Zone Mixed bath Ozwin hummed a bit as he started getting company though there were a few rude souls who were splashing and jumping around while he was trying to relax, "Harveste do you really think I am embarrassed to be seen? Much less by you of all people? Do you not remember what we did in the Boston library? That was a much more exposing scenario that this one so just calm down a bit.... Though @Harveste please remember not to expect anything to happen in game, you have the body of a child remember?" He got a face full of water as someone cannonballed nearby and was about to start telling them to find a damn kiddy pool to splash around in but the big guy who he finished the boss alongside... @Alonso Thorlion was it? Showed up. "Hmmm? Come on in plenty of water for everyone until these goofs splash it all out. People these days." Ozwin's own in game body wasn't thick and burly but every bit of his thinner body was covered in a more athletic muscle gained from climbing all about a ship giving him the impression of a gymnast except from the weathering his body had received in game from all the sailing he did. He personally only brought the towel folded next to the water in and was completely staunch naked though not minding the gazes of any others. He laughed as the big man told him his desires were far away. "The sea is a lovely mistress who will move for no one but will always be waiting for you and right now I am just happy to be in the water. Booze will come and go and will continue to do so as long as people have worries. But as for lovely belles to speak with as long as one plants the seeds of affection and good will and tends them with care and nurture, the patient one will eventually have a garden of blossoming colors to admire. You seem to know this as well old timer." Ozwin grinned as he pointed to their all conquering hero Eleanor as she waved at the wall of a man and then shyly retreated from the mixed baths. He waved cheerily @Eleanor Loan as he admired her legs before returning his attention to Allonso and subconsciously patting Harveste's head. "Call it intuition though, but she doesn't seem like your type unfortunately. Too young for you? Hmm but that doesn't feel like the right answer itself. Eh not my place to pry." He noticed one of the lovely flowers he dreamed of, @Ashiore Evretto was sinking into the water, seeming to wake up from her little dozing spell. "Ashiore you aren't feeling too hot or tired are you, you need to be careful in hot springs. Was a little worried when I saw you kinda sleeping there." He stood up in the water the surface of it just a bit below his waist, just barely being safe for tv viewing, and moved over to her. As in got close he knelt down in the water to look at her face. "Goodness you are looking red as a beet!" Subconsciously he but his hand on her head to check her temperature before realizing, "After soaking in the water I can't guess your temperature like this. Ash as much as I love your company and admiring those lovely shoulders of yours we should probably get you out of the water to cool down, do you need me to help carry you out?"
Zone Mixed Bath While she normally would have preferred a more private bath, it didn't sit right with Stelluna to be at such a place alone after a harsh battle. Though her wounds still weren't quite healed, she felt well enough to wander about and clean up properly. It was a rare opportunity to visit a place like this, she might as well enjoy it. She had given herself a quick wash to avoid dirtying the main baths. Peering into the room, she saw a few strangers and some mostly unfamiliar faces. While she did know most of their names in passing, she hadn't met most of them prior to the battle. There wasn't exactly time to socialize during the fight with Azog either. There was one exception, and that was @Ashiore Evretto who she had met prior and considered to be a friend. However, she seemed a bit distressed considering her current position and the fact that there was a man who she recalled was named @Ozwin Ahab who appeared to be taking her temperature. In a hot spring. She wasn't sure what he expecting to be honest. Shrugging, she made her way to the pair. Although Ash's face was a curious shade of red, maybe from the heat? It didn't seem like a big deal. Sitting a fair bit of distance away, she gave Ash a small wave before sinking deep into the pool and relaxing. There was a fair bit of activity all round but she decided to close her eyes and take in the various sounds. It was surprisignly pleasant, all things considered.
