2020-12-18: Get Some Fresh Air
- Log: Get Some Fresh Air
- Cast: Loren Voss, Layna Manydays, Juni Vandrer, Tidus, Lydia Seren
- Where: Elw Teleporter Network
- Date: December 18, 2020
- Summary: Orders are orders, so Loren and Lydia head out to the Treasure Coast to do some salvaging. Shame it's not nearly as easy as it might seem...
DG: A party led by Loren Voss is now entering Treasure Coast. DG: Party formation is now over. An Entry Challenge will now be drawn and displayed to the party.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ====================<* CHALLENGE - Everyone Wants a Piece *>==================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- It's simple enough for you and your group to rent a boat at the pier of Kapalaran, and soon enough, you're sailing out into the clear blue coastal waters aboard a traditional outrigger canoe, guided by one or two of the locals. But it's clear soon enough that you're not the only ones with an eye on the Treasure Coast. "Get lost, foreigners! This is our dive site!" shouts a burly man from another, larger outrigger canoe. There are several Spirans aboard that ship, equipped with nets and digging tools, all of them dressed for a dive. None of them are reaching for a weapon - yet - but they look like they could handle themselves in a fight if it came down to it. It'll take some quick talking - or some initiative - to defuse things with these rival treasure hunters and get your own dive started. =Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Loren Voss has posed.
Military duty, like death, waits for no man.
In this case, the man in question happens to be one Captain Loren Voss, medical, but the duty...
"Are you kidding me," Loren remarks, flatly, as their attempt to even get to the site Command had noted as being 'of significant interest' is impeded by a group of the locals. Seriously, they get this far and there's already a group of animals in the way? Gritting his teeth, Loren glances over at his current companion--
Which is to say one Lydia Seren, AKA Tektite, AKA...
well, there are a bunch of ominous codenames attached to her project, and Loren would prefer to continue to stay alive so they're going to stay at 'merely ominous'.
"Can you... reason with them," he remarks rather than actually ask. For his part, he's pulled out a nutritional bar, which he's begun to break into chunks and off-handedly toss into the water nearer to the Spiran's canoe. He's learned a certain something about the native sealife's reaction to the nutritional bar:
Which is to say they... like it...?
And it might provide an alternative means of getting rid of the Spirans. Of course then that means they'll have to deal with the sharks instead, but you can't make an omelet etc etc etc.
DG: Loren Voss has used his Tool Soylent Nutribar toward his party's challenge, Everyone Wants a Piece.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
As it turns out, there's someone else there, already in the middle of arguing with the locals. Layna Manydays is here, as well. She's showed up ready for diving - which, in this case, means wearing the red uniform of the Ruby Empress Pirates, the casual Blitzball team she'd started with her crew back in Luca.
"You're not fooling anyone, lad, we've all been here before!" Layna shouts back at one of the men. "You're just gonna bring up a load of busted jars again, aren't you? I swear, you have no idea how to handle those things! Waste of a load of good treasure, that is."
She laughs.
"If it ain't that, we're gonna have to sail out to rescue you. You've got a landlubber's hand at the helm!" She shakes her head and shrugs nonchalantly. "I'm going out there whether you like it or not. Got a problem, then we can settle it with our fists - knock you right on your damn ass again, I will."
In other words, Layna... is probably just going to make the situation worse. It might seem harsh from the outside, but they actually get along pretty well, really! But that's just sailors for you.
DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Everyone Wants a Piece.
<Pose Tracker> Juni Vandrer has posed.
Juni Vandrer had a theory that she wanted to fish up. Almost literally. She's pretty sure it's not related to her own goals, but hey, you have to check any leads or control will insist you were lazy in the after action report. There's already people here. Lots here. One group is at least talking, the other... not so much. They're distracted though and... well. She does have a concussive round. Maybe just ringing their ears would take the fight out of them? Just to make sure there's not more going on, she fiddles with her goggles, obfuscating the scanning motion with the sail of her small 'vessel'. Still, there is an armed and sometimes belligerent tree rodent watching the ongoing. Maybe that alone would help.
It's about then that it clicks. She is armed, there are angry things in the water. They don't seem to be as well armed. It's easy, "The water's got dangers you guys aren't set up for." ... in hindsight that might come across as a threat. Oh well! Threats or sweet talking will have the same effect. She doesn't need to hit someone about the head and shoulders with a wrench.
DG: Juni Vandrer has used her Tool AR Goggles toward her party's challenge, Everyone Wants a Piece.
<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.
By coincidence, Tidus is here with Layna--they happened to meet up at the pier before Layna sailed out, and recognizing her outfit as a blitzball uniform, Tidus struck up a conversation with her. When she said she was out treasure-hunting on an island, he offered to go with her, and now here they are. Too bad Rikku hadn't been around; she'd have been a perfect accomplice.
"Hey, hey, what d'you mean, it's YOUR dive site? There's a whole island out there to dive around!" Tidus argues, gesturing at the Treasure Coast. "What's it matter who dives here? It's all sand and water all around the place!" He laughs at Layna's commentary, it being apparent she's had it out with these guys already, and adds, "C'mon. Just you guys go over there--" he points in one direction, "--and we'll go over there--" he points in another, "and it's all good!"
He pauses when he sees Loren and Lydia sailing in nearby. Loren appears to be... throwing chunks of an energy bar into the water...? Tidus gives him a strange look, wondering what the heck that guy's doing. But it's not that big a deal, and there's *another* boat coming up, this time with someone of a race he doesn't recognize (maybe a cousin of the Ronso?) sailing up to *also* tell off Layna's buddies. Tidus scratches his head. "Oh boy. Look, there's plenty of coastline for everybody, all right?"
DG: Tidus has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Everyone Wants a Piece.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ====================<* CHALLENGE - Everyone Wants a Piece *>==================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- It's simple enough for you and your group to rent a boat at the pier of Kapalaran, and soon enough, you're sailing out into the clear blue coastal waters aboard a traditional outrigger canoe, guided by one or two of the locals. But it's clear soon enough that you're not the only ones with an eye on the Treasure Coast. "Get lost, foreigners! This is our dive site!" shouts a burly man from another, larger outrigger canoe. There are several Spirans aboard that ship, equipped with nets and digging tools, all of them dressed for a dive. None of them are reaching for a weapon - yet - but they look like they could handle themselves in a fight if it came down to it. It'll take some quick talking - or some initiative - to defuse things with these rival treasure hunters and get your own dive started. =Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia Seren, as usual, seems wholly oblivious as to what all those ominous project names might mean. It honestly is pretty strange to her that she seems to have more than ONE. Why does there have to be MORE THAN ONE?
