Navigation Event

In the depths of the darkest night since The Ooze, a variety of fireflies bob up and down in the breeze. You notice that they’re… different colors? They seem to be trying to get your attention, as if calling you to enter the cave beyond. Inside, the tunnels twist and turn, but the fireflies lead the way... Or will they lead you astray?

- Follow fireflies through the cave.
- Where do they go?
- Do you find anything, or do you get hopelessly lost?

Skill Claim form

If you complete this thread with at least 3 rounds each, you can claim extra skill points in navigation for participating in a random event! Only the first three participants are allowed to respond. Please be aware that the following event has a hard deadline of October 15th

Code:

[b]Skill[/b]: Navigation
[b]Points claiming[/b]: 15
[b]For what?[/b]: Participated in a navigation-related random event (Follow the Fireflies)
[b]Proof[/b]: <a href="LINKHERE">click!</a>

[*code]+15 - <a href="LINKHERE">Participated in a navigation-related random event (Follow the Fireflies)</a><br>[*/code]

The fireflies had returned. Artorias was apprehensive to leave the Hallows following the birth of his children, especially not when it considered the pursuit of anything inherently dangerous, but this... this was something else. The last time these fireflies had appeared, they had heralded the Long Night, the plague that had taken the lives of many wolves and left dread and destruction in their wake. If this was a repeat of that, then he had to investigate, for the safety and sake of his children, his family, and his pack. Artorias followed the distant fireflies south towards the caves he had explored once with Duchess, equipped with his armor and Embershard, just in case. He knew the dangers these supernatural elements posed.

Approaching the noxious caves, he saw the multicolored fireflies drifting lazily down into the bowels of the earth. The Aegis hesitated at the mouth of the cave, staring down into the pitch blackness below, still seeing those fireflies lighting up the tunnels just head, as if calling to him. His instincts told him to leave, but his desire to know more of why this was happening to the world again urged him forward. Stuck caught between the decision, Artorias lingered just at the mouth of the cave, weighing his options.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
____________________

It wasn't all that often that Malik wandered off from his family and parents, but now that they were a year old and were allowed a bit more freedom he was starting to do that a little more often. He was up late, unable to sleep, so he went for a walk. Of course for the aspiring navigator a walk was never just a trip down the beach or through the woods. It usually brought him out to some unknown location so he could see the sights and explore. That brought him down toward some semi-near by caves. He didn't actually step foot into them yet, just squinting into the darkness and trying to see what was beyond the entrance, when a firefly floated past his vision and made him blink with surprise as he took a couple of steps back.

As he started looking around, his hazel gaze scanning the area, he started noticing more and more of the fireflies—except they were bright and multicolored in shades he had never seen fireflies be. He stared at them for a while in confusion and awe, trying to figure out where all these fireflies had come from and what would make them come in different colors like this, when he noticed some of them were starting to float into the cave he had been examining, almost as if they were forming a trail of small, glowing lights. This also pulled his attention to a kind of familiar figure that was standing at the mouth of the cave that he hadn't noticed before—the form of his half-brother Artorias seeming to have the same hesitation that he did. He walked over to Art to stand beside him, peering down into the bowls of the cave to watch the fireflies go. "Should we follow them?"

"Malik of the Sea"

Maverick didn't often find his way down to the southern continent, especially not alone. Wanderlust had gotten the better of him though, and after going a bit stir crazy roaming the same familiar lands in Ashen, he felt the itch to get out and go explore somewhere new. His paws led him south over the Bifröst to the austral continent, and once down there, a cluster of oddly colored fireflies caught his attention. Curious, Maverick began to move towards them, but every time he got close, the cluster of lightning bugs would dart away, as if leading him somewhere. The bugs had his curiosity, but now they had his attention. The dire wolf followed the bugs further south until they darted into a large cave, just as two other dire wolves approached as well, seeming to follow the bugs as well.

Approaching the other two, he greeted the strangers with a nod. "Hey, you see those fireflies too?" he asked, then looked down into the dark of the cave, still seeing their multicolored glow from within. "Well, I guess beauty before youth this time." With a sly smirk, Maverick took the first step into the cave and descended in after them. What was the worst that could happen?

