http://pastebin.com/mWrxJJPr
boop, keep this thread alive
>>25747897
Gibsmedat
>>25748174
Hurray for multigaming
http://pastebin.com/Hqa03pmD
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1l0sfBRsSL981agCDa4XF2WUVB_ggpOEchFhXAnrf_PE/edit
>>25748174
http://pastebin.com/L8G2Gp5F
http://pastebin.com/wkLAJKUv
As the newest members of the Fancy Shmancy Deed-Doin' Crew, you've been flying aboard Captain Fancy Shmancy's airship for about five hours now over the Southwestern Equestrian Ocean. You remember hearing some hasty details about the job, but the Captain was in such a rush that most of them were quickly mumbled before you were shoved onboard...
"Alright, ya wee horse-folk, for those of yer that forgot, or are just plain bad at payin' attention, I'll go over everyting one last time...
"Me name is Captain Fancy Shmancy, 'n' dis is me ship. Don't be alarmed by me lazy eye- no, it's not mine.
"Alright, anyway, welcome aboard the Fancy Shmancy Crew! We're one of dem agency companies dat hook up bloodthirsty murderhoboes, AKA adventurers, like yourselves, wid de highest bidder. Today, we're workin for some royal Equestrian mages, or rather, you are, since your backup crew all bailed on ye, like the wee babbies dey are.
"Here's de story: Dese mages have taken an interest in an island-country called Hockburn. Ye won't find it on any map dese days; it's been gone and forgotten for many years now. It was once a beautiful island wid rich soil and peaceful natives. Den, one day, the island was beset with five days of constant snow and rain, so thick dat no ship could get in or out. When the storms finally let up, de place was unrecognizable: where dere was once one beautiful green island, now dere was four small islands, all broken and mangled. All signs of life, plant, animal, even ponyfolk, all gone widout a trace. Every inch of land was blanketed by dust dat felt like fine silk and was poison to de touch. Nothin could grow on dem little islands ever again.
(1/2)
"Den, a few years later, sailors spotted a fog-shrouded island, verdant and rich, out in de water, where nobody had ever seen an island before. The few scouts that were brave enough to approach it, saw fruit and plants dat were only ever known to grow on the island of Hockburn. It was a fuckin Hearth's Warmin' miracle. Den, de next day, the island vanished, just like dat. Poof! De scouts were never seen again. Sailors have taken to makin' a whole mess of ghost stories about dat island.
"Now here's a part I left out earli-- Oh, by de looks in yer eyes I see you see where I'm goin wid dis. Over de next few years, the island would reappear at various points in de ocean, and each time, de royal Equestrian mages would sense a powerful surge of magic from de island. Dey figure dat de source of dat magic is the key to de restoration of Hockburn.
"De island was spotted about eight hours ago. I regret not tellin' ya this earlier, but I was afraid ye'd piss off like de backup crew did. De Equestrian mages offered quite the paycheck for dis job, so I kept de nasty details a secret. Trust me, you'll tank me when ya see your cut of de profits.
------
The airship finally reaches a small tropical island with bountiful trees and rich black soil. The airship hovers over the shore and extends a gangplank. Captain Shmancy looks a bit nervous, clearly not intent on landing.
"Alright, off ye go. Go on, get a move on. Buh-bye, be careful an' all dat." he shooes you away with his hook hoof.
>>25748424
"Adventure! Let's go and find some buried treasure! Anyone see a red X on in the sand?"
Urchin says, heading out on to the island, immediately scanning the sand for buried treasure.
[1d10] any red X's?
also
>stances: Tiger
>>25748424
Rose had made herself comfortable on the ship, drinking a red wine while listening to Captain Fancy Shmancy. She had been interested while listening to the rumors before signing up for the expedition, and now that she was on it she could feel her excitement growing.
As they were shooed off, Rose rolled her own barrel-shaped luggage off the ship. "Ta-ta, we'll be careful!" She says with a smile, waving at the captain. Today she was wearing a red dress with a frilled underskirt that went halfway down her rear legs, white-rimmed sunglasses, a wide-brimmed straw hat, and a leather vest with different zippered pockets containing things like her money purse, and spare sunglasses.
"Well, what a lovely little island this is!" She says, looking over it, "I bet this'd be prime real estate if it didn't disappear."
Thermal merely grunts in acknowledgment, and steps onto the island, battleaxe strapped to his back, taking in the landscape
[1d10] Anything of interest?
>>25748392
>>25748424
"Nasty details, said he?" - Wrakhna asked her companions, quite giddy - "Hah. We might as well go without the nice ones, that's awesome!"
As they reach the island, she spreads her wings and with a cofident look on her face jumps off the airship, gliding down to the island.
>That's how you do 'em spot checks:
>Survival:
[1d10+3]
>>25748495
>>25748516
>>25748529
>>25748561
"Ye got sixteen hours-- scratch dat, make dat fourteen! I ain't stickin' around to see wut happens to ye when de island disappears, ye got it?" Captain Shmancy calls from the airship as it ascends and retracts the gangplank.
The whirring of the airship recedes as it ascends, leaving you with the gentle chimes and chirps of the birds in the trees and the swaying of the winds. Crabs and fish play about in the shallows, undisturbed by your presence.
No red X's are nearby, but a trail leading into the trees beyond the shore catches your eye.
>>25748561
As you survey the trail leading into the trees, you become aware of a peculiar phenomenon in the ambient sounds. Your ears detect, oddly, a void of sound that waits just beyond the idyllic sounds of the forest. A forceful silence, indomitable and ancient. Dust sways in the wind patiently.