But at least she seems to either be 'over' whatever pissed her off last time or is at least willing to set it aside so the experience isn't as miserable.
Loren asks Lydia to try reasoning with a bunch of burly dudes who are...yelling at her for being different from them! Lydia is used to this sort of thing and a kind of understanding dawns in her eyes.
"I can give it a go." Lydia says agreeably before approaching the Spirans. She raises a hand up into the air and shouts, "OH uh... SHIVA I summon you! Show them I am totally accepted by the fayth and such or whatever!"
Instead of summoning Shiva, she summons Rigdobrite, a giant meteor with eyes that seems to be gradually plummeting TOWARDS the Spirans.
"......My Shiva is shy." Lydia says. "But she really makes an impact. So..uh."
She shrugs both shoulders.
And then she looks to Tidus. "Oh hey...!" She brightens. "The one blitzball player I know that didn't turn out to be a jerk jock person! I've always wanted to know if you could teach me your secret cool sporting techniques...! And can you sign my blitzball--Oh I guess I don't have one with me. Well, you can just give me a signed blitzball it's cool. It doesn't have to be mine."
She DOES know Tidus but, well, still mostly sees him as the cocky but awesome blitzball guy from Luca.
Rigdobrite continues to gradually dip towards the Spirans like some kind of conversation path time limit.
DG: Lydia Seren has contributed a Wits Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Everyone Wants a Piece.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ====================<* CHALLENGE - Everyone Wants a Piece *>==================== |Type: Entry |Dungeon Ability: Wits |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- It's simple enough for you and your group to rent a boat at the pier of Kapalaran, and soon enough, you're sailing out into the clear blue coastal waters aboard a traditional outrigger canoe, guided by one or two of the locals. But it's clear soon enough that you're not the only ones with an eye on the Treasure Coast. "Get lost, foreigners! This is our dive site!" shouts a burly man from another, larger outrigger canoe. There are several Spirans aboard that ship, equipped with nets and digging tools, all of them dressed for a dive. None of them are reaching for a weapon - yet - but they look like they could handle themselves in a fight if it came down to it. It'll take some quick talking - or some initiative - to defuse things with these rival treasure hunters and get your own dive started. =Dungeon Conditions: Tire=====================================================
=========================<* Treasure Coast - Round 1 *>========================= ======================< Results - Everyone Wants a Piece >====================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Loren Voss 0 --(8)--> 8 Pass Soylent Nutribar 2 Wits Effects: Resilient -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Layna Manydays 0 --(16)--> 16 Fail Investigate 0 Wits Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tidus 0 --(16)--> 16 Fail Investigate 0 Wits Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lydia Seren 0 --(8)--> 8 Pass Investigate 0 Wits Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Juni Vandrer 0 --(8)--> 8 Pass AR Goggles 2 Wits Effects: Quicken -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Loren Voss 0 --(20)--> 20 Pass Conditions: Tire(2) Effects: Quicken(1)|Resilient(1) ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Loren Voss 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> Loren Voss has posed.
Layna and Tidus, being reasonably decent human beings, attempt to reason with the Spirans. Juni, who at first simply watches and assesses the situation, similarly chimes in regarding the natures of the dangers beneath.
Loren, meanwhile... well...
The first unfortunate thing that happens is that neither Layna nor Tidus seem to be able to get through to these guys. They laugh off the concerns and openly dismiss the arguments about there being 'enough for everyone'. It's when Juni -- who draws an eye or two -- makes a remark about there being danger beneath the waters that one or two of them look concerned--
And then suddenly an enormous aquatic Fiend catapults itself out of the water! Even Loren looks taken aback for the moment. Chaos erupts among the Spirans--
And then Lydia's 'Shiva' hits, and the net result is no more Fiend.
Also a boat-full of Spirans paddling at speed in the opposite direction once the Pyreflies disperse.
"...Huh," is Loren's summary. "I didn't think it attracted Fiends, too..."
DG: Layna Manydays has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================= ===============<* CHALLENGE - This Shark Eats Like a Maniac *>================ |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- You're not the only ones swimming around down here. As you go probing around the sea floor to retrieve what appear to be several scattered coins - ancient ones, actually, with some curious inscriptions on them that'll warrant investigation later - a shadow passes over you. A look up reveals what it is. A large shark, at least five metres long, with white-tipped fins and beady eyes that fix on you as it comes curving around through the water with surprising sloth. At first it seems like it's too slow to pose much of a threat. Then it bursts towards you with a sudden surge of speed, a flick of its tail and a snap of its jaws, baring its teeth as it comes charging in like a starving wolf to try and tear you limb from limb! (OOC: If you succeed at retrieving these coins, @mail Talise Gianfair if you'd like to learn more about the discovery.) =Dungeon Conditions: Wound====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
The party gradually increases in size... but, at least the others seem to be heading in the same general direction, and seem less inclined to make trouble over sharing.
She nods her greeting to everyone in turn, at least her gaze lands on Loren. He gets a grin.
"Well, well. Long time no see." She greets. But, then her gaze returns to the general.
"Well, with that outta the way... let's work together, aye?" Layna suggests.
One way or another they all start sailing out in the same direction until, eventually...
"Ah! Just a sec - do you see that?" Layna says, raising a hand to halt. She leans over the side of the boat. It's faint, but deep, deep down, by the seafloor... there's a faint golden glint. "Think I found something."
With that, Layna dives in. And, indeed - down on the seafloor, partially buried by the general sea muck, is golden shines - coins, if they get close enough to look. But that's easier said than done, as the moment they begin to approach a massive shark appears! It's large, but moving fairly slowly...
...at least until it begins to pick up speed, rushing at them like a torpedo with fangs bared!
Layna dodges to the side swiftly. She manages a muffled incantation, and suddenly the water begins to swirl around her right hand. She punches forward, sending a shockwave of force crashing through the water toward the shark!
DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, This Shark Eats Like a Maniac.
<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.
Tidus brightens when he sees Lydia. "Oh hey there! Long time no see! --Is that what I'm famous for now? Hey, though, I'll take it," he says brightly when she recognizes him as the one non-jerk blitzball player she knows. This good cheer is somewhat undercut when she summons 'Shiva.' "Uhhhh, that's obviously not--you know what, never mind," he decides. If the locals don't know what Shiva looks like, that's *not* his problem. Though maybe Rigdobrite's slow-motion descent might become everyone's problem...
He opens his mouth to ask her to dismiss the Guardian when an aquatic fiend breaches the water, then gets knocked on the head by Rigdobrite. Instant KO--and instant retreat by at least some of the competition. Tidus watches the Spirans paddle away at top speed, then slumps over. "Sheesh. There's sure gonna be some interesting stories at the port later."
