2018-06-07: Friendship and Failure in Emrys Mire
- Log: Friendship and Failure in Emrys Mire
- Cast: Talia, Lydia Seren, Kourin, Jacqueline Barber
- Where: Emrys Mire
- Date: 6/7/2018
- Summary: After Lastonbell's fall, some normality returns... and a few people venture into Emrys Mire.
DG: A party led by Talia is now entering Emrys Mire. DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Sinking in the Mire *>======================
|Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Even at first glance, one thing is clear about Emrys Mire: this is not a
pleasant place. A murky haze lingers in the air above the muck and slime of
the swamp, punctuated by the looming form of countless giant fungi.
Allegedly, other people venture the mire in search of its secrets, but save
for the ramshackle road leading to it, there's little evidence of such.
Entering the mire proper immediately presents a significant problem: the
ground is highly unsteady under one's feet, to the point of being little
more than sucking clinging mud. In fact, this gently bubbling violet-tinged
muck seems particularly insistent on dragging one down with it.
But the mire is inescapable and corrosive. Whatever gains you make won't be
easy... or without cost.
=Dungeon Conditions: Slow=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
Just yesterday, Talia had sought to get away from Lastonbell.
But, then things changed, as Hyland began to secure its foothold in Lastonbell. Drifters and adventurers changed from a nuisance to something to be tolerated -- perhaps grudgingly, but tolerated all the same. And thus, local merchants in occupied Hyland have hired people to do things -- and let jobs happen.
Such as this mission into Emrys Mire.
Talia leads the way. Her boots slosh in the murk of the swamp, sinking down without the tops going underwater. Her new, dark grey cloak withstands the water and moisture here, though. She looks over her shoulder -- and sighs back at the others. "Well! We didn't pick the scenic route, but I hope this makes us some gald, no?"
She winks. "This--ah, ahead." Her tone becomes more serious, as she notices two things. First, the violet hued light. Second, she spots a dead and declaying horse that showns signs of acidic burns. "We should steer around that patch."
She draws her short sword from its sheath. Mirage is a single-edged blade, with a blue-grey steel that has slightly strange whorls in it. She wheels back, then throws it. It slams into a tree -- and Talia turns into wisps and strands of shadow. They break apart, then come together, leaving her standing on (hopefully) the other side of the dangerous area.
She looks back at the others, and yells, this time: "Be careful!"
Helpful, isn't she.
DG: Talia has used her Tool Mirage toward her party's challenge, Sinking in the Mire.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
PREVIOUSLY
Lydia Seren helped Talia out in Lastonbell. She got told off a bit for helping Talia, not enough to really cheese her off or anything, but frankly the circumstances of what happened were enough to make her reconsider HOW she chooses to help Talia out and, ideally, Lunar. She has been quietly working on a scheme. She hopes to test out one of her schemes today.
She sloshes around, drawing some kind of ARM (everybody but Talia knows what this is) out of her pocket. "Talia I'll--" She begins but Talia is salready teleporting.
"Woah!" She says. "You have portal knives!" She waves with both arms in her direction. "Talia Talia! Don't turn around look at this! Look!" She fires off a portal into a dryer section of land and then one at her feet. She hopes through one of the 'holes' and out the other and fans her arms from side to side.
"Tada! I use portal gun!"
She is very happy and excited. "Hopefully we can find something to test my NEW brilliant invention on...!"
DG: Lydia Seren has used her Tool Portal Pistols toward her party's challenge, Sinking in the Mire.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin and Spirit dash along easily enough, here to support her friends from the Carakin. They're quick, and agile, and generally move fairly easily. Kourin's trick rope trails behind her for those who are less agile...
DG: Kourin has used her Tool Trick Rope toward her party's challenge, Sinking in the Mire.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
This 'Talia' was apparently a friend of Lydia's, and one who was involved with the Lastonbell incident. Jacqueline didn't recognize her at first, though when they arrive at the designated location, she recalls her from the heist.
Frankly, Jacqueline was just glad that Lydia was trying to find a more constructive way to help her friends. She was supportive of that, and that's why she was here.
'Here' being a murky swamp filled with murk and slime. Not the sort of place Jacqueline usually went to...but she came prepared. That is why when she arrives, it's with a familiar long, black coat and a cloth wrapped around her nose and mouth. It looks a little plain on the surface, but it's been coated with an alchemical solution to repel the mire's...well, mire.
Before they went too far in Jacqueline had distributed potions to everyone and she imbibes one now, to stave off some of the mire's corrosive effects.
While she does, though, she sends a small smile toward Kourin.
"She seems excited, doesn't she?" She comments, nodding toward Lydia as she shows off her portal gun to Talia.
She just hopes she wouldn't have to do anything about this...
DG: Jacqueline Barber has used her Tool Rapid Remedy toward her party's challenge, Sinking in the Mire.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Sinking in the Mire *>======================
|Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Even at first glance, one thing is clear about Emrys Mire: this is not a
pleasant place. A murky haze lingers in the air above the muck and slime of
the swamp, punctuated by the looming form of countless giant fungi.
Allegedly, other people venture the mire in search of its secrets, but save
for the ramshackle road leading to it, there's little evidence of such.
Entering the mire proper immediately presents a significant problem: the
ground is highly unsteady under one's feet, to the point of being little
more than sucking clinging mud. In fact, this gently bubbling violet-tinged
muck seems particularly insistent on dragging one down with it.
