The Drowned Palace Group 8

location: Drowned Palace Game

date: Oct. 4th, 2025

speaking: 0042A9

thinking: 80A7FF

Walking around the room during the brief show of light hadn’t proved to be much use. Although he tried to search around everything he could possibly see while there was light none of the furniture or anything else in the room had anything useful to aid them in their escape. Leo was a bit disappointed he hadn’t been able to contribute much at this point in their little game but tried to not let that self doubt that was creeping in take over. After a few words revealed themselves with Althea’s first attempt at revelio, Leo wasn’t sure how long it would take for the group to get out of here. However, his worry was short lived as she went to cast it again and was able to reveal all of the words.

The words did indeed reveal themselves but they were all scrambled and needed to be put back into the proper places as Althea had noted. He nodded along as they checked how long the lines were in the other group of algae on the wall. Lucille was able to pick out a few words first, it made sense too so he was happy to see they were making some progress in getting out. Now was his best chance to be able to help and maybe show off a little of why he was placed in Ravenclaw in the first place.

Leo thought about the remaining spaces and looked at the scrambled words again. Going off the logic Lucille just used, he looked at the second half of the top line. It had to end in ‘through’ based on the length of the space that was there as she said. Thinking in terms of riddles, what could be through? The space before ‘through’ was short, two letters so it had to be ‘is’. ‘Something something is through..’ He thought to himself as he stared at the words then it hit him. “Your time is through..” Leo said softly at first, saying it out loud almost to see if it sounded correct at first before repeating it louder again. “Your time is through! The line there, it’s your time is through I think.” He said rushing to the algae that was shaped into lines and pointed at the four spaces before looking back at the others.

Leo’s contribution
____ the ______, your time is through,
The treasure stays—___ __ __ ___.

〚 •• ✎ •• 〛

| Date: October 04, 2025 | Location: The Drowned Palace | Word count: 414 |
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Whoever, or whatever, was singing that same tune over and over clearly wasn’t up for a chat. Frederick’s questions had gone entirely unanswered, leaving only his own voice echoing awkwardly around the dim room. Now he felt even more foolish. And annoyed. The song was beginning to sound like a broken record, looping endlessly in his head.

With a frustrated sigh, Fred ran his hands through his hair, clearly on the verge of giving up. “Brilliant. No answers whatsoever,” he muttered under his breath. He was just about to say something else, perhaps another sarcastic remark, when movement from the corner of his eye caught his attention. Althea had begun muttering words under her breath, random at first, until he realised she was reciting the ones appearing on the wall. Her Revelio had finally worked.

“Words!” he exclaimed, pointing toward the glowing green letters as they arranged themselves haphazardly across the stone. The algae shimmered faintly, the strange message growing clearer as Althea began counting the letters, quickly falling into a rhythm of analysis as she tried to make sense of the code.

But before she could piece them together, Lucille jumped in, scanning the wall from side to side, excitement lighting up her expression as she began to rearrange a few of the words aloud. Leo followed almost immediately, quick-thinking as always, suggesting new placements and filling the gaps with a confidence that made the process look almost effortless.

Fred tried to keep up, stepping closer until he was standing beside Lucille, his blue eyes darting across the scattered words as his brain finally caught up with the pace of the group. “You lot are geniuses!” he said, a grin spreading across his face. He could feel his mind firing on all cylinders now, gears turning again after the initial frustration. “Yes, that’s it!”

He folded his arms, resting his chin thoughtfully on one hand as he studied the wall. “Now which ones are left? Fail, do, and, search, so, you…” he listed them aloud, testing combinations under his breath. After a few seconds, he dropped the pose and straightened suddenly, enthusiasm sparking back into his voice. “We’ve only got one word with a capital letter, so it has to be the first one! And what makes sense after fail the…?” He turned to the others, eyebrows raised, waiting for a reaction. “It’s got to be search, right? Fail the search!” The excitement in his tone was unmistakable, gone was the earlier irritation.

