Ardur The Pixie

It takes a lot more than just fancy flying >>>> What's the worst that could happen? /// day 8 // Morning

Breathtaking. It was the only word that came to mind about this place. Its beauty was spectacular. Even with the fights and territorial displays, to Ardur this place was amazing. He could see how the others would have trouble witnessing this from the ground. He was also having fun enjoying the rush of the air around him as he flew. Almost like fulfilling a childhood dream to fly wherever he wanted. Even going as far to throw in a few barrel rolls and other aerial acrobatics to both see his limits and slow down without hurting himself.

Because you see from his view, he could see many interesting things. Things that will eventually peak his curiosity and eventually make him investigate. But for now, the goblins at the bonfire seemed interesting. He only wondered what he could learn by ease dropping on their conversations. Maybe he could get the location of some weapons or food that they are using. Any information he could get from them would be useful.

Turning sharply the small pixie tried to stay up as far as he could while bleeding off speed until he was safety fluttering softly near some stalagmites. Clinging onto the stone ceiling he moved slowly from crevice to crevice avoiding open areas until he was close enough to hear the goblins and what they were talking about. After this he would have to go and find ash. But for now at least it was warm up here but everything seemed to be covered in soot.

Finding a small ledge the pixie rested while listening to the goblins below him talk about trading something. One smaller female offered up clay and maybe some form of pottery. He could barely see the two talking as he peered in between rock formations. Ardur still wasn’t stupid, he would occasionally glance around and check his surroundings before returning his gaze back to the duo below. The goblin with the scar now seemed to be talking about his life and about… Humans? Well of course there are humans. Cause everyone needs the lovable and relatable base race.

His thoughts were interrupted as the small creature listened intently and with purpose when the two began to talk about fire and how to wield it. The scarred goblin spoke about focusing his energy to his palm and then making a motion to throw the fire at a given location. Ardur began to think about this and stood on his small ledge. Holding out his hands the pixie focused and tried the best he could like the goblin said to focus and pool his energy into one area. The area he chose was in the space between his hands. He thought for sure he could feel something but wasn’t sure what it was as he continued to concentrate and force his magic energy into the small area.

@Lucius Cypher
@Zeroth

---

Rain watched the little demon demonstrate his magic. It was a shame he was an established leader... He might actually have been halfway useful.

But no. Law of the streets. If you wanted to survive, you took out the heads of the gangs. If you wanted to grow and expand, you kill the toughest, meanest fuckers around that would get in your way.

She'd seen it relentlessly. This would be her first real sting, though.

Just another Target.

In a brief moment, she pooled her venom... Just like with that pixie. This was... Theoretically that Glob attack, though she was just guessing. But it had been dangerous, powerful.... Lethal.

She took her time aiming. It wouldn't do to miss. She was tempted to go for the head, but an errant moment, an errant movement, could make her miss. And this attack was taking a larger amount of her venom, something she couldn't afford to run out of in this fight.

As Crispy stood there, having cast his fire magic, Rain struck.

Out went her glob (she knew she could do better with it if she kept practicing...), Aiming right for his upper chest and lower neck. Time to see how resistant he really was....

@Rune_Alchemist@ghastlyInc

---

Scott blinked as the stone glowed a soft green, before returning to how it was before. He looked at Ash, a sheepish smile on his face.

"I should mention that, as-as far as I know, that stone will only work once. After that, well, I'd need to reenchant it... or maybe you'd just need to discard it. I don't know if I can use the same object twice... but you should be able to use that stone at any point. It might not teach you magic, but I think it might help you understand it..."

He nodded and listened as Ash spoke for a little bit, tilting his head.

"If you'll follow me, I could use both of your help...it'll benefit the both of you, if you help me since you'll get EXP for the killing, and food. Hopefully."

He frowned and looked at Naji.

"Ah... well, I don't know about that. I'm pretty sure I've only got enough in me for one spell right now, if any and Naji..." He gave the other pixie a pointed look. "...Well, not to be rude, but you look like you've been dragged through a hedge backwards, and if you've been stuck back there for as long as I think you have... well, I'm just saying we need some kind of supplies before we move."

---

---

The fight was over as soon as it began, their somewhat strategic team-attack once again proving to be exceptionally effective. Just after Asteria felt the lizard dying under her teeth, another system message showed up to her. She was no longer surprised that there was such a thing as system messages in this world, but the fact that she actually gained a level was starting to get her thinking in terms of half-forgotten game logic. Gaining experience by killing monsters was definitely common to gaming.

What was more, seeing her current skills led Asteria to believe that levelling up wasn’t the only way to get better, perhaps not even the best way. Sure, she got skill points from gaining a level, but it seemed unlikely that one point would get her a whole level in any skill. If she wanted to confirm her hypothesis, she’d have to invest some skill points and see what happened, but Asteria wanted to try another approach. So, she memorized her current unusable skills with the intent of trying to raise them herself whenever she got the opportunity to do so. For now, she bit into the lizard’s soft body, the chewy and bloody meat serving as a light dinner.

Having been so absorbed in her own thoughts relating to this world’s nature, Asteria noticed Mei only when she was right in front of her, and had apparently dragged the other lizard towards her.

“I already ate from this one, but thank you,” she stared at the lizards’ corpses as an idea formed in her mind. “Would you help me drag one or both back to our little chamber? A food supply would serve us well, and there is something I want to try out…tomorrow,” Asteria commented.

