epidemiology | EVENT ★ LABYRINTH III: THE ESCAPE

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EVENT ★ LABYRINTH III: THE ESCAPE

LABYRINTH III

The correct passageway to the inner ring of the maze is hidden behind a thick wall of vines. After cutting through the plants, the structure of the maze is noticeably different: the overgrown plants continue creeping up the walls, but the walls are no longer brick and stone, composed instead of some sort of blue metal with holes and divots carved elaborately into the surface. From some holes gush forth pure, clean water; from others, acidic liquid. The air is cool and crisp, the plants creating a lush, dim environment lit by eerie blue lights spread throughout this section.

The lizards, rats, and other monstrous creatures seem to be absent from this area of the maze, replaced instead by rhinoceros-sized beetles. The beetles each have a single horn protruding from the head, and their hard carapaces make them difficult to kill -- a better method might be to simply climb somewhere high and wait for the beetle to get bored. But unlike the other monsters encountered in the maze, the beetles seem to have something else on their mind beyond wanton violence: they can sometimes be found rolling massive balls of dung throughout the corridors of the labyrinth. (This might explain why the plants are so lush closer to the center.)

There is little time to explore this section of the labyrinth before there's a flicker of light all around and more ALASTAIR recruits suddenly appear, most dressed in a freshly pressed uniform and carrying extra food and supplies. They have been told that the cloaking surrounding Asterion Labyrinth is so strong and complex that Oska was only able to send in a handful of recruits at once for a relief effort.

In order to leave, they'll have to locate the escape mechanism that lies deep within the labyrinth; the remaining Asterion Prison correctional officers know its general location, but not precisely what it entails. All they know is that it will require technological cunning to operate and that it's heavily guarded.

After five days, the portal room is found.

THE PORTAL ROOM

The center of the labyrinth is a large, circular room with a raised platform in the middle. On this platform rests a circle of computer consoles surrounding another platform, on which sits an empty circular frame 2.5m (8') in diameter. This is the dormant portal, and it is now Audentes's task to turn it on and find their way back to Oska.

Because the portal is not made for interdimensional travel, it must be overclocked, which will cause it to burn out and explode once it is used. In order to override the safety protocols in place to prevent such dangerous tampering, the control panels must be unlocked -- and unfortunately, the locks are all complicated puzzles, ranging from the numerical to sliding pieces into place to complete a pattern. There are many of these puzzled scattered around the portal room, and once they are all unlocked, it's a simple matter of flipping the power override switches. Ignore the dangerous humming sound and the way the frame suddenly fills with violent purple energy. That's probably normal.

The new recruits have the correct coordinates to locate Oska, which has temporarily lowered its cloaking shield to allow Audentes to return. So there is a bit of a time crunch.

Adding more to the difficulty of the situation is the presence of a monster lumbering around the circular portal room. Six meters (20') high, the beast is best described as a minotaur, but perhaps not in the traditional sense: while it resembles a bipedal bull, it is an amalgamation of flesh and machine with its body covered in pistons and glowing lights. One of its hands is an enormous axe and it belches fire and acid. Despite its head resembling an herbivore, the piles of desiccated bones scattered throughout the portal room tell a different story.

Upon seeing the group, the minotaur charges. Mavahari, the Zymandis recruit, rushes to meet it with her sword drawn. Inmates and correctional officers do their best to fight it as well, but something becomes quickly apparent: it cannot be harmed by projectile weapons. The machinery of the beast keeps it protected from most attacks, though electricity will stun it and acid will corrode its metal. But in order to injure the minotaur, it must be stabbed between the metal plates where its vulnerable flesh remains.

During the battle, the minotaur fights viciously and without regard for its own safety. The first casualty comes early: the minotaur swings its axe toward Mavahari, who is pushed out of the way by George. The axe connects with him solidly, sending him flying into the wall with a shuddering impact. George lies there still, but there's no time to mourn. The beast continues its rampage.

Once the minotaur is defeated, you'll have to quickly decide what to do with the correctional officers and inmates who have followed Audentes through the Asterion Labyrinth. The overclocked portal won't hold forever, and the longer Oska leaves its cloak down, the better chance they have of being found by their enemies.

OOC NOTES

This log will last for six IC days: five days for exploration and one day at the center of the maze. We have also recently altered the calendar this month, so make sure you review it!

IMPORTANT: Participation in the solution poll is mandatory for August AC. Failure to participate will result in an automatic strike. The only exception is for those who are exempt from August AC. The poll will close on 11 August 23:59 UTC.

If you have any questions about the labyrinth that aren't answered here, please direct them to the Leramzen dossier.

Questions about the game in general should be directed to the FAQ and you may submit mission ideas or player plots at any time.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Current or overall?

[ that's a very broad question, especially for a god. Loki works seamlessly in and out of roles, but there are a few larger one that he encompasses.

there's a weight to him, and reality seems to respond accordingly, either like it's getting comfortable with him, or as if it's waiting for a cue to lift the curtain. ]

The answer is a tad different, but it really depends on the one you're looking for.