But the mire is inescapable and corrosive. Whatever gains you make won't be
easy... or without cost.
=Dungeon Conditions: Slow=====================================================
===========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 1 *>=========================== =======================< Results - Sinking in the Mire >======================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Talia 0 --(5)--> 5 Pass Mirage 3 Agility Effects: Fanfare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lydia Seren 0 --(5)--> 5 Pass Portal Pistols 2 Agility Effects: Stalwart -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jacqueline Barber 0 --(5)--> 5 Pass Rapid Remedy 1 Agility Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kourin 0 --(5)--> 5 Pass Trick Rope 2 Agility Effects: Quicken -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Talia 0 --(20)--> 20 Pass Conditions: Slow(2) Effects: Cleanse|Quicken(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Talia 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.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
Talia has no clue what the ARM is. She, in all truth, doesn't know what an ARM is -- she blinks a moment at it, and then she blinks once as Lydia vanishes. She disappears, and then rises up a moment later next to Talia. She turns, a stray lock of black hair falling limply with a little *pfwish*, before her mouth hangs open. "I really didn't expect that," she admits. "But... wait. That isn't the new thing?"
She glances briefly at Kourin and Spirit -- quiet ones, those -- and then she looks to Jacqueline. She recognizes her, vaguely, from the heist. She lifts a hand, waving it towards Jay. "Teleporting is quite stylish and choice." She winks at the merchant. "I should know!"
She takes a sip of Jay's potion; then, she slides it back into her belt. Her head turns, as it seems that they have all made it to safer ground. She slides Mirage back into its sheath, patting the hilt fondly. "All right. Let's keep moving."
DG: Lydia Seren has drawn a new Challenge.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Adventurer's Bane *>======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Some obstacles are more insidious than others. Take, for example, the
presence of a battered but intact chest, slotted in the corner of the
crumbling remains of a building being swallowed by the mire. At first
glance, an explorer might take it for a lucky break.
The moment anyone goes for it or gets too close, though, the true depths of
their peril will become clear: the aged chest rises on multiple horrible
feet and opens its lid to reveal a staggering array of teeth and a
slathering tongue before lunging.
Still, a monster or not, a chest is bound to have treasure of some kind
within.
=Dungeon Conditions: Fright, Vault============================================
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
"Neheheh...! Teleportation is supreme! Rend the unseen veil!" Lydia is smiling so broadly her teeth are practically taokaka grade at this point.
She blows imaginary smoke out of her pistol before telling Talia, "Nope. I've been working on a new thing. This thing I didn't even make. It's a surprise...hopefully we run into an appropriate problem for it to solve!" Well at least Lydia doesn't stay down for long even if there's little beads of metal in one of her cheeks that wasn't there before. "But don't worry. This is choice." Oh no she's adopting catchphrases too now.
Now let it not be said that Lydia lives a consequence free life. Lydia has a sixth sense for treasure and when the group comes upon a battered but intact treasure chest on solid ground, Lydia rushes over. "Treasure!" She shouts excitedly, reaching a hand out to check for traps and--
CHOMP!!
There is nothing more karmic for Lydia than getting bitten by a monster disguised as treasure. Luckily it bit her metal arm. Still, she does scream and run with the chest still latched onto her limb.
"Gettitoffgettitoffgettitoff!"
DG: Lydia Seren has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Adventurer's Bane.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin smiles slightly at Jacqueline's comment. "It is good to see her in high spirits," she says. "I worry about her sometimes."
Kourin worries a lot of the time. It's part of who she is.
Suddenly mimic! "Hold still, Lydia!" she cries, palming the blue clay ball that contains her rimebomb magic in her left hand--the ice-cold hand. She rushes forward, hurling the rimebomb directly into the mouth of the creature, then draws her sword, ready to fight the chest...however it responds to a bomb of frozen magic inside its maw.
DG: Kourin has used her Tool Rimebomb toward her party's challenge, Adventurer's Bane.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
"Hopefully," Talia says to Lydia, with a glance at her -- and then a smile, flashed in her direction. She keeps walking, and she hesitates a moment as Lydia charges straight for the treasure. This gives the black-haired mercenary pause, especially as the chest proves to have fangs. She calls out: "Whoa, careful!"
The chest is gripping onto Lydia's metal arm with its teeth. She glances to the side -- at Kourin -- and then she lunges forward. Her short sword slashes down hard, trying to cleave into the chest with a hard swing. Mirage flashes, slightly, as she does.
She grits her teeth, shaking her head once. "I've never even heard of a monster like this!" she calls out. "Does it wear the chest like a shell?"
DG: Talia has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Adventurer's Bane.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
Jacqueline was definitely glad to see Lydia acting more like her old self - like Kourin, she had worried a bit, too. That worrying was probably a part of why she was here - to make sure she was alright.
"I am interested to see what you've come up with..." Jacqueline comments. As they go around. Lydia may or may not even hear this, however, as in a flash, she's gone.
Is that...a treasure chest in the distance?
"A-ah, Lydia, wait-!" Before Jacqueline's warning can get through, though...the treasure chest opens its mouth and chomps into Lydia's metal arm. Jacqueline winces and hurries over.
"Hold on, let me see here..." As Kourin and Lydia attack it with blade and ice magic, Jacqueline rummages through her bags, looking for a particular potion.
