PLOT: Entering the Cave

[±Witchcraft±]

Durriken dropped to the ground and covered his head when the explosions started going off. This brought back really bad flash backs of his early childhood and someone tried to kill him and his mother. They rigged the shop they were in to explode. The cards got Durriken out in time...but not his mother. The explosions really freaked him out. Looking up after it stopped, he shakily got back to his feet, really on edge now.

He saw the big one at the end and frowned. There was no way past it.

“Who here can throw the farthest, I think that is our best way through it, set it off from far away.” he said, his voice shaking.

[Angelus]

"Pen," Angelus said looking towards his friend, "this would be a great time for your pistols. Please tell me that you brought them."

[Pendragon]

Pen answered by storing his stave on the back of his coat once more, and drawing a pistol in one quick movement. He twirled it in his hand, looking back towards Angelus as he locked the firearm in place. Without looking, he knew his aim was perfect. It always was, that's what hours of drilling did. Pen paused for a second, and then pulled the trigger. Outshot a silver bullet, glowing as Pen added his power over fire to it. By the time it smashed against the end trap, Pen had already redrawn his stave and had it ready to defend against what was about to come.

[baha]

The bullet hit its mark, and the pile burst in a blast of rocks, bone shards, and dirt. A harsh screech echoed, followed by a loud sound of clawed feet fleeing towards the next room. The sound of the waterfall was louder now, and the walls near the end of the tunnel was damp.

Once one had left the tunnel, the first thing they would see would be the back of a waterfall. Only to the right is a narrow dirt path leading down from the ledge to the ground below, or one could jump nearly fifty feet into the deep, clear pool of water below. It was obvious that the students could choose which ever path they felt most comfortable with.

[Angelus]

Angelus sent a gentle gust of wind towards the exit of the cave once the large pile had exploded. He wanted to make sure that no debris made its way towards the group and wanted to protect him and his comrades at all costs. It seemed to work. Angelus felt nothing, but heard something. He knew something was in that pile.

He held his staff out in front of him in a battle stance. He was expecting to see a monster once the dirt cleared, but nothing happened. Once the area became clear again, the waterfall was now easily visible through the hole and there was no sign of a monster. However, Angelus was one hundred percent sure that he had heard something move shortly after the explosion.

He walked ahead and through the exit at the end of the cave. The waterfall loomed in front of him. He gazed out at the expanse of land in front of him, searching for any sign. He noticed the path that led to the base of the waterfall and attempted to see if there were any tracks in the dirt. He continued to hold his staff at the ready, prepared for an attack while waiting for his friends.

[dain]

Dain came up from the shadows not a scratch on his armor, and rubbed his head innocently.

"Heh, sorry all. I had to leave to go retrieve something, I got it though." Dain announced, apologizing. On his back now was a sword that glowed like the sun itself, and seemed to light up the entire cavern around them. He rubbed the orb in the sword as it dimmed and was soon put out.

He went forward and stood next to Angelus as he surveyed the two entrances, and then scurtinized the waterfall. THere was something about it he didn't quite get. He looked down below and figured he might be the only one to dive, maybe Pendragon, he was a risk-taker. Dain looked over at Angelus and saluted him as he turned aorund, his back to the ledge.

"See yall later on the flip-side. Tally-ho!" He ended as he backflipped into the air and twisted as he went into an expert swan dive. His elbow blades came out and acted as fins as the dorsal blade on his helmet came up.

"WOOOOOO-HOO!!!"

A small splash reverberated off the walls as Dain finished his dive. He came up from the water full of vigor and happiness as he brought himself up on the land at the base of the waterfall. He looked up and yelled.

"COME ON! IT WAS FUN!"

[L.A.C.R.I.M.O.S.A]

Ithilwen was now nearly covered head to foot in dirt and grime, and she gave herself a quick disdainful examination as she clucked her tongue periodically. A long shard of the rock that had flown out by cause of the explosion had embedded itself in her left shoulder, and without so much as a wince, she pulled it out with ease, the rock falling to the ground with a clink as her blood stained the dust-covered floor with crimson hues.

The wound wasn't fatal at all and nor was it very painful, but if not tended to properly, it might lead to a rather unpleasant infection. Lucky for her, the waterfall was just ahead, and she had intentions of washing it out there. Once at the end of the tunnel, she narrowly eyed the cascading waterfall, shifting her gaze down below at the crystal-clear pools with caution and intrigue. The water seemed almost too perfect, too clear, as if it were touched with magic to forever stay in its divine state.

Instead of jumping straight in like Dain had done, Ithilwen took the dirt path to the right, maneuvering carefully on the narrow ledge so as not to fall in. When she had reached the bottom, she walked over to the edge of the pool and peered down. She could see her own reflection clearly, and she dipped her fingers in the waters curiously, moving them in circular patterns slowly until she had gotten comfortable enough to cup the water in her right hand.

