Sss-stay awhile, as I ss-ssspeak and grow morsss-sels
--------
Styx RP blog run by @aces-and-ashes. Please remember to read the pinned post before interacting
Ssssss. It iss-ss Ss-styx. It hasss-ss been too ss-ssilent here, s-sso, I joined thisss ss-site to converssse as I grow morss-sssels for my mistress-sss! May you enjoy your sss-sstay!
Quick OOC note:
Hi, everyone! Mod Ashe here! Thanks for stopping by! Just wanna quickly give a disclaimer that this is my first time running an RP blog, so I’m still learning stuff and rules may be tweaked here and there. Sorry in advance if anything accidentally ends up OOC, but I’ll try my best to commit to the bit! I just really love Silksong character blogs as of late, and felt motivated to make one for Styx because he’s so silly!
ANYWAYS! Before you interact, here are my rules and boundaries:
- (WILL CHANGE) Currently, I’m in Act 3 of Silksong, trying to fight the Old Hearts, so please do not send any asks containing spoilers that come after defeating them. This rule will change and eventually be removed once I’ve completed the entirety of Silksong. Hope it isn’t too much trouble!
- RP blogs are more than welcome to interact with Styx! I’m always happy to talk with y’all :-)
- PLEASE do not hesitate to let me know if at any point I’m making you uncomfortable. I want to make sure that everyone feels safe and welcome, and has fun here, and I don’t want to accidentally cause discomfort.
- I may make this rule more lenient and allow more lighthearted and humorous ship asks in the future, BUT for now, I won’t be answering anything related to shipping, since I’m still understanding how to run this blog and don’t entirely feel ready to respond to any questions relating to shipping here yet.
- While I’m okay with a few slightly suggestive jokes, please DO NOT send any straight up NSFW asks.
- Please do not misgender any characters that may be mentioned on this blog
- This blog is mainly made for fun and the sillies, so a lot of Styx’s posts are going to be more on the humorous side. HOWEVER, I’m perfectly okay with answering more serious/lore stuff every now and then and have done so a couple times. Not even the silliest of my blogs can escape the occasional seriousness HDHDJDJ-
And here’s a guide for the tags:
“Tending to the morss-ssels” - Styx basically yapping about random stuff and/or answering asks while he works.
“Papa Styx hours” - Styx interacting with Nugget from @tec-and-nugget
"Besss-sstie Tein" - Styx's interactions with @tein-of-weavenest-karn
“OOC post” - Pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Basically me breaking character for any reason I may have
“Styx’s ssscribbles” - My art
Past arcs and events Styx was involved in:
“Stoomies” - Styx gets the zoomies and sprints around Pharloom
“Ssstar chef Styx” - Styx cooks and delivers food to several blogs across both Hallownest and Pharloom for Snowmoon.
"Familiar Shape" - Not to be confused with "Of Familiar Shapes". Familiar Shape is an event by @echothevessel and is centred around the infection overtaking @meifen-within-the-dark. When Mei returns to Pharloom, there is one point in the arc where Styx makes an appearance. Mei visits Sinner's Road, Styx runs to go investigate, and a lot happens and leaves Styx with a CRAP TON of questions.
"WHO IN PHARLOOM TAUGHT YOU THAT?!" - Styx finds out that Nugget knows how swear now and is none too pleased. He goes full on Papa Bear (or- Papa Bug) mode and goes to track down the bugs who taught them such language. Needless to say, Styx almost kills a bug or two that day. This also ends up starting a trend with several baby bugs being taught how to swear, and many of them end up bringing said swears to Styx’s ask box, to the point he nearly crashes out.
“Uh oh! Food crime time!” - A silly mini arc that initially just started with Styx posting a poll to Pharloomblr, asking what unfathomable breakfast he should try that morning. Eventually, someone suggests he mixes all the options on the poll together to make one tried and true abomination of a dish. Morbid curiosity gets the best of Styx, and with much dread, he prepares the suggested meal for himself.
#Scattered and Lost (TW: This arc contains self harm): An arc centred around Tec (@tec-and-nugget), who becomes @the-weeping-beast when their guilt catches up with them. Styx makes an appearance in this arc when he sees a trail of void leading to them.
#Too many Huzzles: An April Fools event where Huzzle Mug from Great God Grove and its many duplicates all make themselves at home in Styx’s cave and torment him with pure Huzzleness.
#Questions Left Unanswered: Hurt that they had been forgotten and left in the dark about many things, Tein leaves Weavenest Karn to pay Styx a visit while they process their many overwhelming emotions.
I am conssssidering making a tier liss-sst of different foodsss-sss and dishes. Feel free to sssubmit sssome dishes for the lisssst and I shall make the tier lisssst real.
Sssstill thinking about the quessstion I recieved the other day about a potential moosss-ssse sssacrifice, and now I’m ssscared of what might greet me the sssecond I return to Pharloom-
…
The nesss-ssst is going to be in shamblesss again, isssn’t it?