"Maverick"

Artorias broke his line of sight with the fireflies when he heard approaching paws, spotting his half-brother Malik coming up to him, followed shortly by a white and navy wolf who matched him in size and stature that he didn't recognize. Both of them had apparently been drawn in by the fireflies as well. Malik asked if they should go in after them. "I don't know..." Art murmured in response, the apprehension clear in his voice as he gazed down the dark tunnels of the caves. He remembered what had happened the last time he'd gone down there... But no sooner had he spoken, the stranger gave them a nonchalant grin and sauntered in after the fireflies on his own. "Hey, wait!" But it was too late; the stranger had vanished into the dark.

"Gods dammit..." Now Artorias had a choice to make. He had to consider his half-sibling's safety, but he also doubted that the other wolf would be fine on his own down there. Would he be able to leave not knowing the fate of the stranger he could have saved? With a groan of frustration, Artorias looked over to Malik and motioned down the cave. "We should go in after him. Safety in numbers," he said to the sabered wolf as he made his way into the cave and down the dark tunnels towards the multicolored glowing lights a ways ahead. "Breathe in slow, short breaths, and if you start to feel lightheaded or strange, you tell me and we get out." With his warning issued, Artorias led the way down into the dark after Maverick, using the light of the fireflies to guide them down into the earth.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
____________________

Malik's ears perked when he heard someone coming up behind him just after he had approached Artorias, turning his head to see the white and navy brute that had apparently also been following the fireflies. His half brother seemed extremely apprehensive about following the allure of the fireflies and that made Malik nervous about it as well, wondering if maybe there was something about them or the cave that he didn't know that he should be more cautious about. The stranger behind them didn't seem to have that uncertainty though and charged forward into the darkness that was subtly punctuated by the multicolored glow despite Artorias warning him to wait.

As much as he was drawn toward the glow of the lights, he trusted his half brother's intuition and knowledge of things so he waited, looking to Art for guidance. Eventually Art looked to him and motioned to the cave ahead of them, saying that they should go after him. Even though he was a stranger there was something that Art thought could be dangerous so it made sense to try and help this guy if they could. Malik nodded and followed after Art, keeping close to his side as they went down the corridors of the cave. "Alright," he agreed when he was given instructions on how to breathe and what to pay attention for even though he wasn't sure what could make him feel that way. Regardless, he continued to follow the light of the fireflies, keeping an eye out for the blue and white wolf that had forged the path ahead of them.

"Malik of the Sea"

Deeper into the cave Maverick went, following the almost hypnotic light of the fireflies as they led him down the winding tunnels of the cave system. Their colors shone off the shiny stone walls, damp with mildew and dripping ground water, ever shifting as he went as if changing with each step. Red, blue, orange, green, violet, yellow... A whole spectrum of colors that enticed him further and further, deeper and deeper. As he went, Mav made sure to remember which turns he took where so he'd be able to find his way back out again. He was no fool, and this was not his first time spelunking. It was, however, the first time he'd gone into a cave where he began to feel... strange. The deeper he went, the stronger that strange feeling began to grow on him. Like a sort of anxiety, a knowing that something was off, but not being able to put his paw on it.

As Maverick reached a leveled out section of cave, he began to realize what was off about this place. The air felt thick, heavy with something on it. A sniff sampled no strange scents, no flavors to alert him to anything, but he felt like there was a miasma closing in around him. The anxiousness grew. His head began to feel light. With every breath drawing in the invisible noxious gases, the chemicals began to wreak havoc on his psyche. Faint whispers played in his ears, coming from down the tunnels in all directions. Teal eyes swerved about, trying to find the source of the sounds. Or were they even sounds? Was he imagining things? Maybe he shouldn't have come in here so brashly after all...

"Maverick"

Truthfully, Artorias did not want to go down into these caves again. He remembered the horrific hallucinations he'd encountered with Duchess down here and he was keen not to repeat the experience. But with the stranger from Ashen having gone charging in like a maniac, he didn't have much choice. He did, however, make a silent vow that if things got too dangerous, he wasn't risking his sibling's life. They would head back out before things got too bad. Artorias decided against telling Malik about his past experiences with the cave. He didn't want to worry the lad, and in the best case scenario, he would never have to experience anything like it.

