deercountry | he ate my heart

he ate my heart

AUGUST 2022 EVENT

EXTRA WARNING:

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
Prompt One
[Image One: The shore line lit up by some sort of bioluminescent organism. ]
[Image Two: A sunken pirate ship covered in algae, seaweed, and suffering from wood rot. ]

Prompt Two
[Image One: A tentacle wrapping around a persons hand. ]
[Image Two: A close up of someone's shoulder which is turning black and cracked and dripping water. ]

Prompt Three
[Image One: A statue of a human face, split in half, with a golden devil mask between the two halves. ]
[Image Two: A number of golden hands reaching up for a white sphere. ]

[NAVIGATION]

Prompt 1 • Prompt 2 • Prompt 3 • Plotting • Newsletter

[JUMP TO COMMENTS]

WE GLOW SO DIM

WHEN: August
WHERE: The Ocean
CONTENT WARNINGS: Deep diving, possible drowning, possible death

Early on in the month, the waves start to have a strange look to them. They seem a little brighter, even at night, and it's then that it hits you: the waves are glowing. It's easy to at first to brush it off as the bioluminescence of certain types of plankton, but the way it moves and sparkles has an other-worldly quality to it that can't be explained by science. Those who look even closer at the glow will notice that it seems to be forming some sort of path into the watery depths.

Those who choose to follow the path despite the angry waves and awful storms that plague the seas this month will find that the ocean seems to be at its calmest along these illuminated, watery roads. Diving down to follow them won't require any equipment, as Sleepers will find that staying within the glowing path allows them to breathe under water when they might normally not have been able to. The pressure changes don't seem to be impacting anyone who follows the light either, allowing them access to deeper depths of the ocean than may have previously been explored.

Continuing to follow the path will lead Sleepers to a series of ship wrecks under the water. These ancient vessels are rotted and covered in seaweed, but anyone who is familiar with the cultures of Earth will notice that they seem to come from all over the world and their styles vary by multiple centuries. But all the ships seem to be covered in this same, strange glow that has brought people here.

Exploring the ships will lead to multiple different discoveries. There are chests filled with ancient artifacts: carvings of squids, statues of various sea creatures that feel a little off somehow, and stones carved with a strange text that is almost impossible to decipher. The artifacts are covered in strange, rust-looking stains that penetrate deep into the materials they're made of. These artifacts can be brought back to shore, and if someone were to try and ask the Trenchies what the writing said, they would only be able to say that these are clearly texts of the Old Ones from long before any recorded history that Trench has in its Archives. When asked about the sea creatures, they'll think it's obvious: these are Mariana's various forms from over the years. The off qualities are her unique takes as a Pthumerian on the creatures of the ocean.

Prolonged exposure to these statues of Mariana will cause people to become more bluntly honest, more open with their emotions, and often much more prone to large outbursts from said emotions, both good and bad. However, Sleepers who keep these statues near them will also find that they are able to keep more control of their blood powers. It's up to each individual if it's a worthy trade off.

If you leave the path, two things can happen: Sleepers will either turn into their squid selves and can continue to swim or they will drown. There will be nothing of interest outside of these paths, just typical ocean creatures, and maybe some of those monsters that have been crawling out of the watery depths as of late.

[JUMP TO TOP] • [JUMP TO COMMENTS]

MONSTER WITHIN

WHEN: August
WHERE: All over
CONTENT WARNINGS: Body horror, mentions of potential cannibalism/vore, possible death, contagious curse

Soon after people start to explore the ships, a strange occurrence will start to sweep through the city. Locals start to mutter something about a curse, one that seems to only be impacting Sleepers. The early signs that there's something off is an increase in strength and stamina. For example, Sleepers will find that they might go to pick up a chair or a mug and it shatters in their hands. Some people may find that they are incapable of sleeping. Others might find they're able to move quicker and for longer periods than normal.

