Summary:One of the first SHIELD teams enters the altered Staten Island underworld, and finds themselves in another world entirely. Log Info:Storyteller: None |
Related LogsTheme SongNone |
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Just outside of the affected area around Staten Island, there is a major staging area that has been established by SHIELD. It's a busy area, with all of the necessary security checkpoints in place, but for those who have a reason to come and go, they'll gladly be allowed entrance. Especially if they're here to help.
Kwabena Odame is currently gathered with a small handful of agents; they're under cover of a standing tent, where a holographic computer table is being used to review a map of Staten Island as it existed before this curse was placed.
Rainmaker arrives without too much fanfair, flying in overhead in a rush of wind, then settling lightly down on her feet as she lands, looking around, before making her way over towards the tend, which appears to be the command center for the moment. She's not entirely aware of what's going on other than 'freaky dome that turns people into fantasy characters', but it was thought she might be helpful. Or at least, that she might retain some of her powers traveling into the dome.
After one of the agents checks out Rainmaker's credentials, she'll be guided toward the tent; its one of many SHIELD structures in the area, others prefab command centers that are less open to the rest of the staging area.
Excusing himself from the briefing, Kwabena moves to greet the new arrival, checking out something on a tablet as he walks. He isn't dressed like most of the other uniformed SHIELD personnel; a gunmetal grey nano suit clings his body, leaving only his bald head and silver eyes exposed. Over this, he wears a SHIELD-emblazoned vest with a bright orange 'PPU' badge on his left arm.
"Hello," the African greets, though he doesn't offer a hand. "Agent Odame with SHIELD."
Sarah is dressed in her green and red bodysuit (that for some reason is missing the left leg) with metal vambraces worn on her forearms and fringed boots on her feet, her hair falling loose down her back. She doesn't seem too bothered by the current weather temperature, at least as she nods. "Sarah Rainmaker, Young Avengers. I'm sorry we didn't have anyone else to come with, most of us are out of the country at the moment or otherwise unavailable." She offers her hand.
Tucking the tablet under arm, Kwabena takes the woman's hand with a firm shake. "Dis is okay. You ah here to help, yes?" Eyebrows rise upon his forehead, and he beckons her to join him under the tent. Apparently being a member of the Young Avengers is all the clearance he's gonna need.
"We ah planning first scout mission into tunnels undah city," he informs Sarah as they join the small handful of agents under the tent. "What do you know of anomaly so fah?"
Two of the three agents gathered eye Sarah with coy looks at the sight of her outfit. The third, along with Kwabena, seem otherwise nonplussed by it. Business as usual around here.
RAinmaker regally ignores the looks. She's pretty used to them, and honestly, this isn't the place to bust out her feminist opinions of objectifying a woman's body. Really, if she had an actual fully working bodysuit to replace this one with that worked with her powers, she woud, but, well….she's not Tony Stark, she doesn't have that kinda lucre, therefore she goes with her 'slave' outfit, as she thinks of it sometimes.
"I know the dome is cutting off people from entering without being transformed, and that it may be interfering with some sensory powers to see inside. And that people who enter are transformed into a pulp fantasy version of themselves.' she says, frowning. "Just the basic brief."
A nod is given to confirm what Sarah has been told. "WAND has made dese… amulets, dey are called, which will prevent memory and cognitive thought disruption, but, yes. Dose who go in are… changed."
Gesturing to the holographic map, Kwabena explains, "Staten Island is 152 square kilometer in size. Everything inside is changed; buildings, streets, natural terrain, but de size and diameter remain not changed. Our first task is to map it." He looks up at the other agents, then to Rainmaker. "Is not glorious work, and it will be ugly, maybe boring, maybe dangerous, but is what must be done first." He speaks with a heavy Central African dialect, but to anyone with the right ears to hear, it sounds as if there's a Russian influence to the way he speaks, some of his broken English syntax.
"None of dis technology will exist when we cross ovah, so… we will have to make maps with ancient methods."