Down and down the dark tunnels the two wolves went, Artorias keeping his keen gaze on the shifting color of the fireflies' lights dead ahead. The soft drip-drip-drip of water falling down the cave walls was the only sound besides their claws on the hard stone floor. Artorias didn't know how deep they had gone before they reached the bottom of the descent, where the stranger was standing looking back and forth down a few branching tunnels. The light from the fireflies had continued on down one of the side tunnels, but something had caused the white and navy wolf to stop where he stood. "Hey, are you all right?" asked the alpha, looking with concern to the Ashen wolf, trying to discern if he was experiencing any side effects of the gases in these caves yet. Sharp amber eyes lifted, his augmented vision allowing him to see in the near total darkness to the fireflies hovering down the tunnel, seemingly waiting for them to continue following.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"

One big happy family

Artorias has two ravens named Corbin and Eira and a fox named Argent. Assume they are within calling distance at all times.
As his mate, Briar may enter Artorias' threads unless marked Private.
____________________

Malik followed close at his half brother's side as the wound through the tunnels, following his lead and making sure to keep to his instructions about breathing in this place. The colored lights of the fireflies lit the way ahead of them, but otherwise there was nothing really but darkness. His hazel eyes scanned the walls for anything of note, but the only thing he noticed was this kind of haze that hung around them the deeper they went. He couldn't tell how long it was that they were following after this navy and white stranger before they finally found him and when they did it seemed like the brute was confused or disoriented by something. As to what he couldn't tell, but he did see the fireflies they had been following. They were congrigated down one of the tunnels, hovering in place and waiting for them to follow. He felt like they were becconing them in, but it made no sense. They were just bugs. Weirdly colored bugs, but bugs none of the less. Why would they be leading them somewhere? "We should probably go," he said softly to Artorias, his gaze still lingering on the fireflies. Logically there was no reason for him to keep going after the fireflies, but he did want to. Still, with how strangely the previously overly confident guy was acting he wasn't sure if he wanted to stick around here for very long.

"Malik of the Sea"

The voices echoing around him seemed to grow louder, swirling about the air like invisible phantoms. Their echoes grew louder and more clear the longer Maverick stood here focusing on them. Suddenly he was able to place some of the voices. His brother. His father. Venom. The chatter didn't seem to make any sense, and logically he knew that none of the wolves who possessed the voices were anywhere near here. So why the hell was he hearing them?! Panic began to grip his nerves, an uncharacteristic anxiousness taking over the dire wolf. And still, further down the tunnel, those fireflies beckoned to him, shining their iridescent glows. Calling to him with their lights. Maverick lifted a paw, the voices in his head becoming deafening, and was about to take another step deeper into the caves...

The very real voice beside him snapped Maverick out of his delusions. Rapid blinks brought him back into reality, and suddenly the voices were gone. Mav glanced to his side, seeing those two other wolves there with him. When had they followed him in? "Yeah, never better..." came his mumbled reply. The smallest of the three mentioned that they should probably go. Mav turned his eyes back to the fireflies once more, which now seemed to be growing dimmer, as if proceeding down the tunnels without the wolves. "Yeah, let's get the fuck outta here," Maverick agreed, turning and starting back up the tunnels towards the fresh air and low light of the night just outside. No amount of bizarre fireflies were going to coax him deeper into those hellish caves.

"Maverick"

As you turn to leave, the fireflies' light begins to pulse strangely, like a heartbeat, getting brighter and brighter with each double beat of light until you can see around you nearly as clear as day in the strange light. They flash one last, blindly bright light that dazzles your eyes and their wings buzz so loudly it seems to roar in the echoes of the cave. And then blackness. As your eyes recover you see the bodies of the fireflies littering the cavern floor, dead all in one instant. Wait, is that a statue they're surrounding? That was definitely not here before. And those butterflies that seemed to be tending it hadn't either, though they don't seem to be startled to find themselves there. You get the strangest impression that they've always been there, and always will be.

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