Slide Into The Void - Part 2 - RPLOG
From Flexible Survival
Participants
Date
21/5/2022
Log
(Symaro) Seems that the group had decided to advance onwards! Despite their better judgement, someone grips the door leading deeper into the accursed place, then pushes it open. Against all logic and reason, despite the fact the party had been moving AWAY from the familiar sights of the Library where they'd had their first rest, they'd end up right back there... the air remains warm and welcoming, the only background noise being a faint fluttering of paper in the gentle gusts carried around such an expansive, potentially infinite room. Except... something is off. Something is different this time around. The room had inhabitants! Standing roughly 4ft tall, covered in scales of all colors, bizarrely bipedal with anthropomorphic features, were a swarm of small lizards garbed in loosely fitted clothing. Many were engrossed in their reading, sat down here and there, perhaps at a desk or a couch or a sofa further along into the room, where as others had their hands full organizing and categorizing the seemingly endless amount of reading material. At a closer glance, these creatures were very much like Symaro in shape and stature. Their language however makes no sense, merely a plethora of strange crooning, meeping, yapping and squeaking. The door closes behind everyone, a distant, heinous laugh fading with its final swing.
(Yejian) With a heavy sigh, Yejian sets her shield on the ground and leans it against her legs, folding her arms while she, in turn, leans against a wall. What a bother this was turning out to be! It just required a shift in perspective. She going for endurance now, and so she keeps away from the lead. Let one of those eager explorers open the doors and face what comes of it, she'll be the clean up crew.
(Fenris) Jaleel- er Fenris slouches through the door, his thoughts still scattered and his sense of self still muddied. He blinks at the unexpected sight of the library and its inhabitants. He never had much time for libraries or books. They were a luxury he had not had as a kid and running his business didn't leave time for- Those were not Fenris thoughts. Just to prove them wrong, the tanuki snatches a book from a shelf and flips it open. He reads all the time!
(Symaro) The tanuki flips open a random book, however all he finds is pages upon pages filled with indecipherable gibberish! It's some form of runic language that doesn't register... at least not immediately. Maybe if he tries to decrypt it.
(Junes) seeing the room full of well, the same form as them junes is perplexed at first but hears flipp
(Junes) flipping pages and sees leaf feels a bit worried and decides to bring their multiple kitsune tails out and pat them on the tanuki's back for comfort
(Ankh) Taking a deep breath now that they're in the safety of the library again, Ankh closes his eyes and takes stock of... well, mostly himself. The others seemed more or less fine. At least he could reload his lance now that the stake had time to re-form. Doing so with only a slight wince at the seared fang-hole in his palm. "Glad I don't feel much, physically...", he mumbles to himself, "...but this place is getting to me. Hey... Junes, right? If I start to lose myself, slap me as hard as you can. Got it? Muzzle me if need be." With that, and a final -KACHUNK- of the explosive ammunition being locked into place, he folds the lance again, familiar saw axe sliding back into his grip.
(Symaro) The group gathers a few strange looks from here and there, the library's little keepers shooting a multitude of glowing gazes directly at these bizarre tall beings and the one kinlike shortstack among them, though they don't do much other than nudge one another and make a few curious chirrups. Ankh, blessed bean... can practically feel the tension pouring out his maw in a room so safe, so serene. Junes recollects all his thoughts and feels fully at once with himself. Yejian expels some of her tension but remains quite on-edge, and Fenris, poor fella... he remains just as shaken as when he'd emerged from his trial. The library is kind, but his thoughts remain fixated on what he'd just experienced. That gnawing paranoia lingers... for now. The door leading deeper into the dungeon is within eyesight, down a flight of stairs onto the lower level, where a large collection of blue-scaled small-sized lizards had converged to converse and share in their mutual interests, yapping and trilling like a stack of adorable boopable snoots. It should be illegal for a place so dangerous to harbor critters so adorable, and yet it does! Two of them near the party where they stand, one starts getting particularly inquisitive with Yejian's shield, putting its hands atop the seemingly bizarre surface, before plucking a scroll and pencil to start noting things down in some strange language. The other meanwhile starts bothering Ankh, perplexed by the gnoll's alien armaments, poking and tugging here and there, not outwardly hostile, merely curious by the looks of things.
