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Post by Beistmild on Oct 1, 2023 16:17:26 GMT -5
Fish darted around, looking for their next meal among the kelp and coral on the sea floor. An eel poked its head out to grab one of the fish, but retreated back into its hole in the rock as a large shadow passed overhead. "It's nice of you to accompany me on this little research expedition. Not many people I know both have a way to breathe underwater for an extended period of time and would have any interest in finding such a creature." Beist said happily as he swam along. The usually fluffy beast man looked quite different from usual thanks to the effects of his transmutation tonic. Instead of thick grey fur all over his body, he instead had a scaly blue hide covered with a pattern of white spots like that of a whale shark on his back and arms with white scales on his stomach and chest. His normally very beat-like face looked more human, with a grey beard and a wide nose. His short grey hair drifted slightly in the water around the horns on his head that refused to go away no matter what form he took. Along with the horns, he also still had his second pair of arms whose hands had webbing between the fingers and his tail which was now tipped with a fin instead of its usual tuft of fur. On the sides of his thick neck were a pair of gills. "Now, I think it was around here... Too bad I couldn't bring the map underwater without ruining it. It's a bit hard to tell, but this should be the right place... I think..." Beist mumbled and looked to Taki. He put two hands on his waist and crossed two arms in front of him as he looked around the unfamiliar area. He brought out a small crystal ball from a bag on his waist and looked into it, but the image of the map stored inside it didn't help much underwater The X on the location didn't show anything other than sea. He put it back into the pouch with a sigh. Maybe he'd been lied to. The two had set off on a small expedition to get a good look at a gargantuan sea creature said to be in this area, the Titan Stonefish. But, all they could see was a huge coral reef. A lovely sight, but not the giant sea creature he'd been trying to get a look at. Quest Name: Trapped! Participants: Two or more Location: Anywhere Post Requirements: 5 posts per person, 200 words per post Reward: +1 Mystical Archive Ticket, +1 Mysterious Reward Description: You find yourself as the main character in a Black Harvest story! Write out a spooky or scary story where you find yourself trapped in a dangerous or suspenseful manner. The location, villains, and details of the story are completely up to you, as long as this year's theme is obvious and consistent throughout the topic.
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 2, 2023 4:00:48 GMT -5
Upon receiving a letter from Beistmild a few days ago, Taki had gathered up the whole of her companions for an excursion. While for herself and her fellow researcher it would be a work trip, she wanted to reward her companion's hard work for the past year in some way. Gathering everyone (except Rina, who wanted to stay home), they packed up in two groups, Taki with Kamina would be riding Hakaze, while Shuna and Shion would be following with Hanehiko. Yukina would be flying along side the group.
"Alright everyone, settle down. I know this is a sudden event but you've all been amazing companions, family to me. You deserve some rest and time off just as much as anyone else, so we're going to head over to the beach to meet up with Beist again. While he and I do some research, you'll be out camping together on a nearby island. I've packed enough provisions for everyone, but feel free to enjoy this time to yourselves however you wish while I'm away. My only request is that you all spend your evenings together so no one gets lost."
"Yes, Taki!!" The group said in unison before quickly splitting up into smaller conversations. It didn't take long with this much excitement to get them loaded and ready to go. By mid morning, they were soaring over the coast, following Beist's rough description of the location to meet. Yukina was the first to spot Beist down on the beach, wandering about looking for something. While they were still some ways away, Taki leaned down and gave Hakaze a pat before directing them to land off the coast on a small isle. After getting her companions settled and unpacked, she bid them farewell before taking the form of a Drake herself and heading out to meet up with her fellow researcher.
Landing on the beach a short distance away, she shifted back to her usual form and walked over to Beist. After a short greeting, the two wasted no time and jumped right into the clear coastal waters and started swimming out to the spot Beist had picked out. Taki swam beside them, observing the wide variety of creatures that reefs were known for. In a similar fashion to a jungle or rain forest on land, it was teeming with life. Dense and varied populus of plants and animals gathered around these sparse coastal pockets, driving diversity through competition.
"It's nice of you to accompany me on this little research expedition. Not many people I know both have a way to breathe underwater for an extended period of time and would have any interest in finding such a creature." Beist said as they swam along. "Now, I think it was around here... Too bad I couldn't bring the map underwater without ruining it. It's a bit hard to tell, but this should be the right place... I think..." After stopping for a moment to consult a magical device, she could tell he seemed frustrated. They'd come to observe a giant of the deep, and while the reef was a beautifully vibrant subject, it wasn't what he was promised. Or... so they thought...
