Nira and Femus
When Femus spoke to Nira, he revealed himself as something more than a Wisp. No other creatures Nira had seen thus far besides the Goblins could speak--and calling the sounds they made "proper" speech was a bit of a stretch. What would they do? Would they form an alliance, or become enemies? Competition to be outdone...or a possible ally to be made, in this new and savage world?
The Dire Rat shook its head, and snarled at both of them. Not willing to fight a battle on two fronts, it turned to run--would they let the kill get away from them? They might not get another chance for a while, as it seemed the majority of the stampede was over. If they let the Rat get away, they would have to hunt in a more typical manner--a lot of tracking, hiding, waiting, ambushing--to get another meal, or more battle experience. That was another question: would this Rat possibly be the source of their next level up?
[[Feel free to post back and forth without an update from me if you're primarily interacting with one another.]]
Sato
”Watcha need, boss?” Sato grinned while both his hands rested atop his waist as he awaited the goblin boss’ reply.
"Youse's borned..." Lansa counted out ten days on his fingers, then held up two of his toes. "Dis many days ago. Not long time." He put his hands back on his spear, holding it casually...but nonetheless, the weapon still made one feel uncomfortable just by the sight of it. "But I seen yas, youse growin' fast." The Hobgoblin peered at him suspiciously. "And ya does dem funny tings, erry day. Climbin' on trees. Pickin' up heavy tings and puttin' 'em down agin." He looked over towards Ballz Acker, who was now working with Say-Bah to pile up the corpses of all the slain prey. "An' ya da only Gob dum enuff to keep tryin' to arm wrassle Ballz."
As the Hobgoblin turned back towards Sato, it was clear that gears were turning in his head. He looked at the youngling with suspicion...but also curiosity.
"Youse one o' Granpy Kiri's younglings. Dunno which one was yore muddah, but dey both Gobs. Not Hobs like mines, or Bugbear like Ballz's faddah." He tapped Sato's leg with the butt of his spear. "So how's you gettin' stronk so fast?"
Farmstead
Miiba, the little girl goblin, had been having quite the busy few days. Ever since she had escaped from that godawful cave, it had been one disaster after another. Everywhere she went, there had been some creature ready to gobble her up, and all she wanted was to make friends. She had thought she would finally be able to do that, once she came upon a farmstead some miles east of the cave...only to be captured by the humans there and subjected to a terrifying night of interrogation in the woodshed. However, the next morning, she had met Mr. Lear, the farmer--and possibly a former soldier or adventurer of some sort, if the armor hanging in his house was any indication.
To say Lear had accepted her wouldn't be correct. Rather, it seemed Lear had simply been observing her, and giving her a chance to prove that she really wasn't like the other goblins, who did NOT have a good reputation in this world. She still caught distrusting glances and heard disparaging words from the rest of the family, but so far she had only been given orders to do chores and answer questions...Yet at the same time, she had been invited to share their table, and had been given a small place to sleep by the fire. And now she had grown another level.
Lear had told her that it might be possible for her to Transform into something better than a Goblin...maybe not something Humans would be real "friends" with, but at least something they didn't hate so much? It was the only hope she had thus far. The only hope this former 8-year-old little girl, taken from her old world before she had ever really experienced it, could ever have to be a "person" again.
"M-...Mrs. Gwen?" The sound of a spoon tapping the edge of a pot came from the kitchen. The farmer's beautiful wife adjusted the blue apron over her modest, cream-colored dress as she leaned around the corner. "Miiba thank for sleep spot. Miiba sleep good! But...where Mr. Lear? Miiba sleep too long? Does Miiba need to get water from the w-" DING! "WHA!"
Gwen jumped as well at Miiba's surprise, and approached the little goblin warily.
"Dinged? What does that mean?" she asked gently, but Miiba seemed just as confused. When the goblin asked for water, Gwen motioned for her to wait a moment, and returned to the kitchen, her long braid of blonde hair trailing behind her. Soon she came back with a wooden cup of water, and handed it to the goblin.
"Lear said to let you sleep until time for breakfast. But after that you'll have to work again." The woman of the house watched Miiba for a moment. "Miiba. What are you? Where did you come from?"
Rat Party
As Ed delivered that earth shaking blow, Asteria fed Mother Rat the other half of the Healing Herb. She would have to hope that would hold the elder rat over until after this could be finished. As the Worker miraculously rose and Ed sank down, her tail wrapped around one of the last herbs and she dashed towards the battle. As the Myrminor raised its clawed forelimbs, the swift Dire Rat charged it down and leaped! Asteria's spring-loaded, furry body collided with the chitinous monster with enough force to push it back, and while its legs braced its weight its claws couldn't reach her. She scrambled onto its back, and repeated her newfound telepathic attack. Just like before, the Myrminor's movements slowed and became jerky, like a remote controlled toy with weak batteries. Biting at the already cracked shell where Ed had struck it, she tore off another piece. The second Healing Herb fluttered down by Ed's feet.
Ed could barely see through the haze covering him, as his muscles cramped and spasmed. But, through sheer force of will, he drove himself to stand, to keep fighting. He grabbed the Herb and barely chewed it on the way down, yet almost immediately felt its healing powers knitting his flesh. From inside his body the healing herb accelerated the regeneration of all his strained organs and muscles, and with the barest hint of renewed vigor he rose and took his cudgel in hand. Though his legs were still heavy and his arms still stiff, he lumbered forward to join his packmate.
The Worker bucked, and began to recover from Asteria's telepathic attack. She bit off another piece of its armored hide, spilling its blood onto the grass below. It tilted itself to one side and shook, trying to scrape her off against the ground. Its antennae twitched and it jerked towards Ed, just as he brought the cudgel down on its maimed head. Once, twice, thrice, and Asteria's claws were still digging at its wounds--
The Myrminor dropped to the ground, and just its back legs twitched as the last vestiges of life bled out.
For several moments, there was nothing but heavy breathing and the rush of adrenaline. Mother Rat pushed herself up on wobbling legs. She still didn't look too good, but she limped her way over to the others. The three dead insects lay there, simply twitching...
The first time the rats had been attacked by a Scout, it had come at them out of the ground. There didn't seem to be any openings or mounds of dirt for these three to have come from--where had they exited their tunnels at? Were there more nearby? If they had come out of their tunnel network somewhere closer to the place Ed and Asteria killed the first scout, then traveled overland, other Myrminor might be further away than they thought. But, these three had obviously tracked down the body of their slain bretheren, and this would be four ants out of...how many? How numerous would these monstrous hives be, and what other subtypes might there be?
The group's sharp ears picked up a new sound.
"--ver there, you think?"
"Might be. Saw it out this direction, but just a glimpse."
Humans! The figures were distant, but stood out over the tops of the grass due to their height. There were two of them, and they were moving in a wide arc--they might miss the rats entirely, or pass far to one side of them, but they also might find a trail of some sort, or the signs of battle...What would the rat pack do!?
Ghost Party
Skill Gain: Blood Drain I (0.9 > 1.0)!
Through physical contact with whatever body part or orifice the user needs to eat and drink, drain the target's blood through an already open wound. In addition to dealing damage, this skill also restores the user's HP. The amount of HP restored will not be the same as the amount of damage dealt or the same as the amount of blood consumed. Any disease, poison, or other danger contained within the target's blood may also present a threat to this skill's user. At this rank the user is limited in how much blood they can drain and how quickly, as well as the target's defense, healing factor, and other circumstances.
When Jason activated the second rank of Spiritual Awareness, he found its function changed somewhat. Unlike before when he could naturally see other creature's souls, now it took a noticeable effort and the images were not as clear. In addition, the world around himself and the creature he was looking at turned into the monochrome, icy cold, howling Limbo he had seen before. He felt almost as exposed as the creature's spirit he was looking at.
The Four Horned Goat dislodged its horns, but heard Danny begin his chanting above them. It looked up--just in time to get an eyefull of Jason's spit. It reared and kicked its hooves in panic, doing more damage to the tree they were sheltering within. Jason practically fell out of the hollow, crashing into the goat and wrapping around it. It managed to bite him, tearing out a chunk of his membrane that it immediately spat out onto the ground, then began to buck wildly. As Jason tried to wrap himself more tightly, it kicked all the harder.
The Skill [Transparency I] requires increased MP to function due to having a physical body. Your MP is getting Low.
Jason was only able to make the very tip of a pseudopod transparent, but reaching into the goat and deactivating it triggered the same violent rejection effect, creating an area that looked like it had suffered internal trauma on the animal's side in the form of a nasty bruise. Jason began to Mana Drain the creature, while holding on for dear life. The goat bleated and slammed the Necroslime into the tree, hard enough that the already damaged wood began to crack.
But from the moment they had seen the monster mammal, Danny had been Focusing and Chanting with a Mana Dart forming between his hands.
