Private - Gone Fishing

Naixi sniffed at the river with mild suspicion. Ashiore laughed at the lion, sticking one of her hands into the water to feel the current. "There aren't any fish here, Naixi. They're all up by the spring."

Naixi looked at her dubiously, then returned to batting at the water. Ash laughed again, eventually just giving up and deciding to enjoy herself while she waited for her partner in this endeavor to arrive. She didn't exactly know why two people were needed to go fishing, but she wasn't about to question the opportunity to kick back, relax, and get to know someone a bit better! And this was a gorgeous area for it, too. With lush foliage, pale bunches of wildflowers, it all combined to make a beautiful verdant oasis in the middle of the Astorean forest.

So apparently there was a local restaurant tucked away in Finweald's central district that was planning a big celebration! Apparently there was someone's wedding going on, and the traditional main dish in this instance was an eel that could only be found in the spring that she and Naixi were approaching. The chef had warned her to bring someone along, so she put up a quick notice on the in-game chat that she was lingering around Finweald with a quest to hunt some eel, and waited until she found someone who accepted.

Velka, was it? She didn't know who that was, but they were hopefully nice! Hopefully, she wouldn't be intimidated by Naixi's presence either. Which. Actually... It would probably be a good idea to give her partner a head's up on the fact that there was a literal lion accompanying her.

Ashiore

Hi, Velka! Uh, actually I have something to tell you. Just so you're not shocked by it or anything, I have my lion with me today! Don't worry, she won't hurt you at all, she's actually really nice. And lazy. So, really, there's nothing to be worried about if you get here and see a lion just hanging around the river.

Oh and speaking of, I'm near the spring right now! [Here] are my coordinates, hope to see you soon!

@Velka

 

Finweald certainly left a good first impression. The idyllic and bustling city had a whole host of things to do and shops to browse. In fact, she had just picked up a pair of classy stockings from one of the tailors in the city. Right afterwards, a chat message about a quest to hunt an eel had popped up. With nothing really better to do, an itching for a bit of action, Velka accepted the request. Of course, she didn't know where her partner would want to meet up but the inn seemed like a logical choice. Right as she was about to enter, she received a PM notification from the person who had sent out the quest.

Velka

Thank you for the warning but you do not need to worry. I have seen my fair share of odd pets and beastmasters. I'm on my way right now.

Right after sending the message, she noted down Beast Taming as one of Ashiore's masteries. No way anyone would be able to tame a lion otherwise. Given that they would be fighting together as it was a hunting quest, she felt like it would be appropriate to ask for an info share. Well, now for the journey to the springs. It shouldn't take that long to get there, giving her map a quick glance.

Velka was right, it didn't take very long until she could spot a brown haired woman standing near a lion who was poking at the water. That must be Ashiore then. Walking closer, she called out,

"I presume you are Ashiore? If so, may we do an info share? The hunt will be much easier if we know each other's capabilities."

If the woman responded positively, she would send a party request as well. By the local's descriptions, it would be a dangerous and long hunt. Just the thing she needed after a long, boring journey. The pay would also be pretty good she imagined, it was for a special event after all. And even in the real world she heard that weddings could get ridiculously expensive.

 

Oh, that was a quick reply! That was good. Meant that there wasn't a lot of waiting around to do. Firing back a quick message--Okay! See you soon! :D--Ashiore decided to join Naixi by the waterside. There were a few tiny, colorful fish that poked out of the surface to curiously nibble at Naixi's paws, but no sign of the supposedly delicious eel here. Guess they really were all hunkered over at the spring.

Ah! At the voice, Ashiore turned around. "Hey!" She gave the Faerin woman coming up behind her a quick smile. "Yup, that's me! I'm Ashiore, this is Naixi." She gave the lion a pat on the shoulder. "Okay, enough fun with the fish for now, Naixi. It's time to get going now. We've got some eel to catch."

Oh, an info share? She'd done those a few times with some other players. Not very often, since it seemed that most people were willing to take each other at face value when they talked about which masteries they had taken, but there were some who really wanted to be certain. Looked like Velka was one of those. "Sure!" she said, nodding. "Here, let me get my menu out. Ah... oh, there we go!"

