[center][h3]The Qliphoth - Scarlet Swamp[/h3]
Lvl 14 Ms Fortune (130/140)
Midna’s [@DracoLunaris] Edelgard’s [@MULTI_MEDIA_MAN]  Captain Falcon’s [@Double]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 595[/center]

Bloodstream travel sure wasn’t pleasant, but by the third time Nadia was finally starting to get used to it, with the help of her rather potent drink from Gallagher of course. Though the firefight against Emily in her monstrous feline form had been a flashy, high-octane brawl, and the full team’s heroic stand against the floodfested horde had been exciting, her quartet’s intense back-and-forth with Something Unto Death left a much stronger impression. It had been very different from her typical fare, even if most of those differences seemed tailor-made to counter her, and combined with the strange battlefield plus the mysterious barman, that encounter would probably stick with her for a while. For now, though, she could only wait until her ride through the Qliphoth vein came to an end, and hope that her arrival wouldn’t precipitate another brawl. The feral had a lot of fight left in her, but she could definitely use a break.

After a little less than a minute -her longest ascent yet- Nadia bubbled up in what could only be described as a blood swamp. Once she bobbed to the surface, she beheld a large, broad hollow full of large pools of crimson ichor separated by small islands of aged, almost fossilized Qliphoth flesh. Some of the demon tree’s internal outcrops resembled more ordinary trees themselves, though most of the flora in here looked [url=https://i.imgur.com/yKX4hYJ.png]far stranger[/url], almost fungal in nature. Though she spotted a few large, pulsating Flood tumors scattered among the chamber’s recesses, the overall infestation rate seemed mercifully low. On one side the floor rose in a series of [url=https://i.imgur.com/oe93Xyf.png]stony terraces[/url] over which blood flowed like water, and the wall there was so badly damaged that a large, frayed opening gave Nadia a view of the cloudy sky beyond. She could only assume that this hollow was very high up in the tree, and that the guardian couldn’t possibly be much higher.

Bubbling springs in the xylem pools betrayed spots where a number of other veins opened into the swamp from below, indicating that this hollow was some sort of convergence point. Hopefully that meant that all of Nadia’s scattered allies would eventually wind up here, provided that they survived whatever ordeals the Qliphoth sent their way. Given what she’d faced so far, Nadia felt pretty confident that the others had run into trouble as well, but pretty much all of her fellow Seekers were more than capable of handling themselves. “Guess we’ll wait and see who shows up,” she declared cheerfully.

[center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJexEzpsKfI[/youtube][/center]

She and Emily helped one another along as they waded through the pool to the nearest island, where they seated themselves around a mote of golden light beneath the watchful gaze of a [url=https://i.imgur.com/mwwknCK.png]lion-headed statue[/url]. There was enough room for Captain Falcon, Edelgard, and Midna if they wanted to rest, but given the size of this hollow, any itch for exploration could uncover all sorts of nooks, crannies, hidden items, or veiled threats. For her part, though, Nadia just stretched herself and tried to relax. Though the Qliphoth was stiflingly warm, a cool breeze blew in through the opening. “Ahh. Pretty flowers, scenic view.” Nadia folded her arms behind her head as she stared at the ceiling. It was not a pleasant sight. “If this place had a shower, I’d be all set. Wait…”

In a fit of inspiration, she forgot all about her attempt to relax and jumped up to try something new: using Hydro Mimics from her Oceanid striker to try and wash off all the blood, sweat, and grime, with decidedly mixed results.