Fantasy Tales of Ristafel

[Darksoul180]

Gustav winced back, as the large man made a face. His face showing disgust. Ajax was a large man, and Gustav respected his heard work. This man was given a great gift, the great gift of physical raw power and strength. The Priest knew he did not hold such physical gift, but he had his own gifts. He leaned back in from his wince, and got close to the man, now posing for a hit, inviting him to strike first. Was this another test to the Priest's regime? Gustav may have lashed out from emotion, but he would not sink to violence unto he needed to. He was upset, and he was annoyed with the way he was being treated. Though he would not let this man get the best of him no longer.


"No. I refuse to attack someone over just words. We can still talk things out. This metaphorical faith you have in your self, can not be tested against mine. You are no god. Although Sir Ajax, i do respect your training, and how hard you have worked to get in such a shape. Although, i believe you should look upon Mages, Wizards, and Holy people such as myself, in a different way. We did not do any less training then you did. My faith is tested every day, and even currently right now, Crea is provoking me to fight with you, to test me. Although, i will not. I only act in defense, and will not throw a punch, nor a spell. Although, i will throw something at you."


The priest said as he leaned forward, closer to the man posing. His angered grin started to shake, as he started to work up a small smile. He saw the man's hard work, his body riddled in wear and tear. The Priest had hope for this man, and much respect for this man. He knew what he must do, the only thing he knew best. Bring love and peace. and what was the best way to "throw" love at a man? As many people from all over did, the best way to show care and love was a simple hug. Expressed a few times thought this adventure already. The priest opened his arms, and leaned in for a hug, his arms not wide enough to even grasp the huge man fully.


"I respect you and your ways, but in order to gain my friendship, you must also respect me and my ways."


He said, loud enough for ajax to hear, but in a softer tone. As he leaned in, attempting to hug the beast.

 

[Xenonia]

Emerald sniffled, feeling comforted by the Dragonkin's hug. Her eyes began to dry, and her gem's glow began to stabilize. "I... Thank you, Lily. I'm Emerald, and I guess my job on this mission is to... Summon supplies. I'm a supply summoner." She answered a question she hadn't been asked, as she was afraid that, like the priest, she would be called a useless buffoon. Emerald wasn't sure this group of adventurers were the best to put together, but Laria seemed certain they'd need all the help they could get.

 

[ComradeSenpai]

After some number of short miles, Kyouko, crashed to the ground with a loud buzz. Hachi cheered, then pushed himself off with a frontflip, landing in front of his mighty steed in The Pose.


Rising, he turned to face the frightened crowds, who were yet unsure of when to run from the armed samurai and, more immediately, the carnivorous insect he rode in on. Hachi sauntered over, walking up to a food vendor.


"I need nonperishable food." he declared, staring at the intensely startled merchant. The vendor used his shaky hands to produce a large bag of hardtack. Hachi reached towards his waist for his wallet before the merchant interrupted.


"P-please, just take it! Take it and go!"


"Oh. Alright then." Underneath his faceplate, Hachi gave a smile. It seemed that these foreign peasants were finally understanding courtesy, and granting Hachi gifts as both a guest to their nation and a member of the warrior class.


"One more thing, though. I need a tent. A big one." Hachi stopped, petting his mount. Kyouko gave a loud, friendly buzz in response.


"A tent?"


"A tent! Someone get this man a tent!" the villagers scrambled about, fumbling through their stands and houses. Eventually a brave pair dragged a large bundle of cloth and poles, neatly tied together. Hachi nodded in thanks, and mounted it onto Kyouko's abdomen. With that, he hopped back onto the saddle. With its signature deafening buzz, Kyouko took to the skies, the siren of her wings disappearing once more. A town guard poked his head out of a barrel, and asked "Is the beast gone?"


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"I think the party will be pleased with our finds. Those villagers were awfully nice, too." Hachi said, staring at the ground thousands of feet below him.


"Hey, Kyouko. Let's treat them to a fly-by; I think they'll enjoy the excitement." the samurai turned his steed around, and dived towards the city, speeding his hornet just barely above the citizens' heads. As he heard their screams and cries, Hachi felt a surge of pride swell within him. They were no doubt in awe of the majesty and grace only a creature like Kyouko could possess.

