2017-08-13: Bandits in the Ruins

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===============================<* Hillside Ruins *>===============================

Settled into the mountainous peninsula of eastern Ignas, the region surrounding the small village of Capo Bronco is littered with abandoned ruins from bygone eras. Many of these ruins have been a frequent favorite of beginning Drifters and other, seedier opportunists looking to make a name for themselves or a quick buck because, despite their great numbers, they are often simply less difficult to traverse.

Carved into the mountainous, rocky region itself, the Hillside Ruins have a distinctly naturalistic feel to them similar to other old ruins that dot the landscape. Glyphs and ancient images decorate cracked and crumbling hallways; moss creeps over winding, desolate hallways. This place is abandoned, but not forgotten; amidst its traps and tricks and creeping monstrosities, evidence abounds of the fresh presence of others, sifting through the ruins and the rubble -- looking for their fortunes.

BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFpvWupIyr0
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
The region around Capo Bronco, to the southeast of Lacour, is surrounded by mountainous hills and mountains, riddled with caves. It's no wonder that when rumors of bandits in the area pop up, they almost always start muttering about the caves and what a perfect hideout they make. But in this case, it was the truth!
Local farmers and merchants had reported increasing banditry in the area the last few weeks, and even put a call out to the Adventurer's Guild to protect the area. Two nameless Drifters had taken up the task and pushed it to the bandits' lair... and failed, supposedly losing all of the valuables they'd recovered in the process too.
This had led to the odd situation of Elena forcing herself into Ryudo's party to investigate, after getting the false impression from him that he was happily and willingly taking the job up to help the poor victims out and right a wrong. That, surely, won't go poorly.
It's fate that'll make them bump into others as they approach the hillside. There are ruins here, after all, and other jobs in the area! Plenty of reasons for Drifters to have come, seeking the treasures still burried in the area, or just investigating claims of bandits.
"I thought you said you could identify the cave entrance!" Elena screeches at Ryudo, after they pass the fourth or fifth natural cavern that is definitely not the correct one.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Typically, Riesenlied's arrival at a Digsite means that she felt the echoes of what could be Dragon Fossils from deep below the earth.
Today is no exception -- though it is not the only reason that they're here; when Elena and Ryudo come across one of the cavern entrances, they see that there's been a minor skirmish under which several bandits have been tied up after being knocked unconscious, their captor a winged woman with ashen-blonde hair and horns that ... Elena's probably seen before both in wanted posters and at Lacour, actually.
The metal demon, Riesenlied.
"There must be more inside..." Riesenlied murmurs to herself, holding onto a brooch which holds a gem that faintly shimmers with an array of colours, responding to shifts in emotion around the area. "Oh?" She blinks and peers towards the two.
Just what is a Metal Demon doing investigating local banditry, anyway? Does she have an ulterior motive?
"You are... Miss Elena, if I am not mistaken?" she inquires, thinking she's seen the priestess of Granas before, but isn't quite certain.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

"Just because we know which cave is the right cave doesn't mean it won't take us time to get there!" Oh no. That voice can only belong to one person, and that person has DECIDEDLY AWFUL chemistry with at least one member of this adventuring party. Cyre mutters as he fusses with his hood. "Gosh, I thought they were supposed to teach you patience in that weird religious school of yours."

He had signed up to toss bandits bodily into the sky, not deal with yet more interfaith dialogue. Or rather, the systematic oppression of his people and their way of life.

Riesenlied being here doesn't... Particularly help. Metal Demons and Guardians do not often mix well. "It's just up ahead," he grouses, making steady progress over hill and rough terrain. "There should be a cliff we'll have to climb. I think."

<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

One such drifter that has come along seeking fortune, materials, and treasure is Al steroid the Kid.

Asteroid the Kid is wearing a hooded cloak that obscures most of her body and face except for two yellow eyes that peer out from behind the hood and bright sharp fanged teeth that seem to be held by lips twisted into a friendly smile provided that sharp teeth do not bother you. She is pulling along a rickety cart reinforced by slabs of metal. A more recent and newer addition to the cart seems to be a mailbox stuck near the end of it. The mailbox is presently shut closed. Along her hips is a pair of holsters carrying a pair of sleek white ARMs with a strange black muzzle that larger than the rest of the device.

Her eyes slant towards the metal demon Riesenlied and she chuckles briefly to herself as she pulls her cart closer.

"May the Guardians be with you." She says. "You have come to do battle with bandits? What a coincidence, so have I. And for treasure..." Her eyes shine.

She glances over to Cyre for a moment. "Mmmmm... I can feel the faint gleam of riches calling to me. Riches is funds, funds is goods, goods is materials, materials is the future of interstellar travel..."

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
Dean had heard that a pair of Drifters had gone to deal with the bandits and got thoroughly whupped, and immediately decided that he had to help protect the locals from these jerks, no matter what! That's why he's out here in the foothills, without Rebecca *or* Avril, because he never stopped to think that maybe he ought to ask his friends for back-up if two Drifters weren't enough for them.
Fortunately, Dean isn't the only one who had this idea. As he tromps through the woods, looking for this cave where they're supposed to be holed up, he hears voices. Yelly voices! He pauses, only just now thinking of Rebecca and how mad she might be that he ditched her (again), but then he hears a voice he knows and brightens.
"Hey there!" he calls, walking right up to the group. Huh. Aside from Riese, he doesn't know any of these people! "So you're all here about the bandits, too?" he asks, hearing what Asteroid says. "Let's all go together, then! We can't just let them terrorize the villages around here!"
He follows this up with an enthusiastic wave towards Riese. "Hi, Riesenlied!" It does not occur to Dean that establishing himself first off as friendly towards a known Metal Demon might not be the best way to establish a good first impression.
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.


In truth, the Geohound's reasons for being here are far less then nobile. His interest is on making a quick bit of money for fixing the guild's bungling before it escalates into something worse. Free rides aren't his thing. But one misunderstanding led to another, and here they are. Unfortunately it was also necessary to enlist the aid of a shrill priestess for more information, and one which seems to have all of the wrong ideas about his motivations. They follow the trail of a colorfully plumaged hawk who scouts ahead of them alongside the edge of the mountain.

"I said it shouldn't be too much trouble. How was I supposed to know that there had been a recent cave-in? And didn't I tell you stop yapping before we're found by bandits or worse? Moderate the volume already!" It should be no surprise that they're meeting as many people as they are when they're broadcasting their presence this loudly. Fortunately it seems that the bandits who would have first responded have been already dealt with.

The strangely attired swordsman briefly pauses upon the sight of the...person with horns and wings. That is decidedly not a human. He exchanges a glance with the hawk who descends and settles upon his shoulder, an odd display of his own, before ultimately shrugging and glancing toward Elena with a wary eye.

Ryudo is worldly and unflappable. His companion is...less so, despite the curious display of familiarity. He can only guess how this one will pan out.

DG: A party led by Elena is now entering Hillside Ruins.
DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
===============================<* Hillside Ruins *>===============================
=======================<* CHALLENGE - Don't Skip Leg Day *>=======================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
----------------------------< Challenge Information: >----------------------------
 Don't you just hate it when ancient cultures pass judgments on your           
 lifestyle choices? Clearly, this one thinks you haven't been getting enough   
 cardio in your life, because there's a door on a ledge with no ladders or     
 stairs leading up, just a layered, stone wall, with so many convenient        
 indents and outcroppings for you to climb up. Screw you, ancient cultures.    
=Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"I would not need to shout so loudly if we had found the bandits already! I was under the impression that you were a professional!" Elena retorts, evidently not willing to let her Geohound companion have the last word. And that's despite Cyre chiming in, which does nothing to help.
"Well, perhaps your spirits will see fit to make us climb quickly, then, seeing as they were not inclined to show us the way!" If Elena has a spirit animal, it's one of those tiny angry dogs that hates everything and never shuts up. You know, with the fluffy white fur.
Both Ryudo and Cyre are right, of course; the entrance is just up ahead, up the cliff, where Riesenlied is waiting for the group, having already taken care of some of the bandits. That sure makes their job easier! Elena nods, though she seems wary. "I am. And you are a Metal Demon, are you not?" Not even by name! Ouch. But it's true Riese would have probably seen Elena around Lacour, either from the medic booth during the tournament, or from such episodes as "getting her butt kicked by Lady Harken" and "getting her butt kicked by Grahf". Elena never wants to see an arena ever again.
Asteroid and Dean get a much warning look and greeting from the Songstress, who bows politely to salute them. "We are! We would appreciate any help you can give, for the sake of those who live and travel in this region!" That's what this is all about, after all. For her. So clearly, it must be what it's about for everyone else, or else how dare they.
Sadly, Elena's screeches will not get the party any closer to that cave entrance. It's up there, with only narrow stone pathways and platforms to guide you upward. No stairs, no ramps, no ropes or ladders. Elena whines. As Ryudo guessed when he first met her, she isn't very physically inclined, despite her claims of being 'perfectly able to handle herself in combat'.
She starts climbing clumsily.
DG: Elena has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Don't Skip Leg Day.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied glances back towards the curious girl with the asteroid for a head, placing a hand to her cheek for a moment. "Ah... I had heard that some of the bandits may have kidnapped some villagers, so I came to investigate." Unlike the Geohound, it seems like her motives *are* noble, though whether they have a particular ulterior motive behind them is... unknown. She can still feel the sensation of Dragon Fossils in the area, after all.
She smiles warmly at Dean and waves back towards him with a nod. "Dean, it's good to see you again. Is Rebecca and Avril not with you? Yes, let's investigate together, before the bandits can do any more untold damage..." It's like having a substitute Avril, isn't it?
She does note Cyre's presence, then bows her head gently. "Mister Cyre. It is good to see you again."
To the rest, she at least introduces herself: "My name is Riesenlied, and as of right now... I am acting in a capacity concerned with the safety of the villages around here. I hope that can be acceptable?"
She's curious about Elena and her companion; they have a rather fiery banter with each other, and she wonders where they could've met. "... I am a Metal Demon, though, yes," she chimes as she -- just sweeps up with her wings and floats up gently, careful to not strain them too much after what happened at the Temple of Rejection. Once she's at the top, she slowly lowers a rope to the rest of the party.
"Here, hold on."
DG: Riesenlied has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Don't Skip Leg Day.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

"Miss Riesenlied," Cyre glances at the Metal Demon, uncharacteristic distant professionalism obvious in his eyes. He tries not to stare too long at that weirdo with the yellow eyes and the too many teeth and what the heck does she mean by interstellar travel!? "Yeah, Guardians be with you too, friend." At least she worships the right ones.

Speaking of.

Cyre stares at Elena.

A long, terrible, awful stare.

And then he takes a step forward, leans in, and smiles. "Oh, gorgeous. You should know better by now than to expect me to be anything at all resembling 'professional.'

And then he abruptly wraps his arms around her waist and unfurls an enormous parachute that he appears to have secured to his chest and shoulders.

"HERE WE GO. MORE PROOF THAT MY GOD IS THE BEST. FEEEENGALOOOOON!"

The wind stirs.

The wind howls!!

