<In which ponies and dogs make daring leapsTo catch up, the previous sessions are located here:https://dl.dropbox.com/u/28501521/GeneralArchive/RenneQuest/RenneArchive.htmlIt is highly recommended that you have the script that allows you to play audio files embedded in the images. If there is audio with an image, it will be tagged like [this].The script can be found here: http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/133802Make sure you refresh the thread after installing!>
You move up one more level, and back to the first room you ever entered in this accursed place. You admit, all of you do, that you are all hesitant to enter the room again. You forge ahead, however, intent on checking on a few things in the room.
You look at the ceiling of the room and, at a glance, nothing has changed. You skirt around the edge of the room until you find a torch. You can see the bronze band set in the wall glowing all the way up to the dome, still. While the band extends towards the floor, the glow does not.
Oh boy, I have a good feeling about this week!I think we were checking the ceiling of this room again? Maybe Chronicle can float up and have a closer look at it?
Look at body from a second person's view
God I thought I had more than a week to prepare for this. I am not ready for feels.
>>5569486You ask Chronicle if he can fly up to take a look at the ceiling of the room. He obliges, and lifts himself off of the floor with a great flap and gust of wind. You levitate the torch up to him, and he inspects the ceiling. In a few moments he returns to the floor."It simply looks like... octagonal bronze plates descended slightly from the ceiling. There is a bronze strip set in the stone ceiling, in the shape of an octagon, with which I suspect the plates were flush. I cannot see any mechanisms, however."
>>5570057Okay, next item on the list then?Are we still checking the eastern room of the top floor or should we go straight for the skull door?
>>5570214I say check the room
>>5570214as far as i remember i think that was the planhope that anon comes back and gets stuff he wants checked before we move on
>>5570057Tell him to come back down and stand next to us. After he does that try to grasp the bronze octagon with our magic and pull it out. If that doesn't work try to push it back in with our magic.
>>5570659You thank him and call him back down again. You stare up at the bronze plates and concentrate, trying to grasp them. You pull them closer with your telekinesis, but they do not budge. When you try and push back, they move up slowly to the sound of slowly-turning gears, but it falls back down with the same clunk when you let go.
>>5570911Perhaps there is a specific order.
>>5570911We're looking pretty haggard these days. I wonder how long it's been since we slept?
>>5570911holy shit we're looking horrible
>>5570911Can it be twisted?
>>5571050Let's try this, yeah
>>5570980>>5571050You try various other methods: twisting, pulling and pushing, pulling harder. None of them work, and the plates refuse to budge or simply fall down and clunk back into place.
... Is it just me or is the corruption around our withers spreading?
>>5571380Woah, calm down there Renne. Don't hurt yourself. Or anyone else.Let's continue upstairs. To the eastern room.
Alright, I say we quit fucking with the ceiling before we pass out.
>>5571380I think it's just shadows
>>5571417I'M GONNA WRECK IT
>>5571380You guys are killing RenneStop it
>>5571380whoa there sugarcubetime to back off go upstairs
>>5571417>>5571580You concede, and tell the others that you would like to check upstairs, one more thing before entering the skull door. As you walk up the stairs, the pulse of the temple grows, pounding in your head and through your veins. It is a slow and steady heartbeat, like that of the earth itself. As you pass by the door, your entire body aches.
>>5571968Have Chronicle check the ceiling of the next room over.Just for completeness' sake.
Basic map, now less one lava platform
Annotated map, now with more accurate wings
You enter the room to the east, and the cool breeze coming from the hole in the wall alleviates some of the pressure mounting in your head.
>>5571968> the pulse of the temple grows, pounding in your head and through your veinsInquire if the others feel that.
>>5572309>BreezeWAIT WHAT
>>5572309Saffron not looking too great.
>>5572309What can we see if we stick our head and torch through?Have there been any new updates on the tumblr?
>>5572343Tumblr hasn't been updated.
>>5572343>So what exactly are you doing now that you're free of that cage now, anyway? You havebut brokenone bondTwo moreremain
>>5572343Not yet. Here's the link if you want to check yourself.http://awujabvojnavwaowqau.tumblr.com/pass: tnxa
>>5572309Is it just me or do we look... Fuzzy?
>>5572371<Resizing is imperfect in SAI and results in fuzzy edges. I'm cheap and reuse "sprites" as much as I can!>
>>5572364Someone ask what they are.
>>5572371Renne is a little. I assume it's just from LK copypasting and resizing her from another image.
>>5572392>>5572400Ah. That's what I suspected, I just recalled it being pretty consistent beforehand.Whatevs. Carry on.
>>5572392You might consider using MSPaint for resizing when you're just doing binary images. It'll keep the style a little better.
>>5572393>unleash the final bonds of stone and metalSo stone and metal were the first one we cleared.Who wants to be the other two are body and soul?Body: we need to go get him a body from the 8th floorSoul: >MY WATCH GOES ON NOT TO BE CEASED>NONE BOUND BY BLOOD WILL BE RELEASEDStill not sure if that line is referring to DP or Baldwin's own bloodbound oath, though.
>>5572328...So am I the only one who's surprised by a cool breeze in a place at the bottom of the ocean?
>>5572523Nope.
>>5572523Only as surprised as one might be to find an endless abyss of metal gears in such a place.
>>5572523But what can we do about it? The only one who can head in there without fear of falling is Chronicle, and I'd be worried about him catching his wingtips between some gears, if there's even room to spread them in there.Also, I suppose it could simply be convection rather than something from outside: the warmer air from down near the lava coming up through the gear chasm and pushing out the cooler.
>>5572794That's encouraging.