Standing so close to two corpses made her realize the stench they produced, and it was sure to get worse as they decomposed over time. She was willing to put up with it in their temporary base back underground, but it did lead to another problem. “Do you think we should cover the tracks leading to our ‘home’? I don’t want to get attacked while I’m sleeping,” Asteria thought she might be rambling already, but she was honestly tired, and wanted to go to sleep. The threatening situations she had faced today really seemed to be developing a bit of a healthy paranoia in her though.

@Jobst

Despite declining her offer, Mei noticed the absence of any negative emotion from her sister's tone; it seemed Asteria had forgiven her, or at least set aside her displeasure towards Mei's previous actions.

Apart from appearing timid and meek, Mei wanted to limit her words for now. Why though? Well, it was a habit of Mei's; she just believed that less talking just made situations less complicated.

Continuously taking mouthfuls of lizard meat, some obviously being pocketed within her cheeks, Mei simply smiled, mumbled, and noded in response to Asteria's plans.

"Decisive, flexible, and pragmatic. Definitely traits of a leader." Mei unconsciously chuckled at her thoughts while she enjoyed her dinner. However, it was still too early though for whatever it was Mei was planning.

Slowly turning to their Mother, making sure not to startle her in any way, Mei tried to get her attention and relay her sister's plans of returning back home. With her nose, she pointed at the bodies of the dead lizards then gestured to pick them up with their mouths before swinging her head towards the direction of the underground nest they had came from. All the while, Mei simultaneously snuck in instructions in between her actions to somehow aid her in explaining.

"WE. GET. LIZARDS?" and "THEN. WE GO BACK HOME?" were the phrases Mei continued to repeat. Hopefully, her efforts wouldn't be wasted. Normally, she wouldn't bother but after receiving the system messages, she wondered if other creatures, specifically those were native from this world, could also gain skills like them. If so, their mother being able to learn their language might have been possible.



@SilverPaw@Zeroth

@CollectorOfMyst@ghastlyInc - Pixie and Crystal dust

---

"I'm on a rather tight schedule, unfortunately." Ash replied "So I can't waste time finding supplies for the both of you." Realistically, she probably could take a little extra time for the both of them. It'd make things take a bit longer, but having a few extra crystals for them would be good. That said, she was confident that the healing stone and a single healing spell or two would be enough for this. "That said, we first need to get Naj some food, and the only way to do that is to hunt. All you need to do is perhaps heal me should I need it." She continued walking, motioning for both of them to follow should they really desire.

"You don't have to fight yourself, I can do that. Most of these monsters aren't incredibly dangerous with a little clever strategies." Would they help? She honestly didn't care. They would or wouldn't. She'd do the same thing, in the end. It'd just be easier with his help as long as they remained a relatively safe distance away and let her do most of the heavy fighting, so she continued walking in hopes of finding either one, or a small group - preferably a small group.

---

The group had a minute or two, so Digbie took the opportunity as a plan was formed to just take a seat where he could so he could rest a little bit. The group was a bit suspicious, but hopefully if any bad Goblins came by Digbie could argue that these were his catches or something. He'd have to come up with something on the fly, but he could do it. These goblins were... kind of dumb. Save for the toasted one. He was smart in one aspect.

The system update that Digbie got was pretty nice, so he thought it'd be pretty cool to try this new ability of his out. Using the newly empowered Tremor Sense to try and project a sound out in the cave adjacent to the Bonfire, not where Digbie's group was, mind, but enough to possibly round up some new friends, either that or maybe something to eat. For the love of whatever God existed in this world, Digbie needed to eat.

Orochi followed along as Mourningstar lead the makeshift alliance towards her hunting grounds of choice, the Goblin bonfire. Though he wasn't exactly confident in the wisp just yet, he would stick around for a while longer. At least until he could finally get some food. Maybe then he'd look into finding the other lizards from yesterday, hopefully they had gotten away... He shuddered to think of what the Goblins would do to them if they were caught. In most fantasy settings, Goblins were savage and cruel marauders, and if that translated itself into this new reality.

He didn't want to imagine what his allies may be undergoing at this very moment. By going to the bonfire he might just confirm his worst fears.

No... I'm worrying for that which I can't change. No point in that.

Nevertheless he needed to keep himself focused, a wandering train of thought could lead to an untimely re-acquaintance with The Reaper. Mourningstar delivered her little plan of action, and as foolish as it sounded, Orochi thought it just may work. Hell, even if it didn't everyone would be focused on the little light running her mouth and not him. Leaving Orochi to act unnoticed, perhaps investigate the area for signs of Rain and Ash.

Oh yeah, and he'd probably be able to take out those who challenged the eccentric wisp. Though maybe it would be best if she took a hit or two, could help dismantle that irritating ego of hers. Pacing towards their impromptu leader, Orochi stopped a few steps in front of her dimly glowing body and spoke.

"So you go in, try to convince them, and once all hell breaks loose we swoop in and clean up the stragglers..." Orochi sighed before continuing. "Right. Your plan sounds great except for one pretty major flaw. There are a lot, and I mean A LOT of goblins here. We'll be severely outnumbered and overpowered if they can call in assistance... Especially if that assistance includes the big one or Crispy. So then... what do you suggest we do if that happens oh great leader? Because if we stick around when that happens our second lives end here, and personally I'm not looking to get familiar with Death again."

