revivalproject | In the Deep Dark Hills of Eastern Temba

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In the Deep Dark Hills of Eastern Temba

WHO: Cobb Vanth & Mining Expedition Team
WHERE: The Mines
WHAT: Mine exploration
WHEN: First Week of Event.
WARNINGS: Cursing. Blood/Injury.

Mining Expedition - for Mining Team

It had been a long time since Cobb had worn the armor he bought on Coruscant. He stood outside the entrance of the mines in the polished slightly gold colored durasteel with no cape. Last thing he wanted was for that to get caught on something while underground. The armor would protect from minor cave ins and small falling rocks but a part of him wanted to take it off. If the ceiling came down, Cobb would honestly preferred to be crushed immediately instead of survive.

A few had happened while he worked underground and he'd been lucky not to get caught in them. He had seen what happened to slaves who had been and those images haunted him as he looked at the entrance to the darkness beyond.

As the little team started to gather together Cobb pushed those thoughts from his mind. He needed to focus to keep all these people safe underground.

"Here's the general plan," he said when they had all arrived. "Drake's probe, Mini, and this guy here will go first. The probe should be able to tell us the air quality which should be your number one concern. Anyone who breathes starts to feel light headed, you walk out immediately. No pretending everything is fine. We're here to map this place and see what needs fixin', not start digging around."

Anyone who toughed it out and then passed out would put them all at risk. Cobb's tone was very stern and grim. This was not a time to fuck around like this was a walk around talk. Luckily, this group didn't seem like the type to do that.

"Second thing to look for is the ceiling. You see it bowing down anywhere that's a good sign of a collapse. Should be even all along the way." That was how it was back home, at least. "And it might get tight in there depending on how the Agrii build their mines. No one goes off alone. You always have a buddy. Any questions before we head in?"

The mine's entrance was big enough but Cobb felt once they got inside and got under they might be in for a tight squeeze.

---

Cave In - for thesepreciousthings

It was surprisingly easy to get comfortable underground again. Cobb was all too willing to explore around with Starling when she asked. Apparently, she came from mining people too. She felt more useful helping out in the mines than exploring the new city.

"I can't tell much of what they were doing down here," Cobb said as they walked down a side tunnel, intending to map it. They had a pretty decent map taking shape with marked spots for the strange place they found and the holes to the surface. "They didn't leave any mining equipment behind so who knows what they got from here? Haven't seen crystals or coal or oil. Not even salt. Just the stone walls."

He was a little bothered by that. This was an extensive mine and clearly served a purpose at one point. There was no real clue what the purpose was however. Not to Cobb's eyes, at least. They had some hope once they understood the panel and all that, it would become clear.

Cobb was about to say more when he noticed something in the glint of his flashlight. A piece of metal hanging down from the ceiling. He had half a second to realize it was a roof bolt meant to hold the roof of the mine in place when a stone slipped.

"Starling!" He grabbed her just as more stones start to slip and the roof broke apart. Cobb dragged her out of the way but they were caught in the fall. Not the worst of it. Cobb pressed her against the wall as what felt like the whole of the earth came down around them. It was his worst fear come to life and it hurt as the stones bounced off his shoulders, his back, and his head while he tried to keep her from the worst of it.

When the rumbling stopped and the air went still Cobb blinked in the darkness. His flashlight was somewhere but they were in complete blackness now with the mine closed in around them. Well. Damn it all.

---

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"That is a complicated question, but you are correct," Reeve answered the ghost. Then he turned his attention to Felwinter.

"Were you not to go toward the front of our little expedition? I don't know if it is wise to have the man making the map near the front. Not that I am rejecting a kind offer, I just thought the division would make this awkward. But yes, I might need people to watch my steps. My attention will be almost wholly on my papers if we wish to make any time at all."

A fair point, as to which Felwinter conceded with a nod. "In that case, we'll be able to give you warning either way, should there be any treacherous ground or unstable tunnels, as we will take point." He wasn't sure how long their venture would take, and the Agrii hadn't really provided much details beyond that there was something strange going on within the mines.

"If we're all to travel together then it might be best for you to remain towards the middle of our group. I doubt that anyone here would leave anyone behind."

A warning would be very wise. In fact, the middle of the group hadn't even been something he'd thought of. He'd thought to be toward the back so he doesn't mess anyone else's progression up.

"I thank you of that. As a note, when Mini travels with you, if you notice anything of particular note, just say it to him. He will relay it to me. I'll be mostly drawing what he sees."

"There is no need to thank me. As one of those being in front, it is our responsibility to give the rest of you a head's up." That was what he was tasked with, so Felwinter was going to uphold his duty to the best of his ability. He did nod as he took note of what Reeve mentioned regarding Mini. "Interesting. Do you share some sort of bond?"

"Yes, he is, in a way, a part of me," Reeve answered. "His own person, but we are joined at the soul tiself."

Which is why Reeve will need to make sure their group doesn't trail too far beyond Mini. Not that MIni would let Felwinter and the lead get too far without letting them know if there is a risk of causing damage to the bond between them.

"Hm. I see. In a way that sounds like the case as it is for me and Felspring," Felwinter mused. That would make for Mini being a very unusual Ghost, not that he nor Felspring were aware of the bizarre Ghost shell trends that Guardians in Ikora and Cayde's age tended to go through.

Mini and Reeve shared a look, and a silent conversation between them.

Ah dunnae think ah'm very like one a them.

Actually, I don't find the comparison that troublesome. But we can leave out how you were given life and some of our weaknesses or their strengths for now. Does it really serve anyone?

Reeve was treated to the feline-creature huffing in annoyance in his mind and then he smiled at Felwinter.