>>5572231>>5572315You sit and take a breather, the coolness of the gear abyss helping with your stress. You do notice that the breeze coming in and out of the hole in the wall follows a slow and steady rhythm, just like the pulse in the back of your head. You ask the others if they feel it."Kind of, yeah... I just thought it was because of, well..." Saffron traces a corruption line across her chest."I have, as well. It is not very strong, but I attributed it to everything going on here; first my broken ribs, then the subsequent healing and empowering of myself with these wings, have both led me to think it was just myself. Odd."You ask if Chronicle can check the ceiling of this room as well. Without a word he shoots up into the air, taking a glance at the ceiling."It is the same as the floor. A stone disk."
>>5572909see>>5572343
>>5572909Back when we were testing the plates in the deathspike room, were the individual sections going up into the wall seperately, or was it moving as a whole octagon?>>5571380
>>5572962All of the plates at once.
>>5572909>aching pulses with the air currents in anyone who's equipped a piece of the armorI've seen enough eldritch horrors to know where this is going.
so where are we going now...i kind of want to delay that door...
>>5573201I think we're doing>>5572957Make sure we look upwards, too. Going by skull we should be a good bit above the sea floor now; wonder how much further the gears can go?
>>5572343>>5573252You use the torch and float it into the abyss to get a better look. Peeking around, downward you see nothing but the glint of metal among the darkness. Looking up, however, you see what looks like a crank attached to a gear. It is far beyond the reach of anyone, and there is no room for Chronicle to maneuver with his wings.
>>5573617...Huh. Wonder if that info might come in handy for the next floor.So time to let the door speak I suppose, if no-one's got anything else they want to check out.
>>5573617Try and grasp it with your magic.
>>5573617Poke around in the darkness with our torch.
>>5573617That gear that the crank is connected to is in turn connected to the rest of the mechanisms somehow, right?
>>5573751It's a big old crank connected to a gear. As the gear turns, the top part will be pumped up and down. How do you intend to grab it?
>>5573882oh, that makes sensei don't knowmaybe we could push it up or down?
>>5573995We don't even know what it does...
>>5573751>>5573995>sticking your head in an expanse of gears and darkness>trying to move shit around with your magic>allowing me to use this image again
>>5573995Without turning the gear, all that I could see us doing is lifting it up a little, with it falling back to it's current position as soon as we let go. And if the gear's connected to the rest of the system at all, we're simply not going to be able to turn it.Also >It is far beyond the reach of anyone might include magic in that reach anyway.I say we just keep this info in mind for when we head up to the 8th floor; perhaps it's connected to that box thing and the octagon chamber is far bigger than the picture suggested?
You're delaying the inevitable
If we do turn the gears let's pull out head out first.
You decide against trying to venture in further, but give your telekinesis a shot for the crank off in the darkness. You try, without over-exerting yourself, but you can only get the crank and gear to slightly budge, less so than the bronze plate on the floor below.
Door?
>>5574539Okay that's it, let's go. Door time.
>>5574578>>5574569Yup.
>>5574539Move the torch around in the darkness to get a better picture of everything that is in there.
>>5574578okayi'm ready
Is Renne Quest running tomorrow night, LK?
>>5574636It's gears and darkness. We aren't going to find anything special.
>>5574569>>5574578>>5574595>>5574696[audio01] You let the others know that you are done here, and that you wish to open the door. They both say nothing as you lead the way, the pounding pressure mounting in your head once more. Behind it all, you imagine that you can faintly hear voices, in the hundreds... perhaps thousands, but it is only a whisper or a hallucination. Your mouth goes dry as you approach the door, its jaw gaping open.
>>5574970I hope those are holes for fingers and it doesn't want anything else from us.
>>5575039>>5574970>5 holes>5 stones
>>5574970place the mouth into the center and have saffron open it
>>5575185Have Renne and Chronicle hold the skull up telekinetically as she does so, in case it's thinking of snapping down. We've already seen this place isn't above dickish traps.
>>5575239This.
It wont' be enough
>>5575439But we searched this place top to bottom and we didn't find even a trace of another stone. We have nowhere else to look!
>>5575439Ron Paul please go. Your time is ogre.
>>5574393>>5575439Niggling voice at the back of Renne's head, pls.
You look at the bronze plate with the five indents, and look over at Saffron. She nods, knowingly, and pulls the onyx stone from her bag. She reaches forward and places the stone into the center slot. There is a soft clack of stone on metal, and it fits in perfectly. Both you and Chronicle are using your telekinesis to hold up the top jaw of the skull, just in case.
>>5575555Turn the disc.
>>5575555Turn it.
An inky blackness spreads from the onyx stone across unseen etchings in the bronze. As Saffron places her fingers into the remaining slots, she winces, and looks up, wary of the top jaw of the door now more than ever.
>>5575803
>>5575803left hand, turn it left?
>>5575942Guess so. First gauntlet disc we found:>Saffron slides her fingers into the holes of the disc with a soft clinking noise, and begins to turn the disc to the left. It doesn't move for a bit, but then spins and locks with a loud clunk.
<cutscene>Warily, Saffron turns the disc to the left. There is no sound from the door, save for a near inaudible click as the disc locks into place. The markings having matched up, the ink shoots out from the center to all corners of the door.
>>5576265Have her pull her hand back, if she can.Oh no oh no oh no I just remembered the rest of that rhyme.
>>5576368Which one?