Zone Mixed bath _____Four men and four women, not a bad mix for the mixed bath as Kaedé relaxed a bit more and just listened to everyone else. A playful smile and wave towards @Harveste before she looked around and noticed outside one other person everyone had towels or close to nothing on them. She supposed it was a good thing, her mistress would not likely approve of Kaedé if she was in here with a towel or less, last thing she wanted was to make the woman think she could not fully able to give up on men. ”It seemed like not long ago there was some boss that showed up and those with burns had been there in the fight. If that fucker decides to show back up I’m going to rip them apart for hurting these girls!” _____Kaedé still had her energy, and was not exactly used to not doing silly things as she stood up and threw some punches at the air allowing for a bit of a show as her outfit allowed her curves to bounce a bit too much before she sunk back down into the water. Needless to say she did feel like waving to each of the other girls before a faint thumb’s up towards them for not only their body but showing men ain’t the only fighters out there. _____The thought did cross her these women might just be men in real life but as long as they had curves, no package sticking out, she could care less. That was when Kaedé chose to have a bit more fun with the matter and point her thumb behind her towards the women’s bath. A female who wanted to peep, it was a lot more fun than going in herself since she could only imagine how much the girls might punish her for doing something so indecent. ”So am I going to be the only brave soul that tries to peep despite the risk?” Kaedé spoke faintly to avoid the other bath hearing her. She also planned to start having her fun, but if she was the only one her excitement to do it would fizzle out and she would mumble buzz kills under the water for some time.
Oh wow, hot springs! Magi Heart wandered around trying to figure out what to do first. It looked like everyone here was having fun. Wendy loved to see that, maybe she could have fun too here. A video game world that lets you take a hot bath? Wendy laughed in her head at that. She was pretty sure her mom would not think that was a good alternative for her. Then Magi would discover something. She headed to one of the springs and missed the sing that said mixed. She had seen a girl go over not to long ago so it was not the guys right? Also this was skinny dipping right? That was so fun! Zone Mixed bath Magi still had her clothes on but came right on over and was ready to take the stuff off. Her eyes closed as she took off her magical girl outfit... or tried to anyway. Gee whiz. It was kinda... hard to do actually. Magical girls usually transformed in and out of their awesome costumes. She could of course just use her equip menu to undress but that would ruin the realism! It was ironic that Wendy liked realism in fun and candy involved situations but in any other scenarios, it was bring on the rainbow fantasy. Having spent about ten minutes getting out of her outfit, Magi sighed and stretched before heading to step into the water. She heard male voices.... wait wut? Magi's face became pink as cotton candy and her twin tails went limp and then stiff as she stared in awe. She threw her arms around herself and screamed. There were BOYS here! Ewwwwwwww nuuuuuuuu! "AAAAAAH BOYS IN THE GIRLS BATH!!!! NUUUUUUUUUU!!!!" She quickly jumped behind some shelter and shivered as she began to try and put her clothes back on. The entire fact that it was a mixed bath house had been missed by her.
Zone Mixed Bath As if he were a mind reader, @Ozwin Ahab brought up the one thing she'd been praying he wouldn't- and, though she wanted to lie, it showed on her face even as she attempted to retort otherwise. "I-I wasn't thinking about that! I-It was a one-time thing anyway, wasn't it? I have doubts such a thing would happen again anyway...I-It just doesn't change that I'm nervous." No, she would be a lot less nervous if that hadn't come up- whether it be by is voice or in her head. As a large man came near them, the small girl peeked curiously towards him- he was familiar, and it had taken her time to really recall his name that she'd heard at one point or another. Considering she'd hidden behind him at one point, if she recalled properly, it was probably a good idea to converse with him- at least, if nothing else, to thank him for helping her survive. "Thank you for your care, Mister...Um...It was @Alonso Thorlion, wasn't it? I appreciate your aid very much. I'm sorry I didn't do much besides hide behind you for a duration..." Her shyness piqued as she heard a scream of some sort, turning to see a cute younger girl hiding for shelter after realizing there was more than just women in the bath. She took this moment as a good opportunity to free herself from her anxiety, wading the water until she was near the young lady, @Magi Heart, and holding a hand out to her, careful to cover herself in the process. "This is a mixed bath. I'm sure there's a bath just for us shy girls somewhere. Shall we find it together, miss?"
