consider how worried Alastor would be for her, but she was happy to have him now. Things were coming together, and as she walked she took in her surroundings. Something had been off about the area since she arrived here, and as she came closer to the water, it seemed fireflies were everywhere, and eventually they began to annoy her. Silence had fallen, aside from the buzz of firefly wings. Lurid snorted as a few tried to go into her nostrils, and she shook her head out as they tickled the fur in her ears. There was a veritable wall of them as she tried to get to the lake, enough that she felt as though she had to paw through them to get anywhere. So, this is what she did, Lurid pushed her way through the bugs as best as she could. Snorting to remove brave bugs, all while her companion laughed from above. Something strange was going on at this lake, bugs didn't just swarm like this! It was enough to even have the dark witch unnerved; feeling the bugs collide with her and walk on her was an absolute nightmare!

Firefly Lake

From this point on, you can exit at any point, even if the option is not listed! If leaving is listed as a choice, then you may only ATTEMPT to exit!

You barge into the wall of fireflies, pushing yourself through their buzzing wings. You feel strength welling up inside you with each step. As you finally make your way through the mass of fireflies and towards the water, you see a small bridge of strange, floating crystals leading through the middle of the lake to a… is that a downwards staircase into the lake? Those stones look a little slippery.

How do you attempt to get through?

• Use the bridge
  
• Swim
  
• Jump over the gap
  

Snorting and huffing under her breath, Lurid muttered to herself as she swatted and pushed her way through the swarm of fireflies, cursing softly whenever a bug would get up her nose or in her mouth. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity dealing with the awful creations of hell, Lurid made it passed the many-legged horde. The insects parted, making her skin crawl as she stared at them fluttering away and thinning out. Looking past the luminescent bugs, Lurid saw the edge of the lake at long last. One ear slid back on her head as she looked out where the water streamed over the edge of a staircase going...into the lake? Floating crystal stones seemed to make a bridge of sorts, the entire scene coupled with the bugs made the normally stalwart woman a little on edge. Despite this apprehension, Lurid gingerly set out a paw and pushed at one of the stones, then stepped on it and balanced herself, taking her time as she used the floating stones to get across. Her curiosity got the better of her, and while she was a bit wary, Lurid pressed on.

Firefly Lake

You walk gingerly across the steps. Water just barely flows over the surface, making them quite slick. One wrong pawstep and OOF! You slide into the water, cutting your paw on the edge of the stair as you slide down. Afterwards, you are able to swim to the staircase.

Down the Rabbit(?) Hole

You step down the finely chiseled stairs which seem to be made of thin sheets of crystal, showing the water below as fish swim beneath your very paws. As you go lower, the fish swim beside, then above you until you are slowly immersed into a dark, watery chamber. When you come off the stairs, you find you are standing on solid ground, though far above you can still see the surface of the water. Light from above shimmers and refracts into tiny rainbows across the ground. The only place to go now is deeper into the cavern which narrows and darkens. The cavern grows quite steep and your eyes have not fully adjusted to the darkness. One should be careful as they descend into the depths.

How do you attempt to get through?

• Slow and steady wins the race
  
• Mad dash
  

Sssss, ahh! Her paw slipped against the slick surface of the crystal bridge, sending a stinging pain up through her paw and a growl to her throat as she splashed into the lake water. Coming up with a rather dry expression, Lurid huffed at her luck and pressed on. Swimming to the curiosity in the middle of the lake, the brightly colored demon took a moment to ensure she had her paw pads down instead of claws. Having experience in treacherous areas, as growing up in a cave system that was often icy, she made sure to keep her footing this time. Following the staircase down, Lurid found herself in awe, watching fish and other lake creatures swim on the other side of the wall. Caves like these were dangerous, and for a moment, the demoness wanted to turn back though curiosity saw her press forward. 'Curiosity killed the cat, Lurid.' Samael spoke softly, tucking himself onto Lurid's back as she moved further into the cave. The empress said nothing, only rolled her eyes and stood there waiting for her eyes to adjust to the strange lighting. Slowly she made her way through the cavern, carefully picking her steps and reaching forward as the blind often do.

Down the Rabbit(?) Hole

You slowly descend down into the depths of the cave. As you walk, you feel a small notch in the wall. And another. And another! In each, sets a tiny gem. By the end of the tunnel, you have a nice handful of gems! You'll have to count them later!