Action: Deciphering the riddle
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| Stats: Sta-8 ⁞ Eva-6 ⁞ Str-4 ⁞ Wis-5 ⁞ Arc-4 ⁞ Acc-8 | Abilities: Evasive Maneuvers |
| Inventory: Wand, Antidote to Common Poisons and Protective gloves |

date	place	tags	wc	speech
04/10/25	The Drowned Palace	@Lucille Rosenhart@Leo Noxley @Althea Valeden@Frederick Buckley	572/200	#36563c

outfit: Gown, Hair, Necklace, Earrings, Shoes, Perfume

Rosaline stopped singing after trying for a while. The voice didn’t respond at all. She sighed, feeling a bit embarrassed that she hadn’t done anything helpful today. What was she thinking back then? She didn’t know either. Her face flushed in frustration. She supposed no one would find out under the dim light. The disappointment in herself didn’t beat her down; she was more determined than ever, wanting to find out the secret of the room and what the voice wanted. Clenching her fist, she decided to do better this time.

As she was still in her thoughts, she heard Althea recite some weird sentences. Then the young lion quickly realized that those were the words on the wall. Her face lit up in excitement. It seemed they were finally making progress. She went closer to see the words herself. The fifteen words were disorderly, yet she turned around, seeing another clue on the wall. It was several carved lines of different lengths. She counted them; it was fifteen lines too, matching the number of words the algae had formed. These words must go there. Althea had the same idea as Rosaline did; she nodded as Althea announced her theory. Brows furrowed, she tried to think of the possible combination of the words. She quite liked solving puzzles, yet was not really fond of doing it as a leisure activity. The dissatisfaction with the probability that she could fail always wore her out. Though the achievement of success was great, in contrast.

She stared at the words for too long, her eyes sore. Rubbing her eyes lightly, she heard Althea analyze the words' lengths and made a light joke. Rosaline replied with a smile, “Not at all, I think that’s a very clever observation!” Then Lucille assigned some words to their seemingly correct places. Rosaline nodded along with Lucille’s every theory. She gave her dormmate a big grin and said, “I think that makes so much sense. Well done, Lu.” Although she was happy with the progress, she was also eager to contribute. As much as she wanted to give an insightful observation, her mind was stuck at the moment.

Not long after, Leo solved the second sentence ‘your time is through. Next, Fred deciphered the first sentence. Combined, they formed ‘Fail the search, your time is through, The treasure stays --___ __ __ ___.’ The remaining words were ‘you’, ‘so’, ‘and’, and ‘do’. Rosaline said under her breath, “There are four words left, ‘and’ should be the first, then maybe ‘so do you’…” She paused. Her brain clicked. It all made sense now. She took in a deep breath and said, “Fail the search, your time is through, The treasure stays – and so do you. This is the full sentence!” Rosaline shivered a little, looking around the room. This didn’t sound auspicious at all. She composed herself after a brief moment, thinking of the theory they had mentioned and the chanting singing voice. “What if we sang these to that voice again?” she muttered. Feeling motivated to sing again, she had more confidence that this time it would work.

She quieted down to sense the melody. The room fell silent. Closing her eyes, she opened her mouth and started singing, “Fail the search, your time is through, The treasure stays – and so do you.” Hoping for the best outcome, she waited for the voice or the room itself to respond.

Action: Sing the answer to the puzzle out loud.

inventory Wand Cure for Boils (1) Herbicide Potion(1)

stats stamina: 6 | evasion: 5 | strength: 5 wisdom: 8 | arcane Power: 7 |accuracy: 4 Lovely Creature

By 哈哈魯

MOD POST - GROUP 8

Teamwork makes the dream work as they say, though not without some obstacles here and there. Taking @Althea Valeden's idea of organizing the words according to letters would prove quite useful, as it seemed that was the way to go about it. Though arranging 14 words may be more straining than one thought with how they had to double check it a few times too. Regardless..a good attempt was made to start what would be a chain of events.

Passing it on to @Lucille Rosenhart, it seemed the Gryffindor deduced part of the last line as it almost harmonized with the song, but the siren continued the chant regardless. Little by little, with @Leo Noxley's addition to the first line that seemed to work just as well, followed by @Frederick Buckley's finding of the first line, it seemed now altogether it would work.

