The Arsenal of the Ancients

[Light]

The Arsenal of the Ancients

Abandoned to time, abandoned to death.Left alone, the creatures roam.-A Rhyme of Those Inside You run. You don't look back to see what's chasing you, you just run. You run because you know that skittering sound killed your brother, and it would just love to kill you.You can tell. Oh, Great Beings, you can tell. You call feel its hatred, wanting to break you, destroy you, make you like it. Make every last shred of sanity vanish from your head before it feeds on you and allows you the escape of death. The death it can't feel. But you're fast. Your brother injured it using one of the prototype weapons lying around the dusty, dark rooms of the Warehouse, but that wasn't enough to save him. You ran while he screamed, while the escapee came the closest to feeling happy it ever does. It might be enough to save you. If you can just make it to the light before the line between you and it disappears. The light is so close. But so far. History of the Warehouse Storage Facility 42. Something the Great Beings would probably like to wipe off their slate. It used to be a highly secure facility where only the most classified experiments were conducted and most valuable projects kept. Emphasis on used to. It used to be in a large cavern. Something went horribly wrong, as it always does. Something tried to escape. It failed. The failsafes didn't. Element-blocking and physical barriers were thrown up, reinforcing the walls to be nearly unbreakable. The cave was collapsed, burying the facility in tons upon tons of rock and earth. The perfect prison, for the wrong prisoners. Scientists, janitors, and anyone in the base at the time were trapped. For a time, everything held together. Just keep doing your jobs, and the rescuers would be here soon. That lasted until the first blackout. The power in some of the less secure containment areas disappeared, the main computer system deciding that it needed to conserve power for the long-term. The escapees weren't too bad, not enough to keep security from putting them down or chasing them into the basement, but it shook the little bit of confidence everyone had. Factions emerged. The second blackout, a few months later, took the power out of the communications relay. The system's reasoning was simple: Either relief was coming or it wasn't. Beaming a signal through hundreds of bio of rock took a lot of power. That was a dark time. Many died in riots, and the social structure, barely stable, was completely toppled. People started to wonder if those outside had decided to abandon them rather than admit their mistakes. The blackout that claimed mid-security tipped it over the edge. Ironically, in hatred came Unity. Pulled together by their bitter dislike of the people who had stuck them here, order returned. Another seeming eternity passed, with each day the hope rescuers would come diminishing further and further. Finally, the computer was struck with a decision that tied up its memory banks for weeks. It had somehow grown to care for those that depended on the ever dwindling supply of energy left in the reactor. Three major systems were left. Maximum security, the food synthesizers, and the barriers. Unfortunately, it couldn't choose to turn the barriers off. That was an overriding command, back from the days when it was servant to its creators. The final decision was to turn max security off. With those systems gone, the prototype reactor that fed the barriers could power the food systems nearly indefinitely, saving those who didn't die at the hands of the creature freed. Unwilling to see its dependents suffer and meet their deaths at the hands of the abomination, the computer went dormant. If it could have cried, it would have. Now those left behind are hunted. Hunted through the dark halls of Storage Facility 42, their numbers ever decreasing, trying desperately to use the prototype (and unreliable at best) technology stored in the warehouse to their advantage. Species Since this is set during the construction of the Great Spirit robot, most of the workers in the lab are Matoran. None are Toa, the captive taking depraved pleasure in robbing those it hunts of their protectors first. A slight number are Agori and Glatorian. Any species created by Mata Nui have not been made yet.The EscapeeNot much is known about the captive, other than what has been heard from those unlucky enough to survive its attacks. A collection of lyrical statements have been compiled from the ramblings of these poor individuals, collectively called "Rhymes of Those Inside." They seem to discuss the situation of the researchers and the nature of the creature, though rarely in any form of sense. A particularly mystifying description:"The insects turned, turned the metal, turned the equipment, turned the mental." Locations:Storage Facility 42 is divided into two large sectors by Hall 2B, or the Hallway of Twilight, as more poetic residents have called it. The western sector is much smaller than the eastern one. Storages, Labs, and Halls are identified by a letter, a number, and a combination of the two respectively. The inhabitants slowly retreated into the western section over time. The reason was the food and water dispensers at first, the monsters later. Almost all of the light has been shut off to the eastern section, and maps have mostly been lost, making this a haven for the more undesirable inhabitants. West:

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Storage A: By far the largest single room in the western section, Storage A is home to the great majority of the remaining population. Due to the tendency of the less polite inhabitants to avoid light, it's kept brightly lit at all times. Almost all technology has been moved out of here to make room for refugees from other settlements. The majority of the floorspace is taken up by cots and other forms of beds, a medical area in the northwest corner. The remaining area is consumed by food and water dispensers. Storage A also makes up the largest section of the western sector. [*]Storages B & C: Located adjacent to Storage A, these two rooms are where most of the living supplies for the inhabitants of A are kept. Spare bedrolls, tools, some weapons, medical supplies, etc. [*]Storage D: Between Storage C and Hallway 2B, Storage D is the starting point for most expeditions into the eastern section. The only thing approaching a bar or restaurant is in D, run by a Matoran of Plantlife named Rekan. [*]Lab 1: Mostly disused now and stripped for equipment, Lab 1 still may have some technology no one has taken... [*]Lab 2: The home of the remnants of the security forces, Lab 2 is the place to run to if you're being chased by anything, be it raiders or the escapee itself.

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Lab 20: Located in the heart of the eastern sector, Lab 20 is the best estimate for where the Prisoner calls its home, some perverse desire calling it back to the place it was kept captive. If you want to stay alive, don't go anywhere near Lab 20. [*]Storage E: One of the largest rooms in the entire facility, Storage E is full of undocumented equipment and technology, perhaps the best place to find something that might be able to defeat the captive. Boxes are piled high on the aisles and in a seemingly random order.

Factions:There are no true official factions in this RPG apart from the security forces lead by a Glatorian named Heran and a small group of escaped minimum security prisoners operating out of the eastern sector. Player factions will be added as needed. Eastern Assailants: More a name given by the westerners to the raiders living in the east than any official band, these scrappers survive by dodging the escapee and raiding the west for food and supplies. Security: Formerly those responsible for enforcing security levels, now they have a much more dire mission: defend the west from the escapee and raiders. Unfortunately, their numbers are dwindling...Profile Form:All residents need to fill out an identification form, get staff approval, and post it in the profile topic. Otherwise you won't get a funeral. No more than 5 characters unless given explicit permission, please. Name: Please keep it Bionicle-ish.Gender:Species: Matoran, Agori, Glatorian. Another species might be granted if a good enough reason is given.Appearance: What your character looks like.Personality (optional but encouraged): What your character thinks and acts like.Weapons/Equipment: Your tools and possessions.Skills: Any things you're good at.Bio: Five sentences, please. Rules and Regulations:1. All BZP rules apply.2. Listen to the staff.3. Your posts should go something like this, with IC for in character and OOC for out of character:IC: The light was getting closer, but Skrina was rapidly losing her lead. OOC: Some help would be nice!4. Arguments/debates may go on for 2 posts in the main thread. After that, take it to PM or the discussion topic.5. No godmodding. Dodging unavoidable attacks, ignoring injuries, etc.6. This fits under godmodding: No metagaming. Knowing things your character didn't learn, magically crashing another player's party without a good IC reason.7. Put The Darkness in your profile to prove you read this.8. Don't kill another player's character without permission from him/her. Make sure to write that you have permission in the post where you kill the character.9. IN THE EVENT THAT DEATH SEEMS UNAVOIDABLE: Your character may be killed to avoid breaking rule 5. Only staff can do this. This isn't a punishment, just realism. If you have a good way to get out of it after your character is dead, please PM the Fourteenth or another staffer.10. Canon characters are not allowed without having permission from the GM first.11. NPC autohitting is permitted as long as you play realistically.12. No bunnying. That means taking control of another person's character without permission.13. Double posting... Nah.14. Have fun! Punishments are given based on the severity and number of the offense. Rewards include prototype tech that works, special powers, or even something like a character slot.