[h3][b]The Pool[/b][/h3] [hr] [@Guy0fV4lor][@ReusableSword][@Kazemitsu][@Knox][@Duoya][@Tatsu] As [u][b]Nathaniel[/b][/u] sat upon his perch high up on the wall, no doubt deep in thought about his observations, a subtle sound reached his pointed ears. It was sort of odd, not quite the clicking of claws, and with a sort of suction-cup flavor to it. Then the Fanged Lizard climbing up alongside his perch stuck its head over the ledge and fired a glob of poison right at his face…! *** While [u][b]Marc[/b][/u] stalked the other creatures all around the pool, he failed to notice that he himself was being stalked by something else. Luckily for him, despite their ability to use tools, Goblins are not very subtle creatures. “Gotcha!” the green child-like monster screamed, before thrusting at the Dire Rat from behind with a sharpened stick…! *** As [u][b]Jason[/b][/u] devoured his half of the spoils, and the Fanged Lizard he had seemingly befriended headed off towards the bonfire, he headed back to the pool for some “supplies” before making his new goal the search for Mana Crystals. [quote=System] 1 Cup of Water added to Inventory. 2 Healing Herbs added to Inventory. 1 Mana Crystal added to Inventory. [/quote] But upon finding a patch of crystals, just after he had sucked up the first one Jason would see two goblins approaching. “Oi! Dumb slime, get away from our crystals!” one of them shouted. The other raised a pair of sticks that had been tied together in a sort of T shape with a vine, but it looked like more of a primitive pickaxe than any kind of weapon. *** [u][b]Asura[/b][/u] found himself a patch of the herbs away from the other monsters in the area, and upon sucking up three of them he experienced the System Message for the first time. [quote=System] 3 Healing Herbs added to Inventory. [/quote] So that was what these were. How much did they heal, though? And how much HP did he actually have? How much damage had that Wisp’s blast even done to him--it didn’t feel like he was in any real danger, but it had certainly stung. But while he pondered these things, he suddenly felt a slight prickle on the back of his...goo. And there, standing behind him, was a [u][b]glaring goblin[/b][/u]…! [hr] [h3][b]The Bonfire[/b][/h3] [hr] [@Old Amsterdam][@Rune_Alchemist][@UltraCraftGames][@Renny] As [u][b]Yoda[/b][/u], still hidden, watched from behind the rock the area around the bonfire grew more chaotic by the moment. What would he do? Would he try to save these monsters that the Goblins were trying to kill? Would he side with his own kind? That one with the red markings had been present at his rebirth, and had called the silhouette he remembered seeing--very possibly Yoda’s father--”Boss.” Did that mean he was the second in command of this cavern’s boss monster? *** [u][b]Peter[/b][/u] managed to dodge the swing of the stick, but when he stopped to deliver his warning, Crispy raised his arm and held the fireball ready to throw--! To Peter’s extraordinary luck, [u][b]Rain[/b][/u] chose just that moment to intervene. As focused as he was on Peter, and with her stealth skill, Crispy failed to notice the Lizard even after her poison splashed into his eyes. He screeched, losing concentration and dispersing the fireball, and shook his head until his vision could clear. By that time Rain had disappeared--but she could tell, if she glanced back over her shoulder, that Crispy might have been a little damaged yet did not seem as affected by the actual poison compared to other prey she had used it on since her birth. Did he possibly have some level of resistance to it? Peter’s luck didn’t last, though, and even though he managed to get away, one of the Goblins chasing him managed to get just close enough that a wild swing of its hand slapped the Wisp. His path through the air was thrown into a dizzying loop-de-loop, and when he regained control he felt pain and fear in equal amounts. [quote=System] [color=red]WARNING![/color] You are low on HP! [/quote] *** “Bah! Leave it!” Crispy screeched, and the goblins reluctantly turned back. “The Boss is going to be back soon! Go find the younglings, bring them to me!” With that said, the Goblins began to look around. Some of them immediately found one of the newborn goblins--from the same generation as Yoda, but it was unknown if any of them were reincarnated like him--and began marching them back towards the camp. Would Yoda wait for them to come for him too? *** As [u][b]Ash[/b][/u] approached she took in all the pandemonium at a glance, but what would she make of all this? As for her search for utensils, it didn’t seem that it would bear much fruit at the current moment--the Goblins didn’t seem to be using the fire for actually cooking anything right now, just satisfying whatever mad craving this one they called Crispy had for big fires. But that other Fanged Lizard had lobbed a ball of poison at him, and it might occur to Ash that the goblins probably would not be able to tell--or care--the differences between one lizard and another... [hr] [h3][b]The Exit[/b][/h3] [hr] [@Gobby] As [u][b]Puck[/b][/u] taunted the goblins, they redoubled their efforts. It probably had not been such a bright idea, as the goblins easily outnumbered him and seemed a slight bit faster even though he was in the air--at one point one of their flailing hands struck him, and if it hadn’t been for his Shield he could have been in even more trouble. As he took the hit he still felt it rattle his small frame, and he tumbled through the air for a ways before regaining his flight. But soon he had risen high enough that they couldn’t catch him, even by jumping and climbing over one another. “Oi! Let it be!” called the big one. Now that Puck was up higher, he could see what this [u][b]creature[/b][/u] really was. Like the Goblins he had green skin and a bulbous nose, but that skin was only evident upon his face, chest, and extremities somewhat like a gorilla. Everywhere else on his body was covered with thick, coarse black fur that probably could have used a wash three months ago. He stood a full foot taller than the tallest goblin, and had about twice as much muscle mass, mostly concentrated in his upper body. He was wearing a bunch of what looked to be firewood, split multiple times until it became flat planks, which had then been bound with vines around his chest. He also had on a belt of vines and leaves, and straw sandals--all of it looked to be handmade with all the precision of a caveman. And in one hand he carried the most sophisticated weapon of any of the goblins Puck had seen thus far--a wooden handle with a fire-hardened slot, into which was bound a rock that had been sharpened smooth. A type of stone axe--or more properly, a celt, if Puck was up to date on his primitive technology. “Pixies is too bony anyways. When I take the newbies huntin’ we’ll get us a big ol’ fat rat.” The boss scratched his chest with one hand, and used the axe to rub the back of his head at the same time. “You two, guard the entrance! The rest of ya, let’s go!” He began to lead the other goblins away. The [u][b]two guards[/b][/u]--armed with sharpened sticks and a few throwing stones in a pouch of leaves next to their vine loincloths--took up practiced positions on either side of the light-filled archway at the front of the cave. If they had throwing weapons and were any good with them, Puck might find it very difficult to get past them... [hr] [h3][b]Elsewhere[/b][/h3] [hr] [@King Cosmos] [quote=System] Used Skill: Magic Analysis I ---Minor Heal I--- [i]The most basic of healing spells. In most cases, only surface level wounds are affected. Cannot cure diseases. Will accelerate certain conditions such as malignant tumors.[/i] ---Shield I--- [i]The most basic of defensive support spells. An aura effect reduces incoming damage, but no physical barrier or counteractive forces are generated. Only natural resistances to damage are reinforced. Can be cast on objects.[/i] ---Magic Analysis I--- [i]FEEDBACK ERROR[/i] ---Analysis Complete--- [/quote] Just as [u][b]Jacob[/b][/u] was pondering whether or not to leave his crevice, it seemed the decision would be made for him. At that very moment, something began to ooze from a crack in the ceiling--purple goop? It kept coming, and soon the flow increased in speed and size. And once it almost completely filled his crevice, the purple slime burbled and lashed out at the pixie with one of its pseudopods! With the limited room of the crevice, the slime would probably find it difficult to attack, and it certainly couldn’t move well enough to dodge an attack. But...what did Jacob have to attack it with? He might have to get creative...