The cool, refreshing liquid felt good over her injury, and the blood was washed away in an instant, nothing but the shallow gash to mar her ivory skin as a reminder of the dangers that lie within the depths of the grotto. Afterwards, Ithilwen muttered a low incantation in her own tongue, and the wound closed up entirely, new, fresh skin taking its place as the gash ceased to be.

The avariel then took the opportunity to wash herself off of all the dust and dirt, so she cupped the heavenly waters in her hands and splashed her face repeatedly, moving on soon after to her exposed arms and silver tresses. Her skin and hair were clear of impurities, but her clothes were a different story; she frowned at them dully, knowing that she'd need to buy herself a new outfit once they had gotten out of the cave.

[±Witchcraft±]

Durriken walked forward through the cave, being careful of the other bombs. As he made his way he was going to speak to the woman about her wounds but held his tongue when he saw she could heal them herself. When he got to the two paths he decided to take the earthen route. He didn’t want to take the chance of finding anything dangerous in the pool of water, also, who knows how long they would be in the damp area and he didn’t need to walk the rest of the way in and out sopping wet.

“Guys, aren’t we almost near the end?” he asked as he gingerly made his way down. And sighed lightly when he made it to the bottom.

[Angelus]

"I have no idea," Angelus said to Durriken. Even though he had already admitted it to himself, he did not want to admit it to everyone. He had forgotten the directions that Kenra had told him! His first idea was to walk down the path and not risk jumping into the water, but his ideas had changed. He was not sure what was in the water and did not want to be jumping into danger and the path seemed much safer. Seeing how Ithilwen was now cleansed of all dirt, the water seemed to all to Angelus.

Angelus threw his staff down the path to the bottom of the waterfall. He did not want to risk making his blades of his staff rust by touching water. After this, Angelus leaped high in the air and fell into the water next to Ithilwen. He doused himself in water and then came to the surface. The water was a little crisp, but felt good and cleansing. he ashed himself with his hands, making sure to rid himself of all dust.

Once he was completely clean, Angelus relaxed in the water and float at the top. This was an opportunity he needed to take. Who knows what was going to plague him in the future?

[Pendragon]

Once the path was open, Pendragon broke into a run. He kept his sword in hand, swinging it quickly to knock away the remaining objects being launched through the air. He had no way of telling the tunnel opened to an abrupt hole. As he exited the tunnel, Pen was too close to stop. So instead he leapt high into the air, letting his legs come up so he was upside down. For an odd split second, he seemed to hang in the air. Looking down into the water, a huge grin grew over his face. Then the moment was over, and he dived upside down into the depths. It was several seconds before he resurfaced, brushing his soaked hair out of his eyes. "I really need to get some more clothes" He said quietly, examining his drenched coat.

[dain]

Dain laughed in his armor as he stood up and brought his hands in a sign before him. With a couple mroe signs, his armor came off him a mere one inch and spun rapidly as water went everywhere, then it came and snapped back in place.

"That's the advantage of having living armor. No need for cleaning or uptake." He commented as he looked behind him.

"So, as cliche as a film could get, I suppose the next cave tunnel is through this waterfall?" He inquired, drawing his blades within his arms as to not poke anybody.

[Pendragon]

"I have my own ways" Pendragon gave a knowing smile, and climbed out of the water. A moment of concentration and he raced his body temperature high enough to dry himself, water vapour smoked off his body. After returning to a normal level, he glanced at the waterfall Dain had mentioned. "Maybe" He walked towards it, taking a closer look to see if anything was behind it.

[Whiteshadow]

Crow jumped off the top of the cliff, staying behind the students, in-case anything crept from behind. He fell into the water with a smooth dive, hardly making a splash. He came up, and climbed onto the rock at the edge. He came out of the water, and placed a hand on his sword hilt. The water spread off him gently, and rushed back into the pool. He greeted the students with a gentle nod, then waited for the next move. At this point, there was no need for him to make any decisions.

[Angelus]

Angelus stood up in the shallow water and proceeded to move out of the small pond. His clothes were wet and they were beginning to weigh him down. Once he finally got out of the water, the clothes were so heavy that he could hardly move. Angelus raised his hands above his head and began to spin them. This created a swirling cyclone around Angelus.

He began to lower his hands down along his body, intensifying the cyclone as it got closer to the ground. Once his hands reached the ground, his body was completely dry again. He looked over to Crow who was in the in the water. Angelus grabbed his staff like it was a baseball bat and swung it at the water. A large area of water shot from the pool and flew in the air at Crow.

[baha]

"Who's there?" A calm, musical voice burst through the voices of the students. A stone jutting from the center of the cavern stretched high into the air, at the top the form of a woman garbed in white robes sitting on the top, her light-hued eyes set upon the students. Her body seemed frail, yet not to a sickening point. Her pale colored hair brushed her shoulders freely, not restrained by a band of any sort. She swung her feet back forth, in and out of the rock, her sandals held on only by her toes. A solid beam of sunlight seeped from a hole in the ceiling, bathing her with light. She awaited the student's response.