If they look themselves over, they will start to find small patches of skin that have started to gray and blacken. These patches will be cracked, almost scaley, and will be consistently damp no matter how hard you try to dry them off. As time passes, this odd rash will start to spread, taking over more and more of the body. The torso might start to swell and distort, making Sleepers feel particularly top heavy. And eventually, suckers will start to form on the arms and legs.

This curse isn't beasthood in its usual forms; instead, it seems to be some sort of malady in of the magical blood that Sleepers have been granted. If the blood of an infected Sleeper is looked at under a microscope, there will be black patches clinging to the cells, similar to the patches that people see on their skin. If it isn't stopped, the person suffering from the curse will ultimately turn into a monstrous form of their squid-selves: these monster forms are large, aggressive, and able to move on land. They will feel a hunger for destruction and some Sleepers may find in these forms that they are only satisfied if they feed on other, uncursed Sleepers.

There are two ways to lift the curse. One is through a thorough blood transfusion with a blood type that is compatible with your own. This becomes more difficult to do the closer to the monstrous form people get, both due to aggression from the curse, and also due to the fact that the black patches of skin are highly difficult to puncture. Once the blood is completely replaced by fresh blood, the skin patches will disappear over 48 hours and the Sleeper will be left feeling thoroughly exhausted.

The second way to lift the curse is through death. While these monster squid forms are difficult to kill, it is not impossible, and they are particularly susceptible to magic over weapons. Once a Sleeper has died, they can be reborn, and their blood will be completely free of the curse.

The blood malady can be spread outside of those who come into contact with the ship wrecks. People who touch a cursed Sleeper, particularly the scaley patches of skin, will also run the risk of being cursed. It takes roughly a week for the signs of the curse to show, and can spread as slowly or as rapidly as players choose.

[JUMP TO TOP] • [JUMP TO COMMENTS]

LAVISH DESIRES

WHEN: August
WHERE: All over
CONTENT WARNINGS: Personality changes, mental manipulation, hoarding, obsessive anxiety, disassociation, depersonalization

The high waves seem to just be getting higher at the beginning of the month. Rougher and rougher seas start to cause something anyone who's lived around water will be familiar with: flash floods. These floods are large, powerful, and fill the streets of Trench. First-floors of buildings may get extreme damage, though they can be protected with physical and magical barriers if people are smart about it. The floods happen multiple times throughout the month without warning, so it may be good to get that protection built up sooner rather than later.

The after effects of these floods aren't just structural devastation though. People who get caught up in the water, particularly those who end up swallowing it, will have one word echoing in their mind on a regular basis: More.

More of what? That seems to be different for each individual. Maybe one person wants more and more food, anything from an extra slice of cake after dinner, to wanting to stuff themselves until they just might pop. Or maybe they want to hoard all of their favorite objects or pieces of clothing, filling more and more of the space in their homes until they're ready to burst at the seems. Some might find it's their emotions that come in excess, with over the top anger, or irregular excitement that leaves them unable to sleep for days. Anything and everything can come in excess and it certainly seems to be this month. Some people may get these obsessive needs to such a degree that they start to feel disconnected from themselves, fractured by the overabundance that has taken over their lives.

If people ignore these desires, they'll start to find they're plagued by hallucinations. Strong, life-like visions that riddle them with anxiety and leave them petrified of what might happen if they don't partake in this gluttonous behavior. They'll feel shaken to the core and slowly go mad with need and desire for whatever it is they've been craving. This feeling of madness can make them become violent, lashing out at those around them, even killing those who try and help them out of belief that they're trying to force them to give in to their vices.

The impact of the water will wear off either after one week without re-exposure, or by using a Moon Drop to help to cleanse the mind.

[JUMP TO TOP]

CODING

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

He's reliable, so long as he's left to his own devices and pace. Might be late, might be burnt, but it'll get done before it's a problem. Watching Nara'a's back underwater is something he's at least willing to do. Provided the guy's open to doing the same.

