The Chosen [IC/PG-16]

[Sethera]

Gilly slept rather soundly. It seemed that the events of the day before had tired her more than she had thought. She hopped out of bed with rather more energy than was needed for the action, completely refreshed. "Hahaha! Tremble in fear, all ye bandits! For the great Gilly has...woken up!" she struck a pose.

 

"Perhaps the 'great Gilly' would like to actually do something, then. Like eat breakfast and move on," Snow muttered as he walked past.

 

"Why Snowy, that's the best idea ever! I think I shall!" and with that, the halfling thundered her way toward the smell of food. At arriving, she immediately jumped in joy. "Man oh man food is so great! People that don't eat breakfast are cuu-ray-zee!" she emphasized, before taking a big bite, completely heedless of whatever atmosphere she had interrupted.

 

Hob waddled his way in as well, taking a bite of cactus and seeming to ruminate as he ruminated.

[Hälō]

Lindow frowned slightly after receiving no response from the water spirit.

 

"..."

 

After a few seconds, Keres answered his question instead. "Not as they were. Just energy if anything. Don't know why. What more can you tell me?" 

 

"I can't seem to recall much else aside for what she taught me about absorbing the spirits and her warning." He sighed then took another bite of his fruit. 

 

"I don't think Flux heard." The girl's next statement heralded the spirit's appearance. 

 

"What now? Oh, you, hello. You're the shattered one right?" 

 

"Hm?" Lindow felt the spirit's words cause his eyebrow to arch in confusion. He didn't feel very shattered...

 

 "What might you mean by that?"

 

Gilly's awakening sounded through the room as he awaited the creature's response, causing him to lean forward slightly to avoid having the tiny chosen crash into him as she barreled towards the food. 

 

"I wanted to know if you still can sense Lily and the other two spirits..." Lindow glanced back with a smile to watch Gilly stuff her face before shifting his attention back to Keres and Flux. "If this woman were to have anything to gain from my actions, I don't think it would be out of the question that she could be seeking the harness the fallen spirits somehow. I suppose I just want to be sure that whatever is left of them is with us..."
 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

It seemed that Lindow, were he to be believed, didn't know anything more. Which made it practically impossible to glean a motive. Though it didn't stop her from theorizing. "Perhaps she's from another world, sizing up people to build an army of gladiators." It was obvious Keres wasn't talking to anyone in particular. "Or maybe she is trying to slay gods." A pause. "Or catch them all." She continued to mumble, rattling off various vague theories and ideas.

 

As Gilly came in like a hurricane, Keres subtly stepped aside to keep her robe from accidentally being grabbed and inhaled by the hungry girl. She instinctively patted Hob's head as they came to feed as well.

 

"I dunno." Flux answered Lindow. "I don't know much. I'm just floating through this world of yours. It's so weird. Like that big glowy thing, it's quite unusual. They haven't said anything to me, if they are here." Flux hovered close to Lindow, practically touching him, their tentacles swaying near the man. "Helloooo?" Flux said. Then. "Most humans have two eyes."

 

Without Keres to direct them it seemed as though Flux was having difficulty anchoring himself to any particular subject.

[Alaina]

The girl stood a bit awkwardly around, and the one between the spirit of water and the thunder chosen seemed to be going in...some different directions. All the same, the girl had decided it'd be best to probably wait until their conversation was over, and the hurricane known as Gilly had subsided, to go and get the food. While waiting around the door, she saw the Nature Chosen and her mount appear. Somewhat surprised at the appearance of the chosen, though she wasn't sure why, she said, "oh, hello there, good morning." She wasn't quite sure what to say to the woman beyond that, but followed it up with an obligatory, "did um, did you sleep well?" After that exchange had finished, the Earth Chosen had gone to get herself breakfast, and then afterwards had outfitted herself for the journey, though put her armor in her storage thing off to the side, as she had no idea how long the trek would be.  

 

When everyone was ready to leave, they had gathered towards the edge of the city, with the Elder thanking them once more for their work. The girl bowed in respect to the man saying, "thank you. For your hospitality and all. And the information too, I'm sure it'll be more than worth all the trouble." With that, the girl nodded at the Water Chosen's statement, ready to leave the city. 

[Hälō]

"I dunno." Flux's answer caused Lindow glance away from Kere's ramblings. "I don't know much. I'm just floating through this world of yours. It's so weird. Like that big glowy thing, it's quite unusual. They haven't said anything to me, if they are here." Lindow peered blankly towards the spirit as it approached his face. This one was an odd one, wasn't he? "Helloooo?" It was at the exact moment that he realized that the water spirit would be of little help...

