EVENT ★ LABYRINTH III: THE ESCAPE

[futurologists]

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.

Comments

it's cool!

[rebells]

[He whirls at the sound of that shout, throwing himself to the ground with impressive speed, but it still might have been too late, had it not been for Lucina's intervention. It definitely would have been too late for the control panel, and who knows what an axe crashing into one of those would have done for the touchy mechanisms.

He blinks, his gaze flickering over to her before settling back on the minotaur battle, and props himself up on one elbow. He's breathing a bit hard but otherwise doesn't seem that visibly shaken.]

I am. Thank you for looking out for me. [He knows how to be polite, at least.]

[tolight]

[ She would only hope that whoever designed this prison would have accounted for something like that — but then, she's also not entirely certain. The machine could have exploded, they could have been severely injured, and one stray axe may have been the downfall of Audentes.

Good news is, none of that happens — and when she turns, everything's unharmed. Relief crosses her features, a sigh escaping her lips; she adjusts the grip on her sword so that she can carry it with one hand ( for now, the minotaur seems to be preoccupied with those fighting on the front lines ), so that the other can be offered to help the stranger up. ] Not at all. It's the least I could do.

— How is it faring? [ The rebuilding of the portal, she means, eyes flickering to the glowing contraption. They won't be able to escape until the monster has been taken care of, but that doesn't mean she can't be anxious. ]

[rebells]

[He takes her hand, after a moment, and hauls himself up. The control panel is thankfully undisturbed by the skirmish and seems to be displaying an altered version of Minesweeper. He frowns at it.]

The failsafe mechanisms they've used are a bit odd. But straightforward, once you get used to them. Assuming no one does anything stupid, we should have this portal open relatively soon.

[tolight]

[ Good luck with Minesweeper, Jay, don't accidentally blow anything up. ] Odd? [ A useless question in the long run, and largely unproductive; but she's still curious at the end of it, the word tumbling out of her before she can think about it. How could it be odd—

But at least she manages to catch herself in time, nodding a little more solemnly. ] We'll do what we can to keep ... it [ the Minotaur ] off of you. How much longer will you need?

[rebells]

[His lips quirk up a little; he'd be happy to explain himself, but now isn't exactly the time.]

About . . . oh, three to five minutes, for this one. I can't guess how long the whole operation will take without seeing the other panels--hopefully not more than another hour or two.

[tolight]

An hour or two... [ Naturally, her lips thin, eyes narrowing just a fraction as she turns to watch for the monster they're fighting. They should be able to hold it off for another hour or two, based on sheer numbers ( more importantly, fighters ), alone, but... ]

... Once the portal goes up, [ She begins, once she's turns back to Jay, ] I presume the creature should be defeated. [ Unless they feel like bringing it to Oska. ]

[rebells]

That would be ideal, yes. Although I suppose we could just run very quickly.

[tolight]

... I'd rather avoid having it tear up the castle. [ Except instead of what should be a dry, sarcastic tone, she's 100% serious about this.

Anyway— ] It seems we have our work cut out for us, then. [ You know, considering that the minotaur continues to rampage. ] Will you be alright?