Sarah puts a hand on her hip, the other on the table as she leans in to take a look, frowning. "Well…if I can still fly inside, then that should let us make an aerial map. I mean, assuming I'm not having to dodge dragons or something" she adds dryly. She seems to follow the dialect well enough, her own containing the soft twang of the Southwest as she speaks. "Who all is going in?"
Dragons. Kwabena smirks and says, "We have no idea what to expect. First task, is tunnels." He's not sure how much flying she'll get to do in there, after all, but… eventually, the teams will make for the sky. She'll get her chance, to be sure.
As for who is going… he looks at the other three agents, and decides on choosing the one who didn't ogle over the Young Avenger's costume. "Agent Maxwell." He then nods to Sarah. "You, and I."
He looks at Sarah with an apologetic expression. "Amulets are limited. Most important is we do not lose dem. Dis is more important then any of us coming out alive." The apologetic expression is gone now; a very serious look is in the mutant's silver eyes. "I know is harsh, but is reality we all must accept."
"No, I'm pretty good without turning into a D&D character." Sarah says, nodding. "We just need to be wearing them at all times, I'm guessing, and there's only so many of them?" She straightens up a bit, frowning thoughfully. "I guess we'll have to see what we can…if the tunnels turn into a fantasy version I guess that's a dungeon or something?"
"Something," Kwabena agrees. "I am not familiar with dis… Dungeons and Dragons. I did look on de internet, and… dere is too much to read. Agent May made me a team lead because I am good at adapting to extreme situations."
Kwabena wouldn't know an Orc if it came up and spat on him.
"We will transform," he informs Sarah and Maxwell, "But our memory will not be affected. We will know what mission is, and will be able to think for ourselves. Unless we lose amulet." He nods his head to Sarah, conforming her theory. "Very hard to make, cannot make any more then we already have."
SArah admits. "I don't know much about it either, I never really read those sorts of fantasies. All I know is the adventures always seem to take place in ruined places underground or something." She shrugs her shoulders, then nods. "Alright. I'll follow your lead then, agent."
The African finally shows some emotion, something that isn't stiffness. A grin spreads across his face, and he says, "Call me Shift." He looks to the other agent who's going with them and asks, "Maxwell?"
Agent Maxwell retrieves one of those metal boxes that looks very very secure, and uses an ocular scan to open it. Inside, held within a protective foam casing, are three amulets; one that glows red, one blue, one green. Maxwell offers the box to Sarah; seems she gets first pick.
"I only saw Star Wars for de first time last month," he admits. "Sometimes, I hope, not knowing makes a thing less scary."
"Mm, I'm guessing that knowing the tropes might help for something like this, since someone apparently intended it to be a pulp fantasy, so they had an image in mind….does it matter which I take?" she says, looking between them, then smiles. "Oh, right, well…you can call me Rainmaker if it matters in public. I don't where a mask so seems weird to come up with a codename really."
"Because it sounds cool?" Kwabena offers. He doesn't always wear a mask, either. As for the amulet, he shrugs. "De wizards apparently all have hands full. But… choose which one calls to you."
The words sound so foreign coming from his mouth, but, well… he's good at reading briefs and following orders.
Rainmaker considers, then reaches out, holding her hand over the box for a moment, before she selects the greenish one and fastens it around her neck. "Mm, tropes are tropes for a reason." Sarah says amusedly as she adjusts it over her chest.
Kwabena selects the red one, leaving the blue one to our would be red shirt. He gathers up a satchel, an old medieval style rucksack that's filled with ancient things; parchment, ink blotters, and the like. "Modern technology will not stay with us when we pass through," he explains, and retrieves his sidearm and cell phone, offering then to one of the other agents who are staying behind, along with the tablet. "De agents can keep dem safe until we return."
Rainmaker mmms, then reaches up to take out an earbud communicator, then a smartphone that she sets to the side, before she frowns, then carefully unlatches the vambraces she's wearing, setting the high tech armor to the side. "I'll have to be more careful with lightning." she mutters. "Can't target it as well without these."
