The Mark of the Atlas

[atlasmods]

THE MARK OF THE ATLAS Into the heart of the city you go. Down below the lowest levels of the city, somewhere beyond the twisty maze of passages, several of the paths converge in a huge underground cavern. Here the air is blissfully cool compared to the desert above. A single shaft of light shines down from somewhere on the surface; motes of sand drift lazily as if suspended in the light. Elsewhere, the cave is lit by small clusters of glowing fungus that live off the moisture collected down here. Dim but navigable for most. But perhaps the most striking items in the area are the monoliths. Great fragments of stone over three meters long, too smooth to be natural but too jagged to be whole either. Several of them glow from the pulse of energy running through them. Others, while dark, have recessed notches large enough for a person’s hand. And still another group seems nearly shattered, a larger fragment surrounded by smaller ones. All of them react when the interlopers draw close enough... LIGHT Upon closer inspection, the lit monoliths have a curious pattern worked into the tone. The symbols are rather arcane, but perhaps they make sense if one tilts one’s head and squints. This one has strokes that resemble tongues of flame. That one is covered in cascading, fluid lines. Another … well, that look more like a warning sign than anything else. Interacting with these monoliths results in a warning crackle and the scent of ozone before the monolith opens. Something comes pouring out of it in response. Gushing water is the most common, matching up with the cascade monoliths; others open to flame or greenery or other odd things. And one definitely opens up into a vacuum. Careful with that unless you want to have something sucked out into space. Whatever connection they make is brief and non-traversable, but whatever comes through stays on this side. DARK The unlit monoliths aren’t nearly as flashy as their glowing brethren, but they have their own stories to tell. With the help of a little light (and the suit), the interlopers will find that these monoliths are covered from top to bottom in alien script. Most have at least one solid crack or chunk in them - at the juiciest parts! - but there may be enough left to be intelligible, given a little luck. VISION The last set hum with an ominous energy that belies their dilapidated appearance. Interlopers who approach these monoliths trigger strange images that float in the air. No two visions are alike, though they all share common themes. Silhouettes descending to the surface of the planet and spreading out across it. Exploring and interacting with an alien environment. There’s something deeply familiar about these shadows despite the variety of body types represented by them. The shape of their clothing is reminiscent of your own suit... Other snippets are set in space. Here the silhouettes are a darker patch of black against the darkness of space. The mood in these images is strangely pensive, somewhat tense. These figures are searching very desperately for something. There is one, though, that’s different from all the others. No silhouettes, no searching, no space. Only a shaft of light starting from a point beyond this planet’s moon. At first it’s a too-bright star; then, a solid beam stretching down to the planet itself. The light increases in intensity and breadth exponentially until it impacts physically with the surface of the planet itself. The eruption kicks up huge clouds of dust that race towards the city with all the heat and speed of a pyroclastic explosion. It rises up like a wave...and then crashes down, burying the city. Eventually, each of the images go dark once again. BROKEN Amidst the myriad of strange monoliths and now-flowing water? Is some sort of chassis. The ruined frame of an old robot of some kind, easily as large as a cement mixer's chamber and just as tall. Most of it lies buried beneath the sand, stuck near the far end of one particularly large chamber within the caves' network. It takes a bit of walking to get there, but there's a reward to be had for those who find it: The room is not empty. Standing in the exact middle is a strange, hulking figure. It stands at eight feet at least, a massive frame encased in black. Whether it's carapace or suit is impossible to tell, and whether or not it's alive is another story altogether. It stands perfectly motionless, skull-like face staring ahead at the robot's husk as water pools in through cracks and recesses, giving the ground a glass-like appearance through which tiny grass-like eels can be seen rising from tiny holes in the sand. For all intents and purposes the figure seems nothing more than a statue. Eerie. OOC There will be an 24-hour event encounter which runs from Nov 26th at 8:00am EST to Nov 27th at 8:00am EST. Feel free to let characters toy around & thread in the innermost areas of the city before the main event! Sections will go up in this entry and will be linked here when they are ready.

Comments

[highflights]

[ It's not everyone who says they're a friend to Kal. Clara must be a good person; Kara lets her steer them back towards the monoliths, and choose one to approach. ]

It could be a dimensional rift. Time doesn't work the same way on both sides. We won't know for sure until later, obviously, but [ she shrugs, one-shouldered ] it explains why nobody can recognise any constellations or the language.

[ex_bossily211]

[Clara stands before the monolith but seems apprehensive to move in closer. Eventually though, she steps away from Kara to edge in nearer.]

You know about dimensional rifts? I fell through one a while back. It knocked me for one hell of a loop. It was just to a parallel world, a pocket universe. If this is anything like that, I'm not sure how we're supposed to get out.

[And then carefully, she puts her hand out toward the monolith she's standing before and braces herself for the vision.]

[highflights]

[ Kara follows, not too close, just enough not to let Clara experience it all by herself. ]

Yeah, I was stuck on the other side of one for... a while.

[ She closes her eyes briefly, then opens them, looking through the details of the vision, whatever it holds. ]

[exorion]

[Cayde, for once, is quiet. He's kinda getting the idea that The Last doesn't care for a million questions-- less than most people. He wanders around the chamber instead, looking at all the things he really wants to touch. Trying to see if there's anything useful; any kind of information or... Something. Maybe a diagram or a map or a notepad and pen he can steal.]

[kharans]

[ It's a stone chamber beneath a building so there isn't...much, really. If anything it looks more like it was a place of quiet reflection and peace. There are no obvious signs of it being decorated or housing any real supplies.

