[h3]Monster Party[/h3] [quote=System:Ash] You are Crafting an Item! You've Processed an Item: Rubber Frog Bone + Pygmy Drake Claws Your material is brittle, it may degrade during Processing. Your Crafting I skill prevented item degradation! Processed Bone Spearhead. You've Processed an Item: Rubber Frog Intestine + Water Processed Rubber Frog Intestine. You've Processed an Item: Fresh Tree Branch + Pygmy Drake Claws Your methods are advanced compared to your materials, effectiveness boosted. Processed Carved Tree Branch. Bone Spearhead + Carved Tree Branch + Mana Crystal + Rubber Frog Intestine + Rubber Frog Tongue Your methods are advanced compared to your materials, effectiveness boosted. You are missing certain skills required for some components, effectiveness greatly decreased. Your Crafting I skill prevented some item degradation. Some materials have not been thoroughly processed, they may degrade over time. Crafting complete! Obtained Item: Mana Bone Spear! You used Magic Analysis II! You used Material Analysis II! You used Mana Sense I! You used Mana Vision I! ---Mana Bone Spear (Average)--- This weapon features a Mana Crystal in its construction. The Mana Crystal has not been truly incorporated into the item, and it has no proper enchantments. Only the Energy element is present, though in a slightly larger quantity. The weapons' components were an Above Average wooden shaft, an Average blade made from bone, and Below Average cordage made from organic tissues that had not been dried or treated with preservatives. The craftsmanship is above average, however, given the quality and type of these materials. This weapon is [b]stronger[/b] than its base components, and its reach and leverage allow for [b]faster[/b] strikes. The Mana Crystal will be consumed upon usage, but could restore the User's magical power, or increase a spell's effectiveness when used as a focus. Once consumed, the Mana Crystal will not recharge. The weapon can still be enchanted, but an enchantment charge will not restore the use of the Mana Crystal. STRUCTURE: UNABLE TO ANALYZE STRUCTURE. ERROR: LOW RANK. ERROR: LACK OF DATA. [/quote] Ash's newly created staff-slash-spear looked about as one might imagine it to look, save that the organic cordage she had used--while wrapped and tied tightly--was still a little, so to say, drippy. Maybe once it dried it wouldn't look that much different from leather, but at the moment it was still very fresh. In any case, however, given what the system told her it seemed that adding some kind of enchantment to an object or turning it into a magical conduit was a little more complex than this. Still, at the least she had a pointy object to stab things with now...though she still lacked opposable thumbs. She could hold it with Lesser Force, but fighting with it seemed it would require too much fine manipulation for an object of this weight. Maybe if Lesser Force were stronger she could manage it, or maybe if she only used large, sweeping motions that didn't require a lot of precision. She could put her new Prehensile Tail skill to use, but even so she couldn't manipulate it like she could with five separate fingers. Outside the shelter, Torrent could feel her mana moving when she tried to use the air and ice breath attacks, but so far the skills weren't triggering a lot of visible indicators. Her forceful breath rippled the waters of the little stream, but despite puffing up her lungs to full capacity and then some it didn't seem like she could produce anything more than a hard gasp. Still, she could feel her magical power flowing through the breath just like it did with the gaseous poison, and with the flames. But it was [i]too[/i] light, it seemed like. Air was...well, airy. As much of it as she tried to draw in, it was still just air. Unless you were made of paper, someone blowing really hard wasn't going to do much to you. So...what solution was there? To just keep trying it out, maybe develop whatever magical "muscles" were needed for these things? Or was there another method she could use? For her attempt at making an icy skill, she found that her inner visualization brought on an almost palpable chill. The numbness of her past, the prick of icy needles on her skin, the dark nights speckled with floating white powder...When she breathed out, her breath took on a fog. But it wasn't her fog breath--it floated up and away, dissolving so quick as to be instant in the light and heat of the sun. Her body shivered, an instinctual reaction to bringing up all those memories. When she made another attempt, remembering her poison breath, again she produced a cold fog, like the vapor from her breath when she used to puff on her trembling, frost-bitten hands in front of