Now, the cavern levels out, but is still tricky to navigate. You’re sure you hear shuffling ahead, but can't see anything to match the noise. What do you do? This is open ended! Respond as your character would, but only to the point to where you ATTEMPT something! No cheating!

The further into the cavern she went, she more her eyes adjusted to the black. Knowing better than to look directly at something in the dark, Lurid found her lavender holographic gaze searching left and right, following the wall deeper and deeper. She kept an even pace, her companion rode on her back and needed reminding about his talons every so often. Samuel was a tense being. Subtle notches appearing in the wall alerted her to a change in the earth, with gemstones lodged in them, no less! Lurid had Samael gather them as they kept their slow pace forward. They would be counted when she could see again.

The sound was a whisper at first, a subtle shuffling that Lurid had no memory for. Her mind racked itself as to what it could be, but came up empty and only left her with a growing curiosity.  Slowly the brindled heiress moved forward, her ears flicking to catch the right sound through the echoing of the cavern. A tic worked in her jaw as adrenaline flooded her system. Lurid had never been unsure of herself, especially not in the underworld.  Keeping her forward momentum,  her pace made slightly uneven by the wince she made stepping on her injured paw. She would attempt to find the source of the sound, her curiosity and need to know getting the best of her.

Down the Rabbit(?) Hole

You approach slowly, carefully, and silently. You smell nothing, but eventually come upon the dim glow of a group of fireflies struggling to put on a cloth which would make them appear as if they are a rat. The cloth is pulled this way, then that way, but the uneven buzzing of the creatures beneath it make it hard to settle evenly.

What do you do?

• Watch them
  
• Try to help them
  
• Bugs are tasty- chomp (eat/ attack them)
  

Lurid moved cautiously down the tunnel, following the strange sound as it bounced through the air. There was no hint of anything on the air, a frustrating occurrence for the devilish woman. Eventually, her eyes fell upon a dim glow in the distance, and the demon moved forward with slow, silent steps. The sight she came upon made her halt dead in her tracks, definitely giving her a pause. With a slight smile alighting her features, the dark woman found herself amused and delighted to have an answer for the noise she heard. No way she would have been able to guess that the sound she heard would be fireflies attempting to...dress up? With a single amused wave of her tail, Lurid spoke, "Poor unfortunate souls, do you mind?" Speaking to the bugs just before she reached out to assist the small creatures with the cloth. Once they seemed happy with their shape, Lurid smiled. "There now, have fun, Little Rat." Now, she felt silly for being so apprehensive.

Down the Rabbit(?) Hole

You help the small fireflies to adjust their rat costume(?) over the horde. After the cloth is secure, the bugs drift to the ground and run (fly?) in a few small circles as if to imitate a rat. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," they chant in unison before drifting off further into the cave. You feel like you've done a good thing today.

Sp̶͙̆͗̚̕ooky Cavȩ̴̧̩̖̱͔̈͑̾̅͂̊͝ͅ

The main cavern opens up to a large area full of stalagmites and stalactites. Your eyes adjust (if you have fireflies, their light dies out) allowing you to see just how vast this underground expanse is. Water trickles through the center of the cavern running from the wall near you and creating a small river cutting through the room all the way to the end. It seems clean, but there is no telling what lurks in the depths.

How will you navigate this room?

• Carefully around the stalagmites.
  
• Swim the river
  

While you're here... there's that water...

Do you take a sip?

• Sip Sip
  
• No sippy
  

Lurid smiled at the seemingly sentient lightning bugs, watching as the made the illusion of a scurrying rat and thanking her. "You are very welcome, have fun!" Watching as they drifted off, Lurid felt oddly satisfied at having helped them, and followed them for a bit. She moved deeper onto the cavern, her eyes easily adjusting to the black of the cavern as the fireflies drifted away, their light fading and leaving her enveloped in the dark. The sound of flowing water reached her ears before the sight of it did, making her suddenly aware of just how thirsty her adventure made her. While it appeared to be clean, Lurid would not drink the water. instead she moved around it, taking her path carefully around the stalagmites. There was no telling where the underground flow came from, it could come from a collection of stagnant water in another part of the cave. One bout of that particular stomach pain was enough to last her a lifetime.