>>5576445>and your soul I shall keep
>>5576445Here's all the poetry I could rememberMy bloodbound oath give me a shapethat all within might neer escapeand now with immortalityI see to bind what would be freeThese halls of stone filled with the deadfear be to those who dare to treadMy watch goes on not to be ceasednone bound by blood will be releasedWith eyes you shall see and mouth you shall speakWith mind you shall drive and soul I shall keepPotential:Four of stone both red and b-Eight of metal to ---->>5576368Ooh, you mean the"With mind you shall drive and soul I shall keep"one.Hrmm.
>>5576568*I seek to bind what would be free
Slap saffron on the ass.
>>5576368You warn her to pull her hand back as fast as she can, as soon as she can. She nods, and presses the disc into the door. It gives way and pushes in further than she expects, and there is a clinking noise above her head. She whips her head up just in time to catch the jaw as it comes swinging down, too much for either you or Chronicle to handle at the speed it was moving.
>>5576722We're helping!
>>5576722Well shitIt looks like she's go it thoughAt least for nowHelp her lift
>>5576722The three of us should push that jaw back into place.
>>5576722yank her away!it's coming down no matter what just pull her away
>>5576563>>5576568>>5576368>>5576445I WARNED YE!DIDN'T I WARN YE?!
Time for saffron to lose her arms again!>abaddon.jpg
>>5576722Can she pull her arm out?
>>5576758>>5576771>>5577025Saffron yanks her arm out of the hole and uses it to brace the jaw. You all try to lift it, but she is steadily being pulled across the floor, closer to the door as the jaw inches down.
>>5577192Punch it
>>5577011Do you even Black Crusade?
>>5577192Then let's get out of the way and avoid becoming the ball in this game of hungry hungry hippos.
>>5577231
>>5577192>>5576891PULLHERAWAYlet the thing snap shut, just not on her
>>5577192Yank her outWith Chronicles help
>>5577192Damn get her out of there!She can lose an arm in the process if she has to, damn thing'll just snap right back on anyway!
>>5577287Or will it
>>5577319>>5577287It wont matter if the wall eats itBut its still better than losing Saffron altogether
>>5577343We'll just piggyback her and be her new magic arm or something.
You yell to Chronicle to pull her out, and with all your strength you yank on her body. Her footing slips, and the sheer velocity of the slamming door snags her hand and sends her into a barrel roll and slams her into the floor. All goes silent, except for Saffron's heavy breathing.
>>5577598She's still got her handsNo one lost any limbs, as far as i can tellI'll call that a victory!
>>5577598Get Saffron back up and make sure she's okay.Then check what's happening to the door.
>>5577598Oh, thank god.
With a loud k-CHUNK the door recedes into the wall and falls into the floor. Saffron scrambles backwards, growling, caught off guard.
>>5577852success!now i don't want to go up when a fucking DOOR tried to eat us ;_;
>>5577852What's behind it?
>>5577852Send ensign torch in first.
>>5577852Get Saffron to her feet and make sure she's okay. Then send Torchy in.
>>5577986>>5577998>>5578024[audio02]You help Saffron to her feet, and she assures you that she is okay. You peer into the darkness, and you can see stairs leading upwards. With how dead and empty the temple feels, you are surprised to find that the feeling emanating from the doorway is more so. The chill that runs up your spine leaves your hooves cemented in their positions, the headache and distant voices still yet to be ceased.
>>5577852>Saffron growling like a puppyI know she's in life threatening situations, but that's pretty d'awww.
>>5578196Seriously anon, does Everything Saffron do have to be cute? Can't she just growl menacingly without you dawwing all over her?
>>5578212She can't help itShe's just a big qtpi
>>5578212i think we're beyond the point where she can do things without being cute
>>5578194Uhhhh.Okayyy.I guess there's nowhere else to go, eh?
>>5578260Really? Even Losing her mind and turning on us?
>tfw we spent 4 hours getting a door open
>>5578194Blunder forward without lighting a torch!We've passed all the trials so there's nothing to worry about now! Full speed ahead!Woo woooo!
You send your torch forward. You don't see much, as the stairwell keeps on going, and curves up to the right, with no end in sight from where you stand.
>>5578339Head on up but the keep the torch first and foremost.Look out for traps.
I noticed the music on the dropbox page has changed. Thanks, whoever keeps that going.
>>5578352The stairwell is long, and the curve wide. You emerge from the floor. The silence is deafening, the voices and the pounding have quieted, and the pulse of the temple seems to have lessened.
>>5578651Oh cool, we're here.Now we just need to figure out where "here" is.We should head toward that raised dais looking thing.
>>5578651>>5574303Ok yeah, far bigger it is. So that piston might be connected to whatever that thing is above the octagon.Also, the octagon seems to be missing it's lines from the drawing.
>>5578651...Is that dias a hexagon?>>5578684...Is that dias a cube?
Can we look a bit more closely at the cube?
>>5578692It looks like the second one is more of an "impression."Like the way a blind person might envision a room they've felt with their hands.
>>5578692<Retconned! I blame poor foresight.>
>>5578707>"The Mind" is a big domed chamber full of information (text on walls) in the peak of the skull that allows you to "Drive">Stone body awaits the final keyI'm still holding out for this temple to turn out to be a giant stone mecha
>>5578795That may not be too far off... although I wouldn't put it past LK to do something totally different, just to fuck with us.
>>5578672>>5578731In the darkness, you can barely make out the shape of a raised platform. The three of you emerge from the stairwell when you have deemed it safe, and walk to the west to get a better look.
>>5578870Uh.
>>5578870jesus this place is huge
>>5578870God damn 4chanLet me look at these pictures
>>5578870What are we stepping on?More inlaid bronze?
>>5578870Hrmm. Doesn't exactly match the octagram from the tumblr background then, like I was thinking it might; there's no vertical line on that one.
>>5578895>>5578870This, maybe?