(Yejian) Yejian watches cautiously, but does not seem to mind the curiosity and examination her shield causes. She closes her eyes and exhales, tail flicking side to side before scooping up her shield once again. "Alright. We can't stay here forever. I'll let one of you take the lead though, whenever you're ready to start moving."
(Fenris) Fenris sighs as he carefully examines the text. "Let's see," he murmurs, "I'm seeing some norse influence? Saskrit maybe?" The tanuki feels much more himself as he peruses the obscure scribbles. The tanuki frowns over the book, then flips to the cover and the inscription on it. The tanuki grins and shakes his head. "Riddles!" he smiles, "Written in.. what? Draconic? Amazing." He slots the book back into its place on the shelf and his smile dims and sours a little. It was a nice respite bit it was not enough to really ground him. He grunts an affirmative at Yejian and slouches ahead, going for the next door, the library having lost its appeal.
(Junes) patting his back a bit more to maybe get his attention junes speaks calmly "hey leaf everything is gonna be alright, whatever happened before its over and i know we can all make it through" and unsure of what else to say or do they hold their arms open if they need a hug
(Fenris) Fenris warms a little at Junes' offer and accepts the hug. "Thanks," he says, "I like hugs." The physical contact seems to do him a little good, though he quickly returns to slouching ahead broodingly, ready to get out of this room and deeper in the dungeon.
(Ankh) Ankh chuckles softly at the innocent curiosity of the kobold creatures, showing them that the menacing sawblades head of his weapon can be removed to reveal the vicious flanged macehead it slots into, though he keeps a close eye on his things to make sure there are no sticky fingers involved before he slots the weapon back together. In agreement with Yejian, and feeling some blessed relief from the library, he can feel himself standing just a little prouder once more, moving with a nod to join her. "Just as Symaro said... much as it would be nice to catch a breather, we've got to keep moving forward. Especially with /that voice/ apparently getting a laugh out of this..."
(Symaro) The party advances into the strangest of all places that they could have encountered! Is this... is this seriously a Disco dance floor? Looks like it, a well furnished late 1900s themed establishment by all means, with one particularity. The music, something is wrong with it... is it playing backwards?! There are no discernible lyrics to really tell by, but the discord certainly suggested as much. Immediately upon entry, the party would feel themselves stiffening, in a way. T'was as though the sounds were etching into their minds, tugging at their muscles in some bizarre fashion. The room itself has denizens, if you can call several dozen faceless, vacant, black silhouettes denizens, ofcourse! They all seem wholly disinterested, even oblivious to the group's presence, although by the looks of things they seem to be moving in reverse! The door leading deeper into the dungeon is not in plain sight...
(Yejian) Yejian had never seen a disco ball before. Hell, even her mother was barely old enough to recognize the era this room's aesthetic was pulled from. "Weird place," she mumbles, rolling her shoulders. "I don't see a door. Maybe if we just walk backwards we'll wander into a different room?"
(Fenris) Jaleel hates places like this. He frowns and starts to look around for the inevitable vip lounge or back room... Then Fenris remembers that he does not care what Jaleel likes. The burly tanuki shakes his head and smiles at the gaudy decor. He hops lightly up the stairs to the main dance floor and turns a little sommersault at the top. When he lands lightly on his feet, his clothing has changed through some tanuki trick. He is wearing a white coat with wide lapels and a neon pink shirt tucked into a wide belt decorated with rhinestones. The strangeness of the music does not slow him down as he starts dancing like that one uncle at a wedding party, moving to the bizarre beat. "Take that, Jaleel!" he crows, shaking that nuki-booty.