Unfortunately, there's one bit of tech Kwabena cannot take off. No one but the senior agents may know it, but he's taking a huge risk offering to go in. After draping the red amulet around his neck, he offers the satchel to Maxwell, giving the man a meaningful nod, before looking back to Sarah.
"None of us will know what to expect," he says earnestly. "We all must look out for each other."
Turning toward the dome, he looks up at for a few moments, before motioning toward the cordoned off 'no fly zone'.
"I'll take point," he offers. "We will go in through city maintenance storm sewer."
Sarah nods a bit, then eyes the overstuffed backpack. "So, do you have torches in there and something to light them with? I can carry one so we've got some light. She seems ready to follow wherever they need to go.
"It's a fully stocked item pack," Maxwell confirms, and shrugs the thing over his shoulder as they move out.
"Flint and all," Kwabena adds, smirking ruefully. This is certainly unlike any operation he's ever been on.
As they approach the proverbial drop point, he draws back a moment and walks next to Rainmaker. "You're powered?" he asks. "I shift. Different states of matter. Apparently, when we transform, we… take on a reflection of ourselves, so… think happy thoughts."
"Oh! Sorry, thought you knew." Rainmaker says, following along. "I'm….well, I guess an articially triggered metahuman." she explains, glancing over. "I control weather and its elements. So…I can change the weather, but I can also manipulate air and water and temperature to some extent in the environment around me. Channel lighting from the ambient ionic charge in the air, or fly with myself and others." she explains.
Yeah, Kwabena knew. He read her file when she arrived; however, one of the things from the SHIELD handbook that stuck was to not always rely on files. Asking a person forms a bond, makes it personal, and in situations like these, it's tough to form a bond before you might need it.
"Supersolid, liquid, gas," he confirms. He doesn't talk about the plasma, assuming that his nanotech will change and not allow that particular powerset to be at play. "So we won't be cold if we end up in loin cloth," he quips, and then offers Sarah a friendly grin.
As they come upon the sewer entrance, Kwabena is the first to go down. They aren't far from where the spell's effect takes place, and in the near distance, the light cast by mobile spotlights set up in the tunnel by SHIELD reveals a dramatic transformation… from a typical, dirty urban storm sewer into a brick dungeon pathway, which descends into darkness beyond.
Shearah lets out a little sigh. "No, but the chances are excellent that it'll happen, I seem to have that kind of luck." she grumbles. "It could be worse, a friend of mine goes through a couple outfits a week where they just get shredded off her." She sighs, then hmms, tilting her head as she watches the others descend, then carefully floats down in a puff of air, landing on the walkway nexts to the main channel as she follows after. "…yup, that looks dungeon-y to me." she says, frowning. "We go through one at a time?"
"I wish I had that problem," Kwabena admits, without explaining why. There's just not enough time to delve into the nanotech he's in symbiosis with.
As they reach the threshold, Kwabena scowls. "Dis is beyond fucked," he mutters to himself, then nods his head. "One at a time," he agrees, and is about to go through when Maxwell stops him.
"You're team lead," he says. "I'll go first."
Kwabena nods his head, and looks on as the agent passes through the barrier. The young man immediately transforms into the image of a roguish fighter, his SHIELD uniform now resembling a haphazard array of pieced together leathers and cloth. The satchel changes as well, but remains what it was intended to be.
Rainmaker watches, blinking. "…wow. Well, that's what they said would happen. Do you feel any different Maxwell?" she says to check, tilting her head slightly as she steps up closer to the barrier. "No desires to talk in ye old English or Elfish or something?"
"I feel fine, m'lady," Maxwell says, and though his voice is unchanged, his demeanor certainly has; there's more bravado to his voice, and the use of 'm'lady' seems to visibly surprise him. "Oh, um… my sincerest apologies, Lady Rainmaker." He grimaces again, then pats down his body, and turns back to face them. "I feel… slightly different, but, my thoughts are still my own."
Kwabena sighs quietly, and asks, "Do you feel confident in ability to perform mission?"
