As the three of them progressed ever deeper into the cave, Aden had to wonder just how far the cave stretched and whether or not the creature that was causing these sounds was still among them. There was still the question whether or not this beast would be hostile towards them, and in the event that it was, then the arcane archer would bet that it wouldn't take too kindly at their group for snooping into its home. He didn't have to wonder long, however, as soon enough, a ball of dark energy was hurled in his direction from the shadows, prompting him to bend his waist backwards similarly to how that dude from the Matrix movie did to avoid bullets coming his way. For better or worse, the blob of dark energy missed him by only a few inches but was now hurtling towards the other members of his group. Instead of worrying about their condition, however, Aden decided to nock an arrow on his bow and rush forward, aiming at the direction where the blob of dark energy originated. But instead of finding a dangerous beast, a small, young girl wobbled weakly from the shadows and collapsed in front of him. Amidst all this confusion, the red haired archer managed to put away his bow seeing as the threat somehow managed to incapacitate itself, assuming that this girl was indeed the one that threw the magical bolt. If one were to analyze the situation carefully, they would have deduced that a savage beast would have resorted to using its strength and attacking them head on. With that said, however, after looking at how much damage the energy ball caused, decaying a portion of the thick moss that had built up on the cave walls, and even reducing layers of rock to dust, forming a crater of decent size. Aden kept his distance from the downed girl, allowing Eleanor to mediate. If this girl was just feigning being unconscious, he would rather position himself away from the threat, to not far enough to render himself unable to respond in time, rather than staying near someone who just launched literally a ball of decay towards them. If the little girl does end up being hostile, he could just use his Aeromancy to push her to the cave walls and... knock the wind out of her. "Eleanor, If I were you, I'd keep my distance from her. She did launch that blast of decay towards us. But... based from what I've seen so far, you're probably not gonna listen to me and continue tending to her. A word of warning, I may not be able to blast her away with my... wind magic before she attacks you again if she does end up to be playing possum." Aden warned the detective before turning to Aalam. "You've got some sharp senses. Thanks for the warning. Wouldn't have been able to dodge that attack quick enough if it wasn't for that. Would you mind watching the direction the little girl came from? I'll be watching these two over here in case the little girl wakes up and turns out to be an enemy. But I'd be more confident with you focused on watching that direction in case another enemy decides to attack us."
Surrechis opened her eyes, the cave still as dark as ever, yet the sunlight above illuminated a very slight portion. Considering the fact that she woke up at all, Surrechis deduced that the people who entered the cave weren't bandits. And, she also appeared to be unbound, so not taken to a slave market to be sold. Which meant that she had just attacked a group of somewhat friendly people, which was very, very bad. And that also meant she exposed her Malefimancy to other people. Considering that the last open Malefimancer she had seen was run out of town, she didn't fancy her chances in defusing the situation quietly. She attempted to say an apology and perhaps explain herself but the combination of the rocking headache she had and energy drain from the spell rendered her incomprehensible. All the while, she attempted to steady herself on the nearby rock. When she finally looked up towards the people she had attacked and saw a woman dressed in blue reach out to her and say... something? Harm? Surrechis drew back, pressing into the rock that had once hid her. She tried once again to explain herself and possibly start up another incantation in fear but still couldn't focus at all. So transfixed was she, that she didn't notice at all the two other figures in the cave.
It seemed that everyone had been able to get out of the way of whatever that ball of darkness good thing to for he just saw it eat away a portion of the wall where it had hit. If that had hit one of them, there was a good chance that they wouldn’t be standing on their own two feet. Well, at least he could speak for his case that small ball would have put him on his ass. Then a fail looking girl fell out from behind a rock formation that it seemed that she was taking cover behind, she appeared drank of both life and energy. Whatever that ball was she threw at then sapped a lot of her strength she could barely sit up however it seemed that Eleanor was trying to help her to get up and the new mystery hadn’t noticed him as of yet. She might have heard Aden when he tried to give him instruction. However, he need to teach that boy how to tiptoe or at least provide suggestions without giving away too much. He had natural reflexes and had an excellent commanding presence, but the boy was too loud stepping back into the shadows to take a look around the, especially a little further back into the cave that it seems that their new mystery girl had come from. Taking his time as he made his way around Eleanor and the girl. There was no reason for him to be seen as of yet and if the girl were faking her pain then at least she would be running into his arrows, and he wouldn’t be missing at such a close distance. Putting his skills into with the addition of investigation mode to try and find anything that he would have missed otherwise. However, it was just as undisturbed. The dirt that covered the stone floor of the cave hadn't been bothered with in any way. It was interesting to see that she hadn’t come from this direction so that meant she had to have entered the cave in the same way as the rest of them which also suggested that she might be a player that just attacked him. No something still wasn’t adding up why would she strike a fellow player without any warning especially when it left her that weak. It would have been a better plan to wait until one or two of us moved then make an attack, as she was right now anyone would be able to take her captive. An idea popped into his head at the reasoning, however, what if you believed that you didn’t have a choice that if you didn’t act, then there was a chance that you could end up dead. She was like a beast that was cornered seeing no other escape you attack and hope for the best. Making his way over to the rock she seemed to be trying to enter looking at how she was doing her best to get away from Eleanor yes that was fear. So did the most logical think when dealing with something like this he walked up stopping a foot away and rest his bow on the ground before taking a half step back. It was her move now.
Witnessing the visage of the girl, Eleanor tried her best to appear harmless. Of course, there was little to be said on the attempted subtly of her arcane magic glowing in her hands. The red paper talismans fluttering up around her once more in a protective position probably made her appear much more intimidating than she had wished to be. Quickly, she dismissed her weapon, slipping the papers into her inventory. "Are you alright?" @Surrechis had not spoken, and the detective was not completely certain of whether the girl could speak. Her clothes appeared the kind of civilized folk, at least do a degree, so she assumed that there was some sort of tameness about her, but... Playing with assumptions was dangerous business. The magical girl could still be rabid, for all Eleanor knew. At first, she was put off by the entrance of the previously combat ready archer. The detective in blue had supposed that he would be dead set on a violent solution to that which had caused the noises, but as he set his bow down, it was quite the pleasant surprise. With little of her body moving, hands still raised in a 'don't shoot me' position, her eyes peered towards @Aalam Abungu, pursing her lips in appreciation, before whispering, "Thank you for that." The gesture of placing his weapon on the ground was certainly one that had not gone unnoticed. "H-How did you find yourself in this cave?" It was not a very relevant or useful question to ask, but it at least would help ease the silence. Tension hung in the air like a rusty nail holding up a chandelier. Eleanor most definitely did not like that kind of social anxiety, as it was a similar one to what she had felt many times within the real world. Experiencing it within the virtual reality was no different, and just as uncomfortable, so it seemed. While her talismans had been put away, her hands still glowed with arcane power, and she was still competent of casting spells if she needed to. The energy cost would be much less efficient, and she the power of her possible attacks would be diminished to an extent, but she was still prepared to strike if the young human female had turned violent once more. Until that point though, she did her best to appear non-hostile.