>>25748597
Thermal tenses, clearly showing his unease. his tail swinging back and forth, and eyes never settling on one place for too long.
"somethings... wrong here."
>>25748597
"Uuuh! Beautful and spooky! I get why they said this place's a wonder, hahah!"
The hyped dragoness, though becoming a ltlle more silent afterwards as to appreciate the mysterious climate of the island, grins as she flies on, making her path alog the trail.
"What do you think we'll find? I mean, what we're supposed to find?"
>>25748625
"Yeah, that too! Totally! It feels like something will jump out at us any second, doesn't it? Can't wait to see what it holds..."
[6d10]
test
>>25748597
>>25748645
"Treasure! Maybe gold coins, or some lantern holding a genie inside! Tropical islands always have treasure. That or monsters, but it's been a long time since I've heard of a monster island."
Urchin goes down the path with the group.:^)
>>25748625
"Hmm? Is something wrong?" Rose asks, popping the cork on her wine bottle again and pouring another glass.
>>25748597
>using talent to summon max Espers
Six rose-shaped metal spears with a hollow tip appear around Rose, as she follows along with the group. "Mm, better safe than sorry," she says, leaving her luggage barrel on the beach.
>six Espers with Magic Bolt and Elementalist:Lightning
>>25748735
"somethings... off"
[1d10] is something out there?
>>25748645
>>25748625
>>25748708
>>25748735
The trail through the trees is easy travel, with mushrooms and grass making the walking very soft. Vibrant fruit and herbs give a pleasing scent to the air. The trail continues to wind on, for about an hour's long walk. The trees grow taller the further in you go, and eventually you see small green jellyfish languidly drifting in the air above you, their bodies extra-wide to accommodate for the air.
You come, abruptly, to a clearing in the forest. The clearing is near-perfectly circular, about ten meters in diameter. Before you rests a pit in the ground, around four meters in diameter, with a sloped entrance-way on one side. Peering inside, you see a low ceiling- Wrakhna and Thermal will have to stoop to enter.
The ground around the pit is lumpy. A single diamond dog's paw sticks out of the ground. It is made of wood and covered in flower-bearing vines. It looks exactly like a skeletal arm, but... made of wood.
It clutches a small clear glass prism. The prism creates small dancing rainbows on the grass just before the pit.
>>25748764
The silence which you were vaguely aware of before has now gone. You check around, listening intently, but can pick up no trace that it was ever there. Whatever it was must be gone for now.
>>25748765
"I'll get it!" Rose sings out, as one of her rose-Espers floats down the pit, extending small metal fingers to extract the prism from the wooden arm.
>>25748708
"Yeah! And this one's been gone for so long! Bet it has just waiting to be discovered..."
>>25748765
"Heeey! Did you see that jellyfish? Think they have flying fish around here too?"
As they come to the peculiar sight, she gasps, kneeling as to appreciate it.
"Woo! Think that's like, a lucky charm? Like a rabbit's paw? Perhaps a trap? Maybe some sign!? Heeey, what if it marks the entrance to Diamond Dogs' territory? This pit would fit, i reckon.."
>>25748765
"What's this?" Thermal mutters as he paces around the object, trying to determin if its safe to take.
[1d10] is it a trap?
>>25748765
Urchin looks at the wooden paw
"Oooh, wonder if they have timberwolves here! I ran into those once, I got covered in splinters."
he says with excitement, looking around for any tell-tale glowing green eyes.
[1d10] perception
>>25748826
You feel nothing stirring below you, and there appears to be no suspicious-looking strings or boxes or anything like that around.
>>25748805
>>25748814
The arm leans slightly to the left, off-balanced, as the esper removes the prism.
>Mind-Crystal obtained: Creates whatever shade of light the user is thinking of, when exposed directly to light.
Nothing happens after that.
>>25748829
Nobody here but us jellyfish.
>>25748855
"Oh, how lovely!" Rose says, looking at it as the rose-esper brings it back to her. She sends the rest in. "Go see if there are more!"
[1d10]
[1d10]
[1d10]
[1d10]
[1d10]
[1d10]
>>25748855
"Phooey, no monsters. At least we found treasure!"
Urchin says with disappointment before going straight into cheerfulness again.
"We should keep moving on though, we're on a time limit!"
>>25748855
"Heey, now hat i think about it, this pit looks like an oversized ant hive. We should totally go in, right?"
>>25748897
"This one's got it right! Off we go!"
The dragoness says cheerfully, as she dives into the pit.
Thermal continues to look around, not sure if his paranoia was getting the better of him or not, before facepalming at the dragness's antics
>>25748925
The dragoness chuckles. First obejctive complete.
>>25748880
The Espers all run in, the shadow of the pit's entrance falling over each like a heavy blanket.
>>25748919
>>25748880
The walk into the pit takes a rather long time. You notice, in the dwindling light, that each wall of the pit is coated in foliage and mushrooms, mostly mushrooms, occasionally dotted with purple-glowing gemstones, which just faintly give a bit of light to the area. As you head deeper in, a pulse of rejuvenating energy comes to you. You feel as though you could run for miles on end without stopping. Any exhaustion you had before now washes away as the pulse of lively energy embraces you.
Eventually, the tunnel comes to a T-intersection, leading left and right. To the left is a tunnel which is too dark to see the end of, and to the right is a tunnel which leads to a left turn. For either one, roll 1d10.
>>25748897
>>25748925
You too feel the pulse of rejuvenating energy mentioned above, splashing over you like a warm bath. You feel it coming up out of the ground, but principally from the pit.
>>25748939
Thermal sighs, and follows.