He looks back at Lydia. "Sorry, I don't have a blitzball on me right now. But I bet we can find one back at port for me to sign for you--how about that?" he offers. Layna chimes in on cooperation, and he nods. "Yeah! No reason to fight over salvage. The fiends'll be easier to fight off with more people, too."
Speaking of which--when Layna spots something glittering in the water, Tidus leans over to take a look. "I think you're right--there's something sparkling down there." He dives in after her, swimming with the practiced ease of a blitzball star. But a shark comes in, teeth-first, towards them! Tidus twists in mid-water to face it, then concentrates. A moment later, temporal magic surges around himself, Layna, and anyone else who dove in. He'll take a quick sip of a hi-ether--easier to do underwater than you'd think--before drawing his sword and charging to intercept the hungry fish.
DG: Tidus has used his Tool Baskar Hi-Ether toward his party's challenge, This Shark Eats Like a Maniac.
<Pose Tracker> Juni Vandrer has posed.
Juni Vandrer fiddles with her kit for a moment before diving in herself. A handy and probably 'borrowed' knife available at hand. There's a glimmer of gold, which on it's own is interesting, mostly because it makes buying gear and information a lot easier.
There's a shark though. She has no idea that's what it's called, but big sea predator is easy enough to identify, what with being toothy and aggressive. Rather than risking the knife here, being bite sized and all, she instead opts for the (as she sees it) more fun option. Angling the shotgun and it's custom ammo and firing off a round. It doesn't actually go that far, but the concussive force probably doesn't feel too good for underwater critters. It's why she'd loaded them in the first place!
She does try to give the others a warning either way, first by gesturing at the critter, then by making exaggerated motions with her hands to indicate... well, probably an explosion, but underwater that's about the same anyway.
DG: Juni Vandrer has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, This Shark Eats Like a Maniac.
<Pose Tracker> Loren Voss has posed.
Layna seems like she knows him. Worse, he feels like he should know her. But try as he might--
He's pulling a blank, which might be terribly evident for the long pause that follows.
"...Hi," he eventually settles for, furrowing his brow.
MOMENTS AFTER WHICH, ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE! well, for a moment. Nobody gets hurt and that's the important part!
As is the fact that this spot is now open to them. Layna says that she spots something below, and leaning over the side of his own boat, Loren can indeed see that there is something shimmering down there. He glances up at Layna -- and Tidus -- regarding them both with some lingering suspicion...
Before finally nodding the once as if in agreement. "I suppose we can collaborate. However, I call--" Whatever he'd been about to say is cut off when the two of them sluice down beneath the waves. "...Seriously," Loren sighs.
Normally 'it's under the water' would be a deal-ending detail. Loren is a good enough swimmer considering where he hails from, but he still can't hold his breath long enough to attempt a free dive with any reasonable success.
However, Solaris has him covered in this instance. Slipping the device over his face, he too dives into the drink and descends.
The water is very clear down here. He floats for a moment in the water column, as if attempting to get his bearings. ...It just so happens that this is also when a large shadow looms above him. He glances up. He has a good long look at its source.
...Did it come here because of the nutritional bar?
Loren regrets everything, at least for the moment. Fishing in his pack, he comes up with a handful of... sols (fortunately the contents were prepared with a dive in mind and even opening it won't jeopardize anything). He side-eyes Tidus, with his sword. "A sword? Won't the blood attract more of them--" he starts to say, voice garbled by the water. Wait, how do you fight a shark, was it 'punch them in the eyes'...?
DG: Loren Voss has used his Tool Solarian Medical Kit toward his party's challenge, This Shark Eats Like a Maniac.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia says, "NEws to me," to Loren.
Maybe Loren forgot that they had a fight too, Lydia reflects. She wonders where it's all going, his memories, but she doesn't bring it up. It's a sre spot and it isn't like it's gonna help her any.
Tidus speaks of his fame and Lydia admits, "Well, I know you're a Guardian too and all but I'm not...super involved in that? You probably wouldn't want someone like me doing that kind of escort mission for a lot of reasons. But I like sports and you're clearly like super good at your sport and--" Lydia's cheeks silver in embarrassment. "I really like soccer, and that's kind of like Blitzball. But I have trouble cause I'm--I'm a good kicker but not a good swimmer. Because I sink a lot."
She knocks on her metal body. It makes a clunk noise.
5rShe sees the shark too and, naturally, tries to stab it with a sword by leaping into the air and Sephirothing down with the blade at it.
DG: Lydia Seren has used her Tool Rachiel Medry Is Doing Her Best toward her party's challenge, This Shark Eats Like a Maniac.
=============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================= ===============<* CHALLENGE - This Shark Eats Like a Maniac *>================ |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- You're not the only ones swimming around down here. As you go probing around the sea floor to retrieve what appear to be several scattered coins - ancient ones, actually, with some curious inscriptions on them that'll warrant investigation later - a shadow passes over you. A look up reveals what it is. A large shark, at least five metres long, with white-tipped fins and beady eyes that fix on you as it comes curving around through the water with surprising sloth. At first it seems like it's too slow to pose much of a threat. Then it bursts towards you with a sudden surge of speed, a flick of its tail and a snap of its jaws, baring its teeth as it comes charging in like a starving wolf to try and tear you limb from limb! (OOC: If you succeed at retrieving these coins, @mail Talise Gianfair if you'd like to learn more about the discovery.) =Dungeon Conditions: Wound====================================================
========================<* Treasure Coast - Round 2 *>======================== =================< Results - This Shark Eats Like a Maniac >================== Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Loren Voss 8 --(5)--> 13 Fail Solarian Medical Kit 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Layna Manydays 16 --(5)--> 21 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tidus 16 --(0)--> 16 Pass Baskar Hi-Ether 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lydia Seren 8 --(0)--> 8 Pass Rachiel Medry Is Doing Her Best 3 Combat Effects: Fanfare ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Juni Vandrer 8 --(0)--> 8 Pass Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Loren Voss 20 --(20)--> 40 Pass Conditions: Tire(1)|Wound(2) Effects: Cleanse ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: The party led by Loren Voss 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> Layna Manydays has posed.
Layna raises an eyebrow as Loren... doesn't seem to remember her? At least, if the long pause is any indication. ...Considering how their last major meeting was her basically ripping him off, maybe it's for the best. She also begins to wonder if that means she can do it again sometime, because she will always be thinking like a pirate.
She notes, too, the way Lydia talks to Tidus. It looks like he has a fan! Layna would comment on this, but it looks like Lydia is embarrassed enough already and Layna, while many things, isn't a jerk(usually). So she just settles for a good-natured grin.