"I've heard of rumors, but...I'd always regarded them as fiction. I wonder if it's the Malevolence...?" She considers. She then draws a bottle from her bag uncorks it, and then runs up the mimic and wafts toward it.
Its contents were profoundly unappetizing to beats, and she hoped it would be enough to convince the beast to let go of Lydia, so that Talia and Kourin would be able fight it without worrying about her.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Adventurer's Bane.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
=====================<* CHALLENGE - Adventurer's Bane *>======================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Some obstacles are more insidious than others. Take, for example, the
presence of a battered but intact chest, slotted in the corner of the
crumbling remains of a building being swallowed by the mire. At first
glance, an explorer might take it for a lucky break.
The moment anyone goes for it or gets too close, though, the true depths of
their peril will become clear: the aged chest rises on multiple horrible
feet and opens its lid to reveal a staggering array of teeth and a
slathering tongue before lunging.
Still, a monster or not, a chest is bound to have treasure of some kind
within.
=Dungeon Conditions: Fright, Vault============================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 2 *>========================== =======================< Results - Adventurer's Bane >======================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Talia 5 --(20)--> 25 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lydia Seren 5 --(20)--> 25 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacqueline Barber 5 --(20)--> 25 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kourin 5 --(15)--> 20 Pass Rimebomb 3 Combat Effects: Rally ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Talia 20 --(10)--> 30 Fail Conditions: Fright(2)|Vault(1) Effects: ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Talia has failed this challenge! The party gained 10 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> Lydia Seren has posed.
Sadly Talia's blade digs into the Mimic's shell ie: the chest rather than the mimic directly. Mimics tend to have high hp for this reason! They're always a bit more challenging than the nearby combat encounters. "It's some kind of treasure pretender! A doppletreasure!!" Lydia shouts.
Jay even tries to gross out the mimic with a potion of ew. Unfortunately, this mimic is willing to bite Lydia and is not easily grossed out. Or difficultly grossed out. It just keeps chomping.
It's Kourin who manages to find the secret. She freezes the beast solid with her rimebomb. This also freezes part of Lydia's arm. The mimic shatters apart as does the treasure inside and uh..part of Lydia's metal arm. It drips gradually as Lydia pulls away.
"Ugh dammit...!" Lydia complains. "Not again...!" She sounds more annoyed than traumatized. "Well thanks Kourin."
The arm is already starting to reform out from Lydia's stump.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has drawn a new Challenge.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
=================<* CHALLENGE - Unfortunate and Unpleasant *>=================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Once, possibly, this was a much more pleasant place to dwell. That would
have been before the contamination of the Malevolent swamp began to spread,
and before the fungus took root. Rotting material is omnipresent, drowned
only by the waters and the continuous addition of mud and soil.
Rotting material, that has itself been laced with Malevolence. It can't stay
buried forever.
There's a rumble, a roar. Too soon, an eruption of the stuff: an offventing
of the mire's corruption far too close at hand. Evasive measures are
strongly recommended.
=Dungeon Conditions: Slow=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
Jacqueline frowns and recorks the bottle. If it was anyone else she would be more concerned...but it was Lydia. She'd recover from it...though Jacqueline could only imagine how much that hurt.
"Sorry about that..." Jacqueline says, putting the bottle away. "Let's tread forward a little more carefully...that may have attracted attention."
While they don't encounter any of the Mire's other inhabitants, treading carefully does prove to have been a good idea - as they move forward, they can discern it - a faint bubbling sound from somewhere nearby.
"I...think we should move. Quickly." Jacqueline urges. She takes another sip at her potion before making sure the filtration cloth is secure over her nose and mouth before beginning to run in the opposite direction of the bubbling, and just in time - the swamp practically erupts, as material suffused with Malevolence explodes out from within.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has used her Tool Rapid Remedy toward her party's challenge, Unfortunate and Unpleasant.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
"Damned thing!" Talia shouts. She pulls Mirage back, the scowl all over her face. She wishes, for a moment, that she did her own ice magic. More, even after the mimic (and whatever treasure was inside) shatters with part of Lydia's arm. There is a small 'urk' sound at the back of her throat, before she sees the arm starting to reform. "Well... er. That's... better than it could have been?"
She sighs, and then she looks at Jay. She nods her head, once, to her. "Let's," she says. "So... you two are friends of Lydia's, right?"
It seems worth asking. She frowns, though, as she stops. Her eyes look down at the bubbling, and then she sees the swamp erupt. There isn't time for her to throw Mirage. Instead, she leaps to the side, and comes down in a three-point stance, hopefully away from the eruption. "Look out!"
DG: Talia has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Unfortunate and Unpleasant.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin winces in sympathy. "I apologize, Miss Lydia," she says, flexing her own left hand. "I...know that had to hurt."
"Indeed, Miss Lydia is a valuable friend," she answers Talia simply. She leaps away herself, then, moving along with Spirit as ever at her heels...the trick rope yanking along any who need assistance.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia says, "Yeah yeah." The sign that it DOES hurt Lydia is largely a thick grimace crossing her face. The fact that it was being frozen off probably helped a great deal in her tolerance.
Lydia DOES have time to pop off a pair of portal shots this time, having both hung back to let her arm heal and got ready with them in case there's more surprises. A pair of shots and she pops out the other portal, hopefully out of the way of the eruption of hatejuice. "At this rate," Lydia mumbles, "Not going to get a chance to test it out, but that's okay. Think we'll find anything good around here, Tal?"
