audio; username: hb

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy is largely uncomfortable putting his face out there for public consumption, so he defaults to audio. His tone is businesslike but friendly, and there's no indication whatsoever that he's anything but human.]

So we've been here about a month now. Nalawi, I mean. Now that things have settled down and we aren't dealing with typhoons and other things [he's talking about parties], we should probably convene and talk about this case.

Has anyone found anything that could point to where their goddess has gone? Things are getting pretty hairy here; I've seen some pretty strange stuff that I think can get out of control if we don't find out a way to help them soon.

Any clues or ideas would be helpful, so don't be afraid to share what you've found. Even if you don't think it means anything, maybe it'll help someone else solve a puzzle.

Even if we can't find a way to bring their powers back, this place is headed for some really bad stuff if we aren't careful. So let's figure it out.

Comments

Audio; un: coolskeleton95

[boneafide]

HELLO HB!!

[Since you know, you hate his new nickname for you.]

I found money!!

[hellshaped]

[Thanks, he appreciates the effort...]

You... found money?

text | username: NAILS

[nichocolatine]

Question:
What counts as "fixing"?

[hellshaped]

I don't understand the question. In terms of what?

un: daria

[conqueress]

[ Dany misses relying upon her advisors to fill the gaps in her knowledge. Now she must learn to collect information herself, and contribute, besides. It had felt more natural to delegate what she wanted done. ]

I found only a tome. It was a child's tale of a valiant Nalawi warrior who survived crossing the Dakal lands, leading a great army to defeat the Dakal host in battle. The victory was aided by their Nalanni.

Who are the Dakal? [ She doesn't think that that part, at least, was fiction. ] Some enemy, but why did they go to war with the Nalawi? Someone must have learned that.

[ Otherwise, it's time to consult with the locals. ]

[hellshaped]

Good question. I haven't really heard that much about them.

Did it sound like a fairy tale to you or a real story?

audio; un, hawkeye

[strictdiscipline]

['Sup, Hellboy. Riza's reporting in for duty now.]

Whatever it is that's affecting the people here [general term, she knows they're deer thanks] is impacting the land as well - local crops are growing slower than they used to, which is disrupting the local economy and way of life further.

[Case in point:] Many of the local families no longer have enough to eat.

[hellshaped]

[Deer are people too, it's fine. Hellboy is a people and he isn't human either.]

I didn't think of it that way. I figured they just don't know how to grow without these Gifts of theirs. But if it's actually affecting the land itself, that's a big problem, too.

If ALASTAIR could send us some kind of food surplus, that would actually help, but... [Do they have that kind of technology? Do they even have access to that much food?]

text @ happybirthday

[adoube]

'Strange stuff'?

[hellshaped]

Things that have suggested cults are forming. Worshiping some other god in the ocean.

video; un: deathweaver

[respired]

I found a shard.

[ He holds it up for viewing: a tentacled creature, surrounded by celestial light. ]

A god we were not told of, it seems.

[ He sounds agitated.

More so than usual. ]

audio;

[hellshaped]

[Uh-oh, bud... u ok?]

That sort of lends more credence to what I saw. I think a cult is forming for some kind of fish god. Or... squid, maybe.

[There is a pause. To keep this strictly professional or not... oh, hell, he's not that kind of person.] You alright?

un:lancer

[riastraid]

well? share with the class.

[ what ominous bs has he found this time ]

[hellshaped]

Very strange behavior from some of the Nalawi. I'm seeing some of them around in dark cloaks, and one was throwing bits of fish into the ocean.

video; un: apocalypseArisen

[timebender]

I think there's something we haven't been told. We've been very focused on finding this goddess, but maybe we're not meant to.

[ There's something weirdly giddy in the way Aradia holds up a few figurines. ]

I found these. I'm starting to wonder if our native friends are really the good guys here. Do they look like these warriors to you? [ She holds up one of the deer figurines. ] It's been a long time since I've done something like this, but between that and all the local legend, and the murals in their temple, I have to start wondering if they are not as helpless as they've led us to believe. Or... perhaps they once were not, but have just become very complacent.

...what I'm trying to say is that perhaps these gifts are not being taken away, but being taken back!

audio;

[hellshaped]

[This must be a new recruit. Hellboy is pretty sure he'd remember meeting someone else with horns.