 

[Nautilus]

"Excuse me-", Hadi piped up in response to Gustav's bipolar antics, "-but Ajax-buddy's muscles do not seem very metaphorical at all, dream-priest. Saying that these things are metaphorical is like saying my shirt that I wear is metaphorical, in that it is not true and shows a disregard for what the term 'metaphorical' means, you see. Furthermore, you have misused the term 'faith', as if I recall correctly it refers to trust, often in one's god. By extension, you have also misused 'test of faith', as it refers to a time when one's trust in their god is tested. As you clearly have no faith to test, this could not be a test of faith, yes?"

 

[MechaGhoul]

Pressmaster Crawley blinked back at Beltway, as he mentioned that yes, he still had the belt. He glanced at the belt that was still in his hand to verify this. Matthew stared upon the belt buckle, admiring its quality. Hmph, tarnishing it fer only a fresh infraction on a fresh crew. Would be ill-fitting. Note t'self, get a new rod. And so Matthew made sure to take a few steps closer to Beltway, holding out the belt.


He glanced towards Ajax, as he recalled the dialogue both of him and Beltway. "Och, I'll be needan t'speak wi-"


Before he had the chance to discuss the matter of, possibly, treating Ajax as a hired mercenary aboard his crew, Ajax was already out and about. And was ready for another round. Matthew just glanced at Ajax for a moment.


"With'em. Stamina o'a whale he have. Admirable trait. Stench less so." He coughed into his free-hand. "Onta t'real matter o'hand. T'belt. Thy modesty. Tis a useful thing t'keep 'n used. Oh I must say I be somewhat moved, 'specially consideran twas at risk fer a mariner, which coul' have lil in t'manner." Pressmaster Crawley smirked at Beltway.

 

[Blumenkranz]

The scholar stood back in silence, thinking about a proper answer for such an emotional question. "Oh yes, it has!", she replied. "I remember when my favorite character in Herbology: A Tale of Two More-Than-Sisters died. Girl, I ended up crying for days!".


The librarian hugged Emerald back and caressed her hair, just like the books taught her. "Do not worry, girl. I know how you feel. You will feel much better soon, alright?", Laria whispered to her ear with a soothing voice.


However, the tender embrace was broken by a nearby fuss. The giant got into a fight... again. What did this man have to be a magnet for trouble? He was big and scary, and he definitely did not seem the kind of guy you would choose to pick a fight with. Perhaps he had some sort of mind control power that enraged all those near him? That could be it, but it wouldn't explain why half of the party didn't seem to be attracted by his intimidating presence.


With a last kiss in Emerald's forehead, the librarian hurried towards the priest and the muscle mole as she swiftly pulled a book from her bag. "Mediating for Those of Simple Mind" was written in the cover in golden letters, just above a cute caricature of a man looking at the title. After flipping the pages at supersonic speeds, she finally put her thin finger under a line, like a seagull hunting fishes in the sea.


Her eyes rushed through the words written in that page, before finally throwing her free arm up in the air. "Calm your nipples!", said the girl in a firm and clear tone.


Laria frowned in confusion before deciding to take another look at the book. The girl threw her head back, then closed the book. With surprising dexterity, the librarian tied a small pink ribbon she just got from her bag around the tome, then put it back in her purse with those books that were never meant to be taken seriously during mission critical situations.


"Look at yourself! We have not even started our journey and you are already trying to kill your teammates! Can we try to get along at least for some hours!?", begged the small girl. "You barely know each other and you have already decided you will be mortal enemies! How can that be p...?". Laria then turned to Hadi. "Actually..." - she said, a much calmer tone than before in her voice - "If we interpret 'faith' as 'believing without proof', then one could say Ajax-buddy's faith in himself is metaphorical, since it's very real and then the metaphor would be the use of the word 'faith' itself".


"In fact" - she continued, as she pulled a sheet of paper from her sack and quickly started to scribble on it - "His belief in his own muscles is so real I think I can calculate it". Laria then showed the now filled with hardly comprehensible letters, numbers and symbols to Hadi. "Exactly 882 EgoPascals!".

