@Rein and @Seth Evergreen , giving y'all some extra time to post since I went over my own time the other day. If you don't post by around this time tomorrow, you will be skipped
As Seth looks around his surroundings he marvels at the interior design of the mansion. It clearly hasn’t been inhabited in years but it was obviously made with care. It's unfortunate that this place had to end up as a hotspot for the dead, he would’ve liked to live here if he got the chance. Seth crouched down onto the ground and gingerly swiped the surface of the floor. Large amounts of dust scattered around the area of his touch and he nearly coughed at the amount that got into his face. The eerie lighting of their surroundings put Seth on edge and he almost missed the small notification on his HUD. A small question mark that he distinctly remembers not being there before. He doesn’t feel any different but he doesn’t want to take any chances. Seth decides that for as long as he has this on his hud he needs to be on high alert for any anomalies. No telling what could happen to him, or worse, everyone else with the proper trigger. Seth tries his best to ignore the floating of objects around the corners of his vision but can’t suppress a flinch when something moves in their direction. “Geez if you want to play so bad at least show yourself”, Seth mutters. He always liked children back at home. He always felt invigorated when watching them being happy. Reminded him of himself at times. This, however, had the complete opposite effect. He probably should’ve just stuck to non-VR games. When heard Aaron suggest searching the attic and then the basement he thought the plan was viable. While he didn’t want to end up dying for his first time in this game he didn’t want to miss out on anything either. “Nah. I don’t need a prayer, this should be a good experience for me anyway.” Seth didn’t make a move to reject the ruffling of his hair. He had already resigned himself to being the “kid” of the group. “Here we go.”, he said as he heard the doors slam shut behind him along with several clicks. “So before we continue anyone else got a strange notification on their HUD? Don’t want any surprises.” Thrown die: 1
Rein cackled in near the now shut door, it was a slow laugh that grew in his chest as the larger man tried the door to no avail, "Looks like we are all stuck here together!!!" he said with a laugh as he began to dance into the room. After a short number, Rein began to stride across the room, trying to kick the various pieces of furniture that only moved somehow when one wasn't looking. Once that got boring after a few seconds he moved on to kicking the windows only to find they were somehow glued shut. As he turned back to the group he noticed Aaron was holding a full conversation with the air, before turning to the other players seemingly ignoring his presence. Rein tilted his head back and roared with laughter at the sight, "MAN I THOUGHT I WAS CRAZY, THIS GUY I NEXT LEVEL!" He seemed to be being pointedly ignored by the others up to this point, likely they were terrified of his presence for some reason, sometimes he simply had that effect on people. Well since they were more concerned with each other, or in that one guy's case the air. Rein really didn't mind, pushing past a few of them as he made his way to the left staircase. This place was great, he could see himself settling down here, it just had an energizing vibe to it, that made him want to dance. Rein suddenly had an idea as he took the stairs to the next floor for a brief moment, before rushing back down and flashing the group a smile full of daggers. "I heard a scream..." he whispered in a small voice as if keeping a secret. He couldn't maintain the demeanor long however as he erupted into a bout of laughs again as he ran back to the stairs on the left, heading to wherever they led in a quick gait. Thrown die: 9
The party agreed to go up the stairs, which is a good thing, as the stairs only go up. Now they were faced with the decision of going up the right stairs, or going up the left stairs. Luckily, Rein seemed to make that decision for them. Rushing up the left set of stairs, he would find himself in a hall of doors and paintings depicting various figures. Each picture seemed older than the last, and it was a good assumption that it was generational portraits of the family who once lived here. The hallway was relatively short compared to the mansion's size and all the rooms lined up were locked. At the end of the hall stood a gigantic arch that leads into the master's chamber. The chamber is decorated with a single painting and numerous mystical artifacts. Chalices, mirrors, and a false source of light shines through the curtains. The single painting depicts a well dressed man, with a strange look upon his face, as if torn between morose sorrow or morbid joy. He may have been the previous proprietor of this building before it became the abandoned wasteland that you see now. A single king size bed accompanies this room and on an otherwise empty desk rests a folded piece of paper, with writing of some kind on it. If Steele's prayers were heard, no indication was given. Yet it raised the question - did his braved effect come about from his prayers, or his prayers from feeling braved? A second question mark would appear beside the first in Seth's HUD. Now, he would feel his hair standing on end. He would feel warm breath on his ears, followed by indiscernible whispers. Yet there would be nothing behind him if he turned to look. If these meant something, it seemed he would soon learn what. The shadows of the mansion seemed to move when he wasn't looking directly at them. Rein would feel a slight burst of confidence as well. If the NPC was aware of such things as status effects or HUDs, he might know that he too now was under the "braved" effect. OOC: Party rolls total: 53 (18) @Aaron Steele 18 @Seth Evergreen 5 @Mahlthor Oakenheart 12 @Rein 18 Round four has begun. My apologies that this took so long, dealing with moving and family drama.
