[CLOSED] [PRIVATE] Riches for Horunka!

[Isley]

"Just finding poetry in the fallen snow…" ☒ @tagged ✐ 000 ✉ notes Isley Lv1 Private Thread: Janeiro, Quantum, and Isley Setting: Late Afternoon, Air is damp and slightly humid and several scattered rainclouds are hanging in the air. Note: This is the end segment to a Horunka quest line that the party has been chasing for some time. A kobold scout had lead them to where a group of Kobold raiders have been stashing the various goods and tribute that they have been demanding from the village. Isley groaned slightly from the walk, the hours ticking by from the journey to Red Scale Hollow marked by the sun gradually dropping in the clear sky. The journey had been uneventful thankfully, the party having had their allotment of action that morning when they rescued the older merchant, their wounds having long healed by their hourly HP regeneration. The Swede stretched his shoulders slightly, pulling them back until an audible pop was heard before relaxing, his feet maintaining the constant rhythm as he moved forward, boots rapping lightly on the packed dirt of the road. He remained quiet…seemingly alone in his thoughts, as the landscape of trees, farms, and sun-kissed fields of grain passed them by, his grey eyes drinking the calming sights in as they marched. The day was soothing despite their adrenaline fueled morning, his arms still slightly sore from slinging his weapon at the Kobolds that challenged him. He turned his gaze to the small window in front of him, the map slowly refreshing forward as the quest marker inched closer until they stopped a short distance away from their goal. The old merchant had long returned to Horunka, leaving on the old-horses back and abandoning the cart that was left shattered and broken from the action it had faced… The swordsman lifted his hand for them to stop, the thin crack of a smile forming on his features, almost confused why they all kept moving forward despite the danger that awaited them. He hopped off of the road to take cover behind a nearby tree, his gaze shooting to the sunken cave’s entrance in the distance, attempting to see what, if anything awaited them. His normally relaxed demeanor suddenly shifted to a tense appearance as his serious side took over, his hand on his weapon growing tight, as the knuckles on his hand glowed pink from the grip.

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[Janeiro]

After hearing the nasty pop Isley's anatomy made, Janeiro shivered. She looked at him with a grossed out expression. "Please don't do that again." She had enough of marching. The designers of this quest, whether human or A.I., could have shortened the route by a few kilometres and it would have taken nothing from the experience. There was an odd dissonance between everything seeming so real and knowing that all of it was artificial that she still had not entirely grown accustomed to.
Her hurting feet were forgotten when they finally spotted Red Scale Hollow. As expected it was a cave. Maybe a typical dungeon. Easy to cut off escape routes... Janeiro made a note in her mind to keep checking if there was anything behind them. Especially since they already knew kobolds liked ambushes. Less hasty than the Swede she left the road to now slowly advance through the scrub. Not seeing any kobolds nearby for the moment, she looked over her shoulder and gave her comrades a nod. Her left hand held her scabbard in place while the right shoved some twigs to the side to get a better look. In front of the entrance she saw leftovers of a campfire that had long been put out, as well as small grey objects lying around, which she assumed to be animal bones.

[Quantum]

Quantum had spent a decent bit of their travel mulling over the translucent menu of his character. He had leveled up from that last bout, and while the stat point had been an easy adjustment after taking consideration of his weapon, the leftover skill point that he had neglected was what he thought over. Each time he thought he would come to a conclusion about what was best for him at the moment, Quantum would let a nervous jitter take over and he would cancel out at the confirmation. About halfway through the walk he decided on the battle healing skill, he could always get the leadership passive in a couple levels anyways.

As the teacher present, when Janeiro raised a word in disgust, Quantum almost started going on about how the popping of joints was a natural thing. However he did not. As he saw Isley tense he did so too, drawing his weapon to he ready at a moments notice. "Let me go first, if we come across anything that we need to flee from, I don't want either of you two getting trapped by me and my clumsy self." He said, preparing any arguments for if they want to say otherwise. Maybe he would train in some other kind of weapon later as well. "Everything safe for now then?" He asked to make sure, lacking any kind of detection skill for safety.

