The Enigma Complex Pt 3-3 - Ghost in the Machine - RPLOG
From Flexible Survival
Participants
Date
27/5/2023
Log
(Syntax) When we last left our hapless adventuring party, they had just left the ever so spooky clinic and met up with Booker. They had settled on a clear goal: find the nanite server and, if nothing else, get it under control. However, with no clear idea as to where it could be, they settled on starting with Hydroponics. Based on the basic map Syntax gave Ysadora, it wouldn't take too long to at least give the area a quick sweep. The four now find themselves walking down a long hallway towards the unknown!
(Booker) Booker waved everyone on as he started to his right toward the Hydroponics bay. He glanced behind him. "So what have you guys found so far?" He looked over the walls as he walked, wondering if there was anything hung up on the wall, or painted on it.
(Booker) Booker also tugs on the leash as he headed down the hall, directing Junes to follow
(Junes) Junes was looking back at the group but hearing booker call attention they felt the leather lifting and got a move on before they could be dragged along, a bit downtrodden still remembering the clinic screams "i hope there's still some plants alive in hydroponics, maybe since stuff is still active they might have a good chance of still being here, or even find some seeds if anything"
(Ysadora) Ysadora lurks in Booker's shadow as they move forward. "Oh! Oh! You're not going to believe this, Booker, but this place is capital-H Haunted. We saw some real paranormal activity in the clinic, and Junes saw something similar in the stairwell. Something about radiation." She pauses, excitement tempering slightly. "The thing is, it's all nanomagic based. The sounds, the visions, everything. But! It did still interact with my ouijia board. It spelled out 'DREAMER' there and on a piece of paper Junes slipped under the door. That mean anything to you?" Although allowing Booker and Umeko to proceed a few steps ahead of her, Ysadora does keep an eye on their surroundings as she prattles on.
(Umeko) After ensuring her Awareness Nanomagic was properly running to detect any mysterious ghostly shenanigans, Umeko continued on as well with the group, scanning the hallways with her enhanced vision that could easily see through the darkness. "Yeah, there's something very strange going on in this place... It could very well be some sort of actual ghost honestly. Nanomagic has been occuring without any sort of apparent source, even when using nanomagic to detect it. It's as if it's coming from the server itself, so it could be anything from paranormal to some sort of advanced hacker, or god forbid, the server itself going rogue... Be real careful of illusions and other strangeness..." she added to Booker. "Also, who knows what's in hydroponics, but if I had to guess, the fungus is probably having a great time in there."
(Syntax) As the group walks forward, pretty much everyone but Ysadora starts to notice more mushrooms in this hallway than there were farther back. They're pretty hardy little things and have just outright taken root in the concrete floors and stained walls. It's Junes and Umeko, however, that realize the significance of these mushrooms. They're one of cumrot's most frequent competitor: cockblock! Based on what the termites said earlier, these don't just halt the spread of cumrot but even hamper the spread of its spores.
(Booker) Booker continued down the hallway, looking over the little mushrooms. "Weird... These aren't dangerous are they?" He purposely dragged a foot to dislodge one growing on the floor. "Next thing you know people will be putting them on pizza or something." He smirked, turning his head back toward the group. only to get half-blinded by June's flashlight before turning back around and extending a hand forward to make sure he didnt run into anything.
(Junes) Junes nodded with ysadora before pulling two things out, a paper with ( DREAMER? ) on it along with a flashlight, shining forth and adding as they showed the paper to whoever wanted to see "yeah i was the only one in the stairwell and wrote something completely different in my own handwriting, spooky but cool but for the source im not sure, whichever it may be i have the feeling their not an enemy considering the illusions have been less than harmful even if definitely unnerving but hopefully we're even capable of asking if this is a ghost or one in the machine" walking with the leash in mind and glancing down answering booker "they'll make you.... something....but it wasn't good for other fungi but i think it'll be okay for us" thinking a bit, unsure about the information looked back to double check with umeko
(Ysadora) Ysadora shuffles a bit inside her sleeves as she tries to send just one hand down to pick up a mushroom. Eventually she accepts the limitations of the suit and bends down to uproot one of the things. Bringing it up to her visor, she studies its odd shape. "This is a pretty big deal, right? I mean, this stuff's our best bet against Cumrot that we know of. I wonder how Pteryx is getting on with researching how to make it even more effective." Pulling a jar from her bag, she drops the shroom in and screws the lid back on. Ysadora looks up, then, and realizes Booker's been pushing ahead blindly. She scurries over hurriedly to catch up.
(Umeko) Umeko looked down at the mushrooms, "It's a good sign that these are growing, eventually the spores should be taken care of hopefully with the holes sealed up and no more cumrot infested water coming in... I wouldn't recommend eating either of these, nor taking off your hazmat suits though. Eventually we'll have to clear out this fungus too and you can eat the anti-horny mushrooms then if you -really- want to." She looked around at the rest of the damage to the halls as well, "It'll be a lot of work fixing this place up, but I'm looking forward to seeing it for sure."
(Syntax) As the party approaches hydroponics, readings indicate a massive drop in the amount of cumrot contaminants. Those cockblock mushrooms are really working their magic, it seems. As the four enter the the room proper, though, they discover that calling it a room is inaccurate. Before you is a massive amount of overgrowth of plant life with the roots of a tree snaking along the walls. The tree itself stands at the center of the circular area which seems to be growing from a lower floor which can be accessed via a stairway which must exist somewhere in this mess. It continues upwards up to the sky and--wait, that doesn't make sense. Looking up, it almost feels as if you are looking through a fish eye lens as the tree extends up into a lovely blue sky. Oddly, there appears to be a condensation trail from what can only be a jet which is streaking far beyond what you can perceive.
