[For a guy wearing eyeglasses, Boone seems to be a surprisingly decent shot. And for what Belloq apparently lacks in that department, he more than makes up for it with how ridiculously amiable he is when he wants to be. Tuco catches himself grinning at him.]
Keep it safe, huh?
[He finishes mopping his face with his (now free) hand, and takes a few unsteady steps after Niko. His fingers are shaking slightly, but overall, he's beginning to feel a hell of a lot better. The nausea, for one, has been replaced by a pleasant drifting sensation.]
[Boone keeps his gun at the ready as he follows after Niko and Tuco, because he can hear the spider too. Or are there two? The sounds are coming fairly quickly. He moves in front of Tuco just incase, so that if there's more than one spider he and Niko can take care of them before they reach him. He doesn't think Tuco would fare well against anything dangerous right now, though to be fair the entire temple is dangerous.
Well, it's too late to lead him back outside now, and he doesn't think they could leave him on his own either. It's not like the desert is much safer. He glances behind him at Belloq and Tuco for a moment.]
Maybe we should keep some space between us. Just incase we have to back up from a creeper or something.
[If they start backing up suddenly and bump into each other, they'll all get blown to bits.]
I can say from experience- [He taps his right brow, where a scar notches down his eyebrow and then faintly, very faintly, trails around and under his eye.] -being too close to an explosion is not a fun thing.
[But then his attention is on the spiders, and as long as they aren't the poisonous sort they're easy to take care of. He turns a corner and two of them are higher up, on the wall, and it takes him a moment to adjust his aim before he shoots the first in the middle of it's attacking jump.]
[It turns out to be a good suggestion on Boone's part. As they draw upon the spiders, Tuco finds himself just far enough away that he can squint up at them myopically. He reaches for his gun anyway, (out of habit, maybe) but the gesture feels wrong and he falls short of doing anything more than lifting it awkwardly.
To outside eyes, it looks like maybe he's just deferring to the other two gunmen. In reality, he's been struck by a sudden thread of panic: the gun feels considerably heavier than it has any right to be. What's more, when he drops his head down to stare at it, he notices (with something like horror and awe admixed) that the barrel is actually curving.
It's with this realization that a rather dangerous train of thought begins to develop.]
[Boone takes the next one down, and glances back in time to see Tuco staring at his gun. He frowns at him, but he's not seeing what Tuco is seeing and besides that, he has no idea what he's going to do.]
Might wanna put that away.
[He could still hurt someone with it accidentally. The last thing they need to be doing is watching Tuco, too.]
[Belloq shifts cautiously. The last time he saw someone so beurré as Tuco draw a gun, it ended in three dead goats, a village fire, and being chased through the jungle by angry Zulu warriors.]
High guys make terrible shots. [He wishes he didn't know that as well as he did- he worked with enough of them.] But I would think he still needs to keep it out just in case.
Just ah... don't aim until we say so. So you can be sure. [Because it's better than letting him be bitten by a spider.]
[He tosses a torch down the stairs, and then walks behind them to put another one of those expandable barriers.]
[Tuco slowly glances between the three of them, frowning as if they're describing something abstract. He's not convinced, evidently, and yet (with an oddly strained expression) he eventually lets go of the gun anyway. It swings back down to his hip in a harmless little arc.]
[Boone relaxes very slightly when Tuco lowers his gun, but still looks wary. He nods to Belloq.]
Keep an eye on him.
[He and Niko are a little busy making sure monsters don't kill them, they can't watch Tuco as well. Boone walks a little way towards the torch, but doesn't leave the stairs. He doesn't know what sort of traps might be down here, and he doesn't want to end up in Tuco's state. He can't see any more spiders or creepers, at least.]
[Watch the saddle, watch Tuco, he's starting to feel more like the native porter of the group rather than the Lead Archaeologist. But it keeps him safe. And Tuco strikes him as someone who could be useful to him sometime.]
I will. Tuco and I will aid in spotting. If we see a Creeper or a spider that was not there before, we'll call out.
[He doesn't know how the lingering poison might be affecting Tuco's perception, but it can't hurt to have more eyes on the path ahead.]
When we get down here, if we find anything I'll block you off in the area and I'll go to add a little light. Make it easier for us so nothing sneaks up. [He figures if Boone stays with the group, someone can still shoot, and Tuco... Tuco might not remember much he learned from this trip but he'll then ~the most valuable lesson~ was up there. He can take him out for the rest another time.]