@Zeroth@floodtalon@Gardevoiran@King Cosmos

Oberon followed after Mourningstar as she led their little group towards the bonfire, his mind still preoccupied with the results of his last bit of experimentation. The combination of Mana Shot and Shield hadn’t worked nearly how he had expected, but if anything the result was more interesting that what he had been trying to achieve; the ability to create a free standing forcefield, even just in the form of a spherical barrier, would be quite useful if he could turn it into a spell. He would have to try again later and see what he could come up with, plus he had more ideas on how to potentially improve his Mana Shot, not to mention working towards creating an improved healing spell and playing around more with the system messages and menus he had found earlier…

Oberon stopped just before running into the back of Digbie and looked up to find that the group had stopped for some reason. Ahead of them he could now see the flames of the bonfire first hand, though he had seen its illumination from his crevice even if he didn’t know what it was. According to Mourningstar it was a place of congregation for a number of the monsters that dwelled in the cave, making it an ideal place to find others and a questionable place to hunt.

Currently, Mourningstar was hovering in front of them while waving a mana crystal in front of her like a baton, or at least that’s what he thought she was doing, and laying out her plan of action. As he’d kind of feared and expected, the plan wasn’t exactly awe inspiring and the whole thing gave Oberon pause for concern. In the Wisps defence there wasn’t necessarily anything wrong with the plan, finding any other people from Earth and having backup waiting in the wings should anything go wrong, but the execution seemed overly ambitious, rushed and presumptuous. Luckily she was asking for their input, though he wasn’t sure how well she would take it.

As he thought about what he was going to say Oberon cast a shield spell on Mourningstar as instructed. Casting the spell in addition to his earlier efforts depleted his mana reserves, prompting a system message to appear, so he popped one of the mana crystals he was holding to replenish his MP.

As he did so Orochi stepped forward and raised a valid point about the number of Goblins around the bonfire, which was one of the main concerns he himself had, because it didn’t sound like Mourningstar was taking that into account.

“Yeah, ok. I have several things to add to that. Firstly, are you sure you want to go out there alone? I could go with you; I could back you up, add another voice to your speech. It might help to show whoever's down there that you aren’t alone; both so that people don’t think it’s just you they are joining up with and also to deter anyone from attacking you.” Also, he didn’t want to say it but the Wisp didn’t exactly give the best first impression. If she was going to try and ‘recruit’ people in her usual grand fashion it could do more harm than good.

With his mana replenished Oberon turned and also cast a Shield on Digbie and Orochi; hopefully they wouldn’t need it but it wouldn’t hurt to make sure everyone was protected. He began to cast a Shield on himself as well, only to hesitate as he remembered his newly upgraded Magic Analysis skill; as he cast a Shield around himself he made sure to look down as he pressed a hand to his chest, trying to observe the way the mana behaved as the spell activated.

“Before we do anything though, I think we should take a look and see just how many Goblins or other monsters are around the bonfire. If there are too many we should just forget about this whole plan. We might be smarter than the average monster around here and maybe stronger as well, but let’s not get too overconfident.”

@Zeroth@floodtalon@CriticalHit@Gardevoiran

@Rune_Alchemist@CollectorOfMyst
”No offense taken Scott. Though personally I think I’ve never looked better. Finally I can pass through an Airport security checkpoint without being harassed.” Naji joked weakly, rolling over quickly and hitching a ride on Ash’s tail. It was...not the most dignified way to travel, and it was more him being dragged along by the much larger creature than a proper mount. But it beat walking and he was pretty sure if he started flying, he’d start draining HP very quickly.

”And as much as I wish otherwise, I’m afraid our new scaled friend is right. I can speak from experience that not a lot of critters walk around this section of the cave. If we think of this cave like a city, this is probably the ghetto of sorts. Not a lot of resources. “ He readjusts himself on the tail, sitting up a little more so his face no longer had the stunning view of the dirt. He leans over to the other Pixie, whispering quietly. “And as it stands, our choices are limited. Ash has me pretty much entirely by the short hairs until she thinks it not worth it to keep me around.”

He coughs a little, running through his options before Ash came to...whatever she was looking for. A fight right now would be bad for him, though thankfully Ash seemed aware of that and had given the two pixies permission to stay out of the brawl. He thinks for a moment before pipping up again. ”Tenative plan here, but let us know before you move to fight the critters Ash.” He says as clearly as possible with his current level of energy. ” I’ll hang back with Scott who should hopefully be able to keep moving around the brawl with me in tow. That healing stone should keep you juiced in an emergency, but just in case it’s probably a good idea if Scott keeps a shield spell handy if things go really south. I’ll keep a heal ready as a last resort, but neither of you should count on that happening.” Though he didn’t say it, he was somewhat hoping it might go a little poorly. If only so he could see how a shield spell was performed before needing to teach Ash. No reason to discover things for yourself if you could get others to do it for you, right?

