The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/R.D./Rib/Closed]

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Orup did his best to not question what the woman was doing, but it certainly seemed much more dangerous than what he had done. Could this woman be at the ends of her wits, by any chance? He found he was suddenly uncomfortable with the idea of following her down into a dark cave. She seemed without any sense of safety... He didn't suppose most people would commend him very highly in that regard either, right about now, so he swallowed the thought as best he could. It was important that they find out where this was headed to and stop it! He did his best to remind himself that.

When she returned, Orup nodded at her words, trying not to think about what she had just done, "After you then, miss." He took a step back, reaching down and lifting up the trapdoor that seemed to reveal a torchlit area, though other than that he couldn't see much. With this woman's recklessness, though, he certainly wasn't about to try and stand in front of her.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Her stomach churned as her head pounded, whether it was from the stress or the poison escaped even her experienced mind. The shaking feeling made walking difficult, and sound judgment even harder; but even in this state she could tell that she needed more than a miracle to make it through this. But the only way was forward, and if the plan worked she'd be much better protected than her companion; and hell, even if he set it off, her being in front gave her a better chance to escape it, right?

Her attempts to calm herself did little to help, so her best chance lay with completing it quickly and then taking as much anti-venom as she could.

She descended the ladder quickly, partially to get a little distance between the two and partially from the adrenalin in her system. The convenient torches gave just enough light to tell where they were, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere and showing just the edge of some of the undoubtedly numerous plant traps ahead.

But forward she went; turns out a OD is a good distraction from fear.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Before dropping down into the hole as well, the man wrapped a piece of cloth around his mouth for good measure. The world seemed to sway in his vision as Orup descended down the ladder, the noxious smell meeting him at once and nearly overpowering his senses. Grasping the cloth closer to his face, Orup tried his best to keep his lungs from getting even more polluted. He had been kept alive for now, but he didn't know how much longer his luck would run for. Even now, every heartbeat seemed to throb in his chest painfully, not really wanting to do its job but still plodding along anyway. He was going to discover the secrets of this infestation whether his body wanted to or not.

Unfortunately, though, it seemed the Gerudo woman was already off on her own adventure. If she had wanted to get rid of him, why didn't she just let him die out there? He was thoroughly confused by now, though he hoped his reason for survival wasn't a sinister one. Gritting his teeth, Orup broke into a quick walk, jogging every few paces to try and catch up. He didn't like it down here one bit, and even if the woman was beginning to unnerve him a bit, he didn't want to face anything here alone if he could help it.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Ven motioned for Orup to hurry up; she was likely fatally poisoned and breathing through a wet piece of cloth and still so much faster. If it weren't obvious that he had more alchemical experience, he'd have been left on the shore or with a knife in his back, and still might if he didn't hurry.

At least wringing out the scarf and rewetting it with the last of her water seemed to clear most of the poison. And even though having no water was a major concern, so is suffication, drowning, poisoning and various other methods of dying horrifically, and she had already braved all those in the last 15 minutes. Just another drop in the sea, another log in the inferno.

Soon enough however, she came to what seemed like a curtain of thin roots, one could see past them but passing them without touching would be impossible without crawling on the toxin-soaked floor. Best to set it off now, before actually trying to cross it. With that in mind, she took one of her empty alchemy containers and tossed into the plant mass, expecting a reaction...

She stood there, holding her scarf close to her mouth; ready to leap, yet little happened. After a few seconds, only poison or water began to drip heavily from the ceiling.

At least, that's what she thought it was until it started burning the floor.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

The man did his best to avoid huffing in the poison too heavily, but it was hard when his lungs felt like they were going to burst after every breath. The walls were passing almost in a blur now, and it was all he could do to keep his attention focused on what was in front of him, trying not to fall down into what would certainly be a disaster. There were torches down here, so there had certainly been someone in the area, though the man had no idea who it could be. Another deranged alchemist's experiment? Some forces of evil? He didn't like the sound of it one bit.

For a moment, Orup was excited that he had finally caught up to the woman, but he realized still a moment later that it was just because she had stopped. Some obstacle barred their way it seemed, and Orup reminded himself once more not to do journeys like this alone. Without someone like her or Rua to stop him, he would've walked headlong into the thing.

He started to speak for a moment, but his words fell flat in his mouth that seemed otherwise occupied in gasping for breaths he couldn't seem to find. It looked like the woman was testing the waters, anyway, figuratively speaking. The response, though, seemed benign at first, but a moment later he realized the drops seemed to be all but completely acid. Tucking his hands within his cloak, the man felt a large drop hit the hood of his cloak. While he shook it off as best he could, the top of his balding head could already feel the air on it.

Orup could hear a thundering sound behind him, though, like a massive amount of rushing water, and the ground had begun to shake slightly. Were they... right below the pond? Adrenaline coursed through his veins.

