The Reading Rainbow - 12/09/19
[Luna]
With considerable strength, Luna pushes the doors open to the Great Gubal Library, dust fluttering down from the tops of the doors. She takes a few steps in to scout and make sure it's safe directly inside, satisfied having not spied any hostile entities. She makes room to allow the group to pour in. “With any hope, Miss Pipino, we might find some proper designs on a battle garment for me to prepare for you. There's a lot of tomes and texts here that should serve us well, though we must strive to beware the wandering librarians.” she mentions, continuing to watch with vigilance.
[Pipino]
She could swear that her heart could be heard by her compatriots as Luna pushed open the heavy doors to the library, the stuffy, musty smell of dust and old, decaying paper immediately issuing forth, the dust billowing up from the floor with the sudden introduction of moving air at the entrance attacking her nostrils and causing her to immediately cough, shielding her face in the crook of her arm until it settled. She was thankful to be wearing her goggles, the haze of dust ever present and providing a dream-like quality to the vast library. Pistol in her left hand, Pipino followed Luna in, staying dutifully behind her and letting her lead the charge.
“Are there many here…? Librarians, that is. Should we expect many?” Pipino asks, a slight quaver in her voice that she tried to suppress.
[Enyo]
Enyo followed behind Pino, a bit overdressed, assuming that Dravanian was much like Coerthas. Shedding the heavy poncho that covered her at the door. Carrying a bag on her back, satchel, and a belt with various leather pouches. Leaving behind the gunblade, she carried two swords at her hip, one that was that matched the shield that was strapped onto the back, and the other sword was an ornate Katana. Taking one look at the view that amazed her as they climbed up to Gubal Library. “Was all of Coerthas this green? It like we walked into a different realm entirely. There is a certain enchantment that is eluring here.”
[Gair]
The sergeant is never really seen without his trusty steed, finding a nearby tree to throw Gust's reigns over an errant branch: not one to truly bind his companion down. A hand slips into his saddlebags to fish out a head of Gysal greens and present it to the chocobo, who devours it in one loud *CRUNCH*. “There you go, boy.” Letting Luna open the doors, Gair slung a lever action shotgun over his shoulder and his larger greatsword across his back from his things, quickly joining everyone through the entrance.
“I was to come here with Hanako and her employer, once upon a time..”
[Luna]
The knightess sneers at the mention of Hanako. “*Traîtresse*…” she mutters to herself. She removes a lantern from her belt and puts her hand against it, lighting it. She begins to lead the group further in, holding the magicked lantern up to reveal the seemingly unending heights of books and shelves. “There was once a time where all of Coerthas was that verdant, Miss Enyo. Before the Calamity.” she says with no small amount of sorrow upon her voice. “The land became twisted and ever-frozen when it happened. Something to do with the aether, though I do not fully understand.” she explains, leading them deeper into the library.
As if to answer Pipino's query, Luna's guidance brings them past strange monsters, seemingly more enamored with the books than a small group of explorers. “You need not concern yourself with the guardians until we find a section we wish to look at specifically. So I would ask that you keep your weapons at your side until then. For now, we are looking for a section labelled 'Vêtements'.” she says, pointing towards a plaque in the room they were in, though this one only read 'Chapeaux amusants'.
[Pipino]
Pipino heeds Luna's caution and stows away her pistol for the time being at her side. Rather than focus on the vast books and ornate decoration, Pipino had eyes only for the creatures that lurked purposelessly within its halls. Their warped, winged bodies and spindly fingers that seemed evolved to handle the countless books within captivated her and horrified her all together, and she did not trust that they would keep their distance. Nevertheless, she padded through the cavernous halls leaving footprints in the dust as she went.
“This is….astounding. I would have never fathomed such a place exists. How are we ever meant to find anything here?” she asks as they pass by a pack of creatures, finally able to peel her eyes away from them to turn around herself, taking in the surroundings.
[Luna]
Luna looks around as Pipino speaks, thinking. “Perhaps there exists a guardian of the tomes that carries itself an index or map. Surely whoever used this library in it's prime had some format for determining where specific sections were.” she muses. Though she has told her group to stay their weapons, she rests her free hand on the hilt of of her sword, ever at the ready.
[Enyo]
Enyo slowly walked behind the group, in absolute amazement, “You mean, I can not just pick up a book and read it?” looking dispointedly toward Luna. “What language are most of these any ways?” stopping in places to turn around and take it completely in. Her face puzzled with questions that she could not begin to ask.
[Luna]
“You would absolutely be able to read any book you please, should you clear out the requisite creature protecting that area. However you would soon find yourself less than thrilled as you realize that many of these books are in foreign languages, or of no interest at all. I do not imagine you wish to lay low a few monsters for such unintelligible texts.” she explains. “The books themselves are in all sorts of languages, but there's definitely been some Ishgardian influence creeping in after it was all abandoned. These plaques are not of the same material as the original build. It would seem some intrepid folk made it a mission to label the rooms for others' benefit.”
