Team Nippon [@VitaVitaAR][@PKMNB0Y][@Click This][@Crusader Lord] [hr] Lazhira spent the next few minutes of the evening tidying up after the food and making sure nothing was too terribly out of place. As much as she could, however. Having to make good on her promise of whacking people with a soup ladle slowed things down a bit, but overall things were nice and tidy again fairly soon. It was just as she had finished that Leannah made her own offer. “Eh? Really? Some to teach me? Well, I’m always up for learning something!” She grinned. “Sure, I can help...er, try to anyways!” The following practice proved both useful as well as somewhat more enlightening upon her situation. Attempts to make a light proved just as somewhat hazardous as before. It seemed like every time she did anything, she’d somehow put just a little more into it than she’d need to and cause another explosion like before, or just simply fizzling out ineffectively. What this meant Lazhira couldn’t say. She did help where she could, but while Lazhira could help some, she wasn’t particularly skilled herself it seemed, only able to do small tricks and other small feats such as a floating light or small flicker of harmless fireworks. Eventually however, Leannah would learn a bit more ‘control’. They couldn’t exactly pinpoint the cause of the rather explosive nature of her issue, but that just meant she needed to try and control it a bit more, and with a bit of help from Lazhira in controlling it internally, she finally managed progress. By the end, Leannah had managed to make a small sphere of light not dissimilar to Misaki’s, though it still kept a more sun-like appearance. [hider=Goddess Note: Leannah] Ability gained: Sunlight (Lesser/Restricted): A skill in which denotes one as being able to cast basic ‘Light’ spells with minor ease. This ability however, has been modified by ‘Suns Disciple’. Spells cast from this family of spells will typically take a form befitting that of the Sun Goddess. Light spells typically are those of healing, restraint, and help. Yours however, take the shape of a burning sun in some fashion. Something is preventing you from fully using this ability and causing them to be less effective and unstable. [/hider] Seemingly satisfied with teaching Leannah once she seemingly succeeded, Lazhira then accepted Leannah’s offer of tutelage of something herself. The girl however, was not prepared for the physical activity that martial arts required. While she eagerly accepted being taught at first, it was soon incredibly clear Lazhira did not have the body or physical ability for martial arts. Tripping and rather clumsily following Leannah’s instruction. Still, she seemed to at least pick up on theories and the general ideas Leannah was giving her for it she just needed to train physically. She even wanted a light spar with Leannah towards the end. Having to teach someone and even a light, friendly spar against a complete novice at least seemed to help Leannah stay on top of her form, too. Misaki’s own experiments would prove similarly fruitful. Fire seemed easy enough - all she had to do was force a bit more energy into her ‘light’ spell and she’d achieve a small flame. Stone was also easy enough, if somewhat more rigid-feeling to work with. While she couldn’t create stone from nothing she could seemingly manipulate the ground beneath her feet with some effort by putting her energy into it, then directing it out in a way she desired it to move. She couldn’t do very much with it yet, at most making a pebble move or create a small earthen mound. Water would for now at least, prove similarly difficult. She couldn’t seem to just create it from nothing for now, but she [i]would[/i] find that if she tried using it on the snow that littered the ground, she could at least extract some water from it, but controlling it was difficult. Unlike earth, it was far too slippery in comparison causing her to repeatedly lose any attempts she had at holding it. Perhaps she just needed a ‘firmer’ grip? The supposed electricity would be by far the hardest. How would she even go around trying to attempt making it? Electricity at its core, is a natural force of the world stemming from Electromagnetism. Even attempting to make ‘static electricity’ proved to be useless. Perhaps she just needed a stronger source of power to work with to start? Either way, it seemed plausible she could, she just hadn’t quite figured out how to do it yet. Even if that one proved unsuccessful, being able to expand her repertoire even slightly seemed like it gave her a bit of a better ‘feel’ for magic in general. [hider=Goddess Note] Ability Gained: Magic Sense (lesser) All those who practice it can sense its presence. Elemental magic at its core, is sensing and manipulating the natural world, imposing ones will over it. Only those of an iron will and sharp mind can manipulate it perfectly. While nothing flashy, this ability will allow you to sense magic, better understand how to manipulate it, and gain an inherent understanding of what it does, if not