But right now, there's a shark! Layna tries to punch it with water. It doesn't like it, but what this largely means is that it comes barreling toward her! Layna curses and swims to avoid the next charge. This is helped along by Tidus's temporal magic, letting her move quicker than she otherwise would have! She sends him an appreciate thumbs-up in return.
Juni, meanwhile, has come equipped with custom ammunition, specially chosen for underwater combat. The concussive force slams into the shark and it recoils back. It does, indeed, not like it - so it instead chooses to go for another target.
The shark swims full speed toward Loren! He doesn't remember how you're supposed to fight a shark in time - but, thankfully, Lydia drops down from above and Sephiroths the heck out of it, skewering it with a downward dive. This is when Tidus comes in with his own sword, finishing it off!
With the shark dealt with, they'll be able to return to investigating the coins. They're not just gold - they're ancient gold.
"We've found a mighty fine bounty already. These things are worth a pretty penny to the right folks." Layna comments. "They're pretty old, aye?"
DG: Tidus has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ======================<* CHALLENGE - Phlegyas Attacks! *>======================= |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- You're in the process of hauling a delicate-looking porcelain vase up from the water when your group catches sight of something glowing subtly in the water. A second later, there's a thunderclap of sound. A massive sonic boom rips through the water. The upsurge nearly capsizes your boat. Only chance keeps you steady. A group of oddly-shaped water beings bob in the ocean waves, vaguely ray-like but with fronded orange wings. The little group of Phlegyas begin to pulse again, charging up energy and preparing to unleash more devastating Sonic Booms against you and your team. Can you take them out before they tip your boat and send all of your treasure into the drink again? =Dungeon Conditions: Injure===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.
The shark is vanquished! Tidus waits for it to dissolve into pyreflies, and when it doesn't, he startles. Wait, so that was an *actual* shark? He grabs the portion of the treasure below that he can, then surfaces with the others to take a breath. "Woah, that surprised me," he comments, staring down at the sinking body as he places the coins in the boat. Loren comments that it might attract other predators. Tidus laughs nervously. "Haha, you think so?"
Lydia meanwhile talks about her metal body making her sink a lot, making it hard for her to play blitzball. "Aw, that's a shame. But hey, ships float, even through they're made of metal, right?" Well, the ones that *are* made of metal, anyway. "Maybe you just need to figure out how they do that, and then do that yourself! You can still be a blitzer!" he encourages her.
Either way, they've gotten treasure! "They look it! But we're not done yet," he tells Layna with a grin. "Let's see what else we can find!"
As he starts to climb in, he asks Juni, "So, uh, what part of Spira are you from? Or are you from somewhere else?" Though by 'somewhere else,' he's thinking Filgaia or elsewhere on Lunar. "My name's Tidus, by the way," he adds.
Before he can get all the way in the boat, through, a subtle glow in the water approaches. He looks over just in time for a loud CRACK and a booming ripple tears through the water. Tidus launches himself backwards to avoid either the boat or himself getting shredded--but it looks like it's back to battle, right after the last one.
Wheeling in the water, he casts another Haste spell on himself, then swims hard and fast to try to cut those Phlegyas down to size before they can unleash another attack like that last one on the group. Anyone who happens to use magic to assist the group will get the next sip of Baskar Hi-Ether.
DG: Tidus has used his Tool Baskar Hi-Ether toward his party's challenge, Phlegyas Attacks!.
<Pose Tracker> Loren Voss has posed.
There are some small benefits (mostly for other people) about Loren suffering from memory loss...
Maybe if it continues to degrade, Layna can even do it a third time?!
But in the current moment, under the waves, there is a more immediate problem and it comes in the shape of a shark. It bears down on him just as he's trying to remember if it was actually the nose when Lydia descends through the water column to take care of that problem for him rather neatly.
Loren thanks her by beelining for the surface, where he takes a breath of fresh (as in not rebreather-filtered) air. "That was... almost pretty bad," he remarks, then turns to Tidus who sort of nervously laughs about the blood-in-the-water thing. A normal person might have waved it off here.
Loren, who is always some degree of shitty and has only become moreso of late, just throws Tidus a look and sighs. "That's how they hunt." A pause follows. "...I think."
It's here that he, still in the water, gets a good look at Tidus from a below-ish angle as he deposits some of the coins in the boat. Tidus, who is currently soaking wet. Loren's gaze lingers for a moment before he turns away.
...I hate this.
Perhaps answering some unanswered prayer of his, a Fiend attacks at that very moment.
Kicking away from the boat, he realizes he still has in hand an assortment of sols. This he tosses towards anyone he can spot on the surface of the water before he dives under and draws his own blade, aiming to similarly have a go at the Fiend. What was that about blood in the water...? (Maybe it doesn't completely apply for Fiends).
DG: Loren Voss has used his Tool Solarian Medical Kit toward his party's challenge, Phlegyas Attacks!.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
"Aye!" Layna agrees with a nod toward Tidus. It's just as they're about to start off for the next batch of treasure, though, that they're suddenly attacked!
"Whoa! You alright, lad?" Layna asks, reaching out to steady Tidus after the Sonic Boom if he needs it.
"Guess these fellows aren't too happy about us claiming their coin." Layna comments with a grin. "...Well, if they wanna fight over it, then by all means. I'll make 'em work for it."
Layna cracks her knuckles. With that said, she dives back into the water and moves to address the Phlegya directly. If they need time to charge up that attack, then she don't give it to them - she'll keep them too busy with a flurry of punches.
DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Phlegyas Attacks!.
<Pose Tracker> Juni Vandrer has posed.
Juni Vandrer resurfaces and looks around, shaking water from... everything. For a creature that loves water, she hates when it gets in the undercoat. Hauling herself out, shaking vigorously, she then glances back to Tidus, a curious look mostly hidden behind those ever present goggles. "Came from the west." She offers, not really naming names, she has no idea what it was called. Crater might be appropriate, but that's a joke she'd have to explain. "Not a local here though." She gestures back towards land. Both honest, but leaving out key details.
This pleasant conversation is interrupted with her getting her name, "Juni-" and what can probably best be taken as a string of cussing in her own language as the crack makes her ears ring. She tries to return the favor, firing the same concussive rounds back into the water, creating smaller scale shockwaves in the water than the creatures. She's got her bag nearby if she needs to hotswap though.
DG: Juni Vandrer has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Phlegyas Attacks!.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia, who used to having the fighting skill of NONE seems strangely comfortable with the blade now. It doesn't seem to occur to her either, which might be more troubling honestly.
"Yeah, true, but I don't know how to make me move like a submarine." Lydia admits. "I think I need some kind of rotors? But I don't know how to grow those out of my body. They'd have to be pretty tough too--and I might need to figure out how to make myself hollow..er? Is that even possible?"
