"You might have a point, I'm gonna try it." Danny didn't even try to hide the fact he was uncomfortable but what Jason said did make some sense. Hoping the kid would believe him, even with the Poltergeists' reputation as prankster he started speaking aloud.

"Also we were tracking some Goblins and noticed them gearing up for a raid and thought we should warn you. I had hoped to win your trust before revealing myself since my species apparently loves to pull pranks." As soon as he had said all that Danny slowly walked out of the shadows, hands still up in the air and hoping he was blocking the human's view of the equipment lying behind him.

---

---

Who'd have thought these light wraps were so cumbersome? Asteria thought as she followed Ed back to the burrow, mother rat tagging alongside. She also wasn’t entirely certain what to think of the humans, but at least they’d let Ed go, despite thinking he may be a ‘Deviant’, whatever that was. They’d also mentioned them being ‘a sign of the Spirits’ and she wondered if that was just a religious or common saying, with the spirits being the equivalent of what people would either term fate or gods back on earth. Of course, they could also have been referring to a mythologically indicated event or an actual existing spiritual being that odd things were correlated with…One couldn’t dismiss even the most outrageously fantastical explanations, in this world.

Once at the burrow, Asteria removed the arm wraps, and coaxed them onto Mother rat. Peripherally, she observed Ed taking his part of the loot. “That might be too heavy for you,” she warned. “These were for me, so I’m passing them off to mother for now. I wouldn’t mind building more strength, but I’m not willing to risk my speed for it.” She waited for the Ratman to take his pick, then turned to gaze at the remaining items. “Ooh, you left the metal knife for me? That’s great, though it may be more useful as a utility item rather than a weapon…” she trailed off, and took the knife into her paws, swinging it around a few times, taking care not to spook or worse, injure her companions. It definitely seemed more of a slashing weapon, so she doubted if she could pierce enemies with it the way she had with that stinger. If it didn’t turn out to be too unwieldy, she’d try it out at the very least.

Asteria also took a vine belt, the bone necklace and the rabbit skull staff. She’d store the staff among their other items until she regained her mana and was able to examine it. The bone necklace was stored as well, as it did not seem to have any immediate practical uses. Asteria was fairly sure the necklace was simply a decorative piece, though perhaps it did channel magical energies, which she could find out later. As for the belt, she used it to tie the knife to her tail, its handle secured to the end of her appendage while its blade protruded as an artificial extension from it. She gazed with extreme doubt at her newly wrapped and armed tail, slowly moving it around. If the knife and/or vine belt were too unwieldy, she’d store them too.

“Hey, before we leave, there’s this gnome here that I talked to before we dealt with the bandits, though I think you missed it. It’s willing to make, though I can only guess what it wants as payment. I’d say we could try bribing it with food, because…Well, some gold coin appeared this morning next to where I burned food last night,” she shrugged, slightly embarrassed at not having more evidence to back her claim. But really, while the gnome had said that it definitely did not want blood or dead humans, it had made no mention of what could entice it. “Though it did say the ‘offering’ was the only reason it didn’t eject a non-human from that second room…” she confessed. “In any case, if you feel like trying to offer it something more, we could try that. But I’m also fine with just leaving and carting all these things towards that lakeside city,” she concluded.

---

"Definitely not a garden gnome," she shook her head, amused. "It doesn't want blood or raw corpses," Asteria shrugged in response to Ed. "I'll see what I can do," she replied, somewhat cheerful now that she was once again relatively safe and unbothered. Then, she found the remaining two vine belts and began experimenting with knotting them together in the most effective manner, setting out to create something that could work as a sling.

---

Torrent watched carefully as the battle continued, her interference nearly giving the goat creature a chance to really turn the tide of this fight, but it wasn't quite enough. Simply put, the creature was outnumbered and the goblins were crafty with their weapons.

There just wasn't enough that she could do to help the creature kill them with her abilities as they stood. Sure, she could try talking to the goblins again and distract them, but she couldn't guarantee that would work. And her earth manipulation abilities just weren't cutting it.

And she was pretty sure her friends had decided to try and trick the goblins into killing themselves on this beast. She couldn't think of any other reason for this charade. They didn't have anything else to gain by weakening the goblins.

Keeping her stealth skills active, Torrent focused on trying to remain completely unnoticeable as she crept forward towards the edge of the brush on top of the small knoll. Scale shift and Muffle would help massively here, and she actively tried to suppress any sound that she might produce.

Once in position she waited, watching, for a goblin to be separated slightly from the others near her and the goat to be busy with another target. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, she darted out from the brush to clamp her fangs around a goblin's neck from behind. As she bit, she blew out a torrent of Wyrm Breath between her jaws as she shook her head violently.

@Stabby @Zeroth

Femus was glad that Nira was so intelligent and could come to decisions quickly. It made many things easier. He was also glad that she was continuing her own skill development and making progress. He was less glad that she suddenly started developing a speech impediment and began hiding behind foliage like an embarrassed teenage girl who was just caught with something inappropriate by an authority figure. Trying to hide behind leaves just makes a person want to look for what's being hidden.

Fortunately, Femus was intelligent as well. He was intelligent enough to only take a few long seconds to realize what Nira was hiding and why she was hiding it. Unfortunately, this realization made him feel remarkably stupid.

However, with the obvious next step in the conversation being dependent on his response, Femus was in the position to think for a little bit. This gave him the time to come to a decision that should solve several issues and foster the growth of their little partnership at the same time. But, explaining things to an embarrassed girl can be dangerous at best. Delivery is important.

He made himself roll slightly one way, just a little. It was a mimicry of a person cocking their head to one side. It didn't quite work as a glowing, floating, fuzz ball but it might help. Then, he decided to open his mouth.

"That reminds me. You're pretty unnecessarily exposed to attack right now. I don't really know much about making armor but... maybe I should hone my crafting skills by making you a dress first. It's going to take time though, and we're both hungry and thirsty. How would you feel about going foraging alone while I get started preparing materials for an outfit?"

Ardur The Mighty Hipixie

These fire fly's suck >>> Ambush! /// Adventuring day 5 // Evening / Location - Cave >> Old Goblin Camp

Ardur was satisfied with his hit too the wisp. It was somewhat strange to him to think that these undead were literally throwing their lives away just for the core. At least for now the fighting seemed to have stopped, Asura had taken care of the rat and the two wisps were taken care of. Mother slime didn’t look to happy about her placement but oh well. Steve seemed rather animated when he turned his attention to her. It looked like she was waiting for her next job when the Taming skill finally leveled up.