"one of these days..."
>>25748983
"What about the path guys? We should keep following that! We already found the treasure in this section, no one hides special treasure in the same place twice, unless it's a hoard! I don't see any dragons for the hoards, besides you two."
>>25748983
Rose follows in after the others, finishing her wine bottle and setting it down with the glass on the side of the tunnel, having a couple hiccups and giggles on the way.
>>25748939
>>25748925
>>25748897
"Hmm hmm, looks like a lil' fork in the road," she says, cocking her head to the side, "Should we flip a coin or split up? I'm partial to the right one, because we can already see that it's going forward again."
>>25749015
>>25749033
"We totally should! Let me check if i can get stuff to light the way for the darker one... guess that could decide.."
>>25748983
>Survial
>Getting em torches from stuff around, to be lit with dragonfire... possibly from pretty glowy gemstones?
[1d10]
[1d10]
>>25749048
Rolled two dice, first was meant for food from the mushrooms, but cleared that one from the post. Sorry for confusion!*
Thermal stays quite, listening the the ambiant noise and echos.
[1d10] any sounds of intrest?
>>25749033
"I don't wanna go down there yet miss, we should adventure above ground first."
Urchin says, wearily,
"I never liked places with walls, I'm a bit closet-a-phobic"
Urchin says, mispronouncing Claustrophobic
>>25749015
Once Rose enters after the others, you feel a stirring in the grass. Green molds and vile purple mushrooms begin to sprout around the entrance, beginning to seal it like a closing aperture. You're close enough that there is just enough time to dive in... although the path does continue ahead.
You hear dust blowing in the wind.
>>25749048
As you try to pluck a mushroom out of the wall for a makeshift torch, it retracts back into the wall violently, nearly jerking your arm out of the socket, and leaving your claw covered in spores.
>-2 Hits
As you look down, you notice a small silver badge shaped like a feather.
>Feather Badge: Allows the User to jump up to three times while in midair, for a total of four jumps. Each is DC 5
>>25749074
Your listening is interrupted by a filmy cracking sound. You look down and find that you have stepped in the remains of an egg. It's as big as your stomach.
>>25749087
"Don't worry, honey, we're all being extra safe. Also, the correct term is cleithrophobia."
>>25749157
"eggshells... we might not be alone."
>>25749073
Realizing your mistake, you pluck a dimly-glowing crystal out of the wall. It's not very bright at the moment, but maybe with that prism from before...
>>25749133
"Oh nooo!" Rose cries out, getting on one of her rose-espers and holding onto it as it goes into the pit.
Thermal takes a closer look at the eggshells, curios as to what could make something so big.
[1d10] what made those eggs?
>>25749133
Urchin jumps back as the mushrooms start to close the entrance.
"Oh gosh oh man oh... Miss unicorn and dragons... it's closing. Please be sa-"
The rest of his speech is muffled as the aperture closes. He frowns, and looks around.
"Ah well, looks like I'm the last one alive."
He looks around for a stick, holding it like a sword if he finds one,
"Time to adventure like Daring Do! Then I can have the treasures and I'll be a hero!"
Urchin goes down the path, leaving the hole behind.
>>25749200
Forgot the setting for a moment-
>going right
>>25749133
>>25749185
"Oww! That huuuurt! Since when do shrooms hurt your arms and not brai~n?
The dragoness's mood recover quickly as she finds both a piece of shiny treasure (disregard effect, it's shiny!) and a usable torch substute.
As she sees the entrance getting blocked, she snorts and pulls out one of her explosive charges.
"As if that's gonna hold us... GET AWAY EVERYONE! Mother nature's feisty here and she's damn well getting it...
>Planting a remote charge at the blockage.
Afterwards she says:
"Got the torch too! We can go left now!"
>>25749223
These eggs are very peculiar. From the way the dust and spores have settled on the shell, you suspect they might be very old, but the yolky film of the inside suggests that it just recently hatched.
>>25749226
As you wander through the woods, leaving your only friends in the whole world behind, the trees continue to get taller. In the shadows beyond the shrubbery, you see tall, four-legged figures, idly standing and eating leaves. As you head on, you notice a scale at your hoof. As big as your hoof, the scale glimmers brilliantly in the sun, and is warm to the touch. You notice that a small ring of dust, gray like fine silk, has gathered around the scale.
The singing in the trees becomes louder and more forceful.
>>25749282
You set the charge for later.
The left path goes on for a long time, gradually expanding, letting you move on without having to crouch. You begin to hear the sounds of rushing steam and water from up ahead, when suddenly your foot catches on something, and you nearly trip. Catching yourself on the wall, you notice that there are no gemstones decorating the walls ahead. Instead you see indents in the wall where the gemstones have been pulled out. At your feet, you hear a crunching and chewing sound, but it's far too dark to see.
As the crunching gets louder, you start to feel a little woozy... and your claw, the one you grabbed the shroom with, gets tingly.
>>25749255
As you head down the right path, your eyes are caught by a glimmer of treasure up ahead, when suddenly you feel the ground shifting below you, and the rush of gravity.
>Roll 1d10 to not fall down the pitfall
>>25749282
>just noticed the torch
The light of the torch illuminates things just a little bit, but you notice something odd. The lack of the light in the tunnel doesn't feel like natural darkness, but a conscious force. The light from the torch shrinks, but is just enough to illuminate moving shapes beneath you. Their slick backs are covered in mushrooms, grasses and spores, but you can't tell how many are there.
>>25749324
going right, Thermal catiously made his way fowrad.
>>25749255
>pls remind me in future
You just keep going. Turns out the glimmer was a vial of antivenom. It's impossible to tell how old it is, but it's covered in spores.