As the pair of adventurers moved closer to the mound of stone and vibrant life living upon it, the stone watched back through veiled eyes nearly as big as Beist. Resting upon the sea floor, it waited hungrily for anything and everything big enough to gobble up, watching these new snacks approach it so very conveniently.
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 2, 2023 10:52:44 GMT -5
"Hmmm..." Beist hummed as he looked around. He was sure he'd read the map correctly, gone the proper distance from the small island he'd met Taki on. How could such a giant sea creature be so hard to find? The thing was supposed to be big enough to swallow a house! So where was it?
"It should be here. Do you think it moved?" Beist asked both Taki and himself. He turned his back to the coral reef to look to Taki with a sad face, the excitement he'd had on the way here draining away as he thought the creature might not be ehre anymore. He didn't notice a crack in the side of the reef open up behind him.
Beist let out a surprised yelp as a sudden rush of water sucked both Beist and Taki into the crack in the stone which sealed behind them as if it had never been there. The Titan Rockfish closed its eyes again, satisfied with the fairly large meal. It normally didn't bother even moving for most creatures that came near it, but this had looked like a large enough meal to be worth the energy of moving.
Beist hardly knew what happened. One moment, he'd been in the water wondering if this had all been a waste of time, and the next moment everything was dark and he was lying on his back, disoriented.
"Taki? Are you there? What happened? Oh, I can't see a thing! It's too dark in here, wherever here is." Beist asked slowly, trying to stand up and feel around him. It felt like he was standing in a shallow pool of slime. His hand touched something to his side that felt like a stone wall. Were they underground? What was this slime on the floor? Wait, was he breathing air again? And what are all those noises echoing around them?
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 9, 2023 20:31:07 GMT -5
About to respond to Beist's questions, the shaman felt the powerful suction of the waiting creature a moment before being pulled in. Tossed about by the current of water and the sudden halt that proceeded it, she lay there staring into the putrid darkness for a few moments. A heavy, slow rumble seemed to emanate from the chamber they found themselves in. Slowly peeling herself from the odd, slick surface she was laying on, she could hear Beist in the distance but couldn't see much. With an arcane gesture, she cast a series of Lights into the chamber. They fanned out across the space, offering a pleasant glow that Taki was almost instantly regretting. Spotting Beist, she walked over to him across the gross, fleshy floor with a solemn look and a heavy sigh.
"Well Beist... it seems we're getting a very personal tour of the inner workings of our friend... In essence, the reef we were exploring is the fish... or at least that's what I'd suspect is happening." Taki replied, wondering what in the world the pair were going to do to get out of this. While they could use brute force and powerful magics to make their own exit... where would that leave this creature? What about the entire ecosystem that lives on it's back? No... they needed to find a less destructive solution if their research was to be of any value or held as credible.
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 9, 2023 23:23:08 GMT -5
Beist was still looking around, confused and a bit disoriented from being tossed around by what felt like being dragged by a strong current. He was relieved to see some lights start to float around and illuminate their surroundings a bit. He didn't very much like being in pitch blackness. However, the light didn't immediately tell him where they'd suddenly found themselves.
"A personal tour of the inner workings..." Beist repeated as he looked around some more now that there was some light. He noticed that the walls seemed to be moving. Despite having a rough texture that reminded him of stone, they were clearly a much more flexible material. And the liquid they were standing in seemed to be a thick bile-like substance. And the rhythmic sounds echoing around them reminded Beist of a heartbeat and breathing, along with... Ah...
"We're in its stomach... Hm... Well, this is quite the conundrum. When I said I wanted to see the Titan Rockfish, I didn't mean from the inside." Beist sighed, more concerned that he wouldn't be able to observe the Rockfish than he seemed to be about the fact that he and Taki had been eaten alive. He put two hands on his hips and crossed two arms in front of his chest as he pouted about his research trip being ruined. Or was it?
"Maybe this isn't the worst thing! Who else can say they'd gotten such an up close look at such a creature? This is fascinating. Even the inside looks like stone. I wonder how often it eats if it stays so still that a whole reef grew on its back. Do you think it will eat anything else while we're in here?" He started to go on one of his usual rambles, noting down anything he could observe from within the giant creature's stomach. Unfortunately, something a bit concerning disrupted his observations.