[Gair]
At the discussion of lore and texts that occupy the halls of the library, Gair's attentions draw to Luna. “Ishgardian, you say? I wonder if there's any texts that speak of the Chevalier Noir.” His footfalls are less than subtle, the tall riders boots clip on the stone floor and his spurs rattle with every step. Being that great swords are rather slow on the draw, he rasps out that lengthy blade from it's scabbard. His offhand holding the weapon down and low at his side by the base of the blade.
[Pipino]
“Would that we had the halls fully to ourselves, I would like to spend an entire week exploring its contents. I would imagine there would have to be some texts regarding art here that I would no doubt find interesting to say the least, but without a proper way to find such a thing…I daresay I feel as if we are seeking out needles within haystacks.” Pipino resisted the urge to shush Gair, the Lalafell still respecting the idea of staying quieter in a library as to not disturb the patrons, and this particular library was full of rather strange ones at that.
[Luna]
“I am quite certain you'd find much of your search, Gair. Though I fear not in the direction you'd hope for. Most likely accounts cloistered away by the Holy See, records of executions and manhunts deemed unsuitable for even the Scholasticate.” She advises as they continue, heading into a new room.
“Would that you had my strength and armaments, Miss Pipino. You could likely carve out a small nook of safety in here and reside for some time, pouring over such texts. You would not be the first, I am sure.”
[Gair]
“Nothing I'd find in the Scholasticate? Good, maybe I'll learn aught of value.” Gair is moving in step with Luna's, his gaze flitting about the newest room in examination of the surroundings. His interest drawing to the odd text out of curiosity for their contents, the ill educated boor of all people looking for reading material.
[Pipino]
“Perhaps someday we should make a lovely camping trip of it,” she muses quietly with a small grin, eyeing another suspicious looking winged imp float idly by.
[Luna]
Luna goes silent as she continues to lead the group. After several minutes, they find their way into a larger and more open room. There are large raised platforms in front of them, connected to their height only by bright magical steps. If one looked down from the steps or platforms, they would not be able to see the bottom - shelves of books extended far past where the eye could see. An imp hovered on the platform in closest to them, holding a book and seemingly stood vigil.
The woman sticks her arm out in front of her companions to assure they don't accidentally go past her. “It seems we have located a librarian. Perhaps they would be so kind as to lend us their index so that we might have some sort of better idea of where to proceed.” she said, eyeing the creature carefully as she approached the magical step-bridge.
[Enyo]
Looking around the larger room before nearly walking into Pino and Luna in front of her, her eyes dart up to where Luna was looking, “That's a librarian? Why, what is it?” Looking at the batty like creature that was in front of them.
[Gair]
At the sight of any creatures not including their current party, Gair's grip would shift on his greatsword. His left hand choking up on the blade as he grasps beneath the quillons, brandishing it much like he would a spear. Still letting Luna lead for the moment, the lengthy steel extends beyond their formation some feet.
[Luna]
“It is the entity which holds our key unto the halls of knowledge that we seek. I know not how it came to reside here, but it likely became warped by the tomes and informations upon these very shelves. Surfeit of arcane knowings, it now covets the very index that might see fit to guide our steps to that which we need.” she says, watching Gair grip his blade before looking back up at the imp. She begins to advance up the glittering steps, full confidence in herself and not looking down at the endless depths below.
[Pipino]
Pipino follows Luna and Gair, knowing full well her position by now, Eupheme always telling her that distance is what made her strong and that distance is not cowardice, but the most effective way to be a help to those she needed. She removes her pistol and holds it at the ready, trigger finger resting poised at the side of mechanism. Pipino, however could not help but pause at the steps for the briefest of moments, her stomach lurching unpleasantly as she looks down to behold the gaping maw of literature below her. Stepping on a glittering, aetherial step was not Pipino's idea of a safe venture, but having seen Gair and Luna both manage it, she decides to take the steps at a run once her way was clear, not wanting to freeze on then or linger overlong.
[Gair]
Gair cranes his head as he peers over and through the aetheric bridge, the otherwise boorish warrior curiously thudding his boot on the light. His surprise would be shrouded by the steel mask of his helm as his boot clips overwise normally on the translucent surface. “A nation whose wealth lies not in gold, but knowledge.. be you on your guard.” With a flourish, he shifts his grip fully onto the hilt as he descends the steps. His guard held high from head-level like that of an ox. “We might well be raiding the Sultana's palace for gems.”