How much they can watch backs while swimming more or less side to side is another question...

Nara'a makes it seem so damn easy. Dabi had to leave his boots and coat behind on the beach (buried in the sand) and his swimming is... it's certainly not graceful, but it's not a floundering dog paddle. He learned how to swim as a child, but had little real need to do so in his childhood, or his adulthood. Basic crawl, though he'd apt to stalk across the ocean floor at times when his arms and legs need a rest.

The grin earns a glare. "I can fly, ya know. This feels kinda oppressive." Dabi pushes off the ground and follows, trailing a bit of glowing sand as he approaches the shipwreck. The gutted side is an ominous mouth of sharp wooden planks, though the tips of the boards give way due to rot if pushed hard enough.

"With all this fuckin light, they're probably hidin."

Nara'a doesn't seem to be bothered by Dabi's answer. He just shrugs and does a roll, corkscrewing his body until he comes back up to face Dabi. "It doesn't feel that way to me, but I'm used to it. I spent a lot of time in the water during the Doma Liberation." Not that it means anything to the other... but that was a while ago.

The light gets turned off, and he pokes his head into the hole to look before heading in. "Good. Then we won't run into them. Hopefully." He grabs the side of the ship and propels himself inside, doing a flip as he enters just to show off.

The inside is rotted, the cavernous belly of the ship only lit dimly by the glow of the plankton. Nara'a glances around, listening... but all he can hear is rushing water and the occasional creak of the ship. He swims further inside, using the light from his omni but covering some of it with his hand. There doesn't look like there's all that much in this bottom hold, but there's the remains of stairs that lead up towards the other decks.

Dabi sends him a miffed look for the nonchalance. Not that he expects the miqo'te to do shit about his complaints, since they're already down here with the ship looming in front of them. Leaving now would be stupid. "Good. You can go first then." If something down here feels like biting out of the darkness or a trap decides to go off. Who knows with sunken ships.

Following after Nara'a, he rests his hand on the wood and gives it a tug before pulling himself inside via the grip. Even with the man's lights off, the glowing algae or whatever it is gives enough light to illuminate the area, sometimes bright enough to make it seem like a light bulb's been flipped on, sometimes just a bare enough glow to make out shapes.

Ch, show off...

Dabi holds his omni above to shine the light around the darkened interior. Looks like a buncha crap around here, with barrels and crates, some smashed to pieces and others punched open. Nothing seem to be inside them. He swims towards the stairs and peers up them towards the higher levels. "Ya ever been on a ship before?"

He starts rifling through the crates and barrels, swimming away when he doesn't spot anything. He follows Dabi and nods at the question. "Plenty of times. One of the major city-states where I'm from was founded by pirates, and they keep up the sailing tradition. Plus it's the fastest way to get somewhere if you can't go by airship... and you can only teleport to spots with an aetheryte if you've attuned to them."

... That probably means nothing to the other man, so he rephrases. "Basically you can only teleport to somewhere you've been, so ships are faster for getting somewhere you haven't been." Airships are good for a lot of things, but voyages over the sea? Not yet. He swims up towards the berth deck and blinks in the darkness, eyes wide to catch the light from the algae. "I think there's a few things here..."

He swims towards the crew hammocks, most of them rotted with age. But there's something caught in one of them... there's a strange little statue. Nara'a reaches out and grabs it, looking around. There's a chest nearby, and the lock seems rusted enough that a good kick or something similar would dislodge it.

That's a whole host of information he never asked for, but squirrels away regardless. City-states, pirates, airships, teleporting... what a world this guy came from. "Any of them sink?" He'll ask about the other things later; the present status is what matters. Are there tips for searching sunken ships? Is there a place where the good stuff is stored? What kind of things can they expect to see on a ship?

