Yankee

Expedition to Isekai

______________________________________________________________________

The crazy day was coming to an end.

Masato had explained everything that had happened with Asashi and Sasuke to Sato and the others. The story was told to the point for the most part, a steady report of the facts. Though with Sato around he might have embellished it just a tiny bit. He spoke while he worked together with the building team, closely following their instructions. He'd never woven anything before, but he would that he picked it up fairly quickly under Sato's guidance. The repetitive task was great to calm down and think, almost like meditation. That had been a while ago now - since the sun had set Masato dutifully took up a post just outside of the shelter, keen eyed and just standing, waiting.

He looked in when he heard Maki announce that Asahi was awake.

"Murakami is making something now," he told the other boy. What exactly that was he had no idea. He'd seen Kogen return to the group late, carrying something over to the cooking station. Masato didn't ask, and he was more than willingly to let that mystery food go to Asahi and Stewart even while his own stomach burned. As for Kogen, though he stayed on the fringes of camp, it was enough.

Masato didn't let Endo's condition concern him. He was curious why the magic that had saved Sasuke hadn't worked on him (maybe it was stuck in a coma, or his soul had already departed), but there were other things to focus on. One, keeping watch. He didn't want to pass out again, but it might not be avoidable when he was running on fumes. On that note, the second thing was considering whether to try and find even more food. They had tons of mouths to feed, some more ravenous than others. Hunting... most of the time it was done at dawn or dusk, right? They could try and find some less aggressive animals before the night got too late.

Three, the feuding girls.

Masato chalked up what had happened to Todokawa as a psychotic break. One day in the Otherside and the students were already falling apart. He couldn't really blame them, and though he felt the same about Todokawa her episode was much more dangerous due to her awakening. He felt some gratitude towards Kanamori for handling it, even if it was in such a violent way that it unnerved the class. And, privately, he felt some justification when the other Todokawa sister lashed out. See? Doing the right thing isn't so easy.

Though it looked like the girls were making up quickly now that Todokawa was awake.

"Todokawa," he said, completely blowing past her speech about not really being herself and how she wanted to let others see like her, "it's best if you just rested for now. Your head got hit pretty hard."

So hard it created another psyche, he thought.

What Are You Listening To?

Advice for "simple" racing mechanics in an rp

@Ersa93 Ohoooo... I have been (very) slowly and steadily working on something similar to this, so I will give my two cents.

A very simple system I've found and liked (and mentioned in post linked) is called "Gravity Rip." It works with only two real stats (weight and acceleration), and very simple dice rolling. Here is a PDF for the system assuming I figured out how to use google drive correctly. Its pretty straightforward, I like it.

I know there are a couple of other TTRPG systems designed around or modified to include racing (or chase sequences which could be adapted). Another that comes to mind is called "Final Lap," and though it uses a deck of cards that could be shifted over to dice fairly easily I think.

There is also the very simple "dice pool" type of system you could use, which is sort of similar to what it looks like you might be thinking? It's a d6 type thing where you roll as many die as you have points in a stat. 1-2 is fail, 4-5 is success, if you have more successes than failures you succeed in your action. So someone with, say, 7 points in Acceleration rolls 7d6, and as long as they have 4 successes they're good to go.

The system you laid out is pretty simple and easy to understand though! Can't get easier than a single die and a mod. I think it would be fun to play. Considering players rolling against each other, it looks like aggressive actions/attackers are favored slightly, which can work in an RPs favor if you don't want passive racers. My thoughts right now are how would ties be handled? Like let's say Player 1 rolls 10+ accelerate but Player 2 rolls 10+ attack versus them. Do all actions happen concurrently or would you prefer an order/stack to follow? Also just on a separate note from playing a lot of TTRPGs lately, disadvantage is pretty, uh, well disadvantageous lol. Maybe too hard of a penalty, when the defending player doesn't have a chance to stop or avoid the attack, only recover from it.

Personally, since just looking at numbers and figuring things out isn't my strong suite, I would do some test play with your d10 system and see if it feels good. And then make changes based on that. If it turns out that potential players aren't succeeding enough it might not be fun (though to me, writing frustration and near wrecks would be just as fun as succeeding haha). I'd also be interested to hear your thoughts on how to determine the vehicle's stat levels. Point buy, rolling, etc.?

World of Light

Grift of the NecroDancer - Bowser

Word Count: 1906 (+3 Exp)

”Well then, this seems to be going rather well despite the challenges” Kamek analyzed as they got another win under their belt, and another soul promised to return back to its rightful place.

”And it's about to go even better, because I am tired of sitting around waiting my turn” Bowser announced as stomped forwards, only to pause for a moment and pluck something from his hat, which he tossed to Junior. The prince caught the little mushroom charm, and nodded as he got the message.

With that little complication taken out of the picture, and a helpful haste buff applied by the already victorious queen, the King stepped onto the dance floor, declaring it to be ”SHOWTIME!” with a gravely roar.

