atlantis ♔ bury anchors in our ghosts

[cigam]

♬ Buried in Water - Dead Man's Bones

WHO || Amara, Zatanna, Lila, David, Emma, Hook
WHAT || The Knights head to the lost city of Atlantis to discover the truth about the curse of the Homo Magi
WHERE || Atlantis
WHEN || April 10th, 2015 [backdated].
HOW || Actionspam. Single thread.

It's been two years since a mission in the Bermuda Triangle led to the discovery of the hidden home of the race known as the Homo Magi - the original race of pure-blooded sorcerers.  Inflicted with a curse that causes them to fall in love at first sight with any mortal they see, they had secluded themselves there, taking slaves of those who were lost in the Triangle to help defend their city.  On that ill-fated mission, the Homo Magi Amara fell victim to the curse, falling in "love" with David Charming and defecting from her people in order to have the chance to be with him.  Now a danger to herself and potentially others, the Knights have sought a way to free her of her curse, so far to no avail.  Lila, however, has finally convinced Amara herself to help, convincing her that the only way to prove that her love for David is real is to prove that the curse has no bearing on it.  Amara has uncovered the location of the Homo Magi's original home: the lost city of Atlantis, where she believes they can uncover the truth about the curse's origins, and in so doing, a way to reverse it, and free her people of it once and for all.

To this end, the Knights are drifting out into the Atlantic Ocean in Hook's ship, seeking the whirlpool that will supposedly take them to the underwater city.

Comments

[generaldavideus]

[Since David is basically here to be strong, he's going to go move to Hook's pillar, adding his own bit of strength to the mix (strength crit fail action point says 17). It's not much but maybe with the two of them combine they can get somewhere.]

[uncurse]

[ Good work, men. While they get on that, Emma steps to the other pillar, and gestures for Lila and Zatanna to help her out. ]

Come on, this one too.

[ str 21! ]

[bittersweeter]

[ well. lila crit failed her str check so she's probably like poking it with one finger.

IN HER DEFENSE she only has 7 hp, it's not like she's doing particularly well right now. that is all she can fucking manage. ]

[cigam]

[ amara and zatanna both use a little magic mojo to help add to the turning of the pillars, which fall into line one after another, matching the image above. a sheen flickers across the mirror... and then suddenly light bursts out of the pillars, and focuses on the altar, which starts glowing brightly. ]

[uncurse]

[ Emma jumps back like she's expecting the glow to cause some kind of explosion like wtf. Don't trust no magic. ]

[generaldavideus]

[David's arm comes up to shield his eyes, trying to reduce the glare from the light and see if he could see what was within it, but the last time he saw a light like that he was kidnapped to an alternate dimension so ...


... yeah, he's going to keep his distance too.]

[unhand]

[Killian takes a step back too, but he's watching with more interest than fear.]

[besmitten]

[ amara, in the meantime, actually starts moving forward, walking around the altar, the glow lighting up her face, her eyes glittering in amazement. she lowers both hands over its surface, palms facing the illuminated surface, but hovering just above it. ] All the secrets of my people... they may be here for the taking.

[bittersweeter]

[ lila neither moves forward nor back, keeping her position as the alter begins to glow, but she does follow amara like a shadow when she starts to move forward. ]

Enough secrets to break their curse? [ w/e amara, take your power, far be it from lila to stop her, but she wants to keep her on track at least. if she weren't itching to get home to sylar, she'd touch the damn thing herself but the way her luck it running right now, it would probably kill her. ]

[uncurse]

[ This seems like

a really bad idea.

And Emma has that written all over her face. Like what if she does break the curse ? ?? She was trying to kill them before she was in love with Charming ? ? What if she tries to kill them again ? ? And she's this all-powerful fucking sorceress who's going to drown them in Atlantis ? ? And she's never going to see Henry or Faye or her parents again.

God being a good person fucking sucks. But this is what they came here for, and hopefully, it'll all go well because they're doing the ~right thing.~ ]

Just ... be careful. Something tells me we haven't seen the last of this place's security system.

[ She steps up beside Lila and places a hand on the back of her shoulder. Now seems like a good time to make sure that they're ready for the worst outcome, and Emma REMEMBERED SHE HAS CURE SPELLS OK HER PLAYER JUST DIDN'T, so her hand silently glows warm at Lila's back, bright white energy reinvigorating her (cure serious wounds, +28 hp). ]

[generaldavideus]

[David can see the look on Emma's face, and he understands why she's apprehensive (sense motive 21), but he also knows from experience that when a curse like that is broken, it isn't always that simple. It's a lot to process at once, so it may by them some time before Amara declares them her enemy again.