the specifics, even in other people so long as they are not actively trying to hide it from you. [/hider] Her experiments left her slightly tired, but not completely drained. Surprisingly, if she met with Lazhira again, she’d feel like the girl's magical potential was significantly higher than she was letting on. Narkissa’s experiment would prove a bit less fruitful than her companions. While she certainly, perhaps had theory down, perhaps an overall more practical application may be needed to gain any progress. Not that it wasn’t all for naught. As she turned attention to the earth, placing a hand on it as she meditated, something...happened. Briefly, for a moment, she felt like she could tell that Leannah was currently beating up Lazhira in a friendly sparring match only to end In a rather humorous display of Lazhira tripping over her feet and face planting right into the cat girls chest. ...what? Another attempt would prove similarly as useful if she care to try doing it. While perhaps less impressive than Misaki’s [hider=Goddess Note:Narkissa] Ability Gained: Earth Sense (lesser) An ability developed by attempting to ‘feel’ the earth. By spreading your mana into the ground, you can feel vibrations around the earth and get a rough sense for anything on the ground. Its not very strong or accurate currently, and has a rough range of ten meters around you. You’d need to actively apply this skill for it to take effect. [/hider] Once all of their training was finished, or they simply decided to call it a night Lazhira would have done her best to make a bed for all of them if they desired to crash at her place. It was a little cramped, considering things but she also said she’d not mind sharing a bed or letting the others have it if they wanted. Regardless, everyone had a decent enough place to rest for the evening if they desired as the moon slowly peered into view, banishing the light from the world. The Roma Mob [@ERode][@Pyromania99][@Guy0fV4lor][@PaulHaynek] [hr] After at least a passable meal of boar, the group was finally ready for rest after an admittedly long and tiring day. A friendly conversation. A plan of action was made, and theorizing about the future, but eventually rest came to an end and the two decided to practice before they dozed off for the evening. Augusta decided to play with fire a bit more. By now fire came relatively easy, if not second nature quite yet. Using the logs as target practice, if nothing else helped with the aim of her fireballs...though this amount of practice didn’t feel quite as efficient as it had back in the prison. It certainly felt tiring to use, but as far as developing things, she’d maybe need to be a little more creative with how she approached using it. Isidore instead went with a more internal approach. Sitting near the fire, he turned his focus, attention, and fire inwards. The energy flowing within was easy to feel now. Through his veins. Through his exhausted body. Perhaps he’d have done better to rest a bit, but rest could come later. His body was a furnace, his soul the embers to ignite the furnace into a raging fire. Turning the fire inward certainly helped stave off the cold. He could feel his body warming up slowly as he maintained this thought and image. The more he maintained this state, the more his body loosened up from the stress of the day, fatigue giving way to warmth and sweat on his brow. If one were to take a thermometer, they’d find he’d have a dangerously high temperature, but he would otherwise feel fine. Next, he tried to move that energy into another form. His lungs - a bellow to which connect to the wind. It seemed a little more difficult to grasp the air than his initial ability to manipulate fire. Rather comically, the first time he attempted this for the night when he exhaled - a gout of fire escaped through his nose, lightly singing his clothes. Aside from that first mishap, however, while he felt like he was on the verge of something, it eluded him for the most part. Perhaps more use of this skill may give him something a bit more concrete. [hider=Goddess Note:Donovan] Item Gained: Serpent Star Necklace. A necklace fashioned out of an old badge you picked up in the Prison. Rough, but well made considering it was made without many proper tools. [/hider] Donovan spent his time doing a light workout, making sure to work out his entire body as night fell. A good idea, to remain in shape and stretching to work out the stress of the days events, but overall his body didn’t seem like such a routine would help anything but maintain his current level of strength. Still, his body would thank him for the light work out eventually should he keep it up. More importantly however, was the emblem. Even more mysterious now than it was before, if the Kyrnith was correct. A God so ancient that it no longer had a name. Perhaps he should give it one? He couldn’t just keep calling it ‘nameless’, now could it? Perhaps it wasn’t important though. He held the badge in his hand, attempting to ‘feel’ more of the Divine energy radiating