The NecroDancer curled his shriveled lip. One was an isolated incident, and two a possible coincidence, but three was a pattern; these newcomers’ numbers here weren’t just for show. They all really meant to take their souls back, and with how the last two challenges turned out, it perturbed the NecroDancer deeply to realize just how possible that was. Narrowly losing to Sectonia had been a most bothersome surprise, and even he had to admit that Primrose was really good, but when the lich saw Bowser he couldn’t help but fume with indignation. This ungainly reptile really thought he had a chance in hell? Well, he had another thing coming.

“Your little friends were lucky!” he snarled, elemental magic flaring up around him as he prepared for another round. “But that lucky streak ends here!”

”Even if they were, it doesn’t matter! Because you're looking at the king of dance right here! The mojo of music! The radical ruler of rhythm! So hit me with your sickest beat, because I’m about to stomp on this dance floor so hard I leave gravel paths all over it!” The king taunted back, expecting to be hit with some more epic music that would fit his style.

He was ever so wrong as instead of some suitably rocking tune he got hit with a orchestral waltz.

Yet if the NecroDancer thought he was going to be able to throw the king off using some off brand music, he got a swift correction when Bowser, after being briefly stunned, realized that ”Hey wait, I know this one!”

”Jr, toss me a metal spike!” he shouted as he leapt to the side to avoid an opening cone of cold blasted by the irate NecroDancer. The confused prince obliged his papa, crafting and then firing it towards his dad, who caught it with a thorny tendril before passing it to his hand.

With a pair of more great buoyant leaps he landed just before one of the walls, and then leaped straight up, cleaving a claw through the side of one of the banners, shaving a long thin strip of cloth from it. Rather than leave his vandalism at that, however, the king stabbed the end of the severed strip with jr’s spike, before bending the tip around to firmly attach improvised streamer to the metal stick.

He dropped back down as the NecroDancer approached, and then spun around to face him, expertly manipulating his new tool as he did so, causing the cloth to form a perfect circle in the air next to him.

”Oh no” Jr bemoaned as he felt the first wave of what he was sure was going to be a maelstrom of second hand embarrassment, before putting a name to what Bowser was doing, namely ”Rhythmic Ribbon”

”You think you could trip me up with sappy music? Well too bad! Now let me show you how I won an Olympic medal for this!” the king gloated, leaving out that it had most certainly not been the gold one, before straight up pirouetting out of the way of a lighting blast, the ribbon twirling gracefully around him as he avoided the strike. Then to add insult to injury he perfectly manipulated the ribbon to get it to swirl in a figure eight ahead of him, just to show off.

In response to this infuriating performance, the NecroDancer began summoning minions to try and hem in the ribbon dancing king.

First came a familiar face, the harp horned minotaur, who burst out of its summoning smoke with its signature charge, only for the king to use the ribbon in an imitation of a bullfighter before stepping neatly out of the way.

”Try that one again!” he taunted, only to have to refocus as the second summon appeared: a mighty sword, large as a human was tall, which slammed down into the ground point first, only to then be wrenched out of it by an unseen hand.

The blade seemingly floated forwards under its own power, and then swung at the king in a mighty overhead cleave.

In response the king tried to dodge under the blow, only for his swirling ribbon to harmlessly hit something. He comprehended what had happened fast enough to not slam into the invisible wielder of the blade, but not fast enough to do a new dodge, resulting in him being smashed to the floor with a cry of pain, and left with a massive gash in his left shoulder and split in his shell.

As before, however, being struck by a heavy object was not enough to stop the king from dancing, and so he shoved the blade out of his wound, and then himself to the side, briefly retracing into his shell to spin across the floor with the ribbon swirling around him.

Even more impressively, he did a small hop while in his shell, flipping onto his back and spinning like a top for a second, before the masses of vines growing in his shell spring out and launch him back onto his feet.

”Gonna take more than that!” he growled at the NecroDancer as the undead fiend, who was quite sure the king was wrong, stalked towards him, flanked by his two heavy hitting minibosses.

In response to the approaching dangert, the king grunted ”Heel, fix this”, as he summoned his Rabbid supported striker on his back. The bunny medic/grenadier was immediately ensnared in the king’s vines, which were careful not to fill him full of thorny puncture wounds, which let the king bring his summon with him as he backed away from his foes, only to find himself being backed into a corner.

As his striker undid some, but not close to all, of the damage that had been done, the king spun out of the way of the charging bull once more, and then tossed the ribbon up into the air as he avoided the second massive sword cleave, catching it in his mouth. A pair of moves that put him right in the firing line of the NecroDancer.

There was a jingle of a bell, a blast of frost, and a moment later Bowser in Meowser form was clinging to one of the banners that hung along the walls. The NecroDancer lashed out again, blasting with lightning, only for the king to launch himself up the wall several feet and to dig his claws into the banner again, cutting cat claw marks in it as he slid down a little bit.

Another bolt, another leap, but at that point the king was out of space to go up, and between them the two boss monsters had ruined the fabric below him, so the only way to go after that was outwards.