"A simple variant of Mana Orb--" His Mana surged, and the Mana Dart glowed brighter. "but holding the promise of more to come." A ring appeared within Danny's hands, like the barrel of a cannon that the Mana Dart was loaded inside. Crackling sparks of energy jumped between the edges of the ring and the Dart like arcs of electricity. "Superior Mana Dart!"
As the goat pulled back to slam Jason again, Danny let loose.
Focus: Increased Power of Mana Dart I. Casting time increased, Mana Cost increased.
The Skill [Spell Chant] is incomplete. Casting time increased, Mana Cost increased, Power Boost Effectiveness decreased by 60%.
You have no MP remaining.
The Mana Dart lunged out of the Poltergeist's hands like a bolt from a crossbow, and struck the goat in the side of the head. Like putting a hammer to a nail, it punched through flesh and bone, and the animal reared up on its hind legs with a scream. Then it fell to the ground, dead, with an open hole revealing its bloodied brain matter. One of its horns had been broken off by the impact, and fell to the ground.
LEVEL UP! Your combat experiences have culminated in new power! You are now Level 7! Your Max MP has increased! You gain Skill Points to distribute as you please!
Unspent Skill Points: 5
Current Skills:
Mana Orb II (2.525)
Lesser Force II (2.9)
Levitation (--)
Monster Analysis II (2.85)
Meditate I (1.45)
Mana Shape I (1.35)
Aqua Sphere I (1.25)
Magic Analysis I (1.75)
Mana Dart I (1.1)
Blunt Resistance I (1.05)
Focus I (1.05)
Faster I (1.1)
Plant Analysis I (1.05)
Mana Vision I (1.1)
Point Strike I (1.05)
Muffle I (1.0)
<UNUSABLE>
Mana Strike (0.5)
Mana Shell (0.1)
Suppress Presence (0.8)
Spell Cancel (0.1)
Aqua Stream (0.2)
Magic Dash (0.2)
Spell Chant (0.4)
Material Analysis (0.6)
Mana Drain (0.1)
Alert (0.2)
Fire Resistance (0.1)
Charisma (0.2)
Spiritual Awareness (0.9)
Stronger (0.1)
Crafting (0.3)
Dextrous (0.2)
Dash Attack (0.1)
Skewer (0.1)
Tremor Sense (0.1)
Monster Party
As Ash let a drop of venom fall from her tail into the Mana Orb, it sizzled and turned to a wispy poisonous fume once it made contact with the magical orb. The next drop was much the same, but now the fume cloud became slightly heavier. In the still air of the small, man(monster)-made cavern, it didn't blow away. The Mana Orb began to sizzle. The third drop finally brought with it a change, and it sank through the fumes and the surface of the blue-white light...
Ash saw the outer particles of magic, those squared pseudo-atoms, change color as the drop of venom "bled" into the sphere. Vivid green, golden yellow, light blue, blood red. She could Sense the Mana changing--a sensation like sitting peacefully in the forest, a sensation like firm ground under her feet, the cooling touch of dipping her claw in the stream, the heat of holding her palms to an open flame. From the orbiting cloud, Green and Blue sank first, trickling down towards the nucleus. Gold and red were next--there were significantly fewer particles taking those colors. Then another batch of green, by far the most widespread color...but now it darkened. Gold and Red disappeared, Blue and Green latched onto one another. The lines oscillating around the Mana Orb's core shrank inward, and a new shape appeared more and more often in the rapidly shifting pattern...
Ash's eyes hurt and she had to blink, before she could get an accurate count of the particles or what shape they took. Her Mana Orb had taken on a deep purple hue, the same color as the poison she produced...but when she opened her eyes, before she would likely activate Mana Vision again, she could already see that the Orb was losing cohesion. It was cloudy, almost gaseous, and losing its substance. It lacked the "heft" she needed to "throw" it, she could tell that trying to project it like a normal Mana Orb would likely just see it dissipate in the air. What could she do to make it denser or more compressed? Or did she need to? What was the purpose of this spell she was trying to create, after all? What would--
The orb began to fade away on its own, and the System informed her that she was out of MP. By this point it was nothing a few minutes of Meditation couldn't fix, but maintaining the Mana Orb for so long seemed a bit burdensome.
Now there was also another question--did her Poison, physically produced by her body, also possess these "particles?" She had just seen it seemingly split into its structural components when exposed to magic--was that the magic taking on aspects of the poison, each particle taking on a different composition, or was that the poison itself being broken down by the magic and then reassembled by her will? If the magic could reproduce the poison...could the poison, vice versa, be altered by the magic? And would that mean...?
Skill Rank Up: Venom Shot I > Venom Shot II (1.95 > 2.0)!