It'ssss a little ssscary, travelling to another kingdom or queendom for the firssst time. It'ssss unfamiliar, after all. But it'ssss also more exciting than anything. Pharloom is a vassst kingdom, but there'ssss only so much to ssssee before it truly starts to feel sssmaller than it really is.
Sssso travelling to Neyssst has undoubtedly proven to be a refreshing change of ssscenery.
Though, sssss... That sssinkhole was a rather frightening welcome to Neyssst... Higher beingssss above, my heart felt as if it would explode from shear fear when I fell down-
*Mei gathered their things, which really wasnt that much, mostly just the prey that them and Amba had collected. Once they were finished, they made their way up to the Blasted Steps, hauling the bag of food over their shoulder.*
*They sat down once they arrived at the entrance, or in this case, exit of Pharloom and waited for their friends and family to join them.*
Styx hurries through the Blasted Steps, and slows down for a moment when he sees the exit from Pharloom in the distance.
Here he is. For the first time, he’s really leaving home. He looks at his bag and and then back at the exit. He takes a deep breath and keeps walking towards the meetup spot until he sees Mei. Styx smiles and waves to them as he runs to say hello.
*They turn around when they heard him, waving back happily.* "Hi Uncle Styx!!! I doing okay!" *They took the bag oof their back, plopping it onto the ground.* "How is Nugget doing?"
*Li follows the commotion, a bag of food and medical stuff on their back. They notice the conversation and decide to stay quiet, letting Mei and Styx talk*
"I'm glad that they're having fun! Even if the bugs are being meanies, and im glad that you adopted their sibling! When we get back i'd love to meet them!" *They then noticed Li, and waved to them even though they couldnt see them.* "Hi Li!!"
"Oh wow, I wasn't that far behind, right? How have Li and Styx already made it!?" *She smiles, joking, trotting up (humanoid form) and stopping beside Mei.*
*Phillip walks over to the rest of the group, leaning on his new cane. His face is red with the anxiety of meeting everyone.*
Hi everyone! Yeah, uh, I'm here! Hi!
*The markings (or perhaps more accurately grooves) on his mask have become less of a light orange and more properly white, it just looks like someone carved his mask and made a mistake.*
"Oh, that's no good... Well, we can hope this trip goes well, right? A big group, ready for anything... And we get to be the first Pharloom bugs to visit!" *She smiles sympitheticly.*
Well, then. Looks like it’s time. Truth be told, Styx is still sceptical, unsure of what dangers may await the journey ahead. But he’s also travelling with some of his friends and family, so he won’t be alone either.
And despite his reservations about leaving Pharloom for a bit, who knows what amazing sights are out there?
Just like Tein said: Have fun. At the very least, Styx must try to make the most of it.
He takes one more deep breath and then nods with a small smile.
"I'm definitely ready. This is kind of scary... but if we stick together, we'll be okay. I wanna record our journey!" *She shifts on her feet, tense with excitement and nervousness.*
*Mei smiles happily, picking up their bag of food, hoisting it over their shoulder then beginning their journey with one big happy step.* "Then lets go! Hehe!"
*Mei led the group for a bit, really just going in the direction that felt right. ... Lucent never really gave them directions-*
*They stopped after a bit, noticing that Li seemed sluggish. They gently picked up Li, setting them on their shoulders so they could sleep and keep going on.*
*They continued onward, they walked, and walked, and walked and.. walked. They sighed after a good long while and stopped again.*
"buh... I need to sit.." *They said, then promptly sat down.*
Styx looks around the path every now and then as he continues walking. He occasionally wants to ask where everyone is right now, in hopes maybe any bug in the party knows more about outside of Pharloom than himself— More so out of curiosity than concern.
As they all continued to traverse, Styx’s legs were starting to get tired from walking. He doesn’t think he’s ever walked for as long as he has before.
Sssss… I agree. Thisss-sss may be a good time to take a bit of a break.
*Amba stretches, squeaking slightly as she does a variety of poses.*
"I mean, I've never travelled this long, so you've got that on me. Mei, you still good with the bag? I can carry it, maybe shift and redistribute the soreness, or something?"
*She takes it with a "oof! Heavy!" and promptly puts it down, shifts, and places it on her back, adjusting a little bit until it's safe between her wings. She then sits next to Mei, tail curling around them a little, and looks at the two conscious members of the party.*
"I think its okay too! Though, i dunno how the bugs of Neyst are gonna react...." *They said with a bit of a worried expression.* "Maybe when we get close you could shift back? Then you could still carry the bag there and not scare any bugs!"
*Mei stands up and begins leading the group again.* "Onward! Hehe!"