(Junes) chuckling a bit junes waves over to the tanuki "leaf id love to join you but this place isnt the most friendly so you may wanna keep it short" and looking to yejian they mention "disco a classic, oh and what kind of style do you fight in, defensively or more aggressive?"
(Ankh) Ankh very much also had no memory of such a place, though then again his entire life before waking up in a Zephyr triage cot was a blank. Still, the strange, backwards music and the faceless figures kept him on his guard. So as long as they wouldn't attack, perhaps this was just a matter of passing through unbothered? Respect the Dungeon, and perhaps it showed mercy on you. Weapon close to himself, he slowly turns his back toward the door they had come from, and takes cautious steps back up the steps, and onto the dancefloor. Something does tug at him, though. If this place was as shifting and formless as it seemed, could they not close the door they came in, and re-open it to be elsewhere again? Was that a solution here, going backwards? With no threats for now, he figures they can try several things.
(Symaro) Ever the voice of reason, Yejian tries to open the door that they'd come from, and is met with a brick wall in the archway. There is a note on the wall, inscribed in legible English that reads as follows. "No." Seems like the dungeon has a bit of a dry sense of humor. Fenris is definitely not making things easier however, his flurry of motion was in some way making the music in the room LOUDER. The tunes tug and pull at the party's bodies, forcing the weak-bodied into joining into Fenris' motions. However...
(Symaro) ...Ankh is rendered immune to the music's effects by sheer strength of body alone. Fenris too manages to fight off the compulsion by literally struggling away from it! Junes and Fenris shelter their mind and push away the compulsion by sheer force of will. However the music seems to be growing louder and more potent in its effect by the second. A sane man might not want to linger here... lest they wish to dance themselves into oblivion!
(Yejian) Yejian certainly has no sense of humour at the moment. The lion knight scowls at the note and turns her back on it, pinning her ears back. What an awful racket. She liked music, but whatever this was... Was not pleasant. She looks at her shield, then looks towards the other two. "If you can get him to stop, please do. Otherwise I'm going to knock him over the head and we can just drag him the rest of the way."
(Fenris) "You don't like dancing?" Fenris asks, bouncing backward rhythmically, "Look! I'm GYRATING!" The tanuki laughs and tries to stop and rejoin the group, unsure what they are so concerned about.
(Fenris) The tanuki frowns a little as his limbs seem unwilling to obey for a moment, but then he muscles his way through and moves down the stairs.
(Junes) sighing in relief that they all beat the compulsion of the disco fever junes joins the group while thinking of a plan
(Ankh) "Should we... try and walk through it backwards?", the gnoll offers, trying to lead the way up toward the dance floor, still walking backwards. At least this way he kept the group in his vision.
(Fenris) Fenris shakes his head and points toward the center of the dance floor. "Right there," he says, "Can't believe you guys don't want to dance though. This place is great!" He hesitates a little then shrugs, "Aside from the creepy factor, I mean. But the shadow guys are at least trying to enjoy themselves." The burly tanuki blithely ascends the stairs again, heading for the center of the dance floor and avoiding the shadowy figures, though he casts a wary eye at the glittering mirror ball over head.
(Symaro) The Tanuki manages to sashay his way through the oblivious crowd without alerting or touching any of the silhouettes. He arrives at the center of the room, and continues to make himself as untouchable as possible. The trapdoor leading down to the next chamber is right there... it would need someone pretty strong to open though, it's a dense stone cover.
(Yejian) "... Not really. This place isn't an amusement park," Yejian replies to Fenris. "It's a dangerous place, and we need to finish our task here and leave as readily as we are able." She continues to frown, even as she follows along. "Is this the way out?" She asks, eyeing the trapdoor. Though she figures between her and Ankh they could get it open, she gets an early start on it.