 

"Most humans have two eyes." It said.

 

Lindow blinked at the statement for a brief moment. "A child ate the other one..." He responded patiently whilst reaching to his side to grab another fruit.  "I don't suppose he meant anything by it though." He punctuated this by taking a loud bite into his breakfast, chewing it just as the witches' thrall had done after they had plucked out Joesph's eye. 

 

Mildly aware of a throbbing in his empty socket, Lindow would continue to converse with the spirit until it was time to pack up and head out.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

"They ate it? Humans have weird customs, I didn't think eye eating was one of them." Flux turned in Keres's direction. "Do you eat eyes?" There was no response, so Flux got distracted, and began to float in circles, making a strange humming noise.

Keres, while it seemed she wasn't paying attention, had been listening. What did he mean, eat? Was this something that occurred in the swamp? There were many creatures who would do such a thing, though not as many that would stop at the eye. Was it a ritual then? Perhaps their companion was cursed, and that was why he had a different experience than the others? Maybe the woman in his dreams was some kind of witch...

 

Keres was distracted from her thoughts as Anis returned and, after giving the woman some food, Keres and the others headed out once more.

--------

The desert was just as hot and difficult to traverse as it had been before. Though now most of them had mounts to help carry them through. The lizard and mule looked to be having the easiest time going through the sand, while the others struggled somewhat more.

 

In either case Keres determined it would be at least two days before they reached the outer rim of the area that the elder had indicated they'd find the group of sharks. It still didn't set well with Keres, intentionally going to a place of such danger, but she knew that it was exactly this kind of suspicious behavior they should be looking for.

 

They had traveled throughout much of the day when Keres told everyone to stop.

 

She glanced around the area. Something was bothering her, there was a change in the air, as if..."Sandstorm." She called out. "Find cover."

 

Unfortunately there didn't seem to be much cover in the area, and she knew the sandstorm would be hitting soon. Their only choice was to press on faster in the hopes of finding some sort of shelter.

And then, after several minutes, they would spot something in the distance. It was hard to tell with how far it was but, as there wasn't much else in the way, they could make out what seemed to be structures. Hoping that it wasn't merely a mirage, Keres headed in that direction.

 

[spoiler=OOC]Okay so time for everyone to wrap things up and go into the desert, give responses to what's going on. Hollow won't be around but anyone else who doesn't post risks being behind the group and possibly getting trapped in the sandstorm. Do not actually reach the structure but if you decide to get close enough to see more of what it is, then let me know. It's a bit of an awkward place where not much to do but I felt it was necessary to segue into the next part.

 

[Andx]

As the other Chosen has gotten up and prepared for the day Ryia had turned her attention to the others. Reinaan remained mostly quiet as the others stirred and spoke with one another. Eventually he made his way to the table to see what Keres had procured to eat. A lot of gross looking plant stuffs but then something that looked like meat. The boy collected what scraps he wanted and with more calm and restraint than he usually showed slowly chewed as the others spoke. He was admittedly relieved that the Nature Chosen had arrived even if they barely knew one another. They couldn't afford another loss at this point, every member of the team was important. As the talking wound down the boy prepared his things and stepped out to pack everything back onto Kloqah's back. The mount still seemed irritated which the Draken could only think to attribute to his not coming home the night before. He apologized to the lizard and she reluctantly cooperated again.

 

The group met with the Elder who had nothing left for them. But he extended their welcome to the village at any time. Reinaan made it a point to thank the old man for everything he had done for them. The group would be heading into the desert for the grouping of sand sharks they had been made aware of. The Fire Chosen had led his mount on foot through the town but as they began out into the desert proper he got up onto her back to settle in for the long days of travel. Kloqah was well adjusted to treks through the desert so she naturally seemed to lead out toward the front of the pack. Reinaan didn't mind and as he wanted to keep watch for the other Chosen as it was. Despite that he couldn't go too far ahead as he wasn't the navigator in this journey.

