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[h2]Party[/h2]
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[img]https://cdn-icons-png.flaticon.com/128/4456/4456623.png[/img]
[u]Doctor_Buttz[/u]
LVL: 10
[color=ed145b]HP: 32[/color]
[color=6ecff6]MP: 50[/color]
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[img]https://cdn-icons-png.flaticon.com/128/1862/1862572.png[/img]
[u]G3O_VAN[/u]
LVL: 5
[color=ed145b]HP: 25[/color]
[color=6ecff6]MP: 8/10[/color]
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Doc pursed their lips at the suggestion of joining the fray and getting strikes in with their newfound meatsheild. Sure, they probably could and would help, but they couldn't help and looked at their feet at the suggestion. The amount of time and effort it took for them to beat even a single foe showed that their fist were far from lethal weapons. Doc tried not to take it personally, though. Geo was a new player and likely didn't fully understand the plight that Doc had found themself in. 

Luckily, Geo's unwavering excitement did a good job of quelling the irritable and pessimistic energy Doc felt building within themself. Seeing it from an outsider's perspective, it was sort of funny. A bunch of basket-wearing fools clubbing a defenseless healer like an angry mob. The image was enough to wipe the frustration from Doc's face just as fast as it had appeared, replacing it instead with a thin smile. 
"I'm not too sure, I didn't get a great look at their baskets... what with the pummeling and all," Doc replied with a light chuckle before quickly confirming just what the birdboy would feel upon seeing them.
"But it's definitely goofy."

The way Geo seemed to hype up these strange, basket-weilding foes did make Doc lose their smile, though. The more he expressed imagery of spiked ogre clubs and purely fictional and over-the-top flanges, the more Doc felt silly for being defeated by such an unconventionally dangerous enemy. Sheepishly, they rubbed the back of their neck, debating if they should elaborate. Stronger than they look was an understatement. Their strength was truly baffling. 

Their topic quickly switched, though, and Doc let out a sigh of relief once it had. Geo had plenty of ways to keep the conversation going, much to Doc's delight. They had always been a soft-spoken and stoic sort, and it helped to have someone bring the energy to their conversations. It was nice to have someone else interested in their abilities. Beyond just asking 'can you heal?' or dropping jargon an uninitiated player like Doc was incapable of deciphering.
"No no, you were right on the money the first time. Big beam of light. Does tons of damage, but uh, I can do like 2 of them tops. Plenty of range, though, full caster is an understatement," Doc replied quickly, seeming to humble their abilities. Their appearance showed just how true their words were. Simple robes, no armor in sight. No weapon, no muscles either. They looked as wimpy as their damage was.

Geo shocked them when they mentioned using a stick before. Doc's initial thoughts went to a kid waving a fallen tree branch like a sword, defeating swaths of imaginary foes. Quickly, their imagination focused on a more likely explanation to what they meant. Plenty of martial arts used sticks of all varieties: quarterstaffs, tonfa, short sticks, and even the clubs that beat Doc down earlier were essential sticks. The comparison to a spear made the list of sticks easier to hone in on.
"Oh wow, didn't know I had a bonified shaolin monk protecting me. I feel a lot safer now," Doc scoffed to themself, teasing as they walked further towards the waterfall. Most of the wandering enemies seemed to conveniently stay just out of place. Their programming is to never directly intervene with players not ready to fight, a typical low-level area gimmick.
"Really, though, that's super cool. I bet it helps in a VR game like this."

Once a group got too close, Geo managed to call out a straggler from the group. They pulled a hatchet from their belt and rushed at the bird with a shocking amount of tenacity. Even Doc was shocked by how fast this one moved, and for a moment they worried if Geo might ave bit off more than they could chew. Luck appeared to be on his side, though, as his impressive twirls caused the beggar to stop in their tracks. Confusion looked more like a stupor on this foe, as they suddenly changed trajectory and swung their axe into the air, nowhere near Geo. Geo struck a pose as Doc smirked. It was a great ability for a tank, it seemed, but for now, they did not want to waste further precious resources. Once it became clear that this beggar bandit had no chance of finding his target, Doc grabbed the avian by the arm and rushed to pull him away from the foe.

The bandit camp neared on the horizon. The massive waterfall drowned out most noise in the area, a tranquil and static background noise. The spray of water made the area feel significantly cooler than the temperature area around them. The shadow of the massive cliffside covered the area with an eerie gloom, and altogether, the atmosphere was somewhat drab. The area had a few derelict buildings that appeared to have been ramshackle hovels even in their heyday. The crown jewel of the area was the watermill, which moved with enough speed to cause creaking and groaning from the gears. A sound that managed to pierce the droning sound of the crashing water that moved said wheel.

The area was surrounded by a makeshift barrier. In some areas, it was logs that had been sharpened at the end and embedded into the ground. In other areas, it was overturned wagons, refuse piled into mounds or barrels of dirt. Inside the area, various beggar bandits seemed to move about the roughly 5 buildings in the area. There appeared to be six of them moving sacks of grain into the watermill and leaving it with sacks of flour. Not a single basket-wearing bandit in sight.

More pressing was what appeared to be four of these similar bandits that were standing guard at the face of the encampment where the barricade opened. The group had been lounging on the side of the barricade or sitting in the grass. They mingled casually, seemingly unaware of the encroaching doom that was the two players. One of the unarmed ones blew into a blade of grass to make a strange humming noise.

Doc sighed at the sight. Looking at the crowd made them realize that they very well could just be re-enacting their previous failures. Doing so now with another person forced to bear the brunt of their defeat as well. Doc clenched their fist and rolled their neck, struggling to hype themself up for this before turning to Geo.
"Basket guys seem to show up once we get in. Stay close since I need to touch you for my heals, and don't get surrounded." Doc commanded, shockingly stern, before their expression softened and they quickly added an addendum. 
"But really it's just a game, let's just go in there and fuck shit up... oh! Pardon my language."
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