(Symaro) Yejian unfortunately brushes right by one of the silhouettes, clumsily alerting it to her presence. The ghastly entity snaps sharply and grasps her by the forearm, an unearthly screech piercing her senses as it starts to drag itself into her. Despite her best efforts to repel the invasive presence, the ghastly silhouette seems to flow right into her body, merging with her in some unearthly way. She is forced to stumble back onto the trapdoor, cold and shaken... for now all is quiet, but after a few seconds she might just sense that she is now bringing something along with herself...
(Symaro) The small kobold even more clumsily butts right into one of the crowd of silhouettes! He is met with much the same fate that the bunny knight had faced, one of those ghastly figures latching onto him by the shoulders and releasing an unearthly ear-shattering screech as it tries and tries to merge with its intended victim. Alas, something seems to drive it off. Its grasp weakens and it releases Junes, before stumbling back and fading out of their line of sight. Junes makes it to the trapdoor... slightly shaken, but otherwise alright.
(Junes) after stumbling back up from the rather rushed move junes heads over to yejian and examines them and feeling how dangerously cold they are deem to for now cover them gently in tails and offer "youre going to be okay just try to stay with us!" and as they say this they are thinking about how else to improve her condition
(Ankh) Ankh watches the trio move towards the center of the dance floor, and noting that, at least for the most part, moving backwards seems to not be required... he ups his pace to meet up with them, wondering if the unique influence of the room would make it easier when walking back like this. The screech drawing a surprised growl from the gnoll, suddenly turning around, but he can't close the distance before whatever it was flows into Yejian, and nearly does to Junes. Not wanting to take the same chance, he holds his saw out in front of himself and lets it rev to life with an overpowering roar. He does of course make an effort to choose the least cramped route towards the center, but anything unwilling or unable to step aside was going to be met with a firm, motorized shredding. Except his group, of course.
(Symaro) Ankh rams his way right through the crowd, throngs of hands grasping and yanking at him, though none strong enough to do much more than slow him down. He manages to pry himself clean of the last ghastly entity upon arrival. The horde of horrid specters stirs due to the gnoll's brash and harsh entry. The music dies down and a cacophony of unearthly moans and screams floods the room. All the ghastly silhouettes begin stumbling around blindly with their arms outstretched, seeking the presence that had upset their dance party. The area's threat level drastically increases. Getting out pronto might be a good idea...
(Yejian) Yejian seethes and snarls at the shade that has grasped her, reaching for her sword only for it to disperse before she gets the chance. "Yeah. I know that," she says with a grimace. "But thanks for the spirit. Whatever it is, we can deal with it later. I'm not worried about it at the moment. If it rears its head, we dispatch it on the spot. If it hides, we can force it out later." With that, she turns her attention towards trying to open the way.
(Fenris) Fenris considers the heavy looking stone tile blocking their way, looking up with concern at the unearthly shrieks. Honestly, with all of this going on, the tanuki is a little relieved. At least it keeps his mind on the present. He draws his spear and wedges its long blade under the edge of the tile, attempting to lever it out of place.
(Symaro) Fenris makes a valiant effort, his inventive thinking popping the hatch upwards just enough that everyone else can get a firm grip on the damn thing. Yejian and Junes join in, unsealing it until the blasted thing comes ajar, but not quite open yet. Ankh grabs the lid and gives it the final, and strongest yank upwards, swinging it wide open and revealing the vacant black pit beneath them. This is the only way forward! Looks like it's either face the unknown, or the ghasts that are slowly but surely stumbling their way closer!
(Junes) seeing the exit open junes decides to head down carefully and slowly to not provoke the place and once inside checks for danger
(Ankh) Ankh waves the other to get down the trapdoor while he holds some of the closer... creatures at bay. Creatures? Creatures. Flipping the saw 90 degrees to give the next unfortunately shade a vicious center parting. With a final sweep when the rest have dropped down, the gnoll drops himself down the trap door, making sure to decelerate the blades before he ends up slicing himself.