 

[Zerohex]

Ajax was not a particularly dumb man, despite what his size and actions might lead others to believe. Sure, he was crude, rude, would rather fight than think and had very few pleasant things to say about scholars but he'd had an education beyond fighting, much like any citizen of Sedohr, his birthplace. Which is why he, too, intended to point out what he saw as fallacies in the priest's words rather than just ending him right then and there. He could do that whenever he wanted anyway. When the priest was leaning in, Ajax's right hand shot from the side towards Gustav's throat.


Ajax was not attacking Gustav, just holding him back in a very threatening way. The priest might, perhaps, have been able to dodge the attempt at a grab had the situation been different. But seeing as though he had left himself completely open by spreading his arms wide and leaning in for a hug while still at eye level with Ajax, it wasn't happening. He wasn't enough of a fighter and his pacifistic actions had left him open for this very quick, very simple "hold", though if he backed away he might yet break free seeing as Ajax wasn't actually trying to choke him to death yet.


Before he could speak his mind, however, both Hadi and...whoever that girl was had done so in a far more eloquent way. She was...running the quest? Maybe? Oh good she was his employer. Of course she didn't like him taking issue with so many people, but the way she defined faith made him laugh. Taking this as validation, he just smiled at the priest. "First things first, you don't get to hug me you fucking creeper. You got called a pervert not 10 minutes ago. Now, well, they said it better than I could. Really liked the "faith as belief without proof" bit."


Gustav would want to think his next move real well, though if Ajax hadn't already snapped him in half there must be a good reason for that. Ajax's smile morphed back into a snarl. "You're a fucking coward. You called me out then backed down. I talked crap about your goddess and you didn't do jack. You know what that means? It means that the way I see it, I stand over Crea now. You did not lift a single finger to defend your faith, shitty as it is, and that's disgusting. I don't respect you, I don't want your friendship. I'll put up with you and that'll be it, for the sake of the job".


He turned his head towards the little girl and his monstruous expression, one of pure anger and distaste, turned back to a cheerful smile."Relax little girl, just settling some...personal differences. The man is fine, as you can see. So tell me, when are we leaving? Who or what am I going to fight and for what exactly? Oh yeah!", he turned to face Gustav again, his expression still cheerful, "Something I don't get. If Crea's telling you to fight me and you don't, isn't that just you not listening to your goddess? Wouldn't that mean you're failing your test of faith? Are you sure you're not supposed to try and kill me? Your religion has an army, you know? Kinda famous around here".

 

[Darksoul180]

Engulfed by the behemoth's grip, Gustav could not speak very well, his smile gone again. His face now showing distress, as he reached his hands up, pulling at Ajax's hand. It toke most of Gustav's strength to even pull his hand off enough for him to be able to speak. The priest gunted before firing his retort statement.


"Call me what you wish Sir Ajax.... Though you know nothing of me, or my faith.... My Goddess is a kind Goddess.... She tests me to fight you, although fighting can be done with words... She is testing me to see if i will stand up to you... Although I only act in self defense... And correct me if i am wrong... But if I was such a coward, why do i stand up to you?.... Is it because i do not have the large bodily apparatus?... Or because in your eyes i hide behind a goddess?...."





Gustav said as he had to take a few moments between every sentence in order to catch his breath while in the grip of the large man. His words were slightly gargled, and it was troublesome to get it all out.


"If my Goddess is not real to you, then in your eyes i should be hiding behind nothing.... I am not a coward, I do not fear you, or death.... I am but a smart man, and I know that i will never be able to out brute you...."


Gustav began to look around, for a friendly face. Finding that most people here were not people wanting to be his friend. Except for the Hot Headed Monk, the Deer Lady, perhaps the Emerald girl, and the girl whom just measured Ajax's faith in himself. Gustav was put to a challenge today, Crea testing his faith in Crea's dream for him. He knew it was his job to try and befriend these people and show them the light. Even though they treat him like so. Gustav was chocking lightly due to the grip. Although, he knew he was being treated lightly compared to what this could have been. He was thankful to Crea, and Ajax, for letting him live for now. Gustav's face shifted to an apologetic look. As he pulled up harder on himself, to get a full sentence out.


