10326/Three is a Crowd

Three is a Crowd
Date of Scene:	02 March 2022
Location:	Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego - Chile
Synopsis:	No description
Cast of Characters:	Shredder, Lara Croft, Erik Killmonger, Sandra Wu-San

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Shredder has posed:
    It's summer, moving to fall in South America, the reverse of the Northern hemisphere. You wouldn't know that to be on the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego. The land of fire is a land of opposites. The high mountains this far south of the equator make for frigid temperatures, while those same mountains boast of active volcanic magma which flows through the plains of molten rock Pack warm, and pack cold.

    The land is home to many legends, but none so prominent of the Gift of a Thousand Eyes. The ancients claimed the artifact could give the viewer the true nature of anything if they were to have the proper ingredients. The first thing they need is the idol, a stout little naked androgynous figure who's hand points forward. It will show you what direction your desire lies in.

    The second is the forward part of the head, which contains the face, the eyes will let you see where you desire. The third is the head, which contains the ears that let you hear what is around what you desire.

    Then there is the fourth ingredient. That has to be discovered still.

    The locals know of the cave, but to get to it is generally considered very foolish. This cave hasn't been touched in centuries, because the constant lava in the area makes it very difficult to traverse safely.

Lara Croft has posed:
    Lara is not averse to danger, especially ones that cause men to tremble with superstition. Decked out in her cold weather gear, her red coat stands out in the cold. It's thin, but made of the same stuff that arctic exploration clothing is made from, so it's very warm. The woman is stubborn about not wearing hats, for some reason, so she's colder than she needs to be.
    With a metal climbing hook in both hands, Lara drives home a spike and pulls herself up, climbing as quickly over the rock face as many people can over a ladder. She pulls herself up and shields her eyes from the oncoming wind, narrowing her gaze to look toward the cave she's supposed to be foolhardy for approaching.

Erik Killmonger has posed:
    Killmonger, that's the mercenary name that he goes by, is here. He doesn't have a team, very rarely needs a team but he's geared up and armed like he's ready for whatever may come in his direction. It's all about making sure that he's well prepared to take on whatever adventures are in this location. This path. Path to the object that he's supposed to be retrieving for his client.

    For the moment, Killmonger's not exactly advancing on the location. He's checking the coordinates on his device. He's also got an eye out for anyone else. He doesn't want to be surprised by any other interlopers or anything like that.

    He's also wearing his signature mask at the moment to make sure his identity stays hidden. Even in Chile he doesn't need to be caught on any satellite imaging.

Shredder has posed:
    Up the mountain, the temperature shifts as a person reaches the flowing fields. From a frigid snow laden mountain to a cascading minefield of glowing blood of the earth, the soft descent is far more dangerous than the ascent. Along one side of the depression from the lava is a tube that's been long evacuated, large enough for a person to fit through it, and above the lava flow. The rocks here have long cooled, and the tube is safe, though inside it's very warm, uncomfortably so at a piping temperature of 105 degrees farenheit.

Lara Croft has posed:
    Tugging off her thick coat as she gets a blast of hot air, Lara can feel it much more acutely than if she'd stepped into that from a summer heat. The blistering, dry air feels like a fire on her frost-kissed cheeks. In moments, however, she's stripped her thin, outer layer and stuffed it into her tiny backpack...somehow. Hooray tank top and shorts Lara! She's very careful as she moves into the hot area, kind of wishing for a nomex body-stocking.

Erik Killmonger has posed:
    Killmonger attempts to try and make sure that he's dealing with the change in temperature as easy as he can. He's all about dealing with this in sections. He keeps that mask on to keep his identity put away and then moves himself in the direction of the more heated location for all of this missioning. He's pockets the device he's been using to track the entrance to the location of this here artifact that he's been sent to find.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
Hugged by a glistening sheen from head to toe, Lady Shiva stands a dozen or so yards from the other end of the entry tube, head bowed and eyes closed; both palms held forward, inches from magmatic rock. There's a fork; it is hot.

It's awfully important to avoid backtracking, here.

Black flat soles; taut, lightweight black trouser; a length of fabric wrapped around her chest; and a hairpin with a sparkling ruby tear captured in a dragon's mouth holding long, raven-black hair in a ponytail comprise her volcano-diving attire.

As Lara and Killmonger enter...

... Shiva's head turns towards the tube, a fraction at a time while a dark brow rises.

Shredder has posed:
    Inside the tube, it doesn't have much that would suggest booby traps, or writing of any sort. It's long and uninteresting, though a glow can be seen from down the path, most likely the source of heat that makes it so ridiculously hot inside here.

    Further down the tube from any of them indeed is an offshoot of a magma tube piping even higher temperatures in, close to 130 degrees. Not high enough to burn the skin, but hot enough that no one should want to stay here for long. It's no wonder that no one has taken this artifact yet. It would take a high level of discipline to power through the sweltering temperatures.

Lara Croft has posed:
    Lara squints at the darkness ahead. She can just make out someone else's figure as she moves into the hot tube. She's always prepared for a tussle, and a suppressed firearm or a bow is a definite go-to in a tunnel of any sort. Lara doesn't turn on her shoulder-mounted light, instead moving forward with as much stealth as an archaeologist in a tunnel can muster.

Erik Killmonger has posed:
    Killmonger's not exactly the most subtle person in the world when he's in a location that's all about heat and volcanic shenanigans. He's not exactly looking as though he's worried about anyone coming from behind or anyone that's in front. He goes into his traveling bag to grab a light and just activates it. Should make it nice and bright in here. And probably alert all kinds of people (or creatures) to his presence.

    "If you don't wanna' die, might wanna' leave now." Just a little warning!

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
"Sound advice indeed," echoes through the tunnels.

The figure shrouded in the distance turns away; just the same, the razor-edged amusement is palpable:

"... but your friend is going to keep coming. Aren't they~?"