>>5578870Those red lines (blood?) appear to raise up in the air towards the cube
>>5578904Pretty sure they're on the ground; check where Renne's stepping.
>>5578904Pretty sure that's all set into the ground. 'Raised' platform doesn't mean floating.
>>5578917Oh, you're right. For some reason I thought it was passing in front of her.
>>5578870look at the ground
You look down to find a red line illuminated along the stone floor. It fades off into the distance, but brightens up nearest where you stand.
>>5578988>HoovesW-what the fuck?!
>>5578995it's getting worse all the time ;_;
>>5578995Saffron did have a visible gemslot in her bridge-shaped corruption. Guess she's probably got one in the wing position by now, too.
anybody want to cross-check that red line's texture with the tumblr bg?
>>5579012Those are some quite spefic patterns though.
>>5579030*specific
>>5579012This is completely new, though. Did we strain ourselves over the edge trying to hold up that skull? Or is this particular place causing a reaction in whatever's in our blood? Is the red line illuminated by our torch or is it reacting to US?>>5579019Huh, didn't notice that particular detail. Makes sense, I guess...Still, this is pretty scary.
>>5579019So those locations on her hooves were where the gems would be
>>5579023>TextureDo you mean shape? Doesn't match up with the big octagon in the centre at least, like I said up here>>5578895If you extended the slanted horizontal lines out upwards though, it does match this pretty well. >Conduit come and rise from the depths>Stone body awaits the final key>Conduit's the one who collects the four of metal/body/soul/stone>Glowing is strongest where Renne is standingI'm guessing this thing's responding to the armour.
>>5579019>>5579062>the armor is looking for its other partsthis is even WORSE than just an infection
>>5579067>This does match up pretty wellMeant to link>>5578899Which is of course the positions of the redstone gems on a body.(gotta duck off for a bit)
So... We know the corruption spreads to, for lack of a more accurate word, 'heal' wounds and damage. Could it be that we're slowly deteriorating somehow from the contact?>>5579067Nah, I meant the texture. As in you threw that background image under the floor, would it match up somehow? I'm probably just over-thinking things. Ignore me.
Let's continue to the dais since there's nothing we can really do about this.
>>5579070Well, we don't know if it actually has any negative implications at all, maybe it's positive?. Perhaps the development of these black marking were independant of using the armour after all?
>>5579100Yeah, slowly being converted into some horrifying black mass just screams positive.
>You said there were two bonds remaining. I assume the lack of a body is one thing still holding you here; what is the other?>A Heartwas a heart ever mentioned before?
>>5579090>>5578995>>5579012I get the feeling we're going to wind like this guy if we stay here too long.
>>5579116>District 9 lich water temple of death and horrible rebirthThis is shaping up to be one hell of a place
>>5579041>Or is this particular place causing a reaction in whatever's in our blood?Perhaps we should move along the line and see if illuminated section of the red line follows us?
>>5579154do we want the others to come with?
>>5579177Have them stand at different points on the line. We'll carry the torch.
>>5579154this glowing line is reminding me of dead space.
>>5579110Not that I recall.
Maybe we should have each person stand at their respective place on the line: Renne stands at the join, Chronicle stands a little ways down the vertical line and Saffron....Tears her arm off and leaves it on one side while she stands on the other! Perfect!Joking, of course. That can't be the solution, since it's supposed to be done by a single dog wearing all the armour
>>5579110Tin man, pls.
>>5579154>>5579177>>5579182You walk along the line a little closer to the dais, and ask Saffron to step into the octagon on the floor, and stand along a line as well.
>>5579249>Renne steps on board, the lines that run through the bridge position light up>Saffron steps on, the lines that run through the gauntlet positions light upWell that confirms it.Tell Chronicle to stay off until we've had a chance to take a look at this dias and maybe some of the writing on the wall, we think having everyone step on it might trigger something.
DP's request for a Heart is troubling to me. Where would we even find anything remotely like that?He sure is cryptic for a guy who wants help.>>5579249So the dots light up based on what armor piece is standing in the octagon...Maybe we shouldn't have Chronicle join us until we've explored the room.
>>5579268>>5579269And by "Stay off", we mean go around the outside of the octagon. No idea if flying over it'd count or not, but let's not risk it.
>>5579249I'd say go examine the pedestal. I mean as much as possible given how little light the torch produces
Reposting this thing in case it's useful
>>5579269>DP wants a heart.And which of us wants courage?
>>5579360Whichever one of you won't stop over-analyzing every little minute detail.
>>5579381I think he's joking, mate.
>>5579393And I wasn't?
You tell Saffron to step out of the octagon for now, and for Chronicle not to enter. You ask them to walk around, carefully, and meet you at the dais to the north of the room. You arrive, and illuminate the large pillar. Only the front face has any markings on in, and whatever is there is minimal. A bas relief showing four octagons and a line. In the back of your mind you can hear something, faint and clinking. You realize that it's Saffron behind you, shaking."I don't like this place, Renne... What do the carvings mean?"
>>5579414What carvings, specifically? Is she talking about the writing on the walls? If she has low-light vision and can see them well enough to copy them down for us, that would be helpful.
>>5579456The pillar.Cutting it now, as well. Thanks for stopping by, everyone!
>>5579473Seems like an odd thing for her to be weirded out by after all that we've seen, is all.I need to sleep anyway, see you tomorrow.
>>5579488That should tell you something in and of itself, methinks.Whatever, though. See you folks tomorrow.
>>5579488i think she is creeped out by the 8th floor in generalthis is what we worked for, guys!this is freedom!it doesn't look like freedom ;_;
>>5579473G'night, and thanks.