 

Most of the day's travel had been fairly uneventful. The Draken was feeling more relaxed which felt contradictory given he was on alert most of the time. But getting to focus on routine things had taken his mind off the night before and accompanying awkwardness. But now it seemed there was to be a hiccup in the journey. Keres stopped the group saying there was a sandstorm coming and they needed cover. But then the desert offered next to nothing in that regard. They had nothing to do but move on hoping they'd find something. Keres seemed to catch sight of something as they went on and Reinaan too soon saw what seemed to be structures in the distance. Whatever it was it would prove better than being the open when the storm hit. Locked on to his destination, the boy had Kloqah take point again hoping to get a better view sooner. His eyesight was usually pretty good at a distance but he didn't want to push it with how the desert mirages had tricked him before, never mind the sun that would be flying around.

[Maeriberii Haan]

 

---

 

"A sandstorm. This would be an issue."

 

With the help of Shirin and her magic to generate some fibers she could use as thread, Anis had made a jury-rigged eye protector for Ileca while the group approached the volatile area of this desert. Despite never coming into this desert before, Anis had heard a lot about the tales coming from this place, as it had been passed down on her tribe for generations. This was her promised land, after all. From where the Tribes hailed from, and to where the Tribes would return one day. There was a certain spot where she would wish to pray in when she had the chance, but without really knowing about their exact location, it was hard to figure out just how far she was from the holy site.

 

Walking for several minutes with the threat of the storm looming over their heads, the group ended up noticing a strange structure on the distance. It wasn't clear what it was from this far, but Anis had a bad feeling in general, what with the group's previous issues when it's about strange structures on the desert. Though they had no other way to dodge the sandstorm. In the end, Anis decided to follow Keres in reaching the structure, all while she prepared her bow and sword.

 

 

---

[Alaina]

As the journey through the desert began, their trek was on the more uneventful side of things. While the girl was thankful for not being in peril as soon as they left the city, she kept constant watch for enemies around. As there may have been bandits still patrolling the area or any kind of creature, sharks included, moving about the land, Ryia couldn't help but stay on edge as they continued walking. All the same, the peaceful walk didn't last all too long, as the wind started to pick up and the sand started to whip in their faces, As the Water Chosen said something about searching for some place to take shelter in, it was much easier said than done.

 

Rushing through the sands, trying to avoid the oncoming storm, the group was able to see a building in the distance. Finding such a structure in the middle of nowhere was certainly odd, to say the least, and as the last time they had come across a building it was infested with bandits, the girl had stayed on guard. All the same, it was the only place for them to take cover in, and so, drawing her shield out, Ryia approached the structure. As she did, she noticed there were a multitude of broken pillars, some standing up, with most of them fallen over. The roof of the structure seemed to be slanted, going down away from where they were. The walls that held it aloft were made of some kind of weathered stone with carvings of things that were impossible to tell. There was no door visible to them, merely a rounded hole in the wall. It was quite apparent that the building seemed to be sinking into the sand. 

 

The sight made  the girl nervous, as it was clear to her that something had probably made its home in there. All the same, they couldn't well stand in the middle of a sandstorm, and so, warily, the girl approached the building. 

[Sethera]

Gilly wasn't really paying attention to what the others were doing or saying. Until Lindow brought up somebody eating his eye. Which, really? Gross! Why would anybody want to do that?! Yeah, food was really good, but there was also the question of what exactly was food. Well, Gilly thought a lot of things counted as food, but human eyeballs were probably not one of them. At least not for her. Though...she had never actually tried them.

 

She shook her head. No, no way. If she kept thinking about this, she would never stop wondering. Instead, the girl busied herself with eating the cactus in front of her, her eyes most definitely not wandering to Mr. Lindow's eyepatch.

 

--

 

When they set off, it was...really hot. Gilly kept materializing ice and just holding it against her cheek like an ice pack that would, hopefully, keep her cool. She also put one on Hob's head that kept falling off, so she stopped with that after a bit. In the end, they did stop, which the ram seemed thankful for, his thick wool being equipped for colder climes. "Sandstorm. Find cover," Mute Girl said.

 

Gilly wasn't sure how the girl could tell that there was a sandstorm but she wasn't going to start questioning the mysteriously mute mage yet. Mysteriously mute mage! That was a uhh...that was a liberation thing, when sounds sounded similar. Or was it literary? Oh, whatever. Point was, Gilly was far more cleverer than people gave her credit for. Look at her coming up with cool littering terms!

 

Her awesome monologue was interrupted by the appearance of what looked like buildings in the distance. Or...something. She wasn't sure. Maybe they'd help with the sandstorm. Not that she knew what a sandstorm was, but it was probably something similar to a snowstorm. Just with sand. "Let's go, heigh-ho!" she cheered.