DG: Kourin has used her Tool Trick Rope toward her party's challenge, Unfortunate and Unpleasant. DG: Lydia Seren has used her Tool Portal Pistols toward her party's challenge, Unfortunate and Unpleasant.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
=================<* CHALLENGE - Unfortunate and Unpleasant *>=================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 2 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Once, possibly, this was a much more pleasant place to dwell. That would
have been before the contamination of the Malevolent swamp began to spread,
and before the fungus took root. Rotting material is omnipresent, drowned
only by the waters and the continuous addition of mud and soil.
Rotting material, that has itself been laced with Malevolence. It can't stay
buried forever.
There's a rumble, a roar. Too soon, an eruption of the stuff: an offventing
of the mire's corruption far too close at hand. Evasive measures are
strongly recommended.
=Dungeon Conditions: Slow=====================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 3 *>========================== ===================< Results - Unfortunate and Unpleasant >=================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Talia 25 --(5)--> 30 Pass Rush 0 Agility Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lydia Seren 25 --(5)--> 30 Pass Portal Pistols 2 Agility Effects: Stalwart ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacqueline Barber 25 --(5)--> 30 Pass Rapid Remedy 1 Agility Effects: Cleanse ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kourin 20 --(5)--> 25 Pass Trick Rope 2 Agility Effects: Quicken ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Talia 30 --(20)--> 50 Pass Conditions: Fright(1)|Slow(2) Effects: Cleanse|Quicken(1) ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Talia 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.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
"It's alright," Lydia adds due to poor timing, managing a smile just for Kourin. "Got the job done eh?"
Shehe gives the other lady a pat on the arm with her non-artificial arm to reassure her.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
"Indeed." Jacqueline replies with a nod and a smile, echoing Kourin's sentiments. "She's been traveling us for a while now, and we've been glad to have her."
The swamp doesn't give them time for much more than that, though - but fortunately, they're all pretty agile, and they've had plenty of warning. By the time it reaches full strength, they're all out of the way - they don't even get splashed by it.
Jacqueline does feel vindicated that she decided to bring along her coat, then.
"...That looked unpleasant." She murmurs to herself, looking back. Lydia asks Talia about treasure, but...at this point, Jacqueline wasn't sure what they'd find.
DG: Talia has drawn a new Challenge.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
=======================<* CHALLENGE - Fungus Among Us *>========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Rich in the food fungus needs for its growth, the swamp is a veritable
cornucopia of samples for the ardent mycologist. For just about anyone else,
though, it's an inhospitable hazy miasma rife with monsters and hostile
fungus.
Some of it very hostile and hungry fungus, from the look of the purple
fungal fibers rising swiftly from the muck below. Perhaps this type is
hungry for living flesh, rather than the detritus of the swamp. But perhaps
you should leave the matter of motive to the mycologists, though, as its
matted expanse is spreading fast and threatening to overtake the area and,
of course, you.
=Dungeon Conditions: Overzealous, Bad Luck====================================
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
"Nice to meet you, then," Talia says, with a smile and a wave of two fingers. She would introduce herself, but that happened as they set out. She turns, and keeps moving. Mirage stays out, now. The plant life here looks like it may need to be cut down; the other life here feels much the same. She stops, though, as she spots another flash of purple.
Her crimson eyes narrow, slightly, at it. She sees the fibers of fungus, rising up to make a road block -- and the way that the thick, cloying miasma seems to make the stuff spread quickly. More fibers begin shooting up near her -- a stalk rises up, nearly slamming into her.
"I suggest we break through as quick as we can!" she calls out. Talia slashes with Mirage -- hacking, quickly, at those fibers. However, the short sword was not designed to be a machete, and it proves not quite up to that task alone.
DG: Talia has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Fungus Among Us.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin silently joins in the hacking. Her blade is little better suited for the task than Talia's.
DG: Kourin has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Fungus Among Us.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia pockets the portal guns after a moment, drawing out another strange looking pistol of some kind. It's largely made out of metal and there's a strange gear on the side that Lydia spins around as she points the weapon towards the strange construction.
"Unfortunately ideal working environment would be somewhere dry but..."
There's a flash of light from the raygun that strikes for the evergrowing mass---
--and the mass rapidly starts shrinking even as it tries to grow! Some smoke is drifting out of the prototype. Ignore that. It's fine. It's all fine.
Lydia laughs wildly as she observes the effects. "it works! It works!! Ga ha ha ha ha! You couldn't hide your secrets from me, Silver Star!"
DG: Lydia Seren has used her Tool Asteroid Ball toward her party's challenge, Fungus Among Us.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
"And you, as well." Jacqueline replies, returning Talia's smile with a smile of her own and a polite nod. They continue on, and as they do so...Jacqueline starts to glance around herself with a frown.
She doesn't like the looks of this.
This feeling is justified when the fungi begins to shoot from the ground below. Jacqueline may not be a mycologist, but she knows much about plants and fungi - it doesn't take her much to guess exactly what it's after.
"Agreed. Here, this should help improve our situation..." This time, Jacqueline draws out some bottles of bright red liquid, to invigorate those who consume them and help them act with a bit more enthusiasm. It was the perfect thing to have in a situation where the local lifeforms were attempting to consume them and needed to be dealt with.
But as she's doing that...