At least Nara'a recognizes the blank look for what it was and Dabi gets a better explanation. "So go by sea if ya can't go by air or teleports." Which makes sense. Kind of human tradition in the ancient world. Though Dabi's thinking airship = airplane, so... He drifts to the side to let Nara'a head up the stairs, then follows after him, a little more used to the swimming aspect no that he's got more compressed space around him. "Whaddya find?"

And hammocks is the answer. He floats up to the next deck, landing on his boots before walking to the dangling material. Looks more like shrouds in the water. But when Nara'a goes for something wrapped up in one- "Oy, could be a body." Except it's not. It's a chest. He pushes off the wall and floats over to the other man, peering over his shoulder. "Think ya can break it open?"

"Oh, definitely. But most of those have been looted already, usually by the people who sank them." Pirates are resourceful, after all. "I don't have a lot of experience on sunken ships, just floating ones." But he at least knows where a lot of things are normally kept, provided they haven't shifted around.

"Exactly." He pushes through the hammocks as Dabi points out the chest, nodding. He nudges it against the wall so it won't go anywhere and pushes off the other wall to give it a solid kick. The metal snaps under his boot, the lid of it floating open and revealing...

... Some more statues. And some stones covered in text that... well, he brings out his omni again, peering at the artifacts. "... I can't read this." It's not Eorzean, and the few words he knows of the Hingan dialect don't match up to this, either. He scoots over so Dabi can take a look - maybe he can read it?

"Surprised pirates would be out on this ocean." Considering how blood-thirsty Trench is and the fact the ocean has a billion fucking monsters, plus all the natives are scared of it, you'd think it'd be stupid to go pirating a bunch of fishing boats who are all coming back to the same shores... unless there are other shores the pirates dock at... hm...

Dabi settles beside him with a slosh of water, looking into the chest the man just kicked open. "Statues?" Like the one the miqo'te just found in the hammock. "It ain't Japanese or English, so I'm out. Could be somethin like Egyptian. They used pictures for words." That's about as far as his education is going to get him when language is concerned.

Wonders why one was in the hammock and the others locked in the chest. "Don't touch em with ya skin. I wouldn't trust this place not to fuck ya over for doin that." So he's going to go rip some of those old hammocks down; they can use them as wrappings or even a net if they want to.

"On this ocean? I'm surprised, too. But it still looks pretty cleaned out." He shakes his head at the mention of languages. He doesn't know what any of those languages are, so he has no clue. "I'm more versed in magical history than languages. I don't think it's Nymian or Mhachi script, and those are the only two old languages I might recognize anything from."

He pulls out a piece of cloth - more like a handkerchief - and wraps the idol that he found. "You've got a point... this place does like to mess with us." Still he might keep it for study... he could put on gloves, perhaps.

"I don't see anything else interesting on this level - unless you want to look around some more?"

Most of the ships he's seen (or at least knows of) going out on the waters are there for fishing. Not much in the way of worthwhile cargo to go steal, especially since, for all they know, there's no one else on the current landmass to go selling any stolen goods to. No one that wouldn't have gotten the same things from the regular fishers anyways. "Don't think ya gonna find any magical history in this place..."

Certainly none from Nara'a's world. Dabi scans over some of other items in the room, though nothing seems as interesting as those statues in the chest (and the one wrapped in the hammock). "Don't trust anything. You'll live longer."

With a shake of his head, Dabi gestures towards the stairs. "Nah, I'm done. Ain't gonna be lugging statues around with me."

"Not really... none I recognize, at least." He's started to learn more of Trench's history, of the Dream and the beings that inhabit the world... it's slow going though, with fragmentary information. And it's not his field - though he knows more than a few historians who would love the thrill of the search for information.

Don't trust anything... probably good advice for this place, even if he trusts too easily. "I might come back for them... let's see if there's anything up top." He doubts it - the place is exposed to the elements even more than the lower decks, but he swims up anyway.

It's strange, seeing the bits of what remains of the mast. It's almost an otherworldly sight as the scraps of fabric 'blow' in the currents around them. There's holes through the deck but not too much else of note... other than the fact that the cabin door is open. He swims towards it, peering inside... no creatures. It's safe for now, at least.

