Stephanie's Heart: The Archive

[reading_rainstorm]

In your dreams you are in a thick and foggy forest. It could be mistaken for the woods around Tributary if you don’t know your plants. You are on a trail leading into a clearing, in the center of which is a simple, concrete structure with a single door. A chaos star has been spray painted on it with a stencil.

You approach the structure. Looking over your shoulder you see a large shape lurking in the fog, obscured by the foliage. Two shining Feline eyes peer at you from the brush. You feel your heart rate spike as you turn the knob and find an old fashioned elevator tucked neatly inside with an accordion grate standing between you and the ornate, gilded interior. It creaks open as the presence behind you steps into the clearing. It is a sphinx, an eight foot tall lioness with the face of a woman and the large brown wings of an eagle on her back . The feminine face and olive skin tone of a Greek woman from antiquity smiles as she readies herself to to pounce, the wings on her back stretching and give a few readying flaps.You back into the elevator and close the gate with shaking hands as the sphinx leaps at the elevator. Her claws twisting and shearing the metal of the grate slowly, but she is too late. The elevator springs to life and you descend.

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A small light above flickers on as it illuminates your view outside the exposed elevator as you sink into the concrete structure. You descend for a few moments before an opening in the concrete gives you the view of an observation deck on a hill, looking down on the sprawling suburbs and campus of a college town. The elevator continues downward. The concrete gives way to old, dusty marble as you continue sinking. You see a vast maze stretch far and away that gets nearer and nearer. This has to be it, right? Your destination? No. You plunge further down, past the walls of the maze and the marble is replaced again by well polished wood. Beautiful stained mahogany rises past you as your descent finally starts to slow. You are greeted by another grate that creaks open for you. Entreating you to enter.

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[reading_rainstorm]

Going back into the hallway the man outside simply nods at you as you go to the next door in your exploration.

This door is a little bit of a squeeze for you but once through it you find yourself inside of a ruined cabin. There are three college age humans around the room. Moss grows on their limbs. Vines twist around their bodies, creeping from inside a stone circle in the center of the room. Behind the circle there's an altar built of discarded furniture. Scrawled pages of yellowing notebook paper are stapled to it all over. There's an open bag that looks to have some implements for a spell prepared.

[dragonindungeon]

[ Examines the whole set up! Knowing magic, what can Falin find? ]

[reading_rainstorm]

Inks! Black and red both handmade, the red one has extra mana coming off of it...Stephanie wouldn't put her blood into her inks right? Brushes, hand made as well...that's definitely Stephanie's hair used to make these. Jars of iron and silver dust. A lighter and some documents written in Stephanie's hand writing...half of them are in Old English, the other is a language you don't recognize but the memory tells you is Latin.

[dragonindungeon]

[ WORRYING MAGIC. GOT IT. Falin turns to the college kids, checking over them too and seeing if she'd be able to reverse the spell. ]

[reading_rainstorm]

They are all in a stable but comatose state. The Vines and moss seem to be trying to make them less human bit by bit. Infecting them with unreality. Whatever is doing this is coming from inside the faerie circle.

[dragonindungeon]

[ ... pokes the fairy circle with some mana ]

[reading_rainstorm]

It shimmers and ripples, for a moment it's like the reality inside of it is a curtain that could be parted.

"Careful there."

Stephanie's voice calls from the window behind you.

[dragonindungeon]

?

[ turns towards her voice! ]

[reading_rainstorm]

Watching you with a grin through a busted out window is Stephanie's face on a sphinx.

"Just cuz it's a memory doesn't mean it isn't dangerous to mess with the fae."

[dragonindungeon]

It's related to faeries?

[ clearly curious! ]

[reading_rainstorm]

The sphinx nods enthusiastically.

"That's a faerie circle. Legend says they are portals to the faerie realm and stepping into one is a good way to get yourself spirited away by them."

[dragonindungeon]

Ooh!

[ looks back. seems... to be debating with herself??? ]

[reading_rainstorm]

In a tone that is clearly judging Falin:

"...What are you thinking?"

[dragonindungeon]

It'd be neat to visit, but this is also a dream . . . but maybe that makes it safer to go . . .

[reading_rainstorm]

"...that sounds like a bad idea, loathe as I am to admit. Stupid geas..."

[dragonindungeon]

Does it? That's too bad.

[ truly looks sad about it, until the rest of what Steph says registers ]

. . . wait, um. What geas?

[reading_rainstorm]

"Tell no lies. Keep no secrets. Our promise is our bond.

Keeping to these tenets fuels our magic."

[dragonindungeon]

That sounds difficult for a fairy.

[reading_rainstorm]

"In my world's mythology the fae are supposed to keep similar rules.

Their words bind them in many ways. Have you asked STAR about why he doesn't like to recieve unprompted thanks?

...

Wait, are you implying I'm a faerie?"

The sphinx snarls at Falin.

[dragonindungeon]

[ Nods to Stephaninx's question, then gives her a rather bland look when she snarls ]

You do fit into a similar category.

[reading_rainstorm]

She chuckles at that.

"Right. Like you, I am a monster. I suppose you are correct there "

[dragonindungeon]

Are you unhappy about it?

[reading_rainstorm]

"Far from it. I'm strong like this. Able to take what I want and protect what I have.

If only you and Stephanie and all your meddlers would see that."

[dragonindungeon]

You know . . . dragons are similar in that way.

[reading_rainstorm]

"True..I believe your kind values treasure more than information, though.

Does the thought of jewels and gold and shiny trinkets drive you, Miss Exorcist?"