"Why yes, Lord Shift!" Maxwell pats his chest, which seems brawnier than it was before. "Ready to delve into the great beyond!"
Kwabena turns an eye to Sarah, one brow cocked. "Here goes nothing," he says, and walks forward.
"Never been a Lady Rainmaker before." the Apache woman says amusedly. She waits for Shift to step forwards through the field then follows. The moment she does, her outfit shifts away, her body shrinking as she takes on a more delicate, nut-brown look, with pointed ears that rise past black hair drawn back in an elaboratedly braided plait with feathers and beads worked into it. Her outfit is leather as well, but more rough hide armor with a cloak in deep forest green over brownish armor that would blend wonderfully in a forest, with a dark furred ruff at the top around the hood. She now has a bow and arrow and moccasins on her feet, with leather wraps around her legs and a very short, short leather skirt. There's noticeable cleavage happening as well, as well as the outfit showing off a muscular toned midriff.
Sarah pauses and looks down at herself. "…oh come /on/!" she grumbles, reaching up to adjust the headband she's wearing that has a little quartz crystal at the front set on her forehead just over the bridge of her nose.
When Kwabena steps through the barrier, a dramatic transformation takes place. The nanotech he's genetically bonded with does, in fact, transform; his body is incapable of living without it, so, for all intents and purposes, he dies.
It isn't a bloody death, and thanks to the amulet's magic properties, it isn't permanent. However, his corporeal form dissolved into a horrifying visage of swirling black, a raging turmoil of hellsmoke that gives forth no sound. His hands become claws of darkness, his body a skeletal frame with the amulet glowing a visceral red where his heart once beat, his head a black skull with eyes of fire.
A wraith, one of the undead.
Stopping, the wraith looks down at his clawed hands, then swivels as it floats in the air, fiery eyes looking at both Sarah and Maxwell.
"What happened?" it asks, and the voice is no longer that of Kwabena Odame. It is a visceral whisper, within which is a quiet scream at a pitch that borders on painful.
Rainmaker jumps back at the change reflexively, staring a bit wideyed. "Holy fuck!!" she manages after a moment, staring. "Ah…dude, I think….you're…uh…" She cuts herself off and immediately focuses on Maxwell. Not really dead. Not really dead. He's not really one of the dead. For some reason this seems to be wigging Sarah out a tiny bit. "Uh….how do you feel, exactly? No urges to eat the hearts of small children or something? No dead relatives visible wanting you to go with them?"
"He's a wraith," Maxwell points out, eyes wide, hand on the dagger at his belt. "He's a bloody wraith!"
"My thoughts are my own," comes the whispering voice; as if one of the Ring Wraiths mated with a Dementor, but somehow became one of the good guys. "I am… still me."
"I played D&D," Maxwell says, pointing at Kwabena and snapping his fingers. "It's not unheard of. I was in a campaign once, and our Wizard was very powerful. He cast a spell on a wraith, and made it - made him one of our party! By the gods, it's…" he steps forward, and puts a hand through Kwabena's roiling black arm. "Jesus! It's cold."
"I don't feel cold," Kwabena says. "I don't feel… anything." He turns to Sarah, and a wicked grin appears on his skeletal face. "I am still me. In my mind."
Even though he has no brain. Magic is… weird.
=Rainmaker takes a deep breath, continuing not to look at Shift, as she takes a deep breath, still looking a bit wide-eyed. "Good. That's…that's really good. So you're not really dead. You just /look/ dead. You're not an unquiet spirit that hates the living and wants to kill all of us."
She swallows a bit. "…sorry this is…my people don't…have happy ghosts. We don't talk about those who are…gone. It's considered a bad thing for your spirit to be near a place where some one who has passed on."
She takes another deep breath, then forces herself to look over at Shift. "I'm…I'm okay, it was just…a shock."
"This is all one sick trick," Kwabena assures her. "We are mapping the tunnels before mapping the city, looking for… something. Something that binds the magic and can be broken. This is well outside my area of expertise. But mapping, scouting, this I can do. The amulets are keeping us… who we are. And we should change back when we leave."