Mourningstar listened to Oberon and Orochi thoughtfully, doing her best impression of a nod as she continued to life the Mana Crystal up and down. It definitely would be a problem if there were just way too many goblins for them to handle. Mourningstar might be relying a little too much on some of the monsters being willing to betray their boss at a moment's notice just because they were summoned by the Demon Lord himself. "Hmm. I don't object to you coming with me Oberon but... if things do go wrong they'll be gunning for you first. Always attack the healer first, it's the most basic RPG rule." She did her best impression of a nod as she continued to think about what to do if there were just too many monsters to handle."And as for being outnumbered... hmm..." Mourningstar seemed deep in thought as she ran through all the possible scenarios that could beat superior numbers, finally settling on the best course of action with a devious grin.

"Alright, here's the plan. If we are faced with overwhelming forces and the fools dare to reject our offer then..." She let the tension build as she looked at Digbie, then Orochi, then settling on Oberon with a wide smile as she did her best nod once more and chuckled deviously. "Then we'll run away!" She said in a light and cheerful voice as her devious grin turned into a sheepish smile. She coughed lightly and nodded, shifting back into the deeper tone as she continued. "If we're clearly outnumbered then obviously we're not going to stick around. Dying once was enough for me." Suddenly Mourningstar's eyes flicked towards the bonfire as she heard the telltale sound of a Lizard spitting something at high speeds. "If you have anymore objections then you might want to make them snappy, because I think a battle is brewing as we speak."

Exploring Near Crystals and Cave Walls (D2)
@SilverPaw@Jobst

---

With Xiao Mei’s urging, Mother Rat seemed to realize her offspring wanted her to follow them. When she saw the smaller rats trying to drag off the lizard corpses, she assisted by picking one of them up all by herself. Their mother led the way, back to their original nest--this place was covered with her territorial scents, and given what they had seen of the cave so far it was likely that the mother had fought tooth and nail to secure this place before giving birth. It didn’t look or smell like any other creatures had been here recently. It also didn’t seem like any of their other siblings had returned yet...would they? Had they struck out on their own as matured Dire Rats? Or had something happened to them?

With the lizard corpses, the group had plenty to eat but not quite so much room to sleep. Still, Mother Rat didn’t seem to mind, and after eating her fill turned three circles before practically laying on top of Xiao Mei and Asteria, just like she had before they had grown.

They hadn’t seen any sign of Ed again yet. Or those Wisps they had so treacherously attacked. Would they ever meet again? What else awaited them in this cave?

Those were questions to be answered, perhaps, on another day…

[[Time-skip to D2. You awaken at the dawning.]]

---

Battle Royale (D1)
@Searat

---

As Ed tried to wait out his opponent, the Slime continued to suffer from the poison inside it. It moved warily as if it, too, was waiting for Ed to attack first. But when he didn’t, and as it grew weaker and weaker, the other monster grew desperate. Finally it lunged--but before its bulbous mass made contact, it split down the middle! Molding its body awkwardly, it managed to basically shape itself like a horse shoe, with globby “fists” without fingers coming at Ed from both sides to try and crush him…!

---

On The Trail (D2)
@Kazemitsu@ShwiggityShwah

---

Edith crawled up on the ledge and formed a pseudopod and tried to touch the slime. She tried to think really loudly, but ended up just talking.

"Ahem. Me Friend. Noise Happy. Small me happy big me. Small me become big me?" hoping that might get them somewhere.

Agree. came the blue slime’s sentiment, just as Asura was coming up on the other side. Its body wobbled, then suddenly loomed up and came down over Edith like a dome. And the edges where the pink slime and blue slime touched each other began to blend into a light shade of violet--

His thoughts were silent but it was a simple touch. Even as a human displays of affection came hard. This being had spawned him and didn't seem to mean any harm to the pair of slimes. He also didn't have a clue on how to transfer thoughts through his limbs.

Asura didn’t really think about it, because for more sapient creatures it just comes naturally, but the simple fact was that he WAS thinking.

So that was how slimes were supposed to talk, through touch and thought? I guess that she was saying I was familiar, something about being big then being small. Maybe slimes breed by getting big then shedding excess and undesired mass?

This is just a simple touch. Even in my old life, I wasn’t good at showing affection. This thing spawned me, and it doesn’t seem to mean any harm to us. But I have no idea how to transfer thoughts through my limbs.

And of course, there was no doubt Edith was still thinking something of her own. Likely something involving extreme fear at the prospect of being absorbed and assimilated by the much larger, stronger slime…

TOO MUCH SMALL ME HURT ME WHY HOW FEEL TOO MUCH FEEL--MANY FEEL--SO MANY--YOU--I--DIFFERENT

The blue slime split itself away from Edith of its own accord, drawing back as if it had been hurt. For a moment it shook itself, then finally settled into a sort of heavy breathing, its mass rising and falling in rhythm, but it now seemed to regard the two smaller slimes with some heretofore unknown sentiment, even to itself...

---

The Pool (D1)
@Bishop@Duthguy

---

As Danny found his way back to a safe crevice, he had probably already realized that this was going to be a dangerous, unforgiving world. And unlike many of the other Damned Heroes, he had seen one former human try to kill another. As if it were no better than the other monsters. As if they too were simply beasts ruled by instincts. Or maybe that human had meant it. Maybe they were just a murderer. And maybe that was somehow worse than these creatures that killed just because they had to eat and fight for territory.

Would these thoughts haunt his dreams? He wouldn’t know until the next morning…

[[Time-skip to D2. Awaken in the dawn.]]