Taking a moment to ponder the skill and its explanation as the others talked. Hearing Trent talk more while the continued made him ponder more, “Well we didn’t know their names but knew something was there, at least I did. I hope you can forgive our blunt ignorance on such things, we are still learning.” Looking again to Steve as they traveled further into the cave, “don’t worry Steve, stick to the plan of using your web to slow enemy’s focus on rats pixies and skeletons.” He wasn’t entirely too sure how much the spider understood but hoped she at least wouldn’t waste her energy on wisps and slimes.

They soon found themselves in a familiar place. The old abandoned goblin camp marked only by scraps and ash were the fire once was. Ardur took this opportunity to fly a bit higher up to get a better view while the others were still getting to the center. He wasn’t too sure what he would learn while using Keen Sight I into the darkness but who knows maybe he will pick up dark vision or something.

It didn’t take long for things to start happening, a yell from Trent and a rather odd looking skeleton soon appeared in front of the group then ran off into the darkness. Ardur wasted little time to start using Monster analysis I on that skeleton, the one coming from the side, and the darker ooze coming up from the fire pit. From his aerial advantage he began calling out targets, “Skeleblin coming in from our left, Steve slow it down. Black ooze coming up from the fire pit towards Asura, be careful it could be the black slime that forced us out the last time. Don’t know where the bigger one went, unlikely that this is it. Ready yourselves for an ambush!”

Ardur had to admit that he wasn’t a tactical genius so the best he could do was give them accurate information regarding their opponents. Taking the opportunity before the fighting really started the high pixie dove back towards the group. He was hoping to use the added momentum from how height up he was to swoop down quickly and cast Shield I on both Asura and Trent then return to his flying position slightly above the group.

@Zeroth
@Kazemitsu

"Last time Miiba see glow-ball, Miiba scared. Glow-ball, rats, blobies, lizard things... attack other gobs Miiba ran from. Miiba seen what do, Miiba no like," Miiba said as she looked on for a moment more before hopping down from the window sill. When she saw Geir sitting down as if to start his stories once more, Miiba got excited and rushed for her spot, her little bed beside the fireplace, and snuggled on in. She wondered about what was outside still though. Despite Lear saying not to worry, she couldn't help but feel as if something was wrong. Miiba tried to push her worries aside however, and listen to Lear tell his tales. Miiba, even though the start was rough, felt like she was safe here, and that these people, most of them anyway, actually cared. If anyone were to help her find a way out of this, it would be them. But if she was stuck in this strange world forever, maybe this wouldn't be such a bad place to be.

@Zeroth@Stabby

Femus let out a sigh as Nira flew off. A brief pulse of pink mingled with yellow would have revealed how awkward those prior moments had been and how hard it was to repress that tension and sympathetic embarrassment... if another wisp had been watching. With Nira gone, however, Femus was quick to shake off his feelings. There was work to be done.

First on the list was to collect materials that he would need for the design taking shape in his head. Femus was no tailor or dressmaker but he knew what skins look like and clothes are supposed to do that same job... sorta. They have to be removable and not get in the way while protecting the body's sensitive and delicate parts as best they can.

So, for this project, he would need leaves. Specifically, he would prefer to have two leaves that were each big enough to make a one-piece bathing suit with plenty of material to spare. Failing that, he would need a set of leaves that he could 'tailor' together for the same result. Also, it would be better if the leaves had strong internal structure. It would make them easier to work with... kinda, as well as more resilient in general.

The leaves were readily available but without anything to bind them they would have little use. Femus set to work finding a weak piece of bark on the branch and pulling it off. It only needed to be big enough to allow him access to the inner bark underneath. Once he had the outer bark piece set aside, he began working at the inner bark, gathering some of it and separating it into fibers. The fibers would be braided into twine. Meant for clothing, it did not need to be strong enough for proper armor. But, the dress that he would make would become the basis for the armor that he was designing.

Braiding the fibers together with Lesser Force was both easier and harder than what he remembered of the braiding process. Riba, Femus' sister, had braided her hair whenever she had to work with the meat. She could braid her hair in just a few minutes because of how much practice she had. Her hair had hung all the way to her waist. It had caught the eye of more than one man in the neighborhood.

She cried when the officer ran his gloved fingers through her hair.

The twine of braided fibers dropped to land softly on the leafy branch as Femus began to tremble. His concentration fractured by the sudden surge of memory, grief, loss, rage, and hate. He had avenged his parents, his brother, and himself before his last life ended. But, he hadn't even been able to say goodbye to his sister. Now, he was much too far away to ever help her again, even if she still lived.

Pain, white and crackling, tore through his mind.

Femus sank until his body rested on the leaves, his light dimming to a faint and sullen red glow.

Rage, dull crimson and grey, flowed through his blood. It burned and grew, slowly and relentlessly pushing past his attempts to control it... to push it back down. He was losing. He reached for something, anything that might be able to hold it... to give him a place to cage it again. What he found with his grasping will... was his mana.

Pulling it out, Femus pushed and pulled. He sought to force the flowing pain and rage to leave him and enter the mana gathered in front of him. Searingly hot and cloyingly thick like lava but sickening like something diseased or corrupted beyond mere rot, his suffering did not readily obey him. But still he pushed, unrelentingly tenacious in his need to purge this uncontrollable sludge of wrath and vengeance out of his body and into the mana.

His eyes were shut, his mind turned inward and focused on his efforts. In this state, slowly, his control began to recover and he began to calm. When he was again in control, the suffering reduced to a deep and throbbing ache, he opened his eyes and took one look at the mana before him. Then he cast it at the forest floor, unable to bear looking at it anymore... this proof of his weakness and failure. Then he meditated, regulating the flow of his mana and gathering his strength until his mana was again replenished.

This was the only mercy he allowed himself.

The work still needed to be done. He again turned his attention to the twine, braiding it determinedly until he had enough for to reinforce the edges of the dress as well as the stitching that the back would need and the cord that would go around Nira's neck to keep the thing from exposing her without warning. He also made some extra, in case of mistakes.

With the twine ready, Femus put his emotional episode out of his mind for the moment and focused on finding the largest leaves he could find on the branch. Once he had a couple that were big enough, he began making a few necessary tears and then folding the first leaf into the form of the dress. It would be backless and short but it would let Nira move her wings, arms, and legs without obstruction. With the folds made and the corrections and adjustments done to the best of his ability, Femus took sap from the place where he gained the fibers for the twine and used it as a glue to secure the folded parts of the leaf and reinforce the structure of the dress. He also used sap to seal both ends of the braided fibers and resist fraying both there and along the length. It would become less sticky as it hardened and make the dress less flexible but it should also add to its strength. With this done, he began using all his concentration and focus to push small holes through the leaf dress so that he could thread the twine through it to further bind the folded lower edge of the skirt and neckline as well as the edge that would frame Nira's back and wings... whatever that was called. The final steps involved 'sewing' the skirt parts together in the back, where the folded edges overlapped each other, knotting and breaking the twine where it needed to be tied off, sealing the knots with sap, threading some of the remaining twine through the fold at the neckline like a drawstring and knotting it on either side of the neckline to keep it from slipping out with enough slack to allow Nira to tie the free ends behind her neck.