from it, connecting his own spirit and thoughts to it and whatever God this may be. It was surprisingly difficult, however. Giving him a deeper connection to the God didn’t seem as easy as just willing it to be like magic. What else was missing? It almost seemed like his attempts at this would prove futile. At least, until he almost thought he heard something. “....” An unintelligible whisper from the crackling fire snapped him from his training. It wasn’t his ears playing a trick on him was it? It was then, he’d have noticed something felt odd. Perhaps it was just a trick of his mind as the whisper was, but he had been trying that for what seemed a good while, lost in thought and attempting to eek out more secrets of the badge, yet...the Moon seemed to be exactly the same position it was when he started. Did he just lose track of time? Or... He looked over to Octavia, who was sitting happily next to Augusta. This was a more simple task it seemed. Even just looking at Octavia just made him feel...uneasy. Wrong. As though her existence just shouldn’t be. Trying to move further away from the pup, Donovan’s sense of unease began to fade, eventually becoming nonexistent by ten feet. Not a very long range to be sure, and he already knew what Octavia was and the pup wasn’t even trying to hide it. Further advancement in trying to sense her seemed ineffective. Nicholas however, decided to spend the rest of the night resting under the stars. As he did rest, something...odd happened. A star, twinkling brightly to the south would catch his attention. Normally, such a thing might not even be considered odd, but...something about it caught his attention. It wasn’t anything more than a ‘huh, that’s weird’, but could there have possibly been more to it? ...no, that was silly, but if he took his Goddess given ability into account, perhaps this was something he should trust? What would that even mean? Regardless, eventually night would come. The Blue and Grey moons watching over everyone from their lofty thrones in the sky. [@Crimson Paladin] The Fox and the Skillseeker [hr] Bolcha, did not press the issue with the reward. He seemed a little bemused by the fact he’d refuse it, but didn’t seem like he felt particularly insulted. The same could be said of the fox woman. She flicked her tail curiously as he rejected the money, but ultimately said nothing. It wasn’t her money to collect after all. “Well aren’t you being hospitable.” She replied. “But I, ah, have my own accommodations for the evening...and I’m not particularly interested in getting caught up in whatever is happening here. Better to cut my losses and move somewhere else, isn’t it?” She stretched one of her ears twitching. “If by some chance you find yourself in the northern Chagawa territory, we might run into each other again fufu.” She then walked off, heading for the outskirts of the village and leaving Novak there without so much as giving her name. He wouldn’t have much of a hard time finding his companions as evening fell, and Lazhira would also offer her home up to him if he wanted too, though Enli’s offer of lodging with him was likely just as open still. [hr] Send Feet Pics [@Cu Chulainn] Shaken by the Hag’s words, Malphas would turn to the soup and other food offered by the hunters. Fish and fruit, mostly, with only a handful of other meats available though most had already been snatched it seemed by the more esteemed hunters. Just who was the hag? And what was that stone he had been given. Obviously they were far different than they let on, but what sort of being had the ability to mess with minds as such? The rest of his night would pass fairly uneventfully. It wasn’t too hard for him to find a willing partner for the night - especially among the more lightly inebriated of the hunters should he desire, and thus also secure lodging for the evening. Whether or not said partner were open to whatever teachings Malphas touted, remained to be seen, however. [center]...And so night fell, the Moon watching as silently as always...[/center] [hider=Tidings of the Future] Location: ????? It was quiet. The cries of the forsaken experiments had fallen silent in the aftermath. Not even the old stone guardian moved any longer. Its functions ceased, old bones no longer able to move its massive frame after the assault from the plant. A massive hole now marred the surface of the island, revealing the garden that had existed beneath its ancient stone. Yet it too remained still, as it should be. This place where the sun never rose, yet darkness never fell upon should have ceased moving ages ago, yet the Wrath of the Moon wasn’t so easily quenched to let it return to nothing so easily. Even if they all perished, they would never leave this place. The sea would be their eventual fate, with the other creatures that lurked, imprisoned within its depths. A lone figure moved among the ruins, coming from the direction of the outcropping that gave the best view of the tower in the distance. Down the path they walked, towards the hole where the sins and triumphs