"Ahahahahaha!" Cyre cackles as his parachute inflates and flings him upwards, higher, higher...! MAYBE TOO HIGH!? Perhaps he shouldn't shout his god's name like that!?

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has used his Tool Reverse Parachute toward his party's challenge, Don't Skip Leg Day.
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

Asteroid the Kid looks towards Dean Stark. He seems ... energetic. She wobbles her head in his direction. "Who are you? They call me Asteroid the Kid," Largely because she calls herself Asteroid the Kid and doesn't give any other names and sometimes they don't even use Asteroid they use Astie which Asteroid the Kid accepts because Virginia uses it.

She glances over to the arguing. It's wonderful that she has a healthy relationship with her teammate. Go Team Hellion!

Nevertheless, the warning look from Elena either goes over her head or she elects to act like she totally didn't say that stuff about the Guardians knowing it would probably annoy Elena. Okay it's that thing. She smiles at her.

Asteroid draws her pistols. She fires one shot at the floor and the other into the top side of Cyre's parachute. There's a strange radiating hole from where she fired each shot, one glowing blue and the other red. She hops into the blue 'hole' and pops back out of the red one on top of Cyre's parachute and sits herself on it.

"Fengalon's good, but Rigdobrite's better." She says chipperly.

<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

The bodyguard Elena brought with her - because she certainly gives the impression that she is leading this expedition and not he - visibly knits his brows from behind her as the banter is exchanged. "I *am* a professional. And my professional sensibilities indicate to me that you need to. Shut. UP. Before the rest of the mountain finds us." He offers a weary nod to the Metal Demon, or so his loud companion seems to identify her as, seeming to not grant her appearance too much more concern. "Sure, it's acceptable. Welcome aboard." His eyes light on "Al"'s wagon as he incorporates her wagon into his introduction. "We're a traveling circus bound for the depths of this cavern in order to spread the teachings of Granas to the local fauna, wildlife, and brigandry." He offers an insincere bow, arms extending to either side in a fashion that unseats the hawk perched on his shoulder. It flaps behind him with an irritated look. "I'm the ringmaster of this expedition, Ryudo. Welcome aboard. Please file into a single line behind the priestess as she bravely leads ahead and protects us from danger."

The fact that Cyre and Elena don't get along is something that he's already resigned himself, apparently. He's got enough spite to share with the group without offering his opinions on gods, quasi-gods, and whether Fengalon or Granas would win in an arm wrestling match.

Glancing up at the two, he shrugs slowly and begins to simply climb on his own. He could rely on Skye for this, but at this early in the adventure it seems like a waste to not pointedly rely on his own arms and legs.

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
"Uhhh... Is this a bad time?" Dean asks, blinking as Elena shouts in Ryudo's face and Ryudo grumbles back at her. He scratches his head when Elena glares at him (what did he do??), but when she then bows to him and graciously accepts his offer of help, and Ryudo echoes that acceptance in kind, he smiles. "Great! My name's Dean, by the way. Dean Stark! It's nice meeting you all!" He smiles at Asteroid, since his self-introduction also handily answers her question. "That's a cool name!" he says. Since she had a hood on, he doesn't see much more of her than her fangy smile, but that's fine.
A nod towards Riesenlied. "I'd heard the same stuff. Well, I didn't hear about kidnapping, but robbing and looting and stuff... If someone's been kidnapped, then we *really* gotta do something about it!"
Rebecca and Avril, though? He rubs his head sheepishly. "Uh, when I heard about the bandits, I kinda ran off on my own... I'm sure they're doing fine, though!" Either way, there is a rock wall to climb. Dean's not too worried about this; he has a lot of upper-body strength due to all that shoveling. He pauses only long enough to gape at Cyre and Asteroid and utter, "Woaahhh, COOOOOL!" Then he's off like a squirrel up the rock wall!
"You need any help?" he asks Elena on the way. At least Riesenlied's got a rope for everyone to use if they so want!
DG: Dean Stark has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Don't Skip Leg Day.
DG: Asteroid the Kid has used her Tool Portal Pistols toward her party's challenge, Don't Skip Leg Day.
DG: Ryudo has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Don't Skip Leg Day.
===============================<* Hillside Ruins *>===============================
=======================<* CHALLENGE - Don't Skip Leg Day *>=======================
|Type: Entry       |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
----------------------------< Challenge Information: >----------------------------
 Don't you just hate it when ancient cultures pass judgments on your           
 lifestyle choices? Clearly, this one thinks you haven't been getting enough   
 cardio in your life, because there's a door on a ledge with no ladders or     
 stairs leading up, just a layered, stone wall, with so many convenient        
 indents and outcroppings for you to climb up. Screw you, ancient cultures.    
=Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
==========================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 1 *>==========================
=========================< Results - Don't Skip Leg Day >=========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena                               0 --(4)--> 4                   Pass
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryudo                               0 --(4)--> 4                   Pass
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riesenlied                          0 --(5)--> 5                   Pass
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asteroid the Kid                    0 --(5)--> 5                   Pass
Portal Pistols                      1   Agility Effects: Stalwart             
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dean Stark                          0 --(8)--> 8                   Fail
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     0 --(6)--> 6                   Pass
Reverse Parachute                   1   Agility Effects: Rally and Quicken    
------------------------------------< Party >-------------------------------------
Leader: Elena                       0 --(15)--> 15                 Pass
Conditions: Tire(2)
Effects: Quicken(1)|Stalwart(1)
================================< Dream Chasers >=================================
DG: The party led by Elena has passed this challenge! The party gained 15 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management
commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
There's many things Elena could be saying. She could be telling Riesenlied that as long as she avoids setting more cities on fire they can work together to save some folks, or maybe use this opportunity to find out if Metal Demons believe in Lord Granas. She could thank Riese for that rope! She could be barking back at Ryudo with zeal and gusto, complain about the fact Asteroid also appears to worship the Guardians, she could be intorducing herself to Dean, who seems nice and sane, or she could be giving Ryudo even more sass about calling this a circus and mocking her faith.
She gets the chance to do none of those things when Cyre grabs her and drags her up with him.
The climb up is uneventful and trivial for everyone involved, although Dean's footing breaks for half of a second and he might scrape his hand on some sharper stone. Certainly it's an injury he'll die from!!! (not)
Elena has the more interesting trek up as she flails and screams, perhaps to Ryudo's delight. "Unhand me immediatly, you brute!" Yet, it seems there's something more to the kicking and flailing than just thinking Cyre is a brute. Could it be Elena doesn't like heights, or is actually afraid of such a rapid ascent? What a terrible piece of information in Cyre's hands.
DG: Riesenlied has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
=================<* CHALLENGE - Perilous Posse of Pillbugs *>=================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 There's probably some sort of groan-inducing joke to be made about how        
 pillbugs are such a pill, but it's not going to be made here, because it's    
 tasteless and uninspired and pillbugs are angry, vicious, spiky little        
 things and you should probably watch out because a whole group of them are    
 rolling down about to spew said spikes in your face. What a pill.             
=Dungeon Conditions: Wound====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied lets out a slight yelp as Dean's footing breaks, but she tosses the rope lower with an exclamation of, "Dean!" though her concern is a little bit unwarranted since he stops sliding. "Just hang on to the rope and I'll pull you up."
With just a little bit of failing and kicking and a... admittedly extremely fascinating use of what seems to be Zeboim-era ARMs from Asteroid, the group makes it up the ledge and towards the interior of the Ruins themselves, where they're beset by... round, extremely round, very very round bugs that are rolling their way. They're spiky, as well.
"Careful," Riesenlied cautions as she draws her thin side-sword, but then looks towards her brooch. "I'll create an empathy field to assist us in combat."
She concentrates, and a shimmering ebb of photons starts to spread through the area as she concentrates on the Dragon's Tear. The group would be able to feel themselves -- more in tune with each other's senses, as Riesenlied deploys an empathic field; ordinarily this would be great! It'd be a way to know when others are wounded, when they're pressing in for an advantage or in need of assistance from each other.
Right now, it might just exacerbate everyone's annoyances with each other, but... well, Riese has her work cut out, doesn't she?
DG: Riesenlied has used her Tool Dragon's Tear toward her party's challenge, Perilous Posse of Pillbugs.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Whud-whud-whud. Fists pound against Cyre's chest. He laughs! Not because he doesn't feel pain, but because Cyre seems to have found a secret fear gnawing at the heart of his GREATEST* RIVAL**

(*Nope)

(**Still nope)

"Pfah! You like the air you breathe? You thank Fengalon! What do you thank Rigdobrite for?" Cyre narrows his eyes mischeviously at the star-girl perched upon his parachute. "...Space!?" Oh. Wait, they're there.

...

Soon: pillbugs.

A strange aura of empathetic energy radiates across Cyre's brain. He suddenly feels infinitely more irritated. Riese would see his aura transition from yellow to orange. On the upside, though: He has something to take his anger out on. Cyre growls, levelling his staff at the assemblage of pillbugs and begins blasting the landscape with lances of high-pressure air.

WRAAAATH.

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
Or Dean *would* help Elena up if Cyre hadn't grabbed her. That's even more impressive in its own way, and as Dean creaks his neck up to gape in wonder, he misses a foothold and nearly falls right down the cliff. Fortunately, he manages to grab hold of Riese's rope just in time. "Thanks!" he calls up to Riese, working with her to get himself pulled up. It's harder going than it would've been, and by the time he makes it to the top, he's sweatier than he would've otherwise been. Still, he smiles at Riese and hands her back her end of the rope. "Whew! That was a close one."
The group heads in towards the ruins, when all of a sudden: BUGS. Dean's ARMs are in his hands in a literal flash, but before he can charge, Riese says she's going to cast an empathy field. Ever one to tackle the obvious questions, Dean wonders, "What's an empathy field?"
And then Riese casts one! All of a sudden, Dean has a sudden keen awareness of the others around him. His blue eyes widen. "Woah...!" A pause. He frowns over at Cyre, who laughs at Elena when she yells at him to put him down. "Hey, she wants you to put her down," he says, "so you really should do that!"
At least the arrival of the pillbugs means that probably won't be a point of contention. With a firm roar, Dean hurls himself into the fray of battle, weaving his twin pistols around to--hit the bugs in the spikes with the combat rods protruding from the guns' handles. Because that's jsut how he rolls, apparently.
DG: Dean Stark has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Perilous Posse of Pillbugs.
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

The climb was simple enough for Ryudo with the aid of the rope, and miraculously it seems that demons aren't in the business of dropping stray travelers down the mountain. Unless you're Dean, toward whose descent he offers the most concern thus far before proceeding. "Looks like he'll be alright." Reaching the top safely, he wistfully glances upwards as Cyre descends with Elena. "Well, that's one way to do it." Does he look slightly disappointed when the two safely meet up with the rest of them instead of descending down the valley and taking their quarrel with them? Surely everyone's imagination.

When this particular party of combat practitioners discovers an avalanche of pillbugs on the other side of the portal that threaten to prevent their passage or pound them at worst, Ryudo casually unslings the bastard sword from his back and takes a ready stance. "Skye, flank." The hawk immediately launches from his shoulder and begins moving into position. All that's left now is to catch them in a pincer and...

