Villa Isle's claim to fame has always been its location and proximity to the fun-loving Fliptide. Some years ago though, something else came up. A hole upended up underneath a communal Elver nest, revealing an entrance into a sunken building! Since then, this has been a favorite topic of researchers and theorizers alike. Who built this thing? How old is it? What was it for? And so on
Initially, the size of the structure was thought to be fairly small. There's a long hall that originally housed a pedestal brimming with Hydra eggs (now all safely removed), but that seemed to be it. However, in a routine collecting of information to be transferred to dry land, some local Elvers brushed up against something. What that was, they're not totally sure. What they do know is that the second after there was a low, grating sound and a wide oval swath of the floor fell away into a ramp descending into darkness below...
TL;DR: There's a sunken building underwater. It was thought to be small, but somebody found a hidden mechanism, revealing it goes deeper
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🦪 The First Floor 🦪
While this new discovery is very cool and getting a lot of attention, it's important to note that it's underwater! If a keke doesn't have gills or some other method of water-breathing, then it'll be awfully difficult to stay under for too long. Thankfully, some water mages live here and will be capable of supplying air bubbles to small groups of explorers. Due to the hubbub, these guys are all but posted on the Isle's shores. If you want to join up, it'll be easy to look for them there!
The first floor of the building is fairly, but not fully explored. It's made of light grey, near-white stone absolutely covered in carved depictions of Snakekeys. There are a few magic lanterns affixed to the walls that provide muted yellow light that dances across the patterned floor. And, of course, there's the big pedestal where the Hydra eggs were first discovered and the new oval hole in the floor. As this might prove relevant deeper down, researchers have requested a search for whatever it was that was hit to unlock the lower floors
TL;DR: Keke mages can supply air bubbles for teams wanting to dive. Researchers are hosting a search for the mechanism that opened the floor
🔦 Draw/write 300 words about your keke/PC interacting with a water mage or exploring floor 1
🔦 Drawn entries must be a minimum of a fully colored fullbody
🔦 NPCs or Punkin can be used in place of your own keke
🔦 You may enter as many times with as many keke as you like!
🔦 Entries go in the Event Entries folder or the drop-off thread!
⭕ Open spoiler for this part's rewards! ⭕
As you dive, your belly scales kick into gear to help you navigate the situation!
🌊 You earn 1 use of an upgrade in this pool for every keke/PC that you own/any NPC included in an entry for this prompt (you may use the same character multiple times if desired)
🌊 These upgrades should not be applied on hatchling approvals
🌊 1 > Gills: Simple slits that allow for breathing water like those of a fish. The inner frill can show and the gills can be differently shaped lines, but other than this, they should appear basic and flat. Can go anywhere on the body. Gill frills can be any color
🌊 2 > Baby fin: This thing just won't quit, will it? Looks like your baby fin's back again and determined to stay. Can now be shaped and be any color
🌊 3 > Fishy fins: Decorative fins that can sprout anywhere and be any color/opacity. Range from regular fish fins to betta-like. Note that this doesn't include cartilage fins like those of dolphins or sharks!
🌊 1 > Danger fin: Cartilage fins like a shark's dorsal fin. Can go anywhere on the body in any amount and be any color
🌊 2 > Firework gills: Growths like an axolotl's gills. Do not necessarily have to be on the sides of the head
🌊 3 > Flippers: Replace the arms/hands with some type of flipper
🌊 1 > Giant fin: Large, sail-like fins like a Spinosaurus! Stiff and sturdy, not mobile. May go anywhere on the body and can be any color
🌊 2 > Glittery gills: Gummy, sparkly gills like on a nudibranch. Can range from just one to a cluster. Can be placed anywhere on the back side of a keke in the pelvis through tail tip range
🌊 3 > Tentacles: Tendrils of any length that can go anywhere on a keke. These will be smooth, without suckers or anything like that. Can be any color
🏛️ The Second Floor 🏛️
Keke that dare descend into the floor-hole find two things. First, it's dark. There are none of those convenient lanterns that lit the upper floor. Somehow though, it's not quite pitch black. One can see, but just barely. Secondly, the hole is more of a tunnel. After swimming down the ramp, keke find that it levels out and sort of meanders around, filling up a room's worth of space. It takes a long time to pass through and, peculiarly, it's dry at the end. The water never drains away, it just sort of...slowly stops being water. It's like it fades out. The sensation is very strange and most certainly magical
There's another ramp, this one leading into a chamber significantly larger than the first floor. Somehow, there's grass in here. The level is green and alive, teeming with overgrown tree branches that seem to come from nowhere and ivy creeping up the walls. In places, flowers, fruits, and leaves emit a gentle, multi-colored glow for light. There's a path made of cobbled stones that leads away into the greenery. It forks off here and there, prompting the explorers to split up. Each route ends in a different place surrounded by supposedly themed foliage encircling a large, stone statue. Several of the figures are unfamiliar, but others are quite obviously types of behemoths. Hydra, Aidas, Fenrises, and Fafnirs, they're all here. But who are the others...?
