Fantasy Ascent into Madness

[C.DEX]

"Woah!" Cyell said, reaching for the gun on his waistband with one hand and smacking Kniges' hand away with the other. "You're supposed to do magic, stupid." he grunted, before focusing in on the woman and raising his weapon. He, of course, wasn't quite as welcoming as Kytrek had been, but he also wasn't a foot away from the 'new arrival'. "Back off. And what do you mean, key? Key to this place? Are you stuck here?" he inferred, his eyes narrowing in response. "What are your intentions?"

He looked down the sight, though his finger had been off the trigger. He wasn't even aware if his weapon would work, there, but the intent was there. And Argis still had his other weapon - a useless thing, he often thought - as of course he had to get close to use it. "Kytrek, back up." he said, more than a little paranoid as to what any other person could be doing in the Cavern, let alone in the same trap that they had seemed to have fallen into.

"Hello!" Argis said, raising a hand and waving to the feathered person with the mirror shard. He countered Gniss' paranoia, a facet to which certainly could have been annoying. Of course, in Argis' mind, it was better to be diplomatic than hostile. After all, that's what had kept him alive as of thus. He had stood, following the pixie to as close to the cave he could get without climbing the incline itself, making for only his shoulders and his head to be visible. The light on his suit illuminated the cave, a button he had found in the morning.

"I'm Argis a'Voldur." he added cheerfully, standing inside of the current, only to occasionally look down to see where their companions had gone. "We come in peace. Mostly. Well, I do. I'm entirely unsure about the motivations of the others, but if the small one attempts to coerce you into a suit, I would suggest using your wings." he added. "Would you happen to have come across and pilfered a camp last night? Unrelated question."

 

[Jeda Teq]

"I'm not a lizard..." Kniges mumbled under his breath. After failing to take custody of the infernal, Kniges jumped down shortly after Kytrek. His wings unfurled to slow his descent allowing him to glide into the water with a subtle plop. The hands of his wings rested on his shoulders, allowing him to move his forearms unhindered. His original intent was to carry both humans all the way down.

He looked to the woman with a raised scaly brow, "..." His mind began to fabricate a back story for her. Many of them. Most of which would require more information about it and probably wouldn't be believed unless she wasn't their to debunk it. "New?" He walked around her so that she was now between him and Kytrek. "Have you not heard tales of the Black Glass Dragon?" He wore a condescending expression his face. "I've ventured to this place many times. What makes you believe I would have forgotten a key?" The only parts of diplomacy Kniges was good at are story telling and bluffing. However, he easily get's caught up in his own lies.

 

[Lyro]

The woman's eyes flicked over to look at the gun, briefly, before her gaze settled back on Cyell. "Calm yourself, young man," she whispered, slowly spreading her arms to her sides as Kytrek moved to stand next to Kniges, hand resting uncertainly on his slung rifle."I was being metaphorical - or have metaphors gone out of style since I entered?" she clarified with a hint of bitterness to her tone that jarred with its muted intensity."Those who neglect to bring their exit with them will find themselves trapped, as I was. As he was," she added, pointing with an inclination of her head to the boy who was standing behind Cyell.

He was small and, had he been human, couldn't have passed for older than nine or ten. As it were, his pointed ears and narrow facial features marked him as a Sharp Elf, a rarely-seen native of the Upper Middle Levels, making his age much harder to ascertain. His clothes, while not quite as antiquated as those of the woman, were still out of fashion by several decades, even by upper standards. And yet, for all their differences, the boy had the same faded look to him as the woman: the colors had washed out of his clothes, his skin was too smooth and his hair was almost exactly the same color as the woman's. And when he spoke, the words felt hollow, and the listener's mind had to exert itself to remember their meaning.

"The squamous one claims knowledge of methods of egress," he uttered in an even fainter tone than the woman, his voice harsh and raspy. He made a sound halfway between a cough and a sigh. "Tempt us not with false hope, dragon. You are not the first fool to make such bold declarations. Few have backed them up over the ages. And still we remain. And still we wither."

 

[C.DEX]

"Kniges, if you're going to make a doorway for us to get out of here then do it!" Cyell shouted, jumping as he turned his pistol on the boy, not even beginning to debate how mixed of a moral message it had been. "Back up, kid!" he said, stepping backwards away from him, only to stumble when he forgot the incline had been there. He caught himself before he could make as much of a fool of himself as Kniges had, but he had stumbled far enough to join the others, barely stopping before hitting Kytrek. "Fuck ... Not the best place to take a shortcut through. Lets go." he whispered, with urgency.