She squints her eyes in deep thought as she tries to think about how this would work. It's easier for her to imagine how a ship works than to be a tiny metal 'ship' herself.
"But you've got a point. I just gotta keep at it." SHe beams. "I've got a good kick at least!" She pauses and then murmurs to Tidus. "IS it...normal for the ball to sometimes just...poison people though?"
She seems kind of weirded out, a bit, by that. "I mean it's cool it's just how it works." But only a bit.
Lydia then turns her arm into a gun and starts shooting it at the water beings. This too seems to be something she just does without thinking too hard about it.
"Tidus is the coolest person from Spira." Lydia tells Juni with upmost confidence despite one key element being wrong there.
She catches Loren's look to Tidus though and gives him an elbow and murmurs, "So... you want to boink him? I totally get it. He's totally got 'teen idol' energy."
DG: Lydia Seren has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, Phlegyas Attacks!.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ======================<* CHALLENGE - Phlegyas Attacks! *>======================= |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 2 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- You're in the process of hauling a delicate-looking porcelain vase up from the water when your group catches sight of something glowing subtly in the water. A second later, there's a thunderclap of sound. A massive sonic boom rips through the water. The upsurge nearly capsizes your boat. Only chance keeps you steady. A group of oddly-shaped water beings bob in the ocean waves, vaguely ray-like but with fronded orange wings. The little group of Phlegyas begin to pulse again, charging up energy and preparing to unleash more devastating Sonic Booms against you and your team. Can you take them out before they tip your boat and send all of your treasure into the drink again? =Dungeon Conditions: Injure===================================================
=========================<* Treasure Coast - Round 3 *>========================= ========================< Results - Phlegyas Attacks! >========================= Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Loren Voss 13 --(5)--> 18 Pass Solarian Medical Kit 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Layna Manydays 21 --(5)--> 26 Pass Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tidus 16 --(13)--> 29 Fail Baskar Hi-Ether 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lydia Seren 8 --(13)--> 21 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Juni Vandrer 8 --(13)--> 21 Fail Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Loren Voss 40 --(20)--> 60 Pass Conditions: Injure(2) Effects: Cleanse ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Loren Voss 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> Tidus has posed.
At least Loren doesn't have to worry about whether he remembers Tidus or not, because this is the first time they've met. But who can say about the next time?!
"You think? You're not sure?" Tidus says just as dubiously back to Loren. He can tell the guy is trying to give him shit, but honestly, who gives people shit over stuff they're not sure about? ...even if he is in fact right. Tidus, having lived next to the ocean his whole life, did know that--he's just so used to the creatures he fights being fiends that he didn't expect this shark to, well, be a *shark*.
Lydia considers the practical applications of Tidus's advice. Tidus scratches his head. "I dunno, I don't know how submarines work," he admits. "Maybe you could ask Rikku. I bet she'd love to help you figure it out." She leans in; he leans in back to listen. Her actual question gets a grin and a laugh. "It's not *normal*, but it *is* a special technique! If you keep training, maybe you'll pick it up yourself sometime."
To Juni, he gives a nod. "Oh, huh. Yeah, me neither," he says, of not being a local. The west... So she's from the Althena-ruled parts of Lunar? She seems pretty chill, though. He gives her a sympathetic look and adds, "Hope you're not feeling too homesick." Looks like he bought it...
Conversation gets interrupted by rude fish. "Yep! I'm fine," he reassures Layna as he bobs in the water after evading the Sonic Boom. "But these guys won't be!!"
At which point he dives. Thankfully for everyone involves, this means he misses Lydia talking him up to Juni, as well as her calling Loren out on checking *him* out. He *does* have that teen idol energy... The bleach-golden hair, the sun-browned skin, the muscle tone, the handsome face, the friendly smile... And, of course, the secret girlfriend. Sorry for your life, Loren.
Nobody uses any magic, so Tidus's hi-ether goes unused. Lydia's shots reflect off the water, as do Juni's concussive rounds, so their shots aren't as effective as they might otherwise be. However, between Loren's swording and solling and Layna's punching, they manage to take out the aquatic creatures. *These* ones dissolve properly into a cloud of pyreflies and vanish, so they at least won't attract any *further* predators.
Hopefully. They should probably get out of this area either way.
DG: Loren Voss has drawn a new Challenge.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ==============<* CHALLENGE - In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks *>============== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- A few current-worn coins scattered across the sea bed draw the eye, glittering with gold. While their inscriptions are illegible after all these years, they're still bound to be worth something, and they're easily collected anyway. But you're not alone down here. As you move for the coins, a swarm of little fish suddenly hurtle out of small holes in a rock formation, flashing their oversized teeth as they rush at you. They're Piranha, hungry fiends of the deep, and they look all too intent on having you for lunch! =Dungeon Conditions: Fright===================================================
<Pose Tracker> Loren Voss has posed.
"Seren isn't a boat, though," Loren says, which is at once one of the least helpful things he's said and one of the more ridiculous. "Do you even need to swim? It's not like you need to breathe." A long long pause, here. "I think."
Tidus calls him out on his shit, a little. "I... am pretty sure," Loren says, rallying in the face of the fact that he doesn't know what the hell he's even talking about. Never underestimate the will of the grouchy to be grouchy.
That is, before Tidus gets back out of the water. ...It's already a bad situation. There's the vague guilt at looking in the first place, coupled with the self-loathing over checking out some kind of moon Lamb, and then--
Lydia comments. Loren's response is to turn an impressive shade of red, sputter, and just about flail in the water, which might have been a mercy if it had led to him drowning, all considering. Of course, then that Fiend intrudes, making the situation marginally better.
By... comparison.
He discovers that using a sword in the water is -- surprise surprise! -- not an easy feat. Fortunately, the Fiend is a large one, and even if he sort of feels like he's learning the basics again it works well enough.
He... is pretty quick to dive below the surface again once the Fiend is nothing but Pyreflies. At least down here it's just him and the coins (why does Command want these?) and the--
fish?!
That's right. Fish. Angry toothy fish, which snap at Loren as he reaches for the coins and just barely misses potentially losing a finger as he draws back. He's at a disadvantage here: while beneath the waves he might be able to maybe take out one of them with his sword, there's a whole host of them coming at him now and he's... frankly just not that good enough to handle this. Instead, he banks left, downing a Rosesol; the fact that the seafloor gains a sudden additional array of stone spikes might be a related outcome.
DG: Loren Voss has used his Tool Solarian Medical Kit toward his party's challenge, In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
"It's not just the ball! I've got a pretty mean Venom Tackle, if I do say so myself." Layna says proudly, as Lydia comments on Blitzballs just poisoning people sometimes.
