The Scorching Depths

[bc56]

Depths Post
Fortunately, no activities, fun or otherwise are going to be happening this instant. It's more of a statement of future intent.

"Hey that's cool! You've got bird friends!" Mariblex points out. She's not sure what they're for, but they're cool.

[Rebonack]

[Depths Post]

Bella decides to begin with the first and most obvious thing a person should do after summoning some magical animals.

"Can you guys talk?" she asks.

"Gaah," replies one of the ravens with a very raven noise.

"Okay gunna take that as a no," she says, reaching up to rub one of the birds because obviously if you have some magical birds you should pet them. "I'm gunna guess they're probably fighty summons? Since they're all crackly. I feel kind of... electrified, too? I think the mantel probably protects from magical lightning."

Also?

It's making Bella's hair stand up thanks to static electricity.

It looks pretty funny.

[bc56]

Slime Problems
"It's still pretty cool! Except for the thing with your hair," Mariblex giggles.
"So how about the circlet?" They have no idea what that does, so it will be interesting to find out.

[Rebonack]

[Slime Problems]

Bella gives a nod and then intones clearly, "Roost."

Both birds vanish with a crackle of lightning and her hair settles down. Too bad about the hair. The cloak would be pretty inspiring if not for the fact that it makes her head do a dandelion impression.

Bella takes the cloak off and sets it aside, picking up the circlet and placing it on her head. After smoothing her hair down she speaks what probably sounds like a nonsense word to Mariblex. Something in druidic, maybe?

There's a flash of emerald light as a tangle of ivy grows around her, completely obscuring her from view. It grows and tangles around itself, Bella giving a yell of surprise as she's totally enveloped by a 'tree' of ivy vines. A huge glowing orb of emerald light crowns the tree, its branches framing it.

...okay she probably didn't just turn into a tree.

Probably.

[bc56]

Slime Problems
Uh oh.
Mariblex stares at the tree. "Bella? Are you all right?" She wasn't expecting that; nobody (except the circlet's creator) could have seen it coming.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems?]

Mariblex gets no reply.

The tree just sits there, the orb of emerald light crowning it glowing brightly.

Hmm.

This might be a problem.

[bc56]

Slime Tree Problems
"Bella?" Mariblex blorps their tendrils into wings and flaps their way up to the canopy and the glowing orb. It seems like the right place to be. "Bella are you there? Can you talk?
... Please don't be stuck as a tree."

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems?]

Being stuck as a tree would definitely be a problem.

Most trees are really bad at conversation.

Again, Mariblex doesn't get a reply since she's talking to a tree.

This goes on just long enough for concern to begin mounting when suddenly-!

"I'm here! I'm okay!" Bella says, suddenly stumbling out of the tangled ivy vines and nearly tripping over herself. "It leads to another tree in some weird grove somewhere. It took me a sec to figure out how to use the dumb thing to get back."

Thank goodness.

"I think it's for setting up two trees in two different places then you can travel between 'em."

Well.

That's actually pretty handy.

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"Thank goodness! To us, it looked like you were turned into a tree!" Mariblex sounds relieved.
"So... What's this mystery grove like?"

Also they should probably do something about the tree partly blocking the corridor, but that's a problem for another time.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

Yep, getting rid of the weird magical tree is definitely a problem for another time. The sisters have more interesting things to discuss right now.

"I didn't spend that much time checking it out since I was trying to figure out how to get back," Bella admits. "But it was pretty nice? I heard a stream somewhere and there were a buncha vines all over. It was warm, too. Not like here, just like regular warm. It didn't have that weird dreamy feeling either so it was prolly a real place?"

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"Think you could get us back there? We kinda wanna see," Mariblex replies.
It beats standing around here for the next few hours until Sekhmet's available again.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

Bella, who's definitely still wearing the circlet, adjusts it a little.

"Yeah I think so? It isn't really that complicated. I'm pretty sure it does two things. One of 'em is making the funny ivy tree thingy," she says, gesturing at the tree. "And then you can move between 'em. And the other's just... making hedges? I kinda made a couple hedges in the grove place before I figured out how to get back."