She'd gotten quite used to her palm menu as she spent more and more time in the game. Accessing her inventory was basically muscle memory at this point, same for her spell menu. It took a bit of searching to get to the info share segment, though, since that hadn't used it that often. At any rate, info share done, incoming party invite accepted, and they were set to go!

"The spring's just up ahead. Naixi and I haven't found any eels in the river, so I guess we should just head up there now."

 

Info exchanged, it seemed like Ashiore was more of a support, and a pretty strong one to boot. That was good to Velka, she could provide defense and damage output well enough, if her cards permitted. In any case, Velka gave Ashiore a quick nod before giving a small gesture to follow behind. Most monsters were surprisingly smart and would target the healer of a group if a big threat wasn't put right up to their face. Given that her Illumancy was still severely lacking, she hoped that whatever beast they were hunting would go for her instead. And that she would draw lots of clubs, that would help out a lot in defense. She wouldn't object to drawing any of the aces as well. Just as long as it wasn't that Joker card, she could make do.

The spring wasn't that big of a distance from the river and it looked pretty calm. A pretty nice place to relax, in her opinion. However, taking a closer look around revealed part of the underwater ground to be of a... strange, greyish color. Maybe it was just a fine covering of rocks? And there was still no sign of the mystery eel they had to hunt. Maybe causing a disturbance in the water would lure it out or at least give some sort of hint because she was absolutely lost. Using her geomancy to pick up a moderately sized rock, she hurled it towards the oddly colored ground and instantly realized her mistake when it began to shift. She barely had time to react before a mini tidal wave of slightly energized water slammed into her, sending her flying a few feet back. As she got up, limbs slightly spasming from the shock, and cleared the water from her eyes, she stared right into eyes of a massive eel, teeth sharp and occasional sparks of electricity running through its skin.

 

Hidden: Battle theme

This was not a calm and gentle fishing trip. Obviously someone went wrong somewhere in disseminating the quest information (or Ashiore went very wrong somewhere in actually listening to the quest details, but how about we go with that first possibility hahaha) because the... you know, it wasn't even an animal anymore. That was a full-blown monster!

So yes, the monster surging up out of the surface of the spring caused a wall of water that slammed into @Velka, knocking the shorter woman to the ground. Naixi let out a snarl and bounded ahead, as she usually did when there was danger nearby.

Ashiore glanced over at Velka in concern, going to help her up. Thankfully the wave missed her, but as Velka got up, she noted that the woman's fingers were twitching slightly. Was that an effect of the monster? "Are you all right?" Ashiore asked, brow furrowing.

No time to make sure everything was all right, though. It looked like the eel monster was ready to rear back for a strike at Naixi. Eyes widening, Ashiore thrust out her hand and chanted her usual restraining spell, trying to hold the eel back from attacking. Something like kelp--if kelp was the right term? Did kelp live in freshwater? Oh well, whatever underwater weed it was--emerged from the river's depths, lashing out at the eel.

Its muscular body squirmed and eventually ripped through the soft plants, but it was enough time for Naixi to duck out of the way with a growl.

"Get ready," Ashiore said to Velka. "That thing is pretty strong."

Well, that was why the chef suggested that she go with a partner, she supposed.

 

Though the blow stung, it wasn't all that bad. She could still move and didn't feel like things were too bad, a quick glance to her health bar confirmed her diagnosis. At Ashiore's inquiry, she gave a noncommittal shrug before drawing a card. With the eel restrained for now, it gave her space to start an assault. She decided it would be best to double down on the crowd control for now, until they had a better idea of the beast's capabilities.