a rusted out barrel full of burning junk. Despite this stronger response, however, this skill too hadn't yet triggered. Downstream, Oberon continued his own practice. After much thought, he came to the conclusion of allowing the Mana Orb to break apart, but then seize each piece and try to hold them together. Mentally he pictured it like a fluttering cloud of flower petals. So after his internal analysis, he created another Mana Orb and began to infuse it with the magic in the surrounding air. As it began to spin, he kept track of one particular "petal," and when it began to drift away he tried to redirect it with his will. Another piece broke away and he did the same, then another. Again the processes repeated, but as Oberon tried to redirect each of these pieces he found that each one had deviated from its original spin just a bit--the direction, or the speed, or the angle, something was different each time, and as he tried to keep them centered in his palm-- There was a sudden snap and whistle, like a gale through the trees, and Oberon lost concentration as pain lanced his hand. A small wound, no worse than a papercut, had formed on his palm. A single drop of blood oozed to the surface of his skin. The Mana Orb, of course, had dispersed--and in doing so, those "petals" he imagined had broken free and gone their separate ways. What had happened? Had he intensified the power too much? Or was it something to do with trying to hold the petals in while they tried to escape? Maybe, when they were trying to go in those different directions, it was like...a miniature tornado? Weren't those formed when two different currents of air collided? Of course, the Sprite wasn't moving nearly that much air in terms of quantity, nor was he moving it anywhere near that speed. But, each of those petals had been moving in a different direction...focused around a singular "focus point," and then the air pressure had just...snapped? What could all of this mean? [hr] [h3]Digbie[/h3] [quote=System:Digbie] NOTE: INFORMATION OVERLOAD, INFORMATION OUT OF DATE [color=00aeef][b]Name:[/b][/color] Digbie Yondir [color=00aeef][b]Gender:[/b][/color] Male [color=00aeef][b]Species:[/b][/color] Goblin > [color=blue]Mystic[/color] [color=gold]Stone-Hardened[/color] Demigoblin [b]Appearance:[/b] It's your standard goblin, though he has a far weaker chin than most goblins. Honestly, he just looks like a really short human with green skin, a long and pointy nose, and pointed ears. He has hair, but it's only growing right above the middle of his head like a mohawk, and it refuses to spread anywhere else on his head. It's actually kinda long. [b]Goals:[/b] Help whoever needs help (namely the Demon King), and find a legendary shovel to help people with. [b]Past Life:[/b] Digbie didn't really have a life. It was more or less just a collection of him existing and being somebody that he couldn't tell people about. His dad said something about how his mom was still around and he loved her, but Digbie never saw her. He suspected that she was in the back room of his old house, where it smelled, was obnoxiously cold from an under-draft, and always buzzed like flies, but he wasn't ever allowed in there. Early on in his life, Digbie liked to play around in the backyard with his trusty shovel, digging around everywhere and getting into gardening (though he was never any good at the latter.) When he wasn't at school, he was probably digging a hole in his backyard. It helped him cope with the skulls of people in his room when his dad was apparently 'done' with them. Digbie couldn't understand, and he didn't understand why he came home sometimes to find his holes covered up. At first it scared him, but he grew out of it. He was around 14 or so, making somewhat respectable grades at his school and a pretty smart fellow at face value, when his dad got mad at him. He made a low grade in his history class. His dad yelled at him and cast him to the bathroom while he thought about how to punish his bastard of a son. Digbie was scared, but Digbie was also smart and didn't break the bathroom to worsen the punishment. His dad settled on turning his hobby into a punishment, and after feeding him a good meal, sent Digbie to the backyard to dig a hole and find a bone in the backyard, but he had to find a bone in a spot of the yard where he had never dug before. Digbie began to dig a hole on Sunday. The authorities found his body in the hole two Saturdays later. He actually got pretty far. [color=00aeef][b]Abilities:[/b][/color] **Use Light Equipment (--) Tremor Sense III (3.225) -Soil Manipulation II (2.825) Stone Shot II (2.0) Taboo I (1.0) *Stronger I (1.5) **Sacred Ground II (2.1) Rock Spire II (2.2) Earth Affinity I (1.3) Meditate I (1.5) Earth Vein II (2.325) -Spell Chant I (1.025) Monster Analysis I (1.175) Material Analysis I (1.725) Plant Analysis I (1.2525) *Mental Resistance I (1.1) Fortify I (1.1) *Mana Orb (1.7) **Shield II (2.25) Overwork I (1.75) Mana Affinity I (1.0) Magic Analysis I (1.675) Analysis (--) **Earth Wall I (1.8) *Minor Heal I (1.15) Guidance I (1.3) Quake (0.5) Crafting (0.8) *Point Strike (0.6) *Smash (0.6) Throw Item (0.2) Charisma (0.1) *Mana Strike (0.3) Focus (0.1) Stone Fist (0.6) *Stone Breaker (0.2) Intimidate (0.2) -Scribe (0.2) *Fire Resistance (0.3) Demon Affinity (0.25) Underground Movement (0.5) **Use Medium Equipment (0.2) Faster (0.1) Alert (0.1) Dual Cast (0.5) Pacify Animal (0.1) [color=00aeef][b]Transformations:[/b][/color] Goblin > Demigoblin [color=00aeef][b]Inventory:[/b][/color] The Windy Shovel - A shovel made out of pure air. Blessed White Yill Flower Makeshift Robe Grass Skirt Curved RockTM Battle-Scarred Shield Woven Sandals [+] and (TOTAL INVENTORY SLOTS - 12 / 17) - - {Poor - Heavily Damaged} - x5 - x3 - - - - 3 Gol, 2 Sil, 8 Copp, (so basically 3.28) - {Well Made - BROKEN} Your HP is Full. Your MP is Depleting Slowly due to Passive Skill Use. Your MP is Recovering Slowly due to Frequent use of Skill: Earth Vein. Your Stamina is high. You are Fine. TRANSFORMATION STATUS: Goblin > Demigoblin Known Currently Possible Transformations: 6 1. Adult Demigoblin 2. Adolescent Svartblin**** 3. Adolescent Hobgoblin** 4. Adolescent Bluecap** 5. Adolescent Gremlin 6. Adolescent Bugbear--- Unknown Currently Possible Transformations: 3 [/quote] As Digbie walked back from the scene of carnage, the flood of information produced a ringing sound inside his skull that made reading the prayer book impossible. Once it had subsided, however, he rose from where he had fallen to his knees. He turned each page to see the strange words written within. Or, what pages were left. It looked like part of the table of contents had been ripped out, along with other pages towards the middle and back of the book. Blood spattered a large portion of the later half, and smudges of dirt disoriented the words here and there. This alphabet didn't look familiar at all, yet somehow after a few moments of staring at them Digbie could read them just as plainly... [indent][center][i][sub]The Avatar begins the service with one or more of these sentences of Jehanne's Scripture, or with the phrase "O Lady, open thou our hearts" on page 42.[/sub] [u]During the Week of Kindling:[/u] Watch thyself, for ye know not when the Demons of thine own house shall entreat thee, at even, or at midnight, or at the cluckel's caw, or in the morning; lest appearing by surprise they find thine heart unguarded. Prepare ye the way of Our Maiden, make straight upon thy path a bricked road for Her. Then the glory of Jehanne shalt be revealed to thee, and all eyes upon ye shall see it together. [u]On Maiden's Day:[/u] Behold, She brought us tidings of a great joy, which shall be unto all that hear them. For unto us she swore upon the Pyre to love and to cherish, despite the evils placed against her. Behold, her compassion is with our plight, and she comforts us. If ye wouldst cling unto the Maiden, then so ye must be with her upon that flame. [u]Feast of Five Lords:[/u] The Demons shall come to Maiden's light, and the Five Lords to the brightness of her rising. She was given by the Maker as a light to the damned, that she mightest be thine encouragement to atone by all thine wickedness. From the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same, the Maker's Order shall fall upon the world, and in every place let incense be offered by Her memory, and a pure offering to the pyre; for her name is great among the damned, saith the Maker. [u]Great Fast:[/u] If we say we have done no evil, we deceive ourselves, and the Demons begin to take hold of us; but if we confess our crimes, Jehanne is faithful and just to forgive us what we have done, and to embrace us that we may be turned upon a new path. Cleave thy stubborn, wooden heart, and turn unto her and the Maker, for she is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and shalt show ye the safe road. Ye shall arise and go to her, and will say unto her, "Maiden, I have committed this taboo, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy child. To the Maker belongs all the Making, though Humanity hath rebelled against the Order; neither have we obeyed the voice of the Lady our Maiden, to walk in the roads which were set before us. Jehanne said, "Whosoever will cometh after me, let him deny his own wrath, take up his bundles, and follow me in loving thine fellows." [u]Spirits' Time:[/u] All we--[/i][/center][/indent] The next few pages of the book had been