Sepulchre sighs in relief as the nightmare gets crushed into the ground, nodding at the black-haired kid and the lepus in gratitude. Hopefully that means no one noticed faer fumbled spell... "Impressive teamwork you all... alas, we're down a sheep for completing our quest." The Faerin rocks on faer heels, eyeing the now shattered lantern and then darting forward to retrieve it back to a safe distance to study.
Sepulchre sniffs and flashes a grin at @Yugam. "Leave and let you get all the glory? Not a chance! This is practically why I signed up for this crazy game in the first place, I went Faerin for the Keyless feat. And this place is too good of a lead to pass up!"
Fae whistle in appreciation at @Herculean Drakecon's new armor."Oh hell yeah, rock the Horned King look! Not sure I'll be committing to a faction, but I'm always up for secret-hunting~"
Curse Stack increased by 1
Cry of Eve Mitigated - met Will DC
Well, that had been simple enough. The threat had been successfully neutralize when the boulders had come tumbling down onto the ewe, the rabbit fist bumping with @Yugam after climbing down the rocky structure she'd stood upon before she joined the rest of her unlikely companions. "All baaah and no bite, I guess..." Granted, in the current state the ewe had been left in they wouldn't be able to carry it back to the waiting DuuhmChild, and so when two options were presented Toko already knew which one she'd pick.
"Still have to find a little sheep for the creepy guy, and I doubt we're gonna find one out there... so we might as well keep going, see what's in this place and stuff." Besides her Yugam was also of the same idea, the Lepus grinning over at the Hemomancer—he was really climbing up fast in her rank up list of people the rabbit liked very much. "Mhmm, that's right... also, if this is a previously unexplored place, I can't wait to find more about it and tell my friends in the League about it~"
And hey, lizard boy already seemed eager and ready to go... although the Faerin and the human didn't quite seem onboard with their plans.
The end was swift. One second apart and things went from looking terrible to look... Far less terrible. Completely over, in fact, with the fight settled in a matter of seconds. Old fashioned, and very much in touch with reality, in a way it made her skin crawl.
Yet as the team re-grouped, everyone took their decisions to march onwards, yet the most shining spirit of them all had to be @Herculean Drakecon's, which it really got a smile out of her. Enthusiasm and hope, matched with caution and quick thinking from @Yugam, the ferocious hands-on brawler with not a shred of fear @Toko, and last but not least, @Sepulchre af Umbral, the group's wild card, quite literally if the strike of luck from earlier was something to talk about.
Her own thoughts were cut short as they all finally agreed on their moves, and a dismissive wave went for Herc first and foremost. "I wish you all a safe journey ahead. I see myself at quite an unfavourable position if I was to follow deeper into these woods."The slightest of regret on her tone. Deep down, abandoning them here felt wrong, but they made their choice, and she did her own.
"I hope to see you all again sometime. Please don't get in trouble out there."And with that and one final wave to the trio, Shane excused herself with two taps against the ground, giving her a deeper scan of her surroundings, and simply tagging along to the shining, familiar light of earlier that would lead her out. "Fortune be with you all in there..." She muttered to herself.
Your guide through the forest was naught but a light in the distance. It was due to the slight blue tint of this light that all of the once bone-colored dust in the forest was shaded in the same hue-a sign that this was your only light in an otherwise impenetrable lower canopy. If that light went out, the world would become one of darkness.
Thankfully, this did not happen, and you soon saw the source of the light.
A statue emanated a cool blue glow across an open space, alighting a scene. Illuminated was a grove of fallen bones, shining lights on the ground from what could presumed to be broken glass and thorns-many, many thorns. They sprung from hundreds of black vines which all curl inward towards one place-a cave in the mountainside. The very space around these weeds felt irritating to look at, as if your visual display had failed to load them properly.
Sometimes the vines would twitch-each time they would do so in your direction.
The light itself came from a statue that stood proud and tall before the cave, one that was nonetheless rather small-even if it did shine quite the clear light. It seemed to be woven from an intricate crystal, one that had apparently spread to the ground and some of the nearby vines. Those who have been to Zalra before or with a Knowledge of 25 and above know very well the taint of Zalrisis.
It called to you ever so faintly... And to someone else, it seemed. A woman (@Fiora Di Angelo ) was unconscious at the base of the statue, tears in her clothing suggesting that something had torn into her flesh-yet the skin beneath showed no damage.
As the knight awakes, she remembers exactly what had ripped her apart after she had come to this place for her own reasons-but she had not died, and she was no longer wounded. Fiora could feel it-the statue had done something to her. Was she to be grateful, or worried? Should others try to do the same?
As you soak in this strange sight and make your cautious thoughts, your UI warns you about two things.