"Ah! You were able to get it working, then?" Jacqueline asks, impressed. She wasn't aware that Lydia was working with the shrinking technology...but she wasn't surprised she got it to work!
DG: Jacqueline Barber has used her Tool Brewte Force toward her party's challenge, Fungus Among Us.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
=======================<* CHALLENGE - Fungus Among Us *>========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Rich in the food fungus needs for its growth, the swamp is a veritable
cornucopia of samples for the ardent mycologist. For just about anyone else,
though, it's an inhospitable hazy miasma rife with monsters and hostile
fungus.
Some of it very hostile and hungry fungus, from the look of the purple
fungal fibers rising swiftly from the muck below. Perhaps this type is
hungry for living flesh, rather than the detritus of the swamp. But perhaps
you should leave the matter of motive to the mycologists, though, as its
matted expanse is spreading fast and threatening to overtake the area and,
of course, you.
=Dungeon Conditions: Overzealous, Bad Luck====================================
===========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 4 *>=========================== =========================< Results - Fungus Among Us >========================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Talia 30 --(10)--> 40 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lydia Seren 30 --(5)--> 35 Pass Asteroid Ball 3 Brute Effects: Rally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jacqueline Barber 30 --(5)--> 35 Pass Brewte Force 1 Brute Effects: Fanfare and Strengthe -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kourin 25 --(10)--> 35 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Talia 50 --(15)--> 65 Pass Conditions: Bad Luck(2)|Overzealous(2) Effects: Strengthen(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Talia 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> Talia has posed.
"Is that smoking?" Talia asks, uncertainly, when she gets a good look at the shrink ray. But, then, she jumps -- because the fibers all begin to grow downward, instead. Occasionally, they jerk up as they grow -- and then shrink more. This makes it easier to chop, Talia finds. She takes the red potion, gulping it down.
Before, her and Kourin's slashes were ineffective. Now, though, they can rip through some of the not-so-shrunken fibers with ease. In short order, a way is cleared forward.
"Hopefully she said all good things about me!" Talia calls out, with a wink, as she steps further along the path into the Mire.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has drawn a new Challenge.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
==========================<* CHALLENGE - Mudfall *>===========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Mud is a fact of life in the mire -- even away from the waters of the swamp,
the ground is heavy with moisture and dry soil, as it's typically known,
doesn't appear to exist. This makes for miserable slow going from the very
start, but the fact is, here in the mire things can always get worse.
It's getting worse now.
Perhaps something shifted upstream, as it were. Or perhaps something is on
the move through the swamp, sending the sudden wall of mud you now face your
way.
You'll need to stop or power through it, lest it overtake you completely.
=Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
Jacqueline hesitates for a moment before offering Talia a smile.
"Oh, yes, not to worry. It's nice to finally meet you...properly, I mean." She replies brightly. She sounds sincere, but, well...that hesitation might be a little worrying!
Fortunately, something happens that doesn't give anyone much time to think it over. As they're walking through one of the solid spots of the mire, they can hear the sound of something rushing toward them.
"A-ah!" With a quick gesture of her right hand and in incantation, a burst of sheer concussive force is projected out, slamming into the obstacle as it becomes obvious - it's a rather large wall of mud and, though it's been diminished, it's still heading right for them.
Better think quickly! Good thing the effects of Jacqueline's potion are still lingering.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has used her Tool Brewte Force toward her party's challenge, Mudfall.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin braces herself. She's not a particularly muscular woman despite her training regimen--brute force is not her forte, as it were.
DG: Kourin has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Mudfall.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia grimaces faintly. She noticed that hesitation, but her mood is overall good enough that she doesn't really press the matter.
Lydia decides to save the shrink ray this time largely because it's still cooling. Lydia instead decides to go in swinging with her bat, pulling up her shirt so she doesn't get any in her mouth or anything. She screams in a muffled manner as she swings about wildly.
"Mmmpphh!" This ... This may help? It might not? Hard to say!! but at least she's moving with exuberance??
DG: Lydia Seren has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Mudfall.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
"Yeah, we didn't exactly have a chance to talk during the heist, no?" Talia says, with a glance at Jay.
She does notice the hesitation. Her brow furrows, though only briefly; she has a good poker face, and she keeps that expression carefully measured. She slows, though, when Jay strikes into the wall of mud. She blinks, and then she looks up at it. She doesn't go for it with Mirage. Instead, she lowers her shoulder. "Let's try to break through!" she calls out. She slams her shoulder at the mud.
DG: Talia has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Mudfall.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
==========================<* CHALLENGE - Mudfall *>===========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Mud is a fact of life in the mire -- even away from the waters of the swamp,
the ground is heavy with moisture and dry soil, as it's typically known,
doesn't appear to exist. This makes for miserable slow going from the very
start, but the fact is, here in the mire things can always get worse.
It's getting worse now.
Perhaps something shifted upstream, as it were. Or perhaps something is on
the move through the swamp, sending the sudden wall of mud you now face your
way.
You'll need to stop or power through it, lest it overtake you completely.
