Monster Party
Torrent, covered in the shining aura of a boosted Shield II, stood her ground as the Giant Slime tried to crush her. Once again, she used her combined stream of poisonous fumes and flame against the creature, this time attempting to cut off the pseudopods like a blow torch. Meanwhile, Oberon and Ash both continued to use their analysis skills--Oberon targeted their enemy, while Ash was looking at Digbie's Sacred Ground spell. She was able to analyze it just in time, but she couldn't see the "shape" of the Mana through her vision, at least not clearly enough to understand it. The Demiblin had put his hands back on the ground and activated Earth Vein again, but at the same time he inadvertently deactivated his Sacred Ground--he still couldn't maintain another active skill while using Earth Vein at the same time! The temporary Mana overfill had subsided, now that he had cast a couple of spells, but the system almost immediately dinged to tell him that he was full on MP again.
You used Monster Analysis I! You have Analyzed this Monster before with a different skill!
---Giant Slime---
Giant Slimes have simply grown bigger, and their membranes have increased in strength so as to hold more mass without causing their bodies to split. Their digestive fluids also become stronger, but as a result of these advantages they require more food. Giant Slimes have little to no magic to speak of; they have only slightly above the bare minimum of Magical Power for a Monster. They have no elemental affiliation by nature, though Slimes that live in environments rich with ambient mana sometimes take on properties better suited for their habitat.
---Analysis Complete!---
You used Magic Analysis II! You are attempting to use Mana Vision at the same time!
---Sacred Ground---
Rank I. By marking an area, channel Mana create a safe zone. HP will recover slowly for allies, and damage taken will slightly decrease. This Spell consumes MP for as long as it is active. The larger the zone, the more MP required.
STRUCTURE:
!INCOMPLETE ELEMENTAL FUSION COMPREHENSION!
N3E7I3W1
---Analysis Complete!---
All of this happened at once, and thus when Torrent's attack tore through one of the pseudopods, Oberon and Ash appeared to simply be watching as the other false limb came down hard on top of her before she could cut through it. The first pseudopod, as well, kept going with its built-up momentum and also struck the Lesserwurm, though not so hard. Still, Torrent was driven into the ground and felt every bone in her body shudder as the huge masses of gel pressed against her. Like a boxer that has taken a knockout blow, her ears rang and her vision swam--her limbs felt like lead and she couldn't seem to catch her breath...
She could vaguely hear Digbie calling out as he pointed at her and snapped his fingers. Another Shield appeared around her, though oddly not as strong as that last one that the slime's attack just broke. Maybe it was because Digbie was also trying to use Sacred Ground at the same time, but the Demiblin would feel the flow of mana balking within him. Almost like the involuntary halt of one's body when they run at an obstacle in an attempt to hurdle over it, then realize it is too high. Only when he finally put all of his focus on Sacred Ground could he make it work again.
Oberon had begun to shape his Fireball, attempting to make a modification using his experience with Mana Dart. Ash observed as he did so. The Giant Slime was still reeling in pain, but again it lurched towards Torrent. It rolled over her just like it had Digbie in the beginning of their encounter, causing the severed limb to stick back to its membrane and slamming her deeper into the earth. Her shield hadn't broken again yet, but from the sputtering and fizzling coming off the aura it seemed any followup blow might do it. The Giant Slime sat on top of her, keeping her pinned--without air--as it now shifted and raised a larger pseudopod in Digbie's direction...
You used Magic Analysis II! You are attempting to use Mana Vision at the same time!
---?Fireball?---
The basic magical fire attack. With roughly the same power, range, and MP consumption as a Mana Orb, it has the unique property of being able to inflict a burn on the target. However, elemental properties render it harder to use in certain circumstances. Non-flammable or elementally opposed targets, for example, will be much less effected. Oberon seems to be altering this spell...
STRUCTURE:
!INCOMPLETE ELEMENTAL FUSION COMPREHENSION!