The area you are entering is of a significantly higher level than your previous location.
You are entering a high-corruption zone.
You are entering a high-corruption zone.
But there were three pop-ups, two of which warned of the same thing. Why? The most likely answer was that Zalrisis was only one of the two problems at hand, a likely problem given how Zalrisis had nothing to do with your visual feed.
It was clear that one could do something at this statue-but was it worth the risk?
Guidelines
Threadcode: 757C5
All characters are permitted one post this cycle and only one non-bonus action this post.
There is no set posting order.
There is no posting limit.
This thread is primarily focused on progression of the objective. Additional communication may be done in our communications thread. Talking is a Free Action.
The thread will update in 34-48 Hours from now.
Choose one of the following three options below or take any action available to your sheet. A choice must be made and noted in your post.
CURRENT PLAYER STATUS
Sepulchre af Umbral
107 / 120
Curse (3) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. FAVOR
Toko
205 / 205
Curse (2) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. MARKED
Herculean Drakecon
125 / 125
Curse (1) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church.
Yugam
100 / 100
Curse (1) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. MARKED
Fiora di Angelo
160 / 160
Curse (6) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church.
You have come far, Heroes. The lord of this land is that of a vindictive soul, and mine offers are granted from his dominion. SACRIFICE to mine altar, and unto thee I shall grant succor.
Bleed Away Thine Curses
You may take this action during this cycle to lower your CURSE count. To do so, you must Sacrifice 30 HP for every CURSE you are choosing to remove.
As per all methods of Sacrificing HP (such as Exceed), this loss of HP cannot be increased, reduced, or ignored by any means.
Patch Thine Wounds in Dark
You may choose to heal yourself for any number of 15 HP increments with this action during this cycle. To do so, you must raise your CURSE count by 1 for every increment healed.
Additionally, your Healing actions are boosted this round at a cost. Single-target healing actions will heal an additional +20 HP, but grant 1 CURSE for every 20 HP healed by the action AoE healing actions gain a +10 to the final result of the healing done to each person (applied after division of the roll), but grant 1 CURSE for every 10 HP healed by the action.
This effect to your healing is not optional-it is applied automatically during this cycle.
Betroth Thine Ailments unto Me
You may use this action during this cycle to choose to grant the statue your ailments. I will take upon the burden from your shoulders. You may choose to remove MARKED or FAVOR at the cost of gaining 2 CURSE as a cost for doing so.
Code:
[hp=current]max[/hp]
[status]
CURSE (X)
[/status]
Post here
[action]
Type choice and roll result here
[/action]
Link Play Sheet Here
She expected death, not many things could follow after a Moonstone Wolf's assault. She should have known the place was funny looking from the starters, but to face such a beast? Zalra's a name she's gonna remember as the land she's keeping the hell away from.
But when she expected the worst to happen and earn her first death in the hands of a shiny big pup, her eyes closed, opening only to see a statue just a few meters away from her, clouding the vision of the skies just a little bit, and too many warnings for her to give a care about at first. Cursed be the UI, she just smacked them away with a swipe of her hand and sat down, her ears buzzed and it felt like the worst hangover ever experienced in life.
When she got up to her feet however, there were two things to address: The group that had come to interrupt her totally legit nap, and the statue itself, and she picked the better out of the two being that shiny blue piece of rock that clearly wasn't of the most ominous at all, nope.
"Right... I guess this thing saved me? Might aswell play nice."Sacrifices usually meant blood, and for that an arcane dagger would prop onto her hand. Of course she wouldn't be so fearless, haven't she turned on the pain limiters back on, that at least made thrusting a knife right into her left hand far more bearable, letting her blood smear and drop all over the statue.
Fiora turned her face away. Watching herself bleed, pain or not, was a nauseating sight to behold, and instead she focused on @Toko, the only face among the group she knew and that could get a smile out of her at least with her overall coolness.
"Don't mind me, got an excess of blood over here, I'm chill."She said, cheeky smirk growing up on her to try and ease the team with her total stupidity absolute badassery.
With Shane departing the party all bid her good bye, and well wishes, each hoping that the girl wouldn't be exploded in the next major event. Now though, it was time for the rest of them to press on and follow the light.
Wasn't that something you were typically told not to do?
Well, if the party had all listened to common wisdom, they surely would've been spared the pain of thorns pricking their skin, and the anxiety wrought by the shimmering light, threatening to put itself out at any moment and plunge them all into darkness. But in the end (after a lot of quiet swearing on Yu's part) it all paid off.
Or did it?
"Oh, you can not be fucking serious," Yu said aloud, just as a woman who had been lying on the ground only moments earlier turned towards them and let out a quip that honestly rivalled his own in terms of sheer poor taste.