>>5579507>8th floor>4 is nippon number of death>8 is double 4>double death.
>>5579473Thanks!Don't know how the others are finding it, but I'm having fun with this string of puzzles we've been having lately....I am worried what'll happen if we're finally stumped by one, though.
>>5579414Only thing I've thought of so far is to add the pieces to the octagon in that order: Chronicle gets on, Saffron touches her (Left? Right? augh which way is it facing) gauntlet to the octagon, then the other, then Renne steps on.That idea begs the question of how someone'd do it if they were wearing all the pieces, though, so maybe not.
>>5579905i would be with you but that one circle on the bottom of the octagon is throwing me off
>>5580017Oh blast, you're right. They should both be above the gauntlet lines if that's the case. Hrmm.
bumpan
bump before bedsee you gentlemen for whatever awaits
Bump for ArchvieAnon.I mean technically I can save this thread and it's pics/audio files, but it's better with his method/
>>5585380I don't like announcing my presence each time I got the thread. If, for some reason, I wouldn't be able to catch a thread, I'd surely tell it to sentenal or the general
>>5585475Ah, Ok.
one last bump
You ask her what she means about not liking this place."I mean... this room, in general... I just don't like it. More than any other. It feels so dead compared to the rest. Maybe... maybe I'm just thinking too much, or maybe this is all finally getting to me..."
>>5589799Is there any way we can see what's on the walls? Can she see it? Do Diamond Dogs have low-light vision? I don't remember anything about this, so we should ask her.Also we should probably have Chronicle step on the octagon alone and see just what happens. One thing at a time, though.
>>5589799she looks horrible ;_;
>>5589981Let's have Saffron toss Renne up on top of the dias. I want to see what's up there.
Send Chronicle up with a... THE torch (Drat it, why did I forget to suggest grabbing some more?) to see what the ceiling looks like and what the deal is with those panels.
>>5589799>Corruption reaching up onto her faceWhat are you doing, none of the redstone armour belongs there.>Corruption reaches for the armour first, then keeps flowing outward>Eventually everyone's going to be totally blackGoddamn it
>>5590053I completely forgot he can fly now. Duhhhh.
You ask Chronicle if he can inspect the walls and ceiling, and offer the torch to him. He accepts, and takes off, flying up high. You have no clue how high the ceiling is, so you watch him as he gets smaller and smaller, huddling next to Saffron in front of the dais.
>>5590315WE CLEARLY THOUGHT THIS THROUGH
>>5590315Maybe step onto the octagon just to get a little bit of light? It seems to light up where we step.
Chronicle returns and reports what you have come to expect. The room is a dome made from an octagonal base, with the very top being an octagon. The entire dome seems to be carved into the stone, no bronze in sight. He tells you that there is writing on every inch of every panel, but that it is unrecognizable and does not match anything you have seen down here before.
>>5590483Have him step onto the octagon on the floor, just to see exactly what happens.
>>5590483Can we ask him for a small sample?
>>5590624we should be able to get our own
>>5590668Whatever works.
You ask him for another small favor, if he could step on to the octagon in the center of the room, by himself. He flaps his wings once and with a gust he floats over onto the octagon. You can see the dull red glow slowly appear as soon as his hooves enter the shape.
>>5590913That would be great if 4chan's image server was working.
>>5590913...Huh. Not what I was expecting.
>>5591075Oh wait, yes it is. It's a little lower than Renne's dot, right where it should be. Nevermind.
>>5590913Can someone imgur the image or something? 4chan is being a faggot.
Gotta duck out for an hour or so, hope this helps/is visible with 4chan derping
>>5591399It is, thanks.
are we going to all step into it now?
>>5591445I guess that'd be the next logical step...
>>5591445>>5591468We don't really have many options open and we risk more infection by waiting around.
No regretsLet's do this
All three of you enter the octagon, and the etchings along the floor spring to life, glowing and sparking with a slight sizzling noise. Behind it all, you can hear a dull thrumming emanating from somewhere below.
>>5592027Here goes nothing...
>>5592027WORRY
<cutscene>
>>5592614I bet we're standing above that piston thing we saw, and it's either going to push us up or lower us down.I sure hope this thing isn't trying to kill us, too.
>>5592614Gulp...
<cutscene>The cacophonous rumble beneath your hooves is deafening, the sound of screeching machinery and grinding stone louder than you have ever heard before echoes off the walls of the dome. An enormous bronze pillar rises from the center of the octagon in four distinct stages, each one followed by a loud CLUNK.
<cutscene>As soon as the pillar has risen, to what you assume must be near the ceiling of the dome, it begins to fall. Three times the pillar descends like a piston, shaking the entire temple with a loud thud, until a short section of the pillar remains upright in the center of the octagon.
<end cutscene>With a final and faint clinking noise, eight thin sections of the pillar bloom and fall outwards, coming mere inches from your face.
>>5593359Suggest everyone move from their positions slowly?Incase the thing decides to fall back into the ground?
>>5593359uhh... huhnot at all what i was expecting
>>5593359HmmmAre they handles to turn it again?Also, I have a feeling this puzzle has something to do with this thing? Maybe the locations noted on the dais are pointing out characters on this diagram?
>>5593617(Forgot my picture)
Let's take a look at a sample of the wall's script while we're thinking about this.
>>5593617I'd venture this puzzle is solved with >>5579414What with it being instructions on the pedestal right next to the column and a similar looking figure.The best thing I can think of right now is (assuming the octagons are formatted like clocks) 4 counterclockwise, 6 clockwise, 2 counterclockwise, 8 clockwiseThere's also the possibility that it goes from the down up instead of up to down, or that I'm wrong outright.
