Quest Details: Link Quest Roll: Link Participants: @Alonso Thorlion @Temperance @Eleanor Loan Team Approach: Brute The mountain was most certainly a wonderful view from a distance. As Eleanor approached the massive landmark, each intricate detail of its colossal shape became more visible. She hoped that, perhaps at some point there would be an opportunity to climb the detailed giant to its peak, and peer out across the horizon. While the thought was lovely, there was business to take care of, and these thoughts were placed to the side in exchange for more pressing matters. An important Falderen princess was missing, Pyrna, as well as an expedition team who had been traveling alongside her. They had seemingly disappeared beneath the mountain. All of their lives were potentially at stake, and considering the arrival Aesirs, acting as roadblocks at each of the entrances, the situation seemed a bit... Fishy. There was definitely something shady in the works, and Eleanor planned to put a stop to it. The group had probably been captured, some of it's members possibly killed. Whatever was occurring, it was not the kind of thing that sat well with the proclaimed detective. There was work to be done, and so she ventured to the great peaks. Finding her way towards the base of the mountain, she began idly searching for an entrance, eventually coming upon one. Having nearly walked directly into the line of sight of a trio of the Aesir guards posted outside, Eleanor stumbled back, hiding behind a nearby stone. Peeking out, she carefully assessed their equipment using investigation mode, with two fingers placed upon her temple. With a sigh, engaging the enemy alone would definitely be quite a poor idea. With a glance across from the guarded entrance, she managed to spot a patch of vegetation. There appeared to be a few trees and some bushes. Considering some things, Eleanor pondered over how the spot could be used as a potential vantage point on the entrance to the mountain. It looked to provide a clear view, after all. So, deciding on the transition, Eleanor kept her head low, dashing swiftly towards the patch of greenery, keeping her head low, and her arms at her sides. Taking a seat in the grass behind a large tree, she sat with a thud, catching her breath. Eleanor had not realized that she had been holding it, but so it seemed, as she had become rather exhausted quite quickly, finding herself panting behind the tree. Certainly, she was nonathletic, but not to that severity... Was she? Regardless, she carefully opened up her palm menu and began browsing through for who could be called upon for assistance. With a nervous chuckle, she sent the brief, rather vague message to @Alonso Thorlion, "I could use some help, if you are willing," as well as coordinates to her location. She hoped that his arrival would not be too long, as it would certainly mean trouble if any of the armed guards managed to catch sight of her. Rolling up the sleeves of her white, collared shirt, she prepared for the possible conflict. Slipping into her back, inventory void pocket, she produced her red talismans, allowing them to begin floating in front of her. Dancing with the rattling of her heartbeat, the paper charms began to tremor in the air. Nervously she glanced around, hoping to find someone passing by. Perhaps a fellow player or adventurer also looking around for an entrance to the mountain could be of assistance to her. If one such opportunity were to present itself, Eleanor would certainly whisper out to the individual, calling them over to her location. 89 + 25 = 114 Brute / Roll Link 114 / 540
Because she was not a Player Character, Temperance did not receive the private messages and quest alerts that PCs did. She did, however, frequent many taverns where gossipy adventurers made and spent their earnings. It was in one of these that she overheard the discussion of the missing princess and other expedition members. The men and women in the tavern were all selfish cut-throat sorts who wanted to take her hostage for themselves. Because of that, Temperance had frozen them in a nice block of ice, then pinched their cheeks and honked their noses until they gave up the location of whatever quest they had mystically been informed of. Truly it was the most heinous of tortures, but her god would forgive her the cruel act! It was through such actions that she had learned to make her way north, traveling to the mountains where pirate-y sorts were doing pirate-y things, much to the chagrin of the rescue teams heading that way. Some sought to talk their way past, others to sneak... Temperance was wearing a bunny girl nun vestment, had a loud mouth, and lots of opinions. Most of which were about how SHITTY it was to walk up mountains in boots that had such tall heels. It had gotten so annoying, and she constantly had to heal her own legs to keep them from being sore. Yay for holy magic, but boo for abusing holy magic! Still, the heels were fabulous, so it was a good price to pay. Reaching a passage that went briefly into some caves before going up and around the mountains, Temperance summoned a holy light to guide her way, oblivious that Eleanor was nearby. @Alonso Thorlion @Eleanor Loan 21 + 30 = 51 Brute / Roll Link 165/ 540