torn, or otherwise rendered illegible. The pages before that had just been what seemed to be legal or literary jargon, things like copyrights and proof of authenticity by the Temple and Order that must have produced this book. But in conclusion, Digbie had thus far learned a few things. Jehanne was some kind of atonement figure, perhaps a deity that only corresponded to justice or mercy. No real instructions had been given to the reader on how to actually pray to her yet, but these different holidays and rituals mentioned thus far might provide some clue. Burning incense? Pyres? Gathered bundles--bundles of wood, maybe? So did she require a ritual involving burnt offerings of some kind? Just then, Digbie's Tremor Sense picked up something. A shape, low to the ground, hidden under a pile of brush up ahead. If Digbie hadn't been somehow aware of his surroundings, he would have nearly stepped on it! But the creature seemed to be waiting on that very thing--now that he knew where to look for it, Digbie would be able to make out just the barest glint of scales under the leaves. A Fanged Lizard, probably waiting to try and paralyze him with its bite or hit and run until its poison killed the prey. His tremor sense picked up a rapid heartbeat, or maybe something with the rhythm of its breathing...was this creature injured too, like the deer he had seen or the odd monkey in the trees? [hr] [h3]PixieSlime Party[/h3] [quote=System:Asura] Current Skills: Physical Damage Resistance I (1.86) Overwork I (1.8) > II (2.0) Blunt Resistance I (1.85) Limited Shapeshift III (3.875) Smash II (2.225) Pierce Resistance I (1.3) Faster I (1.8) Magic Resistance I (1.1) Harder I (1.15) Counter I (1.25) Cling I (1.2) Slime Whip I (1.3) Throw Item I (1.0) Rabid Fit I (1.0) Iron Gullet I (1.45) Monster Analysis I (1.35) Stamina Furnace I (1.15) Mental Resistance I (1.0) Stronger I (1.05) Slime Shell I (1.2) Earth Resist (0.7) Charisma (0.5) Dextrous (0.4) Soil Manipulation (0.6) Stone Shot (0.55) Slime Coil (0.4) Magic Analysis (0.5) Bounce (0.5) Muffle (0.3) Poison Resistance (0.2) Dash Attack (0.4) Spiritual Awareness (0.2) Intimidate (0.3) Blood Drain (0.9) First Aid (0.2) Acid Spit (0.2) Skewer (0.7) Slash (0.4) Fire Resistance (0.3) Water Resistance (0.0125) Focus (0.4) Alert (0.3) Fortify (0.1) Point Strike (0.3) Cleave (0.2) Crafting (0.3) Acid Spit (0.2) Material Analysis (0.1) [/quote] The frog Asura had run through didn't look like it was going to make it, as it dragged itself along the ground in a trail of blood. Ardur managed to hold his ground long enough for the red slime to create a large blade, though using so much of his mass left him little leverage to swing the weapon. Still, gravity did most of the work, and the impromptu weapon came down on the tautly drawn tongue with a snicker-snack. Like a popped rubber band, the frog's stretchy flesh snapped back, slapping it in the face and spraying blood everywhere. The creature croaked in pain, but couldn't draw its tongue back in lest it choke on its own blood. Even though the flesh was more elastic, the tongue was still an organ that bled profusely. The frog began to gather up its pink, rope-like muscle in its webbed forefeet as Ardur struggled out of the other end. Momma Slime mimicked Asura by repeating the attack she had used against the Flak Beetle, forming a large ball-and-tendril weapon with the Bone Needles to serve as spikes. Her Smash attack reduced what was left of the fragments to dust, but also bludgeoned the unconscious frog to death as Steve leaped off of its head. With a furious cry, Ardur freed himself and leaped at the last bloodied amphibian. Grabbing both sides of its head, he leaped up and used his wings and his entire body to drive his knee into the creature's snout. With a meaty crunch, the rubbery toad's skull gave way and its neck twisted. With the last of their foes defeated, the group was left in the quiet of the forest once more. "Asura, why don't we," Ardur panted, "find somewhere safer? It seems like whatever happened has made things chaotic around here...and I still need to work on my ideas for those bug parts." He glanced over at the frogs. "Hmm...I wonder if we could use these things as well?" He picked up the one Asura had punctured, which by this point had flattened out quite severely. Its leathery hide stretched easily, but also snapped back to form once released. Momma Slime was still digesting the majority of the Bowhorn Deer's body, but it didn't stop her from trying to fit parts of her slain enemy into her gullet anyway. The frog's eyeballs had popped out when she crushed it, and as she slurped them up they floated like bobbers on the water. It gave her a rather unsettling "look" when she turned back