[Enyo]
Enyo continued to look around as the group appoarched the librarian. The sheer captivation in her gaze, as she attempted not to trip over something and activate the demons. “I will leave you to the thing up here.” skimming what was infront of her as the details she had no understanding of the language. With a happy content sigh.
[Luna]
“You will not, Miss Enyo. You will be actively guarding Miss Pipino. Should any lasting harm befall her, consider your training null.” she says as she looks back at the impromptu sword & boarder. “You will learn the value in protecting another above yourself. Your sword is to beat back the dark and your shield to keep at bay that which you can not lay low. Use them together, learn the weight of your responsibility. You hold in your hand the thread of life. Do not let it be severed.” she says before turning back to the librarian which was now eyeing her curiously. “Steel thyself. Surely it has learned much and more of esoteric magicks.” she says, readying her own blade.
The Librarian stood in front of the knightess, itself a warped monstrosity not dissimilar from an Ahriman. However, it had gangly legs that stretched to the ground, seemingly too withered to hold the weight of it's bulbous body. It's one large eye bloodshot and the pupil narrowed as if in shock. It would look at the gathered party and then back to the book, spindly arms controlling the hands that idly gestured at the tome for it's pages to turn. There was a strange 'aura' around the creature, one that felt forbidden and wrong. The library itself made no sounds except for the slight 'glittery' ambience of magicked stairways, betraying the shudders and labored breaths of this minor abomination.
[Pipino]
Pipino looks a bit uncomfortable as Luna goes on her long sermon to Enyo. While was aware of the idea that her friends would protect her and that her presence and relative weakness causes her to be a liability, hearing it in such dramatic way, the stakes communicated in such poetic form, made Pipino even more anxious as she eyed the floating adversary, staying behind Luna.
“I sh-shall endeavor to keep my thread disentangled from anything unsavory to make things easier for you all,” she says a bit hesitantly.
[Enyo]
With Luna attention diverted at the Librarian, Enyo just bore into the backside of the knightess, before saying a something profane in Hingashi. Looking to Pino, “I mean we could go pluck a book from a shelf and be attacked by some creatures.” She said in a teasing tone, laughing. “I am not entirely comfortable with the shield yet, so I brought the Katana with. Luckily I now how to use it quickly if it come to it.”
[Gair]
Gair recites quietly, explaining his place in far less poetic means than Luna did. “Serve, save, slave, slay.” Noticing Enyo's hesitation to bring a shield to bare, he repositions himself in the formation to be at Luna's shoulder nearest the Hingashi woman. “I'm amazed you learned to guard with a sword before a shield, alas.. it's a forgiving piece of kit. The trick is to keep it in front of you while you attack, always forward. Fancy folk doin' their flashy moves often move it back like an idiot, that's when they get hit. It's like lovemakin', just keep it up or you'll disappoint your partner.”
[Enyo]
The concerned Gair showed caught Enyo off guard, looking down at the Katana and the smaller sword at her side before responding. “In the east, our kin never use a shield, in defense we use scabbard,” pausing after a moment, “the sheath as a means of defensive attacks. Luna presented me with the sword and shield upon the trip. Passed her instructions as far as how to hold it, I fear I have no idea how to even use it.” Said with a mixture or nervousness and disappointment.
[Gair]
“You eastern folk must die like flies to arrows.” Gair jests rather dryly, his chest rumbling in a light laugh. “Just think of it like a plate you cower behind at first, at the end of the day: it's something you cover behind. Better than taking the blow to your arm or body.” Indicating the single-handed sword Enyo bears. “As for a regular old cut-and-thrust sword, just try thrusting at first. It's got a good point and stabbin' is easy. Sinking four ilms of steel in the right spot does wonders.”
[Luna]
Luna sighs as Gair once more compares something to fuckin'. “I know not how you mean to use a holster to block anything so strong as the bloodied knives of a Dravanian's claws. That is why the shield is brought to bear. As Gair says, you hold it in front of yourself, using it to deflect or straight-out nullify anything sent it's way. It is not a complicated concept. I was using one since 8 winters, I'm sure you can manage.” she says, a bit of frustration in her tone. “Inform me once you have prepared yourself. To attack before readied would be suicide.” she asks of the group, taking a defensive stance herself.
The Librarian shudders a deep long growl, cold air visibly emitting from it's maw. There is a slight change in the way it holds itself. Though it does not yet attack, it seems to be aware of what is to come. It begins flipping through the pages of it's tome now with intent, as if searching for a specific page.
[Gair]
Gair's amusement fades as he begins to focus on the Librarian ahead, though his visage his guised by a faceplate: it is clear there has been a sudden shift in his body language. He shifts into an offensive stance at Luna's side and the distinct smell of blood begins to permeate from the man at first, the slight movements of his sword trail an ominous and shadowy aura. To affirm he is in fact ready, he turns to Luna and nods once, “By thy leave.”