=Dungeon Conditions: Weaken===================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 5 *>========================== ============================< Results - Mudfall >============================= Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Talia 40 --(20)--> 60 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lydia Seren 35 --(20)--> 55 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacqueline Barber 35 --(20)--> 55 Fail Brewte Force 1 Brute Effects: Fanfare and Strengthe ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kourin 35 --(20)--> 55 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Talia 65 --(5)--> 70 Fail Conditions: Bad Luck(1)|Overzealous(1)|Weaken(2) Effects: Strengthen(1) ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Talia has failed this challenge! The party gained 5 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> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
"Hahah, yes...we were, understandably, quite preoccupied." Jacqueline replies with a chuckle. There was something about that Phantom Thief that made it hard to take one's attention off her, after all.
Unfortunately, though they bring everything they have to bear against the wall of mud rushing toward them...
...It isn't enough. Malevolence seethes through it, and every impact that goes into, every bit of its form that is lost, is quickly regained.
It becomes clear that they're not going to take care of it through sheer brute strength.
Jacqueline turns and begins to run...but it isn't long before they're all swept up in it, and carried along to who knows where...
DG: Lydia Seren has drawn a new Challenge.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
=========================<* CHALLENGE - Vile Beast *>=========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Home to fungus, poisonous swamp, crumbling building ruins, and an ever
present haze, Emrys Mire is already not a pleasant place to explore. Then
there's the matter of the Malevolence suffused into the swamp fumes... and
the creatures that dwell within it.
The hellion that stands before you is one such creature -- even to those
unable to see it for what it is, it's an oversized brute of an animal.
Bearing wicked claws and teeth, it sneers at you before tilts its head back
to howl to the heavens. A fight is imminent, and by the look of this
hellion's size, it's not one that will go over easily.
=Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Sploosh.
Lydia Seren, caked in mud, stands up. She says, "Wow I'm gonna smell like shit later." She says as she spits out a (nonmalevolent) frog. How did that get in there? Good question. No wait bad question. Don't think about that.
However, our heroes don't get a chance to talk much more because it looks like they were washed up right into a giant....clawed....THING covered in malevolence. It howls and throws its head back as it starts closing in on the group, approaching slowly but assuredly--and likely to pounce at any moment.
Lydia watches this beast and edges ever close to Kourin. "Think we can outrun it?" Lydia asks, always eager to avoid a fight rather than get into one. Violence is fine to an extent but she prefers to attack property not creatures, and that goes double for creatures that look like they'll kick her ass.
DG: Lydia Seren has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Vile Beast.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
Talia wipes at her face -- and it becomes the spot of pale skin, in a sea of mud. She sputters her lips, and then looks to Lydia, and then to the others. "So will we all," she says. "I--"
They do not get a chance.
The clawed thing comes rushing, a brutal thing that promises violence. She grits her teeth, then tears Mirage free of the sheath again. The weapon is clean, as she looks towards it -- and she takes a few steps backward. "It might be fast," she says. "If we are going to run, I suggest we do it quickly, no?"
She looks down at the monster's legs. "It looks... fast."
DG: Talia has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Vile Beast.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin and Spirit are pretty drenched with mud themselves. In answer to Lydia's question, she grimly produces another rimebomb, hurling it at the beast, then draws her sword for violence time.
That's how you know it's serious fights time!
DG: Kourin has used her Tool Rimebomb toward her party's challenge, Vile Beast.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
Jacqueline is once again glad that she had decided to bring her coat. It won't help with everything...but it does help, somewhat.
With a groan she hauls herself to her feet and then looks up. She stares quietly at the creature before them. It stares back - watching them, assessing them, readying itself to attack.
She doesn't like the looks of this one.
"I agree. We'll need to distract it somehow, first...or immobilize it." Jacqueline says, nodding toward Talia and Lydia. She backs away from the creature, rummaging through her bag. What she wouldn't give to have Ethius and one of his Powder Grenades around right now...
Instead, what she manages is a bright yellow bottle which she hurls up toward the creature's face, before gesturing with her right hand. The bottle explodes in a brilliant flash, hopefully blind enough for Kourin and Talia to deal with it, or at least immobilize it before they can run.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Vile Beast.
===============================<* Emrys Mire *>===============================
=========================<* CHALLENGE - Vile Beast *>=========================
|Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 3 |
--------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------
Home to fungus, poisonous swamp, crumbling building ruins, and an ever
present haze, Emrys Mire is already not a pleasant place to explore. Then
there's the matter of the Malevolence suffused into the swamp fumes... and
the creatures that dwell within it.
The hellion that stands before you is one such creature -- even to those
unable to see it for what it is, it's an oversized brute of an animal.
Bearing wicked claws and teeth, it sneers at you before tilts its head back
to howl to the heavens. A fight is imminent, and by the look of this
hellion's size, it's not one that will go over easily.
=Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
==========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 6 *>========================== ===========================< Results - Vile Beast >=========================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Talia 60 --(23)--> 83 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lydia Seren 55 --(23)--> 78 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jacqueline Barber 55 --(18)--> 73 Pass Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Kourin 55 --(18)--> 73 Pass Rimebomb 3 Combat Effects: Rally ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Talia 70 --(10)--> 80 Fail Conditions: Tire(2)|Weaken(1) Effects: ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Talia has failed this challenge! The party gained 10 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> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia says, "Kourin nooooooo---"
In slow motion the Rime Bomb flies towards the beast and ice rips up and around its body freezing it solid! Lydia looks at it for a moment before clearing her throat, "Kourin yessss..."
Then the ice shatters and the hellion roars again, now angrier than before! "KOURIN NO!" Lydia shouts.
Luckily Jay throws a yellow bottle into the creature's face, setting of a flash that temporarily blinds it. Rather than push forward, the group. At this point the creature still manages to get a few good swipes in with their claws but thanks to being blinded and still sore from being flash frozen, the party is able to get around the beast eventually even as it quickly becomes apparent that defeating it in battle is a bit much for their violence rating.
Lydia is panting and out of breath by all is said and done and indeed, she's starting to look pretty tired. Hopefully their destination is coming up and soon.
DG: Talia has drawn a new Challenge.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
==========================<* CHALLENGE - Make Haste *>==========================
|Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 3 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Here ahead of you and tilted in a perilous direction in the muck stand the
remains of a large complex, still largely intact. To judge by what
structures yet remain -- pillars, spires -- this must have been the focal
point of the settlement, possibly serving some religious or sacred purpose
of some sort. Though it would be hard to tell much about it now, with the
facade so eroded. Time and the elements have done great damage to the past
here.
All is not well here -- the hair on the back of the neck stands on end.
As one might expect in a malevolent wetland, sudden soaking downpours are an
entirely possible occurrence. Maybe that and the lightning would be bad
enough but it's the plumes of Malevolence that hiss up from the muck and mud
that make things... particularly hellish.
The way is open to the structure before you, but first you must brave the
storm's gauntlet.
=Dungeon Conditions: Hesitate, Suffer=========================================
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
Talia, as she flees, has a claw slashed into her leg. She stumbles, blood oozing from the wound. She stumbles after Lydia, and breathes hard. She is not the sort to let it show, if she can help it; there is, however, a weariness in her bones that she cannot fully hide. She looks sideways at Lydia, then to Jay, and lastly to Kourin. "This place... I think it has something dreadfully wrong with it."
Case in point, Talia thinks, are the spires that stretch up. She looks up at them. Her eyes narrow and she steps forward to get a good look at them. "Now, what could this structure be? And why is it making this place so--"
The sky opens. Rain pours down upon her, which has the advantage of cleaning away the foul mud and the stench. Talia looks up -- which is when lightning smashes down into the ground, with a peel of thunder. She gasps, softly. Then, she looks ahead, and her hand grips Mirage tightly. She sees the plumes of purple-black energy explode upward.
"This... is..." She shakes her head. "...we need to get in there, now!" she cries out. She throws Mirage -- and tries to wedge it inside a crack -- and then vanishes, her body turning into strands of shadow-stuff, and then coming back together with a blink of an eye.
"Hurry!" she calls back.
DG: Talia has used her Tool Mirage toward her party's challenge, Make Haste.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
You can bet that Lydia provides a portal to hop through here. She's frankly grateful she didn't have to use the actual smoking gun alternative that she had with her because it might've caught fire rather than just melted a little.
She admits to Talia, "It ain't great. Hopefully we'll find somethin' worthwhile for all this trouble."
She fires off the two shots and hops on through in an attempt to avoid the worst of this though considering this is like the Thunder Swamp ala the Thunder Plains, she ends up having to launch several portals in succession to avoid getting struck by lightning. Later on dodging 70 lightning bolts will grant an achievement, but for now she just wants to get through this in one piece.
DG: Lydia Seren has used her Tool Portal Pistols toward her party's challenge, Make Haste.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
"I-I agree..." Jacqueline agrees, exhaling once they're finally far enough away that she can talk without having to worry about, well, using up all her air. She could sense it, just by being here...this place was painfully thick with Malevolence.
She takes a moment to catch her breath, during which she passes out some potions to the others to help patch up some of the injuries they accrued in the previous fight.
Yet again, however, they find themselves not getting much time to rest - the sky opens and rain pours down, along wiht lightning. And then, of course, there's the plumes of Malevolence erupting forth from the ground.
She didn't need to be told twice. She breaks into a run toward the structure before them, though she does keep an eye on the others to make sure she isn't leaving them behind.
DG: Jacqueline Barber has used her Tool Rapid Remedy toward her party's challenge, Make Haste.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin dodges, with an intent expression on her face. The way she moves is almost dancelike. Spirit is just a good dodge and a good doge.
DG: Kourin has contributed a Agility Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Make Haste.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
==========================<* CHALLENGE - Make Haste *>==========================
|Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Agility |Challenge Rating: 3 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Here ahead of you and tilted in a perilous direction in the muck stand the
remains of a large complex, still largely intact. To judge by what
structures yet remain -- pillars, spires -- this must have been the focal
point of the settlement, possibly serving some religious or sacred purpose
of some sort. Though it would be hard to tell much about it now, with the
facade so eroded. Time and the elements have done great damage to the past
here.
All is not well here -- the hair on the back of the neck stands on end.
As one might expect in a malevolent wetland, sudden soaking downpours are an
entirely possible occurrence. Maybe that and the lightning would be bad
enough but it's the plumes of Malevolence that hiss up from the muck and mud
that make things... particularly hellish.
The way is open to the structure before you, but first you must brave the
storm's gauntlet.