to Asura, the eyeballs floating and turning over on top of her "head". "Ahsoowah! I ding!" "Oh, look at that. The system says Steve leveled up again too." Ardur grabbed up his various things, plus any of the frog parts they decided to take with them. "But that can wait for now--any ideas where we should go?" [hr] [h3]Rat Party[/h3] "By the Maker!" "What in Hellfire was that?!" Rustling, heavy footsteps, loud voices. "I saw something flash, had to be magic!" "The World's Spine only has the one volcano, right!?" Ed felt cloth--a pantsleg, or the tassel of a boot--brush his body. The human stopped right beside him, he could feel their weight settling on the ground. "I...I think we're okay, it was too far away..." "We gotta go, maybe the Shaman knows what happened!" "Right, right..." The footsteps were moving away again. "But, heh, ya gotta admit that was kind of funny...it scared the shit outta you, huh?" "Scared me? I ain't gonna lie, that's terrifying, but you're the one screamin' his head off." "Sure, it got me too, but you were like "HOLY FUCK!" I don't think I've even heard it said like that before." "...What? That wasn't me, that was you!" An uncomfortable silence. The rustling stopped. The wind whistled through the grass all around. In the distance, the smoke rose into the clouds. "...You're hearin' things, man." "The hell I am! Ain't nothin' around to hear, cept that dead rat and all this grass!" The bickering continued until the voices were out of earshot... [quote=System:Asteria] You used Magic Analysis I! ---???--- Even with your enhanced Beast Senses, you are too far to analyze this magic. All you can tell is that it is extremely powerful and destructive, but it doesn't seem to carry a specific element or be very complex... [/quote] Asteria was able to sneak back to the den just in time to see the human figures moving away from the area, their backs to the rats. They had both been fairly strong and tough looking males armed with spears, and one also had a hatchet of some kind. They appeared to be wearing hides and furs rather than proper armor, but their bare arms were fairly well toned. With the Nullven in hand, she was able to make another Antidotal Salve. Mother Rat had stopped moving again, but was still breathing raggedly. After her daughter's treatment, however, the elder rodent shivered and seemed to come out of it. The salve soaked into her fur and skin quickly, and soon the bleeding had stopped completely. Mother Rat slowly crawled to her feet, then began turning in circles as she inspected her own fur and wounds. After giving herself a thorough licking and brushing with her mousy paws, she shook like a wet dog from the tip of her nose to the end of her tail. With cheery squeaks she nudged Asteria, then ran towards Ed. She sniffed and circled him in concern as he continued not to move, putting her tiny paws on his body and rearing up to get a closer look at him. [hr] [h3]Ghost Party[/h3] As Jason sucked out all of the goat's blood and mana, his Starvation regressed to "Famished," and his HP drain stopped. With a beetle mandible, some clever application of Acid and Lesser Force, and a great deal of work, he and Danny managed to skin the Four Horned Goat. While Danny washed the hide using Aqua Spheres, Jason began eating the rest of its flesh. His Famished status changed to Very Hungry, and he tried to use a combination of meditation and his own willpower to try and digest the food as quickly as possible in the hopes it would help stave off this unholy appetite. Danny found a thick piece of vine nearby, and while he began splitting it into fibers Jason beat the goat's hide with a curved stick he found. Once the vine was woven into a crude rope, they used Jason's Acid Spit and another Sharp Rock Danny managed to find to drill holes into the Flak Beetle's hard exoskeleton. Jason began working on the Four Horned Goat's bones, separating and then hollowing out one of its vertebrae. While Danny separated the Beetle's head from its body, leaving as much of the shell intact as possible while scooping out its innards, Jason then began twisting and tying bits of the goat hide. Using a Shield to help protect the different areas of each item from acid spills, Jason was able to make the holes needed to loop the vine rope through the various pieces. The goat's hide was wrapped around Danny from hip to shoulder like a sash, and then around his waist and abdomen before it was tied off. Using the hollowed bone as a ring buckle, part of the vine rope was threaded through the beetle's head, which was mounted onto Danny's shoulder as a pauldron. Its thorax shell was split apart, and then the two halves were tied with the rest of the rope around Danny's forearm. There was just