final investigation

[arsholes]

[It's been almost a week since Orthrus' lucky escape. Almost a week, of all calls to Heisenberg going (metaphorically) to voicemail. Almost a week, to rest and recover from the harrowing losses of the previous Friday.

It's been almost a week. And the storms are getting worse.

You know the locked door on the first floor? The one that goes into the center of the tower, right across from the great entry hall doors?

Today, there's a heavy iron key sticking out of the lock. With a familiar crest on the head.

The key is sticky with wet yellow paint, and wetter blood.]

Comments

[arsholes]

[The mirror is in fact old as balls. Probably at least six, maybe seven hundred years old. It has all of the things you might associate with that, a little bit of built up dust and grime and discoloration along the edges where the glass meets the frame, etc.

There are runes carved along the frame of it, as well.]

[rikonstructed]

[Anything about the runes that Nuadha would recognize as being similar to common alchemy symbols? Or are they a different style?]

[arsholes]

[They are not alchemical runes. One of them looks to have been amended with something sharp, like a knife or a claw.]

[rikonstructed]

[Do those changes look recent, or just relative to the rest of the mirror? Also Nuadha will touch the surface and the runes, any reaction or possible traces of magic he could feel from that?]

[arsholes]

[Just relative to the rest of the mirror.

Using magic to examine it, Nuadha will find that it's a communication mirror.

In other words, his scrying being picked up on this mirror was basically like the mirror's natural enchantment in reverse.]

[rikonstructed]

[Oh, now isn't that interesting. Nuadha will at least glance over his shoulder to give the others fair warning first.]

It's made to connect to something, like a mirrage communicator. Once we finish our search I'll try to activate it. Since we don't know what it could connect to we should be prepared first.

[replacementshield]

[ from over here: ]

Don't worry. If something pops out I'll make sure to kill it on sight.

[arsholes]

[Speaking of things to pop out...

There's a pile of something in a dark corner of the workshop.]

[spitessier]

[Alright, let's check over there. What's this pile and is it bad news?]

[replacementshield]

[ YEAH what are they looking at over there?? ]

[arsholes]

[A familiar pile of twisted metal and tattered black felt lays in a heap in the corner of the room.

As they approach, the lazy eyelid twitches faintly.]

[replacementshield]

[ ...this thing again?? He'll prod it with his foot. ]

Looks like it was nothing but trash.

[arsholes]

[Hey watch who you're calling trash, buster brown!

Despite the number that Heisenberg did on him, Lefty isn't inherently unfixable.]

[replacementshield]

[ Neener neener.

Anyway, Felix is definitely not someone who can fix Lefty though, so he will cast a glance Katsuya before seeing if there's anything else uh...notable where this is concerned. ]

[spitessier]

I'm surprised Garfield hasn't managed to fix him yet...

[Huh. Katsuya thinks it for a moment and gestures Felix to step away]

Leave it alone. Garfield and I had talked about this maybe getting fixed someday.

[Better leave it for the cat to handle]

[rikonstructed]

[Not what he was worried about, but you know what, appreciated just the same.]

I never doubted that.

[replacementshield]

Good.

...Not like I've doubted your skill either.

[ He's seen it time and time again. Maybe his expectations for nonsense are rather high, though. ]

[rikonstructed]

[Okay, since he has agreement and has things to do that are not being tormented by Baldr, Nuadha is going to try to channel his mirror communication powers into activating that. Does this thing turn on?]

[arsholes]

[What is he trying to see?]

[rikonstructed]

[No contacts list on this thing, huh? Nuadha will try to see anything that would be outside the tower, or rooms they haven't otherwise discovered.

And barring that, the next thing on his plan would be looking for the Patron.]

[arsholes]

[When he tries to focus in on the Patron, the runes on the sides of the mirror begin to glow, and the glass begins to ripple like water.

But, oddly, what it shows him is the outside of the tower, looking down from maybe a little above the roof.]

[rikonstructed]

[Anything visible that would catch his eye outside of an aerial view of the roof? And anything he can hear?

...Also experimentally touching the glass to see what happens, just in case.]

[arsholes]

[It seems to be visual only.

It's weird that it seems like it's almost trying to get a better picture, but it's having a hard time pinning the Patron down with more precision.

When he touches the glass, the image ripples, but it's just mirrored glass.

It's a spying mirror, not the kind of mirror you can send objects through.]

[rikonstructed]

[Hmmm. He'll try a moment longer before he shifts his focus and tries to look for Heisenberg.]

[arsholes]

[The focus shifts, obligingly to Nuadha's will.

It comes to land in a nearly pitch-black room. The only sign of life are a couple of small, red glowing lights that don't do much more than cast blood-red shadows.

Something in the shadows struggles to breathe.]