Styx paced ahead, shaking his head at the foolish gembound that raced into the dangerous shadows, risking their necks for those who might already be dead. His wings ruffled, mantled, snapped back into place, twitched his ears to listen to those who were calling out to help and protect.

His paws stepped carefully, not wanting to sink into the quicksand, or to suffocate over the pockets of air he knew to be there. The torch was... well, not quite a torch, and he moved to pace around it, twitching his nose hesitantly, only to retch as his breath caught in his throat, clogging as though it were some tangible thing, and his heart thrummed, racing as though it were trying to account for all the beats it might miss, the doberman panicking as he recognized the poisonous air he feared so.

Styx is rolling to investigate the torch

Gembounds yelled, and screamed, but no matter how hard Hera squinted into the darkness, she saw nothing.

As someone who had always taken pride in her keen site, it was terrifying, felt as though she'd lost one of her very limbs.

They came upon the torch, it would seem, although it was strange, if it weren't for the wisp she wouldn't have taken it for anything more than an odd, odd tree - after all, she had no sense of smell, how would she know it smelled of pitch? So she landed on the ground and knuckle walked around it, trying to get as best a look as she could.

And then, because her writer has horrible luck, she plummeted into quicksand with a terrified shriek.

Speech. Thought.

Hera is rolling to investigate the torch

Anemoi

She's shaking, as everything calms down - checking her family, and the taken, and those who seem fine..

Checking everyone, nosing at them with a soft muzzle and words, pale purple eyes watering as her tears coalesce into drops, but just a few.

Slit pupils dilate and shrink, her gaze searching in the dark and the flickering light for Something Else that can't be seen.

The blast of fire - "The torch, right? Or - ow, that's bright!" making her flinch and once again her eyes draw to slits. The twisted and arranged tree had reeked, and still stunk as it burned, Anemoi storing that smell away to see if she could track any other torches in the future... in case the light went out, in case they split again and somehow survived.

Other Gembound sink below the sucking ground - she knows that she'd only make that worse, her weight striking her as cruel and mocking, almost - and others choke on their own words, or maybe it's - "The poison gas, the horse of light said it earlier! Get back!" she shouts in warning, trying once more to throw up a barrier of wind between their newfound friends and the unseen beast they were fed to, and the twisted desert that it had somehow tamed.

Higher roll = Better Coverage?

ANEMOI is rolling to investigate.

He was not happy about the group splitting - the decrease in light was quite stressful for the young bird, but at least he could see them. His family was safe and rejoining now. "Do not go running off again! I am quite worried for all of you! We must be safe, okay?" He opened his wings and fluttered up, this time to perch on Anemoi's shoulder, looking around at the rest of the family. "It is scary, but we will press on!"

But it was starting to occur to Charles, as they approached the first torch, that he was, effectively, useless when it came to helping. If one of them fell behind, could he pull them back? If one of them was attacked, could he fight anyone off? If one of them fell into the water...could he even do anything about it? His beak clacked again, more with annoyance at this then anything but forced himself to think positively. He wouldn't need to do anything! Because they would live together!

He looked down at Anemoi. "You are okay, sister? It was tough and frightening! But we are all still safe! Perhaps worse for the wear, but just think - this is such an adventure! We've never in our life had a journey like this, we've never had so much excitement and adrenaline rushing through our veins! It's quite thrilling, don't you think? Ah, if only we could see what hunts us." He lifted his head and looked around. "That would be most magnificent!"

It was suddenly becoming harder to speak. His throat...it was closing and he felt himself choking a bit. Eyes widened and he twittered with alarm at what Anemoi was saying. "Poison gas?!" He coughed and pulled back just as Anemoi reacted. "Be careful my siblings," he squeaked. "Don't breath too deeply here."

CHARLES is rolling to stay safe.

They came to a patch of sucking mud and foul-smelling air (and where has he smelled that before?) Nassir stared worriedly at those returning from the dark, their lashes and wounds bound to be infected by the end of his long, dark night. But, the shadows were closing in and - ah, as Black said, the void consumes. There wasn't time to stop and lick wounds. The wisp was bound to move on as soon as Fireheart finished lighting this... torch.

In the meantime, panic was stirring and anxieties were surging up. The black panther knew better than perhaps anyone how irrational those feelings made a Gembound. Despite his own near-constant panting and being one step short of hyperventilating, Nassir hummed quietly. It didn't immediately take to the dead-silent air, and he tried again. "Hey - hey... calm down some and... stick together. Keep talking about things - okay? Or hum. Keep yourself... um, occu -" Shit! "occupied so you can... focus on not stepping in the wrong place."

All the while, he hovered close to the unwilling participants, trying to beckon a glow from his pelt and shed some more light on the crowd. If anyone was in danger, he'd leap towards them in a heartbeat. They were fish in a barrel, at the moment.

NASSIR is rolling to protect the entire group.

Don't mind the dead silence and muffled screams, Howl. Don't mind them at all. Keep your head down and on your shoulders. Don't start counting heads - Mismatched eyes darted around, one, two, three, four - They hooted softly, worriedly and shook their mane out. What'd they just think? The heebie-jeebies were crawling up and down their arms now and it was wreaking havoc on their heartrate.