of the past lay. A quiet sigh escaped their lips as they peered over the edge into the garden below. How long had it been since they had stepped foot here? Dull grey eyes shifted their gaze towards the twin Blue and Grey colored moons, seemingly with a mild sense of longing before it returned its gaze towards the task at hand. They stepped off the edge, feet hovering over nothing, threatening to fall over the edge into the pit below. The earth, however, moved to accommodate them. Blue sparks of energy shot from the earth, forming large, but uneven earthen steps every time they moved forward. A staircase of stone led them down into the pit, seemingly without even them having to think until soon they had reached the stone soldier’s seeming grave. “...hm...” A pale hand was placed upon the things' side. “...minimal functions enabled...life support failing...Moon Cells...irreparable. Visual sensors completely damaged...hah, you were relying purely on the Soul Sense, weren’t you? Hmph...ah...still alive, though. Lets see...” Another spark of electrical energy ran along the body of the stone soldier, crackling and running along its body until- [i]ker-chck[/i] [i]hissss[/i] A loud, mechanical grinding noise as some mechanism seemingly was released. The chestplate of the beast split open, bright blue colored fluid pouring from the crack as some motor seemingly malfunctioned. “Hm...” Still keeping their hand on it, another flow of electricity was sent towards the soldiers chest. As soon as it met the stone plates, both were violently ejected and sent flying somewhere else in the garden - along with a very human sized and shaped object covered in numerous bandages almost making them look as though they were an emaciated mummy. The cloaked figure quickly rushed over, rolling them onto their back and placing a hand on his chest. “Muscles severely atrophied. Loss of vision. A hundred or so broken bones. Probably not my fault. Hm. Internal bleeding, collapsed lung. Liver is no longer functional. Heart barely working...ah. Brain is still active. Good. All within expectations.” Breathing in, the figure placed their hands together, and then placed their hands once more upon the dark-skinned human chest. More blue energy. The body convulsed violently. He sputtered to life, a fit of violent coughing as a hand shot upward, attempting to grasp at something invisible. The figure took it in theirs, firmly grasping it as their gaze met the man's panicked one as consciousness was briefly restored. “Heart working normally. Liver restored. Bones mended...hm, likely some loss of memory and slight personality changes but it should be fine.” The cloaked figure knelt next to them, gently laying their head upon their lap. A soft smile. “Rest, my old friend.” “Ah, how sweet a reunion...I almost feel bad for interrupting.” The sound of someone eating, the jarring crunch of a bone. “Oh, you’re alive and well. I should have burned you when I had the chance I see. Suppose you used the energy from this thing to revitalize yourself.” From the shadows of within the cavern, what appeared to be a woman walked into view. Upon first inspection most would probably find her impossibly beautiful - yet her eyes, red as rubies seemed to instill one with a subtle fear and unease. In her hand, was the leg of one of the experiments. What seemed to be bite marks had ripped flesh from it. “Haaa, being imprisoned as a plant for a millenia will give you suuuuuch a crick in the neck!~” She chuckled, rubbing, stretching her neck as a few audible cracks were heard. Her voice was just as honeyed as the saccharine smell coming from her. “Don’t underestimate me, my little Sage. I can’t do fancy magic tricks like you, but when it comes to surviving, I’m the best.” “Unfortunately.” The Sage scoffed. “Do you have a reason to show yourself? Or are you here to merely irritate me?” “Haaa, age has not been kind to you has it? You were juuuust starting to let loose when this whole debacle happened. Look at you. Maybe I need to give you a taste of my body again, keheh-guh!” An earthen pillar rose abruptly from the ground, hitting the woman in the abdomen and sending her flying a few feet. “I doth...think the lady...protest too much...geh...” “I see that mouth of yours hasn't changed a bit.” The lady in question replied with a sigh. “What can I say...nnngh, I love the way I am.” She laughed, getting back to her feet. “Well, don’t worry. I won’t be bothering you much longer. I don’t intend to stay here in this graveyard.” “And where do you intend to go, hm? Out of respect for our...past working together, I won’t stop you. For now.” “The old Capitol. See how many of those boring idiots managed to survive until now. Not like it’ll matter if they did. I might just eat them anyways. I am soooo very hungry...I need to have a little feast, fufufu.” “Well...you know the way out. Just stay out of my business. I have enough work as it is cleaning up after Ithi’s new playthings.” “You’ll at least let me play with her new toys will you? I haaaave to thank them for