Gula Undercity Log

[cancrymods]

GULA

Now that you've been guided here by one of its residents, it's time for you to get familiar with the Undercity of Gula. With so much of the rest of the layer consumed already, its Specters have retreated to the last safe haven left for them. Just like the city above, when in the Undercity, you will suffer the same inability to fully satisfy yourself and will always be craving just one more... anything. The entrance to the Undercity is slap bang in the middle of the last remaining garden in the entire layer. A snapshot of what this place might have been like before, it's crammed full of all sorts of plants, flowers, vegetables... if it grows in the ground, it's here. There's evidence to suggest that even this garden was a fair bit larger than it is now, with plants looking like they were uprooted or crushed on the outside of the garden, but it's difficult to tell. In the center of the garden, you'll find a steep set of stairs leading down to the underground where you'll find the settlement proper. The Undercity itself is set up in a giant underground bunker, with a tall ceiling and huge open spaces that keep the place from feeling too claustrophobic. There's a mild bit of spacial distortion going on down here that make the ceiling much, much higher than it should physically be possible for it to be, but that's baby stuff in Purgatory by now. There's a few walls and some makeshift separators that section off parts of the bunker for privacy reasons, but more or less everything is set up in the same huge communal space.The walls, floors, ceilings and more or less every surface have been slathered in paints and cloths in a chaotic variety of colours to make things seem a bit less cold and dull. The effect is... striking, to say the least. In some places, where the paint or cloth has begun to peel away, however, you'll see that the surfaces underneath are cold and black and seem to be made of metal. The general vibe of the place is some weird cross between a convention or an indoor market and an airport at 3:48 in the morning. There's rows of chairs and bed and makeshift beds all over the place for people to set themselves down and take a breather, with wide gaps left in between each row to let people safely come and go without tripping all over themselves and dying again. But despite all the work gone into setting up the place, it still feels strangely empty – going by the number of Specters you can see milling about in here, even with the Executors' arrival, this place isn't even half full and that's a generous estimate. On top of all that, the uncomfortable sense of things being "thin" or "stripped away" increases almost tenfold down here. There's something else, too, but it's hard to immediately identify – you'll have to investigate that yourself to work out exactly what's wrong. Thankfully, despite how dour Gula as a whole is, you're free to come and go as you please. So while you still need to make your way through Gula to reach the next layer, the previous layers will still be available for you to rest and recharge if you'd prefer to stay elsewhere. ⚝ Rest Areas: If you're desperate for some shut-eye, or just to get away from the chaos a bit, the four corners of the bunker have been sectioned off with thick screens and padded mats, blankets and pillows have been spread out across the floor. It's basically a nap area for you to come and chill out and despite everything, it's pretty cozy over here. There's also a radius of about fifty feet around each of the rest area that's designated a "quiet zone", where everyone's expected to pipe down and stay quiet to not wake anyone up. They're generally a good place to recharge, even if sleeping out in the relative open can feel a bit awkward. ⚝ Dining Area: A number of long tables have been lined up end-to-end by the door that you can assume is probably the kitchen. They're covered in colourful tablecloths and a hodgepodge of mismatched chairs line either side of it. Dinner is served twice a day, with a ten minute warning beforehand so you can hopefully find yourself a seat before the rush is over. As for what the food is... well, it's pretty lacklustre! Pretty much everything is dried food, canned food or some horrifying combo of both. At least it's... mostly edible? ⚝ Music Stage: A little stage area that's been set up by pushing a number of crates and boxes together to form a stable platform. It's had a colourful cloth thrown over it and weighed down so it looks a little less slapped together, and there's a few instruments spread out across the stage – there's the regulars like an acoustic guitar and a bass but then there's also... a saxophone? An oboe? A harp??? It's pretty random. There's usually a handful of people milling about the stage with someone banging out the tunes, but it's also used to give announcements and anything else that needs the attention of the whole group. ⚝ Kitchen: Locked. Investigate to unlock further information. ⚝ The Rusted City: The once-majestic city of the Gluttony Layer, now reduced to rust and decay. It's a huge, sprawing urban affair with skyscrapers climbing to dizzying heights and buildings packed in to each and every space that could conceivably hold a building. It reminds you, just a little, of Invidia – envious excess beyond anything a single person could ever own or consume by themselves. But the unfortunate reality of Gula is that much of it has been consumed. Shops have been stripped bare of everything that could be useful and any houses or apartments you might be inclined to check have been raided in much the same way. It's a sad, lonely seeming place that feels as though it's slowly rotting apart from the inside out. Alarmingly, Revenants can occasionally be found here, though they seem to have aimlessly wandered up from the Underside and seem just as confused to find themselves here as you are. ⚝ Train Station: On the outskirts of the layer is slightly busted-up looking train station with a single platform. Rusty old trains come through here every half hour on the dot, stopping only briefly to allow Executors to board. Using these trains, Executors can either travel back to any of the other layers of Purgatory without having to pass through the Underside. Isn't quick travel convenient?