Ahead of that, you reach a four-way intersection. Ahead of you is the sound of rushing steam. To the right is rushing water, and to the left is more tunnel. The left tunnel has no bioluminescent crystals, making it too dark to see the end of.
>>25749324
>>25749379
With the rest of the Rose-Espers following Rose and the one she was riding on, she comes to a pause, then has the different Espers shoot into the tunnels to try and down.
[1d10]
[1d10]Left
[1d10]
[1d10]Right
[1d10]
[1d10]Ahead
>>25749324
Urchin takes the bandana around his head and picks up the shiny scale with it.
"Wonder if I can sell this later... I could probably get some silly tourist to buy it. This island needs more ponies."
He continues down the path, placing the scale in his empty coin pouch.
>>25749400
>Riding on the one dedicated to the sixth roll right now
>>25749324
>>25749342
"Oooooh! Ewww! You little buggers are not eating, not when i'm feeling woozy either!"
She pulls out one of the many explosives she's prepared, a one of a smaller force than the one she's planted at the entrance though. She does that with the tingly hand she's touched the weird shroom.
"Ya little buggers know what's the best cure in the world?"
She sets off the charge in her hand, basking in the delightful feeling of the raging inferno she's unleashing, letting the furious element wash over her infected hand. If there was anything organic a dragon wouldn't want there, she doubted it would stay there...
>Remote charge
>Detonation
>Dragonforce - healed to full HP due to being hit by fire.
>>25749424
Lemme add something.
>Rolling to see stuff ahead in the light of the explosion
[1d10+3]
>>25749400
The Espers to the left reach a dead end, nearly crashing into each other as the tunnel contracts. At the end of the tunnel is a coinpurse with 210 Bits.
A force from behind the left Espers starts to inhale them. They must both roll d10 to resist this.
The ones to the right each a medium-sized cavern with a hole in the bottom. A thin waterfall pours down from above them, so far up that light cannot be seen. The water continues below into the darkness.
Heading forward you reach a pipe-like tunnel going up and down. Steam rushes up from below intermittently, reeking of volcanic gas. It comes at such a frequency that you could rush down below with a roll.
>>25749376
As you try to follow Rose's steps, you feel the ground shifting below you, and the rush of gravity.
>Roll 1d10 to not fall down the pitfall
>>25749424
You detonate the charge, engulfing yourself in the flame. The wooziness goes away, just a little bit, but the tingling in your hand remains like a little reminder.
In the brief flash of light, you see about a dozen fat lizards, each as long as you are tall, coating the walls and floors. Their skin is clear and eyes milky, clearly blind. Their bodies are coated in purple and blue grasses and spores. They hiss and retreat from the explosion, but after the initial flash is done, you hear their retreating halt. The thumping tattoo of their feet on the cave walls approaches you once again...
>>25749405
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WlIJBWBIGS4
You become aware of a humming up ahead, a deep baritone drone. The birds cease their individual songs and join in, desperately following the tune, some of their voices straining.
You emerge from the forest into another clearing by the base of a mountain, a ramshackle village. It looks very lively, except there are no ponies around. Around the ground, you see circular depressions covered in grass, like the pit looked before. You cannot see the source of the humming from here.
>>25749512
[1d10]
>>25749512
"Well, I hope someone is in this town. I forgot to back lunch..."
Urchin says, investigating the town ahead, careful not to walk on any suspicious patches of foliage that might give way to a pit. He looks in and out of windows, going inside a door if one is open.
[1d10] investigation
>>25749512
Rose comes to a stop, then heads back to the intersection. When the ones that went left fail to return, she cautiously goes left with the rest of them.
Espers 1 and 2 struggle from the inhaling force.
[1d10]
[1d10]
>>25749512
The dragoness's eyes widen as she observes the lizards. That was an awesome camouflage they were having on their backs, that much was she willing to give them. As she hears them approaching, though her heart skips a beat, she lets out a taunt in her regular fashin to gather some courage:
"Hoohoh! You lil ones up to some fun?"
Alhough she doesn't see very clearly only with the light of the torch left, she tries to fire the next explosive where she notices any major movement around the shades...
>Remote charge on one of the lizards
[1d10+2]
>Detonation, instant
>>25749534
afte dodging a pitfall, thermal continues forward, reaching the intersection, and looking around, listening.
[1d10] anything supsicous?
>>25749561
As you peer inside some of the more well-kept houses, you see the skeletal remains of ponies, but as with the dog's paw earlier, they are made of wood and covered in flower-bearing vines. Around each skeleton sits a circle of silk-like dust, which never touch the wooden skeletons.
You reach one with an ajar wooden door, but as you do, you catch sight of the source of the singing. Near a monument in the center of town, you see a robed minotaur-like figure. His robe is featureless, and is an indescribable color, one that hurts to look deeply at. His skeletal hands and bull's head are a smooth, gold. A trail of dust follows him, tracing his path through the village. A choir of birds floats before him, and he conducts them in the tune which he hums.
He stops abruptly, his head turning slightly to the right. His face is smooth yet strong and sculpted.
>>25749567
2 gets free, but 1 is sucked into the gaping mouth of a lizard with a head like an alligator, which munches on it with a force that could snap a car.
>Esper 2 0/2, must roll to break free.
Rose can barely make out the moving of at least a dozen figures ahead of her, but it is too dark to see anything distinct.
>>25749599
As you make another explosion, the lizards once again flee, many choosing to make a new burrow in the walls, sneaking and slinking away, until their footsteps recede entirely. Singed spores and grasses lay around, and you are alone. The air immediately around is clear, purified by your explosion.