@Rosaline Everhart was the one to chant the words in the same tune the siren was singing that haunting loop melody. The song seemed to have been completed. The music continued with her, and as her voice faded out at the end of those lines, the singing did as well.

Upon singing the last word, a bell-like laugh is heard, followed by a splash of water. The room suddenly enlightens, lights coming from floating luminescent jellyfishes, blue-flame candles, and gigantic glowing pearls. You are clearly within a palace's room, the intricate designs reminiscing old-time castles, its columns stretching toward the surface of the ocean. For indeed, this palace is sunken deep within troubled seas—flowing motifs on the walls mimick the pattern often found when looking back at the surface, and a blue filter seems to be cast over the room.

Facing you, eyes can distinguish a large window opened on the underwater world. An infinite horizon of blue is shown, though in the distance, some recognisable shapes can be glimpsed. Sharks, fish, and mermaid silhouettes can be made out. Strangely, they seem to be holding their hands in the shape of an 8. Thick and heavy velvet curtains frame the window, their fringes piling on the floor underneath. Behind you is the door from which you've entered, though the knob seem to have disappeared. Next to it is an immense clock, though its mechanism seems to be broken, as it is frozen in time, the large hand on the II and the smaller one on IV. On your right is a bookshelf painstakingly carved from an oversized shell, its books worn, pages damaged by the ambient humidity.
Ambient Oceans, By Willy Embers
Watching the Waves, By Rylee Waters
Below the Waters, By Pearl Cordelia
Whispers of the Shells By Coral Ocean
Crossing the Trenches By Dolphina Wave

Man, they really name these kids strange names.

Besides it stands what appears to be a collection of shells, with a small wicker basket standing by its side.

What truly catches your eyes, though, is the wall found by your left side: a fascinating assortment of art, a gallery of moving paintings. These paintings are truly eye catching - it is hard to tear your eyes away. The first depicts a whale piercing the water, it's majestic shape crashing down the surface. Next to it is what appears to be a jellyfish, sister to the one floating throughout the room, pink, aligned with delicate lilac dots. The three following show, respectively, an orca chasing a seal, an elegant shark swimming about, and finally an adorable octopus hiding beneath a rock. The last one is that of a woman, staring directly at you, perched on a rock. Each member of the room will see the woman's eyes following them. Watching. Waiting. Hoping.

Note and mentions:


Member mentions: @Rosaline Everhart,@Leo Noxley,@Althea Valeden,@Rea Kont,@Lucille Rosenhart,@Frederick Buckley

Inventory:
1. Revive Potion
2. Wand

Althea Valeden was incredibly acquainted with failure. It intertwined and sank so deeply in her veins that she could twirl to its cruel dance with both eyes closed and nothing to nudge her towards it. Yet, against all odds, the failures tonight proved themselves to be unique in their mercy. Upon a successful revelio that spurred the group to a speedy deciphering of the code, Rosaline had gone to recite their answer to the waiting voice in the walls.

Althea shivered slightly as a twinkling laugh sounded from within the walls and water splashed in the distance. She was quite surprised the voice wasn't one of merfolk, and as she turned to try and identify the results of their answer, a flash of blinding lights engulfed the room. An arm snapped to shield her eyes as the fading sound of crashing waves gave way to a bright room. She squinted from behind her forearm, gasping lightly at the sight of luminescent jellyfish swimming in the air amidst a scattered sky of blue-flame candles. The room was now a grandiose picture decorated by huge glowing pearls and intricate columns reminiscent of European castles from the olden times. There was a window that led to the ocean depths, shadows of underwater creatures in the waters, and just around the corner, a large, elegant clock stood still, its mechanism and hands remaining frozen.

Althea felt unsettled by the opulence of this room, which was so vastly different from the previous dimly-lit room that this one made her eyes ache from the light. Deciding that testing her suspiciously decent luck with magic again so soon would be unwise, she turned to her right, where a bookshelf carved from what seemed to be an abnormally large shell stood filled with books that had been worn down by time and its atmosphere. Intrigued by the books upon the shelf, Althea carefully stepped closer, making uneasy glances around at the paintings hung on the left walls. She swore she felt a chill, as if something was watching her, but she steeled her resolve and committed to her investigation of the bookshelf in front of her.

Althea’s eyes scanned the titles, her curiosity peaking with every passing book title on the intricately carved shelf.
Ambient Oceans, Watching the Waves, Below the Waters, Whispers of the Shells, Crossing the Trenches… All names related to the ocean and the sea, how curious. She brushed a finger down and across the worn spines, pondering which she should investigate first. Then, her eyes landed on the books written by Coral Ocean, Pearl Cordelia in particular, before pondering the seashells resting within the basket beside the bookshelves and her surroundings that were adorned with pearls. Perhaps it would be wise to practice some pattern association. Those two authors and book titles seemed the most relevant to the room’s theme of being an ocean littered with pearl and coral decorations. She would have to go back to the other books later.

Reaching to pull out the books named ‘Whispers of the Shells’ and ‘Below the Waters’, Althea moved to balance the books over one another across her arms to begin investigating, reaching to flip open the books to compare their contents.

Action: Read & Compare ‘Whisper of the Shells’ and ‘Below the Waters’

〚 •• ✎ •• 〛

| Date: October 04, 2025 | Location: The Drowned Palace | Word count: 439 |
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As soon as Fred concluded his reasoning, helping the group complete the final line, he fell silent, watching Rosaline finish the task and complete the song, chanting the whole tune along with the voice. Focused on his friend, the moment the last letter was uttered, Fred flinched at what came next: the bell-like laugh, followed by a splash of water. Ready to react, he reached for his wand, which had remained in the pocket of his robes until then, and he even forgot to congratulate the group for the good work.

Even so, there was no immediate need for action. What the boy needed to do was blink several times to get used to the sudden brightness flooding the room. Looking around, he realized they were standing inside a palace chamber, a palace that had truly sunk, and he let out a low whistle. “Wow, look at this place.” Frederick let his right hand fall to his side, lowering his wand as he tried to absorb all the new information. What drew his attention the most were the paintings on the wall, but there was one in particular, of a woman perched on a rock, whose eyes seemed to stare directly into his own. Unsettled, he quickly looked away.

“What are we supposed to do now?” Fred wondered aloud as he walked closer to Althea. He had noticed the girl trying to balance two open books and decided to go over and help her investigate. “Any clues in the books?” he asked, without actually looking at Althea, as he lined up beside her in front of the shelf, the strangest shelf he had ever seen in his life, carved from an enormous shell. Since the girl had already opened two books, Frederick decided to open the remaining three. First, he grabbed the one titled Ambient Oceans and, in the free space on the shelf, he set down and opened the other two, Watching the Waves and Crossing the Trenches, to random pages. Holding the first open book in his left hand, Fred began flipping through all three, turning pages from one and then another, mirroring what the older girl was doing.

Frederick had to make an effort to stay focused on the information he was reading. The content of books about oceans and waves wasn’t exactly something that sparked any particular interest in him. Maybe he should have left this task to Leo, he thought to himself as he continued what he had started. Every now and then, he paused on some illustrations or chapter titles, trying to catch any hint that might stand out. “So, Althea, any luck?”

Action: Read & Compare ‘Ambient Oceans’ ‘Watching the Waves’ and ‘Crossing the Trenches’
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| Stats: Sta-8 ⁞ Eva-6 ⁞ Str-4 ⁞ Wis-5 ⁞ Arc-4 ⁞ Acc-8 | Abilities: Evasive Maneuvers |
| Inventory: Wand, Antidote to Common Poisons and Protective gloves |

date 04/10/25

word count 497

outfit ⁺₊ ☀︎ ⁺₊

speech #8C2626

mentions @Rosaline Everhart @Leo Noxley @Althea Valeden @Frederick Buckley

notes xxx

And just like that, everything changed. A bright light shone into the room, its source not distinguishable at first glance. Lucille's hand shot up to shield her eyes as they adjusted to the sudden light, and she blinked a few times, before finally clearing her vision.