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

"Let's go, heigh-ho!"

 

With Gilly's rallying cry the group made their way forward, towards the building. Reinaan and Ryia were the first to see any details about the building they were headed for, followed by Gilly herself, with Keres, Anis, and Lindow trailing slightly behind the rest.

Keres had a feeling of relief upon seeing that the building seemed to be sturdy enough to weather the sandstorm. And it seemed that they would be able to reach it before the storm hit them.

 

 

On multiple sides the sand suddenly erupted into the air. As it settled the group would see what caused it. Dozens of huge scorpions, the length of horses, now surrounded the group. They seemed to be especially grouped up near the very building they wished to enter, though there were more about as well. Around the area were large rock formations, almost similar to small mountains, that could very well have even more scorpions behind them.

 

Keres looked around, trying to decide on a plan. If they made a break for the structure they might be able to get out with only battling a few of the creatures. However with the openness of the desert there would be nothing stopping them from attacking them anyway, or trapping them in the building. There wasn't much time to decide, though, as the sandstorm was still approaching and the scorpions would likely begin to move at any moment.

 

[spoiler=OOC] Scorpion time! They look like...scorpions, but big.

Map

You can't see over the rocky areas, so there are a few scorpions that can't be currently seen, but this is the general idea. Reinaan could reach Scorpion 12 if he pushed and that's about the full extent of how far people can move in this. Ryia and Gilly will have slightly harder time moving than the others, Reinaan and Lindow an easier time.

 

[Hälō]

Lindow's eye narrowed at the sight of massive scorpions that now surrounded the group, blocking their path towards shelter. 

 

"Group up!" He called to the other Chosen whilst moving towards the donkey that they were using to house extra gear. Surveying their surroundings, Lindow quickly produced one of their newly acquired crossbows, along with a quiver containing 10 bolts.

 

"We'll need to engage them from a distance whilst pushing towards cover..." He loaded one of the bolts into the bow as he spoke, taking a step towards the group to get into tight formation whilst slinging the quiver over his shoulder. "I'll watch our backs."

 

"Reinaan, take point."

[Alaina]

With the group agreed that the structure was probably their best bet to take shelter from the oncoming storm, they began to make their way over to it. Ryia still felt a bit anxious about the building, though since she wasn't sure how devestating a sandstorm actually was, she didn't quite want to find out first hand. As they made their way forward, however, their path was blocked as the sand was up-heaved around them. Directly in front of the building they wished to enter, and their sides, there were large six-legged insect like beasts, with pincer like claws and a barbed tail. The girl readied her shield and mace, as it became clear that they were going to need to fight their way through. 

 

Hearing Lindow shout out what they were going to do, Ryia said to the group, "there- there are some on our left as well." Thinking that was enough to let the group known of the imminent danger, she took a deep breath, moving so that she was now on the left of Reinaan, and began to move forward. The girl began to advance towards the creatures, though at a slow pace, to begin their push to the ruins.

[Andx]

As the group advanced a structure came into view. It seemed to be the shelter from they sought from the potential sandstorm but the path was not to be unobstructed. Reinaan had been keeping a look out and could hardly handle the sudden surfacing of at least a dozen massive scorpion creatures. He quickly got a handle of the situation, thirteen visible in total so far with perhaps more hiding. Three to their left as Ryia was quick to point out as she moved to the Draken's left side. Five directly surrounding the building in front of them and he was to serve as their point man as Lindow had said. Another five were scattered off to the right. He didn't know how fast these creatures were so he was unsure if he could count on Kloqah to outrun them if it came to that. To be certain however, they could not afford to get surrounded by them. The group needed to either push through the front group fast and get inside the building, or else take out the left flank and prepare to handle the rest.

 

The Fire Chosen drew one of the javelins he had stored in the holsters the saddle Kloqah had come with provided. The mount moved forward to take point for the group but not so quickly so as to stretch the group out thin. "Watch the ones on the left! If they start moving we focus them down before moving forward!" he called to the group. The boy himself trained his eye on the nearest scorpion directly in front of them. The mount's movements were going to make aiming a tad harder but it wasn't anything he could adjust to with her current pace. He looked the creatures over carefully, his ears trained on the left and right groups. He wasn't entirely sure where to aim. The head seemed like the safest bet. And so when he felt they had approached enough to ensure a good hit he would ready his weapon and let it fly.