[ he rests one of his swords lightly against his shoulder, the other two in one arm.

if he's noticed what sort of person he's in the presence of, nothing in his demeanor seems the least bit affected. ]

Current - here, right now. All of us are different things overall.

I never really got the whole hubbub with staying one thing all the time.

[ it's either an aside or he's talking to himself. regardless, he falls a little quiet, as if in mentally filing through all the concepts of Loki at the current moment before finding one that's acceptably expressed in words. ]

Then I suppose that would be one of the prisoners, yes—stealing back what had been stolen in a noble act of thievery! Unfortunate that it didn't work out the way that it meant to. I don't usually get caught.

[ and he's still a little sore about it. ]

[ the corner of his mouth twitches up. seems pleased to find this out. ]

Ahh. Bit of a thief yourself, huh?

[ it's difficult to tell if this is meant to sound condescending or not: ]

I'm sure you're a perfectly competent one under normal circumstance - was this your first diamond heist?

You could say that. I'm not really a jewels and gold sort of fellow, I like to steal things that have value.

[ he also likes stealing for the sake of stealing, so the thing that he steals never really has to have value as long as it proves a challenge to retrieve. also, you know, if he has to steal a person and money is there, he'll totally take some money. ]

I steal goose hearts from the Island of Silence, like words from ink already dried. My father has a long history of tricks and schemes up his sleeves, and he likes to hide things in the most creative of ways. I like to prove him wrong.

[ there's a hint of a smile. ]

Daddy issues, really.

Edited 2017-08-07 03:11 (UTC)

Well - not the worst reason I've ever heard. And, er, how has it worked for you?

[ got daddy's acknowledgment yet, or whatever?

as he talks, he resumes inspecting the room for any other hidden useful scrap. mostly by pushing junk around with the toe of his boot, looking for anything particularly shiny. ]

[ Loki doesn't seem particularly fazed, finding his own distractions. ]

Well—I was being just a little facetious. [ a pause and a cheeky smile. ] You arrived with the new crew, aren't you?

Edited 2017-08-08 02:15 (UTC)

[ glances at loki, wonders if he really was. not that he's going to press or anything.

but he seems perfectly capable, at least, of holding a conversation while doing his magpie thing. ]

That's me. New kid on the block - or, in the maze, or whatever.

[ he pauses in what he's doing, looks at the wall in front of him for a moment. ]

Thus far, this labyrinth's been a bit quiet - boring, honestly. [ a few beetle attacks in a few days, pffft! he's here for the real action, and he hates waiting. ] But it's not often that I get to enjoy a totally new form of architecture these days - they've got interesting walls, at least.

[ little cw for mentions of cannibalism. ]

[ it's good, because Loki seems to be ready to take that level of levity as far as it will go. the best way to deal with the heavier things in life is to lie until they're yours—so says the god of lies, anyway. ]

It was getting here that was the fun part. Usually our missions tend to end with some kind of bang depending on how strapped and desperate the situation becomes. [ a pause. ] At least people aren't eating each other this time.

[ whaddya know, he feels similarly. ]

Actually... that's how most of my days end, too, basically. [ he crouches down to pick up a shard of mirrored glass, inspecting it.

--though, at the mention of cannibalism, he does look up. not the eating people part. most of his days don't end in eating people. ] Except for that.

Should I ask?

If you don't find out from me, you will eventually.

[ even before Audentes Loki had been accustomed to these sort of happenings. being a being of divinity and living in a place where comic books happen, he's been exposed to a wide variety of every kind of supernatural occurrence that a good author could imagine. ]

A single agent from Zymandis cooked up a rather scary little virus that infected mortals with an insatiable hunger for flesh. It left a majority of Audentes scrambling.

It all turned out all right, but things did get sticky there for a while.

[ rather than reacting with shock, or horror, or disgust, or skepticism... he shakes his head, groans. ]

Viral cannibalism... could you just imagine, if people would actually channel all the time and ingenuity they use up developing incredibly pointless weapons, towards something worthwhile...

[ never gonna happen. ]

The immortals, however - you were fine?

[ an actual "mortal" wouldn't have phrased it quite like that. ]

[ no, an actual mortal would not. from the cavalier way that he drops the term, he doesn't even seem to notice until it's mentioned. ]

Hm? [ oh, Loki. ] Yes, yes—those of us immune to earthly diseases were just peachy. There were a few donations cycling about to find a cure, with the lives of everyone else hanging in the balance and all.

[ it worked, eventually. ]

How very earthly-centric of them.

[ he tsks.

really, just tells him the limitations of one rogue scientist, and the resourcefulness and apparent camaraderie of the audentes, but he files this account away anyway. ]

And, you are...?

[ as for whether he means name or species... well, both, really. ]

[ Earth really seemed like an ongoing theme, but that doesn't necessarily surprise him. the universe likes things that are the same, after all, and ideas resonate. ]

Hm? Ah ... [ he finally turns his attention on him again, and tips his head as if there's a decision to be made. ] Are we doing introductions? Manners dictate that the one asking should go first. [ but from the expression on his face he doesn't really care, but he felt the need to poke at it, anyway. ]

Loki of Asgard. Well met.