[Pipino]
Pipino grips her weapon tighter, feeling even more pressure to hold on to it with the yawning abyss below, unable to stop dwelling on the fact that this creature could probably easily pick up a woman of her size and carry her off the edge. She swallows her cowardice, though, the lump going down with a struggle. “I am ready as I ever will be, and if we wait any longer, I may change my mind,” she informs Luna, her eyes not leaving the Librarian's body for a moment, watching its actions in morbid fascination and focus.
[Luna]
There is a loud aetheric humming sound that begins to surround the group as the Librarian pauses on a specific page, odd otherworldly sounds escaping it's maw into the air. Large glowing inkwells begin to form around the party, dancing up and down as they travel in a circle, the sound of magical inks sloshing in the containers.
The knightess scowls as the magicks begin. “It matters not, we must act! Watch for the arcane!” she shouts in warning, slowly advancing on the creature.
Noticing the advance of the woman, the Librarian emits a loud snarl and one of the large inkwells zooms out of the circle, stopping slightly above Luna. It spins in place for a moment before upturning itself, glowing ink pouring out and onto Luna's shield, making an audible sizzling sound as it moves down and off her shield, landing on the floor and small portions of her sabatons. There is a sound of burning from where the liquid lands.
[Gair]
At the sight of ink splattering and burning Luna's shield and armor, Gair pushes forward to make some damage himself. An audible grunt of effort as he rushes toward Luna and barks out, “Hold that thing up!”, before lunging himself atop Luna's shield. He was a bit lighter now, given his cold weather armor was an arming coat lined with plates rather than his full harness. His greatsword is tucked close and halfsworded, held forward like a spear as he uses his companions shield to springboard from and more or less attempt to dragoon the everloving hell out of the imp.
[Pipino]
Pipino stands ready, and manages to hop back from the sizzling ink as it spreads across the floor, but finds the sudden seeming surrealism but unforgiving realism of the situation crawling into her skin, surprised to find herself hesitating more than she expected, flashes of dismembered bodies and an assault from a Miqo'te she had managed to block away flooding into her mind. She lets out a noise of concern, her face panicked before she manages to shake her head and raise an unsteady arm toward one of the inkwells as it floated around her, glad to keep her ammunition far away from her comrades as she takes a steadying breath and fires.
[Luna]
The knightess holds her shield steady as her comrade goes to springboard off of it. She gives a strong push on the shield in time with his launch, giving him extra momentum, returning to a slow guarded advance against the Librarian after the man is flung into the air. “Miss Pipino! Maintain your countenance! We will allow no harm to befall you!”
Seemingly shocked by the sudden assisted-yeeting of the man, the Librarian quickly summons three large frail aetheric pages as a sort of shield between itself and Gair, though he tears through them with ease and only the slightest reduction in speed. The greatsword slices and spears the creature, causing it to reel back as blood sprays from the wound that now separates the Librarian's torso and it's right arm. Despite being completely shorn from the body, the right arm does not fall to the ground and instead slowly extends an oozing ink-like tendril towards the main body as if to reconnect itself.
There is a loud crack as Pipino's shot screams through the container of a magicked inkwell, causing burning hot ink to erupt forth from the 'wound'. The affected inkwell spins around erratically as if in pain, spraying it's sizzling contents around it. After a moment the inkwell itself stops and pauses for a few seconds before exploding entirely, the ink that flies out of it aimed directly towards Pipino.
Noticing the exploding inkwell, Luna drops her stance and rushes towards Pipino, dropping a knee as she does and practically sliding into place in front of her, shield aloft to cover the blow. It only blocks the majority of the ink, a remainder splashing off or past the shield and landing upon the knightess's extended arm and leg, boiling audibly. A small portion even manages to evade her altogether, still on track for the Lalafell.
[Gair]
After having scored a strike of his own, Gair rolls off to the side: his blade drooling with an inky black blood that had been scored from the Librarian. On the defensive now: he motions to add his own ability to the mix to stay Pipino a scalding wound. His arm cocked back with his greatsword raised like a javelin, he hurtles in the space between the highlander and her charge. When the weapon is planted into the ground, it erupts in a gout of black and red abyssal aether as a ward.
Now falling back onto his secondary weapon, Gair's free hand finds the sawnoff grip of his blunderbuss. An audible *clack* rings out as he cycles a shell into the chamber and readies himself to do business.
[Pipino]
PIpino's eyes widen in horror as she sees the inkwell act in a way she had not anticipated, in a way that she felt made the situation endless times more worse than it had started as the fluid soars through the air and makes contact with Luna's extended shield and body. She too saw the ink headed her way, and she began to turn reflexively away from the ink, eyes closed, prepared to try and take the damage to her back instead of her front and bracing for what was sure to be an immense amount of pain.