Femus's concentration had been extreme. If Nira returned before he finished, he probably wouldn't notice have noticed her... and if he had, he wouldn't have stopped to talk. This dress should suffice for modesty while providing just a little protection. It had also given Femus quite a few ideas for what to do next. But, there was one last bit of tidying up to do.

He had a growth skill. It wasn't ready to use but it was close. He didn't like the idea of leaving that hole in the bark. It seemed... rude, somehow. So, he drifted over to it and thought of his Growth skill in the making, the slow movement of mana and the healing and growth of plants as he gently... so very gently, began guiding his mana into the injured part of the tree. His only goal, to help it stop 'bleeding' and heal faster.

Asura gave off a loud snort. "It sounded to computerized to be a Maker or God." He stated as he began to actively digest the undead rat. None of its bones were really big or sturdy enough to be useful right now so those would get dissolved as well. What Trent kept describing though sounded like the System...which could technically be their god. But to him it made him think there was an Admin somewhere doing something. Good or bad, who knew. Bah, Ardur was too apologetic, probably to counter Asura's abrasiveness.

"So the ghost wisps are super weak, and unless they have a source of mana will be gone in a single day." Asura said, giving the others some knowledge. Assuming Trent didn't already know that. Ardur as well. Everyone by now had taken care of their opponents, Trent was surprised by how well it was working. "I can be a weapon, but a real weapon might be more useful..." He muttered, he didn't know if human made equipment had durability or not. It was steel or at least iron so it should be tough as hell.

They didn't get much further before they were attacked by more undead. Which was to be expected honestly. But the new skeleton was taller than the typical ones he had already seen. Another skeleton goblin came out of the tunnel he and Digbie had been making, the bigger one had come out of the trench. It seemed previous actions had consequences, such simple things as moving dirt. Trent had immediately retaliated, but had missed his magic. "Save your mana, there's no crystals." He said, preferring not to have to rely on potions. Assuming Trent would even share those. Probably expensive.

Ardur called out the current opponents and their locations. "Stay up high unless you see an opening, Ardur. Mother Slime, go for the smaller skele-blin. Trent, you have reach handle the big skellie." Asura stated as he bee-lined for the black slime. It was slow, stupidly slow compared to himself. Once he got close he made another pair of tendrils that were needle-line and shoved them into the black ooze. Once he had penetrated those needles expanded and grew curved spikes, which he proceeded to tear out of its body. While he attacked he kept an 'eye' on how the slime would move. Would it pummel? Or try to engulf?

---

Right, that wasn't going to work then.

Digbie did have an inkling of an idea, though. Maybe this magic wasn't the kind he was predicting would be offensive, at least, not with him in this sort of environment. Too dark to charge something with a holy light, perhaps? In any case, maybe if Digbie focused on something a bit more... workable. Maybe instead of using it to fight, maybe he could use it to defend. A holy shield might be a bit more up this alley than a Holy Mana Orb... or maybe even a Sacred Ground, considering the name.

He was lost in his thoughts, though, because when Torrent decided to start moving to try and obliterate one of the goblins herself, Digbie panicked. "Nonono Torrent! What're you doing! Just let them fi-grraraghhh!" His groan was accompanied by him lowering the wall blocking him and Oberon in so he could step out, looking around at the scene but taking mainly in the area where he felt Torrent the most.

Oh, they didn't make this an even fight? The goblins wouldn't actually take the corks off the horns of the ram while they attacked it with such bladed weapons? That was irritating! How dare they both not respect Digbie's wishes while also doing something so underhanded?!

Digbie's fist clenched, taking a moment to think before he spoke.

"You call that an even fight?!" Digbie shouted towards Rags and his gang, plus the ram over in the thick of things. Instinctively, the tattoos along his arms began to glow as he channeled a spell. "You have gimped this ram's horns to make the fight easier on you, choosing to let it be weaker than you five in order to survive and show it to me? Allow me to make this fight much more important if you are to earn my allegiance!"

Here goes nothing...

"With the power of my Patron, I declare this ground, SACRED!"

---

After a somewhat awkward conversation, Nira left the safety of the tree to go look for food while Femus tried to make use of what materials he had around him. The pixie headed away from their last hollow-tree house, presumably to keep the other pixies that were flitting about from noticing her. She kept an eye out for other monsters, but her main goal was edible plants.

In this part of the forest, the enormous tree she and Femus had taken shelter in kept many of the other plants in check. The trees weren't so thick, and brush didn't cover as much of the ground. In places where the sun made it through the canopy, many types of plants grew together to fight for the coveted light. As Nira passed over one such plot, she picked up a smell not unlike that of fresh vegetables, but also something a bit sour. There were two long, flowering plants here with blue and yellow blossoms, and the green buds on the stalk that had not yet bloomed were producing the sour-smelling sap. There were also a couple of shoots of some kind that reminded Nira of wild onions or scallions. Along with some plain grass, there were also four large reddish-purple ferns.

But as soon as the Pixie got close enough to check these various plants out and see if they were edible, something else emerged from the meadow! A burbling green blob of Slime lunged at her!

Back at the Great Kao, Femus began to try and strip the bark from one of the branches. It was quite hard to pull even a single layer off, and under that the woody surface was still tough. He only needed a small opening, deep enough to get to the inner fibers...but, as he peeled it away, a slight tremor passed through the branch. He hadn't felt any wind...but surely that was all it was? His own weight plus Nira's hadn't been enough to shake the branches thus far, though...

Setting the outer bark aside, he began to peel and twist some of the inner fibers into a thin cordage. Using Lesser Force to do all of this was quite difficult, as that Skill lacked the kind of fine motor control that a hand and fingers would have, but nonetheless he eventually got something like a workable string. However, the braided cord evoked an unpleasant memory, and for several moments Femus lost himself in the past...

Visualizing his twisted emotions and sordid memories with his magic, he "spat" more than cast his attempt at emotionally charged Mana at the forest floor. The roughly formed Mana Orb--which took on an unusual purple hue and gave off fumes that burned the nostrils--almost dissipated entirely before it struck the ground, leaving a singed patch of grass behind.