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"Bad luck always chased us by the tail, it seems."

 

Anis followed Lindow's order to stick with the group as she prepared her own bow for her to be able to snipe the scorpions. She was unfamiliar with the creature itself, but the head always seemed to be a good spot to shoot at. The group slowly made their push forward, trying not to engage the creature when it's not necessary. The others were ready with their own weapons. Anis continued to keep an eye out for the giant beasts around them, while Ileca was readying herself to dash forward the moment the situation called for it. The sandstorm was imminent. Sooner or later, they would need to rush anyway, but she wasn't one that knew the sign on when it would even start.

 

Should any of the scorpions made a move towards the group, Anis would start firing.

 

---

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

Keres once more was clutching a crossbow. Her hands, unused to holding anything more unwieldy than a gardening shovel, gripped it awkwardly. She didn't know what use she could be but she also knew that she couldn't risk using up any of the water she had with. She wasn't even sure they'd have enough just to drink at this rate.

 

They proceeded with the plan to advance. A plan which Keres was unsure of. She felt there was some problem with it, but she wasn't quite sure enough to vocalize it. As they moved she watched the building in the distance, with its rounded opening, and started to come to a conclusion.

 

She didn't have much time to think before the scorpions began to move.

 

Reinaan's javelin soared through the air and struck the closest scorpion, right in front of them, in the back. The object sunk into the monster and it shook as it felt the impact. Though it didn't seem to pierce the creature entirely it did seem to hurt the beast.

 

Anis would get her chance to fire as all the scorpions started moving nearer. They weren't as fast as the group's more nimble members, however they did seem to be able to travel relatively easily across the sand.

 

The archer would have a chance to fire three arrows before the first scorpion reached them. Her attacks would prove to be less effective than the javelin, but they'd still cause damage to the beasts. Except for the first shot, which would glance off the scorpion's naturally armored back.

 

The scorpions closed in but only two actually reached the group. The one that Reinaan had hit managed to move in front of the Draken and his mount and counter attack. It lashed out with its pincers and attempted to grab Kloqah while the tail darted out towards Reinaan himself.

 

The other was from the left and it attacked Gilly, who seemed oddly distracted, and simply attempted to bowl the smaller form over.

 

Keres didn't want to risk firing into the group so she instead fired at the scorpion approaching from the right, hitting it in its tail and causing the creature to pause as the bolt tore into its appendage.

[spoiler=OOC]The scorps have engaged y'all in battle now.

map

 

[Hälō]

Seeing the scorpion moving towards Gilly, Lindow quickly raised his weapon and fired a bolt towards the creature's head. Though his shot struck true, it seemed the beast had no intention of stopping it's progress towards the halfling, even with a bolt in it's head and it's blue blood spilling across the sand.

 

"Gilly, focus..." Lindow hissed at the girl whilst drawing one of his scimitar with his free hand. Dashing to the creature's side, he quickly thrusted his blade into the joint connecting the creature's right arm to the main body, creating not so pleasant crunching sound. 

 

With a twist of his blade, he dug the scimitar's hook deep into the scorpion's side. "Ladies... " He called out to his fellow chosen as the massive beast struggle to move forward against Lindow strength.  "Would you mind aiding me with my friend here?!" roared with effort as he pushed forward with all his might, forcing the scorpion away from Gilly and towards the water, earth, and nature chosen.

[Andx]

The young Draken hunter's javelin hit its mark as he had expected it to. However it didn't seem to go in quite as deep as he would have liked. The scorpions were on the move now as they began converging on the group. The one the Fire Chosen had injured was one of two to initially make it to them and the beast seemed ready to attack the pair of lizards at once. The creature grabbed at Kloqah and was successful in the effort. The closing pincers cause the mount great pain and she snarled as she began trying to shake the creature off her. But more than that she bit the scorpion's face in an attempt to kill it. The creature's stinger at the end of its tail meanwhile had gone for Reinaan still sitting atop Kloqah. The mount's thrashing aided the boy in dodging the initial strike as he readied the sword he had obtained from the fight with the bandit leader. He slashed at the tail a bit and while it stopped it from hurting him it didn't seem he'd be able to do much more than that.