The swordsman's features contort with dismay as Riesenlied does...something...with her brooch, and he's assaulted with an immensely uncomfortable sensation from the direction of all those gathered. "You've *got* to be kidding me." For a brief moment he's assaulted by any number of sensory readings from his adventuring peers. This ultimately forces Ryudo to deploy a technique that he has spent years practicing and putting to perfection.

Like a razor through butter, Ryudo drops from the empathy grid. It's not that it ceases to function or that he is no longer there, but he's...simply closed himself off to everyone here through a combination of Garlan-schooled mental discipline and years of emotional practice.

Granted the comfort of solitude once more, Ryudo is quick to charge ahead with brandished blade, working in tandum with the hawk to cut down their foes. Hopefully his concentration doesn't waver and allow those distracting sensations from the Touchy Feely Field to creep back in.

DG: Ryudo has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Perilous Posse of Pillbugs.
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
It's good that eventually Cyre lets go of Elena.
"Thank you," she asides to Dean, for having her back.
This seems to have silenced her, too. At the very least she's far more quite as the party enters the ruins. The appearance of giant bugs makes her yelp and almost fall onto her rear, but that's a freebie, everyone gets to be loud about THAT. Oh, look, Ryudo was spot-on, she's clearly not used to fighting monsters.
And what's that, an empathic field?
With Ryudo, Cyre and Elena in the room?
It becomes clear as day to everyone present that Elena is, to put it lightly, incredibly close-minded for a priestess of Granas. She doesn't seem to have very much self-control when it comes to speaking her mind, she gets offended easily by disregard for her faith, and she has very little respect for the darker emotions of mankind, whether than be greed, selfishness or otherwise.
On the bright side it does seem to be coming from good intentions. She does want others around her to become better people and she's not doing it out of desire to be disagreeable or mean. That stands out a whole lot less, though.
It does faciliate her job at least. Being able to 'sense' what others need, Elena whips her trusty magic out, a twirl of her scepter spreading curative and enhancing waves of blue light across the party. She notices Ryudo drop off the grid, but doesn't comment on it. She's not surprised he thinks he's too good for teamwork!!!
This probably broadcasts loudly on said grid.
DG: Elena has used her Tool Mist Egg toward her party's challenge, Perilous Posse of Pillbugs.
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"I'm an asteroid, DO I breathe? hee hee..." Asteroid the Kid tells Cyre. "Without space there would be no 'space' for anything to exist. Without stars there would be no inspiration from the skies. Without the sun, we'd never have a warmed up enough planet for life to exist. Also oxygen mostly comes from the oceans thanks to the plants that reside there. Wind just moves it around and causes tornados. I'm not saying it's not important, they're all important, but without understanding science how can you claim to understand the Guardians?"

She laughs into her hand and looks to Elena. "Heee heee...he's cute but I can't help but wonder if he's been trying to convert you with half baked arguments. hee..."

Asteroid the Kid .... isn't going to summon meteors to fight bugs. Squash bugs like that and it's soooooooo smelly. Thanks to Riesenlied's empathic field, Asteroid has the werewithal to use Cyre as a bodyshield anyway. She periodically fires portals out from her pistols to send bugs falling all over the place, but she isn't contributing much to hurting them.

"I like your ears." She says to him. "Did anybody ever bother you because of them? Did they ask to pet them?"

DG: Asteroid the Kid has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Perilous Posse of Pillbugs.
Noeline (noe) pages Asteroid the Kid, Cyre H. Lorentz, Dean Stark, Elena, Riesenlied, and Ryudo: hellooo may I sneak in to watch
Cyre H. Lorentz (cyre) pages Noeline, Dean Stark, Elena, Riesenlied, and Ryudo: NEVER
Cyre H. Lorentz (cyre) pages Noeline, Dean Stark, Elena, Riesenlied, and Ryudo: (Sure)
DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Perilous Posse of Pillbugs.
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
=================<* CHALLENGE - Perilous Posse of Pillbugs *>=================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 There's probably some sort of groan-inducing joke to be made about how        
 pillbugs are such a pill, but it's not going to be made here, because it's    
 tasteless and uninspired and pillbugs are angry, vicious, spiky little        
 things and you should probably watch out because a whole group of them are    
 rolling down about to spew said spikes in your face. What a pill.             
=Dungeon Conditions: Wound====================================================
========================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 2 *>========================
===================< Results - Perilous Posse of Pillbugs >===================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena                               4 --(4)--> 8                   Pass
Mist Egg                            1   Combat  Effects: Cleanse              
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryudo                               4 --(6)--> 10                  Pass
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riesenlied                          5 --(5)--> 10                  Pass
Dragon's Tear                       3   Combat  Effects: Fanfare              
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asteroid the Kid                    5 --(7)--> 12                  Fail
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dean Stark                          8 --(4)--> 12                  Fail
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     6 --(5)--> 11                  Fail
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------
Leader: Elena                       15 --(15)--> 30                Pass
Conditions: Tire(1)|Wound(2)
Effects: Cleanse|Fanfare
==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Elena has passed this challenge! The party gained 15 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management
commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied grapples with the sensations surrounding the empathy field, trying to smoothe out the differences between her teammates... but, well, they really all just met -- for all she knows, and she doesn't exactly blame them for not being comfortable with it. Still, she picks up on the sensations to follow up Ryudo's pincer attack with one of her own, as she dances forward and strikes another bug with the pommel of her sword that's approaching Skye and gestures to Dean, "Behind you!"
Ryudo's darkened sensation cuts through to her for a moment, though, and he's able to slip so easily from the field with a sensation that frankly surprises her. To be so young and so... guarded. Just what has happened to him? Still, he's got it under control with several bugs getting diced with his pincer attack!
Dean has it under control, though -- though Riese is surprised when he just... smacks the bugs with the combat rods on the ARMs instead of shooting them. Are the bullets saved for a special occasion? It's a versatile weapon...
Asteroid causes several bugs to experience 'fast thing in, fast thing out' as they fly across the room and go smash against a wall or two, which... doesn't do much to harm the bugs as she noted, but they look like they're having fun. And Cyre gets to go medieval on the bugs, though some of them manage to come toward and prickle him in turn! Also, with Asteroid's science lecture. "I am curious that you find Guardians to be a very scientific field, Miss Asteroid..."
Riesenlied nods towards Elena as she heals the party, and pretty soon, they've cleared out the bugs with minimal effort and casualties. "Thank you. Good work, everyone."
The field drops, and there is blissful selfness for a moment, without everyone's -needs- and -feelings- and -emotions- getting in the way, eww.
What a devious Metal Demon trick.
DG: Dean Stark has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Hillside Ruins *>==============================
========================<* CHALLENGE - Spiked Spikes *>=========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 2          | 
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 Timed spike traps that inconveniently dart out of the floor right when        
 you're having a fanciful little waltz through what seemed like nice,          
 peaceful ruins are bad enough. Spikes dipped in fatiguing poisons? Now        
 that's just excessive. Seriously, how does that poison stay fresh for so      
 long? Might as well try to outrun them and not have to find out for           
 yourself!                                                                     
=Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
While Dean's a compassionate, caring young man, open as the smile on his face and just as honest, he's also... distractible, let's say, and also kind of thoughtless. Being so aware of everyone else's awareness and feelings makes it difficult for him to concentrate on the battle itself, so while he's able to take out the pillbugs he takes on, he doesn't do so before getting a few spikes to the face. Ouch.
The field drops (he could not tell that Ryudo shoved himself out early, only that it got slightly less noisy partway through somehow), and Dean's able to regain his equilibrium. Wiping the blood away with the end of his scarf (Rebecca's going to yell at him later for getting bloodstains on it, then for getting hurt, then for ditching her, then fuss over him because he got hurt, because that's the sort of friendship they have), he looks around at the others. A smile and a thumbs up at Elena. "Thanks. And you're welcome!" he adds, for earlier. Asteroid he kind of... headtilts at. She seems kind of odd? Not in a bad way, just... odd. Though she is right about how fluffy and soft Cyre's ears look! *Does* he get people asking if they can pet them? Dean gives him a thoughtful look.
Either way, with the pillbugs defeated, the group is free to move on--and so they do, through hallways and corridors and empty rooms. There's one hallway ahead that, for some curious reason, has holes in the walls! Huh. Maybe the temple has termites. You know, stone-burrowing termites. Dean certainly doesn't think anything of them, until all of a sudden there is a *KA-CHUNK* and suddenly there are DARTS flying EVERYWHERE and if they so much as SCRATCH you you'll be hit with a FATIGUING POISON that thankfully won't kill you (perhaps once upon a time they would; perhaps they can thank the ruins' age for the dip in potency; or perhaps the ruin-builders were just jerks with a weird sense of humor) but WILL leave you FACEPLANTING ON THE GROUND.
Dean yelps as he manages to dodge the first set, then runs as more go flying. "Everybody, run for it!!" he calls, helpfully. If someone needs help, he will in all likelihood go back for them, even if that means getting darted himself.
DG: Dean Stark has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Spiked Spikes.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
If nothing else, the empathy field stays true to how Riesenlied feels -- that there's entirely little in the way of deception in her thinking and expressions; there's sorrow, and not a small amount of it, but it's mostly tempered with a cautious, but fervent hope that hasn't yet died down in the centuries that she's lived. What a strange Metal Demon.
There's a wince as she hears the noise of the darts flying everywhere, though -- but she frowns quietly as she looks around and nods, spreading her wings as she jolts forward and rather quickly moves in tandem with Dean -- she readies her sword as she does so to jam the mechanisms of several of the traps to make it easier for the group. "I've antidote with me -- just don't be swept aside and keep your timing consistent!"
DG: Riesenlied has used her Tool Dragon Wings toward her party's challenge, Spiked Spikes.
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

When the deed is done, Ryudo takes a calming breath and unconsciously begins clearing the bug slime from the edges of his blade with a practiced smoothness. It should speak worlds that to someone like Riesenlied that he seems much more relaxed now than he did before the combat started. No bloodlust here, just zen. People are complicated, and battle is simple.

Ryudo's gaze moves to survey the others, taking account of battle injuries and weariness of the party before nodding to himself. Could have been better, could have been far worse. Seeing that no one requires assistance to continue on -- particularly due to Elena's assistance, which he simply takes as a given without so much as an acknowledgement or word of thanks -- he moves to take a rearguard position since Dean and Riesenlied have the vanguard covered. Moreso the latter by his current reckoning, but that's neither here nor there.

...As it turns out, this proves to be fortuitous. Once the trap is sprung and the corridor fills with the whizzing of projectiles, the Geohound is quick to spring into action. He makes a spot decision on the person who is least likely to be able to navigate this on their own. "Skye, get the priestess!" Elena might be surprised to discover a sudden burst of wind past her neck as she's suddenly grabbed by powerful talons and bodily hauled through the air. Ryudo himself is quick enough on his feet to try navigating this on his own, but he'll still do his best to haul any stragglers with him. Grumpy or not, that's just how he rolls.

Query: Are hawks normally strong to carry a person through the air, or just the ones local to this region?