[Isley]

"Just finding poetry in the fallen snow…" ☒ @tagged ✐ 000 ✉ notes Isley Lv1 Isley couldn’t help but let off a stifled chuckle as she rushed to cover his mouth from the younger Janeiro’s humorous reaction, shaking his head as the faint semblance of a smile appeared. Given the seriousness of the situation, even he was surprised that the simple reaction had costed him his composure for the moment. It had been a serious day after all, and it seemed that even just that little bit was enough to take the edge off for the time being and put him at ease slightly. The financier looked to the girl once more, his face returning to the stern serious side that his normal demeanor and the life-threatening circumstances called for. His grey eyes scanned the entrance to the surface cave, a gradual slope turning it into more of a large gaping hole than a simple cave set back at road level. It may have been easy to cut off escape routes, but who knew how large this cavern was, or where it led. He looked back to the offended girl, offering her a questioning nod, her eyes proven to be the sharper than the older males from their earlier encounter…If only they had noticed the hidden scouts along with her, Quantum may be fared better…Luck carried them through, but who knew for how much longer. The Swede shook his head to remove the thoughts from his mind, his features tightening slightly as he crept closer, reassured by Janiero’s gesture…He caught sight of the abandoned campsite, the fire long extinguished into a pile of ash…most likely leftovers from their prior foes. The remains of what appeared to be their last meal seemed to shake him on an unconscious level, not knowing if it was human or animal. The smell of rotten remains forced him to curl his nose slightly, the bones and sinew dispersed amongst the shreds of bedding and tattered cloth…The professional nodded at Quantum turning from the unsettling scene, knowing his ability to take damage far outpaced himself and the teen, a furrow of worry appearing on his brow none-the-less knowing how close they came to losing him… The several guttural voices could be heard coming from the cave, chattering away about a topic too quiet to understand…

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[Janeiro]

Janeiro looked at Quantum with worried eyes. His words sounded as if his life had lower priority than that of the rest of the party. She knew if she said something he would not accept any objectives, but she would definitely not leave him behind if things took a turn for the worse.
Once more she directed her attention to the cave. The smell was nasty, of meat burnt and rotten. Together with the sight of the carelessly abandoned campsite it created a disgusted grimace on her face. She listened carefully to the noise coming from inside, her heart beating a little faster for a moment everytime she heard footsteps. Overall however the voices neither came closer nor became distant. "I think there's a room just a little behind the entrance," she said in a low voice. Just to be sure she looked over the surrounding area to check for kobolds. Nothing. All HP bars full. While she hoped they would have an opportunity to avoid combat, she had to prepare for it. She exited the bushes and made a few careful steps, even though she knew Quantum wanted to go first. While drawing her sword she noticed something glistening in the cave, and looking closely it was a fine thread taut across the floor at ankle height. She pointed at it with her blade. "It's trapped. Careful."
She felt her heart beat in her chest. The place felt dangerous. Janeiro tried her best to remain calm and not show her fear, trying to find strength in her party's trust. They would look out for each other.

[Quantum]

"Your weakness shall be revealed as if I was watching through a magnifying glass." ? @tagged ? 000 ? notes Quantum Lv1

Rather than wait like Quantum had asked, he watched as Janeiro left the covering first. Quickly he followed, his foot catching a piece of bone that snapped under his weight. All was silent from him for the moment, and the physicist dared not even cover his nose against the smell of putrid meat. He leaned over one of the bedrolls, moving aside the upper layer of the cover. Within there was a dried blood stain spread out. Whatever had been attacked here had been ambushed, and he doubted that it survived by the state of the things here. When his attention was brought to the tripwire, glad that she had ignored his request at the time. Quantum knew that he would have easily fallen for trap and probably have died as a result. The teacher dropped to one knee, following the wire with his eyes. Where one might have set a trap in the bushes, this wire dissapeared into a small hole in the wall of the cave. "Should we set it off on purpose and draw them towards us, or go in quietly?" He asked with his voice just a whisper above the wind. "I have no idea what this could do though, but it probably sets something off within the cave."