>>25749534
You dive forward and latch onto secure ground as a circle of earth falls out beneath you. You see Rose going towards the left at a four-way intersection.
Through the pit, you see a lower level of the tunnels, and hear rushing water. The fall probably wouldn't have killed you, but probably just barely.
>>25749643
That can apply to the second line of the bottom
>>25749644
>>25749644
>follows rose
>>25749644
"Fire all!" Rose commands.
>Magic Bolt+Lightning for all but Esper 2
Esper1[1d10]
Esper2[1d10]Rolling to break free
Esper3[1d10]
Esper4[1d10]
Esper5[1d10]
Esper6[1d10]
>>25749687
>again reminding that I am on Esper 6
>>25749644
The dragoness grins, seeing the lizards react this way. Poor things weren't made to stand such light. If they only knew how beautiful things were in the light... or on fire, for that matter...
She inhales deeply, the air feeling a lot more familiar to her now. Her explosives, though in reality not smelling too great, reminded her of good times. They were this sorta air conditioner you get to appreciate only after you've gotten used to them.
She continues jogging down the path in a steady rhythm. What surprises were there yet to be discovered, the dragoness wondered with glee..
>>25749663
"Oh, hello!" She says, looking over at Thermal and waving at him, "Don't get too close, now! One of my lil' buddies got caught up in something, I'm just seeing what it is." She says this as her four visible rose-like floating spears fire beams of lightning from their tips. "This has been fun so far, hasn't it?"
>>25749644
Urchin talks to himself in a whisper,
"Spooky... I know talking skeleton heads are supposed to help you along a quest when you're on an island, but I think they also want to enslave ponies or something. I wonder if he wants my scale..."
Urchin bravely steps forward, holding the scale up.
"I like your singing sir, why are you a skeleton? Is it a pirate's curse? Either way, do you want this scale?"
Urchin says, holding the shiny scale in his bandana again.
[1d10] Even evil hesitates when there's a cute kid, right?
>>25749644
>>25749732
Thermal swings his axe down, sending a crescent blade of multi-elemetal energy towards the lizerd beat.
[1d10+1]
>>25749754
"Oh, yes, thanks for helping. I think I might have gotten it, though," she says, leaning over to pat him on his shoulder.
>>25749687
Esper 3 short circuits and discharges, falling down. (0/2)
2 gets out of the mouth of the lizard biting it as the onslaught happens. For a moment, the prism flashes in the same color as your lightning, and you see a dozen lizards with heads like alligators, long bodies, and clear skin coated in purple mushrooms. They recoil at the flash, then charge forward as one.
[1d10] [1d10] [1d10] [1d10]
>>25749754
You cut clean through one of the lizards, and the others recoil at the flash of the lightning. The prism picks up the flash and reflects it, sending the creatures back even further. Two brave ones rush you while the rest cower.
[1d10] [1d10]
>>25749721
The sound of billowing currents of steam reaches you as you head further in, the ground starting to slope, steeper and steeper. You stop just short of a small cliff overlooking a ridge with another path ahead.
>Roll 1d10 if you want to jump down
The billowing steam comes from many vents pocketing the walls and vents. Might be bad if they exploded. You note, as you continue on, that the ground stops being covered in grass and mushrooms, instead replaced with a slick, squishy, biological texture. It's still solid enough to walk on, but very malleable.
The path ahead from the cliff continues straight.
>>25749736
Sand seeps from beneath the robe and surrounds you, leaving a very thin radius around your hooves. You begin to feel quite ill, and begin seeing two - no, three - of the robed figure. You hear a voice in your head as it resumes conducting the birds.
"BOY, oh BOY. Where you been that you got one of them cursed scales? From a very very bad place, those are, mm-hmm. A vile evil thing, yes. One thing which I been lookin' powerful for for many years now. I bet you a hero or somethin', ain't you, BOY. You like fightin' evil, helpin' the righteous, servin' the innocent? Don't you, BOY?"
A force pulses from beneath your eyes. Your see the world as though through a fisheye lens.
>>25749829
Reeling fro mthe second lizerds blow, Thermal growled angrily.
cleave (on 2 targets) [1d10+1]
>>25749829
The dragoness considers jumping down for a moment, but decides tom make use of her wings instead. She unfurls them, flapping her way down the ridge.
The surroundings bore an enticing, slightly exoctic, yet foreboding aura. The fact that explosion didn't mix well with those vents wasn't very reassuring, but Wrakhna deemed she'd do without them for now, if push comes to shove. Hopefully.
Due to the fact that she couldn't quite rely on her explosives at that section of her exploration, she decided to take heed and move more cautiously for now.
>Moving silently
[1d10]
>>25749829
"Umn, I'm just here for adventuring and treasure, you can have the powerful magic stuff if you want sir. Here, you can have the scale, I found it on the way here. How about we look for your 'vile evil thing' together! More the merrier, right?"
Urchin's head hurts, but he remains adamant and continues to hold out the scale,
"Also my name is Urchin, not boy. Have you ever been to Saddle Arabia before?"
>Arabian Endurance: automatic instant/passive; once per combat; Saddle Arabians are known for their tenacity and endurance in harsh conditions. Once per combat if you are rendered helpless you may use this racial skill to immediately recover on your turn. You are immune to any adverse effects typical for a desert, and you suffer no penalties for fighting in desert environs.
Urchin is used to sand and sand storms from living in Saddle Arabia, the sand does not bother him.