Meanwhile, as Lorek sulked about, the same pixie that had attacked Danny earlier seemed to have decided to come back for something. Perhaps water, perhaps the herbs, but nonetheless it saw Lorek, floating all alone. Mistaking the Wisp for the same one that had crashed into it earlier, it decided it would show them a lesson this time! Taking aim and drawing its body back, complete with a slight butt wiggle, it then launched itself into a dive bomb at Lorek, its tiny fists clenched tight...

---

The Hole in the Wall (D2)
@Guy0fV4lor

---

As Jason went about his various tasks, he would find that the herbs nearest to the green crystal seemed to respond almost immediately after being planted and watered--their leaves grew out just another few centimeters, and began to swell where they had looked a little dried out before. None of his crop was full grown yet, but it was clear that the proximity to the larger crystal was having some sort of effect. A similar, but noticeably lesser effect, took place on any herbs that happened to be closer to a regular Mana Crystal--though this also had the effect of dimming the crystal’s light.

Observing the green crystal had much the same result as last time. Even the mental pain seemed about the same--that is, excruciating--despite Jason’s attempt to brace himself. He wasn’t out of it quite as long this time, though.

As he went down to the pond, continuously switching off between using Tremor Sense and practicing what he assumed would be the Aqua Sphere spell, he soon received a message.

You have run out of MP.
You are running low on Stamina.
You are experiencing a fast rate of Skill Progression.

Trying to keep tremor sense on passively seemed to be a massive effort on his part, especially if he tried to do it at the same time as he was practicing with the water. Using the vibration sensing skill in shorter bursts seemed like it had been more efficient. But now he would either have to rest or use up another one of his crystals…

Before he could make that decision, however…

Over a sloping rock nearby, a group of monsters suddenly came running! They must have been out of Jason’s Tremor Sense range at first, and since he had run out of MP he hadn’t picked them up as they crossed the distance. But at first it didn’t seem like they were targeting him specifically--it was a Wisp, bloodied and weaving in panicked zig zags, flying away from a Slime in hot pursuit. The slime’s low speed, however, and the fact that several dark colored spots on its body implied injuries, meant that it too must have been prey for something. And indeed, seconds later a Fanged Lizard appeared over the rise, spitting poison at the Slime though it missed every shot. And moving at a similar speed several feet above the lizard, a second Wisp seemed concerned for the first one’s safety, as it seemed to be straining to catch up to the Slime before the Lizard did...

---

Flame of Chaos (D2)
@Old Amsterdam@Lucius Cypher@King Cosmos@CriticalHit@Gardevoiran@floodtalon@ReusableSword

---

“Could eat dem, I guess. If you just crush in hand, though, they sinks into skin. Sometimes I sniff, cause it makes my head feels tingly.” Crispy answered Orchid. As she attempted to cast fire, with of course no results, the other Goblin shook his head. “Ya gots to think about fire harder den dat! Fire hot! Fire eat wood, eat air! Fire like living thing, needs to move!”

As he waved his hands in yet another demonstration, however, something nearby made a phlegmy sound. And as Crispy looked towards it, a large purple glob splattered all over him.

“GYARGH!” he screeched, rubbing at himself with both hands to try and get the poison off. Steam rose from his skin as it burned him--Rain had done it! But it looked like even though she had managed to damage him this time, he hadn’t been infected with her poison. He still looked fairly healthy save for the new, non-fiery burns on his chest--and quite angry as well.

“Youngling! All you gobs! Kill dat lizard!” Crispy pointed his torch at Rain, and the other three goblins--the only ones left since all the miners had been sent to help Rattleskull and the Boss had taken many others with him to hunt and gather wood--the other three goblins grabbed up their sticks and rocks and began to head in Rain’s direction menacingly. Crispy looked at Orchid in expectation.

Mourningstar, Oberon, Orochi, and Digbie would see all of this commotion as they approached--but as Digbie used his new, active form of Tremor Sense, he felt light, pitter patter vibrations coming their way. Then they stopped as his tremor sense rebounded back to him. Before he could send out another pulse, however, a large and aggressive looking Dire Rat came running out of a rocky outcrop, darting directly towards the goblin’s ankles with fangs bared! It had felt the tremor sense pulse traveling through the ground from this direction, and must have taken it as an attack by Digbie. Thinking such an attack to be unsuccessful, it had turned its fangs upon the goblin, not realizing yet that he had companions with him.

One of those companions, however, might be a little distracted at the moment.

Your extensive use of a skill has granted you Skill Rank Up!
Shield I > Shield II!
As an Active Spell Skill, you may choose to cast I or II. You have enough MP to cast the first rank 3 times before you run out, the second can only be cast twice with some MP left over.

You used Magic Analysis II!
--Shield II--
This defensive spell increases the target’s natural defenses through supernatural means. Skin and bone are not hardened, resistances are not increased, but they will take less damage. At Rank II, this spell will last for 1 minute if it is not broken by a stronger attack. You can cast this spell twice and have leftover MP, but not enough to cast your other spells yet.
--Analysis Complete--

LEVEL UP!
Your experiences have culminated into new power! You gain MP! You gain Skill Points to spend as you like!