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[Isley]

"Just finding poetry in the fallen snow…" ☒ @tagged ✐ 000 ✉ notes Isley Lv2 Isley looked at the wire then Quantum sternly, offering a quick nod before speaking, “It looks like an alarm of some kind” He said making sure that his voice was low enough to not carry, his eyes trained on the tight wire as he stepped up beside the teacher with feather-light steps, the string singing softly as the soft breeze was cut by its surface. The curved-swordsman pondered how they should best move forward, mulling it over in his mind, before reaching up to scratch his chin thoughtfully. The party had not shown any knack for stealth thus far, but instead favored quick and massive damage, obviously putting them in a better place to set an ambush and let the enemy come to them. At any rate conquering the steep slope that led to the cave was sketchy at best, the ground made of loose gravel and small stones that would alert whatever that awaited them in the recesses of the opening...not to mention any more vicious traps that lay silently in wait. Peering into the hole was meaningless at this point, the light barely able to penetrate the dark shadow of the granite, the entryway seeming more like a portal to another world than a simple cavern. A smile appeared on the Swede's features as he made up his vote, “I think we should pull it and let them come to us...” He suggested, his accent barely audible as he shifted his gray glance between the two, his foot resting on the half buried remains of whatever creature now occupied this space as its grave. Normally he would have respected the remains, but it seemed he was more concerned with keep the same fate as far away from them as possible. His head turned quickly as the voices got louder suddenly and faded away...the occupiers of the rock formation obvious growing agitated as time wore on...they would not have much time to make up their mind....

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[Janeiro]

Janeiro took a few more seconds to think everything through before agreeing with slight hesitation due to the lack of better options. It was rather easy to flee from a fight in the open and the tripwire would not bother them again on the way back if they had to rush out of the cave. Of course they would not have the element of surprise and whatever was inside could take a moment to prepare itself, but the pro arguments still outweighed the cons. She looked Quantum and Isley in the eyes, confirming that they were ready, and approached the trap with cautious steps. Janeiro drew her sword and let its edge rest on the wire for a moment, before pulling the blade back towards her and by doing so cutting through the thread. The newborn ends fled outwards immediately and they could hear a nasty metallic screech at a volume close to the pain threshold, followed by muffled rumbling from inside the cave. Janeiro was not sure whether it was just a warning mechanism or more, for now she hurried back to the others, weapon drawn, waiting for the kobolds that were sure to emerge soon, ready to strike them down at sight.

[Quantum]

"Your weakness shall be revealed as if I was watching through a magnifying glass." ? @tagged ? 000 ? notes Quantum Lv1

Quantum took to the left hand opening as soon as Janeiro cut the tripwire, his sword raised to fall upon anything that walked passed. The metalic shearing sound grated harshly against his ears, and for a single short moment the teachers eyes were forced shut. When his eyes were opened again Quantum wanted to make a complaint about the ringing in his ears, but in the case of ruining his ambush kept quiet. His arms were raised for a moment, and another moment longer. Still he kept waiting, past the ache and stiffness. Footsteps approached, and soon the physicist forgot all about the discomfort his arms felt. Each of the steps were slow, cautious. Scrambling up through the cobble floor, the first thing that appeared was a reptilian maw. Blood caked the lower jaw, the remnants of a fresh meal eaten before it had even had a chance to cook. Quantum felt a little less sorry for the creatures now, having seen some sense of humanity in the one that he had reluctantly let go. No longer did he feel that way to this creature. With a grunt he brought down his sword, wind streaking past as he used the entirety of his character's strength to crush the kobold. Metal met with metal as the kobold raised its weapon to block. A wicked looking double bladed ax kept his sword from cutting into the digital flesh of his enemy. "Team up on it before it can move." He commanded of his party members as he stared into the glowing yellow eyes of the monster.