"Is it just me, or do your feet feel a bit... tingly...?" He asked Taki with a bit of concern in his voice.
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 10, 2023 15:32:06 GMT -5
"Tingly... not at this very moment, but it may have something to do with the goop you're covered in. Perhaps it is some sort of pre-digestive, or digestive function?" Taki had been careful to stand on higher areas as she moved about, not wanting to get stuck in the festering goop that coated about half the floor. While she didn't have a good way to help Beist clean the gunk off, she did her best to not get wrapped up in the mess herself.
Looking about the chamber more closely, she could see that it was indeed some kind of stomach chamber, though this one hadn't begun to fill with the caustic brew usually found in such a place. Perhaps the creature digested enmasse, saving up energy until it's gullet was properly fed before starting the harder chemical processes that break down food into it's various parts. As she took notes, she hopped from dry spot to dry spot, landing carefully on the fleshy surface with a light touch.
Looking around, she noticed odd structures within the stomach, some kind of overly large, whip-like appendages that protruded from various places. She watched their movements carefully, some drooping in place as if inactive or asleep, while others flailed and whipped about lazily by some unseen mechanism. While it was all very fascinating, Taki wasn't keen to be here any longer than they need be. There was no telling when the next meal might get swallowed, and turn this whole place into an acidic bath of mammoth proportion.
"As much as I would like to observe as long as possible, we should not dally here... we need to come up with a plan for escape, as I've got no intention of being this critter's meal... I'd prefer not to make my own exit but I will if need be."
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 10, 2023 18:07:50 GMT -5
Beist looked down at the gunk on the floor of the stomach chamber with a grimace of disgust. He made his way onto a couple of dry spots, one foot on each, and shook his feet off as best he could. At least he currently didn't have fur for the stuff to soak into.
"Yes, I'd have to agree. As much as I can't blame an animal for being hungry, I'd really rather not be digested either. I don't want to hurt it though. It's not its fault it mistook us for a meal. Let's just try to find its mouth. I'd much rather go back out the way we came in than out the other way if you know what I mean." Beist said with a slight chuckle.
Having said that though, it was much easier said than done. The stomach was pitch black except for where Taki's magic lit it up and it was incredibly large. It felt more like they were standing in some giant cavern than a stomach, other than the sounds and movement of the walls. Along with the acidic sludge they'd have to try their best to avoid walking in. It was too bad Beist hadn't brought Dora or any of his other flying companions. He didn't want to bring them underwater with him since it would have been too dangerous. None of them could breathe underwater like he could, and that was only thanks to his tonic.
"Hmm. Now, which way should we go? It's hard to tell what side's the front and what side's the back in here..." He muttered as he looked around, trying to decide a way. They really had nothing to go on to tell them which direction the mouth was in. With a shrug, Beist just picked a direction and started walking, using the dry spots as stepping stones. He kept the stomach wall to his left and stayed close to it as it was the only way to even keep track of what direction they were moving.
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 11, 2023 17:06:31 GMT -5
Taki watched Beist from her perch on dry ground, tossing Lights along his path to help survey the area. Soon one side of the monstrous cavern of a stomach was peppered with magical motes of radiance, showing them the scope of the room. It had to be no less than 50 yards across, and about half as tall... cavernous was putting it lightly, this could serve as a grand ballroom or concert hall for royalty and the like...
Beist came to an opening after walking along the perimeter, about at chest height in his current form, the currently closed flaps of flesh were shut tight by heavy muscles within. Taki bound across the dry spots of the cavern to catch up to him, lending her own observations as they gained new knowledge.
"I think the strange appendages, the whip structures, are here to stir things about when the chamber fills, and help to empty it into the deeper bowel when it's needed. This is likely the 'exit' to said bowel... do we really wanna take this route?" Taki questioned, figuring things might be easier on them if they could exit the way they'd entered... She also wasn't keen on risking what might lay deeper within such a creature. One could only guess at the hazardous environment waiting beyond, what sorts of caustic chemicals and dangerous creatures lived within this gargantuan sea beast. She wasn't sure of either route at the moment, but given the choice she'd prefer the cleaner option of not following the process of this fish's other meals.
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 12, 2023 11:06:19 GMT -5
Beist looked at the closed hole with a shake of his head.
"No, no, an in-depth look at this creature is one thing, but those depths are another. On the bright side, now we know which side of the stomach we are on. Now we just needs to head back the other way to find the mouth and get out of here." He said with a smile, trying to keep a cheerful attitude in this situation. Welp, they were on the exact opposite side of the stomach from the mouth and now they had to walk all the way across it again, avoiding stepping in the acidic sludge, and barely able to see.
