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[illuminaughti]

A warm wind sent phosphorescent spores dancing around them. She watched then float by as a man offered his service to fetch the water beyond her outstretched hand. "It is a forking path..." she warned, "I will lead you." Dionys announced to Thalmir. "It would be good to return to food, I have not eaten today."

[Redcoat]

"How long has it been since you've eaten?" Anikus asked with genuine concern. "How long were you in that cocoon, anyway?"

He put down his rucksack and pulled some pemmican out from it. It was the perfect adventurer's food; hardy, nutritious, tasted good, kept forever. As Dionys enjoyed what Anikus suspected was her first meal in days, the scholar pondered Thalmir's sudden change of heart. Perhaps he'd finally won the man's respect; perhaps, his more cynical side suggested, he was being lured into some sort of assassination plot and Thalmir had finally just snapped. He crushed this rebellion and put himself back on the task at hand.

"Thalmir, though I appreciate your enthusiasm, you were just brought back from the brink of death by the... second most bizarre spell we've ever performed. I'd like to suggest we move as a pack to find a position to camp, nearest Dionys' water source as possible. I have a feeling that we are not on top of the food chain in this place. Once we have a base camp set up that's defensible, we can start fetching things, but only under watch. Once we've all had supper and are well hydrated, we'll resume our usual watch schedule. Once we're all rested, we'll move again and get the hell out of here."

Of course, he thought, There's no reason we can't perform some other duties on the side also. This place is a goldmine of information. I'll see if we can't divine what the Entity really was... once we're all properly rested.

His team seemed to agree with his approach.

"Let's move out," he said. "Dionys, follow the way. Your skills are our best guide."

[Kamikaze_X]

Thalmir seemingly had only then remembered his rather grave injuries that had occurred prior to this newest foray into the unknown. They had indeed been terrible, and the pain still plagued him at that moment. The new revelations and the change he had undergone had shoved that piercing hurt to the back of his mind - he almost wished he had continued to 'forget' of his ailment. Nevertheless, he wished to prove his true worth to his comrades the moment he was completely healed.

To the surprise of all, Thalmir bowed to Anikus - as was his older custom.

"I suppose you're right Anikus, I will heed your suggestion." Thalmir could think of nothing left to say so became quiet before deciding to add - "Though I do wish to aid in our hunt for water and food... I shan't be a burden again to you all."

[illuminaughti]

"How long has it been since you've eaten?" Anikus asked.

“A while...two days, three? I can't recall...it all slips by so fast” Dionys said summoning the hours to mind that had passed since she fled her slavery. A constant rush of adrenaline that had propelled her forward had begun to wane, but in its wake had distorted her perception of time. It seemed like only minutes ago that her shaking hand had poisoned her master's drink.
"How long were you in that cocoon, anyway?"

“Long enough to be eternally in your debt,” she spoke to Anikus but lowered her gaze towards the woman who had freed her. “Therefore I shall lead you.”
She ceremoniously raised her hood and turned away from the mage. She wound the long chain around her arm, letting it wave a broad spiral to her wrist. The charm dangled to a dead hang below her outstretched fingers. The trance only amplified the odd ambient light leaving streaks of neon blue and green arching and spiraling against her vision. The jewel twitched, tugging her body, soft and gentle,  to follow it down a dark path.

As she walked she asked the scholar at her heels, “Do you think the room of metal and glass where you killed the jungle god, predates the Maukai? Those punch cards in the cabinets, I perused them with my mind...they held a library of data, but very little information. I couldn't think properly at the time, what having been mentally raped by that monster. But now...” she mused. “It was similar to the Maukai language, Mo’phai... that complex mathematical syntax is a very isolated and unique language. Could they be the authors of those tables of data, or did they merely appropriate them from whoever built that strange room?”

They traveled deeper, past more of the hungry grass. She took them under the low hanging branches of a willow, each leaf tipped in a gnashing luminous mouth that snapped at the florescent spores they kicked up. The sound of dripping water could be heard once the travelers passed the faint munching sound.