<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Of course. Don't you Metal Demons have science at least?" Asteroid the Kid says. "You should ask your experts. Science is a method not an end and that method is the purpose of finding the truth. The Guardians exist--inequivocably, I've seen them, we've all seen what they can do. The same cannot be said of all religions and while that does not make those religions false, it does mean they don't have empirical evidence to support their claims as the Baskar do, hee hee."

That being said it is pretty strange for someone of the Baskar to also consider themselves a scientist. Assuming she is. Most people of the Baskar don't have asteroid heads.

Of course the fact of the matter is is that Asteroid is dragging a cart with her. It's an empty cart, but she has to fire off a shot of her portal guns a bit more slowly than she would if she wasn't dragging it along. She fires off a couple more shots and rushes towards one of them while hoping to pop out the other before a dart hits her. And that's an if--she refuses to leave the cart behind. She needs it to carry treasures!!

"In ruins it pays to look at the floors...!" She tells Dean.

DG: Ryudo has used his Tool Skye toward his party's challenge, Spiked Spikes.
DG: Asteroid the Kid has used her Tool Portal Pistols toward her party's challenge, Spiked Spikes.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

You know what really sucks? Having your angry windspell slinging session interrupted by a spiky bug to the face. That's kind of the worst, especially when you're being used as some kind of human shield by a celestial body of some strange stripe. "All the time." Cyre growls in reply and wipes the back of his hand across the little trickle of blood dripping from his cheek. His ears are super adorable too. Look at them twitch so agitatedly. "You know wind does way more than that, right? It circulates seeds, it stirs the waves, and it carries sailors from port to port, it lets birds fly and soothes the soul. I'd prefer losing the stars to the wind. 'Sides, the subject of the sun's a bit of debate, isn't it?"

Beat.

Well. Religious digression aside, at least he learned some important stuff today.

A) Elena is approximately as awful as he assumed.

B) Riesenlied is either telling the truth or just VERY GOOD AT hiding her true nature. Like some kind of METAL DEMON SPY.

C) Asteroid is KIND OF A PAIN.

D) Ryudo is KIND OF WEIRD.

E) Dean is a massive ditz.

Speaking of which.

"Ugh, of course there are dart traps!" Cyre groans, unfurling his parachute again. He leaps, letting the wind catch him mid-jump. It's like some kind of platformer-y dash mechanic. "Hey, Dean! You're Avril's friend, right?" He sails by, leaping forward in time to catch another gust. "You and me, we need to talk later. I've got questions!"

BUT FOR LATER!

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has used his Tool Reverse Parachute toward his party's challenge, Spiked Spikes.
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"No," Elena answers Asteroid, "I believe he is just being rude!" She has strong opinions about Cyre it seems! But on the topic of ears, perhaps she's curious now about whether they're fluffy to pet or not...?
NO, BAD PRIESTESS. He's an awful, heretical jerk.
Ears shall not redeem him!!
The bugs slain, Elena calms down, no longer agitated by large monstrous bugs. She'd probably be a better combat support if she wasn't put-off by monstrous creatures, but she handled herself decently enough for now.
Though she nows wants to ask Ryudo about his bird, her first question is for Riesenlied. "... I apologize if it is improper to inquire about such, but... what was that ability you used, just now? I had heard that Metal Demons were destructive beasts, but that power did not feel like it was created to destroy." An empathy field is... well, she can't help but wonder how many problems in the world you could fix by using that.
Maybe she's also very confused about how Riesenlied feels. She feels like another person, a human being! Despite being, you know. A demon. Riese's probably heard that song and dance a dozen times before. Propaganda on the Metal Demons seems to be far from how reality is. And so it shouldn't be surprising that, on the surface of Elena's thoughts, is caution that this might be a facade meant to fool people. Dark powers excel at that, don't they?
Suddenly, spikes.
"EEEK, MONSTROUS DEMON BIRD!!" Elena screams, as she is lifted off her feet and possibly saved from a spike-related doom. Look, everything is going by very quickly, she doesn't get a good look at Skye until well after the commotion. THEN she notices this is Ryudo's bird. Huh.
"M-Mister Ryudo, why is your bird able to carry me?" Hey at least she's not flailing. But wow, Skye is strong for a normal-sized bird.
DG: Elena has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Spiked Spikes.
==============================<* Hillside Ruins *>==============================
========================<* CHALLENGE - Spiked Spikes *>=========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility   |Challenge Rating: 2          | 
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
 Timed spike traps that inconveniently dart out of the floor right when        
 you're having a fanciful little waltz through what seemed like nice,          
 peaceful ruins are bad enough. Spikes dipped in fatiguing poisons? Now        
 that's just excessive. Seriously, how does that poison stay fresh for so      
 long? Might as well try to outrun them and not have to find out for           
 yourself!                                                                     
=Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
=========================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 3 *>=========================
==========================< Results - Spiked Spikes >===========================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena                               8 --(3)--> 11                  Pass
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC                
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryudo                               10 --(2)--> 12                 Pass
Skye                                3   Agility Effects: Fanfare              
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riesenlied                          10 --(4)--> 14                 Pass
Dragon Wings                        3   Agility Effects: Fanfare              
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asteroid the Kid                    12 --(3)--> 15                 Fail
Portal Pistols                      1   Agility Effects: Stalwart             
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dean Stark                          12 --(2)--> 14                 Fail
Rush                                0   Agility Effects: BASIC                
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     11 --(3)--> 14                 Pass
Reverse Parachute                   1   Agility Effects: Rally and Quicken    
-----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------
Leader: Elena                       30 --(15)--> 45                Pass
Conditions: Weaken(2)
Effects: Fanfare|Quicken(1)|Stalwart(1)
===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Elena has passed this challenge! The party gained 15 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management
commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
DG: Ryudo has drawn a new Challenge.
============================================================================================================<* Hillside Ruins *>============================================================================================================
============================================================================================<* CHALLENGE - The Vorpal Ape Went
Snicker-Snack! *>============================================================================================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------< Challenge Information:
>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Vorpal Apes are big and smelly and brutish and oh hey look that one's eating  
 all sorts of useful treasure and items, maybe you ought to kick it in its     
 big, smelly, brutish face until it stops and take that stuff for yourself.    
 To eat, or not, that's your choice. No judgments.                             
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
"I think the wind *and* the stars are both great! The stars are pretty and the wind feels real good!" Dean supplies, helpfully, to Cyre and Asteroid.
Meanwhile, there is a hallway full of poison darts. Ryudo takes care of Elena by way of BIRB then does his best to help any stragglers, which in this case is Asteroid, who's busy pushing along her cart. Not noticing this at first, Dean protests, "Why would I look down?! Your eyes are on the front of your head so you can look forward!" ...Cyre's right; he really is a ditz.
But once he's through, he looks back and sees the two of them still in the thick of things. "I'll help! YAAAH!" And he LEAPS forward, taking a back full of darts. Some may get through to Asteroid anyway, though Ryudo's fine enough on his own, as are Cyre with his reverse parachute and Riese with her wings as both of them fly forward, one literally.
"Yuuuuup, I'm Avrrriillls... fr... friend!" Dean calls back to Cyre. The suggestion that they should talk about it later gets him a hearty thumbs up!
And then WHUMP, once everyone's safely on the other side. It's okay, he'll be up again in another minute. The poison's not that strong, and he's young and healthy. Also Riese has antidotes, thank god for that.
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

"Why," Ryudo pants, "couldn't you just leave the damn thing OUTSIDE?"

Throwing his shoulder into the cart to hurry it along and diving into a roll alongside it for cover, he manages to help the mismatched band of adventurers get through the corridor of traps. Free of danger for the time being, he drops to the ground with his back to the wall to catch a quick breather. Heroics are tiring business. For a moment his gaze tilts back past the corridor they just emerged from, his look almost yearning. Does he still have the option to turn back and leave this fools to their fate? "Dammit.", he grumbles pointlessly as he hauls himself up again.

Dumping Elena to the ground in the next room - a gentle dumping, but a dumping none-the-less - Skye swoops back around to hover in front of Ryudo with beating wings. There's almost a look of askance that passes from hawk to master, but that's probably your overly creative imagination at work. "Scout ahead, Skye. I think we've learned better than to trust the vanguard." The latter barb is clearly for the benefit of the adventuring party, since otherwise he'd be having a conversation with a bird of all things.

...Which leads to the blonde priestess asking him a pertinent but unnecessary question. Ryudo glances away, scratching his cheeck with an uncertain grin. "Uhhh...good question. Maybe it's what he eats?" The line seems to be a half-assed attempt at avoiding the topic, and even he knows that there's only so much longer this can continue before the jig is up. All the more reason to finish up this endeavor quickly.

Salvation comes in the form of one long squawk in the distance followed by two quick ones. "Danger ahead....and treasure? Double time folks! Weapons out, and don't lag behind!" Sure enough, up ahead the adventuring crew comes across a small mob of Vorpal Apes who had been minding their own business until everyone here showed up. They aren't letting you have their trinkets without a fight though. Better be quick on your feet, or that Geohound will hog all of the treasure to himself!

DG: Ryudo has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Vorpal Ape Went Snicker-Snack!.
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Because I need something to carry our treasure on!!" Asteroid shouts back to Ryudo. "Don't cart-shame, it's unprofessional!" Is it really though? Well it's probably helpful if you're trying to bring stuff back out of the ruins but right now it sure is a hindrance. Maybe you could use it as an impromptu shield.

"Yeah," Asteroid the Kid says to Cyre while running. "They also control metaphysical aspects of their respective elements. Wind can represent change and travel which makes it very important for Drifters, but you said your God was the best so I wanted to brag about my God and a competition with you. Stars are also very pretty to draw sketches of. They also inspire and enable travel. Without stars you cannot cross the seas safely." She pauses and then adds about the ears. "You could hide them if you wanted then people would treat you like you're 'normal' but I guess cat-ears are acceptable for the humans whereas a lot isn't."

THUNK. A poison dart slams into her side. She walks forward a few steps.

And then she swings her cart forward. She looks at it. Then she topples inside of it.

"I don't feel good. You should push me." She looks over to Dean. "You should push me." Pause. "Because I am in paaain. And also because..." She squints for a moment from her position in the cart as she sees a bunch of gross apes eating treasure. Ugh! How dare they!

"Because I have an idea! Quick! Push me towards the treasure, Dean!"

Her plan is to start shoving as much treasure as she can into her cart.

DG: Asteroid the Kid has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Vorpal Ape Went Snicker-Snack!.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied winces as she kneels by Dean's side once he's in the clear and begins to unpack several of the advertised antidotes from her knapsack, seemingly having knowledge of herbalism and how to neuter poisons from a human body's system as she applies a torque and gets to work cleanly. "You'll be okay. It doesn't look like the poison will invade your systems too deeply."
She looks towards Elena with a gentle, if tired smile as she says, "No, I should probably be the one apologising... it must have been too sudden, but I am only-- starting to find out more about this power I have recently manifested..." She lowers her head. "It is very true that many of my brethren are that -- destructive and warlike in nature, but... well. I suppose I have always disliked violence and cruelty in turn. I am trying to seek coexistence where it may be possible, however harsh and difficult that may be..."
Riesenlied looks towards the antics of Ryudo and Elena for a moment, before focusing for a moment as she chuckles and knows that the Geohound cares in some way, even if he's too gruff to show it.
That empathy field wasn't that good an idea, so instead, she opts for some traditional tactics--
"Mister Cyre, those two are armed for close-combat, and you can push them back with your winds! Let us divide and scatter their formation."
That said, she moves to serve as a distraction on her own merit, her side-sword out as she squares off and parries one of the Vorpal Ape's claws and smacks it square on the head with her pommel. Does... this Demon even strike to kill?
DG: Riesenlied has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, The Vorpal Ape Went Snicker-Snack!.
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Have you considered flying to the moon and living there on a spaceship?" Asteroid the Kid says. "Because I think that's the best way to solve the problem."