Unspent Skill Points:
5

Current Skills:
Minor Heal I (1.5)
Lesser Flight I (1.3)
Shield II (2.1)
Magic Analysis II (2.05)
Mana Orb I (1.1)
<UNUSABLE> Meditation (0.2) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Mana Shape (0.2) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Focus (0.2) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Lesser Status Heal (0.3) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Monster Analysis (0.1) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Material Analysis (0.1) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Plant Analysis (0.1) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Mental Resistance (0.2) <UNUSABLE>
<UNUSABLE> Wall (0.1) <UNUSABLE>

With MP gain, you can now cast Minor Heal I (3) times max. You can now cast Shield I (3) times max. You can now cast Mana Orb (3) times max. You can now cast Shield II (2) times max. Your MP is currently not full.

And from high above, Ardur could see both of these groups as their battles began, and the area around the bonfire became a tumultuous, chaotic storm...

[[For Oberon, "1 Minute" is roughly 2 posts when in a "action reaction" kind of battle, as I usually consider players to take all their actions in about 30 seconds. So a cycle of "you post, I post, you post" would be the duration with a second post from me ending the spell at the beginning of that "turn."]]

---

On the Hunt (D2)
@Kangutso

---

As Reoth bit down on the Pixie, a crunch that was either satisfying or horrifying met his ears. He felt the creature’s skull give way beneath those saber like fangs of his, and a moment later its warm blood gushed over his lips. He had successfully hunted his first creature! But how did it feel to kill something? How had he known this creature wasn’t like himself, a reincarnated human being? Had he heard its human-like crying, seen the tears on its face just before his jaws came down?

---

Nearby the Pool
@Rune_Alchemist@ghastlyInc@CollectorOfMyst

---

As Ash led her new companions in search of food, they soon found it. Or at least, what could possibly be it, if they had the courage to take on such a challenge: Two goblins walked through the cave, apparently either shirking work or having been sent by Crispy or Rattleskull on some mission of their own. But the oddest thing was that one of these goblins was holding a strip of rawhide or something similar--and at the other end of this makeshift lease was a Fanged Lizard. It didn’t exactly look happy--but then again, how many lizards besides Ash and her little bunch could probably show real emotion?

Only one of the goblins seemed to be carrying a weapon, a simple blunt rock. The other had his hands full with his “pet,” if you could really call it that...

@Zeroth

It was a stalemate between the young dire rat and the poisoned slime. The moments that passed, felt like hours as both of them waited and anticipated the other to attack. Ed had the advantage of time; something the slime did not. The stalemate was soon broken by the desperate slime, hoping to kill the dire rat before the poison did. It lunged at Ed in the shape of a malformed and awkward curve, much like a horse shoe. Time slowed to barely a snail's pace in Ed's perspective. This was it. The mistake he was waiting the slime to make. His only opportunity to end this fight.
Ed's brain instantly fired millions of signals that his body was well and ready to receive. Ed swore that he felt every sinew, every single muscle fiber, in his body react to the sudden assault. One second Ed was still on the cave floor, about to be crushed by the slime's attack. In the next he had jumped backwards and was a half-meter away from his original position; watching the slime's attack fail. The slime's desperate attack missed and now it was Edward's turn to act. He could feel the adrenaline running through his system mix with anger once again as he closed the distance in a blink of an eye. He was upon the weakened slime; teeth and claws at the ready with eyes filled with grim determination to end the slime's life then and there.

---

@Zeroth
As Jason continued to practice near the pool, he received another one of the notifications he had grown to both love and hate.

You have run out of MP.
You are running low on Stamina.
You are experiencing a fast rate of Skill Progression.

Apparently constantly running [Tremor Sense I] while trying to figure out Aqua Orb was quite taxing. Just as Jason was about to consume a mana crystal, a group of monsters suddenly came running! A Wisp, bloodied and weaving in panicked zig zags, flying away from a Slime in hot pursuit. The slime’s low speed, however, and the fact that several dark colored spots on its body implied injuries, meant that it too must have been prey for something. Indeed, seconds later a Fanged Lizard appeared over the rise, spitting poison at the Slime though it missed every shot. Several feet above the lizard, a second Wisp seemed concerned for the first one’s safety, as it seemed to be straining to catch up to the Slime before the Lizard did.

Deep down, Jason smiled; what a fortuitous situation indeed...

Carefully noting the lizard's speed, he consumed the first of his two crystals before summoning a [Rock Spire I] out of the ground at a 45 degree angle. If his timing right, the spire would come out just in time for the lizard's speed to get it impaled deeply through the gut, and turned into what would be little more than a sitting duck.

Next, waiting for the injured wisp to get within range, Jason quickly lunged up and attempted to spike it into the ground. Then turning his attention to the second wisp, he spat a ball of bile at the flying puff (empowered with whatever mana he had left), and consumed his second crystal, ready to dodge any retaliatory attack from the cheeky little shit.

Orchid pouted seeing that she couldn't summon any fire yet. She knew it wasn't going to be easy, but she wished it would come faster. She didn't know how much time she'd have before she'll need it. And soon she needed it. Something came out and struck Crispy right in the chest: Orchid recognized it as lizard poison. She saw the other goblins going to attack something and Crispy looked at her expectantly. She didn't want to fight so soon, and the trauma of her fight with the goblins was coming back to her mind. She blood, the screaming, it was horrifying. But she couldn't let a single moment of weakness show itself. She clenched her teeth and looked at the bonfire. "I.... I am the strongest!"