Dabi's normally one to want to gather information about people or places that are part of his ambitions. But in a place like Trench, where survival is the only real goal, there's no need to dig into the history of this world. Far more useful to explore around and find resources he can use to continue existing. Thus the discovery in this ship so far is nothing to him.

"Ya better have somethin to carry them in." Lugging them around in the hammocks isn't the best option, considering they're so old, rotten, and torn, they'd likely do little more than rip apart. Lugging the chest of them around is one way. Dabi half walks, half swims up the steps to the floor above them.

Following after the other man, he shadows his arrival at the cabin door, looking around the frame to inspect inside. It's dark in there... so he sticks an arm in and ignites a burst of flame. The jet of blue lances out in a sudden flare, but it lasts for little more than a second before the water snuffs it out immediately. Nothing goes swimming out at them or away, so...

"Got a better light?"

"I've got pockets." Sure, they might be smaller pockets, but he can figure something out. It's not going to be an issue. He's got a cape, after all... he can always gather things up in that.

When Dabi sends in a flame he has to try to not laugh. Silly Dabi... he takes out his omni and lets the glow from the device light up the cabin. There's the tattered remains of a bed and another chest. He swims over to it, bypassing the captain's desk for the moment.

"Locked. Again." He doesn't bother waiting for Dabi and instead kicks the thing with the heel of his boot, breaking it open. Inside are more stones with the same sort of writing on them and a few more statues of sea life in strange and twisted forms. "... Odd that they'd protect these so well..."

"Big pockets." Those weren't exactly yen-sized statues in there. Dabi might hang around, mostly to see Nara'a slogging out of the water with chunks of rock bulging out of his pants legs. But there's none of that going on right now.

Oy. He's only testing. This water lets them breathe in it; why not see if it also provides that "oxygen" to other things. But the glow of the omni rewards his efforts and Dabi brings his own out to start shining it around the room. He heads for the captain's desk immediately. There's a skeleton behind it... Bones-san.

"That either means they're valuable and someone was comin back for them. Or they're dangerous and ya shouldn't be messin with 'em."

With that, he starts messing with the captain's desk, pulling open drawers and finally getting to a locked on. There are a few notable things in the desk. Buckles and fasteners for journals and logbooks with the papers long-gone, bottles of liquid still stoppered, a flintlock pistol, two daggers, navigation tools, and other odds and ends a captain would want in his desk.

"Dibs on the stuff over here." Yep, like a little kid. DIBS! S'mine!

He can move with bulk in his pockets, he's done it before. His pockets and bags at home tend to be filled with the most random stuff imaginable.

The bones don't bother him - he almost starts to go through the motions to pray to Thal out of habit but then aborts the gesture. He beat up the god of commerce and the underworld, why would he offer a prayer? He shakes his head and drifts over towards the desk, looking it over. ... He wonders if the Admiral has similar in her desk. She's definitely got at least the ammo for pistols stored away, given her penchant for wearing two of them.

He pulls his focus back to the present and looks at the chest, scooping out one of the rocks with weird writing and looking it over. Still no luck in terms of finding any sort of language he knows about. "It might be something of religious value? I know a lot of cultures make icons of their gods. This could be the same. And people tend to want to protect those sorts of things."

It makes sense - these things are sea creature-like and the people here have a big focus on the sea. He'll have to confirm later, but he's studied enough religion to know a few things. "Or it could be things that they stole from other people and didn't want people to steal from them. But I don't know why you'd steal things like this..."

There's a difference if he's going to magically make said pockets and their belongings lighter than air. Versus lugging around small boulders in said pockets. Dabi's... expecting the former will be the case. The guy's some kinda wizard.