But, they'd be just fine if they stayed directly underneath the wisp and in the light, right? Hell, it was sitting there idle for once. All that was required was to not get sucked into the muck, or find themselves in a patch of darkness, or breathe in some noxious gas -

No pressure.

HOWL is rolling to stay safe.

Elyon kept close to the stallion's side, even as a crushing phantom grip snared her arm and punctured straight through her exoskeleton. Spurts of coppery-blue blood broke from the wound, joining the others marring her front. She could hardly breathe in this oppressive dark, but she'd fight like hell to make sure they all safely returned to the light. It helped that she had the clanging of her halberd and shield against her back, even though... could she use them? There didn't seem to be anything to fight but the darkness.

The thought made her nervous. If any part of her was horse, she'd be nickering and panting worriedly. As it stood, she twittered maybe once or twice.

Back in the pool of light, she stepped carefully and warily, keeping her eyes on her hoof-claws and the smaller creatures around her. Hearing the warnings of others around her, she geared up to kick or grab or do... anything really for any of them fallen into danger.

ELYON is rolling to protect the entire group.

They returned safely, and he noted that not many others had attempted to save the wolf: Pumpkin, himself, Orenstein, and a long creature he barely glimpsed—a large snake of some kind? Much... much larger than Simon... When they returned, though, they each got an earful from the others, and he frowned. Were they not all in this together? Ifrit had always believed he would protect his family, but the others? Was it worth sacrificing strangers?

As Fireheart spoke and thanked them, it made him feel good about his decision. But shortly after, Sora reprimanded them, and then Kini; he snorted and flicked his long ears. "Alright," was all he said to them.

It would be hard, he assumed, to watch others sink or suffocate or get drawn into the void, but fine. If his family wanted to value themselves over others facing the same trial as them, he'd listen, but—his fiery eyes watched as Fireheart attempted to light the torch. Yeah. He'd stick his neck out for the wolf again.

Again, as the chill of the dark came creeping in on the air, he summoned the warmth inside of him. As the others warned of toxic gas, quicksand, and other dangers, he grunted. Oh, yeah, sure, don't breathe in the gas when you have the biggest nostrils of anyone here probably. The panic, perhaps, kept him from offering as much warmth as possible—but still, he did his best to follow safe paths while attempting to keep an eye on both his family and Fireheart.

When Sora was lost to the water, he passed one last glance by Fireheart before rushing into the depths of the dark to save his family this time. Hopefully his long legs would let him navigate it easily, but in a place as twisted as this, he wasn't very hopeful.

IFRIT is rolling to protect SORA.

TRIAL OF HYDRA - DARKNESS

FALLEN GUARDIANS - BLACK AND NASSIR

Morganite was the first to see it.

They touched quicksand, peering in--and slipped, and in that instant they would see. The pool beneath them moved--shifted, ever-so-slightly; and for the briefest instant, as they fell, they would see shadows move within. It was not mere sand, and water; it churned with an unnatural strength as it dragged them down. Simon, and Sora; Usingizi, and Owlface; Styx, and Hera, and Mayngo... All of them found themselves mired, drowning, the thick muck dragging them down, the water pouring into mouths and nostrils.

Others--Oreinstein and Rainstorm--found themselves choking on the poison gases, a gas which burned the eyes and seared the lungs.

None of these would be pleasant deaths; and yet death did not come for them, not yet. The protectors--the guardians--stepped forth through the chaos. Black and Nassir would save Mayngo and Hera, and fall in their stead, sinking away...

...and the quicksand would seem to relinquish its hold on the others, for a moment--a lapse in strength just enough for them to work themselves free, at a cost. Any Gembound fighting quicksand or deep water would be left near exhaustion, sore and soaking wet. Any who breathed in poison gas would have burned eyes and seared lungs, potentially causing long-term or permanent vision damage or breathing troubles. Any fallen into shadow will have been further slashed by icy nothing.

___________

This thread will be temporarily locked for Nassir and Black to write their falls. Regular posting will resume next round.

@Pumpkin @Owlface @Orenstein @Rainstorm @Kini-yolotl @Simon @Styx (Mayngo, Hera) @Morganite @Charles @Puck (Usingizi, Quartz) @Nassir (Howl, Elyon) @Warrior (Black, Fireheart) @Sora @Ifrit @Anemoi

An eagle's shriek cut through the air like a rifle shot, and Nassir moved towards it near-automatically. Still humming to himself and trying to just hold himself together, his jaws reached down with a suggestion to "hold still"; not that he was experienced with dealing with quicksand. He was afraid of snapping her neck or punching into an artery with his curved canines. That being said, though, it was like he was... tugging against something. The glow of his hide puttered out with his straining, and the circle of light grew no dimmer. A muscle pulled in his neck and his own paws were halfway in the muck by the time he managed to haul Hera out. She was just about thrown out of the mire.

Unfortunately, momentum and gravity had its grip on him, and he was slicked over from the shoulder down. The black panther yowled "help - !" as he tumbled head-first into the quicksand, with hardly a splash or sucking pop! of air.

Interestingly enough, his lungs weren't being filled with the liquid suspension. Just stiflingly-cold air and a mild indication of being elsewhere. Could he feel soil beneath his feet? Could he feel himself? It was nice and quiet out here - no pandemonium to echo senselessly in his head. Maybe, if he closed his eyes and just rested for a while...