"I am sorry for appearing to stand over, and boss you around. I simply want to get this job on the road. Less time spent with eachother would make you happy, yes?...."





Gustav said, before taking a deep breath, and letting himself rest for a bit longer, before he would attempt to speak again, but not before murmuring his final statement.


"Also, I am no pervert...."

 

[Zerohex]

Ajax held on to the priest's throat, stomping down on the miniature, four inch "stairway" the priest had made to stand face to face with him. It cracked rather noisily. "I know your faith has an army. What kind of peaceful religion needs an active military? You didn't stand up to me priest man, you got pissed I laughed at you and wanted to go at it, then you chickened out. You let me talk shit about your beliefs at every turn, even now. If you'd stood up to me you would've taken a swing, actually fought for what you believe in, not suffer my or any abuse".


Ajax stomped down once more, and Gustav should feel the earth shifting under his feet. "You're a fucking coward who hides behind his preaching and religion when he knows he can't win, tries to present himself as martyr. I bet if it was somebody else you would've used your magics by now, called it a victory for your faith. I know your kind. You hide behind your powers like every sorcerer, except you give yours airs, pretend they come from something above us all, makes yours special. You hide behind bullshit magic to try and keep people softer, weaker than you".


Ajax stomped down once more, and finally the work of Crea's powers cracked and fell apart just as Ajax let go of Gustav's throat, letting him fall as he will. "Always someone under someone else, but I don't buy what you're selling priest. I make my own way, I stand at the top. And as far as I'm concerned you're a no good bastard that won't fight for his beliefs if he can't win. I'm calling this my victory over you and Crea. Challenge me when you grow some balls or impress me in the quest and I'll bother with you then".

 

[CallSign]

Lily only half-watched the goings-on around her, focusing instead on the warm embrace with Emerald and on making sure she was okay. The Etherborn clearly needed comforting, and Lily didn't want to complicate matters by not giving her the attention she needed. Taking a tip from a bard she'd adventured with, Lily patted Emerald's head gently.


Lily kept her thoughts on the events to herself. Even without a proper church to house his preaching, that priest manages to put himself on a pedestal, she mused. I guess that's a useful ability for member of the clergy, after all. I respect Ajax's skill and strength, but his personality might make this quest difficult. That short old man is surprisingly fit - I wonder how? That guy with the blowgun looks good in a pinch; I wonder what he's called? And - ah, looks like the twenty-year-old Etherborn is ready to get the questing started.


Upon Emerald's introduction, Lily decided Emerald was probably ready to release the hug. Despite enjoying the hug thoroughly for reasons she didn't quite understand, Lily wanted to respect her colleague's personal space, so she loosened her hug slightly, signalling that, should Emerald wish, she could "escape" her grasp. Of course, if she wanted to continue the embrace... but the quest was soon to begin, as the bookish Etherborn had just stated. "Emerald... such a pretty name, almost as pretty as your eyes," Lily responded, quietly yet emphatically. "I'm sure you'll be a great help to our group; supplies are always needed, after all!"

 

[Xenonia]

Emerald smiled, wriggling away slightly so as to be properly ready for departure. "Thank you... That's very, very kind of you to say. And I appreciate your compliments about my name and... Eyes?" Was Lily hitting on her? Emerald wasn't sure what to make of this. A female and a female, linked romantically? Wasn't that forbidden love? Emerald gasped, and put her hands upon her cheeks. "I... I think I have to go wait for us to leave!" she ran off, clearly flustered and slightly unsure of the feelings deep inside of herself.

 

[Darksoul180]

The priest fell to the group, falling to his hands and knees catching his breath. Gustav understood the mans clear motives. He would not respect the priest until he proved himself to him. Gustav felt like he shouldn't have to prove himself, though, he still wanted to. Though, not through fighting, through, other ways. Hopefully Ajax would learn to like him, and his pacifist ways. He would also prove that Crea wanted peace, and that the armies were simply armies. Killing in the name of there king more than their Gods.