>>5593929Well, clocks have 12 points, not 8, but that's the best guess we have so far... I'm still thinking the black and white octagram is connected, but I don't see how yet. I really want to figure out what those other characters are...
>>5593929that sounds more reasonablebut i don't want to just start turning stuff willy nilly
>>5594059Well, with a civilization obsessed with the number eight there could be 8 numbered clocks, just the day is divided into 3 segments (morning, day, afternoon/night) rather than our 2 (AM/PM). Why there would be clocks on this puzzle is unlikely, this is just my musings about the questworld.
>>5594275Very true, didn't consider that.
>>5593929Going by this >>5579414 I'm seeing 4 possibilities. There's the possibility of reading it from up to down or down to up, and then the first movement being clockwise or counterclockwise.Unless there's some kind of clue as to which one is correct, then maybe this isn't the answer for it.
I just realized, on the tumblr background, there are number in all of the spots marked by a dot in the carvings. The ones on the vertical axis are somewhat hard to see behind that line of script but they're there.http://static.tumblr.com/5qmmbm5/9KYm57e08/background_rasterized.pngSo reading >>5579414 top to bottom:4 counterclockwise2 clockwise6 counterclockwise8 clockwise
>>5593788You don't know where to start.
>>5594733Don't worry guys, I already have this deciphered
>>5594733Ancient alien circuit boardsthis place truly is a giant robot
>>5594822>Many pain-staking hours of deciphering later...
>>5594552Anyone see any problem with this?
>>5594967I don't.I guess there's one way to find out if it's right though.
>>5595036Alright, let's do it then.
Posting from my phone, check the tumblr guys.
>>5595123Can we just move to the sub then?
>>5595123This please, >>5595137.
>>5595123Ouch.Best of Luck.
>>5595123Just make a sub thread and we'll continue there.
>>5595160>>5595137Only issue is that archive anon's script wouldn't work. Let me see if I can get it taken care of. I'll give it a half hour befor moving to the sub.
>>5591399Back!>>5594552Oh wow. I'd thought of looking at that, but all this time and all the times I've checked it, I never noticed that 6 at the bottom. Yeah, this sounds good to me.>>5594733>You don't know where to startWell there's at least one character there that instantly looks familiar.
>>5595377I never noticed it either, I just checked for completeness' sake and was surprised to see it there.
I think he's dead Jim
Thread is up on the sub.http://mlpg.co/q/res/191428.html
>>5596026Thanks jackass!
>>5596026Sentenal, we've been over this. Don't link to the sub.Tell us it's there, but don't link to it.It makes Pineapple's and the mods' jobs easier.Please delete that post.
>>5596406LK asked me to post it fool.
>>5596418Get fucked retard.
>>5596418Did he ask you to post a link? Or did he tell you to tell us the new thread is in the sub?I'm not trying to start a fight; but it's caused problems in the past, and it gives Hateanon and his samefags an excuse to jump on you again.
>Herp derp the Sub is a super secret club>Get fucked Sentinel
>>5596438Hey, just calm down a little. The sub is a resource for us, not a secret club. We're just trying to get through this session smoothly in the face of some problems, and a direct link helps that process. Let's just have fun, okay?
>>5596703Sssh Soup. We'll not be waylaid on our hate crusade. I'll return as soon as I'm done arguing over other equally productive things, like the best edition of dungeons and dragons (First), the best edition of Spiderman (First), the best season of ponies (First), and the worst tripfag (Sentenal 01).
>>5596792>Best edition of D&D>Not 2EOh god, I'm gettin' mad as hell all the sudden
What's going on? Why are you guys moving? And what tumblr should I check?
>>5597117LK got banned so we moved to >>5596026
>>5597117He posted his ban message up on the DP tumblr.http://awujabvojnavwaowqau.tumblr.com/tnxa
>>5597133What was the reason? He should just ask for a unban on the 4chan IRCAnyway, I'm off to school. I'll be back on in approx half an hour
>>5597242TOR/Proxy
>>5597242If you checked the tumblr, he did. Guess it didn't work out or the mods are dragging their feet or something.
>>5597321What? The mods taking their sweet damn time with something?Surely you jest.
>>5597321Tumblr post's deleted now, it seems.
>>5597252If he didn't use one then he should totally get an unban. I was once banned for the exact same reason and a mod unbanned me when I told him it was a false positive.Anyway, if LK really used a proxy, then why? Isn't he from the USA?
>>5597996It was a false ban, everyone's getting them nowadays.I guess it can happen from posting an image smaller than 50x50 or something.
>>5597996What this guy said>>5598010I got the exact same ban while we were questing a couple of weeks back when I tried to post a 15x16 emoticon in response to the stuff that was happening (Except I didn't bother with the unban, since dynamic IP)
>>5598010Then LK should just ask for an unban. It's pretty frustrating that I can't archive threads from the submarine
>>5598810I asked, just have to wait now. Sorry for the inconvenience.
>>5598810I thought there was one archived from there before?In any case I'm sure something can be figured out.
>>5598878They can be archived, they just won't have AA's fancy image expansion/backlinking/theme choice addon stuff...What if we just reposted everything from the sub thread here?
>>5598998If it could be was organized properly it could work
>>5598998That could workWe just need one designated person to do it to avoid bumping into each other
Was about to offer, but just realised I've got to leave in an hour, so I wouldn't be able to run it to the end. Can anyone else take up the job?
>>5599252Me again, I could do it until I left, at any rate, then put up a post saying I was stopping. Shall I go ahead?
>>5599252>>5599279If I want to catch up to our current position before I leave, I'd get going. Starting after this post.