"It is good to know that someone else has a bit of the experiences I have. Do the two of you have a psychic link, or is all of your communication aloud?"

The silence that followed earned a tilt of the warlord's head. Was it something he'd said. He glanced at his Ghost when Reeve spoke up again.

"...in a way," he said carefully. "But she can communicate with me directly."

"Aye, we can do that as well," Mini agreed with a little shrug.

"It's just that we've spent most of our time here without Mini having the ability to speak. So we're used to internalizing sometimes," Reeve admitted. "Though i can't imagine how he chose his accent."

"Is that so?" Felwinter asked, head tilting at the cat as Reeve spoke of Mini. "What has changed?"

The little cat-being's accent was an interesting one but not something he'd thought too much about. It reminded him of something he'd heard back home, although he couldn't say when that might have been, much less where.

"Mah form," Mini supplied, his tail lashing.

Reeve had to chuckle over the vigor the cat spoke with.

"He started as a doll here. With Tony's help I was able to create a robotic form to give him. Including with a moving mouth. My magic has strange ways of working. If a thing doesn't have a mouth, it won't be able to speak."

The warlord's faceless helmet turned back towards Reeve at that, glancing between him and Mini. "So you are saying you created him?"

Even Felspring looked a little intrigued at that, her shell lifting like the arch of a brow before she swiveled to look at Felwinter. She didn't even have to ask what sort of thoughts were going through his mind then, but by now their thoughts were virtually each other's for how well they've come to know each other. A construct brought to life with magic. And yet Mini still spoke with such a vivid personality as anything breathing. It was still beyond Felwinter's understanding. Here he'd been brought to life by some unknown force itself, but his own personality was very bare-boned by comparison.

"Yes, of course," Reeve answered. Was that so strange? "I imparted a soul to him. It's a magic called Inspire."

Mini's tail flicked lightly, still intent on the conversation.

"In a way, he shares a part of my own being."

"I have not heard of such magic. But then even magic itself may not sufficiently describe the powers that we have access to."

Felwinter gestured to his Ghost. "She is one of many, created by a being known as the Traveler, which appears as a large white sphere like a smaller moon that hovers over the Earth. When she brought me back to life, we became connected."

"I have heard only the vaguest things about this Traveler from Cayde," Reeve admitted. "I was not aware of that association with your ghost."

In fact, he wasn't aware of many things, other than their version of Earth might be partially destroyed? He wasn't certain.

"There isn't very much known to us about the Traveler," Felwinter said. "Only that it managed to protect humanity from being completely wiped out when the Darkness came. The Ghosts appeared some time later."

Well that's interesting.

"A light in the dark," Reeve suggested. Someone who gave them a chance, and that was rather important. "Well, we're lucky for the ghosts."

This he addressed to Felspring. "It will be a pleasure to work with you both. Thank you for helping keep us safe."

"An apt description. The Risen are those who have been touched by the Traveler's Light. ...although there are many who abuse this power," Felwinter said. "But perhaps things will change..."

The Ghost turned towards Reeve, seeming somehow surprised at his words. She tipped forward in the air in a nod of sorts. "Just trying to do our part."

"It is no small part," Reeve answered with a shrug to the ghost. Mini, meanwhile, was watching the thing with attentive lashes of his tail.

Make a cat robot, and it gets some cat mannerisms, including wanting to pounce. Reeve, not noticing, returns to Felwinter.

"The Risen. That... seems to imply a thing. An ascension, or a return."

If she were paying better attention to the cat-being, he'd get a flat-eyed look. She'd already had to deal with overly curious mothkittens plaguing the library. But at the moment she nodded along with Felwinter at Reeve's observation.

"It is as you say. All who were chosen by Ghosts and the Traveler were once dead, and brought to life by the Light. And so long as our Ghosts are with us, they are able to revive us," Felwinter explained. "I have died many times since. Being brought back does not make the experiences any less pleasant."

Yes, the mothkittens could fly. Mini? His legs weren't made with the same structure as a real cat and thus wasn't going to have as much vertical jump.

"Do you know your life from before?" Reeve asked, before gesturing to Felspring. "Before the first?"

Felspring glanced down at Mini with a suspicious look at the attention she was getting from him.

The warlord hesitated before shaking his head. "...no," he said. "Sometimes there are memories of things I couldn't have possibly indulged in after Felspring found me- a quote from literature, a snippet of music. When I am brought back from a death, flashes of memories come more clearly, but still brief and in no particular order."

Don't mind Mini, Felspring. He's just pacing as he's considering your placement. Don't worry. Not at all.

"Ah," Reeve said, feeling mindful and uncomfortable. He hadn't meant to make someone feel awkward over their history. Better that he moves on. "I have seen a few others with Ghosts here. It seems like there are a variety of powers associated with your work, is that correct?"

The upper portion of the Ghost's shell bunched slightly, very much suggesting a squint.

Felwinter shook his head at Reeve, not too bothered by the admission so much as cautious about just how much he shared of what he did know about himself. He was however glad to shift to something easier to speak of, nodding. "I've heard of at least two others. Guardians, they are referred as? It must be the temporal differences," he mused. "But it makes me hopeful that there is a time where there will no longer be warlords who abuse their power.

"There are several...elements, I suppose one can call them. We can harness the Solar heat of the sun, the electrical charge of Arc lightning, and the consuming vastness of the Void."

Warlods who abuse their powers. Reeve sighed at that. He's known people like that back home. They had another name, but they were absolutely warlords, shaking the lives of others.

"Well, that makes two of us with electricity down here. At the moment I have lightning and ice at my call. I'll try not to cast my magic while you're working. Two bolt spells at once tended to be awkward back home."

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In the Deep Dark Hills of Eastern Temba

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