If Amara declares them her enemy. That may not happen. It all depends on Amara and how she handles the revelation.

So for now he just hangs back and waits, keeping an eye out for any sign of trouble (spot 20 total, listen 17), hoping that this all turns out well.]

[bittersweeter]

[ lila looks back at emma briefly, eyebrows raised as some of the pain and fatigue recedes. she lives with pain from sleep deprivation all the time so the sensation of pain lessening is always noticeable to her. since when does emma know how to heal?? without asking, she'll ask later, she turns her attention back to amara. ]

[besmitten]

[ she lowers her hands down onto the top of altar, and the light seems to shimmer through her entire body rapidly. her eyes roll backwards, going entirely white, and she starts to murmur in some lost language, summoning the light brighter and brighter. ]

[bittersweeter]

[ well, she deeply regrets not touching the thing. that is what her expression reads. damn i should have touched the thing. that is way better than benefit high beam, do you think it's easy looking this glowing and fresh faced with no sleep?

#teenagers. ]

[cigam]

I can't tell what she's casting. [ zee casts a worried look at the others. SHE'S NOT USED TO NOT RECOGNIZING MAGIC ]

[uncurse]

[ Well Emma rolled the shittiest spellcraft check on Earth, so don't look at her. ]

Amara? [ Emma called out warily, her tone of voice prompting Amara to clue them in on what the fuck was happening. ]

[unhand]

[Killian steps forward, hand resting on the pommel of his sword, his shoulder bumping against Emma's. He doesn't know what's happening, and he doesn't like it. Amara was already far more powerful than he's comfortable with. He doesn't like her getting even more powerful.]

[generaldavideus]

[David is doing the same for now - something Zee doesn't recognize and her being nervous about it definitely is not making him feel comfortable. It's possible it's just something that old, but at the same time, he doesn't want to take any chances.

His hand moves to the hilt of the sword behind his head, and for right now, he waits.]

[besmitten]

[ that strange glow seems to center on her face, forming into another visage, human, male, that floats over her own. she speaks, but her voice seems to echo in their minds as her own and not her own, heard in their own native language: ]

What knowledge do you seek of the Altar?

[bittersweeter]

Holy shit. [ lila flinches, wincing. she hates people in her head. she also doesn't know if she's supposed to answer the disembodied voice out loud or in her head, but if it's the latter that voice is treated to some irritated "i want to know how to break the curse so we can get the fuck out of here, i'm wearing a wool skirt!"

she looks to emma to answer though. lila may be the master wordsmith, but emma is the leader. ]

[uncurse]

[ WhAT THE ACTUAL FUCK. Emma takes a half step back, staggered by the strangeness of it all, but she notices Lila looking at her and steps forward, putting herself a little bit between the danger and Lila and Hook. ]

We want to understand the Curse of the Homo Magi. [ Then, more firmly: ] We need a way to break it.

[besmitten]

[ 'amara', controlled by this strange force, turns to glare at emma. for someone who might just be an ancient speaking library, she sure has a hateful look in her eyes. ]

YOU WOULD ATTEMPT TO UNDERMINE THE WILL OF POSEIDON?

[bittersweeter]

[ ugh. it reminds her of shandra, making her skin crawl. which is why she answers sharply, ] Yes.

[unhand]

[Killian puts a hand on Lila's shoulder as he steps forward, smiling slightly. He has gone against the will of Poseidon before, but that was a different world, a different Poseidon. It's enough to make him halt for a moment, but only a moment (diplomacy crit fail NAT 20 in the best action point use ever. That's 37 total, unless Amara being sort of who they're talking to makes this count as talking to a girl, in which case it's 39). He gives the sort of charming smile only he can manage, innocent while still holding the promise of roguishness, as he addresses Amara and the voice coming from her.]

Perhaps if we knew Poseidon's reasoning for the curse, we could discuss if his will shouldn't change with the times.

[besmitten]

Long ago, the homo magi were a race blessed by Poseidon's protection. [ as he/she speaks, the light stemming from her explodes above her head into images formed of green-blue light, that wisp from one scene to the next ] He drew the favor of the Lady of Magic, and she poured many secrets of the Weave into his ear, which he shared with his Chosen. Atlantis was a shrine to the power he granted them, a place for them to protect the secrets he had freely given.