Hopefully that much is true.
"I do not feel alive, but, I… am still me." He has no other way to describe it.
"Well," Maxwell says, still grinning about all of this. "What's the plan, Lord Shift?" He pauses. "Actually, I'm… I'm just gonna go with Shift."
"That way," the wraith whispers, and points down the dungeon. "I suggest we light the torches."
Rainmaker nods. "Right. I think…uh….I feel like I can still touch my powers here…" She holds up a hand, concentrating, a little swirl of mist running over her palm. "And I think I can maybe shoot an arrow. Maybe. I haven't done it since I was a little girl, I'm more a hunting rifle sort of shooter." she says, frowning. "Maxwell, you look all…roguish? They're the ones who can find traps, perhaps you should lead and we'll follow? If you feel like you've got abilities like that."
"It would be my honor," Maxwell proclaims, and reaches into his satchel to take out two torches. One is offered to Sarah, and he uses a flint to spark them. "We must be on the lookout for anything that could be used as fuel."
Kwabena's eyes suddenly flare, the fire brightening. "We may not need them," he says, and… there is somehow a touch of humor in his altered voice.
Sarah blinkblinks. "Oh. Well…that's useful and not creepy at all." She raises it up, then nods to Maxwell. "Lead on…let's see what we can find." She tries to focus on the flow of the water running past them seeing if she gets an idea of how it flows nearby….like a stream that continues out, if it pools, or if it hits a waterfall, thigns like that.
"I apologize if I am scary," Kwabena offers. He can only see some of himself, after all… and is choosing not to look. He's avoiding a panic.
Maxwell leads them on; it is some time before they come to any intersecting areas, but the flow of water does change. Sarah will be able to make out that there are still waters in some directions, faster flowing in others. It will give them some idea of where they might choose to go.
Sarah nods slightly. "It's not your fault you've turned into one of the most creepy things in my people's beliefs." she says simply. "I'll deal, we have a job to do." And she's going to be professional, damn it! This is her first real mission, after all. Arriving at the intersection, she pauses, then points toward one way, then the other. "That way, the water stills. Maybe a pond of some sort. The other, it flows faster…I think if we keep following the fast water it might take us out of here."
Maxwell pauses at the intersection, withdrawing a parchment and dabbing a pen into ink. He begins noting down the path and estimated distances, forging a literal paper map of their progress.
"You will be able to tell your people that, perhaps, their beliefs have some root in fear that should not be." Kwabena's hellsmoke skull turns toward Sarah. "I mean not to offend, but to encourage. This will be a story of bravery for you."
The dialect is gone; even the way his thoughts parse into words is different, but still… his. It gives him strength to further stave off his panic.
"The fast water may prove more fruitful," he says.
"Right," Maxwell agrees. "It'll certainly lead us not into any dead ends." He marks their decision on the parchment, then rolls it up and puts it back into his satchel. "Onward!" he declares, and leads them deeper into the catacombs.
"When someone passes in an Apache home, in the old days…before we were broke ass poor from our land being stolen and couldn't do it anymore…we didn't bury people. We burned down the home they died in and moved far away so their spirit couldn't find us." Rainmaker says, with a faint twist to her lips. "It's something that's bad luck to even discuss, because you might attract a…a ghost. Because all of them are jealous of the living and hate them. The part that's left behind."
She continues towards the faster moving water then, tilting her head as she keeps alert, listening. "No creatures yet…but I'm a little worried what the rats and such that lived down here might have been turned into…"
"That may be superstition," Kwabena points out. "Or it may be rooted in fact. It's hard to say. What we call science today was once considered witchcraft. What we consider magic may just be science we don't yet understand."
As they delve into the depths, the silence is unnerving. It helps everyone to talk, he feels. "I am happy to be with SHIELD. They took me out of a life of slavery. But I have done terrible things. The mage, Zatanna, told us we would become a reflection of ourselves. Clearly, I still consider myself a monster."