enough of the exoskeleton left, a little bit that formed a V joint in the wing covers, to go over Danny's palm and be attached to the bracer. The end product was a sort of gauntlet without the covering for fingers and palm, but shielding the back of the hand as well as the lower arm. With their project completed, Danny and Jason took turns resting and regaining their strength. Jason used his Mana Drain on the restored Poltergeist, with permission of course, to make sure he was at full capacity and then some. The system notified him of a Temporary Extra amount of magic, and at this point the two turned to their next task. They dug a hole and buried what was left of the bodies, then despite not having his Spell Chant unlocked or the Lesser Cleanse skill developed, the Necroslime said a prayer to the spirits of the earth asking for safe and expedient travel. With his MP filled to the brim, Jason decided to risk leaving the body of the black slime, and canceled his Possession. Once again, he was an Ectoslime--and once again, his physical stats decreased significantly. His Extra MP disappeared almost immediately, but he was still full and would be able to regain what he had used up in binding the body quickly. As the sun moved through the sky, into the middle of the afternoon, he and Danny headed east... [quote=System:Jason] Skill Rank Up: Mana Drain I > Mana Drain II (1.75 > 2.0) Increased Ratio of MP Drained to MP Recovered. Stamina Cost is the same as Rank I. Skill Gain: Acid Spit I (0.9 > 1.1)! Lob a small amount of acid through an appropriate orifice at the target. Works better on inorganic materials. The acid consumes Stamina to produce. Range of roughly 10 feet. Skill Rank Up: Meditate I > Meditate II (1.75 > 2.0)! Increase the amount of Mana recovered. Low background noises, movements, etc (comparable to the common room of an Inn, a busy street at the market, etc) will no longer decrease the effectiveness of this skill so long as the user maintains stillness and a calm state of mind. This skill still cannot be used while moving or in the midst of battle. This skill cannot be used in conjunction with other Active skills. You are experiencing a Fast Rate of Skill Progression. LEVEL UP! Your learning experiences have culminated in a new power! You are now Level 9! Your Max MP has increased! You gain Skill Points to distribute as you please! Unspent Skill Points: 5 Current Skills: [s]Physical Damage Resistance I (1.0)[/s](0.5) [s]Warcry II (2.175)[/s](0.4) [s]Stone Shot II (2.6625)[/s](0.3) [s]Rock Spire II (2.075)[/s](0.3) [s]Tremor Sense II (2.425)[/s](0.6) [s]Soil Manipulation I (1.15)[/s](0.6) [s]Telepathy II (2.725)[/s](0.8) [s]Material Analysis I (1.2)[/s](0.3) [s]Magic Analysis I (1.55)[/s](0.8) [s]Monster Analysis I (1.55)[/s](0.5) [s]Mental Resistance I (1.55)[/s](0.7) [s]Charisma I (1.15)[/s](0.3) [s]Focus I (1.3)[/s](0.7) [s]Limited Shapeshift I (1.6)[/s](0.6) [s]Mind Wave I (1.2)[/s](0.5) [s]Spell Chant I (1.3)[/s](0.6) [s]Bounce I (1.15)[/s](0.4) [s]Faster I (1.05)[/s](0.4) [s]Blunt Resistance I (1.0)[/s](0.4) Spiritual Awareness II (2.275) Transparency I (1.55) Taboo II (2.0) Levitate (--) Guidance I (1.15) Mana Drain II (2.0) Meditate II (2.0) Mana Sense I (1.25) Shield I (1.2) Possession I (1.05) Blood Drain I (1.1) Acid Spit I (1.1) Earth Affinity (0.75) Wave Shock (0.2) Swift Swimmer (0.1) Aqua Sphere (0.7) Alert (0.2) Smash (0.5) Cleave (0.3) Muffle (0.1) Crafting (0.8) Magic Resistance (0.75) Agriculture (0.3) Plant Analysis (0.3) Fire Resistance (0.4) Fortify (0.2) Sensory Resistance (0.6) Mana Orb (0.7) Alchemy (0.4) Air Read (0.5) Keen Sight (0.2) Point Strike (0.2) Doze (0.1) Acid Resistance (0.1) Rabid Fit (0.4) Pierce Resistance (0.8) Lesser Cleanse (0.3) Dextrous (0.5) Quicken (0.3) Earth Wall (0.1) Stone Breaker (0.1) Iron Gullet (0.3) Slash Resistance (0.2) Earth Vein (0.7) Mana Shape (0.4) Lesser Force (0.3) Spell Cancel (0.1) Curse Word (0.1) Light Resistance (0.0125) Ghost Touch (0.5) Slime Coil (0.2) Stronger (0.1) Stamina Furnace (0.2) Acid Spray (0.3) Guidance (0.2) YOU HAVE TRANSFORMED! Necroslime > Ectoslime All physical stats have decreased. MP is no longer locked. Certain Skills are still locked. Certain Skills have become unusable in this form. [/quote] [quote=System:Danny] Skill Gain: Crafting I (0.8 > 1.0 > 1.25)! Your knowledge and understanding of mechanics, workmanship, and other such things enable you to craft better items. The process of creating many items is still an unknown to you, but if you ever succeed in such a creation its Sub-Stat Enhancements will be higher than normal. Obtained Items: Goat Hide Robe Flak Pauldron Flak Gauntlet Sharp Stone Curved Stick You are experiencing a Fast Rate of Skill Progression. [/quote] [hr] [h3]Nira and Femus[/h3] [quote=System:Femus] You used Monster Analysis I! ---Pixie--- Pixies are a tiny humanoid Fey-type Monster. While somewhat intelligent, they lack empathy towards one another even compared to beasts like Goblins. Capable of flight and healing magic, but not physically strong or skilled enough to fight or use weapons well. Their Wings are membranous structures interlaced with hair-thin blood vessels. They are fragile, but hold semi-magical properties.