<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
Not only is the bird very strong, but apparently very fast. And it follows Ryudo's instructions quite well! Elena thinks, to herself, she may have slightly misjudged the Geohound. To train an animal to be such a close and reliable companion, it must have taken much time and effort. Maybe there's hope for him yet?
"Well, thank you for making Skye save me, mister Ryudo," Elena says, not calling Skye 'mister' Skye because she thinks he's just a bird.
Elena might scream a lot but she still calls people miss and mister!
It's Riesenlied's answer that makes her stop, even as the party encounters very large, murderous apes. Snacking on valuables! No doubt the valuables dropped by the Drifters and bandits. Once again her scepter twirls, her Mana Egg shines, and healing magic showers the party with a brief chant of, "O holy waters, I implore you, protect my companions!" Which is absolutely necessary because what is magic if not a prayer to Granas.
Don't tell her it's not that.
"I see," she also answers Riesenlied, thinking. She's still guarded, shielded, wondering if this is just a demon's lie to appear better. "I hope that you can find such a solution. I do not want to see another city burn." After her encounter with Lady Harken, who could blame her for being skeptical?
Then as a complete and total aside, "She is right, mister Ryudo, please do not cart-shame!!" That was worth commenting on.
DG: Elena has used her Tool Mist Egg toward her party's challenge, The Vorpal Ape Went Snicker-Snack!.
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

"I do hide my ears," the catman huffs. "That's what the hood's for. I just usually don't when I'm out adventuring. It's only really a problem in cities! Unless I want to mess with people!"

Beat.

Cyre leans right over Elena's shoulder as the conversation turns to Ryudo's big bird. "It's true," he says, grinning like the proverbial Cheshire Cat. "That is very clearly one of the legendary Ecclesiastical Falcons. Named so for their peculiar affection for the delicate flavor acquired by most Granasian priests over the course of their careers bathing in the grace of their lord. Very rare, you know. I'd watch out if I were you."

Cyre skips merrily ahead. But then... Then...!

APES.

"Ugh, these things again!?" Cyre levels his staff at the giant monkies. "Don't need to tell me. This is the second, maybe third time I've run into these jerks." A great wall of pressurized air blasts downrange before resolving into a vaguely dome-shaped region of massively compressed gas. It won't just slow them down, it might just start rupturing some delicate membranes in very painful ways.

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Vorpal Ape Went Snicker-Snack!.
<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
"Ohhh nooooo," Dean slurs at Asteroid, because he also has been pumped full of dart juice. He WHUMPs, and Riese helps him out, administering antidotes that soon neutralize the toxins within. He staggers to his feet, shakes his head like a dog whipping off water, and smiles at her. "Thanks a lot! That feels *way* better!"
But there's danger ahead! Dean nods, seemingly all serious now that Ryudo's reported that there's monsters lurking in advance. But then Asteroid asks him not only to push her in her cart, but to push her into the monsters, and to Dean, this sounds like a *brilliant* idea. "Okay!" he says, grabbing hold of the cart's handles. "HERE WE GOOOOOOO!!!"
And with that, with full strength, full force, and full speed, Dean shoves the cart, and Asteroid in it, headlong into the Vorpal Apes. "One! Two! Three!! TWIIIIIN DRIIIIIFTER STRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIKE!!"
DG: Dean Stark has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, The Vorpal Ape Went Snicker-Snack!.
============================================================================================================<* Hillside Ruins *>============================================================================================================
============================================================================================<* CHALLENGE - The Vorpal Ape Went
Snicker-Snack! *>============================================================================================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat    |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------< Challenge Information:
>---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Vorpal Apes are big and smelly and brutish and oh hey look that one's eating  
 all sorts of useful treasure and items, maybe you ought to kick it in its     
 big, smelly, brutish face until it stops and take that stuff for yourself.    
 To eat, or not, that's your choice. No judgments.                             
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
=======================================================================================================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 4 *>=======================================================================================================
==============================================================================================< Results - The Vorpal Ape Went
Snicker-Snack! >==============================================================================================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena                               11 --(2)--> 13                 Pass
Mist Egg                            1   Combat  Effects: Cleanse              
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryudo                               12 --(6)--> 18                 Fail
Fight                               0   Combat  Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------�@
DG: The party led by Elena has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management
commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "Woah what the heck"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "hooray we ... hm"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "It... seems to have broke"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "something"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "uhhh"
[OOC] Ryudo says, "That it does."
[OOC] Ryudo says, "I blame Dean and Asteroid. :/"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "That's fair"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "why us"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "This happened to us before. We just"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "Press on"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "The original loadout for the challenge looked wonky too"
[OOC] Riesenlied says, "yeah it's just a display bug"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "Might be 'cuz of that"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "i'll draw next"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "I believe in you, Asteroid the Kid!!"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "but i'm not gonna until the act complete pose is done!!!"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "because of society"
[OOC] Ryudo says, "There's no one left to steal it! Fie I say!"
[OOC] Riesenlied says, "since when did you care about what society thinks, asteroid"
DG: Asteroid the Kid has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
=======================================================================================================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 4 *>=======================================================================================================
==============<* CHALLENGE - Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle *>==============
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Who doesn't love pushing around crates? A well-known and deeply beloved       
 passtime in Filgaia, even the ancients understood the value of a good         
 block-pushing romp. So push those blocks around until a path opens, and love  
 it! It's your heritage!                                                       
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "Oh boy oh boy, I finally get to use a Tool"
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

Unlike the ways of the "evil" Metal Demon, Ryudo's way of fighting is not a merciful one where monsters are involved. The first ape is knocked unconscious from her expertly placed strike and saved from further multilation, but mired as the second is by Cyre's machinations, the other ape swiftly drops when the Geohound's heavy bastard sword crashes into its chest with a diagonal slash. The blooded blade rises again and immediately shifts overhead for a finishing chop...before the cart smashes it into the wall with a concussion for its trouble. Ryudo himself is clipped in the passing, finds himself flying comically in a midair cartwheel, and crashing to the ground in a different direction. The poor Geohound is not only denied his finishing blow, but forced to ensure the ministrations of a woman of the cloth to boot.

Shifting from a sprawl to a sitting position as Elena's magic begins to kick in, Ryudo finds himself in an uncomfortable position, but not so much a physical one. There's only so much asshole in him, and sometimes even he has to admit that he owes someone for a solid. "Thanks.", he offers. "I..." It looks like he's thinking about maybe saying something more as his eyes settle on hers, but then he finds himself looking past her with eyes widening. Is it another monster?!" "Hey! You better be splitting up that loot when we're done, I see you loading it in there!"

Boys.

[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "i like ryudo"

[OOC] Riesenlied says, "do it dean"

[OOC] Riesenlied says, "make"

[OOC] Riesenlied says, "me"

[OOC] Riesenlied says, "PROUD"

[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "God you guys I am still hearing the JAM concert"

[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "hnnng"

[OOC] Dean Stark :D

<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Why are you so grouchy? I'm being friendly," Asteroid the Kid admonishes Cyre. "Do you only like people who are mad at you? Should I be mad and then you'll be friendly with me? I don't get it."

Wow, Asteroid the Kid thinks, maybe Elena isn't all that bad. She doesn't cart shame. People who don't cart shame are slightly above most people at minimum. She will remember this....!! She gives a many-teethed smile at Elena before

"That was very impressive," Asteroid the Kid admits to Dean. "You have a lot of upper body strength." She twists around on her side and steadies her head with her hand. "Those monsters didn't stand an ape of a chance...! Eheheheheheheh...!!!"

She then helps by pouring gold and assorted items into the cart. "Don't worry, I am an honest merchant." She tells Ryudo while she's doing this which is a line honest merchants don't usually say. She shoves some of the coins into her pocket just to mess with Ryudo and will sneakily put them back into the cart if he stops looking at any point.

AND THEN

There's boxes. And floor switches. But it's a bit difficult because if you push the wrong block into the wrong switch first, the other block won't have space to get to ITS floor switch and you'll have to leave the room to reset the puzzle! And there's a locked door ahead of you. Asteroid the Kid stares at this for a few moments before adding, "This is a simple puzzle." She rolls out of her money cart and dusts herself off.

"To pushing boxes....!" She leans against one, then flops against it. The little lights in her eyes slowly close, leaving her hood a complete inky patch of darkness.

DG: Asteroid the Kid has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle.
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "I wasn't being grumpy. :("
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz :( :( :(
[OOC] Ryudo says, "I'm grumpy enough for all of us."
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
If Riesenlied shows that she cares about treasure... well, she doesn't. Her attention is more on the Ruins and the trail of what is supposedly bandits, as she moves to examine footprints and other markings of people that have been here before. "I think they are further in still..." rather a more mission-focused one, this one. She looks towards Asteroid for that pun for a moment, before chuckling very silently as she moves onward.
There is a block puzzle ahead, though, and it's with some examination as she tilts her head and murmurs, "Let's see... we'll have to work from the outer ring inward." Indeed, block puzzles are a tradition in Filgaia, and even being a Metal Demon doesn't exempt her from this.
She's pushing the one Asteroid's flopped onto. "Are you sleepy...?"
DG: Riesenlied has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle.
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "i'm a sensitive soul cyre"
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

"Wh--" Cyre blinks. "I'm not grumpy! Maybe feeling a bit of the evil spirit, but that's fine and normal for a day like this one." Because it is the perogative of all cats to be evil on occasion. Or, you know, always. But then...!

BLOCK PUZZLES!?

Cyre scratches his head. "Huh. This is actually pretty tame by comparison to a lot of things, so uhhh." Does he go and push one himself?

Nahhh.

He instead parks himself on a nearby high place and starts studying the blocks and the pressure plates. Maybe they don't HAVE to shove all of these onto the plates. There might be a way through without using up too much in the way of stamina. But there's something else on his mind.

"Uh," Cyre's brow furrows. "Guys? Aren't we supposed to be hunting bandits?"

...

"Doesn't this just seem like an ordinary ruin?"

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's head perks up from where she's pushing to say, "I know there's an exit on the other side -- I'm hoping that we'll be able to circle around and hopefully catch the bandits unawares heading through here." A pause. "Besides, there've been fresh footprints headed through here."

[OOC] Dean Stark says, "hey"

[OOC] Dean Stark says, "hey cyre"

[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "hey"

[OOC] Dean Stark says, "you know how you said my wits tool couldn't be the bullets"

[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "hey dean"

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.