When the pain didn't come as expected, she opened her eyes to behold the sight as shadowy aether erupts all around her. Her first reaction was panic, as this was quite similar to the way in which Annu traveled and the way in which she had been summoned to her unexpected visit with Eligor's child, but as she twisted around and saw Gair's relatively massive presence and the aether pouring from his weapon, she relaxed only a bit, grateful but still on guard.
“Luna, I am sorry!” she said in a bit of a panic, not sure what else to do as she looks around her for something to react to.
[Luna]
Luna holds her shield up as she waits for the ink to cease it's movement, finally dropping guard as it does and turning to Pipino. “Do not apologize, act!” she shouts in the heat of battle, returning her gaze to the librarian and advancing on it, shield held up once more. There have formed a few spots on her cloth leggings and sleeves where the material had burnt away. “Gair, press the attack!” She instructs, making sure to keep closer to Pipino now just in case.
The librarian shudders as his squadron of inkwells had been reduced to five. The tendrils between his severed arm and his body had continued growing, getting closer to each other. The creature reeled it's head back as if taking a deep breath before thrusting forward, beginning to vomit deep-black ink in front of it. It covered a large portion of the platform between itself and the party in thick burning ink, though this liquid does not dissipate over time like the magicked ink. It remains like an impromptu moat.
[Gair]
Gair growls and grits his teeth as the path directly to the librarian has been cut off, luckily he possesses an effective weapon for this range. Almost immediately can the deafening bark of his scattergun can be heard, each shot divided by the mechanical cycling of the well-oiled weapon. A metallic clink as every smoking cartridge hits the ground, one, two, three, four, five… and with it, five loads of lead shot sent down range toward the librarian and his inkwells. Slowly does he advance as he fires, skirting the edge of the burning black moat. Readying himself to make another assault, he fishes a singular shell from his pouch and slams it into the breach of his half-cocked weapon.
[Pipino]
“Gair!” Pipino calls suddenly, eyeing the moat and also understanding that with Luna and Gair inevitably trying to shield her all the time, she would not have much of an opening to help assist. She had decided against shooting the other vessels at this point lest she endanger everyone as she had inadvertantly done before, but she wanted the others to feel like she would be safe. That left one option.
“Crouch down!” she commanded, darting toward him and making an attempt to grab on to something on Gair's back that she could grip on to. Should she find purchase, she would try and scale her way up his back, holding on once she reached the peak and using this higher vantage point to get a better aim at the Librarian, sending her own shots its way as she perched high atop his back.
[Luna]
The cry of lead sent downrange rang through the hall, their discharged rounds digging into the Librarian while a couple zipped past. The creature recoils back from the impact of the bullets, one soaring directly through his body and tearing a small hole in the left side of his face. Two more rounds find their way into an errant inkwell, causing it to shatter violently as ink spills harmlessly into the gaping void below. Shortly after, more rounds find their way screaming toward the Librarian, fired by the mounted Lalafell gunner. One burrows into the top remaining portion of the creature's head, shredding it instantly. Only the bottom half of it's face remain attached as oozing tendrils begin to sprout from the exposed flesh, slowly reforming a head. Meanwhile, the arm has reconnected to the torso, the skin looking decayed and rotten but attached firmly.
The Librarian emits a guttural growl despite missing any kind of mouth. It begins to furiously rip pages out of the tome, flinging them towards the party. They firm up and become stiff, flying towards the group with razor-sharp edges now.
Luna holds her shield up as she advances further, pages bouncing and sliding off of it with a metallic scrape. She finds her way in front of Gair and Pipino, plunging her sword into the ground as aetherial wings sprout from her shoulders, wrapping themselves around the pair behind her.
[Gair]
Gair's offhand would aid Pipino in her scaling of him, his helmet thankfully being a buffer between his ears and the gun going off right next to his head. At the sudden cover Luna offers, he makes a quick backstep within grasping protection that the paladin provides. Exchanging firearm for steel, he keeps his sword in a low guard as to not interfere with Pipino's line of fire.
“Hold on, we're going to get in there!” Gair barks, pushing passed Luna once the aetheric protection falls and the danger of a razor sharp assault by parchment passes. The blade of his greatsword groaning against the stone floor as fell sparks begin to fly, igniting an inky black flame that licks along the blade of his weapon. Whipping it forward he sends a gout of cutting black aether along the moaty surface of the burning ink, filly intent on cutting a path through as he barrels forward. Though he will press on in spite of failure.