=Dungeon Conditions: Hesitate, Suffer=========================================
===========================<* Emrys Mire - Round 7 *>=========================== ============================< Results - Make Haste >============================ Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Talia 83 --(100)--> 183 Pass Mirage 3 Agility Effects: Fanfare -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lydia Seren 78 --(100)--> 178 Fail Portal Pistols 2 Agility Effects: Stalwart -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jacqueline Barber 73 --(100)--> 173 Fail Rapid Remedy 1 Agility Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kourin 73 --(100)--> 173 Fail Rush 0 Agility Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Talia 80 --(10)--> 90 Fail Conditions: Hesitate(2)|Suffer(1)|Tire(1) Effects: Cleanse ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: Talia is too exhausted to continue! DG: Lydia Seren is too exhausted to continue! DG: Jacqueline Barber is too exhausted to continue! DG: Kourin is too exhausted to continue! DG: The party has failed this challenge! All party members are now Exhausted. This attempt is over. DG: The party led by Talia has been fully Exhausted by Emrys Mire! DG: The party will now draw a conclusion.
================================<* Emrys Mire *>================================
======================<* CHALLENGE - Purity in the Mire *>======================
|Type: Landmark |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1 |
---------------------------< Challenge Information: >---------------------------
Progress to the deepest reaches of Emrys Mire eludes you. And yet--
Here, a minor miracle can be found: bubbling up through the cracks of ruined
stone flooring of yet another crumbling building is not more toxic sludge
from the swamp, but the purest spring water. It glitters faintly in any
light brought to it, shimmering as it spills between the fractured stone,
forming the shallowest of pools here and there as it trickles towards the
foul swamp.
Perhaps the contamination only stretches so far.
But this is not the total of what has been made possible by this spring --
here and there are patches of plants and mosses growing up through the
masonry cracks, fed by the waters and thriving in spite of the toxins in the
swamp. No mere stragglers these -- any botanist or apothecary would be
astonished what was able to grow in a place like this.
=Dungeon Conditions: Save Point===============================================
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
Lydia and Talia teleport ahead, while Jay and Kourin forge ahead. The potions assist, as they are passed out; however, they find the murk of the mire to be hard to work through. At the end, they stumble instead of triumphantly march into the ruins... and the full structure remains ahead. Talia falls against a spire, breathing hard. She looks tired; she makes a face, as she looks down at the ground.
She spots the pure, clean stream bubbling up through the fractured stone. Her eyes widen as she looks at it. "This... miasma," she says. "It doesn't reach here, does it? But..."
Her head tilts.
"How?" She looks up, then she looks between the group of them. "Do any of you have any familiarity with this?"
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
Before long Jacqueline drops to her knees, breathing heavily. While she was pretty quick, she didn't have a lot of endurance...and this place's oppressive atmosphere made everything that much more difficult. She could only go so far.
When she looks up, however, she finds that she has not collapsed into the waters of the swamp...but on clean masonry. And bubbling up through the cracks...
...Water. Pure, clean water. And not only that...there were signs of life around it, too, untouched by the Malevolence. Jacqueline stares in awe, and takes a moment after Talia asks a question for her to respond.
"...No, it doesn't." She says quietly, shaking her head. "These plants, they...well, by all accounts, they shouldn't be able to grow here. They're practically thriving..."
She frowns, and folds her arms in front of her in consideration. A part of her wants to take some samples back for study, but...at the same time, it seemed a shame to damage them, even for the sake of study.
"It's amazing...even in spite of their situation, they're going strong..." She murmurs. It was...in a way, inspiring.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia rests a hand against the structure, taking a moment to just pant for breath there. It's been a rough tredge to get through this place and she eventually does struggle up to push on just a bit more so she can see what's happening here.
"Plants that resist the toxins?" Lydia asks. "Water too." Lydia rubs the back of her neck. "How can that be with all the malevolence just lurking around next door? I don't get it..." She looks over to Jay for a moment and then admits, "Maybe life just finds a way, sure."
She sits herself down. "Can probably get some to make some herbs and such but...you two cool now?" She looks between Talia and Jay for a moment.
<Pose Tracker> Kourin has posed.
Kourin looks tired. She shakes her head. "This was...unpleasant," she says. Spirit takes a lap or two of the pure water.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
"I'm all right. I might want to come back, later," Talia says. "I think... there's something to this place."
The sort of thing, she thinks, that she should tell Lubov about. Her expression darkens a moment, when she thinks about it. She looks up, though; she nods her head, once, to Kourin. Then, she turns her head to look at Jay. "It's inspiring, all right. But... something else, no? There must be an explanation."
She sighs, and then leans back against the ruin. "It makes a girl wonder, that's for certain."
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.
"I'm not sure..." Jacqueline says and then, with a nod toward Lydia, kneels down closer to the small spring.
"Excuse me for a moment, Spirit..." She reaches into one of her bags and draws out a vial, into which she scoops some of the water.
"I'm curious, too. I imagine this water might have something to do with it...it's a key, at least." She replies, glancing toward Talia. Once she's taken her sample she stands up and backs away.
"Whatever the case is, I feel like I may need to come back here at some point... Even more now, I want to know what's hiding here." She says.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
"I meant, like, with each other." Lydia says because she's a punk. "Or y'know. Whatever. Cool scenery, sure. Too."
She looks over to Jay for a long moment before back and around. "Thought for sure we'd manage to get through here with all the junk we brought with us, but maybe we need to hire a team to go in for us." You know, like in Darkest Dungeons.
<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.
"We can try later," Talia says. "Maybe with others. Or... maybe see what others have learned, no?" she asks. She shakes her head, her arms folded across her chest. Her crimson eyes regard the ground, and the spring, before she looks up.
"I'm the sort you'd hire," she says. "But it's not a bad idea. Let's rest up, though. Then, we can make our way out."