[They reach the lower level without further event. And while there seems to be spider noises from further off down a couple of corridors, right away at the end of one there's a glint of another chest.]
[Tuco's not so far gone that he isn't slightly offended by the extended patronization going on. It's becoming clear to him that the three vastly underestimate him and his... rather select library of skills, just as they seem to be overestimating his levels of ineptitude. Granted, a lot of his brain power is currently being spent on the idea that the spider poison might be having the adverse effect of actually turning him into a spider, but that's not the point, is it?
The point is that they are sharing their space with a very dangerous, hardy individual.
Of course, this thought ends up being further undermined by the fact that (upon spotting the chest) Tuco lets out a loud, excited whimper.]
[Boone sure doesn't mean to be offensive. He's just trying to make sure nobody else gets hurt, and isn't really thinking about whether or not Tuco understands that or not. He watches Tuco carefully upon hearing the whimper, then gives Belloq a meaningful look before turning away. He's going to trust Belloq to keep Tuco from going straight for the chest this time.]
Is it safe?
[He's going to assume no, at least until Niko can confirm that it is.]
[He throws a torch further that direction, and... while no traps are lit up, there is a puzzle above the chest. An image, broken into sliding pieces, with one piece missing.]
Oh.
[Is all Niko says. He can't help out too much on this one.] Yeah, looks like it's safe, but this chest? Has a key.
[Which means Niko will be better off clearing the area. Surely a dumb patrolman, a high guide-in-training, and a cowardly archaeologist can solve that.]
[Cue the excitement slowly draining out of Tuco until all he's left with is a kind of itchy bewilderment. His eyes slide up to the puzzle, hold there a moment, then drop down to to the chest again. He clears his throat.]
Can't we just, you know... [He imitates another explosion and splays his fingers wide.] Blow the lock or... or split it open somehow?
Wait a moment. The temples at home...if you solve a puzzle incorrectly, it can sometimes go very badly. We should be cautious and make our moves deliberately.
[He takes a field notebook out of his pocket and starts scribbling, making a sketch of the puzzle.]
[Realizing they could well be in it for the long haul, Tuco lets out a hard sigh and sets himself down, frustrated. The walls are still undulating, and worse, he knows he's high. It leaves him feeling worse than useless.
He presses the heels of his palms against his eyes for a moment, before sliding his hands down so he's peering up between his fingers.]
Arqueólogo, [he says, calling up to Belloq.] This is where you supposed to be king. Talk, huh? What the hell is it supposed to be?
It is perhaps a representation of the god of this temple. Or a protecting spirit or demon invoked to guard the sacred objects stored within these chests.
[He carefully shifts one tile, then another.]
We must arrange the puzzle and make the image whole.
[Tuco drops his hands back down to his knees and stares, finally seeing what the other two can. Whether it's some prescient part of his mind talking, or the evidence of a well learned lesson, his stomach lurches. That general feeling of unease is back, and it's steadily deepening towards something significantly more primal. Be it through poison or superstition, he's afraid.]
...A demon? [There's a sort of blatant, wobbly reediness to his voice that says everything his words don't. Are you sure this is a good idea? Is something horrifying going to happen if we get this wrong? (And of course, not forgetting:) Is something horrifying going to happen if we get this RIGHT?
He stays rooted where he is, rubbing distractedly at the sticky blood drying halfway up his thigh. As much as he's an advocate for personal greed, maybe (just maybe) some things are better left well alone.]
[The word "demon" doesn't have much effect on Boone. He just watches Belloq carefully move a couple of tiles, then looks over at Tuco. He looks terrified, but Boone can't understand his fear. He doesn't believe in demons. He looks back at the puzzle, reaches up to move another tile, and waits.]
...Think if something bad was gonna happen, it would've happened by now. Maybe as soon as we started messing with it.
[He actually has no idea if that's how it would work, but he's trying to make Tuco feel better.]
It will not make a demon appear, of that I can be sure. It's just a picture, a symbol. Similar to how the ancient Greek erected pillars dedicated to Hermes to protect property boundaries. It has mystic power only in the minds of those who believe in it.
[Belloq slides a tile with a ghostly head up a slot.]
If there's any danger, it will from another clever trap.
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the_last_resort2014-09-22 09:43 pm
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Keep it safe, huh?