*They walk, occasionally stopping and thinking about which way to go before continuing again. They really hoped that they were going the right way and werent dooming everyone to getting lost in the wastes-*
*They stopped again after a good while, stopping at the edge of a large sinkhole that seemed to lead somewhere at the bottom due to faint lights.* "uh... I.. think this is it? ... I'm not really sure Lucent never told me what it looked like-"
”uuuhhhhhhh….” *They peered into the sink hole, it seemed to have a gradual decline into the center which seemed more of a entrance due to the metal poles with a flag hung on it nearby it.* “I think we can just slide down, Theres some thingies down there that kinda look like the ones outside of Hallownest.”
Styx hesitates for a moment, the mere thought of looking down for even one more second scaring him.
Sssss… I… can certainly try…
He approaches the sinkhole and grips onto the sides of it as tightly as possible to ensure he does not fall. He then tries to figure out how deep the drop may be.
Oh dear higher beingssss above…
If he was dizzy before, he felt much worse now. In his dizziness, one of his claws was suddenly starting to slip.
GAH-
He yelped and immediately backed away from the sinkhole once more. He sat down to recover his balance once he felt he was far enough away from it. His heart was racing from that close call.
It’ssss f-f-far enough to m-make a bug dizzy, that’ssss for sure-
*Mei continued to peer over the sinkhole, then took a step forward to try and see how deep it really was, but unfortunately the ground gave away and they were sent sliding down the side.* "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-"
*They scrambled to try and get back up but they just kept slowly sliding down until they reached the bottom with a loud "THUMP!"* "ouf- I'm okay!" *They shouted from the bottom of the hole, looking up. They were surprised that Li was able to sleep through it all, but was glad that they were okay.*
*They looked around from where they now were, empty huts built with what looked like compacted dirt and sand, some sand from the wastes trickling down from above, dust-covered paths and what looked like some kind of market to the right. It seemed like this place had long been abandoned.* "We made It!!!!" *They shouted up, grinning happily.*
*Phillip takes a deep breath before carefully sitting down and sliding down the sinkhole, but he accidentally tucks his knees in and lands on them with an audible crack.*
AH, FUCK!
*He grits his nonexistent teeth and gets up, wobbling a bit but still being able to walk with his cane.*
Well, then, that just leaves Styx. He’s starting to shake, far from ready to slide down the sinkhole. Everyone else is at the bottom and alive though, so he’ll probably be okay…
…
He hopes…
Well… H-Here goessss nothing, I sss-sssuppose…
He sighs and cautiously approaches the sinkhole with dread. With that, he slides down, shrieking at the top of his voice the entire way.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-
OOF!
He ungracefully lands on ground, shaken, but ultimately relieved to have made it to the bottom in one piece. Styx looks up and takes in his surroundings.
"We're in Nesyt! ... At least i think we are!" *Mei replied happily, beginning to look around. Each hut and empty vendor booth was caked in many layers of dust and sand, some stringy dull-yellow plants strewn about the entire dimly-lit cave.*
*They walked up to one of the plants, it seemed so out of place here for some reason. They poked it, though nothing happened so they moved on, wandering until they heard a noise. It sounded like shuffling, followed by a clank and some annoyed mutters. They stopped in their tracks, looking back at the group with a look that seemed to be like they were asking if they heard it too.*
*Mei gives Phillip a worried look, silently hoping that he’s okay. They would say something but they didn’t want to scare off whatever was making that noise.*
*They carefully creeped forward, towards the sound to investigate. The noise was a lot deeper in the cave than they had thought. They heard the clanking sound again and flinched as a piece of metal hit the ground in front of them.*
*They inched closer, seeing a light shine from atop a rock which seemed like a lantern as they got close.*
*There was a large wall of rubble, likely caused due to some kind of cave-in, and under than rubble was a large head propped up by various branches, it being a dark-green color, broken horns atop its head, it’s eyes a dull grey like an automation that was powered off.*
*Just below the large head was a bug ripping pieces of its metal plating off. They were dark-grey, four horns that curved inwards across its head, four white eyes, a deep blue cloak adorned with grey-fluff on it’s collar, and a large tail with what looked like a hand on the end. The bug threw another piece of metal to the ground, grumbling something about it being a bad piece. They hadn’t yet noticed Mei, or the group in general.*
*Amba looks at the bug, then at the group, then at the bug again, half a little trepidatious and half super excited. She points at them, mouthing,* "what do we do?"
*Mei deadpans and gives him a look.* “We’re not doing that- They seem harmless anyway..” *They gesture to the bug, taking a small step closer.* “im gonna go say hi!”
*They wave at the bug with a smile, trying to appear friendly.* “Hello!”
*The bug flinched heavily, accidentally ripping out some wires on the robotic head and looked over at Mei, mumbling something for a moment and taking a step back.* “What are you doing here?”
“oh- uhm-“ *Mei hesitated, unsure of how to explain.*
*Phillip carefully steps out from behind Styx, his legs still wobbly from the fall but he is a little bit better than before. He nods in respect toward the architect.*
*Arc tilted their head listening to the group's words. They were a bit surprised that there were bugs that knew of Neyst, and even more so that they wanted to come here. They thought that Neyst had been long abandoned, and forgotten.* "Oh. ... I Arc, though there not much here besides scraps."