(Fenris) Fenris twirls his spear and replaces it on his back. He turns about, gives the encroaching ghouls a smile and a salute, then non-chalantly turns a backflip into the dark hole. Style is important, and it makes him feel much more himself.
(Yejian) Yejian certainly isn't about to stay behind. As soon as the way is open, she makes use of it.
(Symaro) The entire party seems to fall right through what seems like a hole suspended in mid air! They flop through the spatial anomaly and all fall towards the hard ground below. Ankh *THUD* impacts the ground hard, but looks unphased from the impact. Yejian lands shield-first and feels a light bruise form on her shoulder, but otherwise soldiers through the impact. Junes flops down on his haunch and ends out fairly unbothered. Fenris meanwhile makes a graceful rolling impact upon landing, and suffers not for it. Upon arrival in the misty woods, the party finds themselves completely enshrouded by fog from all directions. It shifts and moves with the wind, as though harboring some form of sentience and grace all its own. The area feels welcoming, sounds of footfalls audible to everyone all around them. Strangely, a sense of completion hangs in the air, as though this is where they needed to be. Brambles weave and twist all around them... the exit has to be somewhere around here~
(Yejian) With a grunt, Yejian pushes herself up and rubs at her shoulder. "Brambles, but still not the room I was looking for. Ah well..." With a shake of her head, the leonine knight casts her gaze around the forest. "Hopefully this trip is almost over. It is starting to outstay its welcome as much as we have."
(Fenris) Fenris brushes a bit of dirt and grass from his coat, which has turned back into the greatcoat he was wearing earlier. The misty woods, though spooky, leave him feeling a bit more grounded than he has been. Another place that... other person would not go. The burly tanuki looks around for the source of the sound of footsteps.
(Junes) standing back up the fluffy tailed hissah walks over to yejian to check their state and seeing their pretty good figures they can overpower the being and starting to relax a bit they decide to search for a flower or clover in the area
(Ankh) Ankh lands saw-first, able to lesson the impact just a little before the rest of his body impacts the strange forest floor, landing on foot and knee, before raising himself up with a deep rumbling growl. "Save for the fog, this is quite the place...", his ears do perk at the noise around them and, freeing his weapon from the dirt, he shoulders it once more. "Sorry for the drastic measure up there. Saw what those things were doing and figured better to cut and run than take another hitchhiker with us.", he apologizes with a nod. "Are you... going to be alright, Yejian?"
(Symaro) The woodlands seem to shift and move all on their own, to Junes and Fenris however a glimmer amidst the fog draws their attention. It leads off up a winding path, littered with brambles and engulfed in mist. The air is thick with the aromas of natural flora and fauna, a calming sense of ease prevalent in this part of the woods. The ground beneath everyone's feet feels soft and mushy, akin to mud but oddly... spongy. All else is a vacant, empty field of foggy nothingness extending potentially to infinity in all directions~
(Yejian) "You made the right call I think," Yejian says in reply to Ankh, before giving a tired smile at Junes' concern. "But yeah, I'll be alright. This is... Still not the worst I've dealt with. If I overcame that, I'll overcome this too. I'm just eager to be done with this place for the time being. It is not even half as pleasant as mom told it."
(Fenris) "It was probably a good choice," Fenris assures Ankh, "Those things were trying to get more intimate than I liked." He casts a worried glance around the clearing at his companions. "I think something is heading our way," he says, tapping his ear, then pointing at the ground. The tanuki indicates the winding path forward. "Shall we?" he says, taking the lead and starting to tap out a bold tattoo on his tummy, leading the way through the mists and trying to bolster himself and his friends.