Perfect. Wandering up the mountainside became a mixture of pain, suffering, and the workout he needed but did not desire. Did the Felis not have enough to deal with considering all of the huge brawls as of late? Oh well, no point in dwelling on the matter. Alonso was not about to deny a request from Eleanor, as he became more than concerned for her safety regarding her reasons for being up in the mountains. Quests were fine, yet, going solo into unknown territory with the powerful Aesir roaming about was not the best of ideas. He assumed that was the reason she was around here since no other purpose had sprung down the player rumor grapevine. "I'm on my way, just hold on a moment. Gotta climb up and reach ya. Just... note that I might have to give you a lecture about running around by yourself in places you're not sure of. Either that or I'm still paranoid about your mental condition," he responded to @Eleanor Loan by way of personal message. A mighty hand grasped the rock wall as he pushed himself up and over the ledge. The wall was not too high, and provided an easy shortcut for those with physical capabilities. It was still a dangerous way to maneuver, as falling meant certain death if he rolled further down, but compared to the more intense version of rock climbing, Alonso found the better path. Sighing, he stood to his impressive height and gazed out towards the view overlooking the rest of the mountain. Better than he expected, the Felis admitted to himself, holding a majestic sort of feeling as to how geographical movements beneath the earth over thousands of years to create natural art. No need to keep Eleanor waiting. If he arrived to late there was a good chance she was going to be met with harsh mobs. Looking at the given location, a finger moved about his mini-map to determine their relative distances. Time had flown by, since he noticed his party member's area was close. At least the girl knew to remain in one place and not send him up and down this thrill seeker's paradise. Better hurry it up before she hurts herself," Alonso thought, crouching to gain some momentum to his dash. His racial capabilities as a Felis were not hindered by his mass, which even he found odd every so often. Not that he was complaining. Skidding to a stop, the hulking beast retreated to the corner before the Aesir guards at a cavern entrance. Three of them and two players as far as the veteran gamer was concerned. With this world's mechanics he needed to play around with a bit less game logic and more sabotage. Of course, his version of sabotage ended up resorting to punching some poor bastard in the face. Bending low, Alonso grabbed a decent sized rock, extending his hand out and chucking it near the guards. Typical strategy, but the cliche might work. He placed his back against the wall, eying his targets' reactions. Bingo. Idiots fells for the 'Send one guy to investigate' trick. Alonso rushed off, finding a small enclosure between boulders he was able to hide in for the moment. The foolish guard observed his surroundings, confused as to what made that rock float over and slam into the ground. Eyes rolled, realizing that he was dealing with the typical, incompetent goon. At least the guy turned his back. Creeping from his hiding spot, the Felis tapped the Aesir guard on the shoulder, who turned around only to have a powerful right hook to the face. Critical hit: the cat's favorite multiplication of numbers. Now, the large player did not want to kill this guy, as that was rude, opting to toss the unconscious body within Alonso's previous hiding spot between the boulders. That was one down, and two to go. One problem remained, however, that the other two were going to be curious as to how long it takes one guard to handle a simple task such as scouting out the nearby area. Cussing in a huffed breath, the Felis messaged Eleanor again, "You probably figured it out by now, but that was me. Unless you have a better plan our best option is to tackle the other two while the fight's even. I doubt they're gonna hold off inquiring about the disappearance of their buddy." @Eleanor Loan @Temperance 76 + 20 = 96 Brute / Roll Link 261 / 540
She was relieved to have received a message back, and spent the next few moments continuing to gather herself within her hidden location. Just like waiting for anything, it felt as though each moment dragged on forever. Though, just as those instances, the memories of the long wait would certainly fade to nothing, as the real, exciting events of the instance would begin to take place, replacing those drab details. Eleanor, peered out from her nature refuge. While she had been quite detailed in her analysis of the events, her eyes had not managed to spot the distraction stone tossed by the Felis. With a panicked guise, Eleanor's eyes widened as it appeared as though a guard was sent to scan the surrounding areas. As the guard walked first towards her, her heartbeats hastened, the tremor of her charms ensuing. Luckily, he moved in a different direction and was soon... Apprehended? From her positioning, she was able to spot @Alonso Thorlion, as he handled the first guard rather effectively. Certainly, she would have to thank him for arriving on such short notice after the whole shindig was over. A moment later, she received a message from him. What the message spoke of was true. Time was most certainly of the essence, as the window of opportunity never stayed open for long. A final careful glance towards the large man, before vaulting past her bush, revealing herself to the two remaining guards. The light