Zone Iedi's Shrine Eleanor carefully tuned her mind into the vibration she felt from the altar of sorts. Even if it was merely a shrine, she wondered what it was she was feeling? There had to be an explanation for this unknown occurrence. Just as she was about to commence her, all too recited, scientific process, she was caught off guard by the entrance of another into her rather secluded area. Turning her head, she glanced back to view @Sylpha Astarte. "Hello." Eleanor flashed a polite smile, listening closely as the other introduced herself. Sylpha had been one of the people who had ventured through the portals and helped them to achieve the relic, and thus, Eleanor remembered her face, and bowed her head in greeting and respect. Although she couldn't bow too far, as not to dip her head down into the waters, the effort should've been duly noted. "I'm Eleanor." Uncertain of what precisely to say, the self-proclaimed detective allowed an uncomfortable silence to fall upon their conversation. Her eyes scoured her surroundings, like a starved mutt for sustenance, peering around in an attempt to find something to speak about. The tremors lingering in her consciousness did not help with this either, as the incessant ringing tightly fastened itself to the back of her mind, seeming to slow her reaction speed considerably. "A rather beautiful display, don't you think?" She gave a semi-awkward smirk in an attempt to be friendly, as she motioned towards the crown, resting at the water's surface. "Must have taken a lot of effort to create." Eleanor cursed herself for such social incompetence. Why couldn't she just mimic everyone else? Why did it always become so difficult for her! Such aggravation. Though, as she raised her hand towards the shrine, she felt the vibration intensify. With wide eyes, she turned her gaze towards the crown, wondering what exactly it all meant. Closing her eyes, she tried to shut it out. She was always thinking. Her mind was always running, like a machine, at maximum efficiency. She never gave herself time to relax, and so, she attempted to allow herself a moment in those warm waters, to clear her mind of the world the constant issues that plagued her conscious. Yet, it seemed like a hopeless task, as the incessant vibration continued to linger at the back of her mind, like a child poking at a sleeping sibling, irritatingly destroying the possibility of complete solitude.
Zone Iedi's Shrine Sylpha instinctively bowed her head as well. Due to having lived outside of Japan for a long time, the cultural habit of bowing also started to fizz out, only displaying when she actually flew back to Japan. Now that she was in a game and not Japan, she wasn't prone to doing it either. With both of their introductions out of the way, Eleanor opened with comments regarding the shrine. "It is indeed." Sylpha would reply, turning her gaze to the crown. "It is a shrine dedicated to Iedi, the goddess who governs Health amongst other things. For an establishment like the Pelham Springs, it is not strange that they spared no effort in building it. I wouldn't be surprised if this entire place had her blessing, too." Opening her palm menu, Sylpha brought up the camera and took a screenshot of the shrine, a task she had forgotten to do with Qora's shrine earlier. While she was at it, she remembered a certain thing in her inventory and reached in. Extracting two wine glasses (one of which she swiped from the samples offered at the front area of the Springs) and a Romanesque glass bottle, she popped the cork (how it became so firmly sealed despite popping it a few hours earlier was a mystery to her) and poured two servings: one for her and one for her companion. A glimmer shone from the bottle as she tipped it, revealing the form of an ornate dagger stuck inside the bottle. The surrounding smells were soon overridden by the rich aroma coming from the wine as Sylpha offered one glass to @Eleanor Loan before replacing the cork and stowing away the bottle. "I suppose Sake would be more appropriate for the location, but unfortunately this is the only alcohol I had on hand. Please have some, consider it a... toast to your contributions and efforts."
After some time, they were at the Pelham Springs. As everyone went there, she sent a private chat to Astor. Ilusa Nakhalee Sooo… What was the deal you got with that mage? That done, she glanced at the map of the place. “Hmm…” The staff had said what is where and for now, Ilusa knew what she wanted before getting a nice, relaxing soak in the springs. “I’ll visit Iedi’s Shrine first.” The Felis informed @Astor Balthas. The decision was obvious to her, who was looking into the religion and her chosen patron Goddess. Thankfully the staff easily directed her to the correct place, though she did glance at the few, more out of view springs; just right if someone wanted to enjoy them on their own or in a small number of friends. Zone Iedi's Shrine “Oh.” A gasp left her lips. In one of the smaller hot springs was the shrine, just how the staff said. The symbol of the Goddess, the crown on water, was carved out of stone. It was carved perfectly and with the hot springs giving off a steam and the water not being see-through it truly looked as if the crown was floating ontop of the water. Floating around, slowly were lily pads which bloomed. There was a faint scent of those flowers in the air and the water from the hot spring sometimes poured out. She nodded silently to the people already there (was that one not the person who jumped into the Boss with the relic..?). Though the woman behind the avatar was not religious, upon learning of Iedi she decided that she would be an important figure in the life of ‘Ilusa’. It was why she never asked for anything material in return for the healing, or the salves she gave out. It was why she shared her own food with those who needed it. It was why she dispelled sickness of those who she met. It was why she gave those small miracles to the people to whom magic was a mythical force they feared; saying she followed the path of Iedi soothed their fears. And, it gave her ample time to practise her skills and get better at healing; without the danger of fights. That was why Ilusa knelt before the pool, letting the water soak her knees. She clasped her hands, closed her eyes and bowed her head. A small prayer of thanks was offered, because this Goddess made it possible for her to practise her Illumancy with people blessing. It let her stay for a cheaper price at inns in return for healing. It let her hear interesting things. “Thank you.” She murmured and opened her eyes to watch the crown for few more moments. Then with last bow of the head, she rose. That was done. Now was time for some nice relaxing soak… And to check if Astor sent any new messages.