TL;DR: The water in the tunnel magically fades into air instead. Floor 2 is grassy and filled with plants. There are statues of behemoths here, not all of which you recognize
🔦 Draw/write 300 words about your keke/PC traversing the tunnel or on floor 2
🔦 You're free to make up your own figure for a statue! : )
🔦 Drawn entries must be a minimum of a fully colored fullbody
🔦 NPCs or Punkin can be used in place of your own keke
🔦 You may enter as many times with as many keke as you like!
🔦 Entries go in the Event Entries folder or the drop-off thread!
⭕ Open spoiler for this part's rewards! ⭕
After navigating the verdant floor, you realize you seem to have taken some inspiration from it with you...
🍃 You earn 1 use of an upgrade in this pool for every keke/PC that you own/any NPC included in an entry for this prompt (you may use the same character multiple times if desired)
🍃 These upgrades should not be applied on hatchling approvals
🍃 1 > Leafy dragon scales: You don't need any of this "skin" or "smooth scale" nonsense. Now, you're covered in jagged, leaf-like scales that totally make you look like some ancient nature guardian or something. Can either be the base color or tinged any color leaves can be
🍃 2 > Leafy wings: You might be able to fly with these, but they're delicate, so be careful...! Can only be shapes and colors that leaves can be. One pair of wings or a butterfly set (shown above). May be placed anywhere on the back side of a keke (head, back, tail tip, etc)
🍃 3 > Vine tail tip: A curly extension of the tail that looks like a vine. Can sprout leaves, buds, or flowers, but can also appear plain
🍃 1 > Pumpkin head: Part of or the entire head turns into a pumpkin shell. Must only be pumpkin colors. Can be carved, change shape with emotion, and/or glow from inside
🍃 2 > Blooming antenna: Antenna that match the length of the example. These form flowers up them, ending with a bud or bloom at the tips. Can be any type of flower. May optionally heighten scent, but no other senses
🍃 3 > Skipping stone scales: Belly scales like the mythical Skinki. Turns the scales into a cluster of small circular or oval shaped scales. Should still be in the same general area the scales were originally. This upgrade does not allow the color to be changed
🍃 1 > Foliage fluff: Replace some or all of the fluff on a keke with leaves of any kind. Leaves may be any color
🍃 2 > Fluffy seedpods: A tiny seed, a thin stalk, and a fuzzy umbrella top, just like a dandelion! Can go anywhere on a keke (except the belly scales) in any color. May blow away and regrow or firmly be stuck in place - up to you! There can be a little bit of loose fuzz on the arms among the pods, like there are more growing in, if desired
🍃 3 > Forest scales: Big, chunky, decorative scales that noticeably rise off the body. They're vaguely scallop shaped, being thicker in the center and thinner at the edges. Each scale may be rounded at the end or come to a leaf-like point. May go anywhere on a keke and be any color
🔆 The Third Floor 🔆
At the end of one of the rocky paths, the adventurers find a archway that looks to be made of something like marble. Beneath it, there's a hole in the floor with a ramp, just like the floor before. At least there isn't a hidden mechanism this time... Those who descend further will find another set of dark, winding tunnels. While they take a while to traverse, they thankfully aren't larger than the first corridors despite the temple supposedly getting wider as it goes down. The further one goes, the more they notice that the air is starting to get just a touch too warm and somewhat muggy. At the end of the tunnel, there's a ramp leading onto the third floor, which is quite a bit larger than the one the keke just came from
This floor is what looks to be a massive cave, stalagmites and tites included in abundance. It's mostly open (enough), but there are a few branching tunnels going off their own ways. The whole place is a mix of sandstone and some sort of teal-blue rock that appears highly polished, shining like a gem. Strange orbs about the size of watermelons hum far overhead, floating around as if on a schedule. They cast light on the floor when they pass, but don't exactly stop for the passerby... Sometimes they bumble into each other before returning to their scripted path like nothing happened
