[h2]Ash’s Party and Orchid[/h2] As the visions from the dream began to grow foggy, fading further away with each grain of her focus that returned to her body like sand in the hourglass, Ash returned to the world of sensation. But she found herself in a situation that seemed familiar, yet so distant. Though it had only been a little over a week, what a long and eventful period that had turned out to be. Much like when she had hatched from her egg, she now felt herself constrained--much more tightly--by the gray, leathery shell around her. Yet there was something new about this situation as well. From her shoulder blades, she could feel the twitch and cramp of new muscles, and the strain of what seemed to be like skin stretched thin, like trying to spread one's fingers too far apart. Speaking of cramps, her neck as well felt constrained. Like sleeping on one's pillow at the wrong angle, the muscles protested any movement, yet the shell around her was even more restricting. She had grown so used to having a tail by this point, it took longer to notice the changes here compared to the rest of her body. Yet that too was no longer the same--it no longer seemed to drag the ground by default, and rather it felt much more comfortable to curl it upward over her back. And once again the shell was in the way--but at the tip of her tail, she could feel what seemed like an extra claw, and an odd muscle that reminded her of the fangs in her throat. Which, now that she ran her tongue along her teeth, seemed to have shrunk significantly. But outside the shell, she could hear something...something very LOUD... [quote=System:Ash] TRANSFORMATION COMPLETE! Fanged Lizard > (Immature) Pygmy Drake You have Transformed! All Base Stats Slightly Increased! You Max MP has Increased! You have not reached your full Potential. The Skill Mana Orb is reduced to (0.5). You have not reached your full Potential. The Skill Dragon Affinity is reduced to (0.25). Increase it by deepening your understanding of Dragons. You have gained the Skill: Lesser Flight I! This Skill allows for flight over short distances at a "walking" pace. Carrying objects is difficult. This skill relies on one's physical ability to fly with Wings or some other form of propulsion. Your Skill: Poison Spit (1.9) has been Converted to Poison Spray (1.9)! This Skill sprays an acidic venom, but despite using the term "spray" it is more like a concentrated stream, compared to spitting water from one's mouth. It has no AoE effect. Its damage, range, and other attributes are virtually identical to Poison Spit, but it is launched from your stinger. Your Skill: Stun Fang (2.0) has been Converted to Stun Stinger (2.0)! This Skill releases a paralyzing toxin into the opponent's body through a stinger on one's tail or other body part. Its damage, chance to inflict status, and other attributes are virtually identical to Stun Fang. [hider]Feel free to use your previous colors, patterns, etc, but this is a general idea of physical appearance for the usual Pygmy Drake.[img]https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/forgottenrealms/images/d/d6/Pseudodragon-5e.png/revision/latest?cb=20180627022549[/img][/hider] [/quote] [hr] As Orchid raised her torch, causing the firelight to cast a long shadow from her form and create an outline around her body from the lower viewpoint of poor Colchain, the Lizard stepped back a pace. He still hissed and thrashed his tail, but in response Orchid let out a savage scream. Colchain had been caught by Goblins once, and no one had fed him enough to convince him to stay around for this--and Ash wasn't going to be putting her foot on his neck in the next few moments either. In the face of a much larger predator, relatively bereft of allies, and without much motivation pushing him to remain loyal, Colchain acted on his instincts. Whirling on all four feet, the Fanged Lizard headed for the hills. Or the rocks. Either way, he was going, going, gone. [quote=System:Ash] Dominated Fanged Lizard: Colchain has left your party! [/quote] [hr] [h2]Bonfire Battles[/h2] [quote=LOOT] 11 Mana Crystals Remain [/quote] [h3]Ardur, Digbie, Mourningstar, Rain, Danny VS Rattleskull[/h3] [u][b]1st Turn:[/b][/u] As Rain rushed up Rattleskull's leg, he was already trying to shove the Healing Herb into his mouth. His club-arm tried to swipe her off, but he barely missed his own kneecap in the process while failing to catch the fast-moving lizard. Just as he nearly choked himself on the Herb she snapped at his forearm, grazing the furry flesh with her fangs. He drew his free hand back, furiously chewing, but before he could strike her she let loose a cloud of Poison Breath right into his face--he couldn't help but take a nose-full of it as he swallowed the Herb. All over his body his wounds began to rapidly heal, but the Herb couldn't fix status effects by itself and the wounds he was still receiving still stung. As his eyes