 

"Hang on girl." he grunted as he exerted himself to stand up on the mount's back. It proved a tricky task given the lizard's movements and the scorpion's tail but not impossible. Kloqah was beginning to thrash more and he knew he had to move fast. He left the sword in the holster for the javelins. Exerting himself, Reinaan managed to dive from the lizard's back and land on top of the scorpion. The creature was quick to respond and it curled back its tail while still grappling with the lizard mount. The tail moved straight down in an effort to stab the Draken who was less than stably positioned from the maneuver that had got him there to begin with. The boy was able to intercept the appendage before it could strike him as he caught it with both hands. The Draken felt like he could overpower it though the advantage of positions here leaned in the scorpion's favor.

 

"Ziiyol!" came the call from the boy who knew he was in need of the spirit's power here. The spirit had stayed close by and readily prepared to merge with her partner. The now familiar surge of sparks and energy filled Reinaan as the two lizards continued their struggle with the scorpion. But now Reinaan had a weapon available. One he hoped would pierce the natural armor the creatures possessed. The power congregated in the boy's chest which he then directed into his right foot, spawning the usual fire claws from the end of the claws of his foot. Pulling the foot back a bit, the boy rammed the claws into the creature's back, making for an awkward sort of tiptoe stance. But thankfully the claws met no resistance as they pierce into the creature's insides. It let out a screech of pain as it's insides burned. It released Kloqah hoping to grab the Draken from off its back but the claws were not able to reach up there so the pain continued.

 

Kloqah, who was now free, was rather irritated at the scorpion at this point and only tightened her bit around it as she began trying to pin one of the claws down to the ground. Reinaan meanwhile pulled the fire back into his core as he got a more sure footing and then made the claws appear at the end of one his right hand. Still holding the tail with his left she slashed at the stinger, aiming to sever it. He made it most of the way through but fell short of entirely disconnecting it. It dangled from the end of the tail helplessly. But having released his second hand the tail was now strong enough to break free and the beast proceeded to slam it into Reinaan who grabbed onto it with his left arm. While not particularly painful it was enough to push the boy off the creature's back and onto the sand below. He looked to his mount who had been watching him closely despite the struggle with the scorpion. It was a brief moment the Fire Chosen took to assess the situation but the adrenaline stretched time out as he looked quickly to either side trying to take inventory of the other Chosen and the other scorpion's movements.

 

A wisp of flame escaped his mouth as he exhaled and readied himself for another round.

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

The initial volleys didn't quite manage to get the scorpions off the group, and now two of them were so close towards them. Anis' barrage itself barely managed to do significant damage to the beast. Anis' attention went towards the one approaching Gilly, who zoned out at the most inappropriate moment.

 

 "Would you mind aiding me with my friend here?!"

 

Lindow was quicker to act, and had already slammed his scimitar into the beast, pushing him away from Gilly and right towards Anis' and the others' direction. Anis quickly prepared her bow again, and fired at the scorpion's face head on while the range was still close.

 

"How hard do you think it would be to sever its pincers and stingers? Maybe legs, even? If we can't kill them fast enough, maybe we should figure out a way to disable them instead."

 

---

[Alaina]

With the scorpions beginning to converge on the group, Ryia got into her stance, ready to attack which ever one got close enough. In this case, it just happened to be two of the currently visible eight. Readying her shield and mace, Ryia saw that three of the chosen were dealing with the one closer to her, with only Reinaan dealing with the one directly in front of them. After he had gotten into his altercation with the scorpion, Ryia shouted, "Ackrin!" The tall goat spirit had appeared, causing the ground leading towards the scorpion to become much more stable, and allowing her to charge towards the creature. Unfettered in her movement, the girl had managed to get to the side of the scorpion, bringing down the mace against the creature's exoskeleton. The carapace had shattered against the mace's impact, leaving the fleshy parts exposed. The creature swung its claw towards her, and while she was able to block it with her shield, she skidded across the sand and her arm buckled under the force of the attack. Wincing in pain, the girl struck with her mace again, hitting straight into the exposed flesh. 

 

While the attack struck true, she didn't seem to be anything of import in the scorpion's body, and the creature began to turn to face her again. Getting ready, she backed off a bit, raising her shield only to see the creature stop. Looking towards its face, she saw a lizard's maw sinking into it. As Kloqah released her bite against the scorpion, it seemed to be stunned for a few moment, before it collapsed over dead. Looking a bit surprised, she looked at the lizard mount saying, "uh, um. Good girl." Unsure of how to feel about what just happened, she turned to face against the other creatures advancing on her. 

[LordCowCowCowCowCowCowCowCow]

With the scorpion attacking Reinaan felled and the one to the left greatly injured, arrows sticking out from several locations, the immediate vicinity seemed to be fine from what Keres could see.