*They nodded.* "Ye, though i not expecting so much to change after so long... Used to be lot of bug, and cave used to be bigger but something happen so it like dis now... And now my bestest creation is like dis." *They gestured to the automation's head briefly before crossing their arms, pouting and kicked a small rock.*
"Something happened? What could have possibly happened to wipe out almost an entire area.... I was expecting at least a little civilization... is there anyone else you know of around here, or even in the entirety of... what seems to be left of Neyst?"
"uuhh..." *Arc hesitated, taken a bit aback by the sudden flood of questions, though they were willing to answer.*
"There this stuff that the Scaravs call the "Fray", it releases evil spores that get into your lungs and then take over your body, uhhh.." *They looked around for a moment, then pointed at a rather wilted patch of tall standing stringy plants, a dull yellow color, the same as the plant that Mei had poked earlier that was peeking out from in between the cracks of rubble.* "That stuff, though since mostly every bug has fled, or died from it, it dont have anything to feed on so is kinda dead now. Completely safe."
Styx’s heart jumped when Arc pointed to the plant that Mei had touched earlier. He didn’t want them to have to fight mandible and nail with themself again, let alone die doing so. Them struggling once was already more than enough. It did not need to happen again.
And though Arc reassures that the Fray is dead, it still does not quell the intense worry running rampant in Styx’s brain. What if some of it is still alive? What if the one everyone saw earlier is just barely alive? And it ended up releasing the spores—
At that point, Styx had been standing completely silent for about a minute, fear apparent in his eyes. He blinks and looks at everyone, hoping they didn’t notice him worrying much.
O-Oh- My apologiesss I w-wassss jusss-ssst thinking to myssself for a moment… Uhm…
He then tries to think of a question to ask Arc about Neyst.
Arc, Do you know h-how long had thisss-sss “Fray” been around for, perchance?
*They shrugged.* "I dunno. It been around for awhile, i left before it got too bad."
*Mei had stayed silent as the group asked Arc questions, they were going to ask one themself but couldnt think of one. When they had mentioned the Fray, they also got a bit worried since they had touched a bit of it, though hearing that it was dead made them calm down a bit. Hearing them mention the Scaravs did peak their interest though.* "How much do you know about the Scaravs?" *They asked,*
"uhhh.." *Arc thought for a few moments,* "Not too much. I never really talked to any besides the Queens before they left."
"Woahh, you talked to the Queens??" *Mei replied in awe.*
"Yeh, they wanted me to make the waterways which is how bugs get around, and also the water wheel to have water to drink n stuff, and also gates for the Palace, and how housing is made, they werent too happy about Yua doe.."
"you what now-" *Mei said, listening to Arc's words. They were too astonished to ask who Yua was.*
*They shrugged.* "I dunno, they were here when i left and when i came back they were gone. They prolly left because of the Fray, as far as i know we the only bugs here that alive."
"If you're gonna try to find em is prolly a loss cause." *Arc said, overhearing her.* "But if you really wanna the place they're most likely at is da Palace."
*Mei tilted their head,* "But.. Where is the palace?"
"Oh- Holds on-" *Arc began to look around their little area, pulling out some scrolls and ripping a section out of one before handing it to Mei.* "Is a map."
"Oh! Thank you!" *Mei took the map, looking at it.* "uhm... I cant read it..."
"Ou-" *Arc took the map back and looked around for something to write with and once they did they scribbled on the map, handing it back to Mei.* "There!"
"Thanks!" *Mei looked at the map, the original text being scribbled out and new text written above it with the names of areas written in Pharloomian rather than what they assumed was Neystian.*
@styxs-nest @the-hallownest-bio-department
(ooc: version without scribbles below and with white background)
*Mei gathered their things, which really wasnt that much, mostly just the prey that them and Amba had collected. Once they were finished, they made their way up to the Blasted Steps, hauling the bag of food over their shoulder.*
*They sat down once they arrived at the entrance, or in this case, exit of Pharloom and waited for their friends and family to join them.*
Styx hurries through the Blasted Steps, and slows down for a moment when he sees the exit from Pharloom in the distance.
Here he is. For the first time, he’s really leaving home. He looks at his bag and and then back at the exit. He takes a deep breath and keeps walking towards the meetup spot until he sees Mei. Styx smiles and waves to them as he runs to say hello.
*They turn around when they heard him, waving back happily.* "Hi Uncle Styx!!! I doing okay!" *They took the bag oof their back, plopping it onto the ground.* "How is Nugget doing?"
*Li follows the commotion, a bag of food and medical stuff on their back. They notice the conversation and decide to stay quiet, letting Mei and Styx talk*
"I'm glad that they're having fun! Even if the bugs are being meanies, and im glad that you adopted their sibling! When we get back i'd love to meet them!" *They then noticed Li, and waved to them even though they couldnt see them.* "Hi Li!!"