"Why are you here?" the man grumbled as he approached, only just spotting the statue behind her.
[insert some Fiora banter here, Yu gets punched, and Toko accidently chokes him probably.]
After their lovely conversation, Yu walked past Fiora, rubbing his neck and his nose in tandem, examining the statue curiously. This had to be significant, right? Figuring that the worst that could possibly happen was just losing some HP, Yu held out his bandaged hand, allowing some blood to seep through the seams, dripping onto the glowing wolf's head. Surprisingly, the small 'cursed' icon in his status bar disappeared as the man rolled his sleeve back up. Nice.
They had parted ways with one of their merry (?) little group, the white haired woman deciding she would rather turn back home than continue exploring deeper into the unknown land. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but it wasn’t a sentiment Toko planned on following… and neither was the human besides her apparently. Occasionally the Lepus chuckled as @Yugam quietly cursed, and on at least one occasion she even tried to use her own Nature magic to generate small vines in an attempt to spook the Hemomancer.
Of course fun and games eventually had to come to an end, the small party coming across an unusual sight—and what seemed to be an unconscious, but not dead, player. The various alerts lighting up Toko’s UI made her frown, waving them away as she spoke to her friend.
"Hey Yu, is it my eyes or do things look very weird around here…?"
She was surprised to see the body belonged to @Fiora Di Angelo, before the Lepus’ eyebrows shot upwards in fascination at the way Yugam addressed her.
"Heeeeeeeh, so you know one another?"
* * * * *
What had followed had been a set of shenanigans that left the male rubbing his nose and his neck, the hare shooting Yugam an apologetic smile in return before watching as Fiora made a blood contribution to whatever thing they had stumbled upon. "Sure that’s a good idea?" A puzzled look was given at the blonde before Toko took a closer look at the small statue—though she resisted the urge to touch it… hard as it was to deny herself that curiosity.
Shane had said her goodbyes which he was glad to see go if she didn't feel comfortable. Everyone pressed forward going into the next room. His heads-up display showed that they were in a high-level area. Keeping his wits about him as he entered the room first but stepped aside for everyone to enter after him. Keeping a hand on his weapon as his eyes scanned the room for visible threats. Finding nothing the room was eerie and very comforting. Before they sat a statue of a wolf spoke to them informing them about the corruption zone being at a high level. Being oddly silent keeping one hand on his weapon should anything go down.
The knightly woman who the group found seemed in okay condition so he wasn't that worried. She seemed to have her wits about her and interacted with the group focusing on took. Walking over to where she died and ran his reptile finger on the ground where the blood was. It seemed fresh enough but she wasn't covered in wounds. Saving his questions till he kind of read the room on how everyone else was feeling. He watched yugma give blood first then toko fixing them of their curse, Figured he would do the same. Making a small cut and then squeezing some of his own blood feeling the curse being lifted off his body.
Kind of wondering how @Foria got there in the first place he would look at her while stroking his chin. Trying his best to read some kind of loose body language that could see if she was lying.
"So miss whoever you are i see a huge puddle of blood something must of killed or injured you. Whatever we are going to face i would like to know what we have to face. It would be best if we could prepare the best we could"
Sepulchre waves goodbye to their white-haired companion, wishing her good luck on her travels. Fae enjoy their travel onwards with a rock to faer step, admiring the scenery and grinning wryly at the banter between the hemomancer and the lepus. At least those two were in good spirits. Must be nice to have a friend....
Once they reach the source of the blue light the Faerin lets out an awed and excited gasp, jumping and racing toward the glowing statue, only to grind to a halt and backpedal several steps when the blonde-haired knight (@Fiora Di Angelo) fae hadn't noticed there straightens up. "It - it saved you? What do you mean by that? Are you now its guard...ian..."Sepulchre af Umbral trails off as the newcomer and the hemomancer get into a snark fight and the lepus tries to intervene... or join in, hard to tell from this angle.
Fae overhears the lepus's comment regarding the scenery and considers commenting enthusiastically that yes, this area looks weird, it's glitched!! The UI notification even bugged out! but... she didn't direct that question toward faer, so answering would just make faer look like a nosy know-it all and fae is looking to avoid that reputation.
Instead Sepulchre stands off to the side, rocking on faer heels as fae impatiently waits faer turn to interact with the statue. Once the rest had their turn the Faerin approaches the statue, internally proud of faerself for resisting the urge to touch it. "We're already on a trip to help out a dying Mothman, too late to consider whether it's a good idea or not!"Sepulchre chirps back at @Toko's prudent concern as fae roll back faer left shirtsleeve and summon a dagger out of dark magic to draw a cut on faer lower arm, wincing as the blade pierces skin. The blood drips onto the statue, rolling down the snout to coat the teeth, giving the appearance the wolf had freshly killed and eaten a meal. Symbolic, to say the least.