[color=red]This one is unusual.[/color] [/quote] After a few moments, Femus was able to gather enough MP that he could levitate again. Levitation didn't seem to use a great deal of MP, though sometimes it also seemed like it used Stamina in combination. In any case, with a few minutes of Meditation he was able to move again, and as long as he didn't exert himself too much it seemed like he wouldn't drain himself again until he actively used a spell. This made using Lesser Force a little harder, though once he levitated close enough he would be able to take little nibbles with the small, bony-ridged mouth Wisps possessed. Too bad neither he nor the Pixie knew any fire spells at the moment--even after plucking off the Dire Rat's fur, eating it raw left one's tastebuds feeling rather unclean. As the two sat talking, for the first time to another former human, the sounds of chanting and crackling flames would reach them along with the smell of cooking meat and vegetables. The goblin tribe seemed to be having a feast of some sort--when the animal stampede came through, perhaps the mean green weenies had caught themselves a nice haul. It might be tempting to sneak over there and grab some for themselves...then again, there were a [i]lot[/i] of goblins... [hr] [h3]Sato[/h3] "Start wif whateva makes ya stronkest da fastest." said Lansa. He looked down at Sato's hand for a moment, before grabbing it. But rather than a handshake, it was more like an arm wrestling grip--Lansa seemed to be gauging Sato's strength. Then he let go and nodded. "Yah, like dat. But dem udda tings, like...why ya pulls up and down on da trees? Or curls da sticks and rocks in ya arm? Wat it do, how it werk?" Needless to say, the complexities of something like body building would be a bit much for savages like these to take in. But Lansa would listen intently to whatever explanation Sato offered, and then ask about something else. Whatever exercises Sato had been doing since his awakening in this new world, Lansa would want a thorough demonstration of all of them, though not where any other goblins could see and hear. Once this was done, however, the boss again took Sato to one side. The smell of cooking meat was getting strong by this point--a few goblins in the tribe were old enough or skilled enough to know how to make fire by rubbing two sticks together. "Okay, Sore-Toe, now I gives ya sumtin' gud! Lissen up!" The Hobgoblin leaned in as he let Sato in on his conspiracy. "Li'l ways dattaway--" he pointed in what seemed a vaguely northern direction, "--dere used to be a humin town! Long time ago, Orcs and Gobbos werks togedda and smashes it, killed all da humins! But da Orcs big and dum, dey run da Gobbos out and taked it for demselves, til da Ventures come and kills dem too. So now, ain't nobody out dere...well, cept uddah Mobs." He sniffed and turned his head, as if this point wasn't really worth acknowledging. "But, humins gots dis stuff, ya see! Dey uses it, makes sharps and shinies and tings to build deir town! Is called metal!" Lansa grinned and tossed his spear back and forth in his hands, making the bone ornaments on his arms clatter. "I keeps it seekret, but I lets youse know now! So youse can go gets all da metal, and udda gud stuff, ya wants! Jus' so long as yas dun tell nobody else! Got it!?" Here the Boss bared his fangs, getting right into Sato's face. If the blank-eyed goblin agreed, then Lansa would suddenly turn on his heel and stride away. "Gud, den let's go back! Is time fer big foods!" There were over eighty members of the Deep Forest tribe. Goblins of all kinds--elderly, young, female, male, big, weak, the captains and the fodder--were tearing into barely-cooked chunks of Pixie flesh, Dire Rat tails, and strips of the big deer, along with anything else they could find. Like those sharp tasting plants that looked a little bit like spring onions, or those big fat roots Sato had probably heard other goblins call topapos. There were juicy blue berries as well, and some goblins had just thrown in whatever random leaves or grass they could find just to have something they could call their own speared on a stick over the fire. Here and there fights would break out when some gob tried to steal another's food, or when a