Duty Session 59: Spinner's End

The Landers in the Town of Beginnings seem to have a never ending string of trouble that comes their way. A few of the local Lander blacksmiths have complained that they are struggling to get the raw ore that they need. Apparently, the nearby mines have been overwhelmed with beasts and monsters, making it hard for the miners to continue their excavation efforts. It blips as an optional side-quest with a reward of improving the available resources in the Town of Beginnings.

Difficulty:    Moderate
Rec. Party:    3+
Rewards:       2
World Rewards: Increases in mining efficiency in Town of Beginnings.

Shiroe
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    As far as today had gone...It had left a rather ill taste in his mouth. Literally. Though with Alliance work done there were still things that needed to be handled. Such as acquiring resources which NWA was in a rather dire need of... So with that in mind. A message goes out on the guild channel.

    <<To all available NWA members, I'll be planning to do the Spinner's End quest at the designated time. If anyone's available, I highly encourage any and all who can to come to help acquire any drops.>>

    It was a rather blunt message but it got the message across. Of course he hadn't just invited the guild members. He also ended up sending a message out to the local Alne channels. He figures it'd seem pretty odd to invite only the NWA members, so he at least tries to see if any other players were interested as well. There was no harm in doing that from how he saw it.

    From there, the Bespectacled Enchanter just bided his time for about a half hour or so as he waited for the party members to assemble near the quest's entrance, which appears to have been a mine entrance. One way or another if people had a hard time finding the mines on sight alone hopefully they'd recognize the white-cloaked enchanter enough to know they were where they needed to be. Once everyone's arrived he does a headcount before raising a simple question, "So before we head in, quick question. How many of you have never done this quest before? And if so how many of you have arachno- Well...I guess it wouldn't matter at this point. Anyway, let's start heading in. Watch the webs on the top and the bones on the bottom." Was it bad he seemed so non-challant about this already?
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Seeming to casually stroll down the street in the Town of Beginnings, Shaskur was anything but feeling casual. That feeling was there again, she knew she was being watched. Being followed. It seems her on little investigation had drawn someone's attention. But who was it?

Then over the chimlink she heard Shiroe, <<To all available NWA members, I'll be planning to do the Spinner's End quest at the designated time. If anyone's available, I highly encourage any and all who can to come to help acquire any drops.>>

Shaskur hummed in thought, this might work. Maybe she could lose her tail if she went on this little excursion, and it would get a bit of XP at the same time. Good enough. Lets go.

LATER

Arriving at the designated spot Shaskur sees the Enchanter in glasses. Approaching she raises her hand in greeting, "Yo. I got the message, so here I am." Yeah, that's all. She wasn't really one for small talk. She moves over to the side as the others arrive.
Miyako
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    "Done this before, have you, Vigo?" Miyako grins lightly and gives her naginata a quick twirl before settling back down. "Haven't tried it before myself, I fear." Or rather not fear. She's here, after all. Ready to go.

    She'd shown up only a few minutes after Shiroe, and spent the waiting time sitting around, kicking her feet, and making up silly filks on 'Clementine'. (~/ 'In a cavern, in a canyon, rescuing spiiiiiiders from a mine..../~)

    It's probably a /good/ thing she's not got her guitar out....
BlackRose
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

She's not with the New World Alliance, but that doesn't stop BlackRose from choosing to attend this current quest. And spiders? Pfft, she's dealt with big and little spiders of all shapes and sizes before. They aren't going to bother her now. Thanks to her trusty sword and her courageous attitude towards things, BlackRose is definitely down for this quest. It's going to be a lot of fun most likely, and who knows what she might find?

Wearing her usual armor and carrying her trusty sword, BlackRose gives a slight smirk and a wave as she approaches. And while she can be confrontational to those she doesn't see eye-to-eye with, she doesn't believe that it's really necessary to be starting anything just because she's with a different alliance than the others here. "I got the message, and I may not be with the New World Alliance, but I'm sure we can still work together on this." She raises her eyebrows and smiles a little more. "Call me BlackRose, by the way." She looks at Miyako and while she cocks an eyebrow at her singing, she can't help but chuckle all the same.
Yuuki
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    Shiroe puts out an invitation for a quest through public channels.

    His mistake.

    "Hello, Shiroe!"

    The chipper voice of Yuuki suddenly pipes up from behind the waiting Enchanter. She gives Shiroe a grin, saying, "I didn't think we'd get to go on an adventure together THIS quickly!" Yuuki leans over to look towards the waiting cave in the distance, "But I have been meaning to go spider hunting for this quest!" Yuuki starts dancing on her feet, throwing air punches as she says excitedly, "Those creepy crawlies are in for a beating!"

    When Shiroe questions them about their quest experience, Yuuki raises her hand, "Oh! I haven't done it yet! Not to worry though. I don't have a thing for spiders. Except maybe for their sweet, sweet XP."