"Oh wow, I wasn't that far behind, right? How have Li and Styx already made it!?" *She smiles, joking, trotting up (humanoid form) and stopping beside Mei.*
*Phillip walks over to the rest of the group, leaning on his new cane. His face is red with the anxiety of meeting everyone.*
Hi everyone! Yeah, uh, I'm here! Hi!
*The markings (or perhaps more accurately grooves) on his mask have become less of a light orange and more properly white, it just looks like someone carved his mask and made a mistake.*
"Oh, that's no good... Well, we can hope this trip goes well, right? A big group, ready for anything... And we get to be the first Pharloom bugs to visit!" *She smiles sympitheticly.*
Well, then. Looks like it’s time. Truth be told, Styx is still sceptical, unsure of what dangers may await the journey ahead. But he’s also travelling with some of his friends and family, so he won’t be alone either.
And despite his reservations about leaving Pharloom for a bit, who knows what amazing sights are out there?
Just like Tein said: Have fun. At the very least, Styx must try to make the most of it.
He takes one more deep breath and then nods with a small smile.
"I'm definitely ready. This is kind of scary... but if we stick together, we'll be okay. I wanna record our journey!" *She shifts on her feet, tense with excitement and nervousness.*
*Mei smiles happily, picking up their bag of food, hoisting it over their shoulder then beginning their journey with one big happy step.* "Then lets go! Hehe!"
*Mei led the group for a bit, really just going in the direction that felt right. ... Lucent never really gave them directions-*
*They stopped after a bit, noticing that Li seemed sluggish. They gently picked up Li, setting them on their shoulders so they could sleep and keep going on.*
*They continued onward, they walked, and walked, and walked and.. walked. They sighed after a good long while and stopped again.*
"buh... I need to sit.." *They said, then promptly sat down.*
Styx looks around the path every now and then as he continues walking. He occasionally wants to ask where everyone is right now, in hopes maybe any bug in the party knows more about outside of Pharloom than himself— More so out of curiosity than concern.
As they all continued to traverse, Styx’s legs were starting to get tired from walking. He doesn’t think he’s ever walked for as long as he has before.
Sssss… I agree. Thisss-sss may be a good time to take a bit of a break.
*Amba stretches, squeaking slightly as she does a variety of poses.*
"I mean, I've never travelled this long, so you've got that on me. Mei, you still good with the bag? I can carry it, maybe shift and redistribute the soreness, or something?"
*She takes it with a "oof! Heavy!" and promptly puts it down, shifts, and places it on her back, adjusting a little bit until it's safe between her wings. She then sits next to Mei, tail curling around them a little, and looks at the two conscious members of the party.*
"I think its okay too! Though, i dunno how the bugs of Neyst are gonna react...." *They said with a bit of a worried expression.* "Maybe when we get close you could shift back? Then you could still carry the bag there and not scare any bugs!"
*Mei stands up and begins leading the group again.* "Onward! Hehe!"
*They walk, occasionally stopping and thinking about which way to go before continuing again. They really hoped that they were going the right way and werent dooming everyone to getting lost in the wastes-*
*They stopped again after a good while, stopping at the edge of a large sinkhole that seemed to lead somewhere at the bottom due to faint lights.* "uh... I.. think this is it? ... I'm not really sure Lucent never told me what it looked like-"
”uuuhhhhhhh….” *They peered into the sink hole, it seemed to have a gradual decline into the center which seemed more of a entrance due to the metal poles with a flag hung on it nearby it.* “I think we can just slide down, Theres some thingies down there that kinda look like the ones outside of Hallownest.”
Styx hesitates for a moment, the mere thought of looking down for even one more second scaring him.
Sssss… I… can certainly try…
He approaches the sinkhole and grips onto the sides of it as tightly as possible to ensure he does not fall. He then tries to figure out how deep the drop may be.
Oh dear higher beingssss above…
If he was dizzy before, he felt much worse now. In his dizziness, one of his claws was suddenly starting to slip.
GAH-
He yelped and immediately backed away from the sinkhole once more. He sat down to recover his balance once he felt he was far enough away from it. His heart was racing from that close call.
It’ssss f-f-far enough to m-make a bug dizzy, that’ssss for sure-
*Mei continued to peer over the sinkhole, then took a step forward to try and see how deep it really was, but unfortunately the ground gave away and they were sent sliding down the side.* "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-"
*They scrambled to try and get back up but they just kept slowly sliding down until they reached the bottom with a loud "THUMP!"* "ouf- I'm okay!" *They shouted from the bottom of the hole, looking up. They were surprised that Li was able to sleep through it all, but was glad that they were okay.*
*They looked around from where they now were, empty huts built with what looked like compacted dirt and sand, some sand from the wastes trickling down from above, dust-covered paths and what looked like some kind of market to the right. It seemed like this place had long been abandoned.* "We made It!!!!" *They shouted up, grinning happily.*
*Phillip takes a deep breath before carefully sitting down and sliding down the sinkhole, but he accidentally tucks his knees in and lands on them with an audible crack.*
AH, FUCK!
*He grits his nonexistent teeth and gets up, wobbling a bit but still being able to walk with his cane.*
Well, then, that just leaves Styx. He’s starting to shake, far from ready to slide down the sinkhole. Everyone else is at the bottom and alive though, so he’ll probably be okay…
…
He hopes…
Well… H-Here goessss nothing, I sss-sssuppose…
He sighs and cautiously approaches the sinkhole with dread. With that, he slides down, shrieking at the top of his voice the entire way.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-
OOF!
He ungracefully lands on ground, shaken, but ultimately relieved to have made it to the bottom in one piece. Styx looks up and takes in his surroundings.
"We're in Nesyt! ... At least i think we are!" *Mei replied happily, beginning to look around. Each hut and empty vendor booth was caked in many layers of dust and sand, some stringy dull-yellow plants strewn about the entire dimly-lit cave.*
*They walked up to one of the plants, it seemed so out of place here for some reason. They poked it, though nothing happened so they moved on, wandering until they heard a noise. It sounded like shuffling, followed by a clank and some annoyed mutters. They stopped in their tracks, looking back at the group with a look that seemed to be like they were asking if they heard it too.*
*Mei gives Phillip a worried look, silently hoping that he’s okay. They would say something but they didn’t want to scare off whatever was making that noise.*
*They carefully creeped forward, towards the sound to investigate. The noise was a lot deeper in the cave than they had thought. They heard the clanking sound again and flinched as a piece of metal hit the ground in front of them.*
*They inched closer, seeing a light shine from atop a rock which seemed like a lantern as they got close.*
*There was a large wall of rubble, likely caused due to some kind of cave-in, and under than rubble was a large head propped up by various branches, it being a dark-green color, broken horns atop its head, it’s eyes a dull grey like an automation that was powered off.*
*Just below the large head was a bug ripping pieces of its metal plating off. They were dark-grey, four horns that curved inwards across its head, four white eyes, a deep blue cloak adorned with grey-fluff on it’s collar, and a large tail with what looked like a hand on the end. The bug threw another piece of metal to the ground, grumbling something about it being a bad piece. They hadn’t yet noticed Mei, or the group in general.*
*Amba looks at the bug, then at the group, then at the bug again, half a little trepidatious and half super excited. She points at them, mouthing,* "what do we do?"
*Mei deadpans and gives him a look.* “We’re not doing that- They seem harmless anyway..” *They gesture to the bug, taking a small step closer.* “im gonna go say hi!”
*They wave at the bug with a smile, trying to appear friendly.* “Hello!”
*The bug flinched heavily, accidentally ripping out some wires on the robotic head and looked over at Mei, mumbling something for a moment and taking a step back.* “What are you doing here?”
“oh- uhm-“ *Mei hesitated, unsure of how to explain.*
*Phillip carefully steps out from behind Styx, his legs still wobbly from the fall but he is a little bit better than before. He nods in respect toward the architect.*
*Arc tilted their head listening to the group's words. They were a bit surprised that there were bugs that knew of Neyst, and even more so that they wanted to come here. They thought that Neyst had been long abandoned, and forgotten.* "Oh. ... I Arc, though there not much here besides scraps."
*They nodded.* "Ye, though i not expecting so much to change after so long... Used to be lot of bug, and cave used to be bigger but something happen so it like dis now... And now my bestest creation is like dis." *They gestured to the automation's head briefly before crossing their arms, pouting and kicked a small rock.*
"Something happened? What could have possibly happened to wipe out almost an entire area.... I was expecting at least a little civilization... is there anyone else you know of around here, or even in the entirety of... what seems to be left of Neyst?"
"uuhh..." *Arc hesitated, taken a bit aback by the sudden flood of questions, though they were willing to answer.*
"There this stuff that the Scaravs call the "Fray", it releases evil spores that get into your lungs and then take over your body, uhhh.." *They looked around for a moment, then pointed at a rather wilted patch of tall standing stringy plants, a dull yellow color, the same as the plant that Mei had poked earlier that was peeking out from in between the cracks of rubble.* "That stuff, though since mostly every bug has fled, or died from it, it dont have anything to feed on so is kinda dead now. Completely safe."
Styx’s heart jumped when Arc pointed to the plant that Mei had touched earlier. He didn’t want them to have to fight mandible and nail with themself again, let alone die doing so. Them struggling once was already more than enough. It did not need to happen again.
And though Arc reassures that the Fray is dead, it still does not quell the intense worry running rampant in Styx’s brain. What if some of it is still alive? What if the one everyone saw earlier is just barely alive? And it ended up releasing the spores—
At that point, Styx had been standing completely silent for about a minute, fear apparent in his eyes. He blinks and looks at everyone, hoping they didn’t notice him worrying much.
O-Oh- My apologiesss I w-wassss jusss-ssst thinking to myssself for a moment… Uhm…
He then tries to think of a question to ask Arc about Neyst.
Arc, Do you know h-how long had thisss-sss “Fray” been around for, perchance?
It'ssss definitely quite interesssting! I do not think I have ssseen any place quite like it!
It is-sssss a rather quiet queendom, though... Unnervingly quiet... According to Arc, it wasn't always ssso— Larger cavesss, many more bugssss— It doesss make me curioussss about what Neyssst was like before. Jusss-ssst as much, it alssso makes me wonder what happened that lead to it becoming deserted.
*Mei gathered their things, which really wasnt that much, mostly just the prey that them and Amba had collected. Once they were finished, they made their way up to the Blasted Steps, hauling the bag of food over their shoulder.*
*They sat down once they arrived at the entrance, or in this case, exit of Pharloom and waited for their friends and family to join them.*
Styx hurries through the Blasted Steps, and slows down for a moment when he sees the exit from Pharloom in the distance.
Here he is. For the first time, he’s really leaving home. He looks at his bag and and then back at the exit. He takes a deep breath and keeps walking towards the meetup spot until he sees Mei. Styx smiles and waves to them as he runs to say hello.
*They turn around when they heard him, waving back happily.* "Hi Uncle Styx!!! I doing okay!" *They took the bag oof their back, plopping it onto the ground.* "How is Nugget doing?"
*Li follows the commotion, a bag of food and medical stuff on their back. They notice the conversation and decide to stay quiet, letting Mei and Styx talk*
"I'm glad that they're having fun! Even if the bugs are being meanies, and im glad that you adopted their sibling! When we get back i'd love to meet them!" *They then noticed Li, and waved to them even though they couldnt see them.* "Hi Li!!"
"Oh wow, I wasn't that far behind, right? How have Li and Styx already made it!?" *She smiles, joking, trotting up (humanoid form) and stopping beside Mei.*
*Phillip walks over to the rest of the group, leaning on his new cane. His face is red with the anxiety of meeting everyone.*
Hi everyone! Yeah, uh, I'm here! Hi!
*The markings (or perhaps more accurately grooves) on his mask have become less of a light orange and more properly white, it just looks like someone carved his mask and made a mistake.*
"Oh, that's no good... Well, we can hope this trip goes well, right? A big group, ready for anything... And we get to be the first Pharloom bugs to visit!" *She smiles sympitheticly.*
Well, then. Looks like it’s time. Truth be told, Styx is still sceptical, unsure of what dangers may await the journey ahead. But he’s also travelling with some of his friends and family, so he won’t be alone either.
And despite his reservations about leaving Pharloom for a bit, who knows what amazing sights are out there?
Just like Tein said: Have fun. At the very least, Styx must try to make the most of it.
He takes one more deep breath and then nods with a small smile.
"I'm definitely ready. This is kind of scary... but if we stick together, we'll be okay. I wanna record our journey!" *She shifts on her feet, tense with excitement and nervousness.*
*Mei smiles happily, picking up their bag of food, hoisting it over their shoulder then beginning their journey with one big happy step.* "Then lets go! Hehe!"
*Mei led the group for a bit, really just going in the direction that felt right. ... Lucent never really gave them directions-*
*They stopped after a bit, noticing that Li seemed sluggish. They gently picked up Li, setting them on their shoulders so they could sleep and keep going on.*
*They continued onward, they walked, and walked, and walked and.. walked. They sighed after a good long while and stopped again.*
"buh... I need to sit.." *They said, then promptly sat down.*
Styx looks around the path every now and then as he continues walking. He occasionally wants to ask where everyone is right now, in hopes maybe any bug in the party knows more about outside of Pharloom than himself— More so out of curiosity than concern.
As they all continued to traverse, Styx’s legs were starting to get tired from walking. He doesn’t think he’s ever walked for as long as he has before.
Sssss… I agree. Thisss-sss may be a good time to take a bit of a break.
*Amba stretches, squeaking slightly as she does a variety of poses.*
"I mean, I've never travelled this long, so you've got that on me. Mei, you still good with the bag? I can carry it, maybe shift and redistribute the soreness, or something?"
*She takes it with a "oof! Heavy!" and promptly puts it down, shifts, and places it on her back, adjusting a little bit until it's safe between her wings. She then sits next to Mei, tail curling around them a little, and looks at the two conscious members of the party.*
"I think its okay too! Though, i dunno how the bugs of Neyst are gonna react...." *They said with a bit of a worried expression.* "Maybe when we get close you could shift back? Then you could still carry the bag there and not scare any bugs!"
*Mei stands up and begins leading the group again.* "Onward! Hehe!"
*They walk, occasionally stopping and thinking about which way to go before continuing again. They really hoped that they were going the right way and werent dooming everyone to getting lost in the wastes-*
*They stopped again after a good while, stopping at the edge of a large sinkhole that seemed to lead somewhere at the bottom due to faint lights.* "uh... I.. think this is it? ... I'm not really sure Lucent never told me what it looked like-"
”uuuhhhhhhh….” *They peered into the sink hole, it seemed to have a gradual decline into the center which seemed more of a entrance due to the metal poles with a flag hung on it nearby it.* “I think we can just slide down, Theres some thingies down there that kinda look like the ones outside of Hallownest.”