The first thing her eyes landed on was a series of paintings, or, rather, one specific painting among them. There was a woman seated on a rock, and Lucille felt as if her eyes were fixated upon her and her alone. Even as she stared back at the woman, she had the strong feeling that everyone else was feeling something similar. Locked in a staring contest with the woman, she seemed to not notice Althea and Fred begin to move about the room.

Finally, when the woman's forlorn eyes became a bit too much to bear, Lucille looked away, letting her eyes scan the rest of the room. However, her examination was stopped short when her eyes landed on the window. They were, undoubtedly, underwater. This time, Lucille felt no panic as she glimpsed the fin of a shark as it passed by. She assumed it must be like a Muggle TV screen. They couldn't actually be underwater, could they? Why throw students into the sea when you could simply charm the window? But, then again, this was Hogwarts, and that meant anything could happen.

Lucille made her way towards the window, keenly aware of the woman's eyes still upon her. She hoped someone else might go and capture this painting's attention. Most magical paintings moved. This one did not, at least not as much as the paintings she was used to. Her movement was restricted to her eyes, following Lucille's every step. Perhaps she was trapped, and needed to be freed?

Shaking her head, Lucille pressed her face up against the glass of the window, craning her neck as she tried to see as far into the outdoors as possible. Outside was a ring of mermaids? Or at least that's what she thought. They were holding their hands in the shape of an 8. Lucille tapped at the glass, trying to get their attention. "Hello?" she called out softly, before raising her voice a little to speak to her friends, letting it reach every corner of the room.

"Does the number 8 mean anything to you guys?" she asked, before finally taking a step back from the window to look at the rest of the room. "Five books, five paintings. An 8 outside, and 4 times 2 is 8, if we're really reaching for the clock," she said finally, summarizing all her observations and pointing at the clock with it's hands on IV and II. She guessed the books and paintings were related, at least, and was glad that Fred and Althea were already investigating their contents, poring over them meticulously. With that, Lucille turned back to the window, resting her arms on the windowsill and gazing out once more.

inventory burn healing paste bruise removal paste

stats and abilities sta 7 eva 7 str 6 wis 5 arc 6 acc 4 calming presence

date	place	tags	wc	speech
04/10/25	The Drowned Palace	@Lucille Rosenhart@Leo Noxley @Althea Valeden@Frederick Buckley	417/200	#36563c

outfit: Gown, Hair, Necklace, Earrings, Shoes, Perfume

After Rosaline chanted the answer to the riddle, the singing from the siren stopped. Then the sounds of laughter and the splash of water filled the room. She shivered. A hint of coldness crept up on her. When she opened her eyes, she wasn’t prepared for the brightness, so she shut them again to let her vision adjust. A brief moment later, she opened her eyes again and saw that the room was completely transformed by the light. It became just like the event’s name, ‘The Drowned Palace’.

Fred’s remark made Rosaline chuckle. She looked around in awe, not sure where to start her investigation. The large window showing the sea was definitely eye-catching. The seeming mermaids outside were more intriguing. Still scanning the room, she saw a bookshelf made from a giant shell. Besides it, there was a collection of shells. She drew near, wanting to see whether these shells could provide her with any clues. The idea that they would be stuck here like the puzzle had suggested was too tragic for her. She shook her head to get rid of the terrible idea. There were five brilliant minds here; they could do this. She regained her energy and tried to concentrate on the shells, their shapes, their types, and the wicker basket beside them. She carefully touched each of them, feeling the texture, but she couldn’t put her finger on where these shells should go, nor their uses.

Glancing around the room, she could see that Althea was investigating the books on the shelf. Not long after, Fred joined Althea, starting to investigate the other books. They were beside her. Rosaline turned her head and asked, “Hmm, do you find anything interesting? I’m not sure what to do with these shells.” Her expression was filled with confusion. She was waiting for a flash of inspiration. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Lucille was observing the large window. She wondered what would happen if the window broke. Would they drown like the palace? Or could they swim to the surface and be rescued?

Lucille’s question drew her attention back to the room. Rosaline knew she was thinking too much again. Lucille’s reasoning really opened a new door to their investigation. Rosaline looked at every object her dormmate had mentioned and replied, “Oh my, I think you’re right. I hope we can get more clues to solve this puzzle.” Pondering, she looked through the room again, anticipating how they would solve this challenge.