Soon enough, the second wave of enemies is defeated. But as they dive back into the water for another batch of coins... more fish appear.
"The sea's rather lively tonight, aye?" Layna comments with a laugh. "It's a shame most of 'em are Fiends, otherwise we'd be eating pretty well. ...So, I guess lively ain't the best word for it, considering..."
She shrugs. She's not sure where to go with that statement anymore, so it's probably best for everyone involved to just drop it for now.
"Don't underestimate 'em just because they're small fry - there are a lot of the lil' guys!" Layna warns, diving into the water. But what she can do is recite an incantation to whip up a whirlpool and, hopefully, draw a bunch of the Piranha into one location for the rest to more easily deal with.
DG: Layna Manydays has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks.
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
"I'm not sure," Lydia admits. "I haven't tested it too much and I could always hold my breath for a while." And it's not like she just sits at the bottom of the ocean floor just to test it. "I can last for a blitzball game, though, so I need to be able to swim to play properly cause otherwise I can't maneuver and play the game properly. I mean, pretty much everybody who plays blitzball doesn't need to breathe I guess?"
She looks to Tidus. "You don't need to breathe right?"
Lydia does feel some kind of sympathy for Loren. She too understands the pain of being surrounded by hot but oblivious people. Or even hot but not oblivious people who are otherwise not really into you? Or worst of all, people who are kind of into you but are already kind of in a thing already and aren't really looking to add some extra limbs to the occassion.
Lydia isn't going to shoot tiny fish. She does shift her arm into hands with knives extending out from her palm that she grips with both hands to try and cut them that way.
"Rikku is pretty cool. All the Al Bhed are. That's why I'm super mad at people trying to murder them! It's not fair, Tidus! What'd they ever do but try to help people and maybe not want family members to die so Spira can not worry about a dumb whale for--I don't know--5 years? 10? 20? Maybe therer is a solution here that didn't involve adding more murder. People act like that this Summoner Journey is just sacrificing one life to save everybody."
She shakes her head. "And what is one life compared to that? But it's really killing a whole bunch of people."
DG: Lydia Seren has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward her party's challenge, In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks.
<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.
Tidus makes a face at Loren, then just shakes his head. Loren *is* right, so there's no point in arguing over it. As for Loren's wandering eyes, he at least doesn't notice that. Instead, he goes back to talking blitzball with Layna and Lydia.
"Yeah, it's not really about the *ball*, it's about what the player can do," Tidus explains, "though you *could* have a ball that poisons people if you wanted to." He pauses when Lydia asserts that blitzball players don't need to breathe. "Uhhh, yeah we do? I mean, maybe there's some blitzball players who don't," he adds, thinking of the likelihood that some blitzers are Unsent and finding it scarily high, "but normally we just hold our breaths. Holding your breath helps with floating and maneuvering too. That's one of the key basics--lung capacity! You'll have a hard time as a blitzer if you can't last underwater."
More gold glitters at the bottom of the waters, but this time, a crowd of pirahna fiends zip in to try to get a bite of everyone. These ones Tidus recognizes and knows for sure are fiends, so he doesn't hold back with the quick hits and sword slashes. "No kidding! These waters've got a *lot* more fiends than I thought," he remarks in response to Layna when he surfaces. "Not that that's a problem for us! But wow, you weren't kidding that those other guys would've been in over their heads." To Lydia, he says wryly, "Hey, you're preaching to the choir, here."
DG: Tidus has contributed a Combat Basic Action toward his party's challenge, In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks.
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ==============<* CHALLENGE - In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks *>============== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- A few current-worn coins scattered across the sea bed draw the eye, glittering with gold. While their inscriptions are illegible after all these years, they're still bound to be worth something, and they're easily collected anyway. But you're not alone down here. As you move for the coins, a swarm of little fish suddenly hurtle out of small holes in a rock formation, flashing their oversized teeth as they rush at you. They're Piranha, hungry fiends of the deep, and they look all too intent on having you for lunch! =Dungeon Conditions: Fright===================================================
==============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================== ==============<* CHALLENGE - In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks *>============== |Type: Exploration |Dungeon Ability: Combat |Challenge Rating: 1 | ---------------------------< Challenge Information: >--------------------------- A few current-worn coins scattered across the sea bed draw the eye, glittering with gold. While their inscriptions are illegible after all these years, they're still bound to be worth something, and they're easily collected anyway. But you're not alone down here. As you move for the coins, a swarm of little fish suddenly hurtle out of small holes in a rock formation, flashing their oversized teeth as they rush at you. They're Piranha, hungry fiends of the deep, and they look all too intent on having you for lunch! =Dungeon Conditions: Fright===================================================
=========================<* Treasure Coast - Round 4 *>========================= ================< Results - In Spira the Fish Eat Peoplesticks >================ Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Loren Voss 18 --(13)--> 31 Fail Solarian Medical Kit 1 Combat Effects: Cleanse -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Layna Manydays 26 --(5)--> 31 Pass Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tidus 29 --(5)--> 34 Pass Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lydia Seren 21 --(5)--> 26 Pass Fight 0 Combat Effects: BASIC -----------------------------------< Party >------------------------------------ Leader: Loren Voss 60 --(20)--> 80 Pass Conditions: Fright(2) Effects: Cleanse ===============================< Dream Chasers >================================
DG: The party led by Loren Voss 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> Loren Voss has posed.
As a general rule, Loren's expectation is that people aren't that into him, generally. Not that he can blame them but--
All the same, he has someone else. Someone he likes. Someone who likes him back! Actually... 'like' isn't even the right word for it, anymore, is it?
But it doesn't mean that his current present-time circumstances and emotional broil are any less awkward, guilty, and terribly inconvenient.
Speaking of! Fish!
Attempting to skewer a bunch of agile tiny fish works much less well than one would expect (somehow)! Loren, suddenly face to face with a horde of toothy fish, breaks for the surface. Fortunately for him, the others have the situation on lock--
You know, between the whirlpool Layna conjures up, which pens the fish in.
And then Tidus and Lydia with their respective blade and arm-of-knives reduce the fishy Fiends to so much mincemeat. Or... Pyreflies, frankly, because who even eats Fiends?
Loren meanwhile opts to hang onto the side of the ship, well-cloaked in a shroud of gloom.
DG: Lydia Seren has drawn a new Challenge.