"Understood Sir Ajax.... I shall earn your respect in other ways.... Though, again, i do not fear you.... and I will prove i am no coward...."





The priest said as he was catching his breath. As he looked up, and gave Ajax a very, weak smile, as he slowly stood up, and brushed himself off. As he turned, and walked away from Ajax. He stood alone, waiting for everyone to depart so he could follow.

 

[DergTheDergon]

Vallen stood silently for a very long time, trying to drown out the events around him. His desire to let loose on Ajax again was even stronger now, but he took a few deep breaths and reminded himself that the best thing he could do was ignore the brute. Speaking of ignoring... Ayrenn had still not responded to his question. He was still facing away from her, towards the rest of the group, and he hadn't heard a peep from her, nor footsteps moving closer, nor away.


Perhaps she needed more time to think... or perhaps she had already made up her mind. If that was the case, he didn't blame her but it saddened him. He felt his heart sink, and tears begin to form in his eyes. Part of him wanted to go to her, but... El Saldo seemed very sincere and confident he could make Vallen a better man, to help him let go of his current ways, which it was quite clear were not helping him assimilate in this new land. Besides, the adventure awaiting him was very enticing. Perhaps he perceived his feelings towards Ayrenn as something more than they really were...


He decided to push those thoughts aside, and continued to follow El saldo after much deliberation. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Emerald being comforted by Lily. He shot a saddened glance towards her, wishing he could help to comfort her as well, whatever her troubles were... but he knew he was not in an emotional state suited to comforting others. He simply took a deep breath and kept soldiering on.

 

[Boomrocker]

"Ah, yes," El Saldo murmured, having forgotten something. He had sought out and found Vallen and had an important gift for him. "I have an important gift for you," he said, as he set aside his rucksack and pulled out a pair of comfortable and practical shoes. He held them out, for Vallen to take them.


"When training with me, and in all situations except emergencies or when I say otherwise, you are to wear these shoes," he explained. The shoes themselves looked ordinary, but they were made in such a way that the wearer putting their foot on the ground resulted in a loud squeaking noise. "It is a long-held tradition of the Marad school for new initiates to wear them," he elaborated, his face completely serious. "Do you understand or take issue?"

 

[DergTheDergon]

Vallen looked at the shoes with a confused look, but promptly took them and put them on. "I see no reason to take issue, as these are quite-" he took one step and a strange and rather loud noise ensued. He put his other foot forward and the same occured. He stepped a third time, trying to step as carefully as possible, and the noise was lessened, but still there. "I... understand, but that ruckus will get old rather quickly..." Vallen sighed.

 

[Blumenkranz]

The Feast, by Ajax

Though ready to depart, since he needed nor wanted any sort of gear and made a sport out of finding supplies out in the field, Ajax was not ready to leave just yet. The group had not yet feasted. Sure he'd had a snack but that wasn't good enough, a questin party needed a feast before and after the adventure, one to celebrate the start of a bold new mission (and because one could hardly eat to their liking during such an outing) and one to commemorate the events, celebrate the successes and mourn the failures (and because he liked to treat himself when he returned to civilization).


As everyone else did their things and was otherwise occupied, Ajax just sauntered off into the wilds without saying a word. Animals shrieked, birds vacated the premises and at least 5 villagers would swear they heard the distant rumble of a collapsing tree. A short while later, Ajax reappeared with a big, honest smile on his face and several dead animals on his back and arms. Six deer and a large grizzly bear, in fact. Perhaps surprisingly, they were not reduced to mush and in fact had few marks on them beyond the spot where they'd been mercilessly choked to death.


Though it would set back the departure by several hours, Ajax was adamant that they could not leave until the animals had been roasted and consumed as a proper feast. Would you argue with him? He went around town noisily but in good spirits, the complete opposite of the angry man that had just threatened several people to death, getting the townsfolk to come out and add to a great feast for a heroic endeavour. Vegetables, bread, pastries, spices, wine and beer and other meats, he urged everyone to contribute and set up a festivity in the town square.