Orchid grabbed her sword and a torch. She held the torch aloft in front of her, partially to illuminate her path, but mainly to use as an impromptu shield in case the lizard was going to shoot more poison her way. Once Orchid was close enough to see the target who attacked, she used her skill Monster Analysis on it. It just happened instinctively. Orchid also started barking orders at the other goblins despite being younger and smaller than them; her giant spiky sword and the fire from her torch hopefully would make her appear more intimidating. "You three! Run behind her! Make sure she don't run away! Watch for bite, they hurt! Protect with your sticks!" Orchid shouted as she would try and charge the lizard, mainly staying on the defensive until she can reach her with either her sword or her torch.



@Zeroth@Old Amsterdam

@Zeroth @Rune_Alchemist @ghastlyInc

As he had expected Danny's sleep was plagued by nightmares. Goblins the size of cave walls threw boulders at him, he watched as several thousand rats attacked a single other Wisp which he knew to be a former human as well. When he finally woke up, he wanted nothing more than to stay in the safety of his hole but he knew that wasn't an option. Not only did he need food and water he had to get stronger as well, and that last part meant that at least for now he needed alleys despite knowing that not all former humans were willing to work together.

After looking outside to see if it was safe he flew out of his hole and wondered what to do first. Eventually nature made the decision for him as he started getting hungry. The only edible thing he knew about were the healing herbs so he headed for the pool. Rather than simply flying full speed he stick to a relatively low tempo and paid careful attention to his surroundings, but he still arrived before too long. He wasn't sure but it seemed like there were more herbs than yesterday. Choosing to believe his idea of leaving the seeds behind was responsible he did it again after pulling out a full grown herb with lesser force.

Done with breakfast he was about to ga back to the crystals and top off his mana when he saw something that caught his attention, namely two Goblins. Despite his worries about being able to take them both on, he felt he had to at least make sure that they weren't gonna mine the mana crystals again. Trailing a good distance behind he quickly noticed something else that had at least had the promise of good news, a lizard hanging out with two pixies. Almost certain that those three had to be former humans he kept an eye on them instead of the Goblins. But since he didn't know if the humanoid had seen them as well and he neither wanted to give them away or reveal himself by approaching them he kept his distance from both groups.

@CollectorOfMyst

---

---

Asteria watched as Mei attempted to communicate with their Mother. The larger female Dire rat actually understood, grabbed a lizard and proceeded to drag it on her own back to their nest. Asteria frowned as she realized they’d be going to a different location than she had assumed, but trusted their Mother enough that she was willing to follow. She sunk her teeth into the arm of the other lizard, waited for Mei to grab onto it as well, and then proceeded to drag it to their birth-place in this world, straining slightly with the cargo even though she had the help of her sibling.

Mother really was strong. And because that was the case, Asteria wasn’t as worried about having to cover their tracks any longer; something she had realized would have been hard to do anyway, what with the distinctive smell of Dire rats. If a night-time predator wanted to find a meal, they could happen upon them easily enough, and all Asteria could do was trust both her Mother’s sense and her own sharp perceptions in case of an ambush during their sleep.

Once they all finally arrived back to their nest, Asteria exhaustedly curled into a ball and fell asleep. She vaguely felt the familiar warmth of her Dire rat family before a deep and restful sleep overtook her completely.

Asteria woke up the next day when the few sun rays managed to make their way into the cave, brightly announcing the continuation of this new life of hers. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes with her front paws, and a short yawn brought her to full wakefulness – and to a hunger which was strange in its intensity considering she had eaten shortly before sleeping the previous night. Thankfully, the two lizard corpses were still in the nest. They had a stench more awful than ever before, but nonetheless, the sight of what her rat brain interpreted as food caused her to salivate. She really hoped she was much more disease-resistant now than she had been as a human. As far as she knew, rats were sturdy, and being a “monster-type” probably had some additional benefits too.

After that short deliberation, she approached one of the dead lizards and began eating. But she did not randomly bite into it. No, this time, she carefully tore the meat from its forearms, intent on exposing the two long thin bones underneath without damaging them. As morbid as the idea might be, she had remembered something about cavemen or such making weapons and tools from bones the previous night. She didn’t yet know how she would make or use any such thing as a rat, but she was determined to try. With a vague plan in mind, she removed the two long thin bones first from one forearm and then another set from the other. She inspected the four bones; they seemed brittle to her, but thankfully not too damaged. Asteria suspected they would hold together for the duration of her experimentation at the very least. She took a bone between her paws, holding it slightly awkwardly, and proceeded to sharpen one end against her teeth.

She continued with the task until she had four sharpened pieces of bone, which all resembled a needle or with some imagination, a weapon such as a spear-head or a dagger. She picked them all up, wandered to the farthest corner of the nest, and set the bones on the ground. Then, feeling quite embarrassed at what she was about to do, she picked one bone between her paws, grabbing its blunt side with the sharp end pointed forward. She stood up on her hind legs, giving a shaky attempt at bipedality, and kept a precarious balance with the help of her tail.

She gave a cautious sweep to her surroundings; she didn’t want to get caught by an enemy when trying out something so…untested. Satisfied that she was relatively safe, she swung her make-shift weapon in what might one day be called an attack, if she refined it. She mostly used stabbing motions, since that’s what the bone seemed most suited to. Not too long after, Asteria felt tired from the practice and dropped back to her fours. The last thing she wanted to do was accidentally stab herself to death while endeavouring to develop a skill or two on her own. She hoped she’d see some sign that what she had done had worked or at least had some sort of an effect. For now, she looked back to her nest to see if her sister and Mother had awakened as well, observing what they intended to do this day. Maybe she could convince Mei to spend some time “training” as it were.

