Big Red made short work of his meal, even crunching through the bone with those dangerous teeth and powerful jaws. Maybe he had some alligator in his family history? He did also crunch a goblins arm with his mouth previously. "Does magic burn much energy?" He questioned, she wasn't a very active girl from what he had seen and she was clearly tired from the days training.

Still the rest of the day and evening went by without a hitch. During the night he had cleaned his armor as best he could, but blood really was very staining to everything but metal it seemed. A quick nap and there was Druid Girl whisper talking at his door before she went off. Pulling his armor on he left his room to meet the two girls downstairs at the bar. Archer Girl mentioned going foraging for fruit, which wasn't a bad idea. It wasn't good to eat heavy things in the morning when your body was just waking up.

"Do you know the local fruit and where to find them?" He asked with his head slightly tilted. He normally didn't get fruits or vegetables. When he caught game, assuming he could catch anything, he ate their full body. Something he noticed humans didn't really do unless they had no real choice.

As the group gathered up at the table, Druid Girl listened to the comments of her allies. Their archer suggested they go forage for fruits in the wild in order to pinch pennies, while the lizrdman asked if they knew where such fruits and wild veggies could be found. Druid Girl pondered about whether lizarfolk actually ate fruits and vegetables on the regular, given that such things would be rare in a swamp - and their teeth weren't exactly designed for anything but ripping meat off of bones... She decided to keep that comment to herself though. Straightening up in her chair, she would answer before the archer had a chance to do so.

"It's summer now, so most fruits haven't ripened yet. Plus, wild fruits typically get eaten by animals when out and unattended ina forest. We might find some berries and edible roots around these parts, but I uh... I doubt that would fill your stomach for long, big guy." She paused for a bit. "I suppose we could go fishing in the river though, or gather some edible grass and plants. Honestly though, we'd likely spend more energy looking for those and picking them than we'd get from eating them. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, you know! So we should just bite the sour lemon and pay up. That way we'll have a good start to go on!" She finalized... Obviously not at all biased towards getting to eat as big a breakfast as she wanted in contrast to scrounging for safe-to-eat plant fibres and grass...

The innkeep showed up eventually, probably roused by their voices, and grumbled something undecipherable. Druid Girl went ahead and ordered some porridge, bread, milk and cheese for herself. The grumpy man seemed to smirk a bit at the sizable order - perhaps he was finally realizing that, when it came to food at least, this girl was a proverbia golden goose for income.

"You two should get something too, even if it's just something small. After all, they'll be posting new quests today, so we'd better get ready!" Druid Girl encouraged not so subtly.

[iTime passed and a meal was eaten...[/i]

The sun had risen from below the horizon and the morning had come along a bit. Walking down the road towards the Adventruers Guild, the party could see the typical scene unfold. Windows and doors opening, citizens beginning to mill out of their homes and onto the road, getting ready to face the challenges of te day. A few stray birds flew above the rooftops and, although the sky was still blue, there were a larger number of clouds today than earlier days. Still, bright sunlight prevailed and a pleasant breeze was blowing.

Entering the guild hall, the party would find that a rather fair amount of adventurers had already assembled and were crowding the quest board. Most of them seemed to be of a higher rank than the trio though, and they werer mostly looking at the quests for steel or higher-ranked adventurers it seemed. Druid Girl approached the postings and looked at the day's selection.

"Hmm... What do you guys think? Anything look good?"

At breakfast, Steppe Archer was so certain that today was going to go well as she munched on her bread, dipping it in a bit of warm soup to eat a bit faster. And then, the job listings came up.

...She really...

...Really...

...Really...

Did not want to admit that right now, extermination may be their best prospect.

Steppe Archer looked pale, looking over the jobs. The cart job meant they might wind up having to defend against bandits, given the state of the body they found last time...or worse, the farmstead might be that old guy's. The fort investigation might not be too bad, but she'd heard rumors that monsters frequently inhabited old abandoned structures, meaning that they might travel all that way and be attacked while tired.

Sadly, the extermination was right there, the two jobs went hand-in-hand, and the pay was almost as much as the highest paying job, for what would amount to a far shorter job.

...But it was in the sewers.

Shaking her head, the nomad would say to the both of them: "I...know that I said before I don't want to do it...but the sewer jobs might be our best bet. Not to mention that now that we have money, we can more easily protect ourselves. ...E-Even if it involves bugs." She seemed apprehensive, but willing to do the jobs so long as her party members were onboard.

Big Red listened to the Druid before shrugging his shoulders. It was a thought, still viable, but not at the rate of consumption the magic user needed. Said magic user was mowing down on breakfast again, he was still fine from last night. After the eating frenzy of one, and a meal for the other, the three went to the Guild as it was opening to see the new jobs available. If there even was anything new.

Surprise surprise there were new jobs, and an old job. Each one seemed to pair though, bugs and rats, delivery and exploration. Each one could be knocked out either simultaneously, or one immediately after the other. The thought of bandits came to mind, but what bandit stole building materials. Especially building materials for a farm. You'd have to be insanely desperate to steal something virtually worthless to all but a carpenter.

But he doubted the Guild would let him take the two long distance jobs at the same time again. So it was really a question of one hundred eighty coppers local versus one hundred fifty to two hundred coppers long distance. Scratching his cheek idly his gaze went sideways to Archer Girl who talked about the sewer being being their potentially better prospect. "I don't mind the sewer, and we'll prepare for it if that's the route we go. A map, torches, lantern if you wish, and you two can have thick cloth on to block bug bites." He said, more suggestions than actual orders.

He wasn't all brawn and no brain, the girls had a lot of skin exposed and bugs carried diseases and poisons in their bites. They had far more to worry about than a swamp-dweller like himself. His only real worry were the rats honestly, rodents could chew through a surprising amount of materials and he wasn't stone hard.

"Hmm, I'd personally prefer to walk around outside buuuut..." Druid Girl mulled over the opinions of her compatriots. "... It really doesn't seem to matter too much. Everything pays about the same, well actually the sewer-quest seems to have increased in pay a little since last time." She stated, semi-indifferently.

In truth, she would have much prefered to walk around outdoors or ride a wagon in the sunlight, rather than crawl around in the sewers and need another thorough rinse-off afterwards.... With the potential of having to burn her old and buy a brand new set of clothes... Sewer-stank had this nasty habit of sticking to you, even after you washed yourself... Maybe visitng an alchemist beforehand and buying some of that new-fangled 'soap' that could apparently neutralize bad odor was a good idea?

Regardless, since they all seemed to not be too excited or particular about any one job, it was eventually agreed upon to do the two sewer-related missions. Druid Girl raised an eyebrow at Big Red's comment about preperations though... Did he honestly think a dingy little settlement like Palisade Towen kept maps of their sewers? The town had been built over ruins and the underground had been excavated, demolished and reconstructed several times ove. Not to mention that the local wildlife down there had probably messed up and altered paths and the layout on their own as well. It might give you somewhat of an idea where to go or what to look for, but overall they'd be outdated and fairly useless...

But she decided not to mention this. It seemed he was the type who wanted to be prepared, and got grumpy or annoyed when you pointed out that his preperations weren't always useful... Besides, he'd find out himself once he asked the Guild Receptionist. Additionally, how was he even aware of maps? It wasn't like lizardmen in the swmap had access to parchment or ink, right? Did they... Carve etchings into wooden planks with their claws or something? Or draw mud tablets? The idea perplexed Druid Girl.

"Well, since we're going into the sewers, we should probably pick up some anti-venom or curative potions too. Torches can be bought at the general store, so that's easy to get ahold of." She said, tapping the base of her chin with her index-finger. "Hmm... Might want to buy ourselves something like a hammer or club too... My staff's too long to swing around down in those sewers, and while my sickle might be able to gash a rat or twoo, hitting a skittery roach or bug with it could be... Difficult... Besides, bludgeons are always the best when smashing bugs!" She said - apparently not nearly as empathic towards sewer-dwelling rodents and insectoids as other animals... Which was perfectly reasonable.

"Should me and Archer go buy the supplies and meet you over by the public latrines then, big guy? There's supposedly an unlocked manhole there, for maintenance, so it'd be an easy way to gain access. Plus.. Uhm... Don't take this the wrong way or anything buuut... You're kinda... Bulky... I doubt you'd even fit through any of the other manholes out in the streets... They weren't made with super-sized folk in mind." She half-laughed and poked her tongue out at the lizard in a jestful manner.

Steppe Archer would go along with the Druid Girl to shop for supplies, the whole time looking like she just said something she really regretted. Like, endlessly. She didn't want to go around fighting bugs, but...if they didn't, the town may soon be in danger of serious health problems. Mustering up every ounce of ancestral strength she had, as well as imagining all the stories of courage she could think of, the girl would make due with destroying her objects of fear physically.

She'd go along and get all the essentials with Druid Girl, while also wishing there was something they could take in order to boost their immunities to disease. In fact, she'd go and see the local alchemist to see if there was anything to keep from catching diseases from pests.

If there was, great, if she couldn't afford it, not so great. She just...didn't want to risk losing more people like she had with Guard Lady.

Big Red took Druid Girls words mentally but just shrugged outwardly. He could have gone either way, it felt like he'd be able to grab two quests for each direction anyway. He gave the smaller girl his own raised eyebrow. "What? If they have an inaccurate map it's better than no map at all." He rumbled before stroking his chin slightly. Druid Girl offered to go and get the rest of what they would potentially need for their sewer outing.

"Sure, I'll deal with the guild girl to see if we can get both at the same time." He replied before the girls went off to go get the gear. His task felt like it was going to be a little harder. It went smoothly last time because of the distance, maybe the danger involved would net him these two? Either way he approached the counter with the two sheets in hand.

"I still remember the rules of not taking two under normal circumstances. But can my party take these two? No one seems to want to do them despite their proximity and we're already going to be down there." He stated to the guild girl. Not to mention it was doubtful that the sewer creatures would be kind and stay separated for both jobs.

The druid and archer would find what they needed, including some cheap, thick rolls of cloth, a set of torches, a minor healing potion for each of them and - as luck would have it - Steppe Archer located two options for her inquiry. One was an antidote potion, claimed to cure poisons, toxins, venom and other injected filth that may have gotten into your body. The other was a remedy, which was more expensive, but apparently could cure 'abnormal effects' on the body and 'return it to its natural state'.

Druid Girl pointed out, however, that neither rats nor roaches had venom sacs, and that the antidote potion would likely be completely useless, since the animals and bugs were more likely to spread disease or spread nasty ailments, rather than try pollute their blood with venom. As such, she recommended that the nomad girl pick up the remedy potion, if she was gonna get anything. The shopkeepr also insisted on this, continuing his sales-pitch and quite dramatically over-inflating the power and practical uses of his tincture.

Regardless of whetever the archer got the potion or not, the duo soon headed over to the public latrine, where they were meant to meet up with Big Red. It was a ... Unppleasant-semlling location, to put it mildly. The stench of old, dry urine, mixed with the individual scents of many peoples' unique aroma of feces made it quite abundantly clear tha this place wasn't one that got regular cleaning or maintenance done on it. Druid Girl wrinkled her nose and made sure to keep her face upwind whenever the breeze wasn't blowing from the latrines...

"Well, guess we'll just wait for the big guy now, huh?" She said, holding back a reflexive gagging noise she really, really wanted to make. "By the way, you've seemed awfully determined to avoid taking these kinds of quests before. Did something happen? Or are you just not a fan of crawling around in the dank underground where a litteral town's worth of poopies flow?" She asked, half-laughing at the bad joke of hers at the end.

Meanwhile, back at the Guild.

"The reason nobody takes those jobs is because they get re-posted almost daily. Even if your group clears both of them today, chances are they'll be back up tomorrow, or similar ones will appear. The sewers are a constant source of woe for the town, but higher-rank adventurers don't usually care to take them on, and lower levels adventurers seem to have trouble getting the job done." The guild girl explained when Big Red brought up the notion that nobody seemed to want to do these jobs. "As for taking both quests at the same time, I suppose you could but... I did tell you not to amekt thiss a habit, right? I didn, didn't I? If not, I'll tell you now; There's a lot of paperwork and talking with my superior when irregularities like this are approved, so I'd appreciate it if you tried to not increase my workload for the sake of your own convenience." The polite, but now stern-sounding, receptio0nist said.

True enough, since it was against Guild-policy to take on multiple jobs at the same time, regardless of logical or practical reasons, it would of course cause trouble for the person who permitted such a thing to be done. If anything went wrong, or if one quest wasn't completed to satisfaction, it wasn't the adventurers who botched things up that'd get yelled at, it was the one who authorized them to take on more work than they could handle. As such, while her motives and reasons may have sounded selfish and self-serving, the receptionist merely wanted to avoid both a scenario where adventurers got needlessly injured or dead from overwork anda situation where she got a pay-cut or possibly lost her job for allowing that to happen, even knowing it was against the rules.

"Is there anything else? Otherwise, please fill out tin the name of your group-members and yourself and I'll get this sorted for you." She stated, now back to her professiooal smile and customer-service-like-attitue once more.

Steppe Archer would be glad once this was all over...and hoped that she'd at least get most of her money back with the rewards, given that the remedy potion took most of her remaining copper pieces. She'd grab some of the scented grasses she'd used from before and plug her nose with them, insisting that Druid Girl should probably do the very same.

Then came the question that Steppe Archer really wanted to avoid. The nomad clenched her fists at her side, looking ashamed. "...My first party took on a job like this and...well...our frontline fighter got bitten once, and contracted some horrible disease. I barely got her to a temple in time to save her. Our roguish friend vanished as soon as the job ended, so... she looked ready to cry. "I was the only one left.

Tying her hair back for maybe the first time since Druid Girl had met her, Steppe Archer would now look even more boyish with her bangs and crown still fluffy and spiky, while tucking her nearly four foot long pony tail into her clothing. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you, or Big Red. I don't want to be alone again...or have anyone's adventure end in a sewer of all places!"

She seemed resolved to protect her party members, in spite of her trembling legs. The thought of giant bugs STILL unnerved her.

Big Red had his arms lazily folded across his chest while he listened to the Guild Girl. "So that's why you don't typically allow double takes or more. Should I speak to your supervisors about them being on the lower end of intelligence? If I didn't think my group couldn't do it I wouldn't ask for two at the same time. He questioned then continued on before shrugging. If they had to take one at a time then they took one at a time.

Then again you had to take a trophy to prove that you did it, right? They could grab trophies from both as they went along then turn them both in once they got on the surface. For now he wrote his name on the Rat Quest with, he actually didn't know the names of his fellow party members. They'd been surviving on nicknames. So he put Little Puff and Nature's Bounty for their names. A slight smirk curled his lip at Druid Girls temporary name. If she understood the male brain she'd probably hit him.

With the job secured he left the Guild and went to the meeting point to see the two girls chatting. Little Puff's words got him to raise an eyebrow before he laid a hand atop her head lightly. "We'll be fine, just be mindful of your surroundings and don't get bit. Watch the back more than the front, Druid Girl can look between both and help where she thinks it's necessary." He rumbled

His gaze went to the both of the girls. "We got everything that we need?" He questioned before they went to move. The two would need a decent melee weapon and the group needed supplies. He still had his giant knife and copper studded cudgel but he'd more than likely use his hands again.

At the Adventurers' Guild...

The receptionist merely looked at the large lizardman with a blank, unplussed face. This wasn't the first time she'd had to deal with someone questioning policies or how the guild ran their operations - and it wouldn't be the last time either. Internally, she made a snide remark about the brutish-looking muscle-lizard making a comment about others' intellgience, but being the professional she was, that neither showed up in her eyes, on her face or in her voice when she eventually replied.

"You're welcome to file a complaint and ask to to see the Guild Master, but I doubt that'd accomplish much. Whether you think your group is up to a task or not is, to be honest, completely irrelevant to the guild. We have rules and policies that everyone who joins has to follow, and they're there to make things run smoothly and fairly. If you don't find them to your liking..." She adjusted ehr glasses. "... Maybe you should find a less restrictive vocation. I hear mercenaries get to do things as they please." The girl finished, before returning to her work.

Of course, the suggestion was a not so subtly veiled comment. Mercenaries, after all, were notably known for being unscrupulous and mongey-grubbing thugs who were barely better than bandits or highwaymen. Of course, there wasn't any doubt that someone like Big Red, with his prowess, skill and large bulk would be quite well-suited to such a job.

At the latrine...

The druid listened to the archer's tale of woe. It was a rather unfortunate story, but not one that was uncommon. Many young adventurers assumed that, as far as quests go, crawling through the sewers and slaying rats and bugs was about as easy as it got... Failing to realize that they would be in an enclosed spae whrre their enemy had a vast home-field advantage, were mroe familiar with the enviroment and there being a lack of directions to choose from would put most unskilled or inexperienced would-be-adventurers at a massive disadvantage.

The tanned girl remembered her own, very first foray into the subterranean pits of Palisade Town. Luckily, she'd gone with two experienced adventurers at the time, along with one fresh noobie like herself, and managed to come out on top. Still, it had been an... Unpleasant... Experience, to say the least. Rats weren't a problem for her, but bugs... Bugs were hard to communicate with, even for a druid. They had a very fundamentally different view and thought-process when compared to mammals, birds or other such creatures. Not to mention trying to deal with a big swarm was just plain impossible.

Still, she felt that the poor nomad had gotten a really raw deal on her trip, so she offered a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry! I've been down there before, and remember that I can alwaysjust talk to the rats if we need." She stated, a bit boastful and thumping her plump chest while letting out a proud 'Ehe~!' as if to emphasize her abilities.

With Big Red showing up and offering his sage advice, and a head-pat for Steppe Archer, the druid simply smiled.

"Yeah. We're all set to head down. Oh, and thanks for the stems, but I'll be fine." Druid Girl replied, before taking the plants that her Archer-friend had picked and stowed than in her pouch. She prefered not to have tickling straws stuck in her nostrils while trying to concentrate.

When all was finally said and done, and everyone was ready, the time acme to head on down. Inside the latrine, against one of the far-end walls, there was a large door. This sturdy piece of wood had an old, crusty iron ring on it, meant for pulling. Getting the creaky and heavy thing open would've been a small feat of endurance and strength for either of the girls, though Big Red likely would've found it little more than a minor nuisance to force open. Beyond the door, there was a straight stairway leading downwards into the dark, dank and quite pungent nether-recesses of the settlement.

Going down, they would find themselves stepping through a rusty iron-barred door, similar to one found in a prison or cell. the whine from the door resounded and ehcoed through the otherwise largely quiet underground, only muffled by the sound of running sewage and water. As one would expect, for those without pleasant-smelling-straws up their nose, the scent of feces, mold, amonia, wet masonry and other unpleasant aromas filled the air. Druid Girl's nose twitched and she made a disconent grimace before stepping onto one of the underground sidewalks. She looked around in the dim darkness and then turned to her allies.

"Last time I was down here, our group travelled south and west, I think. We took down a few rats and a bunch of bugs, but I imagine those've all reopulated by now. Still, we should avoid heading to any cisterns or places with narrow catwalks or lots of ... Liquid..." She stated. "Oh, and avoid shouting or making loud noises, like running or stomping. The more sound we make, the more likely we'll end up drawing a large group of insects... They, uh... They tend to identify sound with food..." She trailed off before shaking her head. "So, which way to go first?"

At their current location, there was actually any direction to choose from. A path going north, west, east and south were all present, so really, it all came down to whatever Big Red and Steppe Archer would be best. Or whatever that map Big Red got from the guild might suggest.

Steppe Archer felt a sense of relief at the druid's words directed to her, feeling that...maybe, with their powers combined, this quest could be easily resolved without them needing any of these precautions. The nagging feeling in the back of her mind was sated. For now. She also puffed her cheeks out once the lizardman laid his head atop her head, feeling like now she was being treated like a child over her worries. "Okay..." she said, resigning that they all were going to be just fine.

The time was now to descend into the shit-smelling depths of the sewers and slay every manner of beast they came across. Thus began the journey of...



...Of course, nothing necessarily as grandiose as some man some fair time and distance away who made his life's work on goblinoid genocide. These were just rats and bugs. Steppe Archer would bring up the rear, peeking past Druid Girl to see the crossroads ahead of them, a club held in her hands. "I think we should go West, or whichever way has the shortest path to a dead end. If we get caught off from the exit by a separate swarm, we might be in trouble," she said, clearly on edge. "Where we find rat droppings, we're likely to find the roaches too, so be careful. Though, maybe we can get them to fight one another if we can get you to talk to the rats."

Big Red glanced back at the guild girl at her comment. "If I went mercenary you'd lose a lot of business. Then your Guild Master would care about anothers words." He replied before vanishing out of the Guild and to the latrines. If he went mercenary he'd bring more of his clansmen out of the marshes and swamps to form a large band. Still he liked his group, a couple of spunky girls who were proficient in their fields.

Although Little Puff...puffing her cheeks out made her seem just a little childish. Still he snagged a torch while putting away his weapons and shield. He wouldn't need those for big rats and bugs. A log would be useful for the bugs, just roll over them and let the weight do the actual work. The group went into the latrine and Big Red pulled the door open with a small flex of his considerable strength. "Breathe through your noses, you'll adapt quicker." He rumbled out as he inhaled. Yup, smelled like a swamp. Maybe a bit more sharp thanks to the urine.

A strike of flint on steel and his torch was lit, which was a few quiet click clacks, giving them a good bubble of visibility. While he had been doing that Druid Girl spoke of her time down here. "How long ago was that venture? They shouldn't populate that quickly." He asked as he pulled out the old map of the sewers. It'd most likely be accurate for the most part, the town wasn't that old and the only inaccuracies should be where rats and such messed things up.

The behemoth took into account what the girls said and requested. Glancing at the map he shrugged and handed it to Druid Girl. "West is fine by me. You read the map since I can hold anything in the front if you even need to put it away. Little Puff can handle the rear. He stated before starting to move. The torch in hand held high to offer more distance to their light. Although whenever they neared a corner he would scrape off the lichen and mold before using the piece of steel in his pouch to make a marker to indicate where they were coming from.

Druid Girl shook her head at the nomad's proposal to get the rats and roaches to fight one another.

"I can't actually command the animals I speak with to do anything. I can ask them for help or information, but telling them to do something that'll endanger their own lives... Well, I'm not advanced enough yet to fully order them around." She explained, scratching the back of her head and looking a bit dejected. Emphasized further by the girl kicking a small bit of stone into the nearby stream of nasty. "Still, I can at least handle talking any of them out of blocking our way if we need to run." She added, confidently puffing out her chest and putting on a big smile, full of determination.

At Big Red's comments, and the newly invented nickname for their nomad archer-friend, Druid Girl stifled a laugh by covering her mouth with her hand. Little Puff? Now that was just adorable, and it fit the cute little archer perfectly too! She'd have to remember to try calling her female comrade that at a later time too, and hopefully get it to stick. It was a shame Lizzie-poo hadn't worked out with Big Red, but hey, you can't have everything.

Reaching over and taking the map from the lizardman, Druid Girl would do her best to read the chicken-scratches and faded, or blurry, lines of their map. To tell the truth, it was almost more of a hassle to try and navigate with the damn thing rather than just venture forth without it! Heck, Big Red were leaving smart little markings wherever they went, so it wans't like they'd get lost anyway. But the former farm girl couldn't bring herself to saying that, so instead she kept directing the party - safe inbetween Big Red in the front and the Steppe Archer behind her.

For a while they travelled west through a passage, then turned south for a bit, then west again. At another crossroad, they kept going west. Oddly, they didn't encounter any giant roaches or giant rats. A few regular sized rats, sure, but those fled as soon as they picked up on the trio's approach, squeaking in panic as they sktitered off to save their lives.

"Strange... We should've encountered at least some critters by now." Druid Girl said, lowering the map for a bit and looking around. "And we haven't seen any bones either, so it's not like the roaches killed and ate all the rats, and if the rats had eaten the roaches, there should've been plenty of them around to get in our way." The nature-specialist summarized.

Something was obviously strange, wrong or very much both of the above.

Sssschhlooooooooorp~!

"Huh?"

A strange noise was heard in the distant dark of the tunnel just ahead of them. It was a bizarre, sloshy noise, like a mix of someone slamming a slab of fresh meat onto a counter while also pouring a large bucket of water into a sink. The noise also seemed to have a rhytm or pacing to it, sounding off then falling quiet for a little while, before giving off another slosh. It was a rather unpleasant noise to be sure though, and Druid Girl could feel the hairs on her neck stand on end.

"W-what's that noise? It's... It's not a sound anything living down here should be making..." She said in an obviously nervous tone. At this point, she'd stuffed the map into her pouch and unhooked the sickle she kept on her hip.

i]Sssschhlooooooooorp~! i]Sssschhlooooooooorp~![/i][/i]

With another wave of wet, goopy sounds, whatever was making the bizarre noise was - undeniably - drawing closer. Druid Girl tried to peer past Big Red to try and see if she could spot the ... Whatever it was... But to no avail. The thing about torchlight and light in otherwise darkness as a rule was that you could see fairly well in your immediate vicinity, but seeing anything far away was as good as staring into pitch black ink.

Still... The group didn't have to wait for long, for within seconds, the source of the sound finally came around the corner of a short corridor just ahead of them.

"... What the heck is that thing?" Druid Girl said after a brief moment of staring, blinking and rubbing her eyes.

She was looking at... Well... A goopy mass of sludge. Just... Sludge. It had no shape or form other than a collection of goo and gunk. It had a strange beige-green coloration, no eyes, no ears, no mouth, no limbs... It was like someone had taken a sheet, filled it with liquid and then made it semi-transparent. Whatever this thing was, it was clearly neither animal nor insect. But regardless of that, it seemed to be aware that there were some lifeforms nearby... And it was slowly advancing towards the group.

"What...is that thing!?" Steppe Archer asked, visibly confused at seeing that...thing, sloshing towards them slowly. It sounded vaguely like wet slop being poured over and over, or like mud being stepped on. The direction it was coming from was where the rats had been...and the rats hadn't come back this way.

It was like a mass of disgusting liquid, seeming to know exactly where the group was. "I think we should go back...I don't know what that thing is, but I don't think we can stab something made of water to death." The pragmatic hunter in her deemed that a creature she knew nothing about was unbeatable, and with the lack of rats or roaches in this area, it was likely that this thing's territory was clean of them. "We can double back the other way, and try to find Rats and Roaches elsewhere."

Druid Girl revealed more of her capabilities. Well her future capabilities, she was still to green to do all the things higher tiered druids could do. But she could potentially clear the way if push came to shove. That could be handy if they were tired or wounded heavily. Of course at the nickname for Archer Girl, Druid Girl started to laugh but held it in by covering her mouth.

During their meandering they encountered....nothing! Except normal rats which weren't part of either job. No roach bits, no rat bones, a whole lot of nothing. Which judging by what the guild girl had said was bizarre. Still they walked further west, taking turns when necessary until a sound came to the group. A sloshing and liquid undulating sound. Oh boy the sewers had these huh?

The torch in his hand went down somewhat to reveal the slime approaching them slowly. Neither girl...knew what it was. Really? He could understand Archer Girl and her steppes and plains. But Druid had been an adventurer and even been down here! "You two don't know what a slime is?" He asked before stepping forward. A shift of his balance and one foot shot forward, slamming into the slime and sending sludgy bits flying every which way in front of him.

"Vulnerable to bludgeoning. They're mostly...ambush..." He said before trailing off. Ah fuck. His torch went towards the ceiling to try and light it up. Having lived in a swamp he knew enough about them but never studied them in detail. The ones there had been more green and tended to cling to branches to fall on prey. What large humanoid or animal looked up after all?

"But leaving this... thing... here could be dangerous. Especially if it runs into someone else who isn't prepared to find it." Druid Girl protested, though not convincingly, when Steppe Archer voiced her opinion of them retreating from this new, strange creature. "Let me try something." She added, before closing her eyes and focusing.

... And a few seconds passed, then she opened her eyes with a very... Complicated... expression on her face.

"I... I can't talk with it... No, it's more like it can't communicate at all. It's like trying to talk with a-- Ah..." Druid Girl's explanation was interrupted, as th big red lizard of the group both informed the girls of what this creature was, what it was weak to, and performing an unceremenoeous punt to it, which sent splatterings of goo flying. Druid Girl stood in blatant stupification at the sight. There was no evidence that this creature was hostile or even knew they were present, nor did it have any means to visually or audibly convey intent... And this lizardman had just gone ahead and kicked it... And now he was staring at the... Ceiling?

Unfortunately for Big Red, he had vastly overstimated the slimes. There was nothing on the ceiling or walls... And having taken his eye off the one he had just kicked, he'd also learn that even if these creatures were weak to blunt damage, they weren't so fragile to be destroyed by a single blow. He'd also learn taht, when provoked, this kid of monster was quite mobile.

With a sound similar to that of a waterballoon hitting a brick wall, the green goop-pile launched itself forward, and latched onto Big Red's shin - on the same leg that had been used to kick it. While initially feeling like nothing more than cool, gooey gel that was moving around on its own, the lizard would soon begin to feel an unpleasant, and increasingly intensifying, burning sensatio. Any pice of his pants that had been caught in the slimes body would also quickly begin to tatter and fray, before seeming to dissolve and vanish into the goop.

Attempts at punching the creature would result in little more than sending a few more splatterings of jelly around. Tryiing to stomp or shake it off resulted in nothing more than the creature shifting its position, sucking on harder to the leg and being very stubbronly adamant about not letting go. Trying to peel it off or grab it would just result in fingers passing through the gelatine-like body as if it were wet, soppy pudding and would do nothing more than burn fingers or gloves.

"Wha-- Big Red! Are you alright!?" The druid exclaimed as she watched the being of snot-like substance latch on and cling to her ally's leg. "S-should I cast my frost-spell at it? I uh... I can't promise it won't hit you as well though..." She asked, offered and then reconsidered, before turning to their Archer-friend. "M-maybe you can scare it off with the torch? Just be careful not to burn the bigt guy... Or set him on fire..." She was a bit... Panicky... In her speech. Though for good reasons; as an unknown, unfamiliar and alien threat was now trying to make noms outta her companion's limb.

Well. Things were already going bad. Very bad. Insanely bad, even. So bad that Steppe Archer's entire posture froze up as she saw their lizard friend kick a ball of liquid and get his foot stuck in it. ...And now it was eating his leg. Off to a fantastic start!

"Fire would hurt him a lot more than the ice. Besides, if this thing is made of liquid, freezing it would mean that we can break it off of him," she would say, wondering if there was anything else she could do to slow the thing, or get it off entirely. But as it stood, she wasn't a mage, or an expert on sewer monsters. ...Also, the longer they waited, the longer it would be melting the flesh off of his leg.

No pressure or anything. "Big Red, are you alright?" she asked, wondering if this was as painful as it looked. She was certain that as it stood, fire would only either agitate it, or make it crawl up his body to escape. But if it was frozen, they could smash it to pieces!

The ceiling was empty, apparently it was a solitary slime. Then again more could be hiding elsewhere in these sewers but that was a thought for another day. The slime, while he wasn't looking, and it somehow lived through a football punt, had lunged and latched onto his leg which got a sigh of annoyance from him. A quick tug pulled that pant leg up and away from its acid contents and it began to digest his leg. Albeit slowly, stomach acid was powerful but it was still slow.

"No one knows where slimes come from but they're essentially monstrous forms of natures clean up crew. They eat everything and are essentially constructs from...somewhere. At least that's what the elders and shamans of my tribe have said. They like the dark." He rumbled before glaring down at the slime. Were the gods playing tricks with their dice?

"Use the ice, it's better than it slowly working through my leg." He stated while folding his arms and lifting his leg, balancing perfectly on the other so Druid Girl wouldn't have to bend down closer to the sewer floor to get to his leg. For someone getting eaten alive, slowly, he was unsurprisingly calm. Although clearly annoyed. They were both asking if he was alright and he just shrugged. "Get a sunburn on your leg and increase the pain slowly but gradually to a more severe burn. It's slower because it has to work on the scales which have no feeling." Big Red commented while waiting.

"R-right! Of course! I'll get rid of that thingy right away!" Druid Girl, who was still a bit flustered and panicked, responded to both her companions. Moving closer to Big Red's raised leg, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes momentarily, cleared her mind and began the chant for her spell.

""May winter's touch chill your bones, shiver in the icy cold, frost fingers!""

With both hands outstretched infront of her, white-glowing azure light formed at the tips of her fingers, and then shot outward like a wedge. Unfortunately, trying to hit a single creature with an attack that travels in a non-linear shape wasn't exactly easy. As such, Big Red would feel a bit of biting cold envelope his foot and knee, as well as the shin where the slimey monster was... Though in the latter case, it'd actually feel a bit nice having something cold permiate the area which was being acidically burned.

The squishy creature of goo did, as expected, not seem very fond of the sudden jet of sub-zero temperature magic that assaulted it. With a shudder, it instantly let go off Big Red's leg and dropped to the sewer floor with a wet, goopy sound. Bits of ice and frost had formed on its exterior, but ih hadn't been frozen solid or turned to ice... Not really a surprise, given that Druid Girl's spell was one of the most basic low-level attack speels a druid could learn.

Still, the freezing had done something, and the creature was noticeably more sluggish and less viscuous now. It almost looked like a lump of frozen pudding. A thought that may have delighted the black-haired girl, had she known what pudding was and had this creature not made its home in a subterranean wasate-canal. Still, as the globulate being tried to make a sluggish and rather poor attempt at an escape, the nature mage was on the case!

Unhooking the staff from her back, and sliding it around herself, she grabbed the weapon in both hands, raised it up and then slammed it down, as if she was trying to pierce the ground. With a sound that was vaguely remeniscent of someone breaking a ripe watermelon with a wooden mallet, the oak staff struck the chilled slime-monster, and consequently turned it into semi-fchilled paste. Drops and bits of goo went sailing through the air as the nasty critter was made into an actual puddle this time.

There was also a weird clinking noise following the squashing.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Druid Girl then seemed to remember something, as her head snapped back upwards and turned to look at Big Red again.

"Oh, geez, I forgot! Are you alright? Do you want me to heal your leg? I really don't think you should be walking around in a place like this with a leg that's injuured. Who knows what could get into the wound."

Albeit, thre was less of a 'wound' adn more of a burn on the lizard fighter's leg. Still, as it turned out, drinking an entire healing potion to mend an injury like this would probably be a waste. Then again, having Druid Girl cast another spell would mean she'd only be able to cast one more for the entire day. Really though, it was up to Big Red if he felt he wanted to risk walking around with a damaged limb, or get it patched up and have less fire-or-support power later on.