THE UNDERSIDE OF GULA

...?

Comments

[discutio]

I'm hardly about to let that happen. If someone wishes to hurt any of us, they'll have me to contend with first.

[twibeast]

[ Achilles wipes his eyes and... tries to smile. Tries to cheer up. Though he's only slightly successful. ]

You are a force to reckon with for sure, though I would like to remind you that you're near the top of the list of people I love and couldn't stand to lose. After Rei of course, but right about tied with Chiron.

[discutio]

Well, I can say that I'm truly flattered. I could admittedly say the same; I care for you and Chiron especially a good deal more than I perhaps should.

[twibeast]

Oh, putting me right up with Chiron? Even though you haven't kissed me yet.

[ ...well he must be feeling a little better if he's teasing and making jokes like this. ]

[discutio]

Well, you've yet to talk so much that I found it immediately necessary.

[if it works, roll with it]

1/2

[twibeast]

[ He laughs a little at that. ]

I suppose that's true...

[twibeast]

[ but then after a few seconds the somber seriousness from earlier returns. ]

Phoenix I... I will be honest. I don't think the voice is going to... go away for a while yet. Or that I'm ever going to stop seeing my sister's figure in every shadow.

I know that... at least for now, it's not real but you're also the only one I've told about any of this. So I might... I might at times need to check that it's just in my head...

[discutio]

You should do what you think you need to in order to contend with it. If I can aid you in that, you need only ever ask.

[twibeast]

Thank you... I would greatly appreciate it.

I know I can always trust you.

[discutio]

I'll endeavor to do all I can to be worth that. You don't have to worry; I'll not say a word of this to anyone else.

[twibeast]

Thank you. I... don't want to needlessly worry anyone more than I already have.

[discutio]

It's hardly needless if we worry because you're understandably upset, you know.

[twibeast]

Per… Perhaps but…

[ … ]

As a guardian… I shouldn’t be showing any signs of vulnerability at all. They… You all shouldn’t even be able to tell that I’m upset.

[ Which is part of how we got here in the first place dumbass, because you weren’t sharing the shit that was bothering you and just repressing it. ]

[discutio]

…And if I were to say as much to you in this situation? Would you not say I was being ridiculous?

[quit sounding like him there’s only room for one self-sacrificing parent here bucko]

[twibeast]

[ ……… ]

W-Well, yes but…

[discutio]

As I expected.

[Sigh.]

Lean over for just a moment, would you?

[twibeast]

Hm? Ah— all right…

[ Leaning over as asked. ]

[discutio]

Now you're thinking too hard and talking too much, for the record.

[And, perhaps somewhat predictably, that was punctuated with a light kiss.]

1/2

[twibeast]

[ ---! ]

[twibeast]

[ Achilles doesn't react or say anything right away, too surprised for his brain to even work right. But eventually he finds words again a few seconds after the kiss itself. ]

...Phoenix.

I didn't just hallucinate you doing that, did I.

[discutio]

Not unless we both did, and I find that quite unlikely.

1/?

[twibeast]

[twibeast]

[twibeast]

done

[twibeast]

[ Okay he's EXTREMELY grateful that Phoenix is blind and can't see how his face has started to turn red, like some kind of bashful school boy rather than a thousands years old quasi-immortal. ]

I... I did not expect you to actually do it when I teased you earlier...

[ But he doesn't sound like he had a problem with it. ]