F1
---Analysis Complete!---
This time Ash saw more. That first structure, at the very center of Oberon's fireball--a deep golden square, almost black, and two oscillating lines extending towards towards another square on each side. But this time...those squares weren't red? They were light green...and so were several other squares, appearing as Oberon poured more energy into this spell. These new structures began to orbit around the first, taking shape naturally as Oberon held the Fireball in his hands in preparation to shape it. The green squares couldn't come too close to the golden one, they were being repelled...and as they were repelled around it, they came together in clusters of three, and two of each trio would turn a light blue instead--and now they were suddenly drawn back towards the center!? The two oscillations on either side of the gold-black core now began moving at a much higher frequency! At the moment the new structures touched the old, there was a flash of neon purple and the two squares on either side of the gold one became fully three-dimensional cubes instead, once again bright red! It was at this point that the Fireball in Oberon's hand was fully formed and began to put off heat, vapor waves and colorless smoke--and then he began to shape it! New squares began to blink into existence in Ash's sight, but they were colorless and had no oscillations--
Again, she couldn't help but blink.
At the speed of thought, such things passed. The Giant Slime was on top of Torrent, pinning her down, she had been beaten hard and couldn't breathe, and now it was turning to Digbie--!
Oberon's Fireball shot through the air like a thrown javelin. It struck the Giant Slime dead center, and penetrated just a finger's length into that thick membrane. Only the tail end flash of the flame spread over its outer surface, but inside it the heat expanded and turned its orange body red, then yellow hot around that point. They could see its insides actually bubbling as the creature boiled. With a screech, it abandoned the attack on the Demiblin and now turned for the hills--it was retreating!
But it was trying to take Torrent with it, as its membrane gripped her at every point in contact...!
PixieSlime Party
You used Monster Analysis I!
---Bowhorn Deer---
This species of deer has absorbed magical energy from the forest and the plants, causing its horns to become more like saplings than bone. They're still plenty sharp and tough, but have an added flexibility that makes them valuable to bowyers and other craftsmen. As it grows older, sometimes the horns even sprout blooms or fruit of some sort, varying based on the creature's diet and habitat.
With his shapeshift ability Asura was able to dart between the Bowhorn Deer's hooves as it came back to earth. Whether it was just trying to scare him away or actually stomp him wasn't clear, but before it could do anything else he Smashed its knee--or technically, given the bone structure of most quadropeds, its ankle. There was a crunch, but it didn't sound like a breaking bone. Nonetheless, the animal stumbled and went down part of the way, as if it were bowing its front end low. At this same moment, Ardur was giving orders to the two non-reborn and taking flight. Momma Slime let out a burbling "wat?" but then headed towards the fight anyway--helping Asura had been her intention from the start. Steve understood the order through Ardur's Taming link, however, and as soon as Momma Slime was out of the way the Spider launched a Web Spit at the deer's other leg.
At almost the same time the sticky goop covered its hoof, Momma Slime suddenly lashed out with one of her pseudopods a little faster than usual. She caught hold of one of the creature's horns and pulled--at the same time drawing another pseudopod back, balling it up on the end like a fist!
"MASH!"
Maybe she was imitating Asura or something she had seen in one of his thought transmissions, or maybe she was getting smarter again and had figured out a better way to attack. But for all intents and purposes, the best way to describe the attack was this: Momma Slime had grappled the deer, and then straight-up punched it right in the face. Blood spurted from the creature's nostrils, and it thrashed its head back and forth wildly with wide, panicked eyes--it could barely budge Momma Slime's weight, however, and while its back legs began to lash out and kick with those sharp hooves, it wasn't in much position to be any kind of threat...
From above, Ardur had a perfect shot at the creature--through the treetops above, a single ray of the early morning sunlight even fell through, putting a spotlight right on the base of the creature's neck.
Rat Party
Asteria's attempt at crafting was...not quite so successful as she might have hoped. She was able to find a fairly large rock without a great deal of trouble, but her chisel was much too small and hadn't been knapped well enough to stand up to that kind of abuse. Dire Rats were strong, but she wasn't quite strong enough to actually chip into the larger stone, even when using another smaller rock to try and hammer her blade in. The knapped stone chipped further, becoming a nigh-usless sliver. When she used her own teeth, she was able to make chips and cracks here and there and then scrape them off a little at a time...but ultimately, her attempt at making a bowl would probably take much, much longer, and either better tools or a more suitable body. Still, she had made some sort of indent. And the stone was of a size that at the very least it could be used as a cutting board of sorts--basically, it wouldn't have held water, but smashing plants into paste on top of it was still very doable.
You used Plant Analysis I!
---Bugward Flower---
These flowers produce an oily smoke that repels many insects when burned. It grows between four to thirty inches, with about one hundred ray-like petals that range from a vivid blue to darker grays and blacks towards the center. If a fresh stem is cut or the plant is mashed to paste, the juice can disinfect wounds.