Styx hesitates for a moment, the mere thought of looking down for even one more second scaring him.
Sssss… I… can certainly try…
He approaches the sinkhole and grips onto the sides of it as tightly as possible to ensure he does not fall. He then tries to figure out how deep the drop may be.
Oh dear higher beingssss above…
If he was dizzy before, he felt much worse now. In his dizziness, one of his claws was suddenly starting to slip.
GAH-
He yelped and immediately backed away from the sinkhole once more. He sat down to recover his balance once he felt he was far enough away from it. His heart was racing from that close call.
It’ssss f-f-far enough to m-make a bug dizzy, that’ssss for sure-
*Mei continued to peer over the sinkhole, then took a step forward to try and see how deep it really was, but unfortunately the ground gave away and they were sent sliding down the side.* "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-"
*They scrambled to try and get back up but they just kept slowly sliding down until they reached the bottom with a loud "THUMP!"* "ouf- I'm okay!" *They shouted from the bottom of the hole, looking up. They were surprised that Li was able to sleep through it all, but was glad that they were okay.*
*They looked around from where they now were, empty huts built with what looked like compacted dirt and sand, some sand from the wastes trickling down from above, dust-covered paths and what looked like some kind of market to the right. It seemed like this place had long been abandoned.* "We made It!!!!" *They shouted up, grinning happily.*
*Phillip takes a deep breath before carefully sitting down and sliding down the sinkhole, but he accidentally tucks his knees in and lands on them with an audible crack.*
AH, FUCK!
*He grits his nonexistent teeth and gets up, wobbling a bit but still being able to walk with his cane.*
Well, then, that just leaves Styx. He’s starting to shake, far from ready to slide down the sinkhole. Everyone else is at the bottom and alive though, so he’ll probably be okay…
…
He hopes…
Well… H-Here goessss nothing, I sss-sssuppose…
He sighs and cautiously approaches the sinkhole with dread. With that, he slides down, shrieking at the top of his voice the entire way.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA-
OOF!
He ungracefully lands on ground, shaken, but ultimately relieved to have made it to the bottom in one piece. Styx looks up and takes in his surroundings.
"We're in Nesyt! ... At least i think we are!" *Mei replied happily, beginning to look around. Each hut and empty vendor booth was caked in many layers of dust and sand, some stringy dull-yellow plants strewn about the entire dimly-lit cave.*
*They walked up to one of the plants, it seemed so out of place here for some reason. They poked it, though nothing happened so they moved on, wandering until they heard a noise. It sounded like shuffling, followed by a clank and some annoyed mutters. They stopped in their tracks, looking back at the group with a look that seemed to be like they were asking if they heard it too.*
*Mei gives Phillip a worried look, silently hoping that he’s okay. They would say something but they didn’t want to scare off whatever was making that noise.*
*They carefully creeped forward, towards the sound to investigate. The noise was a lot deeper in the cave than they had thought. They heard the clanking sound again and flinched as a piece of metal hit the ground in front of them.*
*They inched closer, seeing a light shine from atop a rock which seemed like a lantern as they got close.*
*There was a large wall of rubble, likely caused due to some kind of cave-in, and under than rubble was a large head propped up by various branches, it being a dark-green color, broken horns atop its head, it’s eyes a dull grey like an automation that was powered off.*
*Just below the large head was a bug ripping pieces of its metal plating off. They were dark-grey, four horns that curved inwards across its head, four white eyes, a deep blue cloak adorned with grey-fluff on it’s collar, and a large tail with what looked like a hand on the end. The bug threw another piece of metal to the ground, grumbling something about it being a bad piece. They hadn’t yet noticed Mei, or the group in general.*
*Amba looks at the bug, then at the group, then at the bug again, half a little trepidatious and half super excited. She points at them, mouthing,* "what do we do?"
*Mei deadpans and gives him a look.* “We’re not doing that- They seem harmless anyway..” *They gesture to the bug, taking a small step closer.* “im gonna go say hi!”
*They wave at the bug with a smile, trying to appear friendly.* “Hello!”
*The bug flinched heavily, accidentally ripping out some wires on the robotic head and looked over at Mei, mumbling something for a moment and taking a step back.* “What are you doing here?”
“oh- uhm-“ *Mei hesitated, unsure of how to explain.*
*Phillip carefully steps out from behind Styx, his legs still wobbly from the fall but he is a little bit better than before. He nods in respect toward the architect.*
*Arc tilted their head listening to the group's words. They were a bit surprised that there were bugs that knew of Neyst, and even more so that they wanted to come here. They thought that Neyst had been long abandoned, and forgotten.* "Oh. ... I Arc, though there not much here besides scraps."