If his hand hadn't been on his gun, it would have been pointing at the boy. "Also, we never tried to give you hope. We're leaving, you could be a scary ass plane-eater, or -" he paused. "No way. We're leaving. Three-person key, right here. Not enough room in this boat for ghost mom and kid. No offence, but I once learned from a half-orc half-elf person that you should leave Caverns how you found them, and that's what I intend to do."

 

[Jeda Teq]

Kniges starred up at the boy for a few seconds. As the words settled into his mind he began to laugh. "Foolish? Listen to your words imp!" His fractile iris' gleaned with fury. "YOU ASSUME I'D. COME HERE TO BRING A FRAIL BEING LIKE YOU HOPE?!" He unfurled his wings showing off the dreadful eye pattern under them. "You know not your place. If you can't leave such a thin barrier you're barely worth being my servant." He closed his eyes to calm himself. "However, I can forgive. If you submit to my will and serve as my familiar I may consider"

With his wings blocking the view behind him he began channeling man into the tip of his tail. He had begun to create the frame that would aide in their escape. If Kytrek could perform his spells faster Kniges wouldn't have bothered to prep. He honestly wanted the pair to be his familiars, but Cyell's persistent whining was wearing down his patience. If they left without the pair under his thumb he'd just have to come back after displaying his power.

 

[Elowyn]

Gzardina backed up a few steps. The foreigners were more skilled than she had anticipated. From the way the Elders talked about them, they were apparently ugly, daft, and weaklings. They were blessed with the Root magic and were able to see magic in action, a key characteristic of her race that had helped them to survive for as long as they have. But now they were dying. There hadn't been a Newbirth in a decade at least, and last cycle her father and mam had died in their sleep due to the odious Plague. Her only comfort was that Daemin was still alive and there with her when she wept for them and performed the Parting Rites.

It seemed like a dream ago... Now there were foreigners. Outsiders. A second approached and seemed more friendly than the first who had barked out something (she had tightened her grip on the shaft of her weapon in response and evaluating the foreign creature and hadn't caught what was said, but whatever it was, it did not sound kind).

She understood that the foreigner was introducing himself, and that the raised front limb was a gesture of welcome and greeting, but that was about it. She caught the name: Argis a'Voldur.

"Gzardina mae Basilius," she enunciated carefully. She knew that if anyone saw her talking to these folks, particularly the moreelderly bunch, that they would likely talk and she would be confined to the camp for a week or longer, this time probably under guard. And sure, this was a bit further than she was supposed to venture, but the Elders would never know. They were hard pressed as it was, assuring the young ones that everything would be fine, that their gods would help them, and tending to the sick and ill. If they were unable to come up with the Cure, half a dozen mature Fledge-wings would die this cycle. Panic and desperation were the undertones of her life now. Like permanent squatters who wouldn't leave. They had been with her and her people for too long... and were now permanent residents. It had killed some part of her to see the deterioration of her clanspeople. Her kinsmen were on their last molt. And she was determined to find out what she could do, if anything. Perhaps the foreigners held some answers, some knowledge that would lead to a Cure. The Cure. The prophesied cure that would save her entire family.

Lyro C.DEX @whoever else is with them

 

[Lyro]

"Kniges, listen carefully," began Kytrek, having gingerly unslung his rifle, as he alternated between looking at the boy and the woman. "Your portal needs to account for the invariance asymmetry. You'll need to incorporate a paraplanar normalizer that'll--" He looked at the dragonborn, paused, sighed, before resuming in a slower tone. "Just try to create a small mana vacuum and embed it inside your frame. You work by feeling and instinct, right? Well it should feel like a rush of cold water. Otherwise, your portal will just lead right back here."

"These ones seem to know what they're doing," commented the woman in hushed tones to the boy, though her eyes were now staring fixedly at Cyell's gun as he waved it about. "Perhaps we have finally found our key. But will the frame let us through?"

"We are reflections in the dark," said a third voice, and Kytrek swiveled to look at a male fairy standing behind them, in the darkness by the river's side. He was just a few centimeters taller than the boy, with pale blond hair that was starting to gray, producing the impression that he hadn't been in this place for quite as much time as the two others. Its voice grated on Kytrek, a low-pitched whine that rose and fell. "Our light has faded, there is nothing for us to return with. But their light remains strong and plentiful."

"I can figure something out for you," Kytrek interjected forcefully, not liking where this talk of lights was headed. He strained to think of something. "You have been here too long. Your molecular integrity is compromised. But with a fresh mana infusion, we could... well, possibly..."