"Run!"

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Ven too could hear the snap of roots and the crash of dirt just after her companion did. The mix of poison and acid began to stream from the ceiling, she didn't have long before the entire tunnel collapsed; and she was stuck behind a fat, old, out of shape geezer, for whom thought likely left him out of breath.

Both alchemists were undoubtedly in full-tilt as the younger pushed the other with enough force to send him into the ladder just the tunnel caved, releasing a torrent of poisonous ichor into the tunnel and all within.

The girl could only rush her elder as the flood swallowed her up; her only defence closing her eyes and holding her breath; her only chance an intact ladder. It seemed that this vegetative beast had finally claimed a life, until hand weakly reached out and grabbed a step on the ladder.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

For every step that the man ran, he felt like he was being shoved into three more by the woman behind him. However, he found out a moment later that even that breakneck pace might not be enough to save them from the torrents that had begun to flood the tunnels. As the roaring of the water rendered his hearing all but useless, Orup instead focused on moving quickly without falling over. Not an easy task considering the poor lighting and the mire that lay beneath their feet. The ladder was in sight, though, and the man all but leaped for it, grasping onto the rungs right as the water, if you could call it that, came crashing in behind him.

A fraction of a moment passed with Orup's mind in shock. Had the Gerudo been sucked under? How long ago had it been since she had last shoved him forward? His mind finally caught up enough for his eyes to function, and Orup swung his head around, catching a shape moving in that murky mess. There!

Without a second thought, the man plunged a hand into the chemical soup, feeling the acid already sizzling away at his flesh, but he fumbled around long enough until he found clothing--she had been right behind him after all. Orup was not a strong man, but thankfully his veins coursed with adrenaline and not poison, and she didn't weigh nearly as much as he did. With one hand he gripped the Gerudo's clothing, and with the other he did his best to climb, not really trying to pull her but rather making sure she would not be sucked under in that mixture.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Ven could feel a hand grasping at her clothing, pulling her up as it tore. Perhaps ironically, she felt no pain; either the poison that coursed through her veins wouldn't let the feeling pass, or it had already had that much of an effect. The hand seemed to pull her from the hell around her and onto the ladder. The feeling of pain immediately returned to her head, she could feel the tingle and sting of the acid on her skin, and the nausea and and light-headedness of the poison too.

The girl wasn't in much condition to climb, much less to save her life. Only the adrenaline rush she shared with her companion allowed her any chance of the feat, though even this wasn't so simple as one would think, with the acid tearing her clothes from her body and peeling the skin layer by layer.

Ven reached the end with a great burning sensation across her entire form and threw what little remained of what was once her clothes, knowing that he had far larger problems than missing a naked girl with her skin peeling off; though hers were far worse than even a man surrounded by toxic air and water. She could tell just by the feeling in her gut that this was by far the worst poisoning she'd ever had and that her only chance was all three vials of antidote purging her system entirely; A risk she took. Shortly after downing the concoction her skin was alight with sweat as the feeling in the pit of her stomach escaped through her mouth, again and again...

It wasn't long before the girl passed out on a pile of ropes, all color gone from her skin.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

When Orup realized the woman had nothing left except for her skin, and even that was in tatters, he did his best not too blush. Not terribly difficult, considering how every part of his body seemed like it was going to fall apart and cease to function at any given moment. The woman likely had just lost everything on her person to those chemicals, and it wouldn't surprise him if she lost her life from it too. Despite wanting to simply lie down and breath deeply for what felt like the first time in ages, Orup clambered up slowly, taking that poisoned cloak off and laying it over her form awkwardly, poison-side up. She had already taken something, an antidote probably, and there was no room in the tiny shack to build a fire and brew. All he could do now would be to wait, likely.

The air seemed much cleaner now, interestingly enough. It wasn't perfect, but not nearly as fatal as half the things he had brushed up against this day. Things certainly seemed to be getting stranger at every turn. After a moment of staring at the covered woman, he supposed he could manage to move one more time before resting himself. He certainly didn't have the energy to try and leave this horrible place yet. Rolling his own bed mat out that had been tied to the bottom of his pack, the man carefully shifted the woman's body onto it, propping her head up with some rags he found. It would have to suffice. Slipping her wrist out, he prepared to take her pulse intermittently until she woke up, if she would at all. In the mean time, he would try and tend to his own blistering hand.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Horrific nightmares and sanity-blasting images began to flow through her head. It seemed dehydration and reactive chemicals finally made their mental imprint. She couldn't seem to concentrate, and even as the continually shifted, she couldn't tell if it was a dream as her mind grasped each and created a memory for it. Her pulsed seemed to race and slow in time, at times even having an irregular beat. Even her mouth screamed silently as the illusions took hold.

After hours of the Veritable terror lurking within her mind, it was time for her to once again experience the horror that wasn't a mere fragment of her mind.