Zone Iedi's Shrine “Hmmhmmhmh, tha’ hell…?” Ursula mused to herself while munching a large bread, hidden behind the shrine. She tinkered with stolen leftover supplies, particularly, the coolants. Ka-chaks could be heard as parts were dismantled and zips signaled some core components running here and there. Thanks to her need of activity and in general a need of something to do, Ursula couldn’t just sit back in some hot springs and waste away her time. She was so close to finding out how these things worked! Surely her eyes could see how glorious her new discovery could be…! Maybe not. “What kinda bull is this!? They shouldn’t need three magireceptors connected to the mana prism, else it would overload...” Magitech had it’s advantages and disadvantages; in general most of them were limited to a maximum of two regulator cables that connected the source to the mana prism. So when the source (heat, cold, water) filled the cable and hit the prism, the outcome (much more water, fire, cold, etc) would be released by the magitech. Thanks to that, the puzzled tinkerer could not fathom why this one in particular had three. Did they change it somehow? The mana prism was the same… And that’s when curiosity killed the cat, except Ursula wasn’t a felis herself. Using one of her blacksmithing tools she eagerly cut one of the regulator cables only to be met with failure as nothing noticeable happened, and her eyebrows instinctively frowned because of the result. “So they don’t even know tha hell they be doin’ now? They coulda blow themselves up like this…” she murmured her frustration to herself, annoyed at finding out nothing. When Ursula set her eyes on something else, one of her hungry and tiny arachnomata approached the third magireceptor as if curious to understand it, much like its master. It touched the cable once, then hit it the second time. After making sure it was safe, the automata went ahead and connected itself to the cable to suck up some of the energy in it. Sated for the time being, it wanted to take revenge on Ursula for forgetting to properly feed it. Climbing up on the woman’s back, it approached Ursula’s neck and let out the perfect amount of coolant to scare the hell out of the blacksmith. “GYAAAAAAAAHN!” She shouted in response to the could biting at her neck. Rumours say that this was one of the rare moments where Ursa looked girly for once. “Damned thing! I know it was ya, acchi! Where are ya, ya motherquacker! Come back ‘ere!” Ursula searched for her disobedient automata as she left her hideout behind the shrine, panting heavily. She wore none of her cave raiding equipment, armors, and odd-looking tinker machines, other than a plain swimsuit. This made her look way less intimidating than normal, though her hair was still a complete mess like much like before. Her subsequent anger vein that popped on her right temple was gone as she noticed @Eleanor Loan and @Sylpha Astarte . “Oh, blue girl! And photo girl!” She waved while approaching and sit near the waters, though not quite close to get herself in it. “How ya’ll doin’? Also, uh… If ya don’t mind, could ya not say that I have some of these on me?” She showed a spare part of the coolant. “Those guys at the entrance said I couldn’t bring 'em, so I kinda swiped them in…” She grimaced at the alcohol bottle. Ursula noticed a Felis closer by, and quickly hid the swiped parts behind her.