The Faerin's eyes widen and fae frowns. Wait, a wolf? Fae had tried summoning a wolf earlier... fae glances around the area once again. Had this been the spirit fae had tried to summon? Or something more sinister? If fae could remember the name it gave, it might be worth trying to invoke it again...
Yugam was handled roughly by the irritating hands of two women. Without thought or kindness towards him, the hands of Fiora and Toko crushed and pulled. He heard the deep thumping of a crude strike against his head. He felt the curling grip of Toko's fingers pushing into his skin, just an inch away from breaking and tearing into his flesh.
YUGAM TAKES 10 DAMAGE.
Who did these crude people think they were to be hurting him over a few words like this? This wasn't fair. He had come here to solve a mystery that had almost caused his death, not to throw himself into the hands of rude people who only thought about beating him up over stupid problems. They shouldn't even be here with their ungrateful and toxic attitudes. They should--
HOW WONDERFUL!
The words interrupted his thoughts with a violent halt. Trees could rattle under such a forceful announcement, so it was no wonder that Yugam just stopped thinking before it. The voice was of astounding volume and full of bass, yet only Yugam flinched underneath it. Each and every word brought the slightest of aggravations to the headache that he already had.
It was irritating to listen to. The voice did not care, and did not give Yugam room to protest.
IT'S BEEN BUT MOMENTS, AND YOU HAVE ALREADY EMBODIED 'HIS' HEART.
OPPORTUNITY IS MADE.
MAY YOU REMEMBER THIS DAY, YUGAM, ON YOUR QUEST TO STEAL.
I, THE PEDDLER OF DREAMS, GRANT YOU THIS SINGLE BOON.
And from this time, the world went white...
Thunder struck down upon the simple clearing. The statue which had begun to glow at the time of chaos now exploded outwards in a burst of arcane power, a web of intricate blue lacing with each of the adventurers' skin. It felt as if the gridding dug beneath through the skin's pores, lacing and wrapping around the bones. Four felt searing pain, and the other felt naught but a cool sensation and a smallest of satisfactions.
It served them right, for watching him suffer as they had.
For every negative thought or speech a character has about Yugam inside of a post hereforth, that same character will immediately gain 1 CURSE. This occurrence will be announced each time it happens with a pop-up message in your UI.
CURRENT PLAYER STATUS
Sepulchre af Umbral
77 / 120
Curse (3) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. FAVOR
Toko
205 / 205
Curse (3) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. MARKED
Herculean Drakecon
95 / 125
Curse (1) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church.
Yugam
60 / 100
IMMUNE
MARKED
Fiora di Angelo
70 / 160
Curse (4) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church.
The chaos died down. Now there were five folk who stood before the ruined, shattered statue which once held the shape of a wolf. The only way left to go was forward, into the cave which invited them in. The thorns were not inviting. If they were to get anywhere, though, they would need to travel forward-and do so soon. They could see the thorns beginning to grow around the entrance, as if trying to block them out. They could not afford to wait another rest's time.
Resolved together, perhaps some more than others, the five entered the closing entrance ringed by pulsing vines and shivering thorns. The descent into darkness began-the first goal would be to find a safer route than what lie ahead, lest they be torn apart by the very walls alive.
Threadcode: 757C6
All characters are permitted one post this cycle.
There is no set posting order.
There is no posting limit.
This thread is primarily focused on progression of the objective. Additional communication may be done in our communications thread. Talking is a Free Action.
The thread will update in 34-48 Hours from now.
Actions
Characters may take any action normally available to them. Alternatively (or in addition), they may choose to attempt to perform one of the following:
Main Action: Carve a Safe Path - Open the way forward for your allies to navigate the endless brambles. Doing so will result in 10 retaliation damage, for the brambles are very alive-and they do not appreciate being parted. Roll a Mastery or Expertise check to make progress against the brambles. Failure will allow the road to become even more dangerous next cycle.
Bonus Action: Search the Brambles - You may choose to additionally look through the brambles once per post, no matter your Main Action, at the cost of Sacrificing 20 HP. Doing so requires a d20 roll, the result of which can be found here.
1: You are caught within the grasping brambles. Your progress is forefit, and you will need to be freed the next round.
2-5: The brambles lash out at you for your impudence. Take an additional 20 damage.
6-10: You do not find anything of note.
11-15: You find insight of a gap within the thorns! Gain +50 Safe Path progress.
16-18: You find a hidden passageway. This will be detailed next cycle.
19: A root tears open between your fingertips, and black blood spills from the flesh. You may choose to remove 2 CURSE from yourself by drinking it.
20: You find a special item within the thorns.