After a few undoubtedly stressful hours, the girl returned with at least most of her senses; her head was spinning, her joints ached and her chest begged for water. Yet she still lived, and if nothing else got her, she probably would continue to.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Orup wasn't much of a nurse, but he had done his best with the woman, though it had taken him an hour at the very least to even realize that she would be horribly dehydrated. Mixing without a fire was quite limiting, unfortunately, but he had spent the last several minutes finishing off a concoction that would hopefully supply her system with what it needed. Well, what it really needed was a lot of water, rest, and a skilled physician, but those were things that came outside of a little shack. As he was ready to administer the potion, though, a mixture of hydration, detoxifying elements, and a regrowth hormone, the woman actually stirred.

She had been moving, of course. Orup doubted the dreams were great after you had gone through something like that. This time it seemed like she was actually waking, however. "Try not to move too much, all right? Here, drink this," the man spoke kindly, using his good hand to offer her the drink. He would've simply put it to her lips and poured it down her throat, but the Gerudo were a fighting people, and he didn't know how she would react to that. At least this way she could at least see it coming.

If she drank it, the potion would, hopefully, act in two phases. The first would be a brief pick-me-up, hopefully allowing them to exit the area together. The second phase would be for the longer-term, aiding the body in dispelling the toxins while putting it right back to work at the healing process. It wasn't the sort of thing you gave to a person who might not have access to good nutrients to support that healing, but Orup was confident that if they could make it out of this strange location alive, then they would make it to the care of the Western Caves.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Ven stared at the strange concoction placed in front of her, she weighed her options for a moment before deciding that her options were limited, her fortunes looked a hell of a lot better if she just downed it. After all, her draught was only so effective and the poison had doubtfully cleared her system. She had to trust that the older alchemist wasn’t faking an identity as she was, and that his skill was enough to compensate for the less than ideal conditions.

The potion tingled as it went down, the taste only comparable to vomit as it seemed to stay on her tongue. Thankfully, the vial was genuine, and within a few minutes she was ready to move. That meant either a stimulant or a pain-killer but probably both. With a strong sway, she regained her feet for the first time in hours, but what shouldn’t have happened at all.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Orup's recently fostered ambition couldn't hold up for much longer. This was getting truly insane, no matter what the rewards might be here. Someone or something had made it very sure that anyone who tampered in the area ought to die a horrible death. The older man wasn't sure how much longer he wished to tempt that fate. And for what reward, anyway? He had seen nothing to suggest he might become richer because of his suffering here. This woman was nearly dead, and so far they had received nothing for their troubles. Pursing his lips together, he looked at the door cautiously, having not set foot outside there or even taken a peek since coming back up the ladder. How different could it be...? This place had taken them on one too many crazy turns already, and he didn't know if he could handle another one; the Gerudo certainly could not.

"Just... just wait a moment!" Orup spluttered as the woman stood up. The way she swayed made the man think she wouldn't be on her feet for long, "We have no idea what's out there, and you're far from any condition to travel." What if they opened the door and all those poisonous plants erupted again--what then? He wanted to grab at the woman and force her to lie back down, but he felt awkward doing that to someone only wearing a cloak and nothing else; not that he wanted to touch the outside of it anyway. Orup wasn't sure what to do, but any action they had the option toward made him nervous. The man had already gotten comfortable in the momentary peace of the shack, and he wasn't sure if he was ready to break it.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Ven’s wobbly stance seemed to hold up, albeit swinging like a pendulum clock about to hit noon. And just because her feet held, didn’t mean her stomach did as the little remaining acid within arced toward the rotten and wrapped planks that made up the shack within. The revolting taste of bile filled her mouth in its wake, as the girl collapsed back onto the pile while barely breaking her fall.

Save for shifting to a sitting position, she didn’t move for the next few minutes and merely let the drug run its course and try to repair her body. Of course, they couldn’t wait until the air within was replaced by the airborne poison and their spent breath; once again the only way seemed to be forward.

“We need t-Uh!” Again Ven’s stomach seemed intent on voiding itself, though thankfully there was nothing to bring up on the older alchemist. “We need to go now, we don’t have a lot of air and if the -Uh- potion wears off…” she trailed off, not wanting face that possibility.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

(OOC: Rib said I could. Blame him.)

All arguments between the two occupants came to an utter halt as a heavy blow resounded against the wooden door. Twice more the door shook as something thudded against it, followed by a brief moment of silence. Then--

"By the gods, Mepple, you better be in there!" came a voice familiar to the overweight alchemist--one muffled not just by the doorway, but a familiar voice nonetheless. "And you better be alive!"