"Thank you." Eleanor chuckled. She was not really one for alcohol, but she supposed a bit of wine could not hurt, and it was not in her customs to reject such a gift. Taking hold of the glass between her fingers, she sipped from its contents, taking only a minimal amount of the liquid into her mouth. This was a chosen action, both as a courtesy, and as a precaution, as she carefully tasted the fluid. "You know a lot of goddesses and the sort?" She asked Sylpha, noting the fact that the girl seemed to have a good knowledge of the goddess in particular. Perhaps she had similar knowledge of other goddesses as well. Though unaware of it's depth, Eleanor spotted a pool of information within the other, and information was always of value to the self-proclaimed detective, even as she sat relaxing in the warm waters of the spring. "Also, you need not toast to my... 'Contributions'." Eleanor seemed to speak ill of the idea, setting the glass of wine, after taking another sip, off to the side of their little pool. "I had the easiest job of everyone. Takes a lot more to kill a beast than it does to die to one." She did not understand completely how people gave her credit for the task. It felt like she had done... Well, nothing. Eleanor suddenly took on a much quieter nature, as @Ilusa Nakhalee entered. Bowing her head in greeting, she did not wish to disturb the stranger, who had apparently come to the shrine to pray. Keeping quiet and to herself, Eleanor focused herself, for the quieted moments, upon further inspecting the vibration she still sensed coming from the shrine. Even as she let her eyes rest upon the 'floating' crown, part of her seemed to quake, as well as her vision becoming a bit fuzzy. An adverse effect of her death? Perhaps. She took mental note to take physical note of this at a more appropriate occasion. After the woman left, Eleanor allowed her posture to relax bit more. While she was still in the company of near strangers, at least Sylpha knew her just slightly more than that. With a twitch in shock, the self-proclaimed detective's eyes shot up towards a sound of duress. In truth, she could not completely tell whether the cry was one of fear, agony, or even perhaps a battle-cry of some odd kind. Either way, it was terrifying. "Oh, it's you... Hello." Her nerves were quickly calmed as the woman greeted them. Ursa, another who had gone into the rift with them. What an odd coincidence that they had all happened upon the same shrine. Hearing her comment about swiping objects, Eleanor chuckled softly to herself. Her instinct, as it often was, was to take all illegal activities to the proper authorities, as was her ideal, yet... "Alright, I will let it slide this time." She chuckled lightly as the other female's mischievousness. After all, she had been a good help in the conflict. Eleanor did not wish to cause her any trouble.
Zone Women's Bath She was a bit late to the hot springs, but honestly it didn't matter as long as she got to soak her aching muscles for a bit. Even though she hadn't been a huge help in the battle against Azog, she still had done her best had been close to death countless times. She needed this. After taking a quick shower to wash the dirt and blood from her body, she wrapped herself in a soft white towel and entered the spring area. Since she was slightly late it seemed the mixed bath was quite full, so she decided to head to the women's bath instead, which proved to be the right choice since only a few others were there. She wanted to relax anyway. Slowly she dipped into the hot water and couldn't help the content hum that escaped her lips. Her whole body hurt but as she took a seat in the hot spring she could feel the pain melting away. She hadn't been playing the game long but she felt like she had been playing forever. Maybe it was because she had decided to take on a world boss so early and now she felt like any other battle would pale in comparison. Honestly at this point she didn't know what would top it, but she had a feeling an even harder battle was on the horizon. That's how it was with these kinds of games. Elysian sighed softly, looking around and smiling at @Kyupin Felnya @Solaria and @Corvella. "This feels soooooo good," she said as she stretched her muscles and her cat ears flicked away some water. "How are you all holding up?" She knew some had it worse than her, but she hoped they were doing okay after what they all went through.
Zone Women's Bath Seeing another felis enter to join them, she giggled softly and moved to relax her arms behind her neck. Elysian was surely right- this felt wonderful on her achy bones! "I'm feeling pretty okay now. The warm water helps, even if it was warm enough as it was on the volcano." She stretched her long back a bit, bending backwards until more than half her hair was clinging to her lower back, despite it not being that long. It tickled her when she returned to a more upright position, but she seemed eager to ignore it, more interested in those around her. "How about you? Um...Actually, did I get your name yet? I knew Kyu before all this, but I don't think I've had the pleasure of meeting you yet." Moving a hand to reach out, she offered a handshake to @Elysian with a warm smile. "I'm Solaria. I mostly acted as support, but I have some skills with a sword too. Even if it makes sense, I feel weird not having Uchi with me." She was usually attached at the hip with it, after all, quite literally. "What about you? Feeling alright? I can add some health if you need more than the bath can give you." Turning to realize she hadn't met another person that joined them, she gave a glance to @Corvella. "And you as well." Though, the woman's eyes appeared to be closed. Would she even notice she was addressed, when no name was involved?