=============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================= =====================<* CHALLENGE - Last Minute Mishap *>===================== |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- The day's creeping down towards its end. There are a few places still in reach to explore before the sun begins to set, but as your boat bobs along, there's suddenly a horrible scraping sound, and the bow thrusts up out of the water with a ferocious suddenness that could very well throw everyone inside overboard! The boat's prow has driven up on a ridge of coral jutting up from an area of shallows just offshore. The landing in the water isn't that bad - unless you hit the corals, of course - but the problem now is that your boat's stuck on the reef. Getting it off will be a matter of sheer force if you're hoping to make it back to dry land with your treasure intact. The real trick will be getting it out without damaging the corals, mind. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken, Injure===========================================
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
Lydia gets back onto the boat and looks to Tidus. "I mean I don't know, if you can hold your breath for as long you can do an entire blitzball game which is probably super physically taxing for people who get tired and everything, then you kinda don't. In practice anyway? I don't know--" Tidus tells her she's preaching to the choir and she smiles. "...Yeah, yeah." she admits. "I just want to..actually help people, not just keep putting bandaids on the latest crisis and woosh off to lord knows where after. Sometimes it feels like that's all I'm doing. Not really changing the things that are really injust. Like Kislev. Or... those' assholess." She shakes her head and is about t add more when the boat suddenly BONKS against some coral and Lydia nearly tumbles over.
She raises Tiebreaker into the air and immediately starts smashing the corals with the bat to try and dislodge the boat.
DG: Lydia Seren has used her Tool Tiebreaker V 2.0 toward her party's challenge, Last Minute Mishap.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
"Right? I keep tellin' him he needs to buckle down and start training harder if he wants to have a shot at a place like this." Layna says with a shrug toward Tidus.
Fortunately, though, they're pretty talented, and so the piranha are dealt with pretty easily.
But then, they soon find themselves dealing with a problem that might be even more stubborn than Fiends - their boats stuck on coral!
"Welp. This is gonna take some doin'." Layna says, studying the damage with a frown. "We're going to want to be careful here."
With that said she reaches into a coat, drawing out her drill.
She doesn't want to damage the boat or the reef too much. Instead, she starts very carefully trimming - just enough so that they can get some leverage to push.
DG: Layna Manydays has used her Tool Arm-Mounted Drill toward her party's challenge, Last Minute Mishap.
<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.
Well, there's nothing wrong with looking, as long as you aren't a creep about it. Are you a creep, Loren? Are you??
Once the fiends have been defeated, Tidus dives to grab the coins from the ocean floor, then surfaces and returns to the boat the load it up with the treasure. Lydia makes a point, and he scratches his head. "Hmmm... yeah, when you put it like that, it must seem like that, huh? The best blitzball players can hold their breaths basically forever--me and Wakka're both like that." Though it might be a stretch to call Wakka one of the *best*. He's still a damn good player when he's not up in his own head.
He laughs a little at Layna's response. "Guess he figures if he's gonna train, he might as well train where he'll get the most experience. Not a bad idea, but if he ends up dying, it won't amount to anything. Hopefully he listens to you before something awful happens."
But then the topic turns serious, and as everyone climbs aboard to sail back to town now that the sun's starting to set, Tidus listens to her. He's not actually sure who Kislev or 'those' assholes are--there are lots of assholes around, in Tidus's experience--but he says, "That might be what all of us are doing. I mean, all of us are travelers, right? But if you wanted to follow through with helping out after a crisis happens, you'd have to stay there, right? And then you wouldn't be a traveler anymore, because you settled down to help out. But since you're helping out *there*, you wouldn't be able to help out somewhere else..." He scratches his head. "I dunno. It's tough to think about. Maybe I've got it easy, because I'm Yuna's Guardian--all I have to do is follow her around and protect her."
'All' he has to do, he says. Even he knows that's not really true. If he wants to *really* protect her, he's got to figure out what no one has in a thousand years: how to beat Sin without using the Final Aeon. But hey, maybe all this traveling around will help him and his fellow Guardians uncover a clue to do exactly that.
BONK. At that moment, that was much longer than the moment Lydia presented, the boat rams into a coral reef. Tidus flails and grabs the side of the boat to keep from falling over himself. Once he's regained his balance, he peers over the side at the colorful not-rock. "Yeah, we wouldn't want to tear the hull apart by accident," he agrees with Layna. Lydia's wanton coral-whacking merits a wince, but Tidus helps move away the broken coral as it cracks. It's a tricky business, but he's got gloves on, so he at least won't cut himself by accident.
DG: Tidus has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Last Minute Mishap.
<Pose Tracker> Loren Voss has posed.
Loren opts to, after a short bit, just climb back on board and dispense with the rebreather altogether. Seated, he closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. Maybe if he tries just long enough, he'll be able to forget any of this just happened--
His hand drops away. Nope. Nope, he's not nearly that lucky, not even with his ongoing and worsening problem.
They're talking about... Blitzball. He thinks. He only saw someone participate in the sport the once or twice. Kind of like a 3D...
Loren considers, and not for the first time, that he really doesn't know shit about sports.
He squints over at Lydia as she talks on about doing more than just 'patching up the latest problems'. Kislev? And...
And then the little boat hits a reef. Loren ends up nearly pitching himself over the side from the impact, but manages after a fashion to both catch and right himself. "Whew... What did we hit, a rock?" He pauses, then blinks at it. "Isn't that..." He thinks he's read about these once. They're frightfully rare in Filgaia, but here--
Here they seem to get quite big, indeed. Seated back a bit in the boat, he watches as the others move shards or chip away (or bash) at the coral. He, meanwhile takes a breath.
If there's a bit of a localized tremor, concentrated in the coral specifically, it's just a coincidence.
DG: Loren Voss has contributed a Brute Basic Action toward his party's challenge, Last Minute Mishap.
=============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================= =====================<* CHALLENGE - Last Minute Mishap *>===================== |Type: Final |Dungeon Ability: Brute |Challenge Rating: 2 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- The day's creeping down towards its end. There are a few places still in reach to explore before the sun begins to set, but as your boat bobs along, there's suddenly a horrible scraping sound, and the bow thrusts up out of the water with a ferocious suddenness that could very well throw everyone inside overboard! The boat's prow has driven up on a ridge of coral jutting up from an area of shallows just offshore. The landing in the water isn't that bad - unless you hit the corals, of course - but the problem now is that your boat's stuck on the reef. Getting it off will be a matter of sheer force if you're hoping to make it back to dry land with your treasure intact. The real trick will be getting it out without damaging the corals, mind. =Dungeon Conditions: Weaken, Injure===========================================
========================<* Treasure Coast - Round 5 *>======================== =======================< Results - Last Minute Mishap >======================= Player Exhaustion Pass/Fail ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Loren Voss 31 --(18)--> 49 Fail Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Layna Manydays 31 --(5)--> 36 Pass Arm-Mounted Drill 3 Brute Effects: Fanfare ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Tidus 34 --(5)--> 39 Pass Force 0 Brute Effects: BASIC ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Lydia Seren 26 --(5)--> 31 Pass Tiebreaker V 2.0 4 Brute Effects: Efficient and Rally ----------------------------------< Party >----------------------------------- Leader: Loren Voss 80 --(35)--> 115 Pass Conditions: Fright(1)|Injure(2)|Weaken(2) Effects: ==============================< Dream Chasers >===============================
DG: You have overcome the dungeon's trials! This run is a success! DG: The party led by Loren Voss has successfully explored Treasure Coast!
=============================<* Treasure Coast *>============================= =====================<* CHALLENGE - Don't Tell Althena *>===================== |Type: Discovery |Dungeon Ability: Conclusion|Challenge Rating: 1 | --------------------------< Challenge Information: >-------------------------- Your dives have borne fruit: Something's down there, embedded in the silt at the bottom of the sea floor. It takes some work to dig out the objects. They're tall, rounded and narrow at first glance, but as you work to clear away the cruft of ages, it becomes clear what they are: Amphorae, long-necked jugs with fat stoppers still plugged into their neckholes. Each one is about four feet tall and fairly heavy, but the water makes things a little easier. You're able to lift three of them out of the silt and up to your boat, where you can get a closer look at them. The first thing that stands out is that some of their decorative patterns have survived, albeit leeched of colour and badly scored. Still, a few images can be made out. There are images of a man in a conical hat and simple armour, carrying a sword, with four dragons around him and a woman by his side. The second thing that stands out is that the stoppers on the amphorae are magical - and when lifted away, it becomes clear that not only has nothing leaked into the vessels, but what's inside is still perfectly good and finely aged port wine. It must be centuries old. Yet the wine within is incredible, with rich and complex flavours - a vintage preserved over hundreds of years. Whether to keep or to sell, it's a truly rare find. A name has been stamped on one of the amphorae, legible to those who can read older Lunarian writing, but partially cut off by wear and damage: CRESCENT PRI______ (OOC: You should @mail Talise Gianfair about this discovery and any others you've made!) =Dungeon Conditions: Vault====================================================
<Pose Tracker> Lydia Seren has posed.
BANG BANG BANG.
Hey if it works. Tidus has some good advice for Lydia besides and she actually listens. She thinks about if there's a place out there she'd be willing to settle down to protect, but she doubts it. Even if she could help Kislev out she doesn't think she'd want to stick around. Of course by helping Kislev it's helping, specifically, the beastmen in Kislev.
"You've got a good point there. But even as a traveler, there's a difference between just cleaning up and actually making life better. I don't know."
She thinks for a moment. "Protecting her soundss like it's gonna be pretty hard and maybe impossible though?" She tilts her head. "But ... I am rooting for you though. I don't know if I personally really like her or anything but I don't think she should be dead or unhappy or anything. Especially with a whole bunch of old farts sitting around not helping anyone!" Her cheeks silver. "Sorry, preaaching to choir again I guess."
Tidus also helps move the coral, more gently though--as does Layna. Lydia doesn't seem to have the wherewithal to think about it too much.
Loren helps by taking a breather and letting the lambs do the work LIKE A TRUE SOLARIAN ELITE.
Regardless, on the next dive, the group finds ... a boat clearly from the Althenian side of the tracks caalled the CRESCENT PRI...
The crescent... Okay, it's too hard to read the whole thing, but at least Loren manages to find some wine. If he drinks enough about it, maybe he'll forget about the ogling.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
Success!! They manage to free the boat from the coral. Layna nods in approval. And what do they find, but...
"Ahh. Now this, this is the real treasure." Layna says glowingly, as she notes large amphorae. "This is a rare, ancient wine - perfectly preserved, perfectly potable. You could just sell it - but it'd be a shame not to have a taste! And don't you dare chug it like someone just looking to get smashed - drinks like this oughta be savored, preferably with good company around."
She'll claim one for herself, of course, to be brought back to the other members of her friend group - no doubt they'll appreciate being able to add more to their stock.
<Pose Tracker> Layna Manydays has posed.
As for the ship, Layna takes note of it and the name. She hums knowingly as if she has an idea what she's looking at, but says nothing - which may be infuriating to some present.
<Pose Tracker> Loren Voss has posed.
To be fair, he'd tried to shake up the coral, it... just turns out that it's harder to subtly jostle coral than it is to jostle rock.
also this sort of application of Ether isn't really his forte
Still, once they shove off, after freeing themselves from the coral, he's left with the sense that there's something they're all talking about here that he's not quite piecing together right.
On the next dive they turn up something more substantial. Is this it? Is this what Command was looking for? He pops out a cork and wafts some of the fumes towards himself, tentatively. "...?"
And then sticks a finger in, then pops it into his mouth.
"...It's wine," says Loren, cursed with an unsophisticated palate. He wedges the cork back in and glances up at the sky as if it could give him some sort of answer. What had Command been looking for down here?
(The truth is: nothing.)
(This was Leah's gambit to make sure he got some fresh air, perhaps in the hope it might do him some good.)
<Pose Tracker> Tidus has posed.
"Yeah, I don't know either," Tidus admits. "I never thought about this kind of stuff before I came to Spira. I thought I had it rough growing up, but... after all this time I've spent traveling around, I can see a lot of people've had it a lot worse than me." He pauses. "Sorry, that was me rambling," he adds, abashed. While her comment on protecting Yuna is a metaphorical stab to the heart, he grins at the rest of her continuation. "Hey, preach it, sister!"
"Yeah, it's coral. Grows around reefs and stuff," Tidus comments to Loren. "People like to turn the broken-off pieces into jewelry, so if we're breaking off pieces anyway, we might as well take 'em with us. Better than letting them just sit there." Woah, hey, was that a baby hiccup earthquake?? Before Tidus can really figure it out, it's gone. He frowns. "Everyone else felt that, too, right?" he says. "We'd better start heading back. We don't want to be around here if a bigger earthquake goes off and a tsunami comes in. We oughtta warn the folks back at port, too."
Before they do, though, as they gather in the broken bits of coral, they find several amphorae half-buried in the sand. After bringing them up, they look to be in pretty good shape, in the sense that their contents are still secure. That's honestly impressive, considering the decorations have definitely seen better days.
"For real?" he says to Layna, eyebrows rising. "Too bad--I don't drink. If you want a swallow, I won't stop you, though." Mainly because he *can't* stop them. He does snort, somewhere between amused and grossed out, at Loren's way of testing the contents. "I'll just sell my share, thanks." Gotta get those travel funds for the group somehow.