“There.” Dionys pointed to a great black lake. The water was the colour of ink and as still as glass. She knelt and drank deeply, oblivious to the long tentacles that rippled the stillness as they approached the bank.

[Durandal]

Marketta lunged for Dionys as she realized just what the woman was doing. The shock of the situation itself led her to disregard berating the woman entirely as she ripped her away from the waters. Jumping in front of Dionys in the space now provided with her Kukri drawn, she finally yelled in a panicked voice "what were you thinking!?" It was certainly a foolish decision, however this was unexpected of someone like Dionys. She had just lead them to a source of water, black as ink and stagnant as glass. She'd think the woman at least had the common sense to realize just how deadly a choice that was. Even without regarding the water being so flat, it was black as ink and tentacles were coming out of it. Sure, she didn't notice the tentacles; but there was something very, very wrong with the water. Keeping her sight firmly on the tentacles in front of her, she told Dionys "you should get back, unless you think it's possible for you to fight." She'd have to fend off this attack if it attempted to drag her in.

Cursing in an ancient tongue under her breath, she held her Kukri at the ready for any sudden strikes. It seemed everything was out to get them and nowhere was safe. There was never time for a rest, was there?

Edited by Durandal, 23 June 2011 - 12:22 AM.

[Lyon]

Telchi moved almost as quickly as Marketta, shouting "Dionys, look out!" He slowed as he approached the bank, knowing that it might be slippery, and stood alongside Marketta. One tentacle snaked out at his ankle, and a sword blurred to intercept it. Drops of inky (and, for some unknown reason, deep purple) blood splashed his leg, and he winced as he saw them eating away at the fabric.

Acid blood from a lake-monster in the middle of an underground kingdom. My sword-partner is a woman with cat ears. I seem to have gone quite mad lately.

[Chef]

Grimlain wasn't sure if he saw correctly what was in that dark pool of water.  Tentacles?  Was this another wonderful thing this forest had to offer to them?  Grimlain himself didn't jump straight into the conflict like Marketta or Telchi, instead hanging back a bit, gripping his sword in both hands until something actually happens.  Personally, he didn't want to get a tentacle wrapped around his leg right at the start.

"You know, I could've gone without a drink had I known tentacle creatures were lying in wait for us," Grimlain grumbled.  "But, whatever.  This won't be the first time we fight a creature that most people don't even believe is real."

[Redcoat]

What is it now!? he thought as Dionys was pushed away from the water. He could understand perfectly why Marketta would do that; drinking from this was likely suicide until they'd at least boiled the living (perhaps literally living) hell out of it. Then there was the tentacles. He pulled his sword.

"Everyone get back!" he said. "There's no way we can fight it in its own element. We're going to have to either rush it to steal water, or distract it somehow. Unless someone has a bright idea on how to kill this thing."

What a fantastic trick. Take refuge in one of the water holes and kill whatever came near it. No doubt, the lack of animal tracks around here meant that its reign over this water was coming to an end. Perhaps it could even move from this place; colonize elsewhere and make its killing multiple times. This place was cruel, cruel indeed. And he hadn't even begun to think about whatever kind of poison or parasites Dionys might have ingested.

[Kamikaze_X]

Thalmir unsheathed his claymore as soon as he heard the water take on a different sound other than the peaceful rippling it once gave off. Whatever was in the water was not friendly - it didn't take a genius to figure that out. Stepping back from the water alongside the others, Thalmir tried to think of a good way that they might pilfer some water from this beast without becoming its meal-of-the-day.

"I bet that thing doesn't like fire. Anikus, allow me to distract this fell beast while someone gets some water! I'll likely need some back up of course." Thalmir said.

Out of all of them, he believed he likely had the most strength at the moment - the reasons why escaped him, but perhaps his meeting with the entity only granted him strength and revitalization rather than exhaustion that it seemed everyone around him felt. A small flicker of an emerald flame appeared in one open palm. He would give that beast such a scare that it wouldn't dare mess with his comrades...