"Hn. That would fit with the theme of this place. There are a lot of gods wandering around here." Making a mess of things, though admittedly some of them try to help. Dabi hasn't paid much attention to them, having dismissed the notion of things like "gods" a long time ago. It's little more than some creature or person with a lot of power pushing their rules and ideas onto people weaker than them. So long as you can do that, you can call yourself a "god" over anything below you.

"Some people pay a lot of money for what they think is a one-of-a-kind relic. These could be cheap knock off copies of something that's supposed to be rare." It might explain why it's a bunch of stone statues of sea things, which honestly look more at home decorating someone's garden than sitting around in a museum or private collection. That's Dabi's opinion at least.

He starts setting the contents of the desk on top of the furniture. The two locked drawers finally get broken open, with some help from his underwater blowtorch (piss off, Nara's; his fire is useful even underwater). What he pulls out of those...

"I'll take these." And drops a small chest on the desk as well as two stuffed, albeit modest, sacks of what sound like coins when they hit the desk top.

"There are. I still don't know all of them..." He's not even certain which is his - as far as he's concerned his only patron is Thaliak, the Scholar. Whatever this place has assigned him doesn't really matter. As for the 'gods' around here... none of them seem to be draining aether from the land, so as far as he's concerned they're not his responsibility to try to kill.

Money? He's not sure... the trading system in Trench seems to value bartering for useful things rather than shiny things, but maybe it's from a pre-bartering system. Or maybe they're from far away... his thoughts get interrupted by the sound of coins hitting a desk, and he sighs. Dabi claimed the desk's contents and he's not about to push it... not right now, at least.

And his earlier thought about money still stands. There's not much use for it other than as something shiny. "You've got a lot to haul back. You sure you can make it with all this stuff?" He's not planning a return trip, so he's got to pick and choose which things to take. "I'm not sure how well you can swim carrying all of that."

Dabi has his written down in the book that was in his pack when he found it at the beginning, but has given little thought to it since them. He isn't sure whether the gods in this place are for or against them, whether they're behind all the shit they have to deal with or if it's entirely out of their power. Survival is a better use of his time than trying to figure out how this crazy world works. Not that he'd be against murdering them if it got them back home.

Money is only useful for the "shiny" things, which Dabi sometimes finds a purveyor for. His first trade here was for shiny rocks rather than anything all that "useful" in terms of bartering. But in this place, a bar of gold can be traded and a fresh chicken can be traded. All it matters if finding which the other person wants. Easy enough. Besides, you never know what comes in handy.

"I can managed." So far he's got two meager bags of coins, a flinklock pistol, and whatever's in this small chest that he's working on trying to open. A few other things scatter across the desk, but those three are currently Dabi's interest. "I ain't the one wantin to lug around a buncha rocks."

"Good." He's not going to haul things for Dabi since he's sure that Dabi wouldn't haul things for him. "How much ammo's in those pistols?" He's a little curious about them - he's not brought his machinist job stone, but he doesn't need it to have knowledge of how a gun works. ... Some guns, at least. "Wonder if there's any more around here..."

The chest opens and reveals... a heart-shaped locket. There's a faded engraving - a picture of some woman. There's nothing very noteworthy about her. Nara'a floats over and looks at the locket. "I wonder if you could get that engraving worn off or filled in... it could be worth something to someone sentimental."

The only pictures he's ever had are sketches or paintings, not something like that. But he doesn't have anyone who he'd put in a locket like that. That doesn't mean that other people here don't. It's a good find, though he doesn't care too much about the value of objects here aside from the historical. He's got everything that he needs, for the most part. He doesn't really want for more.

"I think some of the rocks are repeats... it must be some kind of prayer or standardized chant that people used to use."

Aww, and here he thought they were pals enough he could entice Nara'a into being his little pack mule. Right. Dabi arches a brow at the questions, as well as what's revealed inside the chest. If it were some moldy old photo, that'd've been one thing, but an actual engraving inside the locket? Rather unique. It reeks of sentimentality too. "Dunno... might keep it the way it is. Unique." And when it comes to trading, "unique" is as key as "useful" when cash isn't much preferred.

