Quest: The Strangeness of Cetus (Part 2)

The buzzing has suddenly become ear-splittingly loud in The Heart of Cetus! The sound has seemingly driven away all the natural wildlife, such as birds, lizards, mice, etc. The surface of the marsh seems to be vibrating due to the loud sound. What could possibly be causing all this noise?!

Join This Quest

If you would like to participate in this quest, post with your character in this thread. Completing this quest will require some teamwork, so don't be afraid to roleplay it out! Feel free to request a GM when you feel you may be ready to proceed.

Participants:
Part One: Fisher, Aster, Remy, Ecthelon, Fallah (Read Part 1)
Part Two: Delilah, Fisher, Louie, Fallah, Mau, Black (Read Part 2)
Part Three: ??

Silver woke with a start. The dulled hum had suddenly come to life. He screeched as he woke, wings flaring wide and legs stretching to stand him upright. The noise was ear-splitting! How horrible! The heron shook his head, covering either side with his wings tightly. It didn't help. With a squawk, he took to the air, wide wings lifting his lengthy body up and into the misty air of Cetus cave. In the air, it was hardly any better. At least his legs weren't vibrating up here.

Those pale eyes hunted across the ground for the source now. He'd never been bothered by it before, but this was just too much!

"WHERE ARE YOU!?" He screeched, enraged after only a minute of circling the cave. He wouldn't leave. This was his home. This was his cave. He had a hard enough time finding peace with the constant outsiders traipsing through and ruining his fishing. This was just the icing on the disgustingly loud cake!

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The damned buzzing was back.

Hidden in the muddy swirls of the black swamp water was what would feel, if one were to stumble over it, like a particularly rough, rounded rock. Inside, a tiny crocodilian gembound shifted and hissed, irritated.

He was resting! Why couldn't this--this thing--see that?

But it just continued, on and on, louder and louder, until the entire marsh seemed to vibrate with the aggravating noise.

The baby alligator turned, abruptly violent, smashing his egg tooth into the mottled black-and-green-and-brown jasper walls. The stone was already brittle with his growth, and ready to crack--and crack it did, splitting and giving way to the small lizard-like hatchling.

He found himself plunged into cold darkness, and quickly and instinctively used a thick tail to propel himself back up, gasping for breath and then blinking large, catlike golden-green eyes.

Where is this sound coming from? SOMEONE must stop it.

The irritated reptile floated in the dark waters of the marsh, for a time, almost motionless, just his eyes and nostrils protruding above the surface. Then he ducked under, quiet and frustrated--very angry for one so young--trying to discern if the sound came from, or was stronger in, any particular direction--including 'down.'

He surfaced a moment later with another irritated hiss, and began to propel himself with his swishing tail toward the marsh's edge, instead. There was no point in trying--the buzz seemed, to him at least, to come from everywhere at once.

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Tamelyn Thunderhoof And I will fear no darkness

The swampy cavern of Cetus was probably one of Tamelyn's least-favorite places to be. She preferred it when the ground didn't try to swallow up her feet, where, inside of leaping and bounding, she was reduced to sluggish, slogging pace through the muck. But curiosity drove her onward. Fisher had claimed to hear a buzzing noise when she first met him here, at his hatching, and while she hadn't heard it then, it was undeniable now, even audible in the tunnels outside Cetus.

Tamelyn's ears were pressed flat against her skull, her face screwed up against the all-encompassing buzz. It had intensified to the point that it was almost physically painful, and she could barely force herself to remain in the cavern. Strange things were afoot, what with the yeti and the golems and the shadowy beast seeking his friend. She wanted to do something to protect the creatures of the cave, unfortunately for her, there wasn't much a sticklegged little fawn could do. So, she contented herself with trying to remain aware of the happenings of the cave.

She paused, taking a moment to rub her face against her foreleg, wincing against the buzz. It was getting unbearable, and making her irritable. But she had to find the source. She lifted her head again and forced her ears up, swiveling this way and that as she tried to determine which way the buzz sounded most intense.