Code:
[hp=current]max[/hp]
[status]
CURSE (X)
[/status]
Post here
[action]
Type choice and roll result here
Bramble Progress: 000/???
[/action]
Link Play Sheet Here
-10 HP from Retaliation -20 HP from Bramble Gacha +9 HP from Power Heal (Fiora)
As soon as Yu stepped away from the statue, a dull pain began to grow in his skull. Spots began to fill his vision, drifting back and forth. Yu squeezed his eyes shut, blinking. He squeezed his temples, but the pain didn't dissipate as he began to stumble back and forth. A voice reverberated through the air (or was it just his perception?). So loud, it drowned out his thoughts, consuming them as the man fell to his knees.
Boom!
His vision went white, consumed by some deistic act.
You'd think that getting struck by lightning would hurt. That the thousands of of volts, and countless amps would leave the man curled up in pain. But all Yu felt was a cool relief on his skin. Like a light breeze after treading through hot sand.
The man smiled.
He looked back at the others, all in various states of disarray. What should have been concern was instead replaced with a sense of vindication. Especially when his eyes fell up on the singed form of Fiora. Served her right for punching him in the goddamn face.
The others? Uh...well, you know what they said about casualties of war.
"Uh, are you guys okay?" Yu asked, with far less concern in voice than it should have contained.
After confirming that everyone was mostly okay, and that they could get on with what was important, Yu decided to start tearing through the thorns to continue down the path. Slashing through the thicket's with his sword, the man cleared the way the best he could, only pausing when some strange item caught his eye...
+1 Curse Stack
-10 HP from Carve a Safe Path
-20 HP from Bramble Gacha
She had been trying to mediate, with different levels of success, the differences between Fiora and Yugam—the hare turning her head to ask @Sepulchre af Umbral or @Herculean Drakecon for assistance—when a sudden strike of lighting decided to descend upon them all. It caused the statue Toko had been eyeing before to absolutely shatter, shards and pieces blown all over, but she was unable to see a thing considering the blinding flash of light that also encompassed them all.
"Kusoooh! Is everyone alright...?!"
A look was given back to the Faerin and Beastfolk, before her attention had turned back to the two humans that had been bickering until that moment.
"What about you two, feeling okeeh?"
The hare was still somewhat rattled after the experience, confused how such a bolt of lightning and electricity had seemingly had no effect on any in the party, before her attention had turned to the only available spot if they wished to continue moving... and hopefully get out of this place. The path was covered by moving and shifting bramble, covered tot he nines with quite the sharp thorns, and after a sigh the Lepus followed besides @Yugam to start the ardous process of clearing up a path for the party to take, aware that behind them @Fiora Di Angelo had seemingly decided to cast a heal for the more injured and exhausted looking members of their troope.
Bramble Gacha
1d20 (14) = 14 Toko | Bramble Gacha | 757C6
Carve a Safe Path
1d100 (25) + 45 = 70 Fitness | Toko | 757C6 Carve a Path
Lighting struck the ground near them scaring everyone including him. Jumping a little but playing it off before the moment could settle in everyone was on the move. Yugam was slashing through the bramble while @Toko asked if he was okay. With a nod, he would reply "I am fine a bit spooked what's the next move from here, I assume through the bramble." Yugam would begin cutting through the brush he would follow the group with his weapon out. Pulling out a potion from his side belt and gulped it down feeling some of the healing effect. Putting the empty bottle back in his backpack. While he wasn't really paying attention to the group earlier he heard a hard thud. Foria had nailed yugam would a punch to the face and he looked at his palm. Opening his commutations to see they were fighting. While the punch didn't kill yugam he would least hurt keeping tabs on him of course.
Closing his palm and refocusing on his mission with his playful night in hand. While they walked he would try to keep spirits with a bit of talking."Right you okay @Yugam that punch to the head looked like it hurt. So how long have you guys been playing? It's like having a long car ride figured we make some kind of small talk while we kinda bullshit to the next objective."He was admittedly pretty bored while they walked and wasn't entirely sure what was going to happen next. Casually spinning the heavy chained weapon on the end link while keeping his wits about him.
CURSE (4) -20 HP from Gacha +9 HP Power Heal (AOE)
What little enjoyment she got out of watching Yu suffer between one punch to the face and one yank from Toko herself. All of that fun? To the drainage, as something exploded right on her face, and that something being the statue, once thunder struck and the blast blinded and sent everyone away, arcs of voltage swirling through her form for a few moments.
The fall after such knockback hurt more than the vindictive lightning did, specially with how hard she dropped against the floor. By the time she could open her eyes and her ears stopped ringing, the ancient statue she dropped her blood to had nothing but shards left of, and yet the wound on her hand continued to bleed.