As the males, words of bravery seemed to go unheard he'd shift his gaze about, "No...it seems that this place is beyond the reach of my lord, but that does not mean I can not still be his vessel. I'll do what I can to see justice done." he'd say smiling almost enjoying this bit of roleplay within the game, Arching a brow he heard no screams but figured perhaps this was his way of joining in on the game "Come, the odd one has decided our path, up the stairs....let us make haste. There is no telling what these spirits might do if we get caught alone." Feeling expressively brave he'd charge up the stairs finding himself staring upon a hall. As he slowly walked down it, he'd analyze his surroundings various photos of people, progrprogressing in age, "This is some sort of family kept place, dating back several generations...lets check the rooms..." he'd say checking each door only to realize that they were locked; yet with each check he'd note the name or details about each person in the photo. "You think one of these men was that voice from earlier?" He'd ask curiously before shifting his gaze to the odd one, "Where was that scream coming from?" he'd ask as he made his way further into the building. His body coming to a complete stop upon an odd Archway. His lips parting he'd look back at the others, "So am I the only one going to try and enter this room or are yall afraid the obvious trap is too obvious." he said with a chuckle. Walking forth inside he'd enter the chamber and immediately notice the singular photo upon the wall. Yet about the room all the various chalices, mirrors and odd light coming from beyond the curtain. Eyes shifting he'd laugh, "You know damn well once we open that curtain there is going to be a ghost and then one of the epic Scooby doo scenes is gonna break out. We'll run through one of the many doors out there and appear at a different part some strange force causing it. It'd be fun though, but I doubt the end of this will be some silly villain in a mask." he'd say hoping his words might put Seth at ease; had this terrified him so. Whatever it was bothering the boy was unbeknownst by Steele but the mood in the air was definitely one that anyone could sense; paladin or not. Things seemed tense and somewhat on edge; every step they took. Every action made like a set of eyes were watching them just waiting to react and adjust their fates accordingly. He knew it was a game but he couldn't help but wonder if existence itself was a game. What if he much like this avatar was controlled by another, who seemed controlled by another and in reality, this endless game played out through infinite tiers such deep and odd thought seemed to distract him from the goodies which must be extremely tempting to those who were theifs or had alignments with more questionable morals. His eyes shifting as he snapped out of his thoughts and shifted to the single painting of a well-dressed man, with a strange look on his face, was it morose sorrow or morbid joy. Whatever it was he must have been the previous proprietor of this building before it became the abandoned. Why else would his picture remain intact upon the wall and not outside like the others? Even if he wasn't then who ever took over seemed to have respect enough for him to not defile it, unlike the unkempt shrine down stairs. The photo appeared relatively cared for; if not maybe it was just the quest bait. The real target of his attention in the room; given it being next to a king size bed. "Alright, well time to start searching around this bitch. I suggest you all start searching for secret doors, maybe remove some books from the bookshelf or open some drawers. At the very least we might find a key that opens some other door around here. Right?" he'd ask as he himself took to the search. As he turned to examine the bed further. He'd note the empty desk beside it. Reaching over to a folded piece of paper, with writing of some kind on it. He'd attempt to open it and read what was going on? "Hey guys, I believe I've found something. This paper seems like it might be important or what not. At least I think, seems to be written by someone who lives here." Meanwhile it would appear that the shadows which moved about seemed to be closing in on them if not Seth who would be suffering from their plague. Thrown die: 10 +1 Illumancy
(So I believe that both @Seth Evergreen and @Mahlthor Oakenheart are away from the site. @Rein, think you could try to post soon, so at least the two of you could continue?)
With a sudden burst of enthusiasm Rein bolted up the stairs pushing past the man lazily walking up it. What kind of guy was this? He said someone was screaming but he was busy looking at paintings? What a weirdo! The fact that Rein had made it up entirely shouldn't matter in the least bit. As he reached the top of the stairs Rein quickly examined the room like a cat might a stray dog. Meaning in a blur catching only the valuables in his eyes. Wasting no time he went to each of the exotic artifacts in tandem, picking them up staring at them from different angles, licking them, and generally observing them as he decided to determine their worth. That said, Rein is by no means an archeologist, or even a pawn store salesman, he had no idea how much anything was worth inside this house. The antiquity vase? Worth only the noise it made as he punted it into the floor with a bang. The small sculpture of a naked woman running in fear? Throw to the window in an attempt to break it. Of course, the figure just bounded off the pane much to Rein's infuriation. "PIECE OF JUNK!" he yelled grabbing an entirely different sculpture about twice the size and many different shades of red, "I said, you get to leave!" Rein screamed for the first time today, before hurling yet another piece of art at the window. It bounced off as well. Foaming at the mouth Rein circled around investigating the others in the room. It had seemed the weird guy from before was still talking to himself in long monologues that Rein couldn't push himself to listen to even if he wanted. He seemed to have found a piece of paper. He seemed to think the piece of paper was important. Rein used his aeromancy to force a huge gust of wind in the room, aiming to scatter it on the floor. "HUHAHAHAAHAH!" He screamed loudly in enjoyment at his antics, before literally bouncing up and down in place. He was still channeling his mana in a wordless spell that covered his body in arcs of lightning. The effect wasn't as frightening as useful, as the spell greatly increased his speed, and reaction time, as well as gave everything around him a mild shock. As a side effect, it felt reaaaaallly good. Off the high of the energy, Rein ran straight to a window, flinging himself head first at the pane, aiming to break through it in a single bound. Thrown die: 2