T"SORRY, I CAN'T STOP!!" Dean yells at Ryudo as he barrels past. This is completely true; the cart is heavy, unwieldy, turns poorly... but it is *very* survivable, as one can see when a contest of Vorpal Ape Vs. Cart sees the cart as the winner. When Asteroid and Dean smash the ape into unconsciousness, he jumps up for joy and offers Asteroid a high-five. "WOO! That was fun!!" Whether she leaves him hanging or not, he grins at her compliment. "Thanks! I do a lot of shoveling!" And then he laughs along with her joke, even though he doesn't really get it, because he's pumped and anything is funny right now.

Once the high wears off, though, he then jogs back over to Ryudo. "I'm really sorry about hitting you a little earlier! I didn't mean to! Are you okay?" he asks. Fortunately, Elena seems to have the healing well in hand, so there's that answer. Dean smiles and nods, then heads back over to Asteroid to help her out.
THEN ONWARDS
There's switches, and boxes, and boxes and switches. Dean scratches his head, peering at the room with a distinct downwards slant to his mouth. "Hmmmm..." But then Riese suggests a pattern, and he nods. "Okay!" Dean puts those upper body muscles to good use, helping push boxes in the right order onto the right switches--but then Cyre points out that there's been no sign of bandits, and while Dean doesn't stop pushing, his forehead does crease in thought. "Hey, yeah, you're right!" he says. "Maybe they're all the way at the end?" ... "We'll just have to keep pushing forward!" Literally!!
At the end, though, once all the boxes are on all the switches, it seems like there's something missing. Something's not quite triggering right... "Oh, I know!" he declares, summoning Twin Fenrir to hand. "I bet you have to make the center box collapse onto the switch, and *then* it'll trigger! Here goes!" And then, without hesitation and *certainly* without waiting to hear from anyone else if this is a good or wise idea, he opens fire on that central box overtop its unworking switch. BLAOW BLAOW BLAOW. At least it's short work? ...At least he's finally using his guns AS guns?!

[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "...is it bullets"

DG: Dean Stark has used his Tool Twin Fenrir - Standard Cartridge toward his party's challenge, Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle.
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "oh my god"
[OOC] Riesenlied says, "IT IS BULLETS"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "IT'S THE BULLETS"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "oh my god"
[OOC] Ryudo says, "delayed a moment, i live with a historian and i have been randomly assaulted by lecture"
[OOC] Elena says, "Oh so that's why so you're good at rebuking mine"
[OOC] Dean Stark salutes
[OOC] Elena says, "you have RL EXPERIENCE"
[OOC] Dean Stark says, "ahahaha"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "Tell them that you believe in... Shit, IDK"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "Scottish egyptian kings"
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"R-Really?!" Elena stares at Cyre. He may be an asshole but she doesn't know much about monsters and fauna. Judgmental, she turns to glare at Ryudo, and just like that may instantly shatter the tiniest nice thing he might have wanted to tell her.
"Is this man telling the truth, mister Ryudo?! Do you keep a priest-eating bird as company?!" Did it only save her for future nourishment?!
Hey, blame Cyre, not Elena.
She manages to smile back to Asteroid, although as they enter yet another treasure-filled chamber (PLUS PUZZLE!!) her thoughts stray to those who actually need those shiny trinkets. "Please! Remember that everything here, it must... surely, it must have belonged to those bandits, thieves and greedy Drifters that came in before us. We must return them to their rightful owners!" Oh no, the priestess is trying to cut into your monetary gains!
Also she helps solve a block puzzle because she seems to have a fairly solid head on her shoulders. Not so much muscles to get the blocks in place but she can direct their movements pretty well.
DG: Elena has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle.
<Public> Heal Berry says, "mush i have a fun game"
<Public> Heal Berry says, "Without googling (and i do not advise googling in this instance)"
<Public> Heal Berry says, "What do you think an 'equitaur' is"
<Public> Cat-holic Rosaline Calice says, "A human with the upper body of a horse? :|a"
<Public> Your Favorite Pedant Lemina Ausa says, "a centaur with human-consistency lower half and possibly a horse head"
<Public> Cyre H. Lorentz says, "A terrible thing."
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

Ahead lies...one of those damnable puzzle rooms. This was supposed to be a few bandits hiding in a mountain cave. Between the trapped corridor and this block puzzle, this is definitely much more of a side diversion than Ryudo had intended to get into. To speak nothing of those he finds himself traveling with. "Oh god, not one of these." Such is the dismay Ryudo is filled with that he forgets not to take the lord in vain when accompanied by a woman of the cloth. Worst of all, he doesn't even capitalize it!

For a second time, the swordsman finds a sense of growing kinship between himself and the shaman. "That's...what I was thinking too, yeah. I mean, sure. Traps. I can get that. Wouldn't a block puzzle be...too inconvenient for a bunch of small time bandits who have to move loot in and out of storage? Maybe we, I don't know, missed a door back when we were running earlier?"

... "Guys?" ...

The sound of Ryudo desperately trying to employ common sense is drowned out by gunfire. His jaw is caught agape, but only for a few seconds. Having been utterly defeated in both mind and soul, the shell of a man that was once Ryudo accepts the righteous order of things, which is apparently following the directives of Elena.

"No. No, I do not have a priest eating bird. Though I'm starting to think that would be a good trick for him to learn." No one said he had to keep his mouth shut while doing it.

<Public> Dollmeister Sephilia Lampbright says, "a very misguided individual trying to spell equator."

DG: Ryudo has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle.
<Public> Ambrosius says, "I was going to say centaur, but instead of a human torso it's another horse body."
<Public> Dollmeister Sephilia Lampbright says, "BUT NOT THE SAME HORSE"
<Public> Your Favorite Pedant Lemina Ausa says, "or possibly a centaur where the upper body is a horse furry"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "we are brothers from another mother"
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "tiger and dragon"
<Public> Your Favorite Pedant Lemina Ausa says, "the first is more horrifying so i lean toward it"
<Public> Heal Berry says, "any more guesses?"
<Public> Cyre H. Lorentz says, "A planet"
<Public> Dollmeister Sephilia Lampbright says, "did i ever tell you about the rhnorius, on the subject of misguided individuals
spelling things"
<Public> Cyre H. Lorentz says, "With legs on the equator"
<Public> Your Favorite Pedant Lemina Ausa says, "you did, sephy"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "cyre you need to act"
[OOC] Asteroid the Kid says, "and act fast...!"
DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle.
[OOC] Cyre H. Lorentz says, "I KEEP FORGETTING"
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
=======================================================================================================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 4 *>=======================================================================================================
==============<* CHALLENGE - Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle *>==============
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Who doesn't love pushing around crates? A well-known and deeply beloved       
 passtime in Filgaia, even the ancients understood the value of a good         
 block-pushing romp. So push those blocks around until a path opens, and love  
 it! It's your heritage!                                                       
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
========================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 5 *>========================
=======================================================================================================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 4 *>=======================================================================================================
================< Results - Everyone's Favorite Block Puzzle >================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena                               13 --(3)--> 16                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryudo                               18 --(4)--> 22                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riesenlied                          17 --(6)--> 23                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asteroid the Kid                    18 --(4)--> 22                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dean Stark                          16 --(3)--> 19                 Pass
Twin Fenrir - Standard Cartridge    3   Wits    Effects: Fanfare              
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     19 --(6)--> 25                 Fail
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------
Leader: Elena                       65 --(20)--> 85                Pass
Conditions: Treasure(1)
Effects: Fanfare
==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Elena has passed this challenge! The party gained 20 exploration! If anyone needs to use party management
commands, do so now. Otherwise, the next round's GM may begin the next round with +dungeon/draw.
DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
==================<* CHALLENGE - Crankless Crank Elevator *>==================
|Type: Final       |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 2          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Before you is an elevator, no doubt leading into the forgotten bowels of      
 these picked apart ruins and some form of discovery, big or (possibly         
 (probably)) small. It's a pretty simple elevator, too! You just get on, turn  
 the crank, and... ... oh. Where's the crank? ... oh well. It can't be that    
 hard to find some crank or crank-like method to crank an elevator, right?     
 ... right??                                                                   
=Dungeon Conditions: Bad Luck=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

Asteroid the Kid's eyes snap open as Riesenlied asks if she's sleeping. "Aftereffects of toxins..." She manages. "Do metal demons make fun of your horns?" She asks. "Humans make fun of horns. They do things like stick gum on it and then you prick your fingers trying to scrape it off. It's really awful. And then it's like 'oh you can't even reach the side there, guess you're going to have gross horns for the rest of the day' and it's just awful." She helps Riesenlied push. She's stronger than she looks, though Riesenlied is stronger yet.

She looks over to Cyre and nods her agreement, "So long as it's partially on the plate, it should push the whole thing down. That's just physics." Pause. "Oh you seemed grumpy. I guess if you're not grumpy, it's okay. If it makes you feel better, I still think Fengalon is pretty cool. All the Guardians are. Metaphorically." Elena helps finish shoving it onto the block.

Then Dean shoots the other crate down onto the switch, and the door opens!

"Good job, Dean." Asteroid the Kid says. "You're clearly one of the brilliant ones."

ONWARD!

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

It is a rare thing to find proper camaraderie in this vast wilderness called Filgaia. But when Dean just straight up takes a pair of guns to the box challenge, Cyre's brief moment of contemplation is shattered, blown to dust just as the Geohound's mind does the same. That means Cyre and Ryudo have shared a third thought. A third. That means they're now BFFs-- it's in the rules.

...

No seriously. What??

...Well. Whatever. They have a way forward! It leads straight to... A mostly broken-down elevator, one that's missing its handcrank and various other bits and pieces. It's suspended by a series of chains to some kind of gear system in the ceiling. "Okay," Cyre glances in Riesenlied's direction. "You're SURE those footprints were bandits and not... Like, explorers who'd come all this way and couldn't find the bits that goes with this, right?"

"Okay, well." Cyre huffs and spins a finger through the air. A cylinder of wind blasts through the surrounding area, stirring dust and debris and hopefully uncovering where those parts might have gotten to. "Even if there aren't any bandits, we might as well see what's beyond here, right? Treasure's treasure no matter what."

"I mean," he scuffs the platform a bit with his boot. "Unless we just missed them and they keep the parts on them at all times to make sure nobody can get to their loot. That might explain things. Or they've got a back door or something. Hm."