[ from the doctor's expression, he doesn't really care what manners dictate, himself, ever.

then his eyebrows climb up a few centimeters. ]

The Doctor. Of everywhere.

You know, I think I've heard some stories about you.

[ hard to tell from his tone whether he actually believes this is THE loki of THE asgard. but he knows it's not outside the realm of possibility; he's met much, much stranger. ]

Edited 2017-08-19 20:48 (UTC)

Most likely. [ most have. it's a rare occasion that Loki meets someone that doesn't know him, or have a specific type of expectations about him. it's worse with those that come from the same type of worlds—less so with those that don't, but still there.

always still there. ] Gods and stories go hand in hand, after all.

[ but his brows do knit together, curious. ]

The healer type of doctor or "I've gone to Midgardian university for far too long" type of doctor?

[ he has a feeling he knows that answer to that, but he has to ask. ]

Edited 2017-08-19 22:15 (UTC)

[ the doctor's met his fair share of gods. or rather, powerful beings that claimed to be; he doesn't believe in any sort of divinity, and he knows not to put too much stock in stories. he knows how humans are. but he's certainly curious about them.

at the question, his eyebrows furrow intensely, and his voice affects a certain gravitas, ]

It's not either-or. I'm the Doctor, the definite article. I'm every type of doctor.

[ whether he's just bullshitting, making puns, telling the truth or possibly mad - all of the above, basically. ]

Every type of doctor? Sounds impressive.

[ if he were asking the question for realsies, he might ask for credentials, but he doesn't, because he seems to get the gist.

Loki had spent time hopping from role to role—one body to another—all in efforts of trying to remake himself. there was always a level of discomfort, as if he wasn't the same in his own body. he feels that kind of disassociation more times than others, when it hits him from nothing. ]

Sort of like a ... Doctor Doctor, then?

[ perhaps a parallel there - though the doctor prefers not to discuss his own body-swapping tendencies. finds the topic uncomfortable, increasingly. and hardly anyone can relate.

meanwhile, he seems to consider this seriously. ]

Yes. If you like.

...But don't call me that, it sounds stupid.

[ he tosses a few things aside from the pile of junk he's still rifling through. then, musingly, ]

I've not been to Asgard, actually. The proper Asgard. I've been to as more places than I can reasonably be expected to remember, but never there, I'm sure. I'll have to ask you for directions later.

Oh, please—I like it.

[ it's mostly to himself. though that doesn't mean he won't respect those wishes, even if he approaches the whole thing with an air of over-exaggerated belligerence. it's fleeting, and won't last.

there's a little hum in his throat at that. after being with ALASTAIR for so long, he wonders if he wants to go back, if they'd take him back. he is still an exile, he supposes. ]

There would be those that call it beautiful, others that call it home. Just don't mention me when you get there, they'll most likely toss you in the less comfortable dungeon.

[ he's at least been called far dumber than 'doctor doctor'. ]

Popular back home, eh? [ quietly, to himself, ] Same, probably.

Then, which of the nine worlds do you prefer? Any recommendations? ...It is only nine, isn't it?

[ seems an awfully small number, but hey. if asgard exists in this guy's universe, then the others must, right. ]

Edited 2017-08-27 04:54 (UTC)

Ten, now—but really, who's counting? It's not as another will alleviate the tension that they all have in the swords against one another's throats.

[ Odin was always hiding things in his tantrums, and a realm really hadn't been a surprise. Loki and Thor had stumbled upon it while seeking out a sibling, even though she did not wish to be found. it had been a precarious time, but there were many of those in Asgard.

going and doing what he wanted was part of being Loki, so when asked about travel accommodations, he finds himself entertaining thoughts of cheap motels in Nidavellir. ]

You may want to find a vineyard in the Napa Valley, instead.

[ glances up curiously. a whole tenth realm? sounds like a pretty big deal, but what does he know. and inter-realm squabbles, how exciting.

but he is but a simple tourist (in theory.) he's serious about wanting to check these places out; thinks he can, once he has transport, at least. ]

Seriously?

I don't think a single good or interesting thing has happened to me in California. Too much sun and cauliflower, and not even one notable alien invasion.

[ a tourist who likes a bit of action.

he also died in california once, though that's a bit personal. ]

[ it was a big deal, but stuff like this is always a big deal for a time, at least until another cataclysmic event reared its ugly head upon Asgard. that tended to happen more than not. ]

Ah, more into New York? A man of my own heart.

[ because where he's from, all the alien invasions happen in New York (or Oklahoma, but you know, personal). ]

Edited (what am i doing) 2017-08-30 22:16 (UTC)

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spacerhyme - 2017-08-31 04:38 (UTC) - Expand

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selfimage - 2017-09-02 12:59 (UTC) - Expand

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