The villagers, though mortified about being bullied by an adventurer once more, were at least relieved that it was actually for something nice and harmless for once, and were expecting to be able to dine on the scraps. Their spirits soared when Ajax made it very clear that everyone should be allowed to partake in the feasting. There must be song and dance and merriment, people must have pleasures before they head off to fight dark things. If it meant they had to leave a hours or even a day later, well, it was worth it, wasn't it?

After a delicious feast that took almost two hours to prepare and four to eat, the party adventured into the dangerous depths of the mountain.


As expected, the first thirty minutes were pretty relaxed: the path was well formed, after years of people walking over that ground every day, and the day was sunny enough to provide a pleasant warm temperature despite being just but a few weeks since Winter left. During this stretch, the adventurers found a lone walker, just strolling aimlessly around the trees' shadows. Indeed, travelers only used this path early in the morning to skirt the mountains, since the nearest important city was located on the other side, and the crossing was quite a few hours long.


The party then progressed into the second stage of their journey. Unfortunately for them, things weren't exactly as planned. Although the terrain was already expected to be difficult, full of irregularities, narrow trails and lots of gravel and slightly bigger stones, this was worse than any of them expected: the recent rains of the season had provoked landslides, which filled the already rough path with giant puddles of mud and rocks. Despite this, the crew managed to go through it successfully, although a tad slower. Or at least, until a certain point...


The landslides had taken care of this part, maybe a bit too well. What used to be a choppy, but well defined track on the cliffside, was now transformed into an unavoidable thirteen meters long hole. To the right, a sure death in a sharp rocks bed located quite some meters below, and to the left, a wall made of mud and stone, too inclined to walk over. Indeed, jumping that hole seems like the only way to get to the other side, other than finding an alternative route that didn't seem to appear in the maps.


It's 17:12, and temperatures are already dropping. Laria has been trying to warm up her arms caressing them with her hands for some minutes already, but the sensation of cold doesn't seem to go away. It seems perfectly feasible to get to the tomb before it becomes dangerous due to the lack of light and below zero temperatures, but only if they manage to solve this problem fast.


The only nearby interesting point the party has found was what seemed to be the entrance to some old mine, partially covered in mud and roughly one hundred meters from here. Maybe they could try to use it as a refugee for the night, or try to scavenge what little left the miners that used to work there in hopes they find something useful.

 

[ComradeSenpai]

"I doubt the tomb has a fireplace, Miss Laria. We'll need to set up camp soon, before we freeze." Hachi said, shouldering his spear.


"That mine should protect from wind chill, and it should be safe to start a bonfire near the mouth. We need to get started now, or else our fingers will get too numb to use the flint." he continued, making his way there.


"The men should go find firewood. The women should set the fire pit, and see if we have any accelerant. This is our first priority."

 

[CallSign]

Lily, crouched by the gap in the path, turned back toward Hachi at the unfamiliar word. "Accelerant? Whazzat? Something to help us get across this hole?"


Without waiting for an answer, she turned back to face the gap once more, seemingly doing some measurements or guesstimations. "We could just jump over it. It doesn't seem too long, after all." Lily might not be the best at judging these things.

 

[MechaGhoul]

Pressmaster Crawley would need to make sure to guide the crew to the port proper after this diversion. Such pitiful tasks in such a weak environment, would not train this lot to be seamen proper. However, the feast was a most enjoyable diversion.


He glanced back at the hole. Pressmaster Crawley wanted to get through this as quickly as possible. The only seemingly fun part, the Feast, was over. Now it was time to blow through this in order to get back to port for real work. Instead of mucking somewhere when the seas had tasks that needed to be done. He gave a quick thought to the condition of port, as he headed over to the hole.


Peering at it he knew that, it could be considered treacherous. But compared to the seas? Pressmaster Crawley kept a playful grin as he gave what he thought was the silliest answer. "Right. Though I be highleh doubtin' it. Can anyone jus' fly, 'n carry heavier thins? Y'know o'er the hole? Aha- flying o'er the hole..."


The Pressmaster began cracking up, after announcing his thought. "Och-ah. Aha....ah. Right, t'mines. Thar be far more useful things thar."