He kicked off the wall, launching himself clear, and then rather than drop summoned ”Marie!” Korbel, the former Skullgirl, and grabbed her around the waist, using her as a rather undignified umbrella to slow his fall, while also commanding her to ”Give them some dance partners! Trip em up!”

As Bowser descended down to the ground in the center of the arena, the NecroDancer got a taste of his own medicine, as a mob of macabre mobsters rose up around him. He cleared his throat, ready to declare a contract infraction, only for the fresh undead to pair up and start doing an actual waltz around him.

While his minions started cleaving away at the enemy undead one by one, the NecroDancer was having none of this. After charging his magic for a few moments, he promptly exploded (everything around him) and then appeared outside of the dancing mob in a puff of smoke.

As Marie floated up and away to keep tying up the minibosses as long as possible, the king, his wounds now ‘bandaged’ in vines, and NecroDancer faced each other down

”That's all you got? I bet your almost out of time, and I have been killing it on this dance floor,” the king, who should really know better, gloated, which got him a pointy toothed grin and a reply of “Not quite” from the dancer, as he tapped deep into his reserves, and unleashed mini-boss number three.

A leathery winged shape flashed across the the upper reaches of the room, and down from the vaulted ceiling rained necromantic fire, engulfing the entire back half of the room in a lingering napalm that sent the spectators scrambling, and igniting all the remaining banners in pale green flames.

It also set fire to the Bowser’s vines, the king screamed with pain as the source of the flames, a massive undead dragon, twice as large as the one the Dead Ringer had summoned, slammed down onto the grounded next to its master.

He laughed as the fire spread down the king’s vines and towards his shell, only to be startled as something flashed overhead.

Carried in a stream of water of his own making, Dazzle, Jr’s Brionne, bypassed all their foes in a flash, before blowing, launching, and then landing on a bubble of water to break its fall. Everyone was stunned for a moment, before the sealion pokemon proceeded to hammer the king’s back with watergun blasts, which hurt like hell, but did extinguish the flames.

“You dare interfere!” the lich cried out as he jabbed a finger at the sea lion, who reapplied “Brionne!” unhelpfully.

”No, I do!” Jr announced as he stepped forwards, before holding his paintbrush aloft and calling out ”Benediction,” as he used his (long cooldown) magic to instantly restore his father to full hp.

“Then your soul is forfeit!” the necrodancer began to declare, only to be interrupted first by jr shouting ”I’m a kid, and I'm too irresponsible to be bound by any stinking contracts!” and then being cut off again when Rika added ”Same! I just found this out too, So thanks for that!” without actually getting involved just yet.

“Then his is-” the NecroDancer finally got a word in, just as the music came to an end. It had been, after all, not the longest track.

---

Grift of the NecroDancer - Swan Song

Word Count: 2303 (+3 Exp)

“Gyah!” the NecroDancer roared in anger, striking down all three of his summons simultaneously. He’d been so sure that he had Bowser on his last legs that he hadn’t paid proper attention to the time, and now he’d been bested a third time. He couldn’t even rightfully devour any of these infuriating reptile souls, since neither they nor their creature companions had either fought him nor joined the dance. These repeated wounds to his pride were getting to be too much for the lich to bear; the rules were supposed to make him win, not these upstarts!

“Hm, I didn’t take you for a ribbon dancer Bowser. And you say you won a contest for it?” Sectonia said, commenting on the Koopa Kings performance. Her tone wasn’t sarcastic, but sounded like she was a bit surprised and more so impressed. She did use his name instead of using a nickname after all. Considering what she just saw, not all of his bluster wasn’t just hot air it seemed. Which was both interesting, and concerning.

”Yeah, I’ve got all sorts of talents you don’t know about. A real, uh, what’s the word?” Bowser paused and clicked his fingers as he tried to think of it till Kamek suggested ”A renaissance Koopa? ”

”What? No? What even is a renaissance?” Bowser asked, to which Kamek had to admit he had no idea.

”Uh. Anyway, Yeah! I’m great! Got a medal for it and everything” Bowser said, getting back on track, and clumsily sidestepping having to admit that it wasn’t a gold.

"It was a nice performance," Primrose agreed. She'd started healing her own wounds with the flame of Warmth while Bowser had taken his turn. Though she hadn't thought the king was lying in the first place, it was still a pleasant surprise to see his moves. Even Therion was impressed, though he didn't say so out loud. The thief glanced at the seething NecroDancer. Two to go.

Meanwhile, the NecroDancer was still brooding, fallen back upon his throne to stew in his anger. Come to think of it, what were so many non-contractors doing in the Crypt to begin with?

“Hey, numbskull!” a cheerful voice called across his throne room, getting the lich’s attention. Two more ladies had separated themselves from the crowd of lifeless onlookers, both with peaked ears, long tails, and self-sure smiles. While Tingyun remained a couple steps back with one slender finger to the sly smile on her lips, Nadia waltzed forward into the limelight with her palms held up as if to say what’s all this about. Her team was on a roll, after all, and though he’d taken no damage the NecroDancer looked pretty beat. “What’s the matter, can’t bust heads or a groove? More like Inept-roDancer! I hope you’re not outta gas just yet though, ‘cause we still got a couple bones to pick and scores to settle!” She jumped up with a spinning twirl, her head detaching to stay stationary while her body whirled beneath her, then landed with a theatrical bow, her tails waving behind her. “Ready for an encore purrformance?”

Her prospective opponent gave her a withering look, but not even his sourest scowl could seemingly put a dent in Nadia’s excitement. Before replying, he took another good look around his throne room. Four newcomers without contracts. Three new contractors who’d won their souls, soon to be joined by a fourth, and then an older contractor with ample reason to despise him. Now they lingered, circling like vultures, their hungry eyes fixed on him as they waited for the last few challengers to cross the finish line. They weren’t just waiting to have their souls returned, the NecroDancer realized. They were here to seal the deal.

His bony fingers gripped the arms of his chair as his mouth tightened into a sneer. “...No.”

Nadia straightened up slowly, her expression incredulous. “Whuh? H-hey, don’t get cold feet now, Necro-dunce-er. What’s the matter, scared of li’l old me?” She crossed her arms with a smile, trying to goad him into facing her. “If you’re fresh outta guts and backbone, there’s plenty more ‘round here to choose from, ya know!”

“Do you all think I’m stupid?” the NecroDancer hissed suddenly, causing the room to go quiet. “I can see where this is going! You’re plotting my downfall. Think you can use my system against me? I AM the system!” With a snap of his fingers he summoned six contracts, signed and sealed: the ones belonging to Bowser, the Octopath Travelers, Sectonia, Tingyun, and Ms Fortune.

The feral instinctively flattened her ears, but she did not lose her smile. “What are you…?”

“I am altering the Terms of Service!” the Necrodancer crowed gleefully, summoning a black marker to his hand. “Ten thousand points to challenge me? Hah! How about twenty thousand? And a preemptive challenge results in the forfeiture of your soul for all eternity? Effective retroactively, of course! Muahahahaha-!”

“You can’t do that.” From the shadows nearby, two yellow eyes gleamed. The nebulous, ghostly Snatcher surged forward to stand at the NecroDancer’s side, looming over his shoulder as he peered at the contracts with his hands clasped together. “Modifying the Terms of Service after signature? Tsk, tsk, tsk. That’s against the law.”

The lich glared up at him. “Know your place, consultant! My word is law!”

“The law is law.” The Snatcher narrowed his eyes. “Don’t you scribble on that contract, now...”

Scoffing, the lich put the tip of his marker down on the first contract and began to scribble.

Without an instant’s hesitation, the Snatcher slapped the ever-loving shit out of him. His open hand struck the NecroDancer full in the face with the force of a runaway truck, launching the lich backward with such force that he smashed through his own throne and left a crater in the solid stone brick of the back wall. Something within the NecroDancer snapped, and after a brief moment his look of utter shock, he began to self-destruct. Dark purple energy poured out of eyes and mouth as his body squirmed and spasmed, all the souls he collected but not devoured yet rushing out of his body like air out of a balloon, which the process in fact sounded amusingly like. The contracts went up in green flames and the souls of all the contractors returned to their rightful places, leaving Nadia and the other the normal amount of empty inside. For her part, the feral was grinning ear to ear, delighted not just to have her soul back but to see the miserable old carcass laid low.

Naturally, the Snatcher loved it, too. “Haha… FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!”

When the last soul left the NecroDancer’s body, leaving him little more than an empty shell, his husk promptly exploded. From the purplish smoke cloud flew the mask fragment to clatter and bounce along the floor before coming to a stop. However, the NecroDancer’s tainted soul -and all its unholy power- flooded from his lantern into the Golden Lute, surrounding it with dark, chaotic energy. As Nadia watched, wary of whatever was going to happen next, the instrument rose into the air, vibrating violently. Then it disappeared in a purple flash, warping away to parts unknown.

“Oh.” For a second there it looked like the Seekers might have another fight on their hands, but whatever that was with the Golden Lute, but now that it had vanished, Nadia relaxed. The aftermath was someone else’s promise, or at least another day’s. As for the NecroDancer, she didn’t actually mind things turning out this way. Though she’d inadvertently gotten herself tangled up in his web, he really didn’t make that much of an impression. Maybe if he actually put her dancing skills to the test he’d come off as a worthy opponent, but in the end he’d been little more than an annoying impediment. That he’d spelled his own defeat by abusing his legal powers was deliciously ironic. At least I learned not to go blindly signing things anymore, she thought. Speaking of…

She looked over at the Snatcher, her brows furrowed. “So… what’s your deal? Are we cool?”

“...I suppose. You at least made this interesting.” The Snatcher flew over and seated himself on the throne, grinning smugly. “Not to mention rewarding! Thanks to a certain clause in the deal I signed with the NecroDancer, the sum total of his assets are now mine. Thanks for the help!” He frowned and waved the Seekers toward the Crypt’s front entrance. “Now scram. Exit’s that way. I’ve got a lot to do around here. If you really wanna do business, drop by Subcon in the Twilight Forest.”