The newly-grown Wisp returned to his work, gathering a few leaves and attempting to fold and bind them in such a way that Nira could wear the roughspun result.

You obtained Great Kao Bark x1!
You obtained Bark Fiber x3!

You are attempting to Craft an Item. You have not yet developed the Crafting Skill, your Item's Quality will be reduced.

Bark Fiber + Bark Fiber + Bark Fiber
Your Crafting Method is advanced compared to your materials.
Your Crafting Method is more difficult due to your species' capabilities.
You are using excess Crafting Materials, your chances of success are increased.
Your Item's quality is boosted.
Your Item's difficulty is boosted.
Your Item's quality has degraded.

Obtained Item: Fiber Cord x1!

Skill Gain: Crafting I (0.9 > 1.0)!
Your knowledge and understanding of mechanics, workmanship, and other such things enable you to craft better items. The process of creating many items is still an unknown to you, but if you ever succeed in such a creation its Sub-Stat Enhancements will be higher than normal.

You obtained Large Leaves x3!
You used Crafting I!
Large Leaves x3 + Fiber Cord
Your Crafting Method is advanced compared to your materials.
Your Crafting Method is more difficult due to your species' capabilities.
Your Item's quality was prevented from degrading.

Obtained Item: Woven Leaf Dress x1! Its quality seems low...

In an attempt to lessen what damage he had to do to the great tree, the Wisp then tried to use his yet unformed Growth skill. He suspected its nature would somehow repair the plant based on its name. As he channeled Mana into the small gash he had made in the bark...he thought, for a few moments, that it began to glow a light green.

Another shudder passed through the branch.

---

Skill Rank Up: Telepathy II > Telepathy III (2.95 > 3.0)!
MP Consumption Increased. Thoughts can be "amplified," to the effect of shouting into the target's ear. Two-way communication is possible with a willing creature you have made contact with before, as long as they are within 10 feet, but MP Cost is increased per thought if the other party does not also have the Telepathy skill. One-way communication is possible with a willing creature you have made contact with before as long as they are within 20 feet. When making physical contact with a creature, if they are (1)unaware, (2)not resistant or protected, or (3)not too unintelligent, you may read a simplified version of one strong surface thought within the creature's mind. Creatures that are aware of this ability may be able to protect themselves or otherwise obscure their thoughts.

"Also we were tracking some Goblins and noticed them gearing up for a raid and thought we should warn you. I had hoped to win your trust before revealing myself since my species apparently loves to pull pranks." As soon as he had said all that Danny slowly walked out of the shadows, hands still up in the air.

"That little green bitch!" Geir practically snarled, his grip on the axe tightening to the point that Danny and Jason could hear the leather glove creak. "I'm gonna--wait." The human went stock still, so suddenly that the two reincarnators probably wondered if some other creature might have shown up. The young man's stance was like that of an animal judging its surroundings, after all...but his mind seemed to be working overtime.

"I knew we couldn't trust a damn talking Goblin...but these guys are talking monsters too...so why...?" He started muttering to himself, then looked sharply at Danny and covered his mouth with his other hand. After a few moments, he had composed himself and stood taller, still holding that axe in a ready position.

"I get it. You've been watching, haven't you!? You want me to go back in there and start something, get the Boss and the whole family up in a tizzy...Maybe so Miiba and that Pixie can escape back to your crew? Or maybe just to rile us all up, make us crazy or paranoid! I'm onto you, Demons!" For the first time he saw Danny in full view, and his upper lip curled as the light from Danny's body glinted softly.

"You're a Poltergeist!" The red head broke out into a wild grin. "But now I know you've gotta be a Demon, in disguise or something! And I bet Miiba is too! I've got proof!"

And red light crackled along the edge of Geir's axe as he charged forward.

"CLEAVE!" The adventurer lunged, aiming for Danny's tiny neck--!

[[Before I add in a bit for Miiba inside the house, I want to see if CoM will post for Scott sometime soon...]]

---

"...You don't seem like a goblin, hm?" Ash spoke quietly from her branch, but she was close enough that the creature could hear her. Again, she saw the glint of teeth under that hood.

"An' you ain't a normal Pygmy Drake." came a throaty voice.

"Suppose I should thank you for your seeming assistance."

"Depen's on how ya think I'm 'elpin', I s'pose." The creature hadn't yet drawn that bowstring back to fire that strange blunted arrow. "Ya want these gobbos out'cha way?"

While they were talking, the fight was still going strong and Torrent had decided to make her move. As she activated her stealth skills and observed the battle, the goblin with the sword attacked the goat again. He moved in from the creature's blind side, where Maya's thrown rock had drawn blood and temporarily sealed the eye shut. As a result he landed a real blow on the animal as it swung its head back and forth, carving a deep gash in its side. The beast bleated in agony and reared up on its hind legs, kicking with its forelimbs. The sword wielding goblin was knocked backwards, head over heels, and it looked like the Four Horned Goat's hooves had drawn blood from his chest as well. Mahya let out a cry as she threw another rock, and though this one hit solidly again, it landed on the goat's shoulder. Rags Nar charged the animal with his shield, tackling against its side before stabbing multiple times with his dagger--some strikes made contact, others didn't.

The one with the pelts and the Stone Knife hung back, and seemed loathe to run into the fray when his allies were swinging weapons around. This, then, was the target of Torrent's attack. She darted out from the brush, unseen and unknown, and leaped for the goblin's throat. Her claws had plenty of purchase on the smelly furs that covered the green body, but as soon as she landed on him the greenskin gave a yelp and began to spin and flail in place--the usual reaction when one realizes they have a snake or some creepy crawly on them. Torrent's fangs missed their mark at his throat, and sank into his shoulder instead. As purple tinged flames spilled around her teeth she savaged her target back and forth--until she felt his knife plunge into her side. The goblin snarled as he threw her off, but dropped to his knees. An entire sleeve of his pelt shirt was gone now, and the flesh underneath looked maimed from the collarbone down to the tricep. He was bleeding badly and his eyes were wide as if he were already about to go into shock, but still managed a clumsy swipe at Torrent with his Knife...

The other goblins were distracted by this for just a moment, granting the goat the opportunity to shoulder-slam Rags Nar away from it. On wobbly legs it started to turn and run--the battle had gone too far downhill for it--only to meet the goblin wearing the frying pan for a third time. This time the tribal monster's wooden club made a solid impact on the goat's hard skull, and it staggered backward.