purple arcane glow in her hand was subtle in the sunlight, though still somewhat evident, as she reached back to the charm on her right flank. The red slip of paper, floating mere inches from her palm, parallel to the palm, began to quiver in the air, purple arcane sparks dancing and stringing across and around it's surface. An instant later, Eleanor flung her arm forward, as if pitching a baseball. The paper hurtled through the air in a straight line. Unlike her first failure with the weapon, she had thrown the charm with enough power to keep it's propulsion. In the beginning, only one had spotted her, soon moving over to the other to notify him of the stranger's arrival. As he opened his mouth to alert his companion, the charm struck him, knocking hard into his metal helmet. While the strike had not been incredibly potent, it had rattled the headgear, more than interrupting his train of thought, as his head struck the rocks behind him, falling unconscious. Eleanor looked at herself, pausing. While success had occurred, she had expected the blow to be more effective! After all, it was a similar technique to the one she had used to blow a hole in that tree previously... Perhaps she had not charged her attack enough, in combination with the powerful defensive equipment that the men were equipped with. Dismissing it, she looked up towards the guard, now alerted as his companion was attacked, as he began to approach Eleanor, drawing a heavy maul off of his shoulder. "Ehm..." Stepping back cautiously, Eleanor held her hands up, as if proclaiming some innocence to a police officer. Her eyes flickered around, preparing to teleport out of the way if need be. First, her eyes moved towards the known location of Alonso, then something else caught her eye... "Y-you?" The bunny outfit could not be mistaken. It most definitely was the girl she had met in the Firelands, approaching her position in the path. How had she arrived here? Was she too on a mission to assist those captured beneath the mountain. Reviewing her notes on the girl, she wouldn't put it past her, considering how swiftly she had moved to save Ivan from his captivity... Regardless of how risky of a play that had been. Nevertheless, Eleanor was left in the center of the path, hesitantly retreating with steps backwards, away from the intimidating looking Aesir. She hoped either @Temperance or the big Cat man would intervene, before she was required to spend a hefty portion of her reserved energy teleportation out of the way. 19 + 25 = 44 Brute / Roll Link 305 / 540
The easy going up the mountain had never actually existed, as it turned out mountain climbing in heels was a cunt of a task to do. But what had been a marginally arduous and difficult task had just become insanely difficult, with the arrival of some angry looking Aesir pirates exiting their posts and coming for a fight. Except... it didn't look as though their grief was with her, yay! Instead, their attention seemed to be focused on something else, and after glancing around for a moment, she was able to spot Eleanor Loan standing nearby. The pirates seemed to be advancing towards her, weapons drawn and ready to slay the girl that had somehow survived leaping into Azog to destroy his core. How had she managed that?! The idea that she might be an undead raised by Lucia crossed her mind for a moment, but no... there was too much color in her cheeks to be an undead. That meant that Eleanor had somehow survived or come back from that fateful encounter, and was here in this place... to what? Well she was fighting the pirates, so that meant she had to be trying to rescue the princess and missing explorers too! And that meant that, despite their previous differences, they were on the same side now. So she ought to help Eleanor... but how? Pounding a fist into her palm, inspiration struck Temperance and she carefully stepped forwards to move past the mage girl, putting herself between Eleanor and the advancing pirates. She didn't have much in the way of offensive magic; a little cold she could throw around perhaps, but nothing overly powerful. But what she did have in her arsenal was even more powerful, and grinning, she grabbed the top of her one-piece and yanked it down, exposing her chest to the cold elements. "Don't be distracted by these!" she cheered, trying to draw the pirates' attention long enough for Eleanor (and the unseen Alonso) to finish things off. All she had to do was buy time! 30 + 30 = 60 Brute / Roll Link 365 / 540 @Alonso Thorlion @Eleanor Loan
Hearing the oncoming blasts, the reasonable theory being Eleanor took the chance to jump in, a quick plan formulated in the depths of thought. Run in, swing once or twice, then back away so his ally could shoot off more spells. Tandem attacks were key and focus firing, even more so when the party consisted of just two people. Alonso figured it was just him and Eleanor at the moment. She had not mentioned anybody else coming, and thus no secondary plan was created in case of an unexpected ally. But who in their right mind was going to run out here for no reason and jump in to save the day? Not like Alonso was so up in age that he could not defend a single ally with a distraction. Wait, was that... someone FLASHING the enemy? That made no sense! Just... WHY! The large man raised a brow at the show, peaking out from his hiding spot around the corner to make sure he was not going insane. Sure