With a shrug, Nadia picked up the mask fragment. She turned to look at the somewhat disappointed audience and gave a cheerful bow. “And that, boos and ghouls, is that!”

For her part, Tingyun seemed quite pleased that the Snatcher disposed of the NecroDancer. She’d quietly produced an ornate fan from the ether when things looked like they’d escalate, but with the situation defused she happily discarded it once more without ever calling forth its golden electricity. “Works for me! We make a pretty good team, don’t you think? ‘Destroyed the NecroDancer without lifting a finger’...makes for a pretty good tagline, hm~” She winked at the Seekers. “If you’re looking to get out of here, benefactors, perhaps I could join you. When I first descended into this place I traveled with an escort through the Hollow Bough. I’d be happy to lead you back the same way.”

“Always happy to make new friends!” Nadia smiled at the foxian, then glanced at the others, though she felt like she’d hear no objections.

"Sure. That's where we're headed, after all," Therion said. The Hollow Bough should be their next destination, according to what that Organization member had said, anyway.

Primrose linked her fingers together and stretched her arms out in front of her. Considering how everything else had gone in this crypt, the lich succumbing to his own contract was quite the poetic justice. She was willing to let the other mysteries around the area go. "We made good time here, I think. And having a guide forward will save us even more."

There weren't many issues from Sectonia at least. Considering how things resolved with this ‘Snatcher’, Sectonia could only ponder at the guy. Perhaps his powers relied on contracts and outside of them he had nothing he could do? Still, the fact that his contracts were what lead to this whole scenario made her wary of him. But for the most part he seemed to be amicable, and if she ever needed a lawyer, perhaps he would make a good one? But then that was what the NecroDancer thought as well, and that ended poorly for him. Well, she knew what he was about now, and he did mention his weakness casually, so… He was an enigma.

”Shame, I really wanted to punch that guy in the face” Bowser lightly complained, before admitting ”It was kinda funny to see him go out like that though”

”Some just deserts, that is for sure” Kamek agreed, and though the actual contract writer still being in business was something of a loose end, he didn’t much mind that.

Other loose ends, the group were also briefly approached by Cadence, who had come to thank them for their part in freeing her, her father and, well, everyone “I didn’t really believe you when you insinuated you’d get us all out. Guess you proved me wrong”

”Eh, don’t mention it” the king waved her off

”So, what do you intend to do with your newfound freedom?” Kamek enquired, before preemptively suggesting ”If you wish to travel through this Hollow Bough with us I’m sure we’d be happy to have you”

In response the woman shook her head and explained “Dad came here for the golden lute, so we’re going to stick around for a bit, see if we can work out where it's gone. Despite the danger. Its a … family matter”

”Ah. A shame, but I wish you luck with that all the same” the mage offered her, before they parted ways.

”As for the rest of you” Bowser addressed the masses of other former contractors ”We dealt with the pizza tower guy earlier, so if you want to get back to the home of tears, that way’s pretty clear”

While things were wrapping up inside, a thought came to Therion's mind. "Those three that didn't come inside - what are we gonna do about them?"

He spoke of Jesse, Ganondorf, and Rubick. If they found a way around and are waiting for us on the other side, I'm gonna be annoyed.

”I believe they attempted to head upwards instead” Kamek, who had been outside with them before he teleported inside, informed them ”as I last saw them ascending up above the large glowing root in the cavern back there”

”I mean, can’t we, well, call them on those earbud comms devices you gave us?” Rika then quietly suggested.

Therion's expression had started to tighten when Kamek mentioned they were going "up." A mix of some misplaced jealousy and bitterness at himself for not taking that route too. It had also felt a little like the others just left them to deal with this whole soul issue on their own, but he could ignore that as "every man for himself" was a way of life he'd followed for a long time. The thief glanced at Rika after sighing to expel his more negative thoughts.

"Sure. If it reaches as far as wherever they went."

"It should," Primrose said. "Until that ghoul sets up a new contract system, if he does, it's probably safe to call them back to go through the crypt."

World of Light

^{____________________________________________________}
Level: 8 - Total EXP: 234/80 ------ Level: 7 - Total EXP: 109/70
𝙱𝙿 ●●●●● ---------------------------- 𝙱𝙿 ●●●●●
Word Count: 2095 (Therion +3 exp)
Location: The Under

^Earlier...

Separated from the other Seekers once more, Therion made another loop of the crypt. He wasn't interested in cheering anyone else on, so he figured he should spend his time wisely otherwise. Tingyun had said there wasn't a way to get out of here besides getting the points needed to challenge the NecroDancer, and then beating him. He wasn't ready to give up on alternate routes out just yet, but he could at least see how long it would take to earn ten thousand points. For a novice dancer like him, taking on a Floor Boss was out of the question. He probably didn't stand a chance against any half decent contractor either. So... one hundred dances against one hundred undead...