[Redcoat]

Anikus looked at Thalmir and grinned. He loved the plan. It was daring, audacious, violent, and even used fire. It was a shame that they'd have to destroy a creature as beautiful as this one--they were all wonders, truly--but Anikus couldn't argue with the necessity of it all.

He looked at Marketta and Takeshi. "We have a tentacle monster to distract," he said. "Make as much noise as possible and slash at any tentacles that come at you--especially your legs! Lure it up! Thalmir and I will take care of it beyond that!"

[Vithar Megilaglar]

Takeshi drew his sword. Bad enough this water wasn't drinkable. Even worse, something that might be able to digest Anikus.

"Well, this is going to get worse. It always does." Takeshi raised his blade, preparing to attack. He sighed quietly.

A tentacle slithered quietly, stirring leaves and plant matter. Takeshi stabbed down, lancing the tentacle - barely.

Takeshi stumbled slightly. "Eh? I shouldn't have -- Urgh...I'm...exhausted..." Takeshi tried to ready another attack. But even raising his blade was more effort than he could muster.

"Damn...this venture...has caught up with me..." Takeshi closed his eyes and slumped to the ground, looking more like he was killed than fainting.

Sakura watched, grimacing. Nothing she could do. Takeshi was out for the count and unlikely to move at all any time soon. She lowered her eyes, and then cemented her glare on the creature. Only way to help Takeshi now was to help kill the creature, although she couldn't hit the target as it was out of sight.

Later, she'd take out her anger on Anikus. After all, it was that man's fault that they ended up in this mess in the first place.

[Redcoat]

Anikus rushed ahead. Takeshi had to be defended. As he slashed away a couple of the animal's tentacles with his katzbalger, he prepared in his left hand a powerful firebolt. Red welled up in his hand, and orange, and yellow, and a terrific light. As he looked down to his fallen comrade for just a moment to check on him, it became apparent that he would need some sort of treatment. They all would. They'd been running on adrenaline and necessity, but they had to stop at some point. He didn't even want to think about the dreams they'd have that night.

But it was all secondary to this single spell. He grimmaced. Already, in this weakened state, he approached the limits of his power. Then, all at once, with impeccable accuracy and unmitigated passion, he let the bolt fly into the very center of the pool. The results were immediate and dramatic. The water around the bolt's point of impact flash-boiled instantly, just as Anikus predicted. The deeper portions, however, simply heated up. Violently. Just as he had predicted.

The beast rose out of the water as it was scalded. Its central body was a fat and bizarre construction; clearly it relied on movement through its tentacles. On the front of an elongated, football-shaped mass was a single eye. It stared at them with no emotion whatsoever. It was clear, however, that it would only be up for a few seconds.

"Thalmir, use fire!"

[Kamikaze_X]

Thalmir watched as Takeshi ran toward the water and started to attack the beast.. or at least attempt to attack. The exhaustion for the entire company, perhaps except Thalmir himself, was almost palpable. The situation seemed grim, Thalmir didn't think he could take the beast by himself. Suddenly however Anikus brought in the heat.. literally. Throwing a great bolt of fire into the center of the pool, everything seemed to go deathly quiet.

At the middle of the poor, ripples flowing outward toward the edges just as the epicenter of an earthquake. From just below the surface of the water a long, terrible groaning came to their ears.

"Ohhhh... here it comes!" Thalmir shouted as a warning.

The water erupted into the air as a geyser would, and out of the water, the massive, slimy body of the giant squid - the Kraken appeared. One large yellow eyeball with a long red pupil focused in on Anikus and he. However, before the great beast could life a tentacle Thalmir gave a wild roar as he aimed both palms outward. Along with the force of adrenaline pumping through his veins, he could feel the building pressure of his elemental magic at work.

From one palm, a great jet of emerald flame burst right into the beasts body itself which started to drive it back. From his other, he aimed into the water and a similar jet erupted. A cacophony of sounds seemed to drive all other things away as the beast gave a long, piercing shriek just as the water quickly started to boil. Bubbles rose to the surface in torrents, popping and spraying super-heated vapors into the air. The battlefield became clouded as the action unfolded through this mist.