>>25749912
Also a constitution check anyways to tough it out
[1d10]
>>25749829
"Hmm-hmm," Rose half-hums, half grunts, as she recalls the Espers to her, commanding 3 to get up. "Alright, now, let's not get physical!" She says, having the Espers point their pointy ends at the lizards menacingly.
>rolling for Intimidate
Esper1[1d10]
Esper2[1d10]
Esper4[1d10]
Esper5[1d10]
She commands Esper3 to rise up.
[1d10]Recover
>>25749875
"Oh, don't so aggressive," she chides, "Now you're stumbling all over yourself just like they are!"
>>25749875
As you try to swing again, the lizards pounce upon you, ripping at your flesh and dislocating your leg.
Thermal 0/3
One continues to chew [1d10]
>>25749911
The tunnels expand as you climb down, and light glistens from some unseen force further below. You reach a sharp right turn, which leads to a steeper descending slope than before, until you end up sliding down to the next level plane. Now you are at a two-way intersection. The road ahead is completely dark, and your ears detect the telltale shuffling of lizard's movement.
The road to the right has some faint glowing purple crystals and the sound of rushing water. The slope descends fairly quickly, and you're sure you'd probably fall without careful gliding.
Directly above you, you see the faint shape of some enormous ribcage. It is bone unlike the others, long and serpentine.
>>25749939
You stumble around a bit as the dust surrounds you, but manage to keep a straight voice. Eventually they recede, leaving bone-dry soil behind. "Oh, well, that's just fine and sweet of ya, BOY. I'll protect ya, true. In fact, I think them little horses that followed you here probably got a head start like they're damn impatient, huh?"
The figure dissipates into dust, reforming in the center of town looking at the various depressions in the ground. "Which one of these shall we take, hmm? You'll have to move it for me, I'm afraid I'm a bit too weak, but I'll protect ya, don't you worry none."
>>25749954
Two lizards end up getting trampled by the others as the wave of lizards presses onward. Two more replace the fallen.
They attack
[1d10] 2
[1d10] 2
[1d10] 4
[1d10] 5
>>25750033
[1d10]
>>25750033
Rose sighs, and attacks the horde as intimidation tactics fall flat.
>Magic Bolt+Lightning
Esper1[1d10]
Esper2[1d10]
Esper4[1d10]
Esper5[1d10]
She hovers over to Thermal, reaching out to him to help him back up while shooting at the lizard biting at his leg.
Helping Thermal up
[1d10]
Esper6 Magic Bolt+Lightning[1d10]
Esper3 Recover
[1d10]
>>25750033
"Ummm... well ponies always told me to do the right thing, but I never found treasure that way. So let's go in that one to the left!"
Urchin heads over to one of the impressions, prodding it with a stick, and in the case of that not opening it, prying it apart with his lil' pony hooves.
[1d10+2] Unarmed attack against foliage
"What can I call you by, mister? Do you have a name? Are you named Murray?"
>>25750033
The dragoness enjoys her time strolling down the nature's road. Upon reaching the intersection, she stops and ponders for a moment. She deems it's been a good idea to move silently and if she's managed to avoid the lizards' attention ahead by that, there was no point in wasting that now. She decides to avoid the path ahead, as dealing with them would both reduce the amount of explosives she had left and possibly take a chunk out of her time, if there were more ahead. It was in her interest to cover as much ground as possible in this limited amount of time, as she was meant to explore, not exterminate. Hence, she decided to head right, using her wings to keep afloat above the unsteady terrain. As she was gliding down the corridor, a thought crossed her that she's doing the right thing also due to the fact the deeper she went, the more likely she was to find something interesting... she wondered where did that logic come from though... as she grabbed one of the crystals along the way, making it into her snack shortly afterwards..
>>25750062
You manage to shake off the one from your leg, but it hurts too much to stand at the moment.
>>25750125
>>25750062
Rose tries to help him up, but the leg is still too weak from dislocation for him to stand, and he stumbles. But, the flashes of light from the lightning send the lizards recoiling. The final straw is the prism, which flashes in response to the lightning, shining more light in the tunnel. The lizards shriek from the harsh exposure, and begin burrowing away from you, leaving behind the dead and severely wounded, who are no longer a threat.
>>25750165
"Wheeeeeeeeeeew-wee!" the figure says as you peel apart the weak foliage covering. He retreats from the foliage, not touching it even with his cloak. "Be-you-ti-ful. Hmm? A name? Hmm. A jackal got no use for a name. Jackal knows who he is, he don't need no reminder of that. Mortals always forgettin' themselves, every day, every time they turn around. Whatever you prefer."
The tunnel has some hoofholds, oddly enough, very old-looking and mostly covered in grass. But it shouldn't be difficult to climb down. The figure reaches out and clears away some of the grass with the silk-like dust, leaving behind only dry soil.
(1/2)
>>25750251
As you head down the right passageway, you eventually get hit with a thin waterfall. You keep your flight-balance but are forced to land several meters below from the pressure and force of the water.
https://youtu.be/-rB8rY-ldS0
You land in a very long cave shaped like a yam towards the end. This room is the brightest in the whole tunnel system, and you squint from the sudden change in light. You walk on squishy biological ground, and notice the bottom of a ribcage sticking out of the ground, long since broken off from the part you saw earlier. At the far end of the cave, sitting next to an enormous alligator-like skull, sits a brilliantly-colored lizard, with a rounded smaller head. The lizard is twenty times the size of the smaller ones you saw, with a primarily green coat and rainbow-colored scales trimming the sides. It glows brilliantly, sitting with eyes closed. Before the lizard sits a large sulfuric pool.
>>25750324
Thermal stands to his feet, trying to wipe the grime off himself.