In this area, there are more statues placed at random. Around them are the desiccated remains of...gifts? It's clear that there were flowers here and maybe food items and cloth, but they fall to dust if touched. The vast majority of the statues are totally unfamiliar. Except for one, maybe two. One of them is Kai'in and another is a large cat-like creature, three kittens at its paws
TL;DR: Floor 3 is a huge, toasty cave of sandstone and teal-blue rock. There are statues here too, though you only recognize Kai'in and maybe a cat with 3 kittens
🔦 Draw/write 300 words about your keke/PC traversing the tunnel or on floor 3
🔦 You're free to make up your own figure for a statue! : )
🔦 Drawn entries must be a minimum of a fully colored fullbody
🔦 NPCs or Punkin can be used in place of your own keke
🔦 You may enter as many times with as many keke as you like!
🔦 Entries go in the Event Entries folder or the drop-off thread!
⭕ Open spoiler for this part's rewards! ⭕
After exploring the floor you feel... stiffer somehow. After trying to figure out what you did to strain yourself for several minutes, you realize the feeling is upgrade-based
♨️ You earn 1 use of an upgrade in this pool for every keke/PC that you own/any NPC included in an entry for this prompt (you may use the same character multiple times if desired)
♨️ These upgrades should not be applied on hatchling approvals
♨️ 1 > Flambé: A low fire envelops or trails after a keke's paws and/or tail tip. This does not burn and if it attempts to spread from the designated area, it will instantly sputter out. Can be any color. Cannot be controlled, it's simply for looks
♨️ 1 > Sizzle skin: Leg so hot u fry an egg. If you had any, that is. These markings glow with heat that's under the Snakekey's control. Can be any simple shape such as swirls, spots, hearts, etc, but they all must be the same shape. When cool, they can be any color, but are commonly black. Can go anywhere on a keke. May burn if heated too far - be careful!
♨️ 3 > Lizard leggies: These'll make you stand out in a crowd, but they won't make you stand. Seriously, these things are super weak. Two or four lizard-like legs. Placement must match example. Do not enable walking/standing
♨️ 1 > Firelight eyes: The eyes appear to have literal fire in them. Usually, this will look like a tiny candle flame, but the fire can flare up with emotion
♨️ 2 > Neck pouch: An inflatable pouch on the front side of the neck like a Blizzard's. When puffed up, it typically shows vibrant coloration. Can be bumpy or smooth
♨️ 3 > Candles: Candles of any type that can go anywhere on a keke. May be any color. Can be lit, smoking, or snuffed
♨️ 1 > Grit: The keke seems to have dirt stuck to them... Can range from a few particles to whole dirt clumps. Would usually be dirt-based colors, but can be any color. May have small roots poking out of it
♨️ 2 > Pebble coating: Small rocks like gravel or those you'd find in a stream attach to a keke. These can be places here or there as well as closer together for an armored look. May be any color
♨️ 3 > Temperature spike: The air around a keke becomes warm or hot. This is less visible, but living things such as plants or other keke will react to it. May be shown as an aura of saturated color around a keke, a warm colored haze, and/or floating "ember sparks" (things that look like floating embers, but are actually light). Alternately, it can remain invisible
🌠 The Final Floor 🌠
One of the offshoot tunnels in the cave seems to lead further down. This time, it's pitch black in there. Beyond where the corridor meets the floor is an absolute void. Nervously, the keke mill around the entrance, wondering if they really should go further. A hatchling too close to the hole is bumped in by someone pacing about. There's a shocked gasp from the crowd, but it dies off after everybody realizes... the kid's in there. Like...right there. They're floating
It's assumed the next floor is a chamber larger than the previous, but nobody can see, sense, or otherwise find any walls. Everything is totally black except for tiny prickles of light spattered across the place like the night sky. Most of them are white, but there's also oranges, reds, blues... Are these stars...?