>>5599279Honestly I think we could live without the fancy dressings on this one log, just considering the circumstances. Just my opinion though.
>>5599319Yeah, I'm not fussed about the fancy dressings either, but having it split into two threads annoys me for some reason.
>>5599317Scratch that, while I was editing the OP post to make it not duplicate, something came up and I've got to leave now.If someone else wants to transfer things, go ahead.
>>5599490I'm debating whether I feel autistic enough to possibly do it. I'd be compelled to repost the responses too because what's a quest without the reactions?
Note to self: Don't try to post really tiny images.Let's continue!
You slowly step off of the octagon in the center of the dome, and head towards one of the walls. Bringing your torch up, you are met with… something. You don't know where to start.
>>5603118I'm here! let's do this
I think we were going with:4 counterclockwise2 clockwise6 counterclockwise8 clockwise
>>5603133If Chronicle has no input, turn to the spire and examine it closely.
>>5603136>>5603133You propose to both Saffron and Chronicle that you have an idea of what to do with this new pillar that appeared. They both nod, telling you that anything is better than nothing. You inspect the pillar a bit closer. It looks to be made entirely out of bronze, and the spoke that folded out of it is fit in so snugly that you would not have noticed it at all when it was closed.
>>5603145UmmContinue I guess.
>>5603145That :I face
>>5603156Aww, this font doesn't have the bars at the top and bottom of the "I"
Four notches counterclockwise, you tell them. All three of you approach a bar. Saffron grabs it, Chronicle shoulders it, and you use both your shoulder and your telekinesis. The pillar shows lots of resistance in turning, more than anything you have ever felt thus far in the temple. However, the pillar is almost completely silent as it turns. To grinding, no screeching, simply a tiny click every time you move one notch.
>>5603173Does that mean we're doing it wrong?What do you guys think, should we continue?
>>5603180Honestly, even if we're fucking up, then we already… well, fucked up whatever was the right combination. So we should just continue.
>>5603188True.
>>5603225Well I don't think It implies we screwed up necessarily
<cutscene>You keep on pushing, and keep on turning. Four soft clicks later, and you stop and let go of the bar. The dome room once again falls silent.
>>5603252>cutsceneOkWell, we made something happen, at least
Well cutscene now, but I realise we should have gone down and seen what this column's done to the floors below: whether we've got something to turn on each floor or whether the column just extends all the way down.
<end cutscene>Just as quickly as the bars had folded out from the pillar, they are pulled back in. You hear the soft click one more time, and the bars disappear, flush with the pillar and unnoticeable.
>>5603263>>5603273Well I guess we're going to have to do that anyway, since this thing's not offering any more turning options.
>>5603263Well, it was fully underneath the floor before we got here so I don't think we'd see the pillar itself on any floors below us…I am curious about the banging mechanism though. I hope that wasn't what I think it was.
>>5603273Maybe Saffron should dance on the pillar.
>>5603273>DP refers to it as a combination lock>it deactivates after we turn it one direction, nothing happensI don't like this…I guess it couldn't hurt to go downstairs again?
>>5603294It rose up four, then thumped down three. I think the full length extended up into this room, then it thumped down through each of the stone seals on the floors below.
>>5603297Now is not the time for pole-dances, Anon.
>>5603263>>5603303The pillar, completely sealed and flush, presents not further options. You decide to head downstairs.
>>5603330BURN IT! BURN THE WHOLE PLACE TO THE GROUND!
>>5603310>>5603294And by "stone seals" I mean the dots.This one came up out of the dot in this floor, and we're pretty certain they all line up:my guess is that it rose up "in four distinct stages" by pushing 1/4 pillar up from the gap between the floor, slotting in another 1/4 and rising, repeat, repeat, then slamming the whole column down again so it smashes through the dots in the top four floors.
>>5603330East!
>>5603310So was it supposed to rise up another 1/4 and present another set of bars if we did it right?Oh nuts, we were supposed to read it bottom to top, weren't we…
>>5603433I think we're still OK. I'm assuming the column's slotted into something underneath the last stone seal on floor 5 (in front of the flame door) and we're turning it like a key.I'm expecting there'll be a set of spokes to turn on each floor, like with DP's pillar.
Oh, neat! The pillar extends from floor to ceiling, with eight bars already folded out.
>>5603448Oh, that's a relief. This was the one time I was actually confident in what we were doing.Okay, 2 clockwise.
Clockwise, this time, and only twice. This pillar turns just as hard, and just as quietly as the one above. Two soft clicks, and you wait.
Clink! The bars fold up into the pillar, just like the floor above.
>>5603473Hooray!Down to the next floor, outside the spire room I think?Oh god we're going to finish unlocking it outside of the fire door and it's going to open
Completely lost on where we are specifically, but one floor below this I suppose
>>5603489<Maps!>
>>5603461>>5603473>Leaving us hanging for 10 minutesStop teasing us, damnit!Onwards and downwards!>>5603489We're currently on the 7th floor; next one'll be outside the corpsestack room, then the one after that'll be in front of the fire door.
You head to the west and down the stairs, the feeling of dread lessening the further you get away from the eighth floor. You then head east, towards the temple entrance. So far, so good.
>>5603532Pssst.
>>56035326 counterclockwise
>>5603543<Oh yeeeeah. Sorry guys, I am so off my game tonight. That banning really threw a wrench in my gears.>
>>5603448> threw a wrench in my gears.Surely you meant a Chance.Turn the spire 6 ways counter clockwise
After a brief and weird flashback, you return to the present!