(Junes) quietly shouting over the reptile replies "ill be right there!" and after spotting a patch of clovers they smile a bit and grab a few to bring and decides to hold one in their hand and proceeds to walk back towards the group again
(Ankh) With the fog and bramble ahead, the gnoll gets the feeling that the woods themselves may be just as dangerous a foe as whatever was stalking around. So, with a sigh, he lowers his pack a moment, parting the saw from the mace and storing the parts carefully, before taking the composite metal pole of his greataxe out, giving the hefty generator fitted atop it a tap to make sure the slatted windows can move and vent heat. Closing his backpack and hefting it back over his shoulder, Ankh turns a switch and brings the weapon to life. A pale blue-purple blade of light crackling to life before it begins to stabilize. An axe blade made of searing plasma, crackling and bathing him in its glow as he steps to follow 'Leaf'.
(Symaro) The party draws nearer and nearer to the source of the distant glimmer, ascending their way towards the inevitable goal while the mist slowly starts to thin out around them. Eventually they'd find themselves drawing close to a secluded alcove, bereft of all mist within its reaches, with a singular platform dead center. Upon it rests a small glass case, housing a tiny crystal vial filled with brightly blowing light blue liquid. Upon nearing the site however, perhaps their presence provokes something or mayhap they'd attracted it simply by being here, but a writhing mass of long, deep blue lashing vines erupt from the ground all around them! Painful-looking barbs line the lengths of the tendril-like lengths, a flurry of lashing strikes surging towards the group in rapid succession!
(Yejian) "At least it's straight forward this time," Yejian says, drawing her blade. Meanwhile, she brings her shield around. Lashes and barbs were of little concern if they could not pierce her sturdy metal wall. And then she just had to counter strike to trim back the weed.
(Fenris) Fenris whips his spear from his back, twirling and slashing defensively, dancing in an acrobatic pattern of footwork and slicing blade to keep the horrible tendrils at bay!
(Ankh) Similarly unbothered by the encroaching vines, both by his suit of plate-metal as well as his fiery axe, the gnoll stands firm, focusing on the movement of the tendril. Readied for the strike, and whirls his axe to counter the strike.
(Junes) seeing the plant-like enemy they decide to grab some ethereal help and focusing on their glowing tails a flurry of blue flames rise and coalesce into a will-o-wisp
(Symaro) Yejian takes the initiative, shield raised and ready for the onslaught, the lashing tendrils bounce right off of her guard and leave both her and Junes unscaved. Her retalitory swing cuts deep into one of the vines, causing green mucus to erupt from the open gash in the plant's writhing mass. Fenris is unfortunately not so fortunate, he attempts to weasel his way out of harm's way but ends up being harshly lashed and impaled on the left arm by one of the brambles. Poison sinks into his bloodstream and immediately weakens him in addition to paralyzing his arm, leaving only his right to fight with. Thankfully the swing of his spear leaves another of the tendrils reeling to the point of sending it sinking into the ground, reducing the number of plant-like menaces from an eight, to a six. Junes conjures a small wisp! It manifests and awaits its master's command. Ankh meanwhile has his blade set and ready. With a masterful parry he deflects the oncoming lash and bunts the tendrils into position, slicing one clean in half, reducing their attackers further to a number of five~
(Yejian) Yejian seems intent on probing the aggressor currently, raising her shield to halt another vine while returning with another swing of her own. Once she had its measure, she could better protect the others without compromising herself.
(Fenris) Fenris staggers from the blow dealt to him, gasping as he feels the barb's poison sink into him. The tanuki does not stay out of the fight for more than a moment, though, charging in again with his blade, though it seems that he thought rather too highly of his current capabilities and winds up missing his strike and staggering to a stop in the tendrils' clutches and at their mercy.
(Ankh) Letting loose an energetic, hyena cackle, Ankh rushes himself toward another couple of tendrils, giving a heavy swing with the plasma enhanced axe, and a blindingly fast follow up swing being let loose as he uses the momentum of the swing to hand the weapon off mid-turn.