[He finishes mopping his face with his (now free) hand, and takes a few unsteady steps after Niko. His fingers are shaking slightly, but overall, he's beginning to feel a hell of a lot better. The nausea, for one, has been replaced by a pleasant drifting sensation.]
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Well, it's too late to lead him back outside now, and he doesn't think they could leave him on his own either. It's not like the desert is much safer. He glances behind him at Belloq and Tuco for a moment.]
Maybe we should keep some space between us. Just incase we have to back up from a creeper or something.
[If they start backing up suddenly and bump into each other, they'll all get blown to bits.]
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[The more distance between him and the people walking headlong towards the various dangers in here, the better.
And he matches action to words and slows his pace to open up a bit more space between them.]
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[But then his attention is on the spiders, and as long as they aren't the poisonous sort they're easy to take care of. He turns a corner and two of them are higher up, on the wall, and it takes him a moment to adjust his aim before he shoots the first in the middle of it's attacking jump.]
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To outside eyes, it looks like maybe he's just deferring to the other two gunmen. In reality, he's been struck by a sudden thread of panic: the gun feels considerably heavier than it has any right to be. What's more, when he drops his head down to stare at it, he notices (with something like horror and awe admixed) that the barrel is actually curving.
It's with this realization that a rather dangerous train of thought begins to develop.]
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Might wanna put that away.
[He could still hurt someone with it accidentally. The last thing they need to be doing is watching Tuco, too.]
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Just ah... don't aim until we say so. So you can be sure. [Because it's better than letting him be bitten by a spider.]
[He tosses a torch down the stairs, and then walks behind them to put another one of those expandable barriers.]
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Keep an eye on him.
[He and Niko are a little busy making sure monsters don't kill them, they can't watch Tuco as well. Boone walks a little way towards the torch, but doesn't leave the stairs. He doesn't know what sort of traps might be down here, and he doesn't want to end up in Tuco's state. He can't see any more spiders or creepers, at least.]
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I will. Tuco and I will aid in spotting. If we see a Creeper or a spider that was not there before, we'll call out.
[He doesn't know how the lingering poison might be affecting Tuco's perception, but it can't hurt to have more eyes on the path ahead.]
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[They reach the lower level without further event. And while there seems to be spider noises from further off down a couple of corridors, right away at the end of one there's a glint of another chest.]
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The point is that they are sharing their space with a very dangerous, hardy individual.
Of course, this thought ends up being further undermined by the fact that (upon spotting the chest) Tuco lets out a loud, excited whimper.]
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Is it safe?
[He's going to assume no, at least until Niko can confirm that it is.]
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Oh.
[Is all Niko says. He can't help out too much on this one.] Yeah, looks like it's safe, but this chest? Has a key.
[Which means Niko will be better off clearing the area. Surely a dumb patrolman, a high guide-in-training, and a cowardly archaeologist can solve that.]
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Can't we just, you know... [He imitates another explosion and splays his fingers wide.] Blow the lock or... or split it open somehow?
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Probably not.
[He reaches up to slide one of the pieces over, then grunts. This could take them a while.]
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[He takes a field notebook out of his pocket and starts scribbling, making a sketch of the puzzle.]
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He presses the heels of his palms against his eyes for a moment, before sliding his hands down so he's peering up between his fingers.]
Arqueólogo, [he says, calling up to Belloq.] This is where you supposed to be king. Talk, huh? What the hell is it supposed to be?
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Wonder what it's supposed to be. That's a head, and that looks like a body.
[He points to the two tiles in succession.]
Never seen anything like it, though.
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It is perhaps a representation of the god of this temple. Or a protecting spirit or demon invoked to guard the sacred objects stored within these chests.
[He carefully shifts one tile, then another.]
We must arrange the puzzle and make the image whole.
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...A demon? [There's a sort of blatant, wobbly reediness to his voice that says everything his words don't. Are you sure this is a good idea? Is something horrifying going to happen if we get this wrong? (And of course, not forgetting:) Is something horrifying going to happen if we get this RIGHT?
He stays rooted where he is, rubbing distractedly at the sticky blood drying halfway up his thigh. As much as he's an advocate for personal greed, maybe (just maybe) some things are better left well alone.]
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...Think if something bad was gonna happen, it would've happened by now. Maybe as soon as we started messing with it.
[He actually has no idea if that's how it would work, but he's trying to make Tuco feel better.]
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[Belloq slides a tile with a ghostly head up a slot.]
If there's any danger, it will from another clever trap.
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and now for a prompt reply :V