"Yeah we are fine!"She shouted back to @Toko, scratching the back of her head once the pain settled on her forehead of all places, a headache much like this whole situation on the forests was. "Dammit, what are you smiling at, Fuckface?"Fiora took quick notice of @Yugam and that cocky little smile he had. Animosity channeled itself onto a spell on her right hand as time itself begun to twist around Yugam, herself and @Sepulchre af Umbral. She hoped not only to rewind time and close the wound on her palm, but to get Yu to experience her fist once again.
Unfortunately, that didn't happen and the mischievous smirk on her face got wiped as she saw the latest wounds on him just disappear, and pure embarassment flustered her cheeks, the blonde standing back up and rushing ahead with Toko, to help her out with the brambles. With one machete in hand (arcanamancy, mind you) she started to chop chop the thorns.
Rolls
Roll Result
1d20 (14) = 14
Fiora Di Angelo | Bramble Gacha | 757C6
Power Heal (AoE)
1d100 (5) + 10 + 10 = 9 (Total divided by 3) +9 HP to 3 targets (@Yugam@Sepulchre af Umbral@Fiora Di Angelo)
Gain the Vulnerable state Chronomancy | Fiora Di Angelo | 757C6
CURSE (3) Favored -40 hp from gacha +33 hpfrom power heals
Sepulchre af Umbral looks up at @Toko, feeling the lepus's eyes on faer. Before fae can respond, the wolf statue lights up and explodes apart violently, causing the Faerin to shriek and throw faer hands up to shield faer face from the expected debris. Instead fae is hit with a pain similar to the magical backlash fae experienced before and fae close faer eyes tight. Fae grit faer teeth with a soft grunt as the pain constricts and Umbral swears fae can feel it settle into faer bones. When the pain subsides to a dull throb Umbral dares to open faer eyes again and look faer arms and hands over, proceeding to lift up faer skirt and glance over each leg.
"Hmm..."fae frowns, before looking up and giving @Yugam and the lepus an unsteady smile, more nonchalant than how fae feels. "Doing fine, doing fine... felt like the chains might've settled around my bones, but I'm sure this place is good at illusions." Umbral flashes a grin and twirls a finger, causing a soft puff of blue magic to raise faer grimoire into faer reach. Fae clasp the book and turn to grin at @Fiora Di Angelo, "Thanks for the healing, but let me demonstrate how it's done!" The Faerin takes a breath with a silent prayer this spell goes off without a hitch and grins broadly when fae feel it take effect properly. "There now, no need to thank me. Just returning the favor." And with that Umbral scurries after the party, trying to utilize faer Pierce Weapons to help hack at the vines. Unfortunately, faer size puts faer at a disadvantage, and fae winces with a quiet ow as the brambles dig into faer instead of vice versa.
Rolls
Power Heal (AoE)
1d100 (65) + 5 + 0 = 24 (Total divided by 3) +24 HP to 3 targets (@Sepulchre af Umbral, @Yugam, @Fiora Di Angelo)
Gain the Vulnerable state Spirit Magic | Sepulchre af Umbral | 757C6 Roll Result
1d20 (5) = 5
Sepulchre af Umbral | Bramble Gacha | 757C6
Bramble Progress: 202/???
The darkness ran deep. The brambles that curled were without end, and soon a sense of direction was lost inside of the dark-there was only forward to go, a forward carved by the valiant efforts of a collective group. The thorns that hate were kept at bay for the time being-a way forward was made.
Direction could be regained not only in one way, but two! A little tweed doll that @Yugam had found in his search between the brambles did pull in a direction, the tug growing stronger as you grew closer and closer. The second indication was of sound-that of breathing. As the brambles rose and fell, wind was coming through the tunnel from a specific direction. It coincided with that which Yugam held in his hand. It seemed clear from this as to where you had to go.
One last sign came to you, a third and final sign, that of a voice-but it wasn't just any voice.
"You people... You really had gone and killed my sheep? I can't believe this!"
That high, almost-cute and certainly suspicious pitch... It could only have belonged to the little freak of nature, that floating doll who had led you into this death-trap not even one night ago. He was certainly a cause of this now-not when he was all but admitting it with his words. He wasn't even trying to hide what he had done.
"And when I felt my lantern shatter, it was because of you, wasn't it? Don't try to hide it...
I felt it break. You did this to me..!
Hee hee hee!
You disgusting bats, you squealing rats..!"
That voice had twisted, the anger within showing very well that a doll could never have the same vocal chords that a human did. It was growing less and less friendly by the second as it realized what you have done to survive. It was furious, it seemed, and violence was surely inevitable.