Fortuna: Rend

Four of hearts, just what she was looking for. Bits of ground beneath Velka began to flake off and fly float around her hand before taking shape. Made of rock and held together by magic, an oddly shaped knife with a chain like attachment at the end formed itself into Velka's hand. A small incantation later, and the weapon was sent flying towards the eel's neck. Or what passed for its neck anyways, Velka wasn't a marine biologist. Just as the beast broke free of the kelp restraints, the kunai struck true. While the weapon didn't sink in too deep, it would be enough for her next move. Which was to tug really hard on the chain and slam the creature's head onto the ground. Really, really hard. As soon as its head touched the ground, the eel released wave of electricity. She really should have been expecting that huh? The attack wasn't very accurate, but it did force her to stop focusing on the spell and dodge, setting the beast loose. As the eel shook of the blow, it dove back under the waters and moments later, large bubbles starting to gather towards the surface of the water. That couldn't be good. She turned to Ashiore,

"That, is not good. Whatever is happening, stay behind me, I will make a shield."

Not bothering with her cards, Velka called upon her geomancy prowess to form a floating mount of dirt and rock in front of her. She began to advance, just daring the eel to come out and strike at her when she had a shield up. Truth be told, the shield was more likely to be used as a bludgeon rather than defense but it was still nice to have.

 

Ooh boy. Well, it was good that @Velka seemed all right, and no lasting damage done. Also very fortunate, because it looked like the eel was gearing up for another attack. It reared back, out of the reach of Velka's attack, and narrowly missing Naixi's powerful claw strike aimed at it, and retreated to beneath the water. Large ominous bubbles formed at the surface.

"Right," Ashiore said, doing as Velka had requested and hanging back. She wouldn't do anyone any favors by rushing in and getting in the way, least of all herself.

The wait stretched on as the eel showed no signs of coming back up. Naixi remained low, ready to pounce, but the long waiting period had to be stretching on her patience. It sure was stretching on Ashiore's patience, if nothing else. She fiddled with the edges of her sleeves, getting antsy as the bubbles continued to rise with nothing else happening.

Maybe she ought to pre-empt the eel? It could obviously wiggle free of any kind of restraining plant she would try to fight, but what if she tried to possess it instead?

Geez. With how useful that possession spell was, it was rather upsetting how often she forgot about it. Bringing that up on her spell menu, she let the game take over the recitation of the incantation, ready to let her consciousness zip out of her body and towards the-

---

The eel rested in the still depths of Marsey spring, patient, lurking. This was its home, and its hunting ground. Sure there were those round soft fruits bobbing along the surface, sweet-sour from overripe. They would rupture so easily with a click of its jaws around them, the sour-sweet-bitter juices bursting in its mouth like a delight.

Sure there were fruit. But it wanted flesh.

No deer around, probably due to the changing seasons. But there were some delicious warm land creatures there, waiting, unaware, unafraid. Oh, how they would fear. The struggle, as it would swallow half of them in a single lunge, the frantic fight for air they would no longer be able to breathe, for a light that was no longer theirs to see; oh, how fear seasoned the flesh.

Wait-

Something was in its head.

I sense you, thought the eel, in its primitive, wordless way. I know you're there, prey. Come out... Come out so I may devour you. I know you, I Sense You, I SEE YOU-

---​

When Ashiore next opened her eyes, she was on the ground staring up at the sky. Naixi was next to her, licking at her face in what looked to be concern. When it became apparent that she was awake, the concern turned into annoyance. With a huff and a growl, Naixi shoved half of her weight onto Ashiore's prone body as a punishment for worrying her.

Though her immense headache probably would've been punishment enough. Owww. Part of that was when she banged her head against the ground when her body landed. But the other part of that wasn't a physical pain, it was more like just a weird throbbing sensation without a clear source. Like a stress headache, minus most of the stress.

"Ugh, I'm okay-" she began, trying to ward off any further concern by standing up. She kept forgetting to warn people that she was going to try her possession spell out. Whew. Still a bit wobbly on her feet after that spill, but with a bit of time to recover, she ought to be fine-

Which was, of course, when the eel burst out of the water, erupting like a geyser. Columns of water rose up around it, then seemed to bend in midair, all aimed like a bullet.

Right. At. Her.

 

Velka was staring right at the water when the eel burst out, right at Ashiore who was still far away. Thinking quickly, she slammed the block of dirt right into its side, sending it careening onto the ground. That would certainly make thing easier right? With the eel purely on land, Velka began walking closer and drew a card, eager to finish off the beast. She wasn't exactly sure what Ashiore was doing, but the way it charged at her, she was pretty sure that some sort of magic was at play.