As Beist turned around and began walking back along the lit up wall, he paused as he heard a strange sound. Was that water rushing? He thought for a moment they were about to be hit with a wave and forced into the hole against their will, but the water that reached them was only high enough to lap at Beist's ankles. Which was still quite a height of water for Taki to handle. Beist wrapped his tail around her to make sure she wasn't washed away in the sudden flood.
As quick as the water had rushed in, it drained away until there was only the layer of sludge again. Beist looked around with a fascinated look on his face.
"How interesting. The walls must be permeable to allow water to pass through them. I didn't see any holes in the floor or walls to let it out. That also explains the air in here. It must use the force of water being sucked into its mouth to pull its prey in and then drains the water in order to do so again. A remarkable way of hunting. So it must have just-" Beist started to ramble, but suddenly realized something that made him stop and look at Taki with worry. "It must have just eaten something else..."
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 12, 2023 11:47:51 GMT -5
Taki rose and fell with the rush of water that came, just as fascinated by the speed it drained as Beist was. She picked her landing carefully, as the underlying pools of acidic goop shifted around beneath her. She peered deep into the gloom, wondering what creature or creatures had been unfortunate enough to join them.
"I'll scout ahead if you want to follow the light trail back to where we began. Likely whatever it is that got swallowed is either suffocating without water, or about to be rather upset and we'll be walking into a fight. Either way, I can take wing and at least find out what's ahead."
Taki crouched after explaining her plan to Beist, then shot forward and slightly up with all the force she could muster. Near the peak of her jump, her body shifted into a Snow Owl and went soaring off into the gloom. It was tricky to keep herself aloft without getting too close to the top of the chamber, or dipping too low and getting pulled down by the currents her wings created. It only took a few moments to get close to the other side of the chamber, the trail of lights helping guide the pair across. She scanned the area with keen eyes that pierced the gloom, spotting a group of the flailing tendrils engulfing... something.
She descended closer to get a view of what was entangled, and quickly banked away as a gout of flame shot out from the struggling beast. Recognizing what had been eaten, and wondering how in blazes such a thing had come to the reef, she went back in search of Beist to warn him about what lay ahead. Finding them a few moments later, she carefully picked a landing spot just ahead of him and shifted back to her normal body as he approached.
"So... it did eat something, but that's not going to make our journey easier... for some bizarre reason, there's a smaller Hydra tangled up in these weird appendages and it is... less than thrilled, as you might have seen from the flash of light and flame ahead. Any ideas?"
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 12, 2023 19:19:31 GMT -5
"A HYDRA!?" Beist shouted excitedly before Taki had even finished their sentence. Beist looked like a gleeful child who had just received a puppy as a gift, his eyes bright and his tail wagging behind him. But, he quickly composed himself, clearing his throat and putting on a much more serious face, though he couldn't do anything about his tail.
"Ehem, I mean, eh, oh my, a hydra." He tried to play it off. Beist had a fair number of strong suits, but lying truly was not one of them. He was very interested in seeing a real live hydra, but he was a bit conflicted. If the hydra was in here with them, that meant it had been eaten and was doomed to be a meal for the Titan Rockfish. Unless they took it out with them. But, was that really a good idea? Hydras are incredibly dangerous creatures. They could cause harm to others by saving it. But, if it was small, perhaps it was still a young hydra. He'd feel awful letting a child be digested, even if it was a hydra. He doubted he could bring it home with him. And that was all assuming they could safely get past it and escape from the giant stomach themselves. To do that, they'd have to pass by the hydra.
"Hmm. This is certainly a problem. Hydras are vicious... As much as I want to observe it, it may be best to just try and stick to the opposite side of the stomach and give it as wide a berth as possible. Did you spot the mouth while you were up there? How close is it?" Beist asked Taki after assessing the situation.
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 12, 2023 21:18:43 GMT -5
"I only caught a flash of it as I was avoiding a blast of flame, but it's not going to be a simple task to get to. We could fly there but we will be heavily risking getting blasted as the Hydra struggles. Afterwards, we're going to have to figure out how to get it to open up... without a rush of ocean to shove us back down into this predicament." Replied the shaman, who was considering the options available. While she thought well of Beist as a researcher and fellow scholar, she had little knowledge of their actual abilities. Perhaps they might know of a way to give this hulking beast a case of indigestion without endangering it.