 

Given Gilly's movement difficulties in this sand she considered turning towards that scorpion as well, as she loaded the crossbow with an awkward hand, but before she could she heard a cry of "Gilly stab!" from the Halfling. The girl had ducked under the scorpion's claw in order to shove an ice spear right into its face, and the scorpion dropped to the ground.

 

So Keres instead fired again at the one approaching from the east. This shot seemed to land better than her previous. The scorpion slowed but pressed onward towards her. The mule Keres was riding seemed to become frightened as the creature approached and Keres had to focus to keep the mount from running off. She didn't want to have fought from on top of the animal but she couldn't find a proper time to dismount, and now she worried it'd get either her or it killed.

 

The scorpions were closing in from all directions.

Ryia would find herself attacked by two at once, one on her left lashing out with a stinger and the other on her right striking with a claw.

Another was approaching Reinaan, as he recovered from his burst of energy, from the north. It had to move around the fallen scorpions body to reach him and wasn't able to attack yet.

To the west came yet another, which attacked both Lindow and Gilly with a claw, attempting to grab them both in one go. And another from the south approached nearby, it would reach them soon.

 

The scorpion that Keres had shot was on its way towards her. She decided to not bother with trying to reload the crossbow in time and began to prepare to, despite how much she'd rather not, use her magic.

The creature was upon her, its tail raised and poised to strike, when....

 

There was a flash of steel and the end of the tail was severed, causing the scorpion to flail it about in shock. Keres blinked in confusion as she saw the cause of the attack. A young man with long, wild, hair and a single-edged sword with an especially long blade stood on the back of the scorpion. He waved at Keres and jumped off the scorpion's back as the creature tried to use its, now shortened, tail to smack him off.

"Nice mule." The newcomer said to Keres with a smile. "Shame it has to deal with these ornery guys isn't it?" He turned as the scorpion lashed out with a claw and stepped closer to the creature, slicing the thing's arm off before turning his blade around, back towards the scorpion, and thrusting the weapon into the scorpion's head. "Seems you all could use a little help. Those mounts of yours won't last long in the sandstorm, best find a way to widen that building's entrance."

 

Keres stared. Where had he come from? Why was he helping? But then she glanced over at the building again. Yes, that was it, the entrance was far too small to fit the mule. But they'd have to get away from these monster scorpions first.

 

[spoiler=OOC]So...here's a thing. This is one of several "Temporary allies" NPCs that I have planned out for along the journey. Don't be fooled by his entrance, he's not overpowered or stronger than you are, and he won't be able to finish off all the scorpions so easily. That was just because of surprise and "hey introduction" factor. He's not here to carry y'all, just give a bit of help since, honestly, there should be more of you at this point.

 

Map

 

[Alaina]

After one scorpion was felled, Ryia left out a sigh of relief. This was, of course, cut short as two scorpions started charging her. The girl focused on the foes before her, as they brought different appendages of theirs to strike at her. Calling for Ackrin's aid once again, the spirit caused the ground her to be more stable, allowing her to back away from the scorpions more easily. Unfortunately, both Anis and Keres were close behind her, along with some person she didn't recognize. Not wanting to stumble into them, as that would make everything awful, the girl stood her ground. Blocking the stinger first with her shield, the girl summoned her earth wall, to stop the blow from the other's claw. Merging with Ackrin, Ryia swung her mace at the stinger. The blow had connected and the stinger was cracked and quickly retracted away from the girl. Meanwhile, the scorpion on the right had managed to start forcing its way through her wall.

 

Bashing its claw away with her shield, the other scorpion had begun to approach her again, claw at the ready. Being unable to get her shield back into position, she struck with her mace against it. Managing to deflect the attack at the moment, Ryia was unable to move from her position still as the other scorpion had begun to attack her, this time striking at her with its tail. Bringing her shield up, she managed to deflect the stinger for the time begin, yet there was a problem. Her posture was currently awful and she was in no state to be able to block the attack from the scorpion on the left, as it went to strike at her with its claw once more. 

[Maeriberii Haan]

---

 

"Seems you all could use a little help. Those mounts of yours won't last long in the sandstorm, best find a way to widen that building's entrance."

 

"Who are you? But nevermind that, we're glad that we have more help here."