That sounds so tedious, he thought. Maybe it was even impossible for him in the first place.

It wasn't like he'd never tried dancing before, technically. He'd even done it twice... if you counted Alfyn and Cyrus drinking a little too much and hooking their arms around his shoulders and trying to start a kicking line. Therion had been deeper in his cups than he'd thought, since he didn't even put up much of a fuss before joining in lazily. Besides that, there were the group lessons. While traveling Orsterra, all eight of his crew offered to teach the others about their "Jobs." Sometimes, a traveler took to one well and ended up dabbling a little more outside their expertise. Though Therion much preferred the Warrior lessens with Olberic to make him even more dangerous, or even Apothecary 101 with Alfyn to take to the back line in battle and run support, he had broken down under Primrose's needling and tried as a Dancer.

It didn't go all that well (though he was far from the worst, that dishonor went to the professor and H'aanit), and he hadn't done it since. He realized the few attempts he'd made at it were clumsy at best and out of peer pressure at worst, but he was good enough to beat a few bags of bones? Maybe. Okay, maybe it was physically possible, but how long would it take?

The thief stopped outside of one of the themed dance rooms. Leaning on the wall beside the entrance, he tipped his head back and listened. Once a new song started he counted the seconds until it ended. Three minutes. Assuming a win, three minutes per one hundred points. So... three hundred minutes for ten thousand. That's...

Way too long. Nearly half a day of being stuck here and dancing, and that was without counting breaks or sleep.

He slipped away into another room. This one wasn't too busy, featuring just a handful of zombies dancing and a couple other people resting. It was as good a place to collect his thoughts as any.

He had no doubt that Primrose was well on her way to getting the points needed, or already there. Though he knew she wasn't above cheating to get her way, she would probably do this as intended - through dance. Ms. Fortune would probably do fine if she was getting pointers from Primrose. The others, the knight and the more monstrous... at least one of them claimed to be a good dancer, but Therion was skeptical. Who knew how long getting out of here would take if he didn't find some other way to get their souls back.

In the middle of his ruminating he spotted a mouse girl approaching from the corner of his eye as a new song started. Since she wasn't undead, she had to be a fellow contractor. He hunched his shoulders and pointedly ignored her until she was in his space and clearly not going anywhere.

"Haven't seen you around before," she said. "But you know the rules of this place, right? I'm Topo. So, wanna dance?"

"No thanks." A clear dismissal, said without even turning his head to look at her. The girl whined.

"Come oooon, are you worried about losing? I'll go easy on you!"

This time Therion did glance at her, and he could instantly tell from her expression that she would not go easy on him. There was something in her eyes that reminded him more of a cat than a mouse. This girl liked to play with her food. She was probably the type that hustled newbies and enjoyed crushing them. Therion's own tail twitched.

"Go find someone else."

"How pathetic... You're no fun at all."

Therion moved to leave. To his surprise Topo stopped him, grabbing him by the right arm and pulling him left. Was she trying to spin him? Force him into a dance off by tricking him into making the first move? Eyes wide and hackles raised, Therion abruptly batted her hand away. The manacle on his wrist rattled and sparks flew from his finger tips, startling Topo. For a moment they both stared at each other in shock... then Topo crossed her arms.

"Oh my, you'd threaten a girl?" she asked. Regaining his composure Therion scoffed and brushed past her out of the room.

Unfortunately for him, she followed.

"You know fighting is against the rules, right? You are going to have to dance at some point. Unless you want to spend your whole life down here?"

"Not if I find another way," Therion muttered under his breath. Topo's large ears caught his words anyway.

"There is no other way. Down here, it's dance or die!" She thought for a moment before sneering at him. "Actually more like dance and die, heheh. "

"You're pretty smug for someone that also stupidly signed their soul away," Therion commented offhand. He used Topo's offended gasp and dramatic pause in her step to try and put some distance between them.

He knew there was no fighting. If it was allowed, this place would probably look very different. It would have been a lot easier to storm the place and collect their souls back if it was an option. Actually now that he thought about it, where in this place were those contracts stored? Maybe he would find a clue there about what to do. Following the hallways he hadn't already been down, Therion set about looking for treasure again - but in this case, the treasure being the contracts. A vault, or library, or something like that... Instead he neared an ominous room with the dull thump of music coming from inside. The dark doors were open, the inside torch lit showing dark brick, black iron, and red tapestry. Peering around the corner without entering, Therion blinked. This room was more dangerous looking than the goofy, rainbow colored dance rooms, even though there were speakers playing music in here too. Had he actually found an important place? He squinted, spotting the shelves on the far side.

Bingo. Finding them had been faster than he expected. As he considered his next move, his ears flicked and turned to listen behind him. Judging from the light footsteps it was someone small. This time Topo did not take him by surprise when she peeked around the same corner into the room.

"Thinking about assassinating him?" She nodded to the figure on the throne, too far to make out his features but most likely the NecroDancer himself. "Some tried. Then died. I already told you fighting's a no-go, he'd whip out your soul from his pocket and swallow it whole right in front of you!"

Therion sighed. With a shadow like this he wouldn't be able to sneak around at all. He turned to Topo, but before telling her off he stopped, considering something she'd said. "What do you mean 'from his pocket'?"

She looked at him like he was stupid. "You don't know what a pocket is...?"

Don't lose your patience, Therion, he thought to himself, rubbing his forehead with one hand. "I meant, he keeps the souls on him? Physically?"

"I guess..." Topo raised one eyebrow skeptically. "Why, are you gonna frisk him or something?"

"Or something."

Therion slipped the hood of his black cloak over his head. The throne room was large, and shadows flickered across every surface. The NecroDancer wasn't alone in there, there were shambling skeletons and other such entities grooving. The man on the throne was even tapping his fingers on the arm of the chair in time to the music. He might be able to make it over to the throne without being noticed if he timed it right. From there, if he could pick-pocket the crypt's keeper for whatever vessel he was holding the souls in, then... well, that was a way to get them back without dancing right there. He just had to ditch Topo first.

"Topo, right? Listen—"

"Steal mine back too!" The mouse girl was practically glaring at him, her hands curled into fists in front of her. "All I keep running into are people like you who are too scared to dance. I'll never get out of here if no one will face me! So if you're gonna cheat, then get mine too!"

"Not so loud!" Therion hissed at her. She tightened her jaw and stared him down. Since the thief had unfortunately dealt with stubborn types like this for a while now, he agreed fairly quickly. It would be the easiest way to make sure she wouldn't follow him. "I'll try," he said, making sure not to promise anything.

Topo entered first, not explicitly trying to draw attention to herself but doing so by virtue of entering the NecroDancer's room. Therion silently slipped in afterward, making for the shadows in the opposite direction. What followed was just a matter of timing. Therion moved whenever the flames flickered low or the lich snapped his fingers to start a new song. He was being overly careful, assuming that if he was caught his life was forfeit. He couldn't allow nerves to get the better of him here, so he didn't, forcing his steps to be silent and his hands to be still. He was a professional in his own right, not in dance but in thievery. It wasn't a stretch to claim he was the greatest thief in all Orsterra. Eventually he made it all the way to the throne itself, crouching behind its tall stone back. He stayed there, waiting through several more pieces of music, biding his time and awaiting his chance.

When that chance came he moved like it was the most casual thing in the world. The lich shifted in his seat, leaning slightly to one side. Something must have caught his attention, but from where he was Therion wouldn't be able to tell what it was. More undead making their way in, if he had to guess from the sound of it. His unshackled hand dipped into the pocket of the NecroDancer's robe. He had expected a vial, jar, or even a bag - something to hold the souls, because there was no way they were just... free floating in the man's clothes. Well, they were, and though surprised Therion didn't let it affect his movements. His fingers brushed through the collection, a very strange feeling like water, cotton, and static all at once. They slipped through and away from his grasp.

Then, an even stranger feeling. It was hard to tell where one soul ended and another began, but he touched one that felt so painfully familiar that he knew it was his even before it seeped into his hand and reentered his body. As soon as he felt it back in its rightful place he withdrew, hidden behind the throne until he deemed it safe to move again. His heart was beating hard, but damn, he'd done it - he'd actually stolen his own soul back. How many thieves could claim that, even in a metaphorical sense?

As he slowly began slinking away, back toward the exit, he noted that his guess had been correct. There were a lot more undead in the room than there hand been previously. The ones that could talk were filling in their master on the newcomers that were collecting points quickly and confidently. Judging that these newcomers could only be the ones he was part of, Therion made his way to one corner of the room to wait on them instead. He could feel the mouse girl's eyes on him when he finally came to a stop and pulled his hood back, but he'd have to break the bad news to her later. Or more likely, break the good news to her when the Seekers showed up.

---

Grift of the NecroDancer - Primrose

Word Count: 1246 (Primrose +2 Exp)

^Currently...

Therion's arms were crossed beneath his poncho and cloak. By now he was well aware that the dance battles were less about dance and more about survival. Since that was the case, the Seekers shouldn't have any issues. They'd proven to be quite tough.

The crowd did not quiet down following Sectonia's victory. Everyone in the room was hyped up with the knowledge that the crypt's keeper could be beaten at his own game, and now that one person had done it there was hope for the rest. The other members of the group Sectonia was part of were all coolly waiting their turn, confident that more wins were in their future. As the queen bee came back to them, Primrose swapped places with her.

"Good work," she said as she passed. "I'll take the next dance."

She stepped to the middle of the dance floor, one hand on her hip and a sure smirk playing at her hips. The NecroDancer fixed her with a baleful glare, not about to let anyone else besides him claim victory. He smoothed his beard and snapped his fingers, beginning the next battle.

It was a wholly different piece of music from the one that played just before, with a faster tempo though giving off the same subtly menacing feel. The vibe fit the crypt perfectly, and the song's bombastic start left Primrose without a moment to spare.