Maxwell suddenly holds up a hand, directing them to stop. He lowers his torch carefully, revealing something in the dirt beneath their feet. He crouches down, and grimaces. It is the skeleton of an orc, fresh… picked clean of all its flesh.
"Speaking of creatures," Maxwell mutters. "You think the sewer rats did this?"
"Whether myth or reality, it's what we believe." Rainmaker says simply. "And with stuff like this happening, who can say which are stories and which are real?" She glances over, then wrinkles her nose cutely. "So I think of myself as a elven druid who's at one with nature or something? I suppose that works…" she admits, then tilts her head. "Hmm. I don't know you well enough to say if that's so or not…but we are what we choose to be, rather than here we came from. Or so my Uncle Billy used to say."
She slows a bit at the skeleton, frowning as she winces a bit. "…that…looks pretty picked clean, yeah. Maybe? Or…something else they've become, or that this place brought here…we should be careful." She leans down to look for signs of prints or anything in the debris around the body.
"You sound like the SHIELD therapist," Kwabena's wraith-voice quips. She's not wrong. And she isn't the only one who's told him that, beyond the proverbial couch.
"You're telling me," Maxwell agrees. "Still, if we backtrack… we'll make progress, but probably not enough."
"Mm, Billy never had any fancy degree, but he was pretty good at reading people." Rainmaker says, standing up again. "I could be wrong, but these look like snake trails. I've never seen snakes devour someone down to the bone though, so they might be something more fantasy-based. But it looks like they're groundbased." She looks back at the other two. "So, keep an eye at your feet and hopefully we'll see them coming."
"I should have watched Lord of the Rings," Kwabena whispers reproachfully.
"You've never seen Lord of the Rings?" Maxwell asks as they delve deeper.
"It's on the list."
The dungeon deepens, and as they journey, it twists and turns and seems to be making a descent. Another skeleton appears, and then another, and another… until at last they end up in a large underground chamber. The water flows into a pool that glows with a lavender mist, and gently swirls around into some kind of hole, likely too small for them to fit into. Here, the prevalence of skeletons becomes more severe, but all is quiet. There are no signs of snake creatures… only the skeletons of orcs that were lured here.
"Mine too." Rainmaker notes. "I haven't been able to watch a lot of movies growing up. Or TV shows…" she admits, staying alert as she walks along, then slows. "There's a pool up ahead….something…is odd about it. " She frowns, looking around. "…but that's a looooot of skeletons, and that makes me really not want to go this way. It doesn't look like a way out yet either, it's a dead end." She wrinkles her nose. "..literaly for those guys."
"Maybe," Kwabena muses.
Floating forward, the wraith looks to and fro. "They said that there would be places where the magic is more potent, places where the spell is anchored." He gestures with a clawed hand. "This could be one of those places." He floats a bit closer to the whirlpool of water, studying it. "Or it could lead to one of those places."
"Or," Maxwell pipes up, "We could go back, you know, take one of those other passages. I mean, none of us can get down there."
Kwabena rotates around to look at the others. "I can," he states, matter of factly.
Rainmaker chews her lip. "….I can try to push the water back. I don't know how long I can maintain it, but I can sort of…widen the whirlpool so we can see the bottom. It's probably going to piss of anything actually in the pond though."
She pauses. "Or I can just lightning bolt the lake and that'll pretty much solve any nasty snake fish that might be living in it. Not sure if that'll damage whatever might be anchoring things, but…if it's an anchor we want to destroy it anyway, right?" She looks at Shift.
"Whatever we do," Maxwell says, "we're gonna piss it off. Whatever it is. Unless we backtrack."
Kwabena turns back to the whirlpool, considering it for a moment. "The next team can backtrack." The wraith begins floating back toward the entrance of this chamber, where he can be clear of… everything. "Clear the water, Maxwell."
"Oh boy." Readying his dagger, Maxwell withdraws from the water, and looks to Kwabena.
Kwabena turns to Rainmaker and nods his head. "Zap it."