This is both the downside and the upside to blindly Use Magic Deviceing to figure out what a magical item does.

It can be a bit of a surprise!

"So... uh... should I just, like... Hold your hand? Tentacle? Whatever?" Bella asks, eyeing the slime dragon uncertainly.

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"Umm, tentacle's fine but it's technically a pseudopod," The appendage is extended and wraps around Bella's hand. "Let's go!"
The slime dragon isn't really thinking about them having good reasons to stay put and wait for Sekhmet. That's boring and they're fine, they can bounce back from anything.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

"Okay lemme grab this thingy real quick," Bella says, throwing the storm mantle on before sinking into the hedge like Homer Simpson escaping an awkward situation.

What?

Bella isn't expecting any danger but who WOULDN'T want some cool bird friends just in case?

Stepping out of the ivy tree, Mariblex will find herself in the middle of a pristine garden full of fragrant flowers and fruiting vines. Old classical looking marble ruins abound, heavy with vines and blossoms. The air is warm and inviting, water bubbling up out of a natural spring nearby and running away through a channel in the white bedrock.

"Seems like a pretty place to me," Bella says, looking around with approval. "It looks like somebody trims the hedges but it doesn't look like anybody's around."

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"This is nice," Mariblex says. They look up at the sky, trying to make out the position of the sun. "Any idea where it is? You could fly up and take a look around," they suggest.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

It IS really nice.

Given the time of year it probably shouldn't be, but it is. The warmth of the sun is such that you can really feel it in your bones.

Only Mariblex doesn't have any bones at the moment. She's got a cytoskeleton but that probably doesn't count.

"I dunno. Some garden ruin sorta place? Outside is, like, ginormous so it's kinda hard to get your bearings," Bella says as she spreads her wings and begins flying upwards. "Wherever we are it's pretty flat? And it's just more gardens and ruins... I think I can see a temple looking place?"

After a few minutes of observation she flies back down. "Y'know I couldn't see Mount Improbable anywhere? I've got the weird feeling we might be on top of it."

The upside down floating mountain chained to the earth is definitely a handy Outside landmark.

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"Huh. That would be... Improbable." Mariblex comments, "But with all the stuff that happens to us, it's probably true. You think we might be able to find a cure for us being fused together here?" It sounds improbable...

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

"I mean, normally I would say no? Like, what are the chances that what you need just happens to be up here where the other end of the ivy tower just happened to be? " Bella says. "But since this is Mount Improbable then maybe?"

Nexus Serendipity is definitely a thing. And people SAY that Mount Improbable amplifies that natural serendipity. But who's to say that's really true?

"You wanna check out the temple thingy at the middle? This place is kinda a hedge maze."

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"Sure let's check it out," Mariblex says and begins prancing their way towards the central temple. They can probably bounce over the hedges even if they can't fly as well, so navigating shouldn't be too hard.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

And thus our heroes set off!

Given how twisty the hedge maze is it probably won't be very long before the sisters get fed up with the dead ends and hop over a wall of marble and ivy to simply bypass the the maze.

When they get to the other side they're going to find something a bit odd.

The location looks exactly like the spot they just came from. There's the ivy tower they entered the garden through right over there.

"Umm... I think hoping the hedge puts back where we started," Bella says, looking pretty perplexed.

[bc56]

Tree Problems
Mariblex hops over the hedge and...
They're back at the entrance.

"It's not goinna let us cheat? Dang." They step back into the maze. Hopefully this doesn't end up so boring that they can't finish it.

[Rebonack]

[Tree Problems]

"Or maybe this spot just happened to look like the spot we started at? I mean, that's pretty improbable but..."

But they ARE on top of Mount Improbable so you never know. There's a good chance of encountering some pretty wildly unlikely things as they traverse the maze.

[bc56]

Tree Problems
"That'd be really weird," Mariblex comments, but since everything about this is already weird, that's hardly noteworthy.
"C'mon, let's start over,"