[Pipino]
Pipino ducked low against Gair's back, using his body as a shield and then clinging to him tightly as he moved as to not jostle around too much and throw off his balance, or upset her own grip. She let out a small yelp as she feels his body twist, muscles stretching, the feeling surprisingly strange having never performed such a maneuver before. She was not sure if she preferred this tactic over having to rely on her own reactions to fight, but she felt safe at least trusting in his own. The dark aether that boiled up around the weapon was a little too close for her comfort, still unused to being around such things overmuch, but she maintained her position, having found a similar hold to how she had clung to him when climbing up the mast all those weeks ago in Kugane.
As Gair charges forward, Pipino lifts herself up to peak over his shoulder, ponytail trailing behind her as he barreled forth. She had a limited amount of rounds left and in this position, would not be able to reload very freely, so she simply waits for a better opening, waiting to see what Gair and Luna's attacks will have wrought. Patience was the friend of any markswoman.
[Luna]
The Librarian, despite lacking a face, is visibly shocked by the sudden dark flame that flies through the oil. A massive portion of the heated oil dissipates, carving a *mostly* clear path through the obstruction. Hot oil licks at Gair's legs lightly as he travels through it, splashing burning liquid everywhere. The creature frantically channels the tome, causing a giant empty book spine to form above the man, pages slowly fluttering into it and attaching themselves. At the same time, more pages from the Librarian's tome are flung towards Gair and Pipino, razor sharp.
As the wings from Luna vanish, she stops to catch her breath from the large use of aether. Seeing Gair and Pipino hauling figurative ass toward the monster, she grits her teeth and follows suit as best she can, moving just a bit slower than the charging Dark Knight.
[Gair]
Gair knows well his role as the chariot and horse of this battle, a pawn intended to make an opening for the knight and bishop at his back. With the clank of steel and burning of aether licking at edge of his blade, he forges on through the burning ink as it frays the tail end of his arming coat. His greatsword makes a shadowy arc overhead as it whirls around in his grip with a howl through the air. Lashing out at the falling pages, intent on meeting them edge to edge as he presses on for the Imp to make an opening for the other two.
[Pipino]
Pipino ducked down at first, only her goggled eyes spying over his shoulder as the pages darted toward them, ready to make use of the Ala Mhigan man meat shield she found herself attached to, an arrangement she was feeling more and more self-conscious about the more risk was thrown Gair's way. Upon seeing the great mass of aether making its way toward the pages though, Pipino chances positioning herself to anticipate the opening, rising up and extending her armed hand and training it in the spot where the librarian should lay. She took a moment to briefly close her eyes and take a deep breath, visualizing her aether swirling from her core and into her fingertips and then into her weapon, the small pistol now crackling with blue bolts of energy. Her bullets were still regular ammunition, so the charge to them would be quite weak in comparison to her compatriots' abilities, but if there was a chance of paralyzing the librarian even for just a brief moment, she would take it and shoot as soon as an opening became available.
[Luna]
The crackle of aether and gunpowder screams through the room as the magicked bullets dig deep into the Librarian. Something about the concentration of aether bursting forth into the creature causes it to stagger, falling to a slump as the points where the shots landed begin to glow and morph violently, flesh lurching outwards from the origin. The magick spell tome above begins to lose it's pages as they harmlessly fall and vanish. The pages sent to cut the party loose their stiffness and fall to the ground as the Librarian's control over it's arcane magicks falters. Even the oily moat begins to fizzle away into nothingness.
Seizing the opportunity afforded by her allies, Luna rushes toward the fallen creature. Noticing the lapse in magic and that even the body parts that had reconnected were pausing their monstrous growth, she takes a quick moment to move to the creature's side. Raising her blade high, she plunges it into the Librarian's right side. “Gair! We must separate the vile fiend! Cast it unto the abyss!” she shouts to her comrade, ready to use her blade in tandem with Gair's to pry apart the creature and fling her half of it's remains into the gaping maw of nothing below them.
[Gair]
Gair trails in behind Luna as she buries her blade into the Librarian, his own greatsword hefted high, lacking the usual dark aether that trails it. Instead with his own might he bares down with a helmsplitter, intent on partly cleaving the beast in twain as Luna pries it to pieces. A heavy steel sabaton raised to boot his half off into the abyss beneath them, “Away you go!”
[Pipino]
Pipino takes advantage of Gair's lower body carriage as his blow connected to hop lightly off his back now that the floor was clear. She allowed the two other fighters to take care of the librarian as she found herself lowering herself to the floor. The adrenaline courses through her still, the feeling when detached from the immediate pressure of the battle coming to her in overwhelming waves. It almost feels as if her veins we're about to burst, her heart beating much more quickly than she had realized. She stows away her pistol with slightly shaking hands, quickly moving to cross her arms around herself in that self-soothing way she had begun to develop as a bit of a coping mechanism.