@Jobst

Although surprised, Mei was pleased with the response given by their Mother. Even if she was unable to converse with them, it was clear that she was capable of understanding her offspring's intentions. Whether it was through gestures, uttered words, or just purely instinctual, Mei wasn't certain, but for now, her plans for their Mother to learn how to speak still existed.

With lizards in tow and their mother leading the way, they proceeded to return to their den. Mei felt relatively secure knowing that with them was probably one of the cave's more experienced creatures. With that in mind, instead of paying attention to the growing strain on her neck from carrying what would be their meal later on, Mei couldn't help but notice their Mother's battered and bruised physique. She wanted to get to know her more; maybe with some observation and analysis, Mei could get come to some informative conclusions.

She was clearly larger than both Mei and Asteria by what what looked to be more than twice their size. "So far, we've only had lizards and eggs. If her size was due to some special diet, she would have been searching for it instead of lizard nests. Her size might be typical for rats given they survive long enough."

Her claws and fangs, despite still being sharp and pointed, possessed a more noticable coat of yellow in comparison to theirs that still appeared whitish in color; this served as another possible sign of her age.

Mei's attention then turned to the scars scattered and exposed around her body. They varied in contour, some appearing more linear, while others were either small and confined or large and with erratic borders. These were clear indications of the number of skirmishes she's been involved in. "Mother was quick on her feet and was by far the most agile creature we've seen so far. It was unlikely that most of those wounds were sustained in a single fight. She's obviously been through a lot."

Directing her head and body sidewards, dragging the dead lizard grasped by her fangs and forcing Asteria to do the same, Mei caught a glimpse of their mother's foreleg. It was the area bitten by the mother lizard they had faced before. She could see the puncture wounds that were left; they had already stopped bleeding for quite a while now. Squinting her eyes, Mei noticed that the bite wound wasn't as deep or large as she thought. It was surprising to her since the lizard that was responsible for it was a large one.

"It wasn't obvious due to her fur, but mother's skin and muscles might be tougher than it looks." Mei continued to contemplate such thoughts in silence. Until they had finally reache their home.

Joining her sister, Mei released the tension across her body allowed the fatigue to take over as she drifted away into what would be a good night's sleep.

---

Full of vigor and a day's worth of energy, Mei awoke to Asteria swinging around...a sharpened bone? "She just made a weapon, didn't she?" The young dire rat asked herself in disbelief but before she could address this, rumbling sounds had echoed from her bowels. Approaching one of the lizard carcasses, Mei found her ravenous appetite and tolerance for rancid, foul-smelling odors, incredibly strange. This was definitely associated to her race, but whether she appreaciated this or not was still questionable.

As she picked through reptilian meat, Mei recalled their ability to produce poisons. Given the dead body in front of her, it was the best time to actually pick it appart and see up close the physical characteristics of the fanged lizard. The things that come to Mei's mind were where the scaliest and softer parts were along with the location of their poison-producing glands. Hopefully she'd be able to identify these and gain more incidental information than what he sought for.



@SilverPaw

@CollectorOfMyst@ghastlyInc@Zeroth - Goblin hunting

---

Annnd she was being used as a horse again.

Ash shot a brief glare over to Naji, though ended up not saying anything. He probably needed to conserve his energy and if he was going to be useful to her, then she needed him alive...so she could play nice.

"Well, lets hope you don't become expendable then?" She replied to Naji with a light chuckle. Naji went on to form a tentative plan that wasn't too different from her own. The plan might need to change a bit depending on whatever it is they found. If she did end up finding some other fanged lizards, she might need to have them attempt some sort of magic that could heal or resist paralysis. It seemed though, they didn't have to wait for long. She picked up the familiar scent of a particular green skinned annoyances, mixed lightly with one that smelled lightly of lizard.

Quietly moving towards the scents, she easily found her targets. Two goblins...and one having a fanged lizard as a pet. Oh, what manner of good luck was this? She would have grinned, had her lizard face been capable of it. Her previous encounters with goblins hadn't been too difficult, so this should be easy, especially after last night.

"Hope you two don't ind eating Goblin." She quietly told them, narrowing her eyes at the Goblins from her lower position. "They actually don't taste half bad." She mused, moving quietly along the ground to keep up with them. "Alright, here's the plan. I'm going to sneak up on the one who has a weapon, take him out first, or at least paralyze him while I take care of the other. Scott - run interference if you want." She said, looking to the other Pixie. "Don't have to attack, just distract them from hitting me if you think it's necessary." Turning back to the other Pixie. "Naji, just try not to die."

Hopefully they would stick to the plan. If not, well, that'd just make it harder, but she was certain she could handle it on her own regardless. The healing stone was something that'd be incredibly useful here, even if it wasn't that strong. She waited for them to pass, and when they did she darted out of their hiding spot, sinking her fangs into the ankles of the goblin that had the blunt rock before forcefully pulling her fangs out, likely taking a good chunk of flesh with it. Next, she'd fill her gullet with venom and turn to the second one, launching a three blasts of Venom shot in his direction. Hopefully he wouldn't have enough time to react quickly enough to her little ambush.