"Wot th' hell's that?!" Ash's unknown maybe-ally snarled as he drew his bow fully taut. "Pygmy, call it off if'n it's one o' yers--ya want my help, I want them alive!" With a phwip, the arrow loosed--a slight red light crackling at its blunt tip. It traveled fast, and in a mere second struck Mahya directly on the back of the head. She pitched forward to her knees, either stunned or unconscious, but still twitching slightly to indicate she was probably still alive. From here it was impossible to tell.

Then things took a turn towards the even further chaotic. Digbie had emerged from the cavern, and shouted at the goblins up on the hill. As the sigils on his arms flared, he cast Sacred Ground--but in order to extend it far enough to cover himself, Torrent, the Four Horned Goat, and Oberon who was still in the shelter, he felt his MP dropping like a rock. Still, the goat's wounds began to buzz with a slight aura, as did Torrent's.

"YOUR FAMILLERS CHEATIN', DEMI-GOB!" Rags Nar yelled, pointing at Torrent with his knife. Then he seemed to realize that Mahya was down, but hadn't figured out why yet. "Mahya! Giddy-ap! How you get attacked too!?" Then he saw the arrow lying next to her...

Back in the shelter, Oberon continued to practice his Mana Sense. Once he had keyed in on the area that he thought was Digbie's "aura" represented to his mind as a fog, he concentrated and tried to tune everything else out. Sure enough, darkness faded at the edge of his vision and the concentrated fog began to filter into color...A mostly off-white, slightly blue tinge entered the fog first. Then, gold heavily saturated everything. And now a few other colors, mostly light greens and blues, and the white sparkles here and there were getting brighter...

But then the whole mass moved away, and the Sprite heard stone grating as Digbie left their shelter...

Skill Gain: Mana Sense I (0.8 > 1.0)!
You have sharpened your mental and spiritual senses as well as your physical ones. By focusing upon a single creature or object, you will be able to sense its magical nature in some fashion. Different creatures may perceive this aura in different ways--some may see a colored aura, others may catch unique scents, etc. This is not an Analysis skill, though it may Synergize with some of them. The range of this skill is limited to that of your other physical senses, though in some cases a mana signature may become easier or more difficult to detect depending on factors such as strength, amount, etc. By touching an object or creature, even if they are somehow suppressing their magical power, you have a chance to learn whether or not magic is present. At this rank, you must activate this skill in order for it to take effect. While active it will consume MP.

---

"Surely your world has Divine Spirits as well? How else would its laws of nature work?" Trent asked Ardur when the Hipixie said he and Asura were still learning--this being moments before they were next attacked. He had also looked quizzically at the Slime. "Come Pewter Eyes? What are you talking abou--"

You used Monster Analysis I!
Hob Bones - An undead monster made from the animated skeleton of a Hobgoblin. Like its lower ranked cousin the Skeleblin, its physical strength is lessened while its speed increases, but its durability is roughly the same. Perhaps owing to a Hobgoblin's increased intelligence, these undead are sometimes more dangerous than a shuffling zombie should be.

Skeleblin - Skeleblin, a Skeleton-type Undead-class Monster created from the remains of a Goblin. By nature, Skeleblins are roughly as durable as living Goblins, but their strength has decreased. In contrast, their lighter weight allows them to move more quickly. They retain the ability to use tools to a limited degree. If not manipulated by a necromancer or some other source, most Undead will single-mindedly pursue living creatures with hostility. They do not normally possess self-preservation instincts or any form of intelligence.

Necroslime - Roughly the same in all categories as a normal slime, a Necroslime is a rare form of Undead. It is of limited use to any intelligent necromancer. Its body swells with the gases of decay and its internal acids become even stronger as bacteria and rot fester inside it.

When the next battle began, Ardur's first priority was to scan the opposition. Doing this cost him valuable time, however, and the battle continued down below. He was able to shout orders to Steve, at the least. Asura called out to Mother Slime as well, but wasted no time in engaging on his own.

After dodging Trent's Mana Orb, the Hob Bones came back in with its stone knife at the ready. The Squire took the attack on his shield and returned one of his own, but again the skeleton moved out of the way--only for Trent to immediately advance on it, and this time his backstroke hit home. His blade bit into the creature's rib cage, shattering three prongs of bone, but despite the damage the impact only served to knock the creature away and reset their distance. Before it could move again, however, a glob of Steve's sticky webs landed on its feet. The undead clattered its jaw in what must have been anger.

The Skeleblin's bony fist struck Mother Slime, and much like when they had escaped the cave the first time its blow simply bounced off thanks to her big body and Blunt Resistance. She struck it a furious "backhand" moments later with a cry of "MASH!" and knocked the creature to the ground, cracking various bits of it.

Asura's shapeshifting limbs were too fast for the Necroslime to avoid, although as he pierced its body he felt himself burn and sizzle due to its acid innards. The red spikes grew savage branches before Asura ripped them out of the creature, prompting a shrill screech and a belch of something that smelled positively foul. The Necroslime drew back for a moment as it tried to reform itself, but with some sense that it had to keep its opponent away it still managed to spit a green, fuming sphere of acid at Asura.

Ardur now flew down, casting his Shield spell's first rank on both Asura and Trent in quick succession. The human closed in on the trapped Hob Bones, though he did so cautiously with his shield up. It was chopping at Steve's webs with its knife, only for another glob to land on the other foot. Mother Slime bounced up into the air and came down hard on the Skeleblin, if not crushing it then at least pinning it to keep it out of the fray...

---

You Equipped Straw Sandals! Your feet feel slightly tougher. With these on, you can run a little faster.
You Equipped Wooden Breastplate! You feel much tougher, though it's a little heavy for your size.
You Equippped Battered Wooden Shield! You feel tougher!
You Equipped Sturdy Stick! It's not quite as Strong as your Short Cudgel.
You Equipped Black Dyed Robe (Shoddy)! You feel a little bit tougher, although it impedes movement a little.

You have the Skill Use Light Equipment. You have the Skill Stronger I. You have the Skill Dextrous I. Some negative sub-stat enhancements have been neutralized.

You are close to Overencumberance due to the weight of your equipment.
Your Vine Belt is overloaded with Inventory.

Obtained:
Hobgoblin Arm Bones (Average) x2
Hobgoblin Leg Bones (Average) x2
Hobgoblin Ribcage (Average)
Hobgoblin Spine (Average)
Cracked Hobgoblin Skull (Below Average)
Hobgoblin Hip Bones (Average)
Raw Hobgoblin Flesh x30lbs
Hobgoblin Entrails

You are attempting to equip Long Kitchen Knife. This item is not intended for use by your species. You have the Use Light Equipment Skill. You have the Skill Dextrous II. You have the Skill Stronger I. Negative substat enhancements have been negated. You have successfully equipped this item. You feel like your attacks would be stronger and faster.