DG: Cyre H. Lorentz has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Crankless Crank Elevator.
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
"Ah, I see..." Riesenlied nods gently, before pausing to say, "A lot of people do, yes. They are also wary of me due to my horns... though, these days, it is often because of my association with my brethren, for I am still with them..." She reaches forward and pats Asteroid on the shoulder, though, as she says, "I hope people don't make fun of you too much, Asteroid. I know how difficult that can be."
She looks just a little bit sorrowful. "The Guardians are something else, are they not?" She bites her lip. "Indeed, they bless and protect those that they deem worth their protection, yet others..."
Riesenlied does nod towards Cyre to say, "Well, I can't say that they're bandits, but they're fresh and walking in a group. And according to this..." She stares towards the gear system and the missing handcrack, as she places her hand to her cheek for a moment. "I would more suggest that this is a recent act of sabotage rather than one of wear and tear -- the easiest way to disable an elevator is by removing its central mechanism, after all."
She nods in turn as she says, "It is just theory, but we're both best served moving forward." She tinkers with the mechanism with a quiet hum of thought. "Asteroid, are you willing to share a bit of the loot from your cart? If we have a gear that's just shaped... this big," she gestures, "I think we might be able to get this moving."
DG: Riesenlied has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Crankless Crank Elevator.
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
"Please do not joke about such things!" Elena whines to Ryudo and Cyre, making sure to keep one eye on Skye as often as possible going forward. Yeah she's on to you, demon priest-eating bird.
To Cyre, she responds: "It is possible that they have fled, and the ones miss Riesenlied caught outside were the ones lagging behind... since Drifters assaulted this place before us, they may have decided to pack and relocate. Perhaps... perhaps the monsters killed them, as well..." That one is a darker thought, but they've run into two nasty packs of monsters do far, so who knows.
"It is also possible they hide beyond the puzzles! For example, this elevator appears to have been deliberately sabotaged!" Maybe they keep the crank with them? It's kind of like a key.
Seems Riesenlied agrees too.
Sadly Elena is no repairman, so the best she can do is shuffle around the room looking for clues, dropped parts or anything else that might be of use. Likely the answer lies with Asteroid's cart. Good thing they brought the cart along!
<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
Dean solved the puzzle! Yay! He's so proud of himself, and he beams at the room as the ARMs flash out of sight. He's particularly happy when Asteroid calls him brilliant. "Aw, shucks! Thanks, Asteroid!" he chirps, rubbing a finger under his nose. "It wasn't just me, though! We couldn't have done it if we hadn't worked together!" He smiles around at the others, especially Elena and Riese who took point on saying where everything should go, and even at Ryudo and Cyre who have been left broken shells of a man in the face of Dean's unparalleled problem-solving skills. It's okay, guys. Maybe one day you can be as smart as he is.
Still, onwards! The way before them is clear, which means there's nothing for it but to press onwards. Still, now that they're face-to-face with a broken elevator, Dean has time to pause and actually let the others' doubts sink in. "Yeah, I dunno..." he says, peering at it. "Maybe we went into the wrong ruin? I hope those kidnapped villagers are doing okay..."
Still, Cyre points out that they may as well go the rest of the way now that they've gotten this far, and Riese points out that the tracks are fresh and the broken mechanism implies recent, active sabotage, and Dean smiles and nods. "Yeah! You never know!" He looks towards Elena. It would be terrible if those bandits got killed, since even if they're bandits, they're still human beings, but if some other group got to them and routed them first, that would be the best. But there's also a third option, and Dean nods in agreement. "Yeah, maybe they're just really well hidden or something! There's no point in giving up until we've gone as far as we can!"
The others search for a solution within Asteroid's cart. Dean, bless his dumb little heart, offers, "Once you've got a cranky thingie set up in there, we can all get on the elevator and I can shoot the crank to make it move!" It might even work, too.
DG: Dean Stark has used his Tool Twin Fenrir - Standard Cartridge toward his party's challenge, Crankless Crank Elevator.
DG: Elena has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Crankless Crank Elevator.
<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

Ryudo and Cyre share a moment, it's true. Unfortunately, it seems that this party is operating on Sunk Cost Fallacy, and all he can do is offer the shaman a resigned shrug. "Apparently we're not turning back until we hit a dead end. Sound advice if you're mapping out a dungeon, but that's not what I came here for." His patience for this circus is reaching its limit. He never asked for anyone to come along. Even Elena was an allowance strictly because it was necessary. The rest of this...he did not need, and he's fairly certain he's already lost out on whatever profit he stood to make from venturing this far off the beaten course. Unless there's something amazing past this elevator that makes it worth his while, he's pretty much done with this crew.

But that doesn't stop him from listening. Further rumination toward the plight of Riesenlied's people comes from a surprising source: Ryudo. "Honestly, I think you're better off. Gods, Guardians...it's nice when the divine steps in, but you can't rely on miracles. You're better of relying on your own hands, I think."

Letting the others think on that for a bit, Ryudo carefully inspects the gear mechanism. While he may not be a mechanical expert, he can try his best to fake it - much like every other profession on the books. Especially if it would otherwise present a lost opportunity for snark. Or would fill in the gap of conversation before the turbaned terror can launch into a sermon. "I think this is familiar. Yes, in fact..." He nods decisively! "I'm sure of it now. The central shaft is the same shape as the wheels on the cart. All we have to do is remove one of the wheels and affix it to the gearbox, and we should be able to rotate the mechanism." A sigh escapes his mouth as his head mournfully shakes from side to side. "I doubt we'll be able to get it back on the cart afterwards, but its noble sacrifice will not be forgotten."

He tries his best to keep a straight look on his face. If the group refuses to comply with his irrefutable logic, he'll fall back on the Demon's suggestion to root through the junk.

DG: Ryudo has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Crankless Crank Elevator.
+job 255
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Maybe the treasure eating apes ate the treasure carrying bandits, bones and all," Asteroid the Kid suggests one possibility. She doesn't argue against dean's theory that the true winner here is teamwork. Asteroid the Kid believes in teamwork as much as anybody. "I guess they might've eaten the villagers too." Asteroid admits.

There actually is a fair amount of junk on the cart. There's probably SOMETHING vaguely crank shaped even if she has sold off most of her scrap from prior adventures. In the meanwhile, Asteroid is bepatted on the shoulder.

She says, "I don't have horns anymore," to Riesenlied. "Not since the aliens kidnapped me." Wait what? She doesn't explain this further. "But it's okay. Now people don't make fun of me, they're scared of me, which is better." she grins widely with her many teeth. "Or they're nice anyway. Like you!"

She can make some exceptions for cool metal demons, she thinks. Her cart is more helpful for this puzzle than she is as she focuses on talking it out with Riesenlied.

"The Guardians are generous," Asteroid says. "They wouldn't be punishing the Metal Demons if they just showed up. Your people must have harmed the planet irrevocably or commited some other grave sin. I don't think it's fair they paint everyone with the same brush, but people do that too, I can't really except differently from the Guardians."

She does sound a little dissapointed. Riesenlied seems nice even if the planet has deemed her a parasite.

"Ryudo's right though." Asteroid says. "Me, I'm going to build a spaceship and I'm going to travel into space. The Guardians won't help me all the way. You can come too if you want since the planet will kill you otherwise and we can travel the star ocean and it will be beautiful and we'll have wonderful adventures and become the greatest drifters of all--facing the final frontier, the future--not just the ruins of the past."

Her eyes shine brightly.

<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Touch my cart's wheels," Asteroid the Kid says quietly. "And I will crush you with meteors until you pass out from the pain. Then I will deliver you to my dark mistress, Virginia Maxwell, Lord of Nightmares, who will consume your REM waves and turn every sleeping thought into an unending horror from which the waking world will be the only escape." Her teeth glisten in the faint light. "You will not be able to sleep again. Slowly your mind will collapse into madness and your last cogent thoughts will be how this is preferable than to face the world of fear awaiting you when you close your eyes."

Asteroid the Kid blinks twice and adds, "Ginny's a sweetie otherwise."

DG: Asteroid the Kid has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Crankless Crank Elevator.
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
==================<* CHALLENGE - Crankless Crank Elevator *>==================
|Type: Final       |Dungeon Ability: Wits      |Challenge Rating: 2          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Before you is an elevator, no doubt leading into the forgotten bowels of      
 these picked apart ruins and some form of discovery, big or (possibly         
 (probably)) small. It's a pretty simple elevator, too! You just get on, turn  
 the crank, and... ... oh. Where's the crank? ... oh well. It can't be that    
 hard to find some crank or crank-like method to crank an elevator, right?     
 ... right??                                                                   
=Dungeon Conditions: Bad Luck=================================================
========================<* Hillside Ruins - Round 6 *>========================
====================< Results - Crankless Crank Elevator >====================
Player                               Exhaustion                      Pass/Fail
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena                               16 --(7)--> 23                 Fail
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ryudo                               22 --(5)--> 27                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riesenlied                          23 --(3)--> 26                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Asteroid the Kid                    22 --(3)--> 25                 Pass
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dean Stark                          19 --(5)--> 24                 Pass
Twin Fenrir - Standard Cartridge    3   Wits    Effects: Fanfare              
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyre H. Lorentz                     25 --(5)--> 30                 Fail
Investigate                         0   Wits    Effects: BASIC                
----------------------------------< Party >-----------------------------------
Leader: Elena                       85 --(25)--> 110               Pass
Conditions: Bad Luck(2)
Effects: Fanfare
==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success!
DG: The party led by Elena has successfully explored Hillside Ruins!
=============================<* Hillside Ruins *>=============================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Picked Over Spoils *>=====================
|Type: Discovery   |Dungeon Ability: Discovery |Challenge Rating: 1          | 
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
 Capo Bronco's ruins have been combed over for years, maybe even decades, by   
 opportunistic scavengers. Perhaps because they were once abundant with        
 treasure. Or maybe because they're just really, distressingly easy to         
 navigate, as if they were built by some ancient civilization to be a          
 tutorial for dungeon diving. Hmmm... huh? Oh. Well, anyway, while most of     
 these ruins are empty and barren, you seemed to luck out with a few odds and  
 ends: technological scraps, perhaps, or a pretty-looking half-a-statue.       
 Look, it's nothing fancy, but it'll probably fetch some money, so don't       
 complain too much. Everyone's gotta start somewhere, right?                   
=Dungeon Conditions: Treasure=================================================
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Well fortunately they don't actually need to take cart-chan apart. Instead, it's what's INSIDE cart-chan that saves the day. There are enough parts buried in the pile of junk that they can kind of sort of improvise a drive system. The fact that there aren't any parts to be found out in the dust and detritus of the elevator room seems to suggest that someone definitely wanted to make sure this thing wouldn't run again.

Or maybe they had another reason in mind.

Regardless, the team works fast, mostly because some of them are probably afraid that Dean was about to shoot their elevator to bits! "Okay," Cyre says, seizing the crank. "Come on. Let's see what we can find."

At the bottom of the elevator, they find their answer.

N....not much.

Like, literally just potentially sellable odds and ends and bobs and doo-dads scattered amidst what looks like it might be some kind of storage room. Cyre frowns, squatting in front of a broken statuette of a woman in prayer. He picks it up and looks inside, "Ugh. If this still had whatever it contained, maybe it'd be worth something."

He sighs, shoving it into his pack. "Come on guys. Let's see if we can't find some indication of where those bandits ran off to, huh?"

If they're even here at all.

Maybe there's some passage out of here, or something?