Rainmaker nods, then holds out her hands. And for some reason she's not sure, she's suddenly chanting in Apache. "<Yaaah, Naiyenesgani, with your shining black knife…call the lightning to you, and slay the monster fish once more. Cut its belly, take its heart, and protect your people once more. Eagle, guide my lightning to his hand….>"
Crawling tendrils of electricity start running up her arm, moving to her hands as they intensify in power, before with a sharp *CRACKBOOM* the lightning leaps from her fingers and ground sinto the lake, lighting it from the inside as the powerful bolt diffuses through the dark water.
Maxwell grimaces at the sudden blast, but Kwabena doesn't flinch. The rogueish agent looks at Sarah with wide eyes, then back to the lavender tinted pool, dagger held at the ready.
"That was impressive," Kwabena admits, following a long silence. The wraith floats over the pool, eyes of fire looking into the whirlpool tentatively.
"I will -" he starts to say, when suddenly the earth rumbles and the water is disturbed. A geyser shoots up from the waters, and a great growl can be heard, before a dragon-like head affixed to a serpentine body flounders out from within the waters.
A second head soon joins it, then a third, and a fourth. Claws emerge as the multi-headed creature struggles to climb out from the depths, the heads turning to scream at the scouting party in warning.
Rainmaker smiles and starts to respond…before the massive beast starts to rise up out of the water. "…shit." she says, backing up quickly from the edge of the water as she raises her hands, starting to chant again. "<Crane and Owl, winds of the earth, blow cold with winter and freeze my enemies in place!>"
With a roar of air a cyclone forms around the beast, lowering the temperature of the water quickly as Rainmaker tries to freeze it before it can get clear completely to root it in place!
Vicious, fang-like teeth are visible as the Kwabena-wraith snarls, the eyes glowing a brighter flame. He's ready to unleash whatever hell this non-corporeal side of him can, but his claws remain at ease when the hydra is frozen into the water it was emerging from.
"Withdraw!" Kwabena orders, and begins floating backwards toward the tunnel they'd come through.
"Gladly!" exclaims Maxwell, who turns and runs back into the tunnel, more than happy to leave the screaming monster to itself.
The hydra growls and screams, trying to break itself free from the ice. It struggles, but after a time, it manages to break one claw free.
"Back to the entrance," Kwabena demands. "Quickly!"
Rainmaker doesn't argue, turning to book it back down the passage they've already mapped after Maxwell!
Kwabena draws up the rear this time, eyes glowing brightly to light their way. Behind them, the growling of the hydra echoes through the dungeon, suggesting that it is giving chase.
"Go! Back to the staging area!" the wraith demands.
As each of them pass through the edge of the arcane dome's influence, they will transform back into their normal selves. For Kwabena, it is a sudden reversion from the monstrosity into the man, and he tumbles from the air to roll upon the ground with a heavy sound.
Rainmaker spins around as she makes it through, stumblign as she's uddenly about a foot taller, which disorients her and spins around, bringing up her hands as she watches to see if the Hydra is going to charge out of the dome, ready to drive it back!
"You two alright?" she says quickly, staying alert.
"Ugh!" Kwabena hauls himself to his feet, very much alive again and very much covered from head to toe in the nanosuit. He bats at his face for a moment, and the mask peels back away to reveal his head, just as it should be.
A monstrous scream echoes down the storm sewer, but the creature is not seen. The echoes grow fainter; it, as well, seems to be on a retreat.
"Yeah," says Maxwell, breathing heavily. "Yeah, I'm… I'm good."
"Yes," Kwabena agrees, thankful to have his own voice back. "And you, Rainmakah?"
"I'm fine." Rainmaker says, relaxing as she sees the monster isn't going to follow. "Well…not as much mapping as I was hoping….but if you're right, at least we found one of the anchor points. That thing definitely looking a guardian of some sort." She mmms, stretching a bit. "We should get back up to the command tent and see what else we can add to the map?"
"Good work," Kwabena tells Sarah, then looks to Maxwell. "Both of you." He grins. "Am glad we… changed back, and were not eaten."
With a quick nod, he leads them toward the command area.