The NecroDancer extended his hand and let a bolt of lightning fly. Then another, and another. The quick beats of the music meant he could unleash his spells fast, back to back and still stay in rhythm. Though he didn't move his feet whatsoever, the NecroDancer shook his shoulders as he cast his magic, feeling the song in a simple way. As expected, his plan was to injure or outright kill his opponent as a means to win. His constant casting put Primrose solely on the defensive - or rather the evasive. She sidestepped and spun, feeling the crackle of the bolts as they passed within a hair's breadth of her. Though dodging kept her safe, she couldn't get into a rhythm of her own like this. As soon as she got a handle on the song, she changed tactics.

Primrose planted her feet and moved into a one-two step, letting her hand draw a half-circle in front of her as it filled with moonlight. The next bolt of lightning, on course for a direct hit, burst against the Baldur Shell. A cheap tactic, even Primrose had to admit, but she had to start gaining ground someway. She canceled her cast and started again, protecting herself from another blast while simultaneously adding some pizzazz to her dance with the sparkling light of Luna.

The NecroDancer clicked his tongue, giving up early before he realized that the shield his opponent was relying on was finite. He raised both of his arms and then threw them down, casting a wave of ice. The ice spread from him to Primrose, coating the ground beneath and around her in a wide area. A nasty grin stretched across his face. This challenger was earth bound unlike the last, and an icy floor was any dancer's weakness. Or so he thought.

Primrose's scarf lit up and she sailed over the ice, throwing a wink at the lich as his face fell in surprise. Anger soon took over his features. He snapped both of his fingers at once and snarled, "Reanimate!"

From the blackness two nightmares formed to charge out onto the dance floor, ghoulish horses made of smoke with gnashing teeth and bright glowing eyes. They flew up towards Primrose, and with their superior air control easily surrounded her before she could evade. The red one rammed her head on, sending her flying into the black. The nightmare whipped its head to shove her back towards its partner, intent to crush her between them until she canceled her flight. Primrose dropped back to the ground, her landing unstable thanks to the ice. She drew in a steadying breath, managing just to stand up straight and look half-gracefully as she did so.

The nightmares gave chase, so Primrose got moving. She skated across the ground, and though unstable and unused to it her core strength kept her top half from flailing about, and her practiced legs kept her upright. More frost assailed her as she moved, the NecroDancer regaining his confidence and throwing chilling spells her way. She recognized the lich's new strategy; to slow her down with the ice in one way or the other. The more damage she took from the frost, the more fatigued she'd be. And if she fell, it was all over - the monsters would be upon her and she wouldn't be able to dodge the assault of magic that was sure to follow.

The bark of the NecroDancer's laughter was ringing throughout the room, even when he realized Primrose's own plan. She was steadily making her way closer to him. She must have thought that if she was up close, he wouldn't be able to cast his spells. Plus he hadn't spread the ice around himself. It was a good plan, but one he was more than prepared for. As the dancer and the nightmares got closer and closer, he couldn't keep the smug look off of his face. We spread his arms wide as though to welcome them. That action tipped Primrose off that he had something up his sleeve.

She reached the edge of the ice and hopped off. Her ice dance had been serviceable, and now that she was back on solid ground she could kick things up a notch. She continued moving forward, though it was ultimately a bluff. With quick, bold steps she approached the NecroDancer, watching his magic pool around him, and while the horses charged in to strike her again she suddenly stopped, turned, and threw herself into a twirl that took her away instead. At the moment the NecroDancer seemed to explode, fire raging all around him. The nightmares caught in the blast cried out, and the NecroDancer himself emerged from the fire unscathed. He didn't seem too upset that his latest ploy hadn't worked, but with the song almost over and his "dancing" nowhere near measuring up to Primrose's even with her unsteady footwork on the ice, he was pressed for time if he wanted to beat her.

He relied on his ice again, letting fly a barrage of icicles, frost, and water to topple the dancer. They dissolved into steam, meeting Primrose's Fire Fan that she'd conjured while the lich's sight was obscured from his own detonation. Primrose dropped to one knee dramatically while extending a leg, bringing her close to the floor so she could sweep the fan over it and banish the ice. She knew it was a gamble, but the extra dancing space meant she could seal the deal for sure. The NecroDancer tried to catch her while she recovered, pelting Primrose with spells. She crossed her arms in front of her face and endured it for just long enough for her to stand back up, then with a spin she countered all of the ice coming her way with fire.

The song faded out then, and Primrose lifted her arm and flicked the fan away in a showy little burst of fire. She breathed evenly, disguising her fatigue, and then rolled her head to smile at the crowd of undead.

A return to Rp. (Killing time While Working at Home)

@Yankee what’s the meaning of life?

@Otter Space

42

A return to Rp. (Killing time While Working at Home)

Welcome! I'm sure there's a couple other people in a similar position. Anyway, have fun and if you have any questions just ask!

Greetings!

Welcome to RPG!

Hei!

Welcome!

Hello!

Welcome to RPG! Hope you can find what you're looking for. If you have any questions just ask!