You used Crafting II!
Long Kitchen Knife + Vine Belt
This is an Unusual Crafting Method. Difficulty increased.
Your Crafting II skill surpassed Crafting Difficulty.

You Crafted: Tailstrap Knife! The skill Prehensile Tail allows this weapon to be used in a versatile fashion.

You used Crafting II!
Vine Belt + Grass Mat
You Crafted: Grass Packroll!

Mother Rat didn't take so well to Asteria's attempt at dress up, almost immediately shrugging her way backwards out of the cloth wraps, her pudgy body wriggling back and forth much like a puppy unsatisfied with its sweater. She reacted more warmly to Edward's ear scritches, but otherwise seemed content to lie down and watch the others work. Ed tested out some of his new equipment, finding that even though his Rat Man body was stronger than a Hobgoblin's, the differences in height and proportion made moving in some of the equipment awkward. Asteria, being a primarily four legged rodent, kept getting notices that her equipment was "unsuitable," but due to her skills she was able to use it. She wasn't being slowed down anymore, so at this point she was much better equipped than the average rat with no consequences.

Now that they were safe and secure inside the barrow once more they took the time to discuss what had happened, and see what else they could do with their newfound loot. Ed, in a reluctant but determined fashion, butchered the Hobgoblin. Mother Rat padded over to sniff curiously at the creature's meat, before looking up at the Rat Man. Keeping her eyes on him the entire time, she slowly put her little paws on a piece of hobgoblin goodies--then darted away to a dark corner like a child stealing a cookie.

Asteria was able to store several of the other items in the grass mat with all of their other pilfered goods, and with a vine belt she managed to make a strap of sorts so that the entire roll could be carried like a knapsack. The only problem, however, was that even Ed would be hard pressed to lift this much stuff and carry it over a long distance.

By the time the two rats finished their crafting, the sun had risen quite a bit. It was now a little after mid morning, not quite noon, and the weather seemed fair. No other sounds of travel had been heard from the road thus far. Would that group they had just seen come back by this same route today? Would any of those villagers make their way towards the lake or the city? And where would the two go from here--it seemed like they had finally made their way out of trouble for the time being and had a reliable, if creepy, base of operations for the moment. Now might be a good time to set some long term goals.

Asura glanced back at Trent and scoffed. "There's plenty of possible gods that possibly do something. But science is what rules our world. The laws of nature are just that and everything changes incredibly slowly. Thousands of years to change one aspect with plenty of mutations along the way." He stated. What? He listened to podcasts sometimes!

The boy got confused with computerized. Shit...how best to explain it. "You got talking automatons?" He asked, he sucked at impressions, maybe Ardur could do it? Either way it was fight time. Talkie time could come later on. The blackened slime didn't take the damage very well, it probably didn't get attacked a lot so its defenses were probably low.

But still, that burning sensation when he had stabbed it. Its digestive acid was pretty damn strong, and it was trying to keep him at bay while trying to pull itself back together. A quick movement and he engulfed the flying bile, pulling it into his own 'stomach' juices as he zipped towards the Necro-Slime. Trying to devour or eat the rank liquid. He shouldn't be trying to take damage and make new skills, but it might help later on.

Ardur cast Protection on him, meaning he could take a hit or two, but did Protection cover acidic attacks? Or just melee? He'd ask later on. The others were handling their enemies well enough, Steve and Trent were keeping the bigger skeleton locked down. Mother Slime...well that skele-blin literally had no chance against her.

A pseudopod whipped up, turning into a large jagged blade that he brought down on the black slime. Then began the sawing, he was treating the slime like a loaf of bread while his limb was the tearing bread knife.

@Zeroth@Stabby

Femus found that, once again, hard work and deep thought paid off. The bark that he needed to remove was difficult to detach but the tremor in the branch only affected him as much as that feeling of having someone walk over one's grave. A chill and a moment's hesitation. But, he knew that this tree was unusual and that he would have to cause a little damage to do what he was doing.

Eventually, he was finished with the dress. It wasn't much... really, it wasn't much at all. But, it would cover the important bits and leave Nira's wings free to flap and her legs and arms free to kick and punch as needed. He laid it down on the leaves with part of it held down by the Great Kao Bark he had removed. It wouldn't do for wind to steal his first attempt at dressmaking.

More importantly, he had received the notification that his Crafting skill was now functioning. It had a noticeable effect as well. That dress would have been so very much worse if not for his Crafting skill. He would have to encourage Nira to train her own Crafting skill. The lack of appendages actually lowered his ability to craft in a direct way. That thought made him frown... until he saw the branch shudder under his healing attempt.

He stopped.

At that moment, there was no wind. It would be a common instinct to doubt one's own senses if one thought that they had seen a tree move. But, magic... magic changed everything. If the Great Kao Tree was not just alive as a plant but also partially or completely animate, more like a beast, then staying here could be far more dangerous... or valuable than Femus had thought initially. And, if it were able to move and was sleeping, then he would have to take pains to avoid disturbing it further. But he had to know more.

Femus diminished his presence as much as possible, dimming his glow as well, and began to observe the tree and all its parts. He sought to understand the plant as a living thing, the possible uses for its parts, the kind of interaction it had with the surrounding life in the forest, and anything else that would expand his knowledge about the Great Kao Tree. He also used his Magic Analysis skill on the tree as a whole as well as on each part that he could see from his elevated position. However, most of what he could see was leaves, bark, branch, trunk, and the inner bark, sap, and wood that he could still see through the small hole he had made. He also studied the injury to the tree, seeking some sign that it had both stopped leaking sap and also begun to heal.

When he finished his study of the tree, he turned his eyes outward to things that were farther away. Refocusing his eyes to study the pixies and anything else that moved with his Monster Analysis skill and his own observational skills, and keeping himself as unnoticeable as possible at the same time, wasn't as hard as doing some other things. But, it was important. He also sought to quiet the flow of his mana, like calming a stream so that its flow produced no ripples or sound.

The leaves limited his view of the ground and he didn't move around much, just levitating quietly a few inches above the leaves on the same branch. He was simply gathering knowledge up to this point. He'd meditate on it later. The next thought that entered his mind was that Nira was out there alone, possibly distracted, and lacking equipment.

She did say that she'd almost finished developing an attack spell. However, as Femus had just experienced, there was a definite gap between an incomplete skill and a complete one. Also, she was still an unevolved pixie. There were a lot of things in this forest that could eat a pixie and still be hungry.

