Outside 43: Where the sun hurts your eyes and burns your skin

[Nalix]

The Tower - Second Floor

Phil pulls back from the man and aims another low grade charge at the man's neck, pausing a moment to let the charge swell before releasing.

[element: fate (fate and chaos are elements where Phil is from. I'm curious to see what you do with this.)]

If that finishes off the man, then Phil will go back up the stairs to assist Hotaru, but may get distracted by the blood running down his face.

[Recaiden]

Pit

"Hey, everybody! This guy thinks he can help! Go down in a machine! Whatta ya say?"
Maria smirks, knowing the response.

A discontent, even angry grumbling, shouted disagreement. Not liked.
"Stay here a while. When you're one of us, we might trust you to help. But you haven't heard yet, have you? You didn't come here for it, but for this and us. Is it a danger? Are we a danger?"

[Deathkeeper]

Pit

"I came because I had to make sure there wasn't something in that pit stewing before it decided to eat a town. I can give you a few hours. I have a little brother waiting for me at home and I can't afford to stay here longer than that." he says, a little annoyed. She didn't address any of the things he just said!

[Recaiden]

It's not really your say either. You're no conservation expert.

The woman puts a hand on her hip. And is we're in danger, that isn't your concern either. I guess we can't fault you for being worried about your towns.
But they'd like to.

Maria yells to everyone that it's safe to come out. Nick smells trustworthy enough.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit

Nick is super trustworthy. His seven year old self has proven more trustworthy than some adults.
"If it turns out to be intelligent, I, or rather the Union, would have every right. Keeping a sapient being trapped is practically slavery. It's cruel if nothing else. Which is why it needs looking in to. And either way it's messed up to lock it down there if it doesn't want to be. "

Unless of course it does kill people and is dangerous, in which case it needs careful consideration and/or blasting.

[Recaiden]

pit

Maria spits at the mention of the Union.

"We aren't keeping it here. If your neighbor stays inside, you aren't keeping him captive. Don't be ridiculous."
"Do ya think we put it there?"

[Deathkeeper]

Pit

"If your neighbor hasn't left his house in a month but the place is starting to reek, and the police ask you for the key so they can check if he needs help or if something is wrong, and you respond by threatening them with guns and nets because that would upset you then yes, you are keeping them captive. Think of other people." he says, getting more and more annoyed by the attitude.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Maria scoffs.
"Threaten you? Nobody's done near anything like that. Told you, we don't make trouble."
Only new arrivals do that.

"Besides, I wouldn't have the key to my neighbor's house, and I don't. They can ask me questions, and then it ain't my fault or my business." she tries to stretch the analogy, getting more and more annoyed by the arrogance.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit

"Right. You just shout discontent at people for offering to help from the sidelines. Because it ain't your business. Ma'am please. No one even attempted to hide the many guns reached for and the net and such when I came in. I have no intention of starting anything with you and yours but please don't take me for a fool." he says to her steadily.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Maria rolls her eyes.
"That's just an occupational hazard. We gotta protect ourselves, you know? Guy flies down, flies, all in armor, talking like he owns the place. What do you expect?"

She reaches down and scoops the sleepy badger up protectively.
"Just sit and listen for it."
There's plenty of nice rocks to choose from.
"A fool wouldn't have been talking."

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

"What've you got against flying?"
he asks, insulted. Flying is the best thing ever. What's wrong with flying?
Then he perks his fluffy feathery ears and looks around.
"Listen for what?"

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

"Flyers are suspicious. Gonna overreach themselves."
Maria shrugs.

"It."
There's not anything to hear immediately.
Well, the snoring of a badger cub, the sizzle and crack of the campfire, people chatting, murmuring in low voices, zippers opening as people leave their tents, a wooden door creaking, boots treading, birds singing...maybe a lot to hear.
But if Nick does listen, he might start to hear something behind that. Not coming through his silly griffin ears. It's already inside his head. A low, thrumming wave. Pulsing, murmuring, roaring.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

Nick has good, manly ears!
...if you're a Griffin.
It's a good thing he is too fluffy to pale.
"That's...that's mildly horrifying. Why do you stay here with that white noise in the background of everything."

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Well, Maria likes them. But I'm pretty sure they're on the bird half of him, and that makes it silly.

She draws back in surprise and concern.
"Horrifying? It's beautiful. Why would we want to leave?"
Her expression sort of drifts off, staring towards the center of the pit.

[Lex-Kat]

[Not-North Forest]

"I like this place already." Heck takes a deep breath and admires the scent of the forest air.

Heck doesn't swat away the insect. Instead, he lets it land and tries to pick it up, turning that area of skin into rock to hold it in place. Then he'll look at it.

"Isn't nature wonderful? It can tell you things, show you things, all you need do is know how to listen."

The mosquito tries desperately to needle his skin, that is now rock hard, then tries to fly away, but finds it cannot even do that.

"No, it is not." Judy says with a frown. "To be honest, I much prefer the city to....." she slaps a mosquito of her won, that dared land on her neck. "these annoying creatures." She begins walking toward a dense area to the left. "Let's find you a nice boar or a tiger to fight, and get out of here." she says, unenthusiastically.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

"Because it's in your head! What if it messed with your head so it sounds nice to you? This is not something minor either way. You really don't want anyone to even look at whatever it is?" he asks in horror, almost pleadingly.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Maria shrugs.
"Your words get to my head to, but I don't ave any fear that you're brainwashing me. I want you to understand it, and then, when you see it as well as you can, look at it. I can stand to be pretty close to the pit without it hurting me, hear it real clear. Still can't get too far down the tunnel though. Sometimes I think we might just need the right person. That they could handle it."

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

"I hear it plenty clear already. I would offer, but I doubt you'd have a suit in my si-okay, you might, but it would still be terribly risky."
Nick almost forgot he can be human.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

"Oyy, Philippe! Get the ball ready!"
Of course they have a suit in Nick's size. It's a giant plated hamster-ball with air-filters and hardpoints on it.

"Don't worry. We haven't lost anybody since we started using the ropes."

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

"Ball? Uh, are you sure you don't have one for a humanoid, medium build, five foot eleven? I can work with that, too." he offers hastily.
How is he supposed to defend himself in a ball?

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Why would he need to defend himself?

"We can do that."
She gets up and goes to countermand the previous order, and comes back to Nick with a bright green suit for someone 6'0". Good enough, right?
It has a number of cables fasted to the belt and shoulders.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

Nick sighs and shifts into a human man of aforementioned height, with black hair and stubble. And familiar green eyes. He's wearing an appropriately sized uniform to his other one.
"Thanks. Awfully hard to interact with anything in a ball." he says, though he inspects the suit for any holes or wear to be safe.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

"Much better." Maria purrs.
The arms of the suit have quite a bit of wear and scratches, as does the face-plate, but there's no cracks or holes. The ropes are spliced back into themselves after looping through; they don't come off at this end unless cut.
"That's why we have suits. The ball is just for our more interestingly-shaped inhabitants."

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

Nick nods, wishing this thing was less beat up.
"Well, on the chance I need to pick something up or go through a narrow space, this can do that." he says as he moves some things from his clothes to the outside of the suit, namely his belt and sidearm.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Maria watches the gun uneasily. Eh, he's just nervous. Hopefully.
"Right!"
She calls people around. There's a guy with a radio and a recorder, the salad dwarf and a young boy carrying over a pulley to make the ropes go over the lip of the pit smoothly, which is passed off to someone more radiation-tolerant to put into place.

"Lean forward to ask for more slack, tug thrice to get reeled back in early. Let us know as you pass our markers, and if you see anything new."
The town may be protective, but they're also curious.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

Nick just doesn't want them stealing his gun. And also something to blast aliens with if necessary.
"Sure. Got a radio on this thing? How do I let you know?" he says, getting everything into working order.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

They, for their part, would love for him to not have his gun. What type of sidearm is it, exactly?

"In the neckpieces, to your left. We'll be listening and talking."

They check the ropes and radios and find everything in working order. Whenever Nick is ready to descend.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

It's a high powered, military grade laser pistol. Worn from being carried if not necessarily used.

"I don't think I've ever wanted to be wrong so much in my life." he says as he gives the all clear signal.

[Recaiden]

[Pit Town]

Nick is walked over the edge and lowered into the pit, slowly at first.
The radiation meter on his wrist starts showing cautionary signs, but the internal meter beside it says the suit is doing its job.

The first reaches of the pit are studded with ropes and little flags that hang from just inside.

About every ten meters there's markers hammered painted onto the wall, florescent green splotches.

The song gets infinitesimally louder with each foot he drops.

[Deathkeeper]

Pit Town

It gets loud, all right. But after a certain point it simply caps out to Nick, his brain refusing to let any more of its influence in. Some quirk in his anatomy protects him from mental attacks of a certain magnitude, so while incredibly uncomfortable, it does not become head-splitting.
"So far, so good. I see your markers." he says onto the comm.