“Well then… I am glad that is sorted,” she tries to say in a light-hearted way.
[Luna]
With great effort does the knightess move her sword to the side, tossing the remnants off the platform as they fall into the inkly black darkness below. She sheaths her blade and shield, breathing with a huff as the combat high begins to dissipate slowly. She looks around for the creature's tome, thankfully lay upon the platform with them instead of dragged into the never-ending void. Picking it up and prying it open, she flips through the pages, scanning them as she does. “This… Some of this I can decipher. But much and more of it seems to be in a dialect I can not parse. Hope upon hope that which we desire is written in Common or Ishgardian. Perhaps you can read where I can not, Miss Pipino?” she says, offering the opened tome to the woman.
Much of the texts are in Sharlayan, though there are notes made by prior readers largely in Ishgardian with some in Common.
[Gair]
After the librarian was cast into the (fire) abyss, Gair rolls his greatsword in his grip and flicks it to the side, spattering inky black blood onto the floor. Not quite wanting to stow his armament yet, he props it over his shoulder and lets it rest there by the flat. He inhales sharply, taking a moment to get his breathing under control from the prior exertion. “Lets hope Sharlayan doesn't have their own tongue, elsewise you're up shit creek.”
[Pipino]
Pipino accepts the book, grateful to be doing something that seemed normal for a change as she sat on the floor and continued to gain her wits back. “I can only read the common, I am afraid. I never had the talent for languages and linguistics, so they were dropped from my curriculum quite early. Reading musty old tomes was note exactly valued with my parents, being that they both entered trades involving visuals instead of the written word. I am afraid I can not be much help.”
[Luna]
Luna gently takes the book back, looking at it once more. “I am sorry to hear that, Miss Pipino. Hopefully it will be of no matter. Perhaps we shall find luck in this tome as it is. The section we want could very well be in a tongue familiar to me. Elsewise we must seek out a codex to translate.” she says as she flips through the pages. She pauses on a page rife with notation and crude drawings. “Or… Perhaps we need not pause upon such an obstacle.” She turns the book around to show to the group. On the presented page is a large amount of untranslated text, but the accompanying page has a considerable amount of blank page. However, that space is filled with a basic 'map' with some hastily scrawled icons, labelling rooms with such things as a hat, a bag, a book, and most importantly, a shirt.
“Mayhap whoever travelled these halls last ran into a such similar issue and after much trial and error recorded a sort of pauper's map. Though, that brings me to wonder why that foul beast had the tome now.”
[Gair]
Resolved to be little more than a cog in the wheel of this operation, Gairv finds his blunderbuss discarded on the ground with due haste. The smooth rasping of steel on wood and leather can be heard as he stows his greatsword in it's scabbard over his back. Next, his gauntleted hand snatches up the mechanical contraption of death, the other fishing out a handful of shells that he presses into the metal tube. A satisfying *click* and the well-oiled slick of metal on metal can be heard moments prior to him slinging it over his shoulder. “A few tomes would no doubt be worth pilfering and bringing to a Sharlayan scribe,” he suggests as he makes to look over Luna's shoulder and take a cursory look over her map.
[Pipino]
Pipino stands up, having recovered from her momentary shock, dusting herself off as the floors here were quite thick with it. “Might as well follow it and see what all we shall find. Does it seem to be close? I am not sure if you can tell where the map starts from but….well, I would be hesitant to fight too many more of these creatures.” She takes a moment to reload her own weapon, inspired by Gair's preparation and her own words of caution. “I would say I am about ready if you would like to lead the way.”
[Luna]
The woman turns to Gair, nodding. “Indeed. Though I know not what they would have preference toward, we will take a few back in addition to our target.” She turns back to Pipino, looking at the book for a moment. “It looks like we have a dozen or so rooms to cross. But we have no reason to confront any more studious creatures for now. Come, let us be off.” she says, closing the book and sliding it under her arm as she leads the group.
Time passed invisibly as they journeyed through the oversized halls, passing harmlessly by more than a few twisted monsters. They seemed completely uninterested in the trio thankfully. Though there would be no real way to know aside from one's internal chronometer, hours have passed as they finally enter their desired room. Mannequins lay motionless upon the floor in troves as well as barren cloth spools. The shelves lined with book after book, much the same as any other part of the library.
“Here we are. The designs we desire should be somewhere around here. Unfortunately, the index does not specify further as to what shelf or case.” she informs them, having opened the book once more and checking it. She now stands looking out over everything, her hand on her chin in thought.
[Gair]
After the lengthy travel time, Gair inflicted his impatience on the section of the library the party has found themselves in. His gauntleted hand rifles through the odd book, indulging in his own search for the needed subject material and his own personal curiosity. Tossing anything into the center of the room that remotely has diagrams of arms, armor, clothing or is written in the common tongue. “Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit,” he chimes between each book as he moves like a hamfisted worker bee.