 

[Boomrocker]

"While some of us can in fact propel ourselves over this obstacle," El Saldo mused, pacing near the lip of the hole, "it would be harmful to carry the rest who cannot. And this is not prudent, yes? No, my friends, we must construct a bridge and get over it!"


He strode back to the group and gestured in the vague direction of the mines. "See, circumstances have seen fit to provide us shelter this eve," he explained. "It would be a fine idea for us to use it, then tackle this problem in the morning. We can dine, and regale each other with stories as we rest."


"Come, my dear boy," he beckoned to Vallen as he began to walk towards the mines. "We shall continue training within as well. You show great potential. And try not to make too much noise, yes?"


Say what you will about the squeaky shoes, but El Saldo treated them as extremely serious business.

 

[DergTheDergon]

Vallen sighed. 'This is rather humiliating... I came all this way over 10 years of training only to be treated as a brand-new initiate quite soon after... not to mention these gods-damned shoes!'


Despite his inner grumblings, he followed El Saldo without a word, though anyone looking at his face with see the rather obvious annoyance that this entire situation has caused. On the way here he occupied himself with trial-and error exercises in making less noise with every step. In doing this, he realized that he made significantly less noise if he focused on his footing above all else, though it was still quite prominent and irritating even then.

 

[NetherLightGod]

Ophelia Weiss Ruinal was rather new to this band of she referred to as, misfits. They were an uncanny group people yet she found herself travelling with them. Why? Well, they were going on an expedition of sorts and she didn't really want to miss out. She wasn't really fond of playing nice with others but for the sake of this journey she'd be nice, just for once even if it did cause her large amounts of discomfort.


How did she find them you ask? Well, they had been on their way to the tomb and she had just so happened to be walking by. That was it? Were you expecting an epic tale of blood and tears? Ophelia had sighed and remained silent. She had agreed with Hachi. They should set up camp.


(Ah! Really sorry for this post being pathetic but I will try better next time.!)

 

[Blumenkranz]

"An accelerant is a flammable substance used to propitiate the development of fire. In other words, it makes the combustibles burn faster", said Laria to Lily. "If we are lucky we might find some oil inside that mine. They probably had to keep some of it to fuel the lamps".


However, things were not going to be so easy for the party. If they wanted to lit a good bonfire, they would need wood, but there seemed to be none nearby. Although one would have expected to find some fallen branches from unfortunate trees that had broken during recent storms, only small bushes seemed to grow from this zone upwards. Indeed, there were some small twigs spread all over the path that could be used as tinder, but nothing that could ever sustain a proper fire.


The adventurers found their last traces of trees three kilometers ago, in a wide plain before the track took a turn through the cliffside. It was entirely feasible to go back and bring back some logs to the cave, but carrying wood through a rough terrain for so long did not seem like a walk in the park.

 

[Zerohex]

"Eheheheheh, that squeaking doesn't get old. So ridiculous", Ajax said to himself as he examined the latest road hazard. This was somewhere around the 763rd time he'd laughed at, giggled with or commented about Vallen's shoes since they'd left the town. He'd done so a bunch during the feast and called the monk some sort of buffoon as well, the Amazing Squeaky Wimp. He didn't do it nonstop or every time Vallen moved, but the party could be sure he'd do it again after some time had passed. For now, he'd had his laugh and was concerned with the party's dealings.


"Right, well. I could probably make the leap too, while carrying whoever can't get across this pothole or anything people want me to put on the other side. I'm all for exploring the abandoned mineshaft tho. Who knows what kind of stuff we can find in abandoned hole into the depths of the earth, away from civilization. Should be fun. If it's wood we need I could just go get some, be faster on my own than with a whole crew to babysit. Might find something for dinner too, better keep rations for emergencies. And they taste awful anyway".

 

[ComradeSenpai]

"Bad news, friends." Hachi announced, walking back to the group, "The only fuel here is these shrubs."


The samurai presented a handful of twigs and leafy branches he'd collected, entirely inadequate for a proper fire.


"These are essentially useless. We'll have to scour the mine for anything burnable, as well as blankets, warm clothing, and the like. We may have to consider the possibility of burning our possessions for warmth."


"However, there is another option." he continued, "But it's a heavy request."