Yet a reaction unlike what you expected of his rising anger was given--You could see light again, back from the way you came. It poured out from the cave's entrance, one that was surprisingly close. It gave notion to just how hard it had been to merely walk so far as you had.
"I'm a very busy boy, though, and I'm feeling very nice today! My quarrel... Hee hee hee..!
It isn't with you, not today. How about you go? Just... go. I'll let you leave.
I'm doing something very important right now, and I don't have any more time to spend on you.
How about it, pals?"
As if you would just simply leave after he tried to kill you. This doll was going to pay.
CURRENT PLAYER STATUS
Sepulchre af Umbral
50 / 120
Curse (3) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. FAVOR Sacrificed 20 HP to search through the brambles.
Took 40 (vulnerable) damage from the brambles lashing out.
Toko
175 / 205
Curse (3) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church. MARKED
Herculean Drakecon
103 / 125
Curse (2) - A vector for other afflictions. Must be removed by leaving and going to a church.
+1 Curse from negative thoughts.
Yugam
39 / 100
IMMUNE
MARKED
Fiora di Angelo
83 / 160
Curse (7) - Wow, you have been a very naughty girl!
+3 Curse from negative thoughts.
Threadcode: 757C7
All characters are permitted one post this cycle.
There is no set posting order.
There is no posting limit.
This thread is primarily focused on progression of the objective. Additional communication may be done in our communications thread. Talking is a Free Action.
The thread will update in 34-48 Hours from now.
Actions
Characters may take any action normally available to them. Alternatively (or in addition), they may choose to attempt to perform one of the following:
Main Action: Carve a Safe Path - Open the way forward for your allies to navigate the endless brambles. Doing so will result in 10 retaliation damage, for the brambles are very alive-and they do not appreciate being parted. Roll a Mastery or Expertise check to make progress against the brambles. Failure will allow the road to become even more dangerous next cycle.
Bonus Action: Search the Brambles - You may choose to additionally look through the brambles once per post, no matter your Main Action, at the cost of Sacrificing 20 HP. Doing so requires a d20 roll, the result of which can be found here.
1: You are caught within the grasping brambles. Your progress is forefit, and you will need to be freed the next round.
2-7: The brambles lash out at you for your impudence. Take 20 damage.
8-12: You do not find anything of note.
13-15: You find insight of a gap within the thorns! Gain +50 Safe Path progress.
16-18: You find a a meaty... thing! As you approach it, the thing screams. You watch as the brambles stop attacking you for a moment to silence the meat. Gain +50 Safe Path progress, and the brambles are distracted for a while-this result will be elaborated on in the next cycle.
19: A root tears open between your fingertips, and black blood spills from the flesh. You may choose to remove 2 CURSE from yourself by drinking it.
20: You find a way past the thorns and inform your party of such. All damage that would be dealt to players by thorns is negated this round.
Other Action: Leave - I mean... He's offering, isn't he?
Code:
[hp=current]max[/hp]
[status]
CURSE (X)
[/status]
Post here
[action]
Type choice and roll result here
Bramble Progress: 000/???
[/action]
Link Play Sheet Here
+24HP from Sep's heal +16HP from her own heal
CURSE (7).
Fucking angry.
"There now, no need to thank me. Just returning the favor."
Fiora snorted, cold resentment on her eyes as she shot a look back at @Sepulchre af Umbral"Yeah, thanks. But don't get too cocky..."And with one healing given, Fiora felt the need to double-no, TRIPLE down on that by twisting time once again. Despite their differences, her goals were beyond her anger once Wrath got overcomed by Pride, aiming her healing efforts to the crew once again, specially @Yugam who, despite it all, seemed to be the one taking the worst out of the party.
Well deserved spot, were she not the one suffering from UI pop ups as curses begun to stack one after another on her status bar. "Hey why the FUCK am I getting these random pop ups?!"Fiora couldn't hold her tongue back another second. For sure the target of her rage would be Yugam, but before the knightess was given a second to do so, a far more punchable voice blurted out, echoing with familiarity to everyone but herself.
She re-directed her sight, twitchy much like her sword arm that craved for something to cut into pieces as a much needed form of therapy, and they all landed on the doll Yu had gotten. "I'm only going on the direction your tweedy ass is hiding so I can kick you up close, and I don't give a DAMN about your sheep, I'll kick her ass, your ass, and this whole forest's ass just because I feel like it. How about it, Pal?"
But that didn't felt enough, not to her. Not when this thing talked so much smack she could make a whole blog and rant about it. And for that purpose she left her palm open towards Yugam. "Give me that thing, I'm gonna clear the path with it."She had to show it who was the boss here. The girl boss. The girl boss mafia italian boss girl.