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[Isley]

"Just finding poetry in the fallen snow…" ☒ @tagged ✐ 000 ✉ notes Isley Lv2 (Kobold Patrolman L2: 40HP) – Double-Ax (Kobold Patrolman L2: 45HP) – Rusted Longsword *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman L2: 45HP) – Primitive Spear *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman L2: 45HP) – Black Pike *Held in Cave* (Kobold Trooper [Quest Boss!] L3: 50HP) – Steel 2H Sword *Held in Cave* Isley grit his teeth as the high pitch screech of the trap rang in his ears, nearly forcing him to reach to cover them, sparing himself the momentary pain and discomfort. It was a hell of an alarm to be certain, but better it be released in a controlled manner rather than tripped in the chaos of the battle sure to come or on the way out if they had to egress quickly. He let out a quick breath to recover himself, dropping his foot back slightly, silently thankful that the grating noise had retreated far into the cave. The financier held his blade to the side, positioning himself directly at the center of the cave opening, his body tucked behind the small twig of a tree poking up from the damp soil… Just as Quantum swung his blade and held the strong reptile at bay, the financier let off a thin smile at the brilliance of the teacher, noticing the crowd that had formed at the cave entrance…forcing their opponents to engage them one at a time…like the fabled warriors of Thermopylae. Isley leaped forward from his cover, sprinting forward with his hands on his blade as the creature stood open, its axe held high to cover for Quantum’s sudden attack. The professional drew his curved weapon in a blur, leaning slightly as he cut upward from the draw…a wicked red streak forming on the reptile’s chest, forcing it to cry out...its strength quickly waning. (Kobold Patrolman: 25HP) – Double-Ax (Kobold Patrolman: 45HP) – Rusted Longsword *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman: 45HP) – Primitive Spear *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman: 45HP) – Black Pike *Held in Cave* (Kobold Trooper [Quest Boss!]: 50HP) – Steel 2H Sword *Held in Cave* The Swede twisted his body after the cut, the curved weapon sheathing almost as quick as it was drawn, his feminine form rolling on the ground (Acro) out of the way of what surely would be a quick strike from Janeiro. He controlled his breathing much more easily this time, knowing that their rudimentary strategy controlled the situation much more easily than the mass of destruction that had encountered the party hours before. Unlike his comrades he felt little pity for the red-skinned Kobolds…humanoid as they were, they were still out to kill them all, and as such…remained a barrier on their way to freedom… The kobolds shrieked as they were pinned behind their comrade but something seemed louder…angrier…stronger…making its guttural cry known from way behind its comrades…

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[Janeiro]

Their coordination was beautiful. Waiting for an opening, Janeiro saw that Isley was about to duck away and started her own attack even before her companion was out of the way entirely, immediately hitting the unprepared kobold just after Quantum's and Isley's assaults, slashing horizontally across his belly, creating a bright red cross marking the 'wounds' now decorating the scaled body. The reptile cried out and its legs quivered, still being subjected to the pressure of Quantum's massive weapon which looked like it could break through the kobold's defenses and crash down on the creature at any moment.
Janeiro had taken a step back and now glanced past the monster at the front into the crowded cave. The kobold with the pike prepared to use the exceptional length of his weapon to sneak some stabs in when the party would attack the first row of enemies again, though it seemed unlikely he would be able to hit with other comrades around him and so little space to maneuver. Then she heard the... angry noises. Heavy footsteps, words uttered in a cryptic language, finally a big, muscular red arm coming into view, pushing the kobold at the back aside roughly.

