phantasmalrift | DUNGEON LOG: KEYSTONE SHORE

The morning of the 9th, everyone will get a message sent to their communication devices -

Okay, guys! I think we have enough stabilizers to try and get the shoreline stable. If you want to help out, grab your supplies and come on up to the roof!

When characters arrive at the roof, they'll find Top - with a wheeling table full of many copies of the same odd-looking device - the two exploratory drones, and a ramp down off the roof to the ground. (The latter looks a little hastily constructed.)

"Okay," Top says, picking up one of the devices. "Here's the stabilizers. Stick them to walls and stuff - mostly out of the way places where they're not going to get knocked off - and then press the buttons along the side."

They demonstrate, unfolding the set of legs at one end of the device before showing the buttons to anyone who's close enough. "Go ahead and take a couple, especially if you've got one of those space-saving inventories going on, I know there's like four of you with those? Strange got some first aid kits together, too, if you want."

Sure enough, another table nearby has the med kits... As well as traditional paper bag lunches, courtesy of Bottom. Don't question it too much.

"We'll be staying back here to keep track of the stabilization progress and work the drones," Top says, "but don't hesitate to call if you get in trouble! We'll send one of these guys down to get you an evac if you need it."

And with that, you're free to go down the ramp... Or to make for the beach however else you might choose to go.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Somewhat variable"?

[That's an odd way to describe one's own strength.]

Either way, it's worth at least going to try to grab one of those rocks.

I have powers that influence my physical abilities.

[Blue fire runs across his upper face, coalescing into a bright red mask with a long, beak-like nose.]

I should be able to manage it well enough now.

[It's a lot like, but not quite, like a certain other clan.]

...You have an affinity for tengu, don't you?

[He chuckles a bit and touches a hand to the beak of his mask.]

Nothing supernatural, but...I did take the name Crow for a reason. The comparison does suit me.

Even though they're white, the shape of your wings is roughly the same as mine.

It's enough to think you'd been spirited away by whatever tengu existed when you were even younger, if that's possible in your world.

[Where, for all she knows, tengu no longer exist or maybe never did.]

These are actually a fairly recent acquisition. My powers do tend to evoke crow or tengu imagery where such things are possible, but as far as I know, they don't really exist in my world.

Well than, shall we see if there are any loose rocks large enough to serve as a solid surface for one of these stabilizers?

How do you "acquire" something like that, I wonder...?

[It's an important question, but she's fast enough to write and look at the same time, testing some of the larger but still less-stable-looking boulders over here.]

They're part of the shinigami position. The size and style denote power and rank respectively, and only those in charge of their own territory have feathered ones.

[He searches as he speaks, bending over and pushing at anything that's big enough and isn't obviously either attached to something or buried deep. So far it's taking awhile, it's hard to tell what's under the sand.]

Lower ranking staff for the Reaper's Game have smaller, almost skeletal looking bat wings.

And yours just happen to be crow-shaped because of your nature as a person, then?

[It makes as much sense as anything else. Although Aya's mental image of the standard Reaper wings is not nearly accurate.

Yeah this might take some time.]

As far as I can tell, more or less. The same reason my mask resembles the beak of a tengu, it's a reflection of my inner self.

[It might...especially since shifting a smaller rock seems to have annoyed a crab into giving his finger a good pinch.]

Ack-!

There might be some issues with that one.

[Let's test another, and... oh hey, this one feels good.]

I've got one over here that should work well, though!

Perhaps some, yes.

[He pries the crab loose with his other hand and drops it to the sand. At least the claw seems to have been more of an annoyance than a source of injury, since his finger doesn't even seem red.

Which is good, since it seems like he's going to need his hands soon. He moves over and tests it himself, before nodding.]

This one should do nicely, yes.

[Alternatively: doesn't that thief outfit of his have gloves?]

Now, let's move it.

[She'll be sure to give him more of the credit later. Time to lift.]

[It would if he'd summoned up the full thing, but only the mask appears by default here. And making the entire outfit appear just to move a rock feels more anticlimactic than dramatic.

Once he's sure he has a good grip on the rock, he nods and lifts. It doesn't seem like it's exactly light to him, but he's able to get it off the ground with some effort.]

[Aaaand we're walking!

Fortunately the rock is too heavy for Aya to sprint with. After a minute or two:]

Just about... here?

[Good, considering he can't exactly move quickly with it, either. He takes a quick glance around, then nods.]

This should be far enough from the cliffs to work.

[And so the rock goes back to the sand!]

[She jumps and lands hard on it with a kick, to drive it a little further down. If the rock gets moved, that'd be bad maybe.]

Okay, it's time to set the device.

Do you want to use one of yours, or one of mine?

[He reaches to the bag at his hip with his left hand, waiting for her response.]

You've got more, don't you? And it was your idea to move the rock, so...

[The less she has to write about her own actions later, the better.]

Alright.

[He reaches into the bag and retrieves one of his stabilizers, which he unfolds and sets up on top of the rock before activating.]

That should do for this area.

DUNGEON LOG: KEYSTONE SHORE

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