"Listen to me."

table by lisa, image and modifications by FennecFyre

Listening closely, the buzzing sound emanates most strongly from the marsh. The surface of the deep, black waters seems to vibrate, rippling outwards from the center of the marsh, where it seems the buzzing is at its most intense.

Fisher hadn't found the white kitten, but part of him was glad for that. He hoped that the black barkfriend wouldn't hate him for giving up on that, but if the kitten was well enough to move she was well enough to survive on her own and that's what he kept telling himself as he popped out of icy tunnel H and entered the mist.

"Alright, everyone!" He had a small menagerie following him and he didn't want them getting lost in the mist. "Follow my voice, and stick close! To the BBBZZZZZZTTT!" He barked loudly, the noise of the humming so much louder than he had ever heard it before. His pelt rippling, the mustelid began to race towards the heart of Cetus-- he had traveled a long way, and maybe he was tired, but hearing the humming reinvigorated the young pup.

And so, the fisher cat began to bark and mimic-hum the whole way through the great Cetus, his paws expertly weaving around the thick marshland-- usually by sticking to the roots of trees that were certainly firm ground unlike the rest of the wetlands.

Today his ears were sharp and nothing could deter him-- soon the furry noodle had made his way to the edge of the deep, dark water, where the noise was so loud that it made his head ring. He looked behind him and tried to see just how many had followed him-- and also, who else was around. This was the big moment-- Fisher had been born to discover the secret of the Buzzing Noise and now here he was. It sure sounded angry, but he didn't care. The whole venture excited him beyond reason.

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Black velvet on stout legs burst into the tunnel just behind Fisher, the young mastiff panting heavily.

He had done much the same as the brown creature--when he realized that the white kitten was gone, he had given chase, sniffing after her trail. But it had been obvious that she had fled, and he'd come to the same conclusion: she was able to run, therefore she was all right. He would seek her out later, perhaps.

For now, he plunged into the cold black marshwater, galloping through its shallows, letting out a thundering, ringing bark or two. He followed along behind the brown Fisher, intent on discovering and perhaps fighting the source of this buzzing.

That's why he'd been awakened, after all. This was obviously his purpose, and he was loyally dedicated to it. As Fisher shouted, he pricked up his ears, then obeyed--he didn't understand all of the words, but he understood enough. In he went, splashing and finally kicking off into a swim as he reached deeper water, barking again, and panting. He was tired, but he had a job to do, and that came first.

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The sandy lion cub was sleeping contentedly in his black jade chrysalis. Paws tucked into his scraggly chest and tail wrapped neatly by his side, he intended to rest in this position for just a little longer. However, the humming began and it hurt his ears. The sound droned on and the chrysalis started to vibrate in accordance to the sound. Usui shifted uneasily and let out a low whimper. The droning continued through the chrysalis into his head though, oblivious to his hushed protest, and finally, the cub could take it no longer. His reflexes led him to simultaneously kick at the chrysalis with his powerful hind leg while clawing at it. Thus, his struggle to be born began, and 5 minutes later, the young champion burst through his chrysalis, did a little tumble and landed on his belly with a little plop!

Large, solemn eyes greeted the world. The cub was silent and held an air of wisdom way ahead of his time. In that moment of hows?what?whys?wheres?who?, the young one was able to put aside the aggravating hum and commit his birth environment to memory. He saw that dark swamp covered the area, and he himself was seated on a little wet mound of sand. Obsidian water snaked between the roots of trees and the stillness of it suggested the lack of life. The cub was not scared. After all, this was the first environment he had been initiated into. Scrambling to his paws, Usui tested all of his reflexes, then whipped his tail about. He mewled strongly and was evidently pleased with his vocals. Having spun round three times to completely register his physical identity, the young one was now ready to confront the mysterious hum of the deep.