"Your reserve and your apprentice betray you, deceiver," the child told Kytrek. He hadn't moved since his appearance, but there was now a visible tension in his muscles. "Verily, it has been too long. Our hunger shall be satiated. Now."

With no further warning, all three of the wraiths sprang forward, leaping towards the group. Their mouths opened, revealing an impossible number of sharp, jagged teeth.

Jeda Teq C.DEX


The creature's name meant nothing to Gniss. Had she actually ignored her? She gritted her teeth, regretting it almost instantly as a thin trickle of blood began to pool up inside her mouth, and quickly flew across the river to land right in front of her, elevated by a nearby tree branch. "Don't make me repeat myself, girl," she rasped. "State your purpose here. Are you friend or foe?"

C.DEX Elowyn

 

[C.DEX]

Cyell's groan at Kniges' long-winded spiel about how he had wanted to make the gray people his minions had been cut off as the wraiths jumped forward, a single one for each of them. The blood mage didn't think about just how fitting that had been - no, instead, his finger laid down on the trigger of his gun, though he had been distracted and taken by surprise, causing it to miss by a hair. They had all been unfortunately huddled together, surrounded by their attackers.

As the core in his gun flickered darker - and then subsequently didn't fill up again with ambient mana - Cyell whipped it back and then toward the child-like wraith, intending on smacking him on the head to possibly deter him from cannibalizing the bloodmage. Briefly after, he brought up his foot, trying to kick the elvish boy away before he could sink his teeth into his flesh.

"Fuck, fuck, how do we do this?!" Cyell hissed, "Small mana vacuum -" he murmured, trying to follow Kytrek's instructions in a small panic as they had fought to escape from the mana-devoid wraiths. Of course, unpracticed in using his own magic for quite a while now, there was no telling what could happen as a result.

On the other side of the reflection, Argis and Gniss had been struggling to communicate with the bird-esque woman that had apparently been watching them, blissfully unaware of the danger that their traveling companions had been in. Argis looked back to the reflection - to him, that had been the most pressing issue of the moment. Their friends - if he could really even call them that - had been trapped in the river.

And something had caught his eye. It had only appeared for a flicker of a moment, but it had been there. A flash of light, and then the movement of feet. For a while, they had been shuffling, but the jerky jump that Cyell had made and the brief flash of light that had appeared in his vicinity - tracking across the water like a bird and then disappearing - had indicated that something had changed. He looked to Gniss, who had been wrapped up in their own encounter. "A lot of Upper Level people don't understand Dwarven Standard, you know." he said, then speaking out in orcish - "Saib lat julderukavand alnej like avhiuk?" and then Elvish - "Mani abut sina?"

"The river ..." he continued, pointing down to it and talking slowly. "What do you know about this?"

 

[Jeda Teq]

With the sudden appearance of the male fairy behind them, Kniges' deception was ruined. Fortunately their conversation went on long enough for the frame to be completed. To his disdain the trio of ghostly people lunged at them. In one practiced moment he grabbed his dagger and threw it several feet behind them. Past the fairy. In the same motion he grabbed his companions with the fingers of his wings. After Cyells gun went off the light around them warped. They were now standing where Kniges had thrown his weapon.

"Well, if only you had swore your loyalties to me." His blackish purple scales began to shimmer as he began rapidly and recklessly channel mana. "Now I have to kill you all" He clasped his wing hands together and slammed them down into the water. Using the frame of his wings to serve as their window Kniges focused on he words Kytrek had told him. A rush of cool water. He recalled a time when he dug into an aquifer.

The moment his scales made contact with the water the dragonborn created a powerful vacuum. Mana from the other side began to rush in like a geyser. Brilliant lights of many colors pierced the darkness of the reflection realm. He gritted his teeth holding back a scream of pain as the scales on his face and wing arms clung onto as much mana as they could. For the first time in his life he felt the burn of Mana Radiation.

 

[Elowyn]

The Fledge-girl blinked her large eyes. There was a Fae jabbering in a raspy voice before her, and she knew only the basics of the language, but could get the gist of it. "I am come to seek a cure for my peoples," she said slowly. The friendlier and larger companion said something else to her, it seemed, in two different tongues. She cocked her head to the right-- a distinctively bird-like gesture-- and shook her head. She dipped her head in a shallow bow. There was little that she could do to accelerate her learning of Bottomlanders in the moment, but she did have a spell or two that she knew would come in handy someday.