successful thief framed someone else. The captains were all given a wide berth, especially Ballz, who roared loud enough to shake the treetops if anyone even dared to come near him. He hunched over like an ape, devouring an entire leg of the deer by himself. Now that Sato had been given a treasure hunt, would he depart immediately? What supplies would he take with him? Lansa had warned him not to tell anyone else of this secret place...but could he do it alone? Did he even want the metals, or whatever else might be left in the ruined town? All this thinking...and here he was on an empty stomach. [hr] [h3]Farmstead[/h3] "It, it sounded like it was far away..." Gwen said breathlessly as she rushed to a window. Flinging open the wooden shutters, she leaned out and yelled for the others to come in. It seemed Lear already had them headed in that direction, though--soon, everyone had stormed back into the house. Geir and Mirabelle were the last ones through the door, and as the redheaded boy kicked it shut with a hard slam he pulled the handaxe from the back of his belt and took up a ready stance in front of the door as if he expected something to come crashing through. Mirabelle got into position near a window, one hand pointed like a gun towards the outdoors. Gwen ran to her husband, who enveloped her in a big bear hug. "Is everyone alright!?" "Y-yes, Daddy!" Clarice shouted, holding the baby in one arm and keeping a firm grip on Alice's arm with the other. Reuben ran to cling to his father's leg. "Mira, did you pick up [i]any[/i] of that?!" Geir shouted as the baby started to cry. "No, it was too far! But a blast like that, Maker's Word, what in the--" "I don't think we have anything to worry about right now." Lear spoke in a loud and commanding voice, one that made everyone stop and turn towards him. He put one hand on Reuben's head as he broke away from Gwen, and with the other held his tiny son's hand. As the infant quieted, he looked around at each of them, including Miiba. "I'd wager that was on the other side of the forest, and that flash was moving towards the mountains, not us. Did either of you see anything afterwards, a followup or a counterattack?" "If there was anything, it wasn't on the same level." Geir growled. He stepped away from the door to look out the window, at the column of smoke many miles away. "Who the hell--sorry, ma'am--who could've done something like that?!" Lear had moved to comforting his daughters now, but it seemed like the initial panic was wearing off. Gwen took the baby, and she and the rest of the children retreated to the living room to sit for a moment around the hearth. "If Nick was back in the area, it could've been him...and if Li'l Zieg has earned his scapular since the last time I saw 'im, he might have the kind of spiritual clout to call something like that down. But there shouldn't be anything around here that could provoke either of them to that level..." "Li'l Zieg?" Mirabelle tilted her head. "Wait, are you talking about...Sir Zeiglar?! The Guardian Templar?" "Oh, so he's only made Templar, then? Figured he'd at least be a Holy Knight by now. Wasn't him then." Lear shook his head absentmindedly. He was staring intently at the armor in the corner, chewing the inside of his cheek. "If Sir Zeiglar is 'Li'l Zieg' to you..." Now Geir looked thoughtful, rubbing his chin with one gloved hand. "Then Nick...[i]shit[/i], are you [i]serious[/i]--" "Geir! Language!" Gwen snapped. The boy gave a start and flushed red. "Sorry, ma'am! But, Boss, are you talking about--" Geir almost looked like Reuben did, whenever they had their sparring sessions or when Lear read to them from that book last night, "--[i]the[/i] Nikolas Artur!? The King of S--" "Yeah." Lear slowly walked to the mace and picked it up off the wall. "Him and Zeig were both in the Guild Auxiliary with me back in the war, the runts. After all that time they spent bustin' their rears, I should've known better than to retire. Nick's way beyond me by now, and Zeig won't be long catching up to me either. But in any case..." He put the mace back on the wall. "Mira, start writing up a report to the Guild. Geir, go to the barn loft and put the signal up for the Guild-Hawk again." The farmer turned, and locked eyes with Miiba. "Miiba. Come with me--I want you to help me check the perimeter." "Boss, wait! You can't trust her! For all we know, she's in on this!" Geir seemed to remember for the first time that morning that Miiba existed. He glared at her with his usual intensity. "Geir, I've seen a lot more of the world than you, and even I think that's silly." Lear said. He motioned for Miiba to come along. "But, don't you worry. Even if I sucked at sensory stuff, I'm not that easy to fool."