Femus stayed in the branches but moved around the tree to follow the direction of Nira's flight. Once in a good vantage point, he began to look for her. By now she would be some little distance away. He calmed himself and tried to keep his presence suppressed, but he directed his mana into his eyes and ears. He remembered the artificial kao buds and was very gentle in his direction. He was hoping to strengthen and expand his senses, not damage them. Besides, he had seen an unusable skill in his list related to sight and wanted to make progress in training it. Even if he couldn't spot Nira, he could get better at finding things in general while he waited.

Danny was glad the human wasn't subtle about his intentions to attack using the ax and while he wished he had kept some of his equipment on him he doubted the flak pauldron would have made any difference. Instead he went for a trick he had used before and tried to deflect the ax as much as possible with Lesser Force while at the same time Levitating backwards as an extra assurance.

He still didn't feel uncomfortable attacking humans but he had to do something. Trusting Jason to distract the boy he decided to try and take the ax out of the equitation. Floating slightly away from his stashed gear since he doubted that would improve the human's opinion he started to prepare a Mana Dart while Chanting. He didn't dare go for a full chant though and hoped a short one would be enough of a boost. ""Mana Dart-- Increased Power!"" Before he sent it flying he used Point Strike on the ax handle to make it more likely he would hit it.

---

For the nth time today, Ed was soaked with blood.

But, much to his surprise, he wasn't as disgusted or as disturbed as he should have been. "Guess I'm getting used to it." He said to himself in a deadpan manner while carrying the goods down of the barrow. The System was right to tell him he was close to being over-encumbered, all the flesh and bone he was carrying down was heavy. It was good fortune that the ratman only had to walk a short distance to go down and enter the impromptu base.

With a meaty plop and clattering of bones, he laid out the goblin entrails, and bones to one side of the first room. "Should have taken the robes off before bleeding and butchering. Gonna smell like blood for a while." Ed whines slightly. "But none the less, I'm gonna set aside about 10 lbs. of the meat for...consumption. " The word rolled off his tongue distastefully. He still was not comfortable with the idea of eating goblins, or any humanoids for that matter. Though beggars can't be choosers, and he can't afford to starve in this situation. "For the rest, I'm going to offer it now and hopefully the gnome is going to accept like with the bug meat you offered last night." In the hopes of finally securing a proper place to call home for the moment, Ed enters the altar room and places all the meat as an offering.

Ed looks towards the ceiling. "Hope that you're cool with what I'm going to do." he said to the earth spirit if it could hear him before raising his hands together. To deliver a prayer straight from his little rodent heart. "So, uh, yeah. We just saved a bunch of innocent folk from being hurt and possibly killed by bandits. That must get some plus points, right? Well, at least I think it should, but I digress. Uh, we gave you some bug meat yesterday and that did some good cause you gave my buddy Asteria a gold piece for it and allowed us to stay longer. So we got you goblin meat. And I mean a LOT of goblin meat. I'm not kidding, its a whole goblin's worth..." Ed paused, thinking of other things to say to appease the earth spirit. "This place is nice but kinda creepy, no offense intended, and-and the dirt here is really good quality...uh...plus we won't disturb the dead here. Promise. So...uh...please let us stay here longer and don't kill us in while we sleep. Amen." The ratman then did the sign of the cross out of instinct more than anything else and left the altar toom to meet back with Asteria.

"I think I did well in the offering and prayer." He told her as he sat himself down on the floor. "Now that we have a secure place to stay, let's decide on things we want to do and set some goals we can achieve. I'll start." Ed nodded and thought about the most obvious goals they both could agree on. "Firstly, we need to evolve and get stronger. Far stronger than we are now. To that end, I suggest that we train and practice our skills in the times when we aren't hunting or foraging. Secondly, we need to get more situated on where we are. We get anything that can provide us information to this place, but the most important is finding a map and a compass. Finally, we need to head to where this 'Demon King' is. For whatever reason, he brought us here and I'm almost 100% sure he can send us back. Therefore, finding and getting to him is our primary goal as of now." The ratman pauses to catch his breath before turning his head to face his companion. "So. Anything else you want to add, Asteria?"

---

@Zeroth@Duthguy

Though he was curious about this "Miiba", and whatever reincarnated pixie that had apparently been through here-- protecting Danny took priority. By the time the redhead had even begun to move toward Danny, Jason was already in position to intercept the imminent charge.

In terms of a distraction.... Well, could there anything more distracting than a giant glowing mass suddenly grappling your face while yelling directly into your brain?

Launching himself into the boy's face, Jason lightly activated [Ghost Touch]; the goal was to distract the kid-- not hurt him. As he attempted to wrap himself around the young man's head, he spoke directly into the mind of Danny's assailant with an amplified cast of [Telepathy], "If we were demons-- you would have just gotten yourself killed kid.... Stand down."

His tone was cold and commanding, the tone of voice one might hear when being told off by a Vietnam veteran before a bar fight-- the kind of tone that didn't just demand respect, but tore it straight out of your damn hands and scarfed it down like a stolen cookie.

Ardur The Mighty Hipixie

Ambush! >>> so far so good /// Adventuring day 5 // Evening / Location - Old Goblin Camp

Ardur took the time to fly back up above the party and scan their surroundings for a moment while speaking. “Trent you’re up against a Hob bones, more speed and intelligence less strength and same durability as the skeleblin over there. Asura yours is a necro slime, its acids are stronger because of bacteria and rot otherwise it’s the same stats as a normal slime.”

The high pixie then hovered above Mother Slime and the skeleton she was fighting. She seemed to have everything handled and overpowered the smaller skeleton. Still, Ardur hovered above waiting for an opening. If one were to show itself, he would drop from his position to plant the heel of his foot into the skeleblin’s skull. One less enemy would be a good thing at this rate and he wasn’t about to risk using magic on the other enemy’s because they were so close. If the opportunity would not arise the high pixie would simply remain in the air on alert for any enemy reinforcements. At least Steve seemed to be doing good so far.

@Zeroth
@Kazemitsu

"Shh! Fight!" Trent growled out as Asura seemed to treat the battle too casually. Now certainly wasn't the time for conversation, from the human's point of view. The Squire closed in on the webbed-down undead and held his sword high as he planted his feet. The blade began to glow red: "CLEAVE!"

The Hob Bones's Stone Knife once again clattered against Trent's shield. This attack was slower than his other strikes, but the enemy couldn't move away this time. Trent's core tightened, his hips torqued. His shoulder and arm pulled the sword down, while gravity assisted its fall. This was a pure power stroke, plain and simple. The blade bit into the top of the creature's skull--and kept going! The Hob Bones's cranium split, its brainpan shattered, its teeth flew every which way. Its collarbone cracked in two, its sternum broke down the middle, and still the blade drove deeper. The edge shaved the spine, and finally bit through the ridge of the hips. Even when the sword's momentum halted against this final, thick bone, Trent wrenched it free of the enemy with enough force that the rest of the pelvis came apart like a wishbone at Thanksgiving.