But before she could bring out her spellbook, a cascade of pebbles scattering about alerted her of another presence. Startled, she backed up a few paces and held her lance at the ready. It could be a harmless bat or small beast, but she wasn't taking any chances. After all, her flock was far from here and there was no male to protect her (the males are larger with longer, sharper talons).
"Lower your weapon: it is only I, Gzardina." Her flockmate and long time friend stepped out from a crevasse. His pale feathers and bright scarlet crest were striking against the darker palette of the area. (?)
She relaxed her stance and let the lance tip lower to rest closer to the ground. "Neshish*, brood-brother. How did you find me?"
"It wasn't hard," he shrugged. "You are a long way from the Amber Fall perimeter. I wanted to know what you are doing here with Foreign-born." His head feathers rose in a sign of aggression.

C.DEX Lyro

--------------------------------------
*Neshish- a 'weak' curse. similar to "crap"

 

[Lyro]

Kytrek moved to protect Kniges from the lunging woman while he busied himself with the frame. He swung his gun at her violently, knocking her aside temporarily, just as the elven child fell on top of Cyell. There was a sound like shattering glass as his pistol made contact with its head, throwing the boy back in front of Cyell. It landed on its feet with a snarl, left hand reaching up to feel at the wound on its forehead, a thin, splintered crack from which no blood emerged but which shone unnaturally. It seemed dazed by the assault and stood momentarily dazed.

Then the woman was back, having taken advantage of Kytrek's failure to properly aim his gun in time to rush him. She pounced on him, knocking him to his back and into the water as she grabbed his head and tried to force it underwater. It was all he could do to hold her back with his two hands while she tried to claw him with her one free hand.

Thereupon there was a ripple of the world around them, and Cyell, Kniges and Kytrek now stood where Kniges had thrown his dagger, leaving their aggressors behind. Kytrek hurried back to his feet, coughing out some of the water that had managed to get in, quickly aimed his gun at the woman, and fired from the hip. Once more there was a sound like broken glass as the bullet hit her in the shoulder and she was projected backwards, but no cry came from her lips. She simply looked back at Kytrek with renewed intensity, her former calm demeanor replaced by naked fury and hunger.

Behind her and the child, the frame Kniges had drawn flared into life, shining bright with a view of the outside cavern; Gniss and Argis were nowhere to be seen on the other side from this perspective. The two wraiths quickly moved to stand in front of the frame, the boy's left hand still clutching his head.

Suddenly, the fairy barreled into Kniges from above, having lifted itself up into the air with its wings during the fight. It clawed wildly at the dragonborn, seeking any kind of exposed flesh.

C.DEX Jeda Teq


"Stand back!" yelled Gniss as the second bird being appeared behind the first one, talking more of their gibberish language. This was becoming too much for her to handle in one day. No part of this mission had gone according to plan over the past few hours, and now an entire tribe was showing up one-by-one, gradually besieging them at the entrance of a cavern where over half her crew had disappeared into a river, while the sole remaining member was making friends with the enemy. And she apparently still wasn't making her clear. She struggled to think of what languages were commonly spoken on this level.

"Back!" she screeched in the high pitched lilting tones of Pixish. "No continued approachment!" she added uncertainly in her rusty Faenn.

C.DEX Elowyn

 

[Elowyn]

"Feathers! You can speak Faenn! Excellent." Gzardina remarked in Faenn, rather surprised but undaunted. "I was wondering what you are all doing here?" There weren't any tribes located near here as far as she could recall.
Daemin added: "How many are there in your party?" And craned his head to see better. He turned to his counterpart. "I'll be had, there are foreign-born and not just one or two! Perhaps it's an expedition of sorts."
"I was hoping we could find the prophesied Cure to the Plague we are facing, Daemin. You know we must find it soon if we are to survive." She gauged his reaction carefully, her claws softly scraping the ground in tension.

C.DEX Lyro

 

[C.DEX]

"Lost me." Argis said, looking back and down at the waters below. "Ah ... Gniss? Can you perhaps communicate to them that it looks like our friends are in trouble? I don't mean to ... interrupt your intimidation, but -" Argis pointed back to the waters' reflection, where with the rapid movements of the others' legs - really, all he could see of them - something was happening. "It could simply be that the dragon and the gray one are fighting again, but - I don't suppose you find that normal, do you?"

Cyell thought back. Their attacks didn't seem to be hurting the wraiths any, though they had been poking at their own wounds. Kniges had gotten them to a range, but that didn't mean much when they were still trapped within the bounds of the reflection of the river. They weren't on the other side yet, and that was what was more than important. Not before long, Kniges had been barreled into by the apparition of the fairy, claws marking wildly at him. Cyell turned his attention down to the focused dragonborn and dropped his pistol, moving to grab the fairy by the backs of the arms.