It was natural that, after unloading the information onto someone she just met, she would ask if Sylpha was knowledgeable in the field. "I'm actually not." She spoke honestly. "The people around us working here, however, are. I just learned all that about some forty minutes ago. Might earn their annoyance and disappointment, but it was worth learning. Especially after our run-in with the divine." Sylpha remembered the name Idna, but the identity and significance of Idna should be something Eleanor would be more aware of, considering she was the one who fused with her orb. As for Eleanor's contributions, Sylpha could only say: "A life in a game may not be as precious because you show up here nary a few hours after you died, but it was needed to make a sacrifice and you stepped up to make that sacrifice when I wouldn't." As @Ilusa Nakhalee entered to pray, Sylpha kept silent and drank a sip of wine. This would not last long at all, as a strange shriek made Sylpha jerk her head towards the next patron. It was @Ursa, the lady with blonde hair who lacked the armaments Sylpha saw back at the Temple of Cinders, or the ones that saved Sylpha from the heart-stopping fall, whom she recognised through her hair. She begged the two of them not to tell anyone that she had brought in items that were highly inappropriate for the environment. Eleanor agreed to keep the secret. As for Sylpha, she had no reason to tell on the person who saved her life. "Sure, just don't drop any of it into the baths and it'll be fine. No one should chase you." Oh, and she wouldn't miss on complementing @Ursa's massive change in image: "By the way, the swimwear look really fits you." Seeing her appearance made Sylpha herself consider the idea of procuring a swimsuit... Though her bathrobe should do just fine. Sylpha was more used to just going into baths and saunas naked. Yes, much like Eleanor was doing now but without the towel, though that was just how her family did things.
Zone Women's Bath Elysian laughed at @Solaria's comment. "That's so true, you think we would be so done with heat, but this kind is the good kind." The heat in the volcano had been harsh and painful, this was soothing and seeped comfortably into her bones. She would take this over that any day. Actually if it was possible she'd love to come here after every battle! "I had some close calls, but I'm better than I anticipated. I'm just glad it's all over with now." She hadn't even realized they hadn't exchanged names and shook her head. "I'm Elysian, I just very recently started this game so it would be unlikely we've met, but I'm glad we have now!" She took her hand in a friendly shake and smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you officially Solaria! I'm mainly a DPS archer, but I have rogue and phantasmia abilities as well. I'm still trying to figure out what direction I want to go in regarding my role." She tilted her head as her ears twitched curiously. "Uchi? Is that what you named your sword?" She hadn't named her bow yet but maybe she should, the more connected you felt with your weapon the better right? Elysian lifted a hand out of the water. "I think I'm okay for now, but I'll definitely keep that heal in mind if I need it after this." Ely felt like sinking her head under but opted to just tilt her head back and let it soak her hair. She yawned quietly as she scratched her fingers through her hair and then eyed Solaria again. "How long have you been playing?"
Zone Mixed Baths Ohh God, @Ozwin Ahab was moving closer. This was entirely not what she wanted. "I- I'm fine," she managed, as he put a hand on her forehead. "Just, uh, need a bit of time to get used to the steam. You know, like... yeah." Of course her attempts at pretending to be perfectly fine would be undermined at Ozwin's suggestion to carry her out. That just made her redder. She almost missed @Stelluna entering the baths, and barely managed to squeak out a small greeting. Thankfully Ozwin stopped whatever he was doing with his hand on her forehead then. Then, a loud cry drew her attention, and she turned to see Magi Heart leap back behind a few large trees. Looked like Ash wasn't the only one who had mistaken this for the women's baths. And then it looked like Harveste and the shocked girl were leaving? Nnngh, but at least she would still have Stelluna and Kaedé? But, well, @Kaede Hoshi was the one to suggest that... Ash looked at Kaedé in shock once she had processed what exactly the girl was suggesting. "What do you mean, you're going to try to spy on the women's baths?! No!"
