JANUARY DUNGEON

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→ 1/12 Lockdown: The Final Dungeon

When preparations are complete and the team is ready to tackle the dungeons, both Attendants can be found at the castle, with Minato sitting on the armrest of the throne with a plain short sword balanced on his knees, and Souji standing to the side with several backpacks full of food, water, and blankets at his feet. "Last chance to change your mind and join the Champions of the Just," Minato pipes up from where he's sitting. "They've got trail mix." The team he's heading, incidentally, he named the Legion of the Dead and there is no trail mix or any other supplies provided by Minato, because Souji is a responsible leader who comes prepared, and Minato just doesn't care.

A several day hiking trip up the mountains for the sake of team bonding was considered but ultimately vetoed, so Souji simply opens a portal up from the forest shrine's torii to the mountain shrine's, and from there, it's only a short trek through the drifting snow to reach the honden. At the stroke of midnight, each Attendant places their hand flat on their door, the surface glowing bright blue and turning translucent: a one-way barrier swallowing each person whole as they pass through the portals.

Legion of the Dead

It's a straight ten-foot drop once you step through the ofuda door in the castle, with nothing to break your fall but hard stone— or Minato if you happen to be the next person after him. It's a large stone chamber, with two large indentations on the far wall the size and appearance of doors, but neither open when touched or attacked. The only other thing of note in the room is a pedestal at the center with three omamoris slowing burning in a weak flame, one with Rio's name and arcana, another with Kido's, and the last with Yamato's, the same ones that were thrown away at the forest shrine on New Years as a statement of rejection of the Kotengu and his lent powers. Really, it's just Rio and Yamato's, though, because Kido had two omamoris to start with and doesn't need this second one. But with nothing else in the room, the first choice is a time-limited one: will you save the omamoris from the fire so Rio and Yamato can have it to summon their Personas, or will you respect their decision and allow the omamoris to burn to ashes?

Depending on your choice, one of two doors will open.

Champions of the Just

Entering the honden brings the group to a large stone chamber reminiscent of the forest shrine dungeon: a circular hub with a dozen arches along the perimeter, clearly meant to entice the impatient to spread themselves thin. Instead of multiple Shadow ghosts appearing from the ether to ambush the group, however, there is only one: a semitransparent ghostly form of a young boy huddled against the archway on the opposite side of where everybody had entered. He looks to be around seven, with very little distinguishing features other than pale eyes staring at the group. The moment anybody takes a step closer to him, calls out to him, or tries to attack, he starts in fear and turns to run through the archway— anybody who gives chase is met with a barrier; in fact, every other archway is blocked by the same invisible barrier, cutting their potential routes in half.

The rest of the room is empty. There should be a way to get the barriers to drop in one of the five available passageways... Will you proceed all together, or divide and conquer?

There is no Velvet Room within the dungeons, and using a traesto gem or goho-m will only bring you to the beginning of the dungeon in either main hub, not outside. Falling unconscious within the dungeons doesn't bring you anywhere to be revived either; all it means is that your unconscious body lies there to rot or get eaten by Shadows until somebody hopefully saves you. So look after one another in the dungeons, and don't be afraid to rely on your Attendants. Souji will keep everybody safe.

→ MOD NOTES

⬥ Both dungeons are team-based and require some coordination with other members of their team, with some decisions involving the entire team (e.g. Legion of the Dead's first decision regarding the omamoris). The teams will make their way through several rooms to find the exit, either split up or all together, with each room containing a battle, puzzle, decision, or another obstacle. The team as a whole will bear the consequences of the actions taken, so please give each choice careful consideration. As actions may affect subsequent rooms, new rooms will become available after the previous are cleared, rather than all the information given at one time.
⬥ A toplevel for the boss will go up once a team ICly reaches the boss' chamber, and overall, this deadline is the end of the month to avoid IC consequences.

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[ Minato's just messing with him. Maybe. What happened to that confidence from two seconds ago, Toki... ]

It's my actual answer. I'm not the Kotengu. Do you believe me?

[ Does it matter what he answers if Toki's made up his mind already? Why ask. ]

[He can't maintain confidence for that long.]

Yes.

[Because it's a straight answer, and Minato would have killed him already if he was the Kotengu. That's Toki's reasoning.]

I'm sorry, I just... it came to me and I... wanted to be sure.

[ The actual Kotengu could probably kill everybody already if he wanted to, but they're still in the middle of the dungeon, and there's still things here that only they can do, and they have to be alive for it. Whatever the reasoning, though, the baseless trust is appreciated on Minato's end. ]

I don't mind being accused. Better to be safe than sorry, or whatever. It's a cool theory, though... imagine if I were the Kotengu and just forgot.