>>25750324
As the rest of the lizards burrow away, Rose dismounts the Esper and dispels them collectively, before replacing them.
.>using talent to summon 3 Espers with Heal and Bolster, and 3 with Slam and Martial Defender
Rose summons six espers, three of them appearing as blooming roses with tentacle-like appendages, and the other three taking the form of shields with a rose pattern on them.
"Oh, you took a couple hits, huh?" She asks, patting Thermal to dust him off, directing her new Espers to patch him up. They hover their appendages over him, emitting a warm green healing ray from the ends.
>rolling for heal
ClericEsp1[1d10]
ClericEsp2[1d10]
ClericEsp3[1d10]
>>25750401
"thanks."
>>25750324
"Alright, I'll call you Jackal then."
Urchin climbs down the hoof holds, talking to the entity whilst doing so,
"So what are we looking for exactly? Also do you care about any other treasure we find, or just the evil thingy? I kinda want some stuff as well, if we find any gold coins could I have them? I don't have any money to my name, you know."
>>25750429
Rose pats him on the head. "No worries. Now, I had scouted ahead before coming back- there's a sort of steam tunnel ahead of us, and a chasm with a waterfall in it to the right. I think we should head to the steam tunnel, the waterfall chasm didn't go anywhere."
>>25750445
"agreed"
>>25750461
Rose pulls on his dragon paw, leading him to the steam chamber with her Espers. "See, there's this hole puffing up steam, but I think we can jump through. Can you fly?"
>>25750492
"yes" Thermal says as he spreads his wings.
>>25750503
"Absolutely lovely, wasn't sure how functional they were," Rose says, looking them up and down, "Would you be a dear and hop in first to check things out?"
>>25750342
The dragoness was very much impressed by the sight she beheld. The scenery seemed familar to her. The caverns, filled with bones of dead animals... and now this giant, scaly creature... she felt a little touched, as it reminded her of a dragon, sleeping peacefully on its hoard.
However, there was this fact of the sulfuric pool's existence. To her, as a sapper, this whole situation just scream "Put bomb here!", but as much as she imagined the gargantuan lizard was dangerous, she didn't exactly have a reason to do it harm.
Drawing a conclusion, she's decided to plant an explosive by the sulfuric pool, but do not ignite it immiediately. Her companions could be in the neighbouring caverns, after all - and the explosion could make them collapse.
>Remote charge
[1d10+2]
While she was planting the explosive by the pool, she studied the area. Was this creature guarding any treasure, like a dragon, by any chance? Was it even worth killing?
[1d10+3]
>>25750524
"very well." He flys over and takes a look
>>25750371
You get up and clean yourself off, enough strength returning to your leg to stand.
>>25750371
>>25750401
Rose's espers heal Thermal back to full, and fix his leg as well.
Flying down the sulfuric vents, Rose and Thermal see the below happen, entering the room just behind Wrakhna.
>>25750526
You put an explosive there. However, as you approach closer to the light, even though your claws don't even make a sound, the lizard's eyes gently flit open, perhaps sensing the disturbance in the light your body causes. It surveys you for a few minutes, blinking only once.
The lizard raises its head slightly, revealing a calcified organ, in the shape of a heart. The pony-sized heart is covered in abundant plant life, spores, and flowers, composed of a rainbow of colors, some of which you've never seen or dreamed of. Perhaps sensing your intention, the lizard uses its tail to pick up the heart and lay it before you. Life energy constantly radiates from the heart. The lizard sits back down, eyes watching you passively.
>>25750430
"Evil thing? Mmm, oh right, that. A most EVIL thing, indeed. A rainbow lizard, a thing thinks it can get away with undoing a cycle of death and life, frightfully so. An aberration in the most rightful cycle of livin' an' dyin'. A chink in the chain, a saboteur in the system. It led a whole island to death in tryin' to run away from ol' Death-God - them skeletons you seen before, they ain't so dead as they would have you believe, and you can thank this rainbow lizard for that - An evil thing, undoin' the cycle of life an' death - have I said that clear enough for you, BOY? Someone got to set that right. So this whole island, an' everyone on it, got to turn to dust, into a robe of silk, to set this right, you understand?"
As you climb down, you eventually emerge in an enormous, yam-like chamber with walls and floor made of squishy biological material, like muscle. (See previous descriptions).
You see the above happen.
>>25750591
Thermal slowly walks in the direction of Wrakhna
>>25750604
With her Espers following, Rose heads over to Wrakhna. "Yoohoo!" She calls, "What a pretty place we've found ourselves in, huh?"
>>25750591
"Hmmn, well, I don't think ponies should live forever, so I agree that it's evil. But premature death shouldn't be a thing either so I'll cut you a deal since you're a nice Jackal. I help you kill the giant lizard, and we can leave the island with some precious metals or something before you dustimify it."
Urchin says, intellectually,
"That way, you can end the lives of all these things that should've been dead by now, but since it's not our nature time to die yet, we can leave without the death being unnatural!"
Urchin smiles, looking up at the entity.
[1d10] cute?
>>25750591
Wrakhna blinks a few times in response, not sure what to make out of it. It seemed as though this lizard was far more intelligent than the ones she's seen before. She wondered whether it could understand her words... but it seemed to understand her actions... alright, that was a mighty nice, glowing thing. She was a dragoness, she wanted it, as it was her instinct. However, she couldn't help but think on why would this lizard show it to her, if it considered this heart-thing precious. Was it boasting?