Flicking his dark-rimmed ears, the black jade gem comfortably cuffed around the left ear, the brave cub looked around for the source of sound. It whirled around him like a constant taunt. His previous exertions were starting to take a toll on him, and with this extremely loud humming, his young mind involuntarily lashed out in protest and his magic flared up.

Almost as soon as he lashed out immediately did the pebbles and small rocks in his path suddenly break into two. Usui looked at it in awe, and subtly knew that he had caused it to happen. After all, this had happened immediately when he lashed out violently with his mind in protest of this whole humming thing. Curiosity got to this cat, so he looked at the pebbles that had split. There wasn't many of them that were affected, maybe 5, but the action of rocks falling apart had captured his attention earlier. Odd, how come the ones closer to him lay motionless, yet the ones closer to the swamp seemed to tingle? Being too young, his mind was unable to connect the dots regarding the vibrating particles and the source of vibration. it was sheer luck and curiosity that directed his attention to the rippling water near the center which he just assumed to be the source of all this.

Clambering near to the edge, Usui looked at the water. He dipped a paw in, ready to explore, but instinct kicked in. "No! Black water bad! Dangerous!" The boy recoiled and paced along the bank, mind working furiously. He wanted to, needed to get closer to the bubbling/vibrating thing, but it eluded him. Usui continued to walk along the side of the swamp, chalky green eyes remaining watchful of his surroundings, and occasionally, he scowled at the water. He wanted to go there! Then, he spotted this dark brown furry animal (Fisher) leading a group of other Gembounds. Usui half tripped-half-walked over to him and spoke hurridly. "Water bad. Need get in water. But water bad." Words were foreign on his baby tongue, and he ended up mewling pathetically and lashed his tail out in frustration.

There was a party forming in the center of the cave and soaring above their heads, the heron didn't take long to spot them. He circled once, twice, then seemed to hesitate. Find it. Like a fish. A loud, horrible, buzzing fish. And without any more hesitation or thought put into it, the bird who's head was too full of humming to think properly, dove down and into the water expertly and with barely a splash, hoping to spear the source of the noise with his beak...

..and then the bird would get far more than he could have ever imagined. He broke through the water and straight into the gaping jaws of a giant fish! Breaking hard and fast, he'd twist to try and fly back up and out before those jaws snapped shut, but too late! The world went dark and the sounds, muted. Surrounded by walls of flesh and bone, the bird flailed about as his world rocked and surged forward. I'VE BEEN EATEN! He realized with horror. Oh, no. Oh, No, NO, NO! He braced himself as the world quivered and rumbled around him, panting as his wings and talons clung to fleshy walls.

There was a great disturbance from deep within the churning black waters. The buzzing became louder and louder; it was powerful enough to cause ringing in the ears of the Gembounds at its shores. The sound was deafening as the dog entered into the shallows and kicked towards the center of the marsh. A great current had begun to pick up beneath the surface. Then, as the heron broke the surface of the water, the humming ceased. Almost immediately the sound cut off, leaving the marsh in deathly silence as the bird plunged beneath the surface.

Suddenly, the surface of the water erupted.

A monstrous creature exploded from the black waters, gaping jaws large enough to swallow Silver whole. The heron disappeared into the maws of the beast, who burst from the surface with an ear-splitting cry. This was Aquarian, the keeper of Cetus. His streamlined body, at least a hundred meters long, was fitted with sharp, diamond-shaped scales that held an iridescent gleam to their naturally teal colour. A single vivid yellow stripe ran down the length of his body, along with rows of sharp yellow frills. His head was something of a mix between draconic and fish-like, poisonous yellow eyes holding slitted black pupils. A citrine point sprouts from between his brows. Looking close enough, one could see that he indeed had four limbs, though they were short and webbed. Rows upon rows of razor white teeth gleamed in the light. The beast surfaced and then dove back down into the depths of the marsh, sending gargantuan waves to crash down on the shores.

A great, black shadow could be seen advancing from beneath the surface towards the Gembounds.

Silver is currently in Aquarian's dry stomach. He is still alive, but currently can not escape.