Kytrek had said something about a fresh 'mana infusion'. While his main goal had been to peel the ravenous fairy off of Kniges, before he tried to grab the arms of the wraith, he touched one of his tattoos. Infuse. Well-used and thus on the front portion of his arm, he activated the scripted seal, releasing the mana that had been in it. He theorized that it would either help or do absolutely nothing at all, but there wasn't really time for theories - only for action.

There had been a small sliver of time in which they were going to be able to act on the fairy before the other two wraiths had closed the distance, and Cyell - despite his irritation with Kniges - had chosen to try to tear his aggressor off of him.

"No one is seeing this? Really?" Argis said, glancing back to the river.

 

[Lyro]

Gniss groaned internally as she realized she would have to speak Faenn. Upper languages were always so painfully convoluted and ancient, with multiple contradictory rules. Some of the languages apparently even implicitly made the user channel mana whenever they were spoken out loud, which did not help make them easy to understand - she hoped Faenn wasn't one of them. At least she had been born with her knowledge of Pixish; she pitied anybody who tried to learn it.

At the urging of Argis, however, she allowed herself to look away from the two feathered strangers to look back inside the cavern. It was hard to see from this position, but she couldn't seem to spot the feet of the adventurers where they had previously been. Had they moved? Where were they going? She turned back to the two Faenn-speakers, and forced herself to be more diplomatic.

"Traveling merry-people are we," she attempted in halting Faenn as she searched for the words. "Our intent is slight and uncontroversial. But our fellow business-chums are vanished into the water. Can you leverage knowledge to craft an elucidation of the situational mystery?"

C.DEX Elowyn


Cyell touched the wraith with his hands, his fingertips glowing blue where they came into contact with its uncovered arms. The result was instant. The wraith froze in-place and shrieked... but not of pain. Its fierce, hungry expression gave way to a beatific, blissful smile and half-open eyes as fresh mana rushed into its faded body. It toppled backwards listlessly, crashing into the water with a splash as its body trembled and shuddered in ecstasy. The two other wraiths looked on with a mixture of fear and envy at their comrade's state. They began to slowly draw closer to the group, taking care to guard the gate behind them.

C.DEX Jeda Teq

 

[Jeda Teq]

The force of the fairy scratching at the exposed scales on Kniges' arm broke the dragon's concentration. His haphazard attempt at creating a from his body was a massive failure. All that was accomplished was him burning the top of his head and the arms of his wings with mana radiation, however the frame he created earlier managed to maintain its shape.

The struggle with the fairy was short. Thanks to Cyell's intervention the black dragon could rise to his feet. For the first time Kniges found value in the infernal. With rage in his eyes he gripped his hammer-like hatchet and stared down the fairy writhing in pleasure with a basilisk like gaze. With this as an opportunity Kniges lunged forward, stomping his foot down on the fairy's chest. Hatchet raised high, he yelled, "YOU WILL PAY FOR YOUR TRANSGRESSIONS!" With all the strength in his muscular arm he brought down the heavy weapon towards the skull of the pale creature.

 

[Elowyn]

The bird/owl/girl cocked her head to the side again at his strange word choice. Perhaps the tiny being was more clever than she thought.
Daemin was less polite with his opinions. He snorted, then stalked over to the pool where tiny figures were visible where there was nobody on this side of the surface. "They've gotten themselves trapped with the Mirror Entrapment." A slight sneer was visible on his face. "A rookie mistake."
"I think they want to know how to get them out... brood-brother." Gzardina returned. "Do you remember that one time...?She let her sentence trail off, and recognition dawned on Daemin's face as he relived the memory.
"Yes, it should be easy enough to break, supposing they have a rudimentary knowledge of the base arts?"
Gzardina translated: "Do your companions know magic?"

 

[C.DEX]

Cyell backed off of the fairy just as soon as he had zapped him, feeling particularly disgusted as the wraith flopped back in euphoria. His grimace of disgust had turned to shock as Kniges reared his weapon back, slamming it down into the fairy's face. He immediately averted his gaze upon watching the fairy's face fracture, while the thing had still remained writhing and squirming. While his actions had been particularly effective in stopping the attack, it wasn't as if he had wanted to. Kniges' actions, furthermore, had dashed any hope of diplomacy they could still have with the wraiths; perhaps an offer of infusion would give them the leeway they needed to dispatch them, but the chance had fallen.


The blood mage looked down to his arm where he'd touched the tattoo to infuse the wraith. It had slowly began to glow again, the ambient mana still prickling at the crew in Twelfth-level fashion. He tried to push the image out of his head of the wraith's face caving in on itself and looked up to the two guarding the frame. They had been drawing closer slowly, threatening Kniges, Cyell, and Kytrek. Cyell's hand touched the same inscription, but instead of infusing his enemy, he had touched the small mana core in the top of his gun, rearing it up to aim and fire at the approaching wraiths.