Sp̶͙̆͗̚̕ooky Cavȩ̴̧̩̖̱͔̈͑̾̅͂̊͝ͅ

If you know one thing, it's that the water is suspicious. You do your best to avoid it, climbing around the stalagmites. Some areas narrow so much, you're forced to pull back and try another route. You eventually clear your way into the next room, feeling rather accomplished and much more skilled than before!

Crȩ̸̱̞̈́͗̆̾̀̑̈̇vice S̵̡̥͉͌͗̿͋̾̓̀̍h̴̢̆͛̉͗̏̎̇́uffle

You cross into the next room and the passages just keep getting smaller and smaller! Finally, the passage forks into one that is very small, but stable-looking. The other is large and spacious but appears to be much more treacherous.

How will you navigate this room?

• Big Tunnel
  
• Small Tunnel
  

Lurid moved with her usual grace, taking her time through the stone teeth of the cavern, emerging on the other side feeling rather proud of herself. Making it passed the water and the rocky teeth of the cave had been tricky, though as she looked about, she could see no other paths except two. One tunnel was spacious enough for her to get through with Samael on her shoulders, and the other seemed like she would have to squeeze through. The pallid demon pinned her ears to her skull in a cautious manner, telling her winged friend to keep a look out from her back as she reached a decision. With a steadying breath and eyes wide open, Lurid slowly made her way through the larger, but dangerous looking tunnel. it was easier for her to fit in, but by the looks of it would require more caution as she went through it.

Crȩ̸̱̞̈́͗̆̾̀̑̈̇vice S̵̡̥͉͌͗̿͋̾̓̀̍h̴̢̆͛̉͗̏̎̇́uffle

You climb through the large tunnel. It's spacious, but hosts many challenges. One one such path, there's a steep drop you manage to navigate. At the bottom, there appears to be the skeleton of one who was not so lucky. Within the bones there's a nice accessory that looks like it would be good for fighting later. Well... he doesn't need it anymore. You scoop up the object and eventually make it out of the tunnel.

Ç̸̭̩̻͔͖̱̥̉̚ŕ̶̨̛͙͍͓̲̣͕̎̃̾̎̄̑̐̏̔͆͝͠ȳ̸̡̼͉̙̻̘͚͕̘̿̌stall̴̞̪̀͋̎̏̂̄̔́̈́̀̆͐̕͝ĩ̷̛͎̦͉̼̤͇̏͠në̸̻̗̣̏ D̴͔̲̲̫̭̤̲͌̑̅͗̔̐̇̒̾͐͌͝͝epths

The tunnel leads you into a vast room where pinholes of light shine down from the ceiling and down onto a sea of sharp but enchanting crystals below. The place is as breathtaking as it is lethal. You feel as though if you don’t turn back now, you will not be able to leave the tunnel the same as you came. You take a deep breath and decide to descend the glittering slopes. At your feet, there are surprisingly soft mosses with many microflora sprouting up between the rugged crystals and fireflies loom lazily in the air. Somewhere in the distance, a crystal from the ceiling falls like a dagger into the ground below. You do not see where it lands, but it shatters with enough ferocity to be felt in your paws.

How do you navigate this risky wonderland?

• Left, towards the crashing noise!
  
• Right, away from the crashing noise!
  
• Over the giant crystals!
  

The depths of the shadows aided her in navigating the treacherous tunnel, and when she came to a particularly steep path, she slid down using her claws as hooks to direct her descent. She could see something glimmer in the darkness, within the faint outline of a wolf who had not been as wary about the tunnels. Reaching down slightly, Lurid picked the weapon from the bones and moved on. Clearly, it hadn't helped him any, and possibly killed him when he fell onto it. As she followed the tunnel, she could see a faint light and began to follow that. Tiny pinholes in the ceiling of the cavern made the place shine as it was reflected off of thousands of crystals, they were both beautiful and deadly. She knew pressure created them, but it also worked against them. Inhaling sharply to steady herself, Lurid moved into the cavern, carpet-like mosses aiding in her steps. Suddenly, a crystal fell somewhere in the relative darkness, with a crash that was felt in her paws. The motion and resulting crash startled her and she darted to the right, away from the crashing noise. In hopes to avoid any resulting crystals that could come crashing down on her, no need in dying today, she hoped.