Fortuna: Rend

An Eight of Hearts, how nice. She would be able put it down from a range then figure out how to haul it back into tow- Her thoughts were interrupted as something huge kicked her, sending her flailing through the air. Pain exploded in her body, what hit her? The mist from the water crashing began to fade and what she saw... Velka had seen things, disturbing things, especially in the more dangerous areas. People turned to crystal statues, horrific monstrosities forged from vile blood magic and necromancy, diseases that would turn people into puddles, but at the moment, they all paled in comparison to the sight before her. The 'eel', had feet. Enormous, frog-like feet that she could have sworn weren't there before. The creature leaped into the air, oriented itself and let out a horrific roar. Still spinning from the blow, she didn't even have a chance to defend herself as it let loose a blast of electricity right at her.

 

Uhhh. Not great.

The eel was walking. Eels didn't walk! What?

Though to be fair, it was far from the strangest thing she had seen in Terrasphere. Walking eels were hardly the weirdest. It did feel unfair, though. But, one thing that she should probably ask the chef when she got back was: what kind of eel had legs????

Okay, hypothetical future situations later. Big giant walking eel that was charging right at @Velka, now!

Naixi, always ready to pounce back into action, leapt up, snarling at the giant creature as it ran by. She carved two deep gouges down the eel's side, sending deep crimson gushing from its body. Though the creature staggered, it didn't let up in its charge towards Velka, focused solely on the woman that had dealt it a great blow.

It opened its mouth, unhinged its jaw to an incredible degree, revealing what looked like hundreds or sharp, curved fangs. Clicking and buzzing sounds filled the air as it geared up, and then lightning shot from its mouth, arcing towards Velka.

Some incidental sparks caught Naixi, as the lion was not fully out of the way of the blast. Her lion let out a yelp, and quickly backed off, though Velka took the brunt of the attack. Ashiore's eyes widened in alarm as she backed up. Oh boy, not great! Time for some healing, quickly!

She chanted under her breath, focusing on both Velka and Naixi. Unfortunately, dazed from her earlier fall, the healing wasn't as effective as she would have liked. It still did something, though, as she saw both Naixi and Velka's health meters slowly creep up in the corner of her vision.

The eel reared as it neared Velka, down on the ground. It raised a large, clawed foot in the air, clearly intending to crush her beneath it...

 

Feeling a small heal was really nice, especially since it deadened the pain from the blast and kick she had endured earlier. While it wasn't that big of a heal, it did allow her to see the giant foot coming to smash down on her. Which was considerably less nice. Still, Velka did have enough sense remaining to get out of the way. Using her magic, she pushed the ground out from beneath her, sending her out of the attack's radius. Now, it was her time to to strike back. She'd endured a kick, a blast of electricity and almost been crushed by the... could she even call it an eel at this point? Whatever.

Fortuna: Reave

Queen of Diamonds, it was time for a reckoning. 4 daggers, 2 long swords and a halberd all formed behind her, blazing with magic and made from stone. Holding up her fist to call them up and aim them correctly, she let the weapons fly. Unfortunately for Velka, the eel thing had expected a counter attack and prepared a counter, which was to surround one of its tail with electricity and knock a few of the weapons out of the air. All was not lost however as the poor technique of the creature led to a few of the weapons embedding itself inside its tail. Overall not that great of a hit, but Velka would take it. The creature had to be running tired of using its electricity abilities so freely eventually, right? Actually, the creature the locals had described didn't have legs so this was either a mutant or an entirely different but related creature. Regardless, she could tell tell that the creature was feeling the effect of the attacks, but then again, so was she. Ashiore looked alright through and wow did that lion of hers do work. Speaking of which, the eel turned to attack said lion which was very much not good but as she was reeling from the energy use of her spell, there was nothing she could do to stop it.

 

Naixi stumbled back with a yelp as electricity discharged around her. Naixi limped over to her side with a piteous whine, hanging back from further engaging the creature for the time being. And meanwhile, @Velka had just barely dodged the stomping attempt, and was picking herself up off the ground.