 

It might be best to not trust this new stranger that suddenly helped them out of nowhere, but Anis felt that there was no reason to not accept his help for now. If he was to betray them later, she could find out ways to dispose of him before that would become an issue. For the time being, as her focus was elsewhere, Anis asked Shirin to keep an eye on this new addition to the group. As Ryia focused on one, Anis brought her attention to the scorpion that comes towards the vulnerable Gilly's position (10) and started to fire an arrow towards it. In the meantime she raised her voice to get the attention of the newcomer.

 

"What do you mean by widening the building's entrance? What building it actually is?"

 

---

[Andx]

Ryia's weapon seemed remarkably effective against the armor of the scorpions they fought as her mace had shattered it on impact. With a little help from Kloqah scorpion whose tail Reinaan had largely severed was down. But now the others had begun to converge on the group from every side. The Draken had wanted to avoid this situation but the creatures were not easy to kill quickly so these circumstances were inevitable with the way they had chosen to proceed. The boy was more confused to hear noises behind him. Turning about he caught eye of a young looking human man who had come to their aid. The Fire Chosen disliked that he hadn't noticed the newcomer's approach but he had been rather occupied. Whoever he was, he seemed intent on helping them and suggested gathering the group into the building ahead and widening the opening to allow the mounts to enter more easily as well. Reinaan simply nodded in reply finding it to be a sound plan of action and shifted his focus back to the scorpion approaching him. It had yet to attack as it had to maneuver over the corpse of the other to get to him.

 

Anis' arrow found it's mark, striking around the scorpion's head. The beast's advance slowed greatly as it began squirming from the sudden sensation of pain. The newcomer meanwhile addressed the Nature Chosen's remarks to him. "Dammed if I know, it's a ruin I use to sleep at night, but the entrance isn't quite big enough for some of your...larger friends." He said as he nodded at the mule and Kloqah.

 

Reinaan had drawn the other javelin he had stored on the bags at Kloqah's side with his left hand as he ignited the flame claws from Ziiyol's power on his right hand. He moved in on the creature, looking to stab it's face with the claws but readying the spear to intercept any appendages swung his way. The scorpion made it over the corpse of the other and was now in a position to attack. It readied both claws and snapped at the approaching Draken from both sides. With quick reactions the boy was able to jump back to evade the attack, in the process inhaling deeply. As he landed he exhaled and spat a stream of fire at the scorpion's face. It began flailing as the painful breath hit it. Reinaan had landed close to the newcomer and turned back only to meet his eyes. There was a wild energy to them which the boy almost got distracted by before turning back to his opponent.

 

"Any tips for fighting these things?" the Draken asked the man. If he slept in this building he must have encountered these creatures before and hopefully had a trick or two on hand. "If you have to attack head on, be fast." came the reply. Not exactly the young hunter's forte, especially on the desert sand, but it was sound advice. If he could get to its face before the claws or stinger could get to him he had a chance. Reinaan readied himself by leaning forward a bit as he held his javelin and fire claws ahead of him. Mustering his strength in his legs he took off as fast as he could at the scorpion that was still in recoil from the flame breath, his aim to lodge his weapons, both physical and magical, into the creature's face.

[Hälō]

Though he was curious about their new ally, Lindow had other matters to deal with... 

 

A second scorpion was heading towards him and Gilly quite quickly and with the ice chosen still seemingly having trouble moving, it was up to him to take control of the situation as best he could. 

 

"Come..." Lindow growled as he was forced to leave his scimitar lodged in the corps of his first attacker. Drawing Bandit's Cleaver, he waited until the new scorpion's claws were inches from reaching him, before suddenly shifting to the side with his impressive speed. "I'll be taking that!" With grunt he swung his blade downwards with all of his strength, severing the creature's appendage with a clean stroke. 

 

Thrashing about in agony, the creature responded by lashing out at the man with it's stinger. Though having been expecting this, Lindow was easily able to avoid the attack and counter by moving towards the creature's back legs whilst taking a swing towards it's tail.

 

However it seemed one blow wasn't enough completely sever creature's natural weapon...

 

Lindow watched as the scorpion yanked itself free from the cleaver's blade and began spinning around to face him. Smirking, he swept the his blade across it's legs and dashed forward. Though sand seemed to make it harder create a large amount of distance, forcing him turn and get back into his fighting stance after only a few feet. 

 

The scorpion was now facing him yet again, now brandishing fresh wounds on it's legs. Studying his foe, Lindow waited for the beast to make the next move, hopping to finish it with his counter...