 

[Lyro]

Gniss rubbed her right temple in pain as she struggled to parse what the creature had just said. Something about traps and mirrors? It did not sound good. She decided to persevere. "By repute they are gifted with the arcane ways, albeit with no testimony from myself as to their worth. Why? Is there imminence of menace?" Then, in Dwarven Standard to Argis, "Sounds like they've fallen into a trap. Stay away from the water."

C.DEX Elowyn


The mana projectile from Cyell's gun flew towards the boy, who hastily tried to dodge it, only to be struck in the ear by the blue orb. The entire ear was torn off bloodlessly by the strength of the impact, before shattering into thousands of tiny pieces on the ground, leaving only a gaping, black hole in the child's head where it had been. The wraith itself did little more than distractedly reach up to its right ear with its hand as it continued to close the distance, eyeing the gun with renewed hatred.

"Alright, I've had enough of this," growled Kytrek, as he raised his rifle and fired. The enchanted bullet homed in on the woman, creating another fracture directly in her forehead, but the professor was already loading another bullet in the chamber. He fired again as he began to walk forward, this time striking the boy on its right arm. He continued to move towards the portal, alternating between firing at either wraith, as he attempted to circle around them. "Hurting them isn't going to do much. We need to just go for it. Kniges, hurry up and forgive that guy's transgressions, you nee--"

Both the woman and child unexpectedly broke out into a run and rushed at Kytrek, who lowered his rifle and held it up in front of him like a spear. The woman reached him first, just as he lunged forward and pushed her back with the barrel of his gun. He continued to shuffle in the direction of the portal, his eyes turning to the boy as it prepared to lunge at him.

C.DEX Jeda Teq

 

[Elowyn]

Gzardina listened to the fae's words then turned to her clan mate. "What do you think? Should we help?" A ghost of a smile passed over her lips. She was purposefully asking him to let him make a determination on whether to become closer/benefactors to these foreigners or to let them go their own way.
Daemin paused for a moment, thinking. "Perhaps we can get something out of this, Dina. Why should we help these strangers for no cost?" He continued on, "I propose that we ask for information on whether they have medical knowledge on how to cure the disease ravaging the flock."
She nodded. "Yes, a suitable plan. What say you, fairy?" Lyro

 

[Jeda Teq]

With a sense of satisfaction Kniges chuckled as he pulled his hatchet from the shattered fairy skull. Specs of dust fell from the weapon down to where the face of the fairy once was. He was soon robbed of the pleasure of killing the creature when it began to wiggle under his foot. It seemed to be still enjoying the ecstasy it got from Cyell's mana infusion. Seeing the thing act in such a way, under the circumstances made Kniges' stomach churn.

The sense of uneasiness he felt supported Kytreks words. With a flap of his wings Kniges jumped into the air towards their exit. At the height of the jump his dagger warped into the palm of his hand. As he came down the child lunged towards Kytrek, interrupting the lizards trajectory. Kniges crashed into the boy with his knees slamming into the small of his back and dagger piercing the child's shoulder. The boy's brittle structure cracked under the blunt force of the knees and gave way like shattering glass from the metal of the blade.

Kniges rolled off the child, sheathing his weapons as he got back to his feet. "This was a waste of time." Crossing all four of his arms he walked past his peer ready to stepping through the portal.

On the other side of the portal the short dragon fell up then down. Landing awkwardly he examined his surroundings. He was above his party, up the first slope they had to climb. Everything seemed to be in order. Confident that he was no longer in danger he felt a sudden tug, attempting to pull him back in. The child, laying on his stomach in the water, had grabbed Kniges' beautiful long tail. Its mouth opened wide exposing its razor like teeth and it bit down on Kniges' exposed scales. Kniges' eyes went wide as he began to shout profanities in an unknown language he claimed to be draconic. "XLSC SCH SHZZL!"

 

[Tardy Grade]

"Not good..." Adar cursed silently as he tried to stay as quiet as possible. A challenging enough feat for most people at it's simplest.

For one as talkative as himself by nature? Testing.

Compounded by hanging precariously off a face of rock so sheer you could trim a hedge with it? Maybe just a tad more so.

Small mercies did persist though as his biners looked like they were holding firmly in place. He took a moment to remove his right hand from the crack in the cave wall where it had been anchored for ages it would seem. Letting it loosen up once more before he got a chance to resume his climb.