Before she could finish her thinkng, her commrades arrived:
>>25750604
>>25750627
"Ah! Hey there! Indeed - and check what i've found" - she tilts her head towards the giant lizard. Neat, huh? It seems to be quite bright, actually.. what did you get?"
>>25750749
"nothing, really."
>>25750749
"Into a fight with some lizards. It was alright, Thermal got a little roughed up, but I helped him out. Lizards couldn't speak, I think. Didn't even have clubs, I don't think they're intelligent."
>>25750757
"Aw, nothing really, huh? Couldn't think of anything that happened that might be worth noting?" Rose nudges him in the ribs.
>>25750766
thermal gives gives her a glare.
>>25750638
"Got to thank you for movin' that there foliage. This form can't touch that barrier, it's overflowing with life and would fry me cooked and make me lose this damn lizard I been tracking for so long. But the God Death don't do no tabs, BOY." the figure says as it descends from the tunnel.
You are suddenly hit by an invisible force from all sides, causing no pain. Your hearing diminishes down to nothing, and an intense pressure begins to boil in your ear drums.
Silk-like dust begins so seep from his hands, dancing along the walls, creeping along and drying out everything it can touch. You begin to feel intensely nauseous as a sweet smell comes from the dust. "Y'all best get runnin'. And tell your friends very slow-like and detailed, I bet they gon have some questions."
>>25750627
>>25750604
>>25750749
As you approach the lizard, it sits up with a start. Behind you, on the far wall, you see Urchin and a minotaur-like figure, a skeletal figure with a bull's skull, wearing a featureless, void-like robe which strains your eyes to look at, made of some unidentifiable dark color. An oppressive void of sound seeps into the room, and pressure begins to boil in your eyes, ear drums, and stomachs. From the skeletal figure's hands seep layers of silk-like dust, creeping up very slowly along the walls and floors. You recall the EXTREMELY toxic dust mentioned by Captain Shmancy, the kind which blanketed and smothered the destroyed Hockburn island. A nauseatingly sweet smell begins to seep your way from the direction of the dust.
The lizard looks at the heart, then at the party's dragons. It gestures with its head at the main sulfur vent before it, the gases of which could propel Thermal and Wrakhna up to the surface, carrying the others.
>>25750757
>>25750766
"Had a brief enocunter with those myself. This one seems to be different though... and... this heart seems to be the source of magic i think, the one the cap'n mentioned... what do you think we should make out of it?"
>>25750778
>>25750785
"Hey guys! This lizard is bad, like that skeleton. His name is Jackal, and he wants to kill it, and everything! We should go now, let them duke it out. It's out of our league."
Urchin says, holding the scale he found,
"We all found some treasure, let's all get the heck out of dodge while we still have our lives."
He says smiling.
>>25750778
At the realization, the dragoness drops her cool mask:
"Urchin! Get AWAY from that thing! Can't you feel what it's doing?"
She unfurls her wings and gets close to the main sulfur vent, though she doesn't fly off on her own:
"Get here this instant, while you're still stading!"
... from how many similarities it bore to the dragons, the lizard looked believeable in her eyes.
>>25750818
"Can you help me up there miss dragon? I can't fly. We're quitting while we're ahead, okay?"
>>25750829
Wrakha is currently standing at the sulfuric vent's side, with arms, gesturing for Urchin to hurry up.
"Why do you think i didn't fly off myself? Come here, lil colt, just swift...
She gets a little nervous, as things round them get frisky, though she means no ill will.
She takes a swift look at the heart and then at the lizard... not being sure whether it will understand her, she asked nonetheless:
"Are you gonna be alright on your own?"
>>25750874
Thermal also stands right by the sufuric vent, wating for everyoneto make up their mind.
>>25750874
"Nope, it's probably gonna die, it tried getting way from the Jackal, but I helped him get back to it. It probably has lived longer than it was supposed to anyways."
Urchin says, moving next to the dragoness,
"But it's not our time to die yet, we've got more adventures to go on! So let's get our butts moving already"
>>25750778
>>25750815
>>25750889
Rose frowns at Urchin, then up at the minotaur. She thrusts one of her forehooves upwards while putting her other forehoove in the crook, then climbs onto Thermal.
>>25750905
"we're even now."
>>25750903
The dragoness seems nonplussed about it.
"There's nothing wrong with living as long as you want as long as long as you don't harm nature... did it do anything wrong?" - she asks as she takes the Saddle Arabian Colt gently and proceeds to ascend up the vents, giving the lizard one final, worrysome look.
It didn't seem evil to her.
>>25750905
>>25750903
>>25750889
>>25750874
The party escapes up through the thermal vent, just as all light starts to drain from the room, and the tunnels, and all the glowing crystals, retracting into the lizard, replacing it with a heavy darkness which can be felt and nearly pulls Thermal and Wrakhna back down.
The party rushes onto the airship while Fancy Shmancy and his crew panic and freak out, as a dense mist which devours all light begins to choke the island.
Just as they get off the shore, a force in space shifts with a muffled hum, and the island vanishes from sight. As the mist clears, all that remains is a hoofful of silk-like dust plopping weakly into the ocean. A patch of rainbow-colored light sparkles on the waves.
With the bizarre heart intact, the party returns to Canterlot to hand it over to the royal Equestrian mages, in what looks like the beginning of the revival of Hockburn Island.
THE END
>>25750927
"Mnn, the dragon's just cheating, and it got caught. I don't get caught when I cheat, so it's okay to do."
Urchin says, shrugging,
"I'm sure he didn't hurt the world at all, but Death must be kinda mad with all that time it shouldn't have been alive. It's like breaking a law, but instead a death law. It was silly to just hide, you can't hide from death."