---Kittail Plant---
A tall plant stalk that produces a seedy head, which are ripe when they become bright red. These cause them to hang over like the tails of a Kitsune, as their namesake. Originally imported from a foreign land, this plant can sometimes be found growing wild but more often is a food crop. The seeds can be ground into a flour and used for a variety of baking recipes.
---Kilm Blossom---
This herb produces blue and yellow blossoms in the spring. The green, unpleasant smelling sap attracts many kinds of pollinating insects. Ancient tribes used it as an all-purpose salve or to make tea, and grinding its roots releases a pain inhibitor of some sort.
---Nullven Cone---
This flower has deep purple petals that hang down, and can be between two and three feet tall. There are some anti-poison properties in its extracts, though it seems to boost a body's immune system rather than negate or destroy poisons directly. It can also treat acne, rash, and fever.
---Wasp Thorn---
This plant bears thorns of an interesting design. If you are pricked by them, it is better to disengage slowly. Some advocate running through most brambles quickly to get the pain over with, but in the case of the Wasp Thorn this causes the thorns to hook and tear painfully into whatever they have caught. A substance the plant produces causes the pain to linger for some time, possibly days if one is sensitive to it. Its leaves are also covered in thorns, but can be used to make diuretic tea.
After the rats ate their fill, Asteria would take first watch while trying to make something from these plants. While she stayed outside, that left considerably more room in the burrow, and Ed would actually be able to fit. Albeit cramped, he and Mother Rat would soon be asleep. When he switched out with Asteria, he would find that the plains seemed relatively peaceful at night...save for an occasional, distant howl from some creature or another. And at one point, a large shadow that circled under the clouds, and over the mountains to the west...
A whole new world was out there, after all. Full of unknown creatures, no doubt many of them quite threatening. But for now, the rats slept...
And in the morning, they were the first to see the sun as its gaze swept across the grass...
The village was much more visible now. The huts had a very primitive look to them, but at the same time there were definitely signs of civilization. Rugs and blankets were being aired out after they were slept on all night, and as they hung out the window one could tell from their colors and patterns that this society was far past the cave-man level.
Just like Ed had predicted, the few villagers--no more than four, perhaps--on watch were yawning and trudging along their routes. Some even leaned against walls, their heads nodding. One sat near a fire that had burned low hours ago, its coals barely smoldering. At the moment, none of them were near that woodshed over there...
Ghost Party
Danny was able to grab the black slime, and keep it from hitting him full force in the face. However, it was too heavy for him, and hard to hold onto. It continued to squirm in his grasp, once getting a pseudopod out for a hefty punch to the Poltergeist's face. Surprisingly it didn't hurt as much as it might have--his Blunt Resistance coming into play, no doubt--but it was still a hard knock that he felt deep in his newly-formed bones.
But then the creature suddenly seized in his hands--not an attempt at escape, but rather an actual seizure! Or something very similar to it. The slime let out a pitiable creening cry...but it seemed vulnerable!
Unseen by Danny, Jason had cut off his meditation early. Even as he narrowed his focus to only those two souls, the System again informed him as he rushed towards them that he had low MP. But as the warning flashed brightly in his mind, he made that last ghostly lunge and latched onto the Slime. He shoved a Transparent pseudopod into it and then released the technique, causing that violent rejection that gave him nausea but also seemed to hurt the slime. Then, trying to form his insubstantial mist into a ripping, grasping hand, he went for the Slime's soul and activated his Mana Drain--!
--Nothing nothing nothing not nothing! Thing, thing not nothing, thing good more thing some thing bad! Some bad thing HURT, thing hurt me! Me. Me not me. Me thing good good me not hurt me. Eat. Me find thing, eat thing, eat good thing, eat bad thing bad thing good me. Need eat. More eat. Hard thing. Soft thing. Warm thing. Cold thing. Not me thing. Me....I. I am Jason.It was easy to separate the Slime's memories from his own after the first few instants--they had both begun life in that cave and made a meager living as Slimes do, simply moving from place to place and eating whatever they found while avoiding whatever presented danger. Concepts like light, heat, cold, shelter, and just about everything else were beyond the Slime, and there was almost immediately a point where Jason could clearly recognize and draw a line between their two different levels of sentience. It didn't threaten to pull away his identity the way other souls had.
The black Slime was still seizing in Danny's grip, and Jason was still draining Mana from it...