It didn't sound very pleased, either.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Orup's head snapped to the door, stunned with fear for a moment at those blows. Who...? That voice--could it be? "Rua!" The alchemist roared with surprise, hope entering for the first time in several hours. He had had no clue how he was going to get out of this in one piece, but his bodyguard had come after him, it seemed. Orup thanked himself again for choosing to save him down in the roots a couple of weeks prior; he had proven to be quite the asset. Moving to the door quickly, Orup motioned for the Gerudo to wait while he brought in the help.

"Quickly, come inside, Rua. Don't let too much of the air in outside!" The door shuffled briefly, admitting the man inside and hopefully little else. Orup caught a glimpse outside, and it seemed to be better, but the air was still certainly polluted enough to cause harm to a man. They were likely all going to be spending the next handful of days throwing up whatever had gotten into their systems.

He coughed once, clearing his throat but not finding much fresh air to fill it, "Talia, this is Rua Dragonheart of the Western Caves. I suppose you followed the trail of poison here, Rua...? It doesn't matter. We need to leave this place as quickly as we can." Orup glanced to the Gerudo woman, hoping she would not be overwhelmed by the newcomer. He certainly was surprised to see the man, but with everything going on he wasn't prepared to spend too much time pondering it. What mattered now was getting everyone back to the caves alive. While Rua's presence was certainly welcomed, there was no telling what it might have triggered out there. The sooner they would leave the better.

Re: The Weeds of Preparation [Raz/Closed]

Ven threw a glance to the door as yet another person entered the small shack which seemed to be getting more crowded as their air even began to drain faster from their little hut. With the oxygen level falling faster, she had no time to reconsider waiting. The amount of poison in the air had increased substantially when this second man entered the room; that meant leaving now was their only option for survival.

She spoke in a dreary voice, but one still annoyed and confrontational “Great, now we have more people breathing the same amount of air, oh wait, you let air out and poison. So now we have less breathing time, and worse air to breathe; so we’re all going to be in worse condition and I have less time to recover. And what do you hope to do anyway? This isn’t exactly something you can just stick a sword in and be done with it. And now that they’ve released more poison in your trail, we can’t go back. That means we have to kill this thing or it kills us. No more time for planning or resting, since the tunnels flooded, the only thing that’s changed should be the lake emptying. Now let’s go, I’m tired of waiting to die.” And walked towards the door, just steady enough that she might fool her companions into thinking her strength had returned.

Just as she was about to open the door, she smiled to herself. Why was she the dominant one in a room with a man twice her age and another she never met before, without her clothes on?

Orup frowned at the woman as she spoke. Where had all this energy come from? The drink he had given her would help her get to her feet, but not much more than that; the way she spoke made it sound like she was fully fit to lead them all out into the poisonous wilderness. Orup wasn't ready to trust the woman with that, especially after what had just happened. For all he knew, she could collapse at any moment. What was perhaps most unsettling was this quick change of character the moment Rua emerged. When he had first met her, she had seemed unassuming and almost dreaming, and now he felt like he had tickled the wrong side of some horrible matriarch. Who was this woman? Either the poison was addling her brains or she was truly insane.

He didn't like it, but he did his best to try and smooth things out as always, "L-look, the drink I gave you isn't meant to be a stimulant, just something to help you move. The poison is still absolutely flooded through your system, and you could collapse at any second, if you're not careful. Y-you'd be much better off letting Rua help you out of this place rather than just running out there." He looked at the woman anxiously before transferring his gaze to Rua, hoping for support.

The trek from the Western Caves after his employer had been long, and the air in this region had been thick, resulting in a miserable, stuffy heat. His cloak, which was bunched up around his face to keep the crap in the air out of his lungs, hadn't made things easier on the mercenary either. His hair was matted with sweat, plastering it against his forehead. Between the lack of visibility of his mouth, the partially visible scars, and the flat look in his eyes, it was clear that Rua was not up for any nonsense.

Goddesses, you can't ever say things are ever dull around this guy, though, he thought irritably. Between what he'd seen outside, and what Mepple had just said about the woman, it was clear that what this Talia woman hoped to do was suicidal at best.

"You're outta your mind, woman," he muttered, staring at the Gerudo like she'd gone mad. "We don't have time for this crap."

And with that, Rua dropped the shield from his left arm closed the gap between himself and the Gerudo woman, ducking under and going to scoop his arms around her legs and throw her over his shoulder. With whatever concoction Mepple had forced down her to combat her condition from the wilderness outside of this dreary shack, there was no way she could hope to stop him.

Great, so now not only had this brute barged into their little unassuming sanctuary, displacing air outside and help poison the rest; he’d also now thrown the girl over his shoulder in a display of marital prowess. It was true that she wasn’t in the best condition, but reaching for a knife on his belt would still be a piece of metaphorical cake (Real cake being unavailable at the current moment).

She had many men who’d want to carry her off, for various reasons, but actually saving her life was a first. Well at least he seemed tough enough to at least survive a short walk; one she didn’t have to add to.