"Probably. Ships like these usually have some kinda armory to keep the weapons." He's expecting swords and maybe some more guns, but the shit the captain owns is likely the highest class. As for the ammo, Dabi sweeps around behind the captain's desk and kicks the skeleton right off the chair with a watery clatter. Then sits himself down in it (testing first to make sure he won't send himself crashing through to the floor) and kicks his feet up on the desk.

He starts working on the guns, figuring out in a short time where to find the ammo. "Looks like two or three shots..." The gunpowder section is completely sealed up, so it might even be dry. But he's pretty sure even if it was wet, he could find a way to get the guns working again. Dabi fishes around in his pocket and pulls out a small pouch. Moleskin if curious. ~~Yep, right outta Harry Potter thanks to the caves a month ago.~~

He opens it and drops in the locket. Then starts sliding the coins in. It's probably soon very apparent something's going on with that pouch because there's no way all those coins would fit inside it without some major stuffing. And Dabi's just dropping them in like a personal piggy bank.

"Ya think they're ceremonial things? Might wanna be careful. That shit's usually cursed." In books and movies at least.

"That's true. I was just thinking that whoever got it might want to put in their own picture, but I guess a photo would cover it up anyway." Photos are handy... he's not sure exactly how you make one that you can hold, but he's seen a few around. Something to consider... but it's still nice.

He's about to object to Dabi kicking the skeleton, but then it's on the floor and he sighs. He wanders over to it and picks it up, tucking it into a corner for now. Even if he doesn't have much respect for the god of the dead anymore he still has respect for the dead themselves. You never know when you'll find their spirit hanging around as a monster...

"Two or three shots... probably a decent kick to them too, given the way the gun looks. It probably doesn't use ceruleum or an aetherconverter so it's got to have some way of igniting it... maybe I'll grab one if I see another one, just to take it apart and tinker with it." He's gotten his guns to fire ridiculous things before - with the help of aether, yes, but a lot of the mechanical skill is still him with his own two hands.

He watches the pouch with interest... gods, he's got to get one of those sorts of things. It seems more useful than just having a bunch of pockets sewn into his clothing or a heavy sack to carry around. "Yes, I think they are. But I doubt they're cursed... people don't usually put curses on things without a good reason, and I can't imagine why someone would want to curse an idol or a prayer that they actually use..."

"Some people got cameras around here, so maybe. This place ain't too big on tech." Dabi gives the pouch a toss in the air, watching it float through the water before catching it out of the lazy arc. And goes back to slotting the rest of the coins into it. No plans on putting anything inside the locket, however. Keepin it as is for now.

Oy, don't defend a skeleton's honor; it's dead and couldn't give less of a shit. One of the arms comes off when Nara'a messes with it (and the man might notice a pistol dangling from its rotten coat inside an equally eroded holster). Of course the idea had flashed through his mind the skeleton might react to getting kicked. But guess that's not happening.

"Nah, it'd use somethin called gunpowder from the looks of it." Certainly wasn't something modern like you'd see in his world. Didn't eve know what those things were that Nara'a listed, so he's tossing them up to "magic world" shit. "Could probably find some more around here." The potential, hypothetical armory might still on the ship. Dabi slips the tip of the pistol into the pouch and more or less pulls the pouch over it like you'd pull a glove or a sock on. Gets the gun inside without an issue. And then the second one.

Sorry, Dabi's not willing to trade his pouch for even that stone he's coveted from Nara'a since their first (or second) meeting. It's far to useful for him. He's kept his eyes out for more like it during events and beach-combing trips. "Some booby trap against someone stealing somethin they use often. Like givin the robber the middle finger from afar."

"Maybe. You'd have a better idea than I would about the technology here." Then again Eorzea has technology too... just different sorts. A lot of magical technology... and that's not even counting other places.