teared up the goblin boss shook his head with a wailing scream, his nose running and burning thanks to Rain's venom. Rain once again felt the warm, comforting tingle of a healing spell being used on her, and as Ardur zoomed past the System informed the Fanged Lizard that her HP was once again full. Rattleskull screamed again, this time because the new Wisp in the group had darted down and apparently jabbed him in the eye with its invisible, telekinetic force. Without a way to see the attack coming the big monster couldn't do much to stop it, but it also didn't do much real damage--however, for the moment the enemy was half-blind and distracted! [h3]Jason, Oberon, Asura, Asteria, Ed, Momma Slime VS Brawny Goblin, Bitchy Goblin, Brawny Minion[/h3] Upon grabbing the female Goblin and wrestling her down alongside Mother Rat, Jason's psychic scream certainly caused the greenskin to recoil in fear and turn towards him with shocked eyes. At the same moment the rat matriarch tore the [b][Badly-Made Stone Spear][/b] from the girl's grasp, and then Jason's Rock Spire pierced her from behind. She gurgled and grasped at the rocky blade coming out of her stomach, before vomiting blood down her chest as her eyes rolled back into her head, and her body went limp. With this the last of the Brawny Team had been slaughtered. In the brief respite, several members of the group took the opportunity to get their bearings or process new information. In Oberon's case, he felt a dull throbbing in his head, but not anything quite at the level of blinding pain from before. [quote=System:Oberon] Unspent Skill Points: 4 Current Skills: Minor Heal I (1.65) Lesser Flight II (2.25) Shield III (3.0875) Magic Analysis III (3.4125) Mana Orb I (1.3) Mana Shape I (1.1) Lesser Status Heal (1.1) Mana Dart I (1.15) Meditation (0.4) Focus (0.5) Monster Analysis (0.6) Material Analysis (0.1) Plant Analysis (0.1) Mental Resistance (0.3) Wall (0.1) Faster (0.4) Alert (0.2) Minor Regeneration (0.6) Charisma (0.8) Keen Sight (0.1) [/quote] As Asteria used her Analysis Skill on Momma Slime, the big blue blob turned its attention with a slight shift of its body mass towards the Dire Rat speaking to it. While her membrane vibrated curiously, the slime crunched on some vaguely recognizable bit of the Brawny Goblin's anatomy, which soon began dissolving into a bloody mess inside the ocean-tinted mass. [quote=System:Asteria] You used Monster Analysis I! You are somewhat familiar with this Monster. ---Adult Slime--- Slimes are amorphous creatures more similar to undeveloped egg yolks, yet they are able to move on their own and digest prey. Their bodies are highly resistant to physical damage and malleable. You know that this one is called Momma Slime. She seems stronger than the average Slime. ---Analysis Complete--- [/quote] Asura and Ed dashed off in the direction of the battle with Rattleskull, with Momma Slime soon following behind. Shortly after Jason and Asteria followed, as did Oberon, and the rolling slimes soon began to outpace the others as the two rats decided to try and be sneaky in their assault... [hr] [h3]Ardur, Digbie, Mourningstar, Rain, Danny, Asura, Ed, Asteria, Momma Slime, Jason, Oberon VS Rattleskull[/h3] [u][b]2nd Turn:[/b][/u] As Ardur passed by Digbie, he cast his Minor Heal II on the goblin as well. Like Rain, the System told Digbie that his HP was back to full, and though his teeth didn't grow back, the soft cartilage of his nose snapped back into place painfully before it finished healing. However, the Pixie couldn't cast two spells at once, so while he felt his magic being drained to heal Digbie he would be forced to wait for a moment. While this was going on the Goblin re-equipped the Stone Spike he had taken as his signature weapon, and headed back into the fray. As Rain let loose another Poison Glob, Rattleskull scrambled to his feet and shoved her off. She didn't have as far to fall this time and was able to land safely, as her Glob burned the boss's hide. "ARRRRGH! WHY NONE OF YOUSE DIE!?" He tried to swing his club at her, but thanks to Danny's earlier distraction one eye still couldn't see, and as a result his strike was off. The heavy stone blade struck just inches away from Rain, sending up a shower of rock chips and dust, but did her no harm. At this moment, Asura, Momma Slime, and Jason could be seen rapidly rolling up to the party--but where were the three Dire Rats? [u][b]3rd Turn:[/b][/u] Ardur completed his Shield spell on Digbie, then rushed off to find more dirt to throw in the boss's face. The smaller Goblin charged his possible-father-figure and swung with all his might, as his weapon erupted with golden light. Rattleskull tried to block it with his own weapon--and in an almost-explosion, wood splinters and cracked bits of rock flew! Both weapons shattered from the force of impact, leaving both Goblins unarmed! Rattleskull's club had suffered enough damage to significantly weaken it, while Digbie's had never really been "crafted" to stand up to these kinds of impacts, and while it was very hard, that same hardness also made it brittle. Jason's War Cry rang out, immediately drawing the boss's attention--just in time for Asura to slam into him at full speed! The breath was driven from Rattleskull's lungs as he was pushed backwards, the red ball spinning into his midsection for several seconds. The boss's heels dug furrows into the earth before Asura bounced off back onto the ground. Rattleskull snarled--then he suddenly clutched his stomach, and threw up a stomach-load of bile. Some of the group had probably seen this effect a few times by now on monsters that had been Poisoned--despite his resistances, Rain had been bombarding him with it all this time, and the Healing Herb hadn't helped with this particular form of damage. [quote=System:Ardur] Skill Rank Up: Shield I > Shield II! As an Active Spell Skill, you may choose to cast I or II. From Full MP, you have enough MP to cast the first rank 3 times with little leftover, the second can only be cast twice with some MP left over. You are currently not at Full MP. LEVEL UP! Your learning experiences have culminated in new power! You gain Skill Points to use as you please! Unspent Skill Points: [color=red]7[/color] Current Skills: Shield II (2.0) Lesser Flight III (3.075) Minor Heal III (3.45) Physical Conditioning I (1.0) Fire Resistance I (1.25) Keen Sight (0.5) Keen Ear (0.1) Muffle (0.6) Alchemy (0.5) Crafting (0.5) Taming (0.6) Faster (0.3) Magic Analysis (0.55) Mana Orb (0.15) Fireball (0.4) Focus (0.45) Throw Voice (0.1) Mana Strike (0.65) Point Strike (0.6) Charisma (0.2) Soothe Song (0.15) Stronger (0.6) Harder (0.1) Alert (0.2) Reinforce (0.1) Throw Item (0.5) Meditate (0.1) Stone Shot (0.5) Inspire (0.4) Guidance (0.2) Iron Gullet (0.1) Soil Manipulation (0.2) [/quote] [u][b]4th Turn:[/b][/u] Having taken longer to arrive due to their stealthy approach, Asteria and Ed both leaped out of the shadows. Ed activated his Rabid Fit, and Asteria joined Rain. The Lizard had returned to her sheer-hate driven attack on Rattleskull's leg, and with Asteria helping her while Ed went berserk on the other one, they managed to effectively hamstring the behemoth goblinoid, drawing yet another scream from him as he went down on both knees. He reached back, however, flailing wildly with both arms and managing to knock the smaller creatures away--however, it was clear he was getting worn down at this point. The three monsters took damage, but what would have likely been a near-killing blow to just one of them proved only moderately damaged split among the three. Jason retrieved his Source Crystal, for some reason deciding that the very midst of battle was a good time to use it--then again, maybe he had a point, as Rattleskull heaved exhausted breaths... [quote=System:Jason] You used a Source Crystal! ---Target:Rattleskull--- This is Rattleskull. He is a male Bugbear. He is Level 10 and roughly 4 years old. Bugbears are an evolved form of the Goblin. Less suited to the natural cleverness or deftness of their smaller cousins, they more than make up for this with their toughness and strength. Their thick fur allows them to venture out from their caves or huts into many different environments. Their strength allows them to use larger types of equipment, and they'll often bully other goblins around as the leaders of small tribes. They can almost never work together with other Bugbears, as the species is highly aggressive and competitive. Rattleskull possesses the following Skills: Smash II, Poison Resistance II, Use Light Equipment, Use Medium Equipment, Crafting II, Intimidate I, Stronger I, Harder I, Magic Resistance I. Rattleskull is developing the following skills: Blunt Resistance I, Rabid Fit I, Slash Resistance I, Pierce Resistance I, Slash I, Skewer I, Fire Resistance I, Alert I, Keen Sight I, Keen Smell I, Iron Gullet I. Rattleskull has the following items equipped: Wooden Armor (Bad Quality), Woven Cane Headband (Average Quality), Straw Sandles (Average Quality), Vine Belt (Bad Quality). Rattleskull's HP is Low. Rattleskull has a naturally low amount of MP. Rattleskull is at Full MP. Rattleskull has a high amount of Stamina. Rattleskull has used up roughly half his Stamina. Rattleskull is currently Poisoned. [/quote] At this point the Source Crystal ran out of Charge, although it would automatically consume 1 of Jason's Mana Crystals from his inventory if he had any left. His head was beginning to throb slightly, and it seemed he had lost track of time. While he had been staring at the Source Crystal, Ardur had done another fly-by to throw dirt in Rattleskull's face, and the Bugbear covered his eyes to keep from being blinded--in the process, of course, blinding himself. Just in time for Momma Slime to lunge forward--she had too much mass to pull off the same kind of maneuver as Asura, but she went for the typical Slime-standby of just walloping the foe with her entire body mass. Rattleskull was actually knocked to the ground by this larger monster's blow, and his roars suddenly became more like...sobs? [u][b]5th Turn:[/b][/u] "N-not fair! Dun unnerstan!! How!? Why all youse gangin' up, you alls differ'nt!" the boss wailed, desperately trying to get back on his feet and wobbling in the process. "YOU NOT ACT LIKE MOBS S'POSED TO ACT! WHAT ARE YOUSE?!" "KNOW DESPAIR RATTLESKULL, FOR YOUR END HAS COME!!!" As Jason shouted, Rattleskull turned towards him and immediately charged, pulling back both hands and grasping them together like a hammer of flesh and bone. If Jason had been using the Source Crystal, it would have told him that one of Rattleskull's developing skills had just ticked over--Rabid Fit. The Bugbear began to froth at the mouth as his eyes turned bloodshot and his muscles bulged even more than usual...and then on top of that--! "SMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!" The red, crackling energy of this Rank II attack was now an even darker, bloodier red thanks to the damage boost from the new skill. The blow came down towards Jason--even with his increased defense, he suddenly felt a spike of instinct in his head screaming "Danger!" at him! Then Oberon cast Shield III. Shield III was not a barrier. The spell increased the target's natural defenses. So on a Pixie, which was a physically frail creature, it actually wasn't all that useful in the grand scheme of things, especially if the opponent was not only stronger, but had better equipment. However, casting it on a monster with an already much higher defense than usual... Rattleskull's fists came down right on top of Jason's pointy hat. As his body was compressed hard enough to even crack the stone underneath him, creating a small crater around the Slime Mage, the Shield gave way, and Jason felt a powerful pressure bearing down on him--then Rattleskull's blow bled out its momentum, and his fists were bounced back from that green, gelatinous body. It even made a distinctive, almost [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twPopPwtQJU]comical sound.[/url] "ROCK SPIRE-- EARTH'S WRATH!!!!" As Jason added that little flourish to his spell, he suddenly felt an extra surge of magic somewhere within him. The bright glow that opened up beneath Rattleskull's feat seemed bigger, stronger--and now, it actually formed a shape. A geometrically perfect circle? Two rings, in fact, the larger one spinning clock-wise while the smaller spun in the opposite direction. And at the center of this circle was a rapidly panicking Bugbear. "YOUSE--YOUSE IS ALL--" Even the rocky spike seemed to have more oomph for some reason, actually leaving the ground and shooting upward this time-- "--MONSTEEEEEEEEERRRRRSSS--HURGHLF--" Then Rattleskull died. His body, with a stoney spike sticking diagonally through his navel and coming out between his shoulder blades, slumped to the ground. [[System Rewards Pending due to Post Already Being Really Long]] [h2]Other Goblins[/h2] With the Wispmother dealt with, Crispy ordered the other Goblins to pull back for the moment. They had captured a great deal of territory, and could now safely camp so long as they put up a guard to make sure none of these odd monsters came into their area. It would be difficult to convince Rattleskull to pull back, but at this point it was almost dawn, and all of their warriors were sure to be exhausted. "Youse all stay here, maybe one of two of yas go get the fire back at the entrance stoked up again and try to move it closer to here!" Crispy ordered. "I'm gonna give da signal for da udda guys to come back! Once we regroup, if Rattleskull don't show up we'll have to go get him!" After a few moments of preparation, Crispy fired a Fireball--larger than what he usually managed--straight up into the air. It was visible for quite some distance across the cave, and when it rose high enough it reached its limit and exploded, producing a short lived, but effective flare signal... [h2]Jason's Cave[/h2] Inside the enormous green gem, sticking out of the ground like the horn of some grand beast, a red light had been growing. This object, which now could be identified as a much larger, perhaps much more powerful Source Crystal--an object connected to the root of this new, strange world--now bore a red sphere in its deepest depths. A few minutes ago, another smaller, red sphere--almost like those Wisps out there in the bigger cave--had flicked, coming up from the base of the Source Crystal like a molecule of water being drawn up the roots of a tree. And now, another red flicker appeared. But it was much larger, not a mere molecule but an entire drop. Blood red and shivering, as if filled with terror, it too joined the mass in the crystal's depths. With a sound like water freezing over, the red light began to solidify...