(Junes) while preparing a natural poultice to cure the poison junes says "try and attack the tendrils while i keep the others healthy!" and as its prepped they rush to leaf and slap the wound with the mixed fluids
(Symaro) Still trapped in the circle of tendrils, the party continues their struggle against their poisonous opponents. Yejian narrowly avoids having her armor pierced by the attacking tendrils, a sickly green sludge remaining where she'd been lashed on the back, mere inches from breaking the surface of her skin. Her retaliation however sees the sharpened edge of her blade cleaving straight through another one of the tendrils, a shrill shriek heard from somewhere beneath them as another one recedes into the ground. Fenris swings, and misses his second attack, his body proving more than resolute enough however, a surge of adrenaline and a mighty fortitude together permitting him use of his arm once more! He suffers another lash, this time grazing him across the chest, hampering his breaths and incurring a general weakness penalty unless he manages to shake this off as well. Junes comes in with the peculiar liquid, which if ingested works sheer miracles in resolving Fenris from his poisoned state. Alas, for this encounter, it is the only saving poltrice the party would be permitted. Junes' wisp erupts into a cascade of magical flames, searing one of the tendrils and severely hampering its motions, though not outright burying it quite yet! Ankh meanwhile readies two rapid attacks. One vine comes lashing down upon his back, the barb burrowing into his fur and injecting its toxins into his bloodstream! He immediately feels dazed and weakened. Thankfully his onslaught of swings yields a result, one being a near miss, the other cleaving another tentacle in two, lowering their attackers' numbers down to three!
(Yejian) "Feisty, aren't they," Yejian murmurs, but she's getting the feel for their extent thus far. Shield raised, she slides into position to ward them off of Junes, as well, while quickly lashing out with another deft strike. It may not be her spear, but she's no slouch with a sword either. "If you see a window to land a telling blow to this thing, take it."
(Fenris) Fenris hisses at the new gash across his front, though it is soothed by Junes' first aid ministrations. The tanuki lets out a battle cry... one that he does not remember after saying it and that would be unfamiliar if he heard it, and launches once more into the fray, slashing and spinning with his blade, trying to overcome his physical and mental weariness. He is certainly not as on-point with his blade work as he normally is, however. For some reason he keeps expecting to have a long, thin dagger in each hand instead of his spear.
(Junes) seeing the blows junes holds back on healing their allies for the moment in case the tendrils source exposes itself and decides to fire a bolt of energy that is focused from their forearm and raised like a crossbow and they watch the bolts result
(Ankh) Ankh tries to push through the leeching poison, empowered by the wound, and refusing to let up now. He pushes himself forward with a feral roar, slicing frantically at the remaining vine in an effort to finish the fight.
(Symaro) Yejian raises her shield once more, her efforts divided between herself and Junes, she manages to stave off one lashing attack from herself, and from Junes albeit just barely-so. The effort severely impedes her retaliation, a swing sent as little more than a grazing blow against the offending tendril, releasing more of that putrid green bile but not quite sending it down yet. Fenris flubs another attack, though thankfully his feet finally kick their rear into gear and yank him free from another lashing strike, preventing more venom-capped unpleasantnesses! Junes releases a very strange looking energy-based attack, in unison with his wisp's fiery wrath managing to sear another of the three remaining tendrils clean in two! Only two remain. Ankh's blade, despite its wielder's weakened state cuts right through another one of the tendrils, slicing it in two and reducing their enemies down to a single tendril. The gnoll suffers a second lash, this one to the right pec. His armor proves insufficient to guard him, and a second dose of the venom impairs him significantly. Whatever or wherever those lashing vines had emerged from, it seems that the mind controlling them had taken a hint. The final venomous attacker sinks deep into the ground, and all noises cease... Ankh however is not doing so well. His vision blurs and he is barely standing on his own two feet. Another dose of that poison may well have stopped his heart.
(Yejian) Yejian remains on her guard, even after hostilities have ceased. You can never be too careful, especially in a place like this. "How are you all holding up? Still standing?" She asks, looking over the others. "We're almost out of here for real, I think. I hope."