Damage increased! Penetration increased!
Meanwhile, Oberon lifted his hand to the sky. As the Mana Orb formed and Oberon extended his senses to the air around him, it seemed that easterly breeze that almost carried Digbie's Yill away was still present at this point. He tried to feel it, to hear it, to draw it in. Catching the wind as it moved past him was easier than trying to do this in still air, although getting it to move another direction was harder. His Mana Orb slowly began to spin, towards the East. If Oberon himself turned, it acted like a sort of gyroscope, always rotating in an easterly direction. As Oberon drew more Mana into the Orb from the environment, the spinning got faster, and the magic started to "inflate." Like the Light Ring it seemed to naturally expand...but also, like the Aqua Sphere, he was losing some of his energy as it spun faster and began to "separate," like...like shreds of paper or something. It seemed like some other force would be necessary to counteract the spin and keep the Orb from tearing itself apart, but how could he apply it? Or...did he need to? The eastern wind began to die down, but the Mana Orb was still spinning. Could he change the direction of the spin? Did he need to find more wind? What needed to happen for this spell to work...and how would Oberon go about doing it?
"System: Show current HP and MP status."
Your HP is Full.
Your MP is Depleting. MP will be empty shortly.
"System: Show current experience or level progress. And show...show my evolution tree."
EXP: 40%
TRANSFORMATION STATUS:
Immature Pixie > Immature Sprite
Known Currently Possible Transformations: 3
1. Adult Sprite*
2. Adolescent Hipixie*
3. Adolescent Imp-
Unknown Currently Possible Transformations: 4
Reading the name of each creature brought back to mind the information and images he had seen when he...when he what? There was a vague memory of...floating? And...Meeting someone? A ring like microphone feedback went through Oberon's head for an instant.
Skill Gain: Aqua Stream I (0.8 > 1.0)!
A low-level Water spell that concentrates water into a pressurized stream. Many basic elements take the form of an orb or bolt to be fired at an opponent, and Aqua Stream does not have as much range as these. Speed and power, however, are both increased, for slightly more Mana. While it does not require ammunition so to speak, this spell works better if there is water in the environment or in heavy humidity. Its nature as a Water spell varies its power based on elemental properties of the target.
Skill Gain: Fog Breath I (0.8 > 1.0)!
A lesser breath power of the Water element. Thickening the vapor one exhales in the breath, the user creates a dense fog. This breath has a much shorter range than others--only 5 feet at the current rank--but can either cover a wide area directly in front of the user, or can create a closer fog cloud 360 degrees around them. It deals no damage, but an enemy entering the fog may suffer decreased visibility equivalent to a Blind status effect. It stays in place for roughly one minute.
Torrent felt her Mana surging during her last attempts, and though Aqua Stream felt more like when she had formed the Fireball inside her mouth instead of a true Breath Skill, it was functionally the same as spitting water like a kid in the pool--except that water carved out the ground like a high grade power washer. And Fog Breath produced a cloud so thick even the sun became frosty and indistinct when one looked through it.
Digbie
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.
When Digbie extended his hand and began to use his magic, the deer suddenly jerked its head up from the water. It prepared to leap over the stream--then stopped as the light green, sparkling energy spread over its wound. It turned its head curiously as the bleeding stopped, and shook its formerly injured leg. With a tilt of its head, it scratched itself with its horn until it managed to dislodge the projectile. The wound hadn't healed completely, but was much smaller than before, and the deer licked at the new, pink skin under the fur. It looked at Digbie for a few moments, twitching its ears...but the next time he moved, it jumped over the stream and went off into the forest.
As Digbie prepared to head back home, he opened the book as he walked along. Its first page read:
The Book of Common Prayers to Jehanne
And Administration of the Maiden's Sacraments
and Other Rites
and Ceremonies of Her Temples
Together with the World Maker's Laws
According to the use of:
The Order of Jehanne and Her Martyrs
The Spirit Literature Association of the Royal Scrivener's Guild, Viskados
Several pages still seemed to be intact, and those that were ripped out weren't all completely destroyed, but between the sticky blood and the beating the book had taken, Digbie might need to be careful while examining it lest he tear a page or get a smudge on it that might make it illegible.
"H-hey... Jehanne? Are we able to hear eachother...?"
He continued to walk along in silence. The only sounds, aside from his feet crunching on the forest floor, were those of the various items he had picked up in his two packs. The clink of the stone axe head, the jingle of the loose coins, and the distinct wooden click of the Maiden's Effigy. It had a solid sound for such a little thing, almost like a knock at one's door.