"Would you happen to have, or know of, something that could give our friend here a reason to heave? Personally I'm not keen on trying to fight against the rushing water and suction that is involved with it's natural feeding..." The shaman asked after going over the possibilities on her own. Everything she ran into involved some manner of unpleasantness, or brutal efficiency, and both were firmly in the realm of last resort. If only her mentor were here to help... but alas, that wasn't even possible anymore.
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 13, 2023 13:00:06 GMT -5
"Hmm. It sounds like we may just have to deal with this hydra if we want to leave. How, is the question. I do feel bad leaving it in here to die, but I also know it's not exactly a harmless animal. That, and it would be cruel to the Titan Rock fish to deprive it of so many meals its already gone to the effort of catching. We're already depriving it of one by leaving." Beist said with a tinge of guilt in his voice.
"I'm afraid I don't have any ways of making it... heave... without possibly doing it harm. Fire, ice, lightning... No, all of those could injure it. We can't use any of those. A strong impact... Also out of the question. Who knows if it even has a gag reflex, honestly. It doesn't seem to have any tongue or uvula I can identify. It's likely its entire digestive system is just wholly reliant on the suction of the water directly through its mouth and into its stomach. We might have no choice but to face the rush of water as it enters the mouth."
Beist looked off into the distance where the occasional flash of fire breath still lit up the dark slightly before looking back to Taki.
"I think I can pry open the mouth and withstand the force of the water, but not while the hydra is a threat. It pains me to say we may have to incapacitate it before we can make our escape. Do you have a way of doing that?"
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Post by Shitakibo on Oct 13, 2023 14:36:39 GMT -5
"Hmmm... I'm pretty sure I can come up with something... though perhaps we only need wait a few more minutes for the creature's stomach to go about it's process." Taki considered the idea, what were the weird flailing things' purpose? Maybe it wasn't to stir things up or move things around, but rather to deal with unruly meals trying to chew their way out. That also made them much more dangerous than initially anticipated, but it meant they wouldn't need to lift a finger about the Hydra as well.
"I just had another thought behind that... What if these 'whips' are here to subdue unruly meals? Perhaps they're akin to a a jellyfish's stingers or something similar to suppress things big enough to try tearing their way out. If that's the case, we'll need to be very cautious about how we try to open the throat to make our escape." Taki shared with Beist. This situation continued to prove a conundrum, but the Druid in her couldn't bear the idea of harming a creature as rare and difficult to study as this, especially not knowing if the creature would survive having a hole torn through it's guts... something not many creatures could claim to survive without either medical or magical intervention...
She slapped her forehead with a firm hand, the idiocy of her hesitation finally becoming apparent... she was a Druid, a Shaman who had the power to undo death itself... healing a few slashes or a magical hole should be little more than flexing a muscle or breathing.
"Well... I'm an imbecile... let's get out of this mess Beist. I've got healing magic, so we just need to find a spot close to the outside and punch a neat hole we can crawl through. We'll still have to deal with the water rushing in on us, but once free, I can heal it over without risk to the Rockfish." The shaman concluded, walking over to the wall of whip structures and pressing her hand against the fleshy chamber. Her feet stung as they sank into the acidic goop but it allowed her to press her feet into something solid enough for Geomagnetic Sense to clear away the fog of their surroundings. She waved Beist behind her and prepared for the next step.
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Post by Beistmild on Oct 16, 2023 14:41:05 GMT -5
"Oh, you're not an imbecile. You shouldn't talk so negatively about yourself. A friend of mine once got very upset with me for doing so, when I called myself-" Beist started to ramble as Taki walked over to the stomach wall, but his voice trailed off as he realized what Taki was intending to do next.
"Wait! I don't like this idea. I understand this may be easier for us, but I'd really rather not cause the creature unnecessary pain even if the wound can be healed. Do we really need to do this?" Beist said apprehensively, looking around at the inside of the stomach around them.
Yes, it had eaten then both alive and dumped them into its acid pit of a stomach with dangerous flailing appendages along the walls and total darkness all around them, but that didn't mean it deserved to have a hole punched in its side for them to get out! That would undoubtedly cause it incredible pain. It was just a big animal that didn't know better than to eat what was put in front of it.
Beist's eyes grew watery as he stood behind Taki with a pleading expression, silently begging her to reconsider this course of action.
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