[ So much would make sense. ]

That would be awful.

[Toki's forgotten a lot of things in his life. Even if they were bad memories, like being a Kotengu, he'd want them back. Just to know. To be so lost is a feeling of despair; when you've found there's something you can't remember at all.]

[ That's just Minato's lot in life, having a memory that looks like swiss cheese ]

I wonder. I don't remember everything yet, but there's been nothing about me being the Kotengu. So far. If there's anything.

Maybe when we defeat him, you'll remember everything.

[The townspeople are talking among themselves and nothing seems to be happening.]

So we just wait for him here?

Maybe.

[ Unless he turns out to be the Kotengu. But that's a problem for the future; for now, he turns his attention back towards the shrine at the top of the steps. ]

But, yeah... There's just people up there, but I'm gonna try something to see if I can find a way to speak to him. Prayer through the offertory box or something.

[ He has to shove up the steps to the box, though, which is crowded with people throwing coins into the box— occasionally hitting somebody or other on the back of the head if they're not close enough to drop it in— and praying for the Kotengu to stop the earthquakes and watch over the town and make sure people get out of the town safe. ]

[Toki and Joroko follow, mostly because Toki wants to make sure the Kotengu doesn't show up and spirit everyone away in seconds, before Rei and the others can get there. The crowd is too dense for Joroko to easily maneuver through, so she returns to Toki's shadow once he makes it to the shrine steps. It will take him a minute to get through, so he shouts up at Minato.]

I prayed to him in another room, but I didn't make an offering. Nothing happened!

Why did you pray to him...?

[ The guy's the enemy-- though maybe he means praying in the same vein as Minato plans to, a way for his voice to reach the tengu god and hear him speak. The crowd makes it hard to get right up to the box, but at least the line is moving quickly, letting Minato reach back and take Toki's hand so he can be there when it's their turn. Into his other hand, Minato presses some coins. ]

Stay close to me. We'll try with offerings this time. If coins don't do it, I've got Shadow stones.

Well, the people there were praying and we were trying to get information and they asked me if I wanted to give a silent prayer to the Kotengu and so I did and I didn't like ask for anything specific or just you know like um, healthy crops!

[It's not that his prayer needs to be hidden, but he thinks that maybe the Kotengu won't grant it if he says it aloud. Toki takes Minato's hand gratefully, all suspicions of him being the Kotengu gone. Toki has not once considered this Kotengu they're waiting for is one from the past, and that his theory could still be right even if the bird shows up.]

Maybe we should use both the coins and the stones, just in case.

'kay.

[ Healthy crops... that's a nice prayer, though not one to give a venerable war god or whatever the Kotengu turns out to be- somebody more focused on fighting and expansion and trade than harvest, at any rate.

Minato digs into his pockets and brings out a handful of gemstones- blue, purple, and orange- and lets Toki know when to move forward in line by tugging him each step of the way, until the tips of their shoes hit the front of the box, and all the chatter is behind them instead of all around. ]

The box is in front of you. Drop the coins and I'll drop the stones. Then I'll ring the bell.

Okay...

[Toki hesitates for a moment, trying to decide if he should drop all the coins in at once, or individually. All at once. Then the Kotangu might see it as a big offering, instead of different small ones.]

Come forth, Kotengu-san~!

[ Minato also lets the stones drop all at once, clattering loudly before being drowned out by the toll of the bell that he pulls just the twice. ]

Yo, Kotengu. We want to talk to—-

[ "Have all the people been gathered?" A low, slightly gravelly voice sounds behind them, and it's great that Toki is blind so I don't have to describe anything visually. Though not loud, the voice has a certain weight to it, compounded by the fact that most of the conversation dies out when the voice is heard. ]

...Not yet. Not everybody's here.

[ Minato keeps a tight hold on Toki's hand as he moves through the crowd, trying to position themselves in front of the Kotengu instead of to his side or back. Not that it makes a difference, when the Kotengu can just turn, but he wants them to be in the center of the crowd instead of the outskirts where they're more likely to be ignored. ]

[It just appeared behind them! Toki is internally screaming, imagining the Kotengu in the most monstrous way his brain thinks up. He stays slightly behind Minato and probably would have run off if his hand wasn't still held tightly.]

P-please wait for everyone, Kotengu-san!

[ The Kotengu sure is... hm. Minato has to look up at him, but he's also on the shorter side of things compared to other people. However the tengu appears, though, none of the townspeople seem to be scared of him at all, pleading for him to wait because their husband isn't here yet, or they can't find their grandmother, etc. but their cries are drowned out by a tremor that runs through the ground. Somewhere under their feet, the foundation to the shrine cracks, and the ground tilts just enough to be noticeable.