Nara'a does indeed notice the pistol and he slips the gun into a pocket, rifling through to see if there's any other goodies in the pockets. "Ah, like firesand, maybe? I've seen some of the guns in Limsa Lominsa use that. I'm not too familiar with it myself." He's not very good at blacksmithing. It's been a little bit of a failing of his - he wants to know how to maintain his weapons and armor, but hasn't really gotten into that sort of crafting.

"Booby traps? Mm. I've been the... ah. Victim of some of those. Usually while going into ancient tombs and things like that. Not places where death happened by accident. Those tend to have monsters rather than traps. At least in my experience... it's likely different here." He's also not had a lot of trouble with traps... he tends to either avoid them or take them pretty well.

"Nothin's gonna happen so long as they're wet." Dabi knows that much about guns. Not about to waste bullets underwater either. These don't look to be cutting edge pistols in the first place. Still taking them with him just in case.

The holster almost crumbles when Nara'a goes for the gun, pieces floating off easily as the man pulls the captain's sidearm to himself. It's not hard to put in his pocket. There's an old compass in one pocket, though the needle seems to continue flipping around, suggesting it can't find "north" that well in Trench. A few gold pieces. A set of keys. Some papers that long-since rotted away. And a rather nice stickpin on the inside of the coat.

"Dunno what firesand is. But sounds kinda similar from the name alone." Dabi's only got basic knowledge of guns, not having been allowed them as a child and not having much care or need for them as an adult.

"Same kinda idea. If someone thinks somethin's worth stealin, odds are they've thought about puttin traps in the way." From the littlest coin pouch in a locked desk to the trap-lined halls of a yakuza bunker.

The leather pieces don't bother him, but he frowns at the compass. That's... annoying, but he'll take it anyway. The stickpin is worth holding on to, as are the coins... but he holds up the keys. "Wonder what these go to? ... Maybe the stuff we kicked open."

"It's a powder that gets ignited by either a mechanism or aether and propels bullets. So if that's what gunpowder is then yes, probably the same." He's tinkered with them enough to figure out how they work and how to adapt them to his own fighting style... but it's a shame he didn't bring his gun with him. It's quite nice, if a little unconventional due to his modifications.

Traps in the way? He's not so sure. "True, but I suspect the sinking was unexpected. And unless they were setting traps for their crewmates, I don't think there's much to worry about." In his experience crews are much like families and trust each other as such - at least to a point. Then again some families are more dysfunctional than others...

He stands up once he's done with the skeleton, resisting the childish urge to put it in a funny pose to surprise the next person who finds it. He wanders over to a cabinet and pulls it open, revealing half-rotted coats. He tilts his head and stares at it a moment. "I bet I could fix some of these up and trade them..."

Maybe Trench doesn't have a "north" like they'd expect from their own worlds? Or it's just been down here so long shit's fucked it up. Who knows. Maybe it'll figure itself out once it's brought to the surface and cared for a bit. Or maybe it doesn't point north in the first place, hmm... Could be magical.

Dabi glances to the keys, then to the drawers he broke open on the desk. "Probably." So much for the patient way in. "Might be other things around the cabin. Like a safe." Don't captains usually have strong boxes locking things away? Finishing with scouring the desk-bound goods, the villain pushes out of the chair and starts to inspect the walls.

"Yeah, that's how gunpowder works. Modern guns don't use it though." It's done through other mechanisms and propulsion. The details of which Dabi is unable to offer Nara'a any learnable portions of. Let's see, there's a chest of drawers over here, and something that looks like a china cabinet or a curio cupboard. Oh, a door as well, but it's locked... even if they could probably kick it open.

Best he not engage Dabi in talk about dysfunctional families. "Got a locked door over here," he notes before rapping on said door with his knuckles. Just in time to see Nara'a start bundling around through a coat of clothes. Looks like something use to have a nest of some kind in there, but it's long gone now. "If they don't fall apart while you're bringin em to the surface."

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6.1 spoilers

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