(Fenris) Fenris pants from the exertion from the fight. "That could have gone better," the tanuki admits, looking with chagrin at his spear. In some ways, it had been 47 years since he last used it. He frowns and shakes his head, reaching into a pocket of his coat and producing a small, bluish vial and tossing it to Ankh. "Universal Antidote," he says, "Should help." He looks up the path and nods to Yejian. "Let's get out of here."
(Junes) wiping their forehead they see the fight is over and raise their hands to spray a small rain of nanites showering the group and healing them from battle "i wonder what the rest of the creature those tendrils are from look like?" and they wipe the access nanites from their hands
(Ankh) Ankh laughs, though significantly weakened, as the last tendril makes itself scarce. The gnoll was supporting himself on his weapon, switching the plasma off now that the immediate threat was gone. Shakily, he registers "Leaf's" voice, something about an antidote? He barely catches it, palming it in his hand, before shrugging and downing it. The relief is palpable, working through his system to expel the poison, leaving just the satisfied triumph of a victory. "Thanks... We did good. Right? We did it."
(Symaro) Well, it would turn out that Yejian is right. Maybe the Dungeon has had its fun, or perhaps the party had endured their trials? But... the prize is right there. No strings attached! The Tear of the Creator rests under a simple class case, ripe for the taking! Should someone have a grab at it, a mechanism triggers, one loooooong spiral staircase emerging, spanning easily a hundred meters up, leading into the very first room where the Dungeon's exit resided. Ankh guzzles down the offered medicine... and feels a profound emptiness immediately when it grips him. His thoughts? Vacant. His simmering inner rage? Gone... his battle readiness? Poof... he is no longer weakened, but he is no longer emboldened in any way either. It might take a while to recover from that.
(Yejian) "Finally." Yejian stows her sword and reaches out for the case. "This is it, then," she says with a nod. Unless someone rushes to beat her to it, she secures the tear and mounts the staircase. "I'd like to hand this off and get out of here then, if you all don't mind? ... Well, you are welcome to continue if you want, I can't stop you, but I am afraid this is it for me today."
(Fenris) Fenris produces one more gourd from within his coat and downs it, growing once more with a temporary power boost. The oversized tanuki offers Ankh a shoulder to lean on as the group hobbles their way along the path where he watches Yejian pluck the Tear from its case. "I hope this thing was worth it," he growls as he continues to help the gnoll up the long steps to the entrance.
(Fenris) Fenris vote symaro
(Junes) taking a last glance around to see if any wildlife is around it seems maybe the combat scared anything that was here before away and so they turn back and follow the group "man this place is interesting i wonder what lies deeper but its best to head back up for now, how are you guys feeling?"
(Ankh) Blinking with his newfound... well, clarity, Ankh takes a deep breath and moves to claim the Tear for the O.A., though he's in no rush for the moment. Happily leaning on Fenris for support, he begins to ascend the stairs, mission thoroughly accomplished. "I... am going to enjoy taking a long soak in the shower after all this.", he admits with a chuckle. "Glad it's done, and with a successful dive into the abyss, to boot."
(Symaro) And that's all she wrote. The four emerge at the gathering room and are greeted by two tall skunk studs in black suits. With the Tear handed over into the O.A.'s custody, the quartette of adventurers are all paid their due five million credits for a job well done. They disperse, each seeking to tend their wounds and lick their fractured wills in whatever ways they so choose. Junes, ever the inquisitive little rascal, inquires about RETURNING to the Dungeon. This earns him a lot of strange stares, and he is told outright that this information is classified. Symaro himself would pull the kobold aside and explain that the Dungeon opens solely to those whom already live within it. Symaro himself being one of those dwellers was able to open a path into the Dungeon, however the number of other Dwellers currently roaming the materium is miniscule at best.