What little was left of the skeletal creature clattered to the stone floor. A dull, throbbing purple light hovered around the remains for just a moment, before black mist seemed to seep out of the creature and into the dirt.

"The miasma means the body is unusable!" Trent shouted through labored breathing. "Remember what Master said!"

But before Trent had even destroyed his target, Asura had continued to attack the Necroslime. He found that Ardur's Shield buff did not stop an attack before it reached him, as the undead slime's acid struck his face directly. It burned, but the red slime could tell that its damage had to be reduced somewhat. The reason he could tell this? The moment he tried to eat this necrotic, corrosive substance, it began to burn much worse.

Still, he managed to shapeshift one of his tendrils into a blade, and struck down at his target in a way coincedentally very similar to Trent's own attack. The Necroslime screeched again as it was sawn literally in half, and its rotting innards spilled all over the ground. In the process the bile drenched Asura's outstretched limb, again sending signals of pain through his gelatinous mass. His HP and defenses were quite developed, but could he afford to keep taking damage like this?

As Mother Slime rolled off the Skeleblin she had just flattened into the earth, the creature shakily rose from the ground once more. One of its legs was starting to collapse, one arm had shattered entirely below the elbow, and its ribs were cracked all over. Even one of these injuries would have debilitated a living creature and ended the fight. But it seemed these Undead wouldn't stop until they were destroyed completely in some fashion, which Ardur accomplished with a powerful dive kick. Aided by his faster flight speed and gravity, his foot slammed through the Skeleblin's skull and shattered its sternum as he continued beyond, landing and sliding some distance on the ground. The buff pixie almost felt like striking some pose or shouting a finishing move's name, like one of those Masked Heroes on children's TV.

It seemed everyone had ended this encounter rather quickly, but as the group came back together Trent seemed just as wary as always.

"The first group just rushed in, and this one tried to ambush us." He pointed at the trenches the skeletons had come from. "Were there any other intelligent creatures like yourselves left here? You said the first Boss died?"

Having eliminated all enemies at the Goblin Bonfire, where would the group head now...?

---

You used Magic Analysis II!
---Great Elder Mystic Kao Tree---
This Kao Tree has drawn from a rich source of Mana for many years, as well as from the ambient environment. It is likely the oldest and most powerful of all plant-life in the area, and at this stage of growth excess Mana is shunted into the surroundings. However, more energy than is strictly needed for the tree's own growth is being used. Certain creatures may be drawn to this energy, as the excess may cause the growth of magic-restoring plants or infuse surrounding materials.

You used Monster Analysis I!
---Pixie---
Pixies are a tiny humanoid Fey-type Monster. While somewhat intelligent, they lack empathy towards one another even compared to beasts like Goblins. Capable of flight and healing magic, but not physically strong or skilled enough to fight or use weapons well.

Skill Gain: Suppress Presence I (0.8 > 1.0)!
Using your magical power, you subtly mask your presence from the senses of others around you. By comparison, it's a similar ability to those shy people who seem to disappear at the corner of the crowd's vision as they hover in the corner.

As Femus tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible and observed the Great Kao in detail, he indeed saw that it was slowly recovering the damage he had done to it. However, without his mana being fed to it, the regeneration came to an even slower crawl. For now, a layer of slap had covered the opening in the bark, and was beginning to harden around the edges. But, the shudder in the tree's boughs had stopped...

His observations gave him some new information, since his Magic Analysis had leveled up and he hadn't yet used his Monster Analysis on a Pixie before. And it turned out, as he tried to keep these other beings from noticing him, that one of his developing skills ticked over yet again. But, when he focused his attention on Nira instead, he soon realized that she was under attack!

The Pixie in question panicked, darting away from the Slime on instinct. Luckily its lunge missed her, thanks to the natural advantage of flight. Knowing only one thing to do, Nira desperately reached for that crackle of magical power and let her lips spill something akin to a chant. The brightest imitation of a Mana Orb yet--distinguished from the real thing only by its size--burst forth from her palms and rocketed into the green blob! It squealed as the magical energy sank into its membrane...but it hadn't been killed yet. It tried to stretch its bulk upward to no effect, as Nira rose up until she was sure it couldn't get to her...or so she thought! With an angry burble, the Slime stopped trying to lengthen its entire body and instead extended a single pseudopod. Despite moving clumsily, it managed to get this tendril long enough to lash at the pixie like a thick whip--!

---

As of yet unaware of what was happening outside, Miiba settled down with the rest of the family as Lear once again opened that big tome. She had been drifting off the previous night before she heard where he stopped, but it seemed that he had reached the end of a chapter or section, and now skipped over a few bits...

"Let's see...for tonight, how about...Ah, I always liked this one." The farmer put his finger down on the page and cleared his throat. "Does anyone here remember the story of the Foreign Knight?"

"Ooh, ooh, me!" Reuben, eager as always, thrust his hand up. "He was from, uh, Yammy-jam! And his name was Itchy!"

"Yamajima, you mean." Mira chided gently, ruffling the boy's hair. "And it's pronounced, Ishin."

"He was the first person from another continent to land on the Five Kingdom's shores since the end of the Frontier Era." Clarice spoke up. "And the first swordmaster to teach the use of a katana outside of Yamajima."

"Right. And he was a Hero, too." Lear settled back as his rocking chair creaked. "Some people think there's a relation of some kind between Heroes from Otherworlds and Yamajima, because for some reason a whole lot of them favor the katana. But as far as we know, Ishin wasn't one of those." Then he looked at Miiba. "But, Miiba, if any of this starts sounding familiar to you, speak up, alright?"

And so the farmer began a tale of a man with strange, yet handsome features who one day appeared on the distant horizon, drifting to shore in a single small boat. When he landed on the beach, some local fisherman tried to speak to him, but found they could not decipher his language. One of the men, being a mean-hearted sort, took the foreigner's taciturn nature for rudeness and tried to strike him--only to immediately lose his hand as the long, single edged blade leapt out of its sheath too fast for the eye to track. What followed was a journey in which this "Ishin" demonstrated many qualities of a heroic and honorable warrior, making it clear the tale was meant to inspire a certain mindset as well as relate a historical account of this one Hero's great impact, and how it shook both the Five Kingdoms and his homeland...

Outside the window, there was another small flash of light...and Geir still hadn't come back...