Not great. They would probably have to end this quickly! Though the creature looked severely hurt, they weren't doing so well either.

Ashiore glanced towards Velka, making eye contact with the other woman. "We can't last very long against it, not when it can discharge electricity in an area around it. We have to take it out quickly," she said, keeping an eye on the beast.

Strangely, though, it hadn't moved much from its current position. Blood was still streaming from its accumulated wounds, and it still looked quite obviously enraged, but it made no move except for a slight waddle to try and spin around to face them again. It was rather slow and uncoordinated about it too... Was it tiring?

Well, regardless, it was an opportunity. And Ashiore intended to make the most of it.

Chanting quickly, Ashiore aimed her spell at Velka, pouring some vigor into the other woman. Looks like she was getting the hang of buffing spells, as this one felt rather sizeable. "I've powered you up!" she called to Velka. "Let's finish it while it's still recovering!"

She then turned back to Naixi, giving the lion some comforting pets. "You did a great job Naixi, just rest for now. Here you go, yeah..." A bit tuckered out from that first spell, she attempted to cast a minor healing spell to fix up what looked like a nasty hit that the lion took sometime in the fray. Just as she was getting that ready though, a strange sensation overtook her fingers. It was like... she was still focusing on her buffing spell to Velka, but she could also separately conjure up a healing spell for Naixi...? That felt... so weird.

 

The surge of power that Ashiore poured into her did much more to distract the pain from the heal. It was time for vengeance and for this, Velka called upon her deck. She could feel it, the heart of the cards were beating loud and clear. Well, not really, but she could tell whatever she drew next was going to be a big one.

Fortuna: Reave

The Ace of Diamonds, yes, this would do nicely. An absolutely huge mass of bladed weaponry, formed from earth and imbued with not only her magic, but also Ashiore's, began to float ominously around her. Honestly, this was probably overkill, but at that moment Velka didn't really care. The creature had proved itself to be too dangerous to hold back, and the luck of the draw had given her exactly what she had needed. As she held out her hand to direct the mass of blades, there was but one intent in her mind. To end the fight.

The attack was effective, brutally so. In fact, it probably was a little too effective, considering the fact that people would have to eat the thing. Actually, there probably was enough untouched skin and meat left for the cooks to do whatever they wanted and still have leftovers to feed the entire town. As the eel let out one last, great breath and fell to the ground perforated, Velka could only wonder how in the they would be able to get it back to town. Especially since she had used up a lot of energy in that attack, and would likely need to sit down for a while since she had subconsciously casted Latona: Luminosity on each blade. That probably was a habit she would need to curb. With that, she fell sitting down in exhaustion and just blankly stared at the carnage all around, too exhausted to do anything else in the current moment.

 

Ashiore's eyes widened as @Velka let loose an entire surge of energy, summoning an assortment of blades from the ground. They all flew right at the eel, sharp rocky edges slicing into its flesh and rending it to pieces. Velka had probably just done most of the chef's work for him, filleting it to pieces.

With one last gasp, it fell to the ground in tatters, entirely drenched in blood. Naixi growled and sniffed haughtily, content with seeing their foe dead. And meanwhile, Velka fell to the ground in a somewhat seated position, apparently exhausted.

"Velka!" Ashiore quickly made her way to the other woman, taking care not to slip in the truly impressive amount of blood there was coated all over the ground. "Are you okay? Here, I can-" Ashiore cut herself off and quickly started healing Velka, closing up the wounds she had gotten from the eel and soothing the bruises that she could. Naixi eventually wandered over to get some healing as well.

And when all that was said and done, there was still the matter of transportation to get to. Ashiore herself was out of energy after all that healing and buffing, and her failed possession attempt. She stared at the corpse of the eel.

"Um."

--

Thank god for video game inventories, Ashiore thought. No way would they have been able to transport all that eel back to Finweald with them otherwise. Though it was an entirely invisible and intangible space, she still got the feeling that she'd be smelling raw fish in there for days, if not weeks.

She led Velka back to the restaurant that had asked for the eel, grimacing as she produced it for the chef. "This is what we managed to get," she said. "I hope it's enough...?"

Because if it wasn't... No way was she going through that again!