Rolls
Power Heal (AoE) @Fiora Di Angelo @Sepulchre af Umbral @Yugam
1d100 (27) + 10 + 10 = 16 (Total divided by 3) +16 HP to 3 targets
Gain the Vulnerable state Chronomancy | Fiora Di Angelo | 757C7
Bramble Progress: 000/???
+1 Curse Stack
-10 HP from Carve a Safe Path
-20 HP from Bramble Gacha
She had thought it would be simple to carve their way through the brambles... that is until Toko realized the plants were refusing to bend to the rabbit's Nature mastery. A snort left the hare before she decided to get physical with it, and while the brambles didn't manage to cut skin they were still quite annoying as the group tried to find safe passage towards the sound of breathing... and then that annoying as fuck little voice.
"... that's it, where's that little shit at? I'm gonna punt it..."
It seemed Toko wasn't the only one irked with the being that had led them all to this place, since the rabbit was able to hear @Fiora Di Angelo popping off as well into the air as they tried to get closer to their new quarry. "Hey, Yu-chan, where's that floating doll at? Straight ahead?" She'd wait for a moment and some form of confirmation from @Yugam before nodding, the fighter cracking her knuckles in preparation before she renewed her efforts to get through the brambles.
""Hey, buddy, you had scales and shit right? Help me push this shit out of our way."
Red eyes turned to look pointedly towards @Herculean Drakecon , before the hare pointed in the direction the voice seemed to be coming from the strongest. The same wasn't asked of @Sepulchre af Umbral, mostly because the Faerin already looked to be roughed up by the plants.
Bramble Gacha
1d20 (15) = 15 Bramble Gacha | Toko | 757C7
I feel cold. The thorns curled into my heart, pushing in every moment that my organs beat outward. They are oppressors by nature. I am a cage made by my flesh, and I share my own cell with the thorns. I scream, but my voice is silent. I am trapped in my own special hell-one that will never have an end.
I was placed in this hell by another. I remember entering the cave. That man came with me promised that we were two. We were not when it mattered most, not when he ran away from me to escape the biting brambles. I bet he fell into the thorns. It would make sense for him to have done so-yet I could never find him, for it was too dark to see his body. All I can ever assume is that he was gone, and I was left alone.
The thorns creep inside of my skull. They sink into my brain. I feel the charge and pain they bring-I will never be allowed a true death that I should have been promised. The whispers that came with them... That is what I could not stand to bear.
It was my fault, they said, for entering the home of the Savior. It was the man's fault, they said, that I remained-for he had abandoned me to my fate. He ran away, never to return, leaving me in this hell.
I did not believe them. I am sure he died as he should have, lost to the brambles. He would never escape the Savior. He was surely somewhere within the brambles, yet I could not find him. I could not rest, for I could not find him.
I slept today. I feel cold, but it was quiet. It was calming. I had not had rest in so long. I believed, for a silly moment, that perhaps this is what death could be like.
Yet I remember the shapes that fled from my place of slumber.
"Why did you leave me..? I don't want to be alone!"
[ARMOR OF WOOL HAS NEGATED AN INSTANCE OF PHYSICAL DAMAGE.]
+24 HP from Power Heal (Sepulchre) +16 HP from Power Heal (Fiora) +20 HP from Recover -20 HP from Bramble Gacha -20 HP from Bramble Gacha Result
"Wasn't that bad," Yu replied to Herculean as they'd cut away a the thorny brush. "I've taken plenty hits worse than that IRL." Blows to the head kind of came with the territory when you practiced martial arts for as long as he had. "I've only been playing about- huh? Hold on a sec."
As Yu had cut away the think branches, something odd caught the man's eye. Just a little bit out of place. A little too round, a little too lightly colored. Kneeling down, the man reached out and picked up the strange item. A...doll? Stuffed, with button eyes staring soullessly up at him. And yet it felt very much alive, urging him in a particular direction just as a cold breeze brushed over his skin. The hairs on his neck rose as a too familiar voice began to speak to them.
Yu stared in the direction of the voice, the same direction that the doll seemed to pull him in, an annoyed look on his face as the man began to gnaw at the inside of his cheek, Fiora rushing up beside him shouting at the disembodied voice, and an equally frustrated Toko soon joined them. "Yeah, that way," Yu grumbled before Fiora expectantly held her hand out. Like Yu was just going to give her his sword.
And he was.
The man shrugged, he make a sword from his blood to use in the mean time. "I want that back," he said as he went to hand the woman his sword, but as soon as the man lifted his arm, a thick, thorn covered vine rose up and snapped the man, wrapping around his wrist and pulling his arm away from Fiora's, the plants apparently not enjoying the idea of the angry woman hacking at them with a sharp blade. "Ah! Fuck!" Yu swore as he pulled away from the vines, thorns digging into his flesh.
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