enough, and to his displeasure, some chick in a bunny outfit was making a mockery of an otherwise serious combat. While supports did tend to have useful abilities, last he checked distractions by pulling down one's shirt was not on a list of spells. It was Ms. Detective's reactions to whole ordeal that put the Felis at ease. Somewhat. The focus of the mystery flasher was set on the Aesir, and Eleanor did not seem to go defensive at the stranger's gesture. Eyes rolled as the beast man readied himself. Having the Aesir's focus on the mage proved more useful than expected. The maul slinging bastard did not have time react as Alonso dashed out from the corner and charged towards the raider. "Too late to show courtesy, asshole," the Berserker said, extending his arm outwards and positioning himself to the side of his target. His forearm slammed into the Aesir's upper chest area, causing the fool to stumbling backwards and lose part of his grip on the maul. Not the best of hits this time around. Might as well take what he could get. The hulking cat man took a few, short hops backwards, arms raised up in case he needed to defend. "You okay Eleanor? Looks like you got one, but this guy seems a bit hardier than his buddies," the man said. He noted the unconscious guard nearby, confident about the not so lethal way of taking these Aesir out. They could capture one of them later, better yet, tie up all three so a full on interrogation can be prepared. Glancing towards Ms. I Flash The Enemy, the feline's eyes narrowed, "Ya know, I don't think that's gonna work as well as you hope. Just sayin', cause this one seems intent on maiming at least one of us." Eyes locked with the other man, who had recuperated enough to obtain a grip on the maul again. Making himself a main threat, Alonso began to circle around the raider, waiting for the perfect time to strike. He made it known he was waiting, the predatory instincts wanting to threaten the Fight or Flight reaction out of the Aesir. @Eleanor Loan @Temperance 40 + 20 = 60 Brute / Roll Link 425 / 540
Luckily enough for her, there was a distraction that soon caught the guard off... Guard? As well as Eleanor. Allowing her peripherals to further interpret what @Temperance had done to faze the Aesir's focus. As her eyes were intently directed at the approaching hostile, she watched as confusion hit him, partially stalling his approach. It had been... Effective? Incredibly enough! Though, a moment later, the confused facial expression seemed twisted and mangled by discomfort, as @Alonso Thorlion had entered the scene, placing himself between the enemy and herself. Rubbing the back of her neck, Eleanor awkwardly glanced between the large Felis and the familiar human next to her. "I'm alright." She nodded, speaking in response to the male's question. Briefly glancing towards her other company, Eleanor kept her ever-curious eyes from falling into the depths, precisely moving directly towards Temperance's face, before flickering away. "No doubt, a rather interesting strategy..." She muttered, eyes wide, careful not to let them meander. "It's nice to... See you again." Eleanor was uncertain of where she was viewed on the spectrum of preferences when it came to the female in the bunny suit. Their last encounter had been quite heated, pun not intended, and she was did not know exactly whether they were on good or poor terms. Certainly, Eleanor hoped that they were. Shifting the focus of her thoughts away from the exposed body parts and the dispositions towards her, and carefully examining the tense situation between Alonso and the remaining guard. Raising a hand, she reached towards the charm in front of her, pulling back with power, allowing the energy to pool in her arm, swirling between her palm and the talisman. Pointing her limb towards the still active guard, Eleanor prepared to finish him off and end it there, before another Aesir leaped out from the cave entrance, shouting and the sort. "Ehh!?" Startled, Eleanor hastily twisted her arm towards him, directing the blast, and sending the arcane driven charm hurtling into the foe at the final moment. Like a harsh punch to the gut, the attack landed, leaving the stomach armor of the guard cracked and brittle. Looking down at himself, a substantial and gruesome dent into his fleshy torso had been created, and blood began to pool through his clothing. Although the sight might have been child's play for a seasoned gamer or combat veteran, Eleanor had a much weaker stomach than those sorts of individuals. Staring towards the collapsed, possibly dying guard, Eleanor grit her teeth. Her body was frozen in the position that she had been in as she fired the attack, merely staring at the damages that she had caused. "Shit..." That had not been the result she was expecting at all! Why was her magical competence so... Volatile?! 88 + 25 = 113 Brute / Roll Link 538 / 540
Temperance was a grumpy priestess as Alonso spoke, the joy of the recent victory turning to ashes in her mouth thanks to his criticism. She pulled her clothing back up to cover everything and sent a wave of holy warmth through herself to offset the cold that had chilled her, looking at the injured pirate fellow. "You don't think it's effective huh!" she huffed, storming over to the man as he coughed up blood and slowly died from internal injuries. She put a hand on his head, kicking his weapon away off the side of the mountain so that it vanished into the darkness below a cliff, and holy power began to flow into him, healing him of all of his wounds. "I'm sick and tired of you brute types always being such mean meat heads to me. You think he's tough and my clever distraction was too stupid to help? Fine... now he's healed back to full, and ready to kick your butt off this mountain!" The pirate gave a cheer and evil snarl, reaching for a dagger, until his eyes widened and his body began to seize. "But ooooooh look what happens if I keep on healing him now! I've started focusing all of the magic on his head, which is causing his horrible seizures! Oh look, he bit off his tongue from all the shaking! And that rock he's laying against, he cracked his head on... Only I'm just gonna keep healing his tongue and head okay! Is this more useful? This the kinda stuff you'd rather see, big guy? Now blood is draining out of his eyes... side effect, you see, of his brain swelling up and having nowhere to go. He's definitely technically 'dead' at this point but uh... still has a heart beat! How about we move there..." Nodding in satisfaction, she moved her hand from his head which ran with blood from eyes and nostrils and mouth, placing it on his heavy chest and continuing to flood his body with magic. His limbs began to kick wildly, muscles firing off in random directions, his back arching more and more until she lifted her hand from him and turned to the other two, shrugging. "Looks like his broken ribs, courtesy of blue girl there, have been fully healed... 'course the shards of them broken off also kept growing, piercing his heart lungs. That ragged breathing you hear? That's his slowly drowning in his own blood. Though his brain is mush now so I guess technically 'it' is drowning and 'he' is dead and gone. This is what you wanted, right? The stuff that will "work" as you put it, not my silliness that'll buy you the time to punch a few of 'em out. Okay! I don't mind... You should see what I can do with pain receptors! Gosh, healing magic is just the best right? Oh uh... Hey blue girl. Looking good for someone I thought died, by the way? Keeping it reeeeeeeeal tight." 72 + 30 = 102 Brute / Roll Link 640 / 540 @Alonso Thorlion @Eleanor Loan
He was a professional boxer at this instant, rotating his massive body and ducking away from a swing. Not expecting these guys to stand there and take a hit was reasonable, providing less distractions from oncoming attacks, and made combat move better as to not force too tight of a stance. Just a few blows from the Felis's mighty fists and he was prime to go on his merry way, helping his comrades in finishing off any of the more stubborn folks. Yet, a sensation crept its way through the hairs on Alonso's neck. Something about the raider in his sights was off. Almost like the guy was distracted by something. In an unfortunate turn of events, the brawler shifted his gaze to discover why. Temperance had gone off the deep end. She outright healed an opponent, and not only that, convulsions in the pirate she healed began to increase in pace. Both Alonso and the raider he was finding dropped their guards to stare, horrified by the cruel, almost demonic way the healer ended the poor man's life. "Wait a minute, I don't mean you need ta-," the man said, the ravings of a mad woman continuing regardless of any pleas Alonso wanted to bring forth. Goddamn was the big cat relieved he did not decide to try streaming some of this game. If psychos like this were relevant, then people might question his sanity of playing this game. "The things I shouldn't bother trying to say," Alonso said. He extended a forefinger and thumb, rubbing his eyes trying to make sense of what he just witnessed. Before he forgot, the musclebound cat man reverted his attention back to the still living pirate. No blame was put on the opposing threat as the raider dropped his weapons, threw both hands into the air, and walked off without a word. Alonso's brow raised, "I... suppose that works too." Looking back at Temperance, he debated telling her off for such a despicable act over a short phrase. Something needed to be done about the man's Looking For Group activities. Maybe an application before questing was in order. With no other bandits to deal with, his thoughts went towards the now unguarded cave entrance. "Both of you do what you will. I'll check out the cavern," he said. The man crouched forward, pushing his body in a jog and staying to the sides. Something else was abound to be in there to attack the group and give them hell. Or perhaps an idea much less threatening that made the cat man feel silly. A storeroom. That's all there was to it. Alonso sighed, shaking his head before making his way back to the two ladies. Everything seemed to be in the same... order as it were during the short time frame the large Felis decided to take a gander inside the cavern. Easy victories were not something he should be complaining about however. Nodding, Alonso spoke up, "Looks like this cavern here was just a storeroom of sorts for them to work with during their time up here. Honestly, after seeing a murder like that I think I'm going to start heading back down and take a break. Stay safe, especially you, Eleanor." With that, he once more felt the signs of aging and stress rampaging against his very being. @Eleanor Loan @Temperance 0 + 0 = 0 Brute / No Roll Link, DC Achieved 640 / 540