" 'If' he got the chance ..." he reminded himself of his situation again.

He didn't need to peer over his shoulder or burn some Tin to know the fight that had started more than a few minutes ago had yet to resolve itself. It baffled him how he could have run into trouble in one the more mild micro-environments of the 13th level, a place dominated by mild-natured behemoths. A route-check meant to be routine work my ass!

It had all begun so simply.

A true trad climber as always he chose to go in with less gear and make up the difference with experience and a prehensile tail. A bead of sweat trickled off his nose and landed on his pants where his knee was bent to accommodate his holstered foot.

"Not ... good." by now he was sure that he'd die up here or plummet in spite of his licky biners 'offering' to carry his weight. Promising to.

"Sounds like they've fallen into a trap. Stay away from the water."

A cry of warning tore through the air and startled him while his hand was still out of place and it caused him to slide a good 2 feet till his rope caught his weight and sadly jerked him out of his hand and feet holds. His instincts first cried out to cease all movements. Minimize whatever effect the sudden shift would have before acting. This was a novel idea if not for the slight hiccup of a sudden 'crack' and 'tremble' as a chunk of the wall he found himself on.

The river was close enough that he could hope to fall into it but having just heard that it was a tra-

The wall shuddered violently once more and then as if some invisible strings were holding it up, they tore free of their bonds and took the still trapped Tiefling down the path of 'least resistance' with it.

"FUCK! FUCK! FUCKFUCKF- Gangway! Move your as-" a plumed of mist and dust assailed his open maw as the boulder of rock slid him to the river that he was so intent on avoiding.

 

[C.DEX]

Cyell had been left behind as Kytrek had butted the woman down, shuffling past her to get to the portal frame. He was right; there wasn't any real point to keeping up the fight. They needed to leave, and if the wraiths wanted them, they would have to follow them through. If that were the case, they had help on the other side with Argis and Gniss, the latter of which had proven her strength enough. It was enough hope for him to try to push through as well, moving to jump over the downed woman to get through the frame.

Seeing the child's ear tear off and only result in a black gaping hole had perhaps disturbed the blood mage more than seeing the gore that would normally result in shooting someone's ear off, and it filled the bloodmage with further motivation to get past the inhumanly resilient creatures. When it bit Kniges, however, Cyell wasn't quite as keen to save him as he had been to tear the fairy off. Instead, he padded to the portal with no mind to him.

As he looked back, however, he found that the wraith Kytrek had knocked down had quickly climbed back to her feet only moments after he had passed her. She had been comparably undamaged to the others, only having taken the butt of Kytrek's rifle, and her ascent to her feet was astoundingly fast given how sickly she had looked. As Kytrek made his way to the portal, she had sprinted after him, gnarled gray hands forming into claws.

"KYTREK DOWN!" Cyell roared, aiming the barrel down at Kytrek - and by effect - the wraith that had been a fingetrips length away from tearing his mentor to the ground.

..

"I will do my best to stay out of the water. I presume negotiations are going w-" Argis was cut short as a figure splashed into the water behind him, sending a torrent of heavy water over his suit. He looked over toward the water, stepping away from it as he did, though he didn't display quite as much shocked aggression as he was sure that Gniss would. "This is getting interesting." Argis said, thumbing at his weapon. "I hope you have a lot of suits, Gniss. Friend or foe?" he called out.

 

[Lyro]

Gniss listened in confused silence as they talked about some kind of disease that was affecting... their family? their home? She didn't know the exact word they had used. Then they called her a fairy, and her good will dissipated.

"Now you listen here," she started to mutter in Faenn, as she moved closer to them, only to stop herself as she faintly heard a muffled shout coming from deeper in the cave. She turned to look, but did not see anything. "Did that sound like Kniges to--" she started to ask Argis, before a much louder, much closer shout from above and behind her caused her to whip around in alarm. She turned just in time to see a figure tumble into the river along with a shower of rock and dust. Fortunately for the creature, the river was deep enough at that point to ensure it survived its fall. Unfortunately for Gniss, this was starting to be a bit too much for one day.

"ALRIGHT!" she shouted, since everybody appeared to be in a shouting mood anyway. She spoke in Dwarven, not caring very much if she was understood or not. "That's enough from all of you!" She began to walk backwards, moving back into the cave, keeping her eyes on both the strange avian interlopers and the floating figure in the river. "Just be on your way, and we'll forget we ever saw you. Argis, you're still not helping." Then there was another loud splash and a cry from deeper into the cavern, and she turned frantically to look back. "Now what?" she said in a potent mixture of exasperation, rage and despair which came out as a particularly shrill rasp.