[Pipino]
Pipino moved to the center of the room and sat herself near the pile , but not near enough to be a target of the barrage that Gair was rocketing into her vicinity. She picked up a book much more carefully than Gair had been handling them, almost as if it were some religious text, brushing off the spine and cover and flipping through its contents. “Is there a specific type of pattern we should be looking for? I assume you are looking for something pictoral as opposed to something written in words.This feels like looking for a needle in a haystack.”
[Luna]
Luna is slowly flicking through a book, being thorough as she scans through everything. She looks over to Pipino as the woman asks, “I suppose as you say - some drawings and renditions of the garment we are looking for. It would be…” she pauses, thinking. She mutters out a quick, “Pardonnez-moi, je ne sais pas comment le décrire. Ah, I do not quite know how to paint such a picture for you that you would know it if you saw it. If you find a tome with some tunic or shirt designs, might I trouble you to show me?” she asks.
[Gair]
Gair made himself useful in this haystack situation by chucking potential needles into a neat pile in the middle of the room. While the pair chat, he finds a reading desk to situate himself on and wait for their discussion to reach a headway. Curiously, he fishes out a little pouch from his arming coat. He does a once-over, concern filling his features as he gives himself a thorough pat down but otherwise doesn't comment on it. With slow and furtive movements does he slide a Sharlayan tome closer, and with a mostly quiet *riiiiip* does he tear a page out and begin to roll it up with the contents of his pouch. The audible raking of a knife on a fire shard makes his presence clearer to those deep in discussion, with a smoking stogie between his lips.
[Pipino]
“Yes, certainly,” she replies to Luna.
Pipino look over to Gair as she hears the rip and then smells the smoke, rolling her eyes and sighing. After a time an extremely neat arrangement of books that have been flipped through builds up next to the Lalafell. Eventually though, she flips through a book and interrupts the relative silence with her echoing cry of excitement. “Luna! I think I found one!”
She is about to stand up but realizes she has made her legs fall asleep with the way she has been sitting, so she simply changes her seating position and helplessly holds out the book to Luna while she waits for the pins and needles feeling to awaken her legs from their slumber.
[Luna]
The knightess, meanwhile, was staring intently at a book turned upside-down, looking quite perplexed. “Where…. How? Où repose le sein? Absolutely confounding…” she says, suddenly caught off-guard by Pipino's excitement. “Halone be!” she says as she's startled, closing the book and placing it on the floor. She walks over to the excited bean, regarding the woman curiously. “Are you… okay Miss Pipino?” she asks, bending down to retrieve the book and looking at the offered pages.
Her eyes light up almost immediately. “C'est magnifique! You have located it, Miss Pipino! These are the designs and material lists for the battle garment I wish to make you! With this and your measurements, it shall be a simple task to fabricate!” she says happily to the lalafell, smiling at her and offering her a hand up. Her gaze turns to Gair, lighting up on knowledge. She sighs heavily as she notices. “Seriously, Gair? Come, we are to be quit of this place - we have found what we need!” she says ,holding the book up.
[Gair]
Gair makes to the veritable pile he'd made in the middle of the room of various texts with illustrations and various words and topics that have stuck out to him, though not all were in tongues he could understand. He did his best to pick them out with what counts as a discerning eye, from his shoulder harness he unfurls a canvas sack that he shovels the books into. The ashes of his makeshift cigar trailing to the ground as the herb therein burns. “I'm an idiot, not an *idiot*,” he rebuffs as he swings the bookbag over one shoulder. “I know what an index looks like.”
[Pipino]
Pipino took the proferred hand now that her legs had woken up completely and she stood up with Luna's assistance, stretching and starting to feel some of the aches from their earlier physical exertion, let alone the ones that had come from craning over books for quite awhile come to her. She sighed in contentment as she did so before placing her hands on her hips. “I think in the future we had best stick to simpler garments if you wish to craft me some armor. This particular outing was…let us just say, a bit harrowing to say the least. Provided we have no more needles to find within any haystacks here, I will be glad to quit this place. Perhaps if we left the way we came, we shall not run into any more fell creatures.”
[Luna]
Luna gives a small laugh to Gair's assertion, “I would hope so. May those tomes aid you more than the corrupted inhabitants of this decayed library.” She pulls the Lalafell to her feet, looking down at her as she speaks. She nods in agreement, beginning to walk back the way they came. “Indeed. Though that foul beast was far less than what I anticipated encountering, it was nonetheless highly dangerous. Future clothing shall be of less esoteric design. We are fully prepared to take our leave. Our carved path should serve well to return us home.”