>>5603597What these guys said!>>5603548>>5603563
>>5603548>>5603563>>5603604You all approach a bar and set yourselves to push with all your might. The soft clicks from the pillar echo throughout the room, six in total.
Click! Like the others before, the bars pull up into the pillar.
>>5603621And down again!
>>5603621Down to the fire door room.
>>5603621Continue onwards.
>>5603652>>5603642>>5603634You head down the stairs, and to the east, to the fire door. As soon as you enter the room, your stomach twists in a knot. When you glance at the door, the feeling grows stronger. The pillar in this room is like all the rest, eight bars unfolded.
>>56036798 Clockwise.Warn the others that this is the last one, so if we're right whatever it is that's going to do happen will happen once we're done turning.
>>5603684You let everyone know that this is the last of the four pillars to be turned, and that you will have unlocked whatever it is that they do. You warn them, making sure that they are wary should anything happen. Saffron and Chronicle take the bar, while you use your telekinesis. Eight clicks clockwise, one full rotation. Each click seems to get louder in your head, the knot in your stomach growing while the clicking drills its way into your brain. You pass the seventh notch, and are about to turn it one more.
>>5603693NopeLet's just give up now
>>5603699SHUT UP AND TURN
>>5603699Give up and do nothing? If we do that then we won't make progress and we have destiny to fulfill
>>5603693Uh-oh.
>>5603693Oh man you didn't get banned from the sub too did you?
The final turn is made, and the bars are retracted. There is no other sound to be heard, save for the crackle of your torch.
>>5603751…Nothing?Is the door still too hot to touch?
You jump back, startled, as the pillar snaps up into the ceiling. There is a screeching of metal, and the entire temple begins to shake. The pulse from before grows ever louder, as do the far-off voices. The entire temple rumbles and shakes beneath your hooves. You fall to the ground and clench your hooves over your ears in an attempt to block out the cacophony.
>>5603765IT'S ALIIIIIIIIIVE
>>5603765Well that's awfully selfish. Clamp our hooves over Saffron's ears!
>>5603781And then Saffron crushes our skull trying to return the favor
And then, it stops. You open your eyes slowly, afraid of what you might see, but you find Saffron and Chronicle staring back at you, both in a similar position as yourself. Saffron is gritting her teeth, and wipes away the tears from her eyes."Renne, what was that? I felt like my head was going to explode. Is… is this what it feels like for you when you… hear things?"You tell her that you don't know what just happened, but that yes, it has always felt like that. Through it all, Chronicle sits silently, watching the both of you talk. He nods in your direction, saying he's okay.
>>5603806>>5603781Missed cuteness opportunity. All I'm sayin'
I like it here, there's no capcha
>>5603806Did the pillar leave a hole in the ground?If not, consider heading to the burning door.
>>5603829We're already there.Check to see if the door is still impassable.
>>5603829>>5603837You get up and look to where the pillar used to be. There is a bit of rubble where the pillar once stood, you assume from up above when the circular stone got knocked out with the descent of the pillar. You look towards the door, and are hit with that sick feeling again. You approach slowly. Where the growing heat of the door once was, there is only the increasing dread and sickness in the pit of your stomach. You feel like you need to vomit.
>>5603849>>5603849Ask the others if they feel it too.
>>5603849inb4 boop and goodnight
>>5603849Well advance I guess. Not getting anywhere by sitting around here. Caution is the word, as they say.Might be a good idea to give ourselves a once over before continuing, make sure we're as ready as we can possibly be for what ever lies ahead.
You turn and ask the other if they can feel something. They both shake their heads."Are you okay, Renne? You look… You don't look like you're okay…"You swallow it down and nod that yes, you are. You ask Saffron and Chronicle if they're ready to move through the door. Chronicle looks at you and replies, flatly."Are you?"
>>5603878Give the other two a playful slap on the butt. Come on comrades! Spirits up and sally forth!
>>5603806>>5603878Our formerly merry band ain't lookin' so hot.I can't think of any pressing matters, so, onwards before we all keel over.
>>5603878We should probably be honest. It hasn't hurt us so far.>tendrils coming out of Chronicle's eyeeurgh
Man reading these as they go is AGONIZINGI MOOST SEE WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!
You firmly nod and tell them that yes, you are ready. Whatever you are feeling hasn't hurt you before, so you steel yourself and approach the door. With focus, you can bring the feeling in your stomach. With one last deep breath, you place your hoof on the door.
Boooh god I'm sorry for ending it here guys I blame the ban.
>>5603928That's hardly you fault. Thanks for picking it back up in spite of the ban.
>>5603928OH GOD DAMMIT FUCK BITCHESIt's not your fault, man. Thanks for continuing on the sub.
>>5603928Man I'm nursing a cold and I need my sleep anyway, not to mention being on schedule to be awake for pony on Saturday. You keep me up till the stupidest hours.Sorry about that ban, hopefully they'll fix it. Honestly 4chan's images were being so shit anyway, I preferred it here.Here's to suspense!
>>5603928ffffffucking cliffhangersGreat session though, I feel like we're making some substantial progress
>>5603928GAAAAAAAH ROB THREAD AND RENNE CLIFFHANGARS IN ONE NIGHT!!!!!I CAN'T HANDLE ALL THIS SUSPENSE!
Please don't be lying, DP.
>>5603969But who's freedom? His? Ours? Tell him to start bein more clear
>>5603928It's fine, cliffhangars are good places for stopping story-wise, if not sanity wise. Thanks for pushing on!LESS THAN 24 HOURS TO PONY
>>5603983Also, wild speculation>We both reach the surface together>Because the mechanisms we've been messing with cause the whole temple to surface
>>5603983Oh DP, you also know just what to say to make me worry.
