Abandon Hope

Discussion in 'Great Sea' started by Marcus, Oct 5, 2013.

  1. Marcus

    Marcus Logical Healer new

    Messages:
    18
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Rupees:
    205
    Member:
    Quill
    [[Here we go! #nervous]]

    Marcus kicked a pebble off the rock and watched as it dissolved before even reaching the lava pit below. "Thank Farore for magic cooling," he muttered, "or else that'd be us." He felt blessedly cool, despite the heat shimmering in the air around him. Veran's spells were obviously working; if they weren't, he doubted he'd still be alive at this point. He turned to look longingly at the blue skies visible through the cavern's mouth, then sighed and hitched up his backpack.

    The path sloped down before them, leading him and his new companion down a long tunnel. "Come on," Marcus said, his stomach fluttering nervously. He hoped his voice didn't betray the unease he felt or the fear bubbling in his chest. As much as Loft had always annoyed him, Marcus felt oddly naked without the idiot beside him. The unsettling emptiness beside him didn't help to soothe his nerves. "Let's get going."
  2. Orup Mepple

    Orup Mepple Burgeoning Potion Crafter new

    Messages:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Member:
    Ribitta
    Orup glanced over the edge as well, watching the inferno from a standpoint that could hardly be called safe. The kid seemed like he had done this sort of thing before, though the older man was beginning to realize he wasn't entirely sure what "it" was. He'd been told that there was an ancient scroll here, an alchemy recipe long held by these people, but that it had been lost below the surface. Of course, when he had come down here, there had been a woman who seemed to think he was here for another reason, not that it mattered too much to him. She had cast some spell on him, told him that his partner was already waiting, and sent him on his way before he could hardly get a word in with her.

    But... now that he was down here, something seemed off. The man who'd directed him here had described it as a long quiet volcano with some caves carved out and some dusty doors here and there. This didn't seem like that description.

    And then there was the lava! Lava was everywhere, and even though he couldn't feel the heat it still unnerved him. "Let's get going," the boy said to the older man, and Orup stumbled a bit at the words.

    "Hold on just a moment," Orup said quickly, trying to stop him before things got too far along. "Get going where, exactly? I mean, that woman at the entrance mentioned something about saving something but... but that really isn't why I'm here, I'm afraid. She... she wasn't serious. Was she? I mean, what exactly does she expect us to do down here?"
  3. Marcus

    Marcus Logical Healer new

    Messages:
    18
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Rupees:
    205
    Member:
    Quill
    Marcus stopped, looking at the man in surprise. "You don't know?" He did seem a little pudgy to be in the dragon-saving business, but then, Marcus was no one to criticize. He wasn't exactly in peak physical condition either. He was fit, sure; it was hard not to be, what with all the traveling he did. But he was still no warrior. "Well," he said, furrowing his eyebrows as he thought of the best way to explain the situation, "something's wrong with the Rito deity, Valoo. He's reactivated the volcano, and-"

    Just then, a deafening roar reverberated through the mountain. The cavern's ceiling and floor shook, raining dust and bits of rock down on their heads. Marcus staggered to the side a little as he fought to keep his balance. The lava in the pits below sloshed threateningly, and Marcus gulped and backed closer to the center. "Well," he said, still staring at the lava, "I'm here to try and help Valoo. The Rito've all fled because of the volcano, and he's in a great deal of pain." He took out his water and gulped some down, then gave the man a curious look. "Why are you here?"
  4. Orup Mepple

    Orup Mepple Burgeoning Potion Crafter new

    Messages:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Member:
    Ribitta
    The cavern shook, and Orup quickly found a wall he could press his back into for safety. "Save a deity?!" the older man spluttered, astounded by how ridiculous it sounded to him. He could hardly keep himself alive from monsters these days, nasty as they were, and now he was supposed to go save a god? If the gods needed saving it might explain the quality of the land, but what on earth was he supposed to about it? Swallowing hard, he pulled out a kerchief and wiped the sweat off his forehead that was not from the heat.

    "I've come a very long way to get here," he said finally, in response to the boy's question, "I was told a bit of alchemy had been lost down here a long, long time ago, and that even the natives of the island had forgotten about it. I figured if I could just get my hands on it... Well, needless to say, I wasn't expecting this!" He looked around uncertainly, trying to not look directly at the lava below the heights. This place was filled with danger and, contrary to what Rua might chide him about, was exactly the kind of thing he was not interested in.