"I will hold off as long as I can, but realistically, we do not have much time," the Kotengu's voice raises above the crowd. "The town will be engulfed soon, and I must bring you all somewhere safe. We cannot save everybody. Any longer, and we shall all perish." ]

...Toki, where is everyone? You said they were coming?

[ Or are they still out there playing hero, trying to save a dying world? ]

[The shifting ground starts off a little panic inside. He shouldn't have left Rei, not for some ridiculous confrontation with Kotengu!Minato. What was he thinking?]

I don't know that they're coming! I mean, I didn't talk to anybody and I just assumed they'd get here like they were supposed to and help the villagers get here and I don't know!

[Why is Minato asking him?]

I'll go get them!

[He tries to pull his hand from Minato's grip.]

[ He will not go get them. Minato's grip is tight, and although his strength exceeds even Terry's demigod level strength when he feels like it, he's still light and easily pulled if Toki tries to run. ]

They'll come. Trust them a little. I wanted to come here first so we'll be sure the Kotengu doesn't leave without everybody, remember? Help me stall him- ask him something.

[Well, the good news is, at least one of them is here! He's got a family with him - a mother and a father both carrying children, and Sasuke carrying a third child on his back. So there's at least five!]

[Good job, Sasuke! Please ask better questions than Toki will...

Stall and ask him something. Toki can do that.]

Uh, Kotengu-san! How are you this fine evening?

[Is it evening?]

[ Five plus Toki's seven makes twelve, but Minato can't tell how much of the townspeople are still unaccounted for as he looks back over to the rooftops past the trees. Likely... there'll be people who have already died, who they'll be waiting for forever and will never show up.

Minato raises his arm over the heads of the crowd to get Sasuke's attention, though Toki's head probably sticks up from the crowd pretty clearly. As does the Kotengu, a large opposing figure with a long black cape draped around him, a crow's beak of a mask or maybe that's his face, neither of them are close enough to be able to tell.

The guy needs no introduction, so Minato refrains from yelling anything silly like "Hey, Sasuke, that's the Kotengu!" and instead tries to tug Toki away from the Kotengu and towards Sasuke to join them together, because oh boy the Kotengu looks mad somehow even though he can't clearly see his face. "My town is being destroyed and my people are dying," is his curt response. How does Toki think he's doing? ]

[It's okay, once he's allowed the child to slide off his back and said his goodbyes to the family before running back to his team, he'll be the stupid sixteen year old all like:]

--The Kotengu?!

[He... didn't really expect him to show up in the flesh, because Sasuke's too frazzled from the current situation to realize this is still the past's Kotengu, not the present.]

What's causing all of this-?

I apologize, Kotengu-san!

[Oh shit. Toki looks horrified at the Kotengu's response, and he'll attempt to hide behind Minato and Sasuke. He won't ask any more questions. What was he thinking? Making small talk for a distraction when people are dying.]

[ The Kotengu, at least, doesn't immediately strike Toki down for his lack of awareness, although he doesn't get the chance to answer, either, once Sasuke asks that question.

Rather than the Kotengu, it's the townspeople who answer Sasuke, both fear and fury in their voices. They tell him that it's the doing of the Daitengu— that they disagree with the people's decision to follow the Kotengu and instead of being protectors of nature, they're now turning nature against them. It's the Daitengu's fault there are earthquakes and mudslides happening, and they don't care of the people here die— if they have to be coerced into turning against the Kotengu, that's what the Daitengu will do. They value nature over the lives of people, and don't care of all the townspeople are wiped from the town, because the animals and plants will still thrive and that's all they care about, not like the Kotengu who will save them and bring them all somewhere safe, far far away from this hellhole of a place controlled by the Daitengu.

Minato sort of looks back over to the set of stairs, hoping for more people to show up soon. ]

[ After rounding up and performing first aid on people who didn't get healed all the way with Rei's Dia, Terry finally arrives with a lot of people. There's probably twelve, thanks to Vassago's quick work. Vassago helped carry some more injured people too. Terry sees the Kotengu, and honestly, he doesn't care. After getting the townspeople here, he just looks off into the forest for a second or two and goes back to help Rei get to the shrine and its million steps on the stairs, because she was the one spamming healing spells. ]

[ She will certainly need help getting to the shrine because she's passed out somewhere down in the village so thanks for getting her, Terry. She'll just sleep this off until someone wakes her up. ]

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compendiem - 2020-01-29 16:38 (UTC) - Expand

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