helping me out of my little predicament after all. They gave me such a nice opportunity.” The other woman slowly ran a hand along the severed leg in her grip. “Do as you will. They’re hers, not mine. She’d probably find it amusing if you got involved so if nothing else I won’t have to entertain her for a while.” She grunted, seemingly not too pleased with the thought before her gaze shifted towards the ground, a softer tone as she continued. “And...for what its worth...I’m sorry, Ev-” “Hahahahaha, don’t worry your pretty eyes over it. Sage.” She chuckled. “We both knew what was going to happen. I appreciate you trying, I do...but lets not talk of such boring things on our reunion, hm? I’ll just...make my fun elsewhere, fufufu! Maybe the Gods will finally take pity on a little demon.” The figure exhaled, laying a hand gently upon the head of the sleeping man in their lap as the woman disappeared into the depths of the facility. The world was starting to move again. She could see it, the flow of fate and the hints of futures to come. How troublesome. She cast their gaze back towards the moon. Never a day of rest, for those beloved by the Moon. [/hider] ~A new day dawns~ Team Nippon [@VitaVitaAR][@PKMNB0Y][@Click This][@Crusader Lord][@Crimson Paladin] [hr] Those who decided to bunk with Lazhira would find themselves having a peaceful rest, despite the slightly cramped quarters. When morning came though, the girl herself seemed nowhere to be found, though a batch of freshly cut vegetables and of course, more fish were laid out on the table whenever they did decide to wake. This left them with more or less the day to themselves to decide what to do. Some of them had already offered to help this village with their problems, so looking into that may prove fruitful. Lazhira also said something about a temple within the forest she’d guide them to...but that’d require finding her. They could always try just leaving too - surely there were other villages out there. Regardless of their choice, whoever was out first would be met with a fairly lively scene. A number of people were gathered near the northern end of the village. Seemed like the trader that had been mentioned once or twice had arrived and had set up shop. Perhaps that might be where Lazhira is? The Roma Mob [@ERode][@Pyromania99][@Guy0fV4lor][@PaulHaynek] [hr] The fire had thankfully been kept burning through the night, keeping them more or less warm despite the lack of proper shelter or bedding. Still, doing that repeatedly may not be the best of ideas in the end. The night had been peaceful, too, Octavia having curled up by Augusta when she had gone to bed, though would also alternate between whoever was keeping watch and taking intermittent naps herself. The party wouldn’t be woken by daylight, rather, in the distance a loud crack of thunder would wake all from their dreams. Perhaps it’d startle them, or they’d pay it no mind, but the source of it would be easy to find. In the distance, south across the plains and hovering over the mountains, angry grey storm clouds were gathering. No rain was falling, but it seemed as though the clouds were sparking with lightning and a few lightning bolts could be seen crashing to the earth even from here. Seemed as though if they intended to travel in that direction, they may have to deal with a storm. Still, that was some distance away. Perhaps they would choose to travel in the opposite direction now. [hr] Send Feet Pics [@Cu Chulainn] Thankfully for Malphas as he stepped into the morning air, he’d find quite a buzz of people. It seemed as though they were all congregating around a group of people in the northern part of the city. A large leather tent had been erected, and in front of it various desks and a number of wares had been set up. ...as well as a number of heavily armed, stoic looking people in armor that perhaps would remind Malphas of samurai of some sort. It wasn’t too hard for him to pick up what was going on. A trader seemingly had arrived overnight - [url=https://i.imgur.com/jmjvlCe.jpg]a certain black haired, fluffy tailed foxy trader[/url]. Seemed most of the normal shops were closed now, and most of the people were here. He could likely find what he wanted here as well however. It seemed as though she had a number of items available in the domestic department - most in the department of grains, easily kept vegetables and food. Leather, tools. However...for the moment it seemed like the crowd was mildly upset about something despite some other simply going about their business. “Swindled you?” The fox huffed with a mildly mischievous tone. “How rude. I’d never swindle my good customers. What do you take me for? One of my sisters? I’ll have you know what I sold you last time was the purest quality metal I could get my hands on, and that was not a lie.” The man arguing with her seemed to take a step forward before one of the armed men quickly pushed him aside. He left with a curse. “Sorry about that folks. Some people...I assure you, as usual, my goods here are entirely legitimate.”