[Quantum]

"Your weakness shall be revealed as if I was watching through a magnifying glass." ? @tagged ? 000 ? notes Quantum Lv1

The teacher was surprised with the tactic that had worked quite a bit better than he realized. Now he chuckled as the defense of the kobold loosened considerably with the second blow. Down he kept pushing, and soon the ax as sent kareening away further into the campsite. The previous owner of the two handed ax looked at Quantum with a mixed reaction of surprise and hate, a large red line showing where the sword had cleaved through its head and out again from underneath its right arm. In that moment right after the kill, Quantum was left the most velnerable. And like a snake to its target the next kobold to enter the fray stabbed its sword into his shoulder. The wound was only mildly annoying, dragging his health down by a meer nine percent. Using his shoulder instead of trying to maneuver his overly large weapon around, the physicist rammed into the sword wielding kobold in an attempt to shove it back into the cave entryway. He had to do his best to keep them from being overwhelmed, having to settle his mind on what was in front of him at the very moment instead of what was further behind. With a wave of his sword, parried away to deal minimal damage with each successive swing by the kobold as the tells for each strike were far to large and the cave entrance to small, Quantum grew more and more frustrated. "Get your scaley asses back into your damn hole!" He said while bringing he sword back and starting the glow for his art. He thought after that maybe he should wait until he began to get overrun, however he had already started and what other chance could he have of catching most things with the extended area? With a swing that missed the frontmost kobold completely, he caught the edge of the cave wall with the tip of his sword. The red shockwave extending out from there. He knew not of what carnage was left in its wake, having been blown away from the opening by the body of the sword kobold getting hit from the blast from behind and into him.

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[Isley]

"Just finding poetry in the fallen snow…" ☒ @tagged ✐ 000 ✉ notes Isley Lv2 (Kobold Patrolman: 0HP) – Double-Ax *DEAD!* (Kobold Patrolman: 41HP) – Rusted Longsword *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman: 39HP) – Primitive Spear *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman: 40HP) – Black Pike *Held in Cave* (Kobold Trooper [Quest Boss!]: 43HP) – Steel 2H Sword *In Front* The large double-ax fell to the ground as an array of sparks flew from it flying out and hitting a nearby stone, the shower of blue pixels from the first reptile to fall raining over the gathered party. Their plan was working thus far, however the leader of the ambushed Kobolds didn’t seem entertained, as its deep voice commanding attention and he stepped forward into view. He dwarfed his patrolmen in sheer size, the blade held in his hand almost mirroring Quantum’s in weight and thickness. His armor was fully present, making his place at the higher echelons of their social hierarchy, the rusted chainmail tunic covering the bulk of his heavy torso…the rings jingling loudly with each thudding step. It howled loudly as it made its presence known, the vibration from its powerful voice filling the cave entrance. A growl filled cackle exited the creature as its sword stabbed into Quantum’s shoulder, its dropping maw filled with delight, just as it braced itself after the teacher retaliatory hit. The area flashed red soon after, the patrolmen behind their leader struggling to maintain their footing as the shockwave from Quantum’s sword art ripped into them and the cave wall, a rain of pebbles and stone dust falling on them. The monster’s leader stabbed its blade into the ground, forcing the bulk of the attacks power into the dirt, its fangs clenched as the powerful attack whipped past him and into the cave wall beside him, a wide crack appearing in the smooth darkened granite. Isley wasted little time in waiting for the quest boss to recover, his features remaining sternly focused for the time being…dedicated to not let their rudimentary tactics falter this early in the game…He silently knew that if they lost control of the situation it may very well be the end of them. The light-footed financier leaped forward, his boots rapidly tapping the ground as he charged forward…”Switch!” The Swede yelled, stepping up a nearby boulder to leap over Quantum’s head in a blur…His blade was pulled free just as he was airborne aiming directly for the opening that the physicist provided…a thick red line appearing in the massive trooper’s neck… (Kobold Patrolman: 0HP) – Double-Ax *DEAD!* (Kobold Patrolman: 41HP) – Rusted Longsword *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman: 39HP) – Primitive Spear *Held in Cave* (Kobold Patrolman: 40HP) – Black Pike *Held in Cave* (Kobold Trooper [Quest Boss!]: 26HP) – Steel 2H Sword *In Front* The counterattack was swift as the leader pulled its weapon free, offering two quick strokes in succession, sailing by Isley’s nimble form as he weaved his body to the left and right. It was the third stroke had his name on it, as the flat of the blade surprised him with its quickness…The Kobold trooper firing it out like lightening to smash his thin form into the cave wall. The professional found himself becoming acquainted with the smooth dark stone rather quickly as it seemed his body became trapped in between a rock and a hard place quite literally…his HP gauge now on the surface of the yellow caution zone. He stepped back slowly…his vision going slightly blurry from the impact as the Trooper readied another attack, the patrolmen behind him growing restless but cackling with glee at the minor victory of their master. The Kobolds were still humanoid, no matter how bestial they may be, and were capable of minor strategy as they had proved hours before…and this was a similar manner. As Quantum and Isley rage on at the mouth of the cave, a set of rapid footsteps was heard as a sharp scream was let off at the back of the line of enemies…a small pikeman being launched over the fray by one of his stronger and larger brethren. The pikeman snarled as its feet hit the ground, the creature’s mouth foaming with its ferocity and violence, it turned to Janeiro first…but soon turned to the pair of men, raising its wicked weapon to attempt to pincer them both while they were occupied…

