[img]http://i.imgur.com/SsySWU5.png[/img] Marco Polo (September 15, 1254 – January 8–9, 1324), Italian merchant traveller from Venice. Author of [i] Livres des merveilles du monde[/i], first known European to give a detailed chronicle of travels in Asia. * * * * Leila rested her head against the rough surface at the foot of one of the walls of the caves, body decided that it didn’t have enough energy to do anything - or move at all - at least until it’s done taking in all the pain from the tumbling crash after being swept into the air by the wind and then the scramble to the caves that consisted of multiple sequences of rolling across the ground in various ways and almost being crushed by a cascade of boulders. Her [url=http://chargedblast.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/to-archer.jpg]current attire[/url] covered most of her skin, sparing her from much of the scratch and cuts that would have occurred otherwise (and in fact did occur in a similar situation that previously arose). The sensation the felt like every joint in her body was detached and then popped back in at uncomfortable angles, however, wasn’t alleviated. How strong a gust of wind did it have to be to propel them this far? Ugh, Nowherian aerodynamics. The girl was a bit too disoriented to tell, anyway. Some other humans were in the caves as well. She wasn’t as good telling voices from one another. Ace. The blacked-haired writer boy with glasses. Harper - the kid who first greeted her way back at Nowhere station. Back when...how far back? It seemed to be the question she hit every time she tries to trace back. And from some point on, the question settled on returning a single, consistent answer: [i]“I don’t know.”[/i] It bothered her greatly. Yet, Leila wasn’t given time to run through that routine this time, for a voice interrupted her. It was the messenger, who accompanied them in their journey in the area. [i]"I suggest you all close your eyes!"[/i] She yelled. By the way you know Leila, it would probably not be hard to guess that when someone says that, [i]there would be no way that Leila was going to close her eyes[/i]. The burst of light followed, resulting in temporary blindness, discomfort, and profound confusion. And the sudden regret of not having closed her eyes. * * * * Piezoluminescence. Their advance forward - forward, because it was hard to tell whether they were on their way to leave the caves, of heading deeper into them - continued. Nowhere continued to fascinate Leila with its inexhaustible supply of absurd and unexpected materials and phenomena. The diversity in environments and organisms was also astounding - she thought as she paused to stare at the fish-shaped silhouettes that swam elegantly in the depths of the dimly fluorescent underwater lake. So much that she had never seen - so much that she would need to read up on. Or was there any documentation of this back at home? She was surely not the first human to visit such a place - right? Or was documentary even worth it when she had seen these scenes with her own eyes and saved them in her own memories? She came dangerously close to allowing her thoughts to wander off again, risking losing track of the actions and whereabouts of the rest of her group - the messenger and the other humans, who were currently attempting to devise a method of scaling a ledge of sorts that she assumed was somewhere near. Leila also came dangerously close to being impaled on one of the claws of a giant mushroom that appeared out of nowhere. Claws. Giant mushroom. Giant mushroom that appeared out of nowhere - [i]implying that it moved[/i]. That made no sense at all. Leila got back up to her feet at the site of her fall to evade the swing of the claw on the elongated appendage. A subsequent swing was intercepted by Harper with a swing of his sword, severing the claw. Which then grew back. Giant mushroom with claws that grow back at a rate detectable by eyesight. That made even less sense. The monster shrieked, the fibre-y tendrils that composed its body writhing angrily as if having emotions of their own. Her amulet was glowing. Leila reacted, without taking the time to actually acknowledge that she was reacting. It was as if the amulet was controlling her mind - while that most certainly wasn’t the case, it felt much like it - observations, decisions, the carrying out of decisions. No double-checking, no uncertainty, near-instinctive reaction time. Leap to the side. Properly damp collision with ground. Propell body in opposite direction, move out of visual range of opponent. Reach for arrow in process. Splashing sounds were heard as Harper was tossed into the lake. The monster let out a shorter hiss, then - as if suddenly acknowledging the other humans as threats as well - turned around to face the other three humans. It hesitated for one moment and suddenly began to accelerate - towards them, at an alarming rate. Draw. Anchor. A suitable estimate of the mass of a humongous mushroom. Evaluate speed as a function of time. Curvature of trajectory negligible at short range. Aim. Weight of an arrow and its speed. Just barely enough to - - it would be hard to see an arrow travelling through the air at that velocity and these lighting conditions, but a result was evident as observed through the humming of a still vibrated bowstring, the dull sound of an impact, an unpleasant roar originated from the monstrosity of a mushroom that staggered in its steady, rapid advance. Conclusion: Giant mushroom with claws that is now utterly pissed off due to an arrow sticking through its face.