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied looks rather wistfully to Asteroid as she says, "It would be nice if we could just ride a starship and leave, but..." A pause. "I did give that due consideration. Unfortunately, I do believe that Lunar and Filgaia's fates are all too inextricably linked... not to mention--"
She lowers her head. "The planet may despise my people, but... this is my home. I was born here, and... I do feel a duty to mend it wherever I can, however I can. Running away won't change a thing... that's something I've long accepted."
She nods towards Ryudo, bowing her head softly. "Thank you, Mister Ryudo. We Tainted have long learnt those lessons from years ago... we have not had much to rely on other than ourselves. No matter what happens..."
After the team move the elevator downward, they discover the room with... not much of anything inside, but she doesn't look too deterred -- her eyes are more on the floor as she moves towards the back and... inspects a part of the back wall. The broken elevator, the missing crankshaft, the looted storage room...
...
She presses a hand to the wall, and sure enough, a quiet rumble accompanies the presence of a hidden back room! Riesenlied has her weapon pointed as she announces, "If you thought you could keep us out by stealing that crankshaft, you'd best think again."
The remainders of the bandits -- not more than two bit crooks in short numbers given that half of their flock have already been arrested earlier -- hold their hands to their heads and walk out in shame, dropping to their knees.
An excited little noise springs in from the back, a young girl running out to go, "Whoa! Dean!" It's a girl from Capo Bronco! "Did you come to save me? Awesome! I knew you'd come for us! Thanks Dean, and everyone else! Ooh, what's that big bird on the mister's shoulder? I wanna pet it!"
Mission... Complete?
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

"Are you saying I'm running away then? For wanting to build a spaceship and fly into space?" Asteroid the Kid says, tersely. She doesn't know anything about Lunar, having not been there. "Though I guess if their fates are linked, then flying a spaceship to Lunar can be seen as solving the other half of the fate or whatever."

She crosses her arms grumpily and kicks the occassional bandit's leg as they walk out. She's kind of sour. There's a young girl from Cape Bronco thanking Dean? Ugh, did she just end up saving people? She wanted loot and junk!

Of course her cart does have a lot of loot and junk on it. But how will it be divvied up? Is it all belongings of the kind people here??? Is Asteroid kind of seriously hiding stuff in her cloak now because Elena kept being a boring priestess?????

Asteroid the Head doesn't have 'skin' on her face to pout with but she does her best. At least she doesn't drag anybody to visit the true evil of Virginia Maxwell

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
Dean's expression is basically D: when Asteroid suggests that maybe the Vorpal Apes ate not just the bandits but the villagers too. It escalates into D8 when Ryudo suggests taking the cart apart and Asteroid in turn suggests taking *him* apart. "Uhhh... M-maybe let's not do... either of those things??" he suggests, holding out his hands in an attempt to settle the two down. Technically Asteroid is threatening him with someone else, but still! That Virginia Maxwell, Mistress of All Nightmares, sounds really scary!! D8>
Still, Ryudo does have a good thing with regards to relying on oneself rather than Guardians. Dean falls silent to ponder that, as well as all the talk of people either leaving the planet or staying and dying and looking to the future of space instead of the past in ruins and some place called Lunar and it's all pretty heavy for him. He folds his arms, brow furrowed in thought, and nearly trips over a mound of earth when they all make it into the inner chamber. Dean stumbles, rights himself, and looks up and around.
"Wow, this room looks really familiar!" he declares. Pause. "REALLY familiar." Pause. Squint. "...wait a second... This is the ruin I cut my teeth on all the time back in my hometown! I always just walked in the front door! It should be right over here--"
He jogs across the piles of dirt that have been thoroughly picked-over by previous adventurers to the opposite side of the room, where there is a large entrance. An entrance that is cast in shadow. An entrance that's cast in shadow because, just inside, somehow the stone corridor has collapsed. The way that Dean always used to come in, that allowed him maybe five minutes at best to get this far, is no more--probably specifically due to those bandits that Riesenlied helpfully uncovers.
"Aw, MAAANNNN!" he whines.
But hey: at least they *do* find the bandits... and someone extra on top of that. "Woah, Nelly! What're you doing here?" Dean says, jogging forward to meet her. "I did come to stop the bandits, but I didn't know you'd been kidnapped! Is it just you here? Is everyone else okay?" He looks around, and when he either visually confirms or Nelly tells him that it's just her, he grins and nods. "I'm so glad to hear it! Lemme take you back to Capo Bronco, okay?" Then he turns around to Elena and the others. "Thanks, guys! I knew we could do it if we worked together!" Pause. Then, to Ryudo, "Hey, Mister, can Nelly pet your bird?"
<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.

tIt's ok, judging by her name, Nelly probably gets in so much trouble so as to really earn her nickname of 'Whoa, Nelly!' Also, you know, wanting to pat the supposed priestess-eating bird on its head.

<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.
Ryudo proposes life is better shaped by one's own hands than a god. Elena frowns, looming behind him like a walking lecture about to happen. "It is true that waiting for a higher being to solve your problems for you is dangerous... h-however! That does not mean we should not believe! Lord Granas did not sacrifice himself to eternal sleep fighting the Devil of Darkness so that we would forget him and be unthankful! It is important to show faith in those who made it possible for us to be here!"
She stiffens a bit, evidently quoting from a book. "And then, wounded, the Light fell in a heavy slumber. 'The Light will burn in our hearts and will not expire.'" She pauses, to stare Ryudo down. "That is why you should have faith! It is Lord Granas' light that lets us shine as brightly as we do, and when he finally awakens we must ensure he finds a peaceful world that has not forgotten his sacrifice, that has learned from it!"
Though Elena would have to admit that so far Filgaia is NOT DOING SO WELL at all that. War, politics, hatred, are all commonplace. The world is dying. Some even whisper about Valmar's reawakening, and other dark gods still. Then there's the Metal Demons. Grahf. Who knows what else.
WELL, somber topics for another day. Right now! That takes care of the bandits, apparently. Elena smiles, and takes a deep breath, cutting Ryudo some slack because at the end of the day, he delivered.
"Well, it is good to see that despite being a Geohound, you are capable of thinking about other people." And not, at all, about the treasures gathered so far and the potential rewards he can get out of this. Nope, surely Ryudo is motivated by selflessness.
That doesn't mean she'd especially like to adventure with him again though. She prefers the company of her religious sisters and brothers by far, they get into way less arguments. Also none of them are called Cyre, that's an even bigger bonus.
She turns towards Riesenlied and Asteroid, rather confused by their conversation of spaceships and other worlds. Yeah that mostly goes over her head.
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

FLASHBACK

"Good job, Dean." Asteroid the Kid says. "You're clearly one of the brilliant ones."

NOW

Dean is revealing he just now realized this was a ruin he went into before and that there was an entrance they could've just walked through.

Asteroid the Kid looks at Dean for a very long moment. "..."

<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

There's a conveniently Cyre-shaped dotted lined void in the space he should be.

He's not there anymore. Because he's squatted up against a nearby rock wall with what looks like a Flask O' Booze.

Cyre takes a swig as the bandits march out. It's rum. Where did he get rum? Was he carrying it the entire time? Maybe. Elena's certainly seen him do that. Or maybe he found it in a pile of Bandit Loot? Is it Bandit Hooch!?

...Does it really matter?

Nope, 'cause today is a Cyre Ain't Dealin' With This Nonsense day.

<Pose Tracker> Ryudo has posed.

Ryudo meets the formiddable(?) gaze of one Al Steroid, calmly and attentively listening to every word delivered in response to her cart-chan's longevity coming into question. He returns the sentiment, but in fewer words: "Bite me, lady.

Who said he couldn't be eloquent when it was required?

His gaze shifts to rest on Elena. Many words. Again, he proves able to put his words into fewer. "When I'm ready to be redeemed, I know where the church is." Something goes unspoken there, and several of those here will recognize that for the barb that it is. Others...might miss it. He'd make the point more obvious, but that was softer on the ears than most of Elena's sermons and he believes in nothing if not equivalant exchange. Oh, right. Treasures and rewards. Almost forgot about those.

The Geohound breathes a sigh of relief once Riesenlied finds the hidden door, and it turns out that this wasn't a tremendous waste of time. Now he only needs to report back to the guild and see what compensation he can wring out of them. Preferably without having to mention how many other people found their way into his entourage. He's had about all he can stand of conversation for one day...what the hell is a Lunar?...and it's about time to get a move on. "Skye, I'm thinking it's time for us to start heading back." ... "Skye?"

You see, someone mentioned pettings. Skye is clearly the wisest of these two, because he expended all of zero words in making his point before getting the hell out of here.

The Geohound shrugs to those gathered and offers a wave. "I've gotta go track down Skye. Try not to step on any pressure plates on your way out folks, I'm fresh out of good deeds for the day."

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Nelly looks incredibly disappointed as Skye wisely evacuates before she can give 'im the Full Nelly. What's the Full Nelson, one might ask? It's best to not ask......
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

Cyre squints. If this girl's first and immediate response to seeing a Cool Bird was to pat its head, then...

"Yeah, well" he, says, pulling up to his feet and tugging his hood up over his ears. "Glad we found her and that she's safe and all. But I'mma head out that way myself. Uh. You guys take care, 'right? Don't get eaten by priestess-eating falcons or anything."

"Or, you know," Cyre finger-guns riiiiight over at Elena. "Do."

And then he opens his parachute and floats on out on the wind<nowiki>Wilk (talk)</nowiki>

<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

Asteroid the Kid is told 'bite me'.

She looks over to Cyre for a moment, then towards Riesenlied, then she shuffles after Ryudo. She opens up her mouth and looks like she's about to do just as Ryudo suggested she do and bite him!

Unless, you know, someone pulls her back at the last moment. Who knew that the weird monsterheaded lady with the creepy cart and mannerisms could be so feral??

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied yelps just for a moment as she lets Dean take care of most of the conversating, and holds Asteroid back. "W-whoa, hold on, Asteroid!" She tries to sound just a little calming for the younger shaman, before sighing as she stares at Cyre and Ryudo leaving with a shake of her head.
"Well, they were a bit gruff, but we got what we came for in the end... Dean, I'll drop by and see you in town after I turn these bandits over to the authorities, if that's all right?"
<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
Dean, in the middle of having to explain to Nelly that the bird already flew away so she can't pet it, and that the cart isn't his so he can't promise her a ride in it either, but once they're safely out of here maybe he can give her a piggyback ride, pauses when Riese says his name. "Yeah, sure, that sounds fine!" he replies.
<Pose Tracker> Asteroid the Kid has posed.

Asteroid the Kid pulls hard on Riesenlied but Riesenlied is a killer alien robot and Asteroid the Kid is not. She gnashes her teeth in the air a few times before evnetually giving up and lfopping back into Riesenlied's arms, sniffing faintly. She just wanted to sound like a super cool evil minion type for the greatest evil there is! Ginny! But she couldn't even do that. Boo hoo hoo.

She tries to bite Riesenlied instead, who is made of metal you know.

<Pose Tracker> Riesenlied has posed.
Riesenlied's 'eeeek!' is incredibly dainty and not at all like what a killer alien robot should sound like, and the blood she sheds is... well, red, actually. "Why meee....?"
<Pose Tracker> Cyre H. Lorentz has posed.

"'CAUSE POULTRY IS TASTY, EVEN WHEN IT'S MADE OF METAAAAAAAALLLL--" Cyre's voice is carrying on the wind. It fades pretty quick though.

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.
Over there with his neighbor's daughter, Dean yelps, "NO NELLY, THIS DOESN'T MEAN IT'S BITING TIME--"
Ryudo and Cyre had the right idea.