The Last finds it pretty comfortable for that reason though. ]

The Overseers destroyed Kharas. Killed the planet. [ Because "is the thing in the visions what caused this" is a pretty vague statement, and The Last isn't intimately familiar with the details of the records. This seems like a better compromise. ]

[exorion]

You woke up too, in a pod like us forever ago. [It's more fact-sharing for the assembled than it is a question, and he folds his arms over his chest with a thoughtful tip of his head.] Were you here before the Overseers attacked?

[ex_bossily211]

[Clara watches once again as a planet is destroyed in a single burst of light. It still causes an emotional reaction in her, only this time she's determined not to let it show. There's a lot to be learned by watching this, such as the visions of individuals with suits that look something like their own. What consoles her is that there's technically no evidence that this is real, though she's sure it must be.

When the vision ends, Clara glances over at Kara, mouth drawn in a tight line.]

It's a little easier to watch, when it's not happening in reality. Did you learn anything from it?

[mousewhisperer]

I have not encountered anything like this planet before. [ Allura's encountered a number of different places, but nothing like this. ] And you are right - none of the stars fit.

Is it because our memories have been tampered with or because this planet is in a different place than anyone's encountered?

[mousewhisperer]

[ At least the dark ones don't give rise to hallucinations, so they are better to touch than the lit ones. Not that it stopped Allura, but still.

She peers at Clara when the woman approaches, then turns her attention back to the monoliths. ]

If we could only decipher one and start putting together an explanation.

[mousewhisperer]

I knew a number, but this one is not recognizable.

[ And that's one of the most frustrating parts of this entire situation. Allura's had training and knows alien languages, but this seems beyond her ken. She glares at the monolith. ]

If they were left here for a reason, they certainly are not helpful.

[ Which isn't exactly fair of her and she knows that, but it feels an appropriate time to vent. ]

[ex_bossily211]

I've been trying to copy what words we find in the dirt and sand, to see if I can find any consistencies and make sense out of anything. Have you spoken to Clark about translations? He may be of some use. He was able to make sense out of some of the recordings that we received.

[He's the key to figuring out so much of this, but Clara wants to solve things in her own right. But it feels like dealing with the writings here have her mind in a jumble, like she's a child trying to learn something confusing in primary school.]

[anewhope]

[ Clark listens quietly before speaking up. ]

Something about . . . power being offline. And panels.

[lefthandfree]

Panels? Like solar panels? [He tries to think of anything like that having been around with the new tech, but nothing directly springs to mind as being similar.

He huffs quietly after a moment in defeat.]

I thought I'd be okay with just knowing bits of it, but now it just makes me even more curious about what the hell is going on here. [Which he says mostly to himself, so after a breath,] Thanks for giving it a shot for me anyway though, Superman. Sorry that they weren't more useful.

[anewhope]

[ Clark blanches a little at the name. Superman. He never felt he fully stepped into it. The name had been Lois' idea, not his.

Carefully, he moves away from that. ]

It might mean control panels. This ability is . . . improving. The more I hear, the more fine-tuned it becomes.

[lefthandfree]

[That's...not the reaction Bucky expects when tacking on the silly nickname. He files the information away for later and removes Superman from the list names to call Clark.]

Well, there've been lots of those around, but it ain't like any of ’em really work as it is.

Does it help if it's repeated? Or does it need to be a new clip entirely?

[anewhope]

I don't think the repetition makes a difference. It's probably the influx of new words that forces the technology to react.

[ He's guessing but it's an intuitive guess. ]

[lefthandfree]

Too bad I can't just try making up words for ya and seeing if that works. [And he grins at that because, hell, if that worked? It'd be genius. He's already tried saying another language and realized that he can't remember what parts are actually another language or not though, which is crazy enough on its own but probably not worth mentioning since his language skills aren't useful unless he can make sense what makes the languages in his head different when he tries to use them. Oddly enough, it's like they aren't even really there anymore.]

Guess we'll just have to hope something else comes up.

[anewhope]

[ A faint smile appears, full of genuine humor. ]

That would be more convenient. But we're not doing too badly. Considering we can make some of it clear is a decent start.

[lefthandfree]

That's true! Definitely better for us to have pieces than nothing at all, eh, Clarky? [Nope.] C-guy? [Nah.] Clark-o-clock?

[Eh. Passible.]

[anewhope]

[ His grin splits his face as he chuckles. ]

Don't strain yourself.

[ceruleo]

[ A 'pilgrimage', it says. Lance mouths the words, still a bit shocked that he can understand any of it. ]

So the 'Atlas' is some kind of religious thing, you think?

[anewhope]

That might be their interpretation on it. Which means Atlas doesn't belong to this world but might have come the same way we did.

[ This was like playing with a jigsaw but never being sure if the pieces fit. ]

[ceruleo]

Huh. [ He draws himself back once he's done scanning the page. ] But that doesn't explain how--is the Atlas what sent us here, then?

[ And why here, to a barren bug-infested wasteland? ]

[anewhope]

Maybe. I assumed it was a company - some kind of enterprise that gathered all of us and put us on this mission. To find the ATLAS.

The ATLAS could be something bigger.

monoliths

[thephix]

[Humans have terrible eyesight when it comes to darkness, but luckily there are things to be done with rods and cones and photoreceptors that aren't obvious to anyone else's naked eye, but save her from stumbling around in the dark.

It also means she can read the script on the monoliths a little better, although it hardly makes a difference considering it's all nonsense to her. That doesn't stop her from heading back to look for a second (fourth, really) time, in case something clicks into place somehow.

When she comes across someone else, she isn't surprised; there are a lot of interesting things down here, it's worth exploring. But still - she shakes her head at Clara's question.]

It is nothing like any language I know. Or... any language I did know, it seems.

[She tried to pray, in Italian, and she couldn't grasp it.]