There doesn't seem to be any gravity in here. Keke float about weightlessly, having to "swim" though the blackness to navigate. As they do, they find statues that abruptly construct themselves when approached and disassemble when left alone. The tiny stars shoot forward, forming the solid material that makes up the figures and obediently return to their places when not in use. This makes finding anything in here a game of random bumbling. Aside from that, there's something else that distinguishes the statues in here from the others. Floor two had behemoths. Floor three had Kai'in and that cat you might have seen in a dream once. This floor... you don't recognize anybody. It's like you've seen an outline, but not a face
You feel this is bad. Not really of your own volition, there's just a horrible, sad tugging in your chest. If you're quiet for too long, you can almost swear you hear someone trying to call out to you, but their words are garbled. You can try all you like, but you can't make anything out. Your heart hurts further. You're missing something. You're missing something... Why can't you remember...?
TL;DR: Floor 4 is pure black with tiny stars and no gravity. Statues form when approached, but you don't know who they are. You feel... profoundly sad...?
🔦 Draw/write 300 words about your keke/PC traversing looking into or on floor 4
🔦 You're free to make up your own figure for a statue! : )
🔦 Drawn entries must be a minimum of a fully colored fullbody
🔦 NPCs or Punkin can be used in place of your own keke
🔦 You may enter as many times with as many keke as you like!
🔦 Entries go in the Event Entries folder or the drop-off thread!
⭕ Open spoiler for this part's rewards! ⭕
You leave this floor feeling changed... No, not the mini existential crisis. You've got upgrades, silly!
🌟 You earn 1 use of an upgrade in this pool for every keke/PC that you own/any NPC included in an entry for this prompt (you may use the same character multiple times if desired)
🌟 These upgrades should not be applied on hatchling approvals
🌟 1 > Restless shadow: Did you just see your shadow blink? Strangely enough, it's begun to behave as if it has a mind of its own. It can even appear as some other creature or detach from you. We'll assume it'll come back eventually...
🌟 2 > Bonus maw: Add additional mouths anywhere you like! All must be the basic mouth/tongue colors and types unless upgraded otherwise. Upgrades for teeth and such can affect these
🌟 3 > Spooky vapor: Parts of the keke leave this plane and drift away like mist. This won't damage the keke or remove pieces of them. Whatever they lose restores immediately
🌟 1 > Halo: A floating patch of light most commonly seen in a circle formation, but can come in other shapes. Can glow and be any color or amount.
🌟 2 > Glow spot: A single marking on the face that has a tendency to light up! Can be made up of 1 or 2 colors. Can glow at will or at random
🌟 3 > Night's aura: Stars seem to shimmer around you, glowing lightly in the dark
🌟 1 > Pitch eyes: Visible light no longer reflects off your eyes, leaving them dark, ominous voids
🌟 2 > Evil hood: A hood of skin attached to the shoulder/neck/upper back area that can flip over the head. May or may not have holes for ears. Can have strings or a small brooch on the front where hoodie strings would be. Weirdly, this casts a dark shadow over the wearer's eyes. Their eyes then seem to glow and maybe even...float off their face a little...? Hood may be any color, but this doesn't change eye color
🌟 3 > Wing mismatch: Allows sets of wings that don't match, such as one feathered wing and one webbed wing. Note that this upgrade does not give wings itself
⭕ This event ends August 10, 11:59 PM (PST) ⭕
Exception days will be open for registration after the event
Thank you to VyrusVoyd and SourHour for their suggestion of different biomes on different floors incorporated here <3