Action: Investigating the shells and the basket, touching the shells.

inventory Wand Cure for Boils (1) Herbicide Potion(1)

stats stamina: 6 | evasion: 5 | strength: 5 wisdom: 8 | arcane Power: 7 |accuracy: 4 Lovely Creature

By 哈哈魯

New Thread location: Drowned Palace Rm.8 date: Oct. 4th, 2025 outfit: Reducio mentions: @Rosaline Everhart, @Althea Valeden, @Rea Kont, @Lucille Rosenhart, @Frederick Buckley word count: 224 words speaking/thinking: 0042A9 / 80A7FF ooc notes: action- investigating the paintings (sorry for the short reply)

Finally, finally, they were able to get somewhere. The riddle came together with everyone’s contributions and they were able to have Rosa sing it back to the voice. Before anyone could really celebrate the little win the room began to change. There was so much to look at in the room. Books over in this area, paintings on the walls. A large window looked out upon the underwater world and Leo looked out to see if he could spot any fish or creatures. The door they had entered in was there but now was missing its door knob, maybe they would get it back once they figure out this next puzzle.

Usually Leo would jump at the chance to check out some new books but as he saw some of the others already going over to check them out, Leo looked around to see what the others weren’t checking out yet so he could. He thought about looking over the clock that seemed to be broken but decided to look at the paintings that lined the wall. The paintings were beautiful no doubt and were truly mesmerizing. They were all moving and each depicted a unique sea themed scene. Jellyfish, a whale jumping from the water, even a shark. The more he tried to investigate them the more he couldn’t look away from them.

stats: STA. 5, EVA. 5, STR. 5, WIS. 5, ARC. 5, ACC. 5 ——————————————— metamorphmagus

MOD POST - GROUP 8

@Althea Valeden would take two of the books to compare them and read through them. "Below the waters" seemed quite normal. The book seemed old, and fragile for the lack of a better word, but even as she would likely try to look through it, there was nothing of "great importance" other than...well the study of whatever lay under the water. Maybe it was not such an interesting book after all, but to each their own. So this was not the right book. "Whispers of the Shell" though would prove quite interesting indeed. She would be met with a slightly different "formatting".

A date is written on the right corner, the first number glowing strangely. 1934. Scribbles had covered the pages, circling various words as well as a "6". It depicted a ranking of the rarity of various shells, going from one drop of water to five, with five being the rarest. The name written under the rarest shell was Corpus Cushellum, which seemed, according to the book, to be a dark purple shell with an almost ripply texture. It was underlined multiple times, and a scribbled margine marked it as "FOUND". And sure enough, looking around the room they would notice that same rare shell, though away from the basket.

@Frederick Buckley meanwhile didn't seem to have the same luck in investingating the other books as, rather much like the "Below the Waters" one, there was nothing too "interesting" about them.

@Lucille Rosenhart meanwhile will likely figure out that calling out to anything outside of...well..the friends around the room would prove, not so useful. Though she was on the right track about the numbering, to an extent at least, it remained to be seen just how far that string of numbers could go.

In terms of the shells and the basket, @Rosaline Everhart would find that the same shell they saw mentioned in the book, was just behind the basket, a bit hidden from view. Maybe putting it back where it belongs would help? After all it looked like it fell off at some point in time, or maybe it was intentionally taken out of there.

Last but not least, at a closer look at the paintings @Leo Noxley would notice that the painting with the woman, or rather, much siren, was quite loose, as if only held by a nail at best. Maybe it could be taken down? Then again, who would approach the one painting that keeps following them around with her gaze. It was understandable to be cautious.

Note: Apologies for the late mod post, weekend was busy I only got online on late Sunday and had no neuron power left. To reflect the delay in my mod post, the next ones for this group will be every week from the last mod post from now on.

[NO MOD ROLLS THIS ROUND]

Member mentions: @Rosaline Everhart,@Leo Noxley,@Althea Valeden,@Rea Kont,@Lucille Rosenhart,@Frederick Buckley