    Glancing at the boy, though, something dawned on him. "Wait a moment," he said, his eyes widening a bit, "I know you! You're that Heilari boy that vanished months ago, aren't you? From the Western Caves, I mean--yes, don't deny it now. Everyone assumed you were dead! What are you doing here of all places?" The Western Caves, while one of the largest establishments left in the southern lands, was not exactly brimful with people. After fifteen years of surviving together, most of them could at least recognize another's face down there. When one of the healers had gone missing, it had not gone unnoticed in the community, though the memory was just now returning to Orup. Needless to say, thoughts had already begun running through the older man's mind of turning back right now and taking this boy with him, back to his proper home.
  5. Marcus

    Marcus Logical Healer new

    Messages:
    18
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Rupees:
    205
    Member:
    Quill
    Marcus froze. His eyes widened. He turned to look at him, shaking slightly as he stared at the large man. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry. "You...." He let out a shaky breath and tried again. "You were the Alchemist. Mr. Mepple." How could he not have known? He should have recognized this man on sight; had he been gone from home for so long that he was forgetting his neighbors' faces? He had fantasized, sometimes, that he would come across a friend from the Western Caves during his travels, but this wasn't at all how he'd imagined it. Or who he'd imagined, for that matter. His arms trembled a little, and his mind grappled to comprehend this sudden development.

    "What am I doing here?" He repeated the question a little numbly, trying to jog his thoughts and get some coherent sentences going. "I heard that the island was in danger," he said slowly. "I've done stuff like this before, and I have a Rito friend, so," his voice began trailing off awkwardly, "I thought I'd help." He cleared his throat and tried to change the conversation towards something easier to talk about. "I'm learning Alchemy," he said, starting to walk forward again, "just started a few months ago. Are, uhm, you still in the business?"
  6. Orup Mepple

    Orup Mepple Burgeoning Potion Crafter new

    Messages:
    8
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Member:
    Ribitta
    He had done stuff like this before? What was it with everyone trying to be a hero these days! Besides, Marcus was only just a boy, and not even a fighter really, unless things had changed since he had vanished from the caves. Orup frowned as Marcus started moving forward again--couldn't he see how dangerous this was?--and yet he felt himself following anyway. The room they were in was still an entryway, of sorts, with a long section of stone stretching from entrance to exit. On one side was a wall, firm and safe, but on the other side was that terrible drop towards all that lava below.

    "Still in the business?" he asked, mostly out of surprise. So the boy was learning alchemy, was he? "I am," the man said slowly, not sure if he should try and bring the conversation back to the fact that they stood above a gigantic, deadly vat of lava. "That's why I'm here, after all. No... no offense to your Rito friends and their dangers, of course, but ah..." Orup glanced instinctively down at the lava again, "this wasn't exactly what I had in mind."
  7. Marcus

    Marcus Logical Healer new

    Messages:
    18
    Trophy Points:
    1
    Rupees:
    205
    Member:
    Quill
    "Yeah," Marcus said, flinching as a large gas bubble exploded to his left, "I don't blame you." He let out a shaky breath and called up his magic; not to work any spells, just to feel its warm, reassuring hum beneath his skin. It comforted him, and he pressed on. A few steps more, and he came to a large stone door set into the mountain. He raised a hand to open it, then paused and turned to look at Mr. Mepple.

    "You really didn't know," he said, " did you?" He wet his lips. On a basic level, he wanted the alchemist to stay. The promise of company made this whole place seem less frightening, and he longed for the link to his home that this man presented. What had he missed in the near-year he'd been gone? What of his Uncle, whom Marcus out of shame and guilt had avoided thinking about? He wanted to know; he wanted Mr. Mepple to stay. However, the higher processes of his conscience were screaming in protest. This man had no idea of the dangers that could lay beyond this door; he hadn't volunteered to come here, knowing full well the risk. It wasn't fair to drag him into this.

    "This could be dangerous," he said finally. "I don't know what's in here; nobody does. I-" he sighed, swallowed, and continued. "I want you to stay," he said, his words faltering a little. "There's so much I want to ask you, but at the same time," he groaned and shuffled his feet, trying and failing to find the right words to express his thoughts. "I don't want to put you in danger."
  8. Ribitta

    Ribitta What would you ask of me? reg

    Messages:
    823
    Trophy Points:
    18
    Orup sighed, his face frowning as he looked around the bleak cavern they were in. He tried to tuck his fingers into his waistband but found that he had, perhaps, eaten a little too much food on the boat ride over, so he let his hands fall to his side. "Marcus..." he began slowly, hoping against hope that he could convince the boy, "why not just come back home with me? I see you've grown since leaving the caves; you've become a young man. But really, what business do we have in a place like this?" The words tumbled out of his mouth--his typical, often used, comforting jargon. It was what he had spent years practicing.

    But then there was the other side. The side he had only just begun to meet in the last few months.

    It was the side that actually wanted that alchemy scroll. It was the side that seemed to forget about danger to human life--his or the boy's--and egged him to go onward. It was the side that said that death and failure in here would be worth the risk, because what was the point in living if he wasn't advancing? He had been a very comfortable man for a very long time. That side of him managed to add to his sentence he had meant to leave finished.

    "But," he said, licking his lips a bit, "if you're going to stay here, so am I."