Cyell yelled at Kytrek to get out of the way, which he did immediately, stumbling into a crouching position just as a shot from his apprentice's pistol flew over him. It struck the female wraith in her chest, splintering her skin into hundreds of tiny shards as she reeled backwards and slipped into the water. Taking advantage of the situation, Kytrek quickly rose to his feet and began to run towards the portal. Ahead of him, Cyell had already walked through, jumping over the tail of the dragonborn that was sticking out. The child wraith was still doing its best to pierce Kniges's hide, apparently oblivious to what had been going on behind it.

"Oh, no, you don't," said Kytrek as he moved up to it, swung his right leg back, and kicked it with all the strength he could muster away from the portal. It only had time to turn its hungry face towards him before it was thrown into the air, landing several meters away with sounds of shattering glass. Wasting no more time, Kytrek grabbed the tail and jumped through the portal himself, feeling gravity reverse as he ended up back on the other side with Kniges and Cyell, his clothes now almost completely soaked as he landed in ankle-deep water.

Behind him, the female wraith could still be seen, looking hatefully at the portal's frame. Then, with a shriek of despair and anger, she began to run towards the portal herself, making a leap as she reached it. As she passed through, however, she dissolved before the uptrekkers' eyes, turning into a fine, misty powder that fell gently the river, leaving nothing else behind on either side of the portal. Her scream seemed to echo as she died, and the edges of the portal writhed wildly for a split second, before it returned to normal. For a moment, Kytrek almost thought he could hear a faint, hissing laughter, but the impression left him as quickly as it had appeared. It didn't matter - they had made it back.

C.DEX Elowyn Jeda Teq Tardy Grade (both sections)

 

[Elowyn]

Gzardina startled as the watery portal erupted into motion. A full person came up out of the liquid, drenched wet. "Well, there's one."
"It seems like our friends have run into some trouble," Daemin commented drily. Within seconds, the wraith leapt and subsequently vanished into the fine mist. The ghostly impression didn't faze him much. Anything with less than 200 lbs. and claws didn't really give him much of a fright, a big contrast with Gzardina, who seemed extra sensitive to sounds and flurries of action.

The owl-female could glide silently along and hear most anything, while the crane-male was more alert to threats, prideful, and eager to defend if not attack. This far from the caverns they dwelled in left them vulnerable, unable to call for help or backup. It was this that kept Daemin most on edge, eager to return. "Dina, it seems like these travellers do not need our help. Perhaps we should return and report this back to the Elders."

"Oh, when have you started to care about what the Elders think?" she asked in reply.
His jaw tensed. "It is rare for travelers to be this far." Turning to Gniss, he asked more pointedly: "Again, what is your purpose? To where do you go?"

(sorry for so much exposition)

 

[Jeda Teq]

Kniges lurched forward as Kytrek came out of the portal with his tail. With narrowed eyes he looked at the old wizard with slight suspicion before jerking his tail away. He opened his mouth to address the master and student but was struck with child like wonder with the disintegration of the female wraith that followed them. His scaly lips curled up into a toothy smile. A grin so large that it could be perceived as off-putting as it exposed his gnarly teeth.

"What a show," He said clapping his hands twice, "We'll have to do that again sometime!" His left hand rest on his his hip with the thumb looped into his belt while he pointed at the dust with his index finger, "I'll have to bottle the next one."

Movement from the portal at his feet caught his eye. The pale child was peering out up at them with a look of savage desperation. With its need to feed it thrust its hand out through the portal. Instantly the majority of its forearm puffed into a dust of matter. Like spores of a mushroom the cloud drifted away. Kniges snapped at the child shouting, "DON'T WASTE IT! I DID NOT GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO DO THAT" The dragon-born rose its foot and stomped down on the frame, disrupting the contained vacuum of mana. With a flash of light the portal dissipated, but not before the child leaped forward with an ear-splitting screech that filled the cavern for a moment.

"You, greyskin, I supposed you did okay. Don't get used to, but good job. I grant you five Kniges points. As for you, Blasphemer," His words now addressed Kytrek, "I expected more from you. Two Kniges points... and two more for how you blasted those mana-less husks so cooly." He would never thank anyone directly so awarding points were his way of showing gratitude.

Without another word he walked to the edge of the slope. At the entrance of the cavern he spotted two figures. He couldn't make out their faces but they appeared fragile to him. What truly caught his attention was the body floating in the water. "Looks like the Dragons have smiled upon me once again." His tongued flicked out his mouth, sliding across his lips. "A fresh meal has presented itself before me."

C.DEX Lyro Tardy Grade