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[Janeiro]

Turning his back to Janeiro was a big mistake as she had no intention of being idle. Greedily the reptile ran up towards Quantum, wanting to impale the teacher, when two quick slashes of Janeiro carved through its back. "Your enemy is me!" she exclaimed, not allowing their foes to gang up on one of the party members. Any further action the pikeman would attempt against Quantum or Isley would be punished. He snarled and tried to pierce through the highschool girl, who swiftly turned her body by 90 degrees, causing him to miss. She quickly completed the spin and used the momentum to power up her next slash, but the kobold reacted in time and parried the attack. These ones were tougher than the last kobolds the party had faced, not even flinching the pikeman pushed her away, causing the opponents into a neutral position facing each other.

[Quantum]

"Your weakness shall be revealed as if I was watching through a magnifying glass." ? @tagged ? 000 ? notes Quantum Lv1

The teacher's head was in a daze, the outlines of the trees above and clouds further on blurred together into a churning mess of colours. A weight bore down upon him, the one thing that he could focus on to keep the ringing caused by being knocked down out of his ears. The kobold that was on top of him seemed just as taken back by the knockdown effect as Quantum was of having the lizard-kin crash into him. With a heave the physicist removed the monster from him as Isley leaped over to attack the boss of their quest. He had little time to help either of the party members with their foes, with a tackle like those he had watched his football playing students use against each other, Quantum shoved his shoulder into the abdomen of the kobold. Claws uprooted the dirt, but a short retreat and crash again shoved it further. Quantum's shoulder ached with a numbness, a result of his having used that instead of his sword to drive the iron swordsman back. A few small red lines knicked the teacher's back where the kobold had made ill attempts to slash at an opponent who was to close for optimal weapon range. However the method had driven the sword wielding kobold back into the cave and in the way of the spear wielder. "Janeiro, use your Sword Art!" He yelled over his shoulder as he brought his two handed sword back around to face the enemy. "Finish that off quickly and help Isley." Quantum had never been the leader type before, but as his head cleared so too did his notice of the battle around him. While he would feel more at ease with someone else calling all of the shots, the physicist saw his shouts as more advice than commands. Turning back to the gravel floored cave, the sword kobold made a few clumsy swings which Quantum blocked with his thicker sword. He himself made only a few lazy swings to keep the opponent from feeling over confident. He made no rush to make a killing blow, his priority at this moment was to keep them from getting overwhelmed.

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