Still, he sticks to audio, uncomfortable about revealing his appearance publicly when there are so many people he hasn't met in person yet.]

Do you think war means they're automatically the bad guys? I'm not so sure. But that's an interesting thought... you think they did something to make their goddess mad? Their complacency?

[Video] username: tiger millionaire

[jamminshield]

[Steven calls in from inside the temple.]

Hey, that's a great idea HB! Team meeting time!!

[He holds up a painting he found to the jewelry. And the matching painting with the haloed deer people is in the background.]

Check this out! This painting has a bunch of kitty kat people. Buuuutttt... Where are all the kitty kat people at?

audio;

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy is quiet for a minute, squinting at the screen. Studying art was a de facto part of his job, but that doesn't mean he's an expert.]

Well... that's probably their goddess, right? Nalanni. It looks like she favored the deer, but not the... kitty-cat people. [Steven pls.] Where'd you find that?

[Video; UN: Mettaton]

[ex_mettacrusher33]

OH, WHAT A MARVELOUS IDEA! LET'S SEE...

[The rectangle is sitting outside the town hall, casting his "camera" to the deer-folk standing a whiles away.]

WELL, ANYONE FOLLOWING MTT-NEWS WOULD KNOW THERE'S A BIT OF A COMMOTION AROUND METALWORK, HERE. DETECTIVE GUMSHOE HAS FOUND SOME SORT OF METAL CHASSIS ON THE BAY OF KOMO, WHILE I HAD THE FIRST-HAND EXPERIENCE OF DISCOVERING THE NALAWI'S SUSPICION OF ROBOTS. THEY THOUGHT I WAS A GIFT FROM THEIR GOD!!

FLATTERING, YES, BUT IT SETS AN ODD PRECEDENT.

audio;

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy is a little stunned by... this... robot? What the hell is this thing. What is MTT-News...]

Uh... right. I haven't seen a lot of metalwork here, so what the detective found could be washed up from someplace else. Especially considering their... er, treatment of you.

AUDIO - un: huntsman

[dishearten]

No, I haven't managed to find anything about where she might have gone. The natives seem to think she's the source of the loss of powers, here, but I'm not sure. It seems to be affecting us just as much, isn't it possible this Nalanni has been weakened too?

( he thinks for some reason the magic is thin here, and thinning more by the day. how to go about proving that, though, is beyond him. )

All I've talked to say Nalanni lives in the biggest volcano. We might do well to explore there.

[hellshaped]

It's not erupting right now, but exploring a volcano is still pretty dangerous. I don't know if anybody has the right equipment for that.

[As for the rest...] Riza's found something that points to that the lack of magic is affecting the land, too. Crops aren't doing so hot. So it could be something that's affecting the entire planet, including us.

un: North

[thebelly]

[ He doesn't normally comment to these things, but things are getting Funky and this guy seems to be the most direct about it so.

But the chances of the stranger getting static from instead of an actual voice is too high, which means - ]

There was an argument in temple. One was wanting to use something to save everyone. Take desperate measures! They were holding something in hands, too.

But the other said they would not be turning back from Nala N goddess. [ He tried. ]

[hellshaped]

[Hellboy matches text for text, so he doesn't really think anything unusual about this. Some people just prefer thinking than speaking aloud.]

That corroborates with what I saw down by the beach. I think some of them are trying to seek out another god.

Did you see what they looked like? The one who wanted to take desperate measures.

AUDIO. UN: LOKI

[selfimage]

[ the whole situation has left him on edge, but he manages to side step the anxiety and continue with flawless, Loki-like delivery: ]

There are those that theorize that it's not just magic that's missing, but that the energy of this world is slowly diminishing. Which, ah—well—comes hand and hand, doesn't it?

[hellshaped]

That's what I'm thinking. It sure as hell explains why some of us are feeling it too, not just the locals.

[And Loki is pretty magic, as far as Hellboy knows, so...] How are you holding up?

audio; username: Tohsaka Rin

[defenceless]

[hey there, friend.]

I found some glass beads and a private letter, when I investigated the Dead Walk.

[hellshaped]

A private letter? [He pauses.] Did you read it?