    Yuuki looks around at some of the others joining the party. She doesn't recognise them for the most part. Though one she does, looking at BlackRose, "Oh hey! I remember you. From Ikigai, right?" Yuuki smiles, introducing herself to everyone while she's at it, "I'm Yuuki! I look forward to kicking some spider behind with you all!"
Amalthea
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    Of the players to respond to Shiroe's message is a member of the Odysseia Knights. Specifically the oldest member of the guild.
    She arrives, unslinging her shield from her back and resting a hand lazily on the pommel of the blade at her hip as the old woman flashes a smile in greeting.
    AMALTHEA HAS REQUESTED TO JOIN YOUR PARTY. >Y/N?

    "I've not done this quest yet." She answers honestly, before arching a brow.
    What doesn't matter?
    Blue eyes survey the entrance to the mines and the webbing, and that's explanation enough as she drums her fingers on her blade in an absent tick.
    Ah. Spiders.
    She'll deal.
    "Call me Amalthea." She gives her own introduction to those that don't know her, smiling warmly.
Shiroe
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    "Vigo? Should I even ask what that's suppose to mean?" He gives Miyako a quick raise of the brow to the name but just rolls with it for the time being as she starts to sing along. The next to arrive is Shaskur who arrives next. "Well, it's good to see we had a few people from the alliance able to show up so soon."

    The next person that makes their appearence is one who makes it quite apparent they are in fact not from NWA, Blackrose. The girl does seem familiar enough, but can't immediately put a finger on it. Still he tries to be as welcoming as he can. "I'm sure we can. After all, the alliances do end up working on projects together so I don't think it'd be much of an issue. You can call me shi-eeeeh?!"

    That's the response that Yuuki is welcome with as she catches him from behind. HOW DID SHE DO THAT??? Is she part ninja like Akatsuki? "Y-yeah...Me neither." At the very least she wasn't trying to strong arm him this time, and she also helped him jog his memory about where he saw Blackrose from, "Ah right, you were talking to Gwen. I remember now. Nice to see you again." And last but not least is Amalthea which is an obvious :

    >Yes.

    "Good to know, and good to see a familiar face. Anyway...I don't think this quest should be too crazy. If there's one significant thing I'd warn about it's just being careful at a certain point with a large chasm. It might look like you can jump it, but I'd encourage everyone to take caution regardless." It's one thing to get killed by acid and spiders. Apparently it's much more frightening to fall into a bottomless pit. But that's all the spoilers he should bother to give. No point ruining the entire quest for people unless they ask for more info right?
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

As the party enters into the mine, they very quickly come up to a room that appears to setup for storage of equipment. Tools are scattered around, wooden tables splintered, and bones mostly picked clean of any flesh adorn the floor. And the webs, the webs seemed to be everywhere in this mine, and this room was no exception. They covered the ceiling, but perhaps of surprise the floor with all of its mess was web free.

This appears to because there was a giant hideous, wrinkly hairless rat of some kind. It's skin hung off of it and bunched at its legs, like it was too large for the creature. It heard the party approach and turned red unblinking eyes their way. It dropped the human arm is was gnawing on and screeched a high pitch wail before rushing towards the party. Sharp claws cutting gouges into the floor as it found purchase for its charge and long foreteeth bared.
Yuuki
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    Yuuki appears amused by the reaction she gets from Shiroe. Did she do that on purpose!? Nah. She was just using her meagre sneaking skills to avoid aggroing anything on her way here. She didn't want to be late!

    But it quickly becomes time to dive into that cave. Yuuki draws the one-handed sword from her waist and raises it towards the cave, "Let's go teach those spiders who's boss!"

    Thirty seconds later.

    "That's not a spider!" Yuuki stares in some annoyance at the rat-like creature. This quest title is misleading! Still, as the mob begins to charge them, Yuuki grins, "I like its spirit though!"

    Yuuki rushes straight towards the charging monster. As she does so, flames burst to life around her sword. Shortly before crashing into it, or succumbing to its bite or claws, Yuuki quicksteps to the side, taking her around it. She lashes out with one slash, before leaping over the mob to land on its other side and swiping for a second strike.

    Yuuki then jumps away and shifts into a defensive stance, in case the monster tries to counter.
Shiroe
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    "Here's the starting encounter it looks like. Should be easy enough. Electrical Fuzz." Shiroe chants the name of his spell before a small discharge of electricity would discard from the enchanter's staff as it headed towards the hairless rat. Though once it made it's way over, rather than shock or damage the rodent he ends up just spooking it. The creature that had been charging the group lets out a squal before ramming it's head into a nearby wall. It's vision completely blurred by the small light that was obscuring the creature so accustomed to the darkness.

    That's how an enchanter fought. Not by using direct damage but by being sure that he can make it easier for the others...Though occasionally he did do damage as well. For now though, he was just playing the support role just the way he liked it, letting the others get there licks in without having to worry to much of counter attack from the disgusting oversized pest!
Amalthea
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    'Shouldn't be too crazy' Shiroe says. Fair enough, Amalthea will take the bespectacled youth at his word as everyone progresses into the mines and runs across... Some kind of flesh eating molerat.
    "That's disgusting." The old Paladin says, in a casual tone as she pulls her blade from her scabbard.
    And then it rushes the group.
    Yuuki is first to rush in, before Amalthea can even pop off a taunt or tanking skill. The girl has guts that's to be said for sure, and no sooner than Yuuki has cleared the jump and Shiroe blinds the beast, Amalthea steps in to distract the beast before it can retaliate.
    "Hah! Hyah! Git, you furless sack of bones!" She shouts to call its attention as she lashes out with a quick slash of her own.
Miyako
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    Miyako flashes a smirk at Shiroe. "Why, it stands for Villain in Glasses, Obviously." Okay, maybe that's stretching it a little. At least she's stopped singing. (She has a nice voice, but the repeated variations on the same song were probably getting a little monotonous.)

    "Hey, great to meet new people," she continues, waving to Yuuki, and then to the others as they show up. "Hmmm, hey. BlackRose. Miyako BlackLily. We match!" They don't look a thing alike.

    By the time she's gotten over snickering at that, the group has moved on into the mine, and... wow. Uuuuuugly nekkid rat. That's just disgusting. "OK, /WAY/ more disgusting than spiders," is the first thing she has to say. She thumps the butt of her naginata against one of the troughs, letting off a dull boom. "DOWN, Rufus!" she snaps at the beast, not bothering to expend magic of her own on it.
BlackRose
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

"Yuuki, Amalthea, and Shi...?" BlackRose trails off as Shiroe apparently is cut off by some kind of unexpected surprise. Apparently it's because of Yuuki's unexpected arrival, which BlackRose isn't entirely familiar with so it doesn't quite strike her the same way as it does to Shiroe. Shrugging, BlackRose then looks to Miyako and says, "Miyako BlackLily? What a coincidence?" She chuckles a little before adding, "Well, let's get going, shall we?"

About half a minute later...

"Oh, rats," BlackRose says in an attempt to make a bad pun, albeit with a little sarcasm in her voice. She decides not to try to fight or anything like that, instead yelling, "Stay back!" At the mob, trying to use her commanding tone to hopefully keep it at bay.
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Just as quickly as the rat creature charges Yuuki also deftly moves in and with blindingly fast grace slashes the charging beast before dancing around it while continuing to deliver slashes. An electrical discharge from Shiroe's staff then flashes forward, just as Yuuki moves out of the way, striking the rat in the face and causing it to careen into the wall, all the momentum of the charge driving its face into the wall and causing cracks in the wall with a loud bang.

With the beast dazed Amalthea moves forward with careful steps and shield ready, delivering slashes down on the now keening creature as Yuuki moves in to dice the creature up from the other side.

Shaskur draws her twin daggers. They appear to be simple steel ones that taper to a sharp point. Definitely still low level gear. Still dark black flames appear along the blades, she beings to rush forward as well, but stepping on a bone she instead slips and crashes down into the debris pile at the edge of the room. A low gowning can be heard from her crumpled form.

BlackRose and Miyako recognizing the situation is already being handled, and that there is limited space in the room hold back.

Red damage indicators glow along the beast's body as the swordwomen continue their onslaught. The creature's health bars plummets and with a final high pitched wail the wrinkled beast dissolves into motes of light.

Beyond the pile of bones and wreckage, which Shaskur is now climbing out of, another tunnel can be seen continuing further down into the mine.
Yuuki
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    Down, down the mines go. It's said that the Gnomes delved too greedily and too deep. You know what they awoke in the darkness of this mine... Spiders!

    The group come to a dead end. Or so it seems. There does appear that there was a path forward at one time. But no longer so, the way through blocked by numerous rocky stones of varying sizes. One might consider this a natural occurance, if it wasn't for the sticky webbing the covers all of those boulders, holding them in place.

    Are these spiders so intelligent that they intentionally caused this rockslide to block the path off? Could they be developing a civilization of their own down in that darkness!? There's only one way to find out. But how will our intrepid Adventurers get past this obstacle?
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Embarrassed about her earlier slip, literally, Shaskur narrows her eyes at the webbed barrier. There might be something she can do in this situation. Sheathing her daggers for the moment she places her hands on the wall, and with some concentration a black energy seeps into the rock and spreads out along the wall towards the webbing.

As the darkness touches the webs they seem to slip off the wall in that area, freeing the boulders to be more easily moved in other ways.
Shiroe
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    The rat lets out its death cry before turning into motes of light and when it does, there's only one thing Shiroe has to say to Miyako. "...Did you seriously add the 'O' for obviously for that?" He can't help but shake his head at this girl. But at the very least he seems to be smiling. "Sure, let's go with that." It was goofy, but at least when people asked about it, it'd probably be more entertaining.

    This ends up bringing them to the parts of the tunnel that were blocked off by the boulders that seemed to be conjoined by webs. "You know, I didn't really notice the first time I was here, but it makes sense now...Anyway, you guys should be able to break through this. But just in case..." It's more a note for himself. Again, no need to spoil. "I leave it to all you capable ladies. . ."

    Fierceness of Earth!

    Unlike before Shiroe casts a buff instead of a debuff. The intent to help the others and boost their stats so they could give the amount of fire-power they needed if they felt they were going to bust through this rocks.
Miyako
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    "Of course I did," Miyako answers Shiroe. "And besides, Vigo Mortenson's Aragorn was hot." She grins and turns to the others. "Don't you think so?"

    It's a good thing the ugly-butt rat is gone, that thing was seriously throwing her off her game. "Now, let's see," she muses as she looks at the wall of webbed rock. That suddenly isn't so webbed anymore. "Thanks, Shaskur." Then she raises her naginata and waves it in a complex circle, the feathers trailing along behind it like a streamer.

            StoneShape

    And stones start to reshape themselves, sliding out of the way, forming handles to make them easier to lift. Convenient bit of Earth magic, nice to have a druid along, yes?
BlackRose
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

"One down and many more to go," BlackRose says. "At least I didn't have to use my sword on that thing."

Unfortunately, it seems that there's a bit of rocks and whatnot barring the way ahead. Fortunately, BlackRose may look small in size, but she's a pretty strong one when she sets her mind to it. "All right, here I go!" While she doesn't exactly have any type of magical skills or abilities, she nonetheless proves that brute strength can sometimes help one out.

"If only this were the real world, then I'd really be getting a good workout," She says, although with that her smile fades a little as she's begun to forget just what the real world is truly like. After a moment, she shakes her head back to the present moment. "We got this!"
Amalthea
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    Of all things to stop anyone in a mine... Of course it would be fallen rocks. Amalthea pauses briefly, pursing her lips as she looks over te pile of stone and rubble, before the group's course is set.
    They have to get through the webbed debris and rubble.
    Formerly webbed up, anyway, as Shaskur tends to that. It's when Shiroe casts his buff that Amalthea sheathes her sword.
    And starts moving heavy-rocks by hand. Grunting and heaving, and very much not suffering a bad back that someone her age might complain about, she wedges her shield in between larger rocks and uses it as leverage to push and roll them away, before Miyako adds helpful handles to grab on. So she starts using those to move things.
Yuuki
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    As Shaskur's darkness creeps over the piles of rocks, the webs begin to break apart at their touch. As if the very hands of death were clawing at them. Not that death is likely to be able to claim many souls from webs. Maybe it's more like his hobby. This helps free the stones up for the others to begin dealing with them.

    Shiroe chooses to continue doing the least amount of physical work he can, buffing everyone with the power of EARTH! This strengthens their bodies, adding to the ease of dealing with these stones. Plus also making them feel just a little bit dirty.

    Miyako turns the boulders into some modern art. Like an expression of how we're all carrying the weight of the world.

    Handles do make the stones easier to move though. BlackRose proves this by carrying two of the giant suckers, one in each hand. Yeah, you probably don't want to try and arm wrestle her.

    Meanwhile, Amalthea channels the power of Archimedes through her shield, using it to push some of the larger boulders apart in order to make them easier to get at.

    The group have managed to move most of the boulders out of the way. But there is one giant one left. Yuuki ohs in excitement, "I've got this one! I know just what to do." Yuuki moves to hold her sword vertically in front of her, closing her eyes. She then starts to humm quietly, "Ohmmmmmmmmmm. Ohmmmmmmmmmm. Ohmmmmmmmmmm." She continues this, slowly crouching as she moves her sword over her shoulder. "Ohmmmmmmmmmm. Ohmmm-HIYAH!" Yuuki rushes forward, swinging her sword hard and fast.

    The sword strikes the final boulder, causing it to explode into little bits of pieces that rain down on all of them. Yuuki is grinning happily in success when a rather large piece smacks her in the head, "Ow!" Yuuki groans as she rubs the sore spot.

    The sound of that small rock explosion echoes up through the mine tunnels, probably audible to any trailing swordsmen who showed up to the quest late.
Kirito
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

As the group ventured ever forward in their quest, some may get the feeling that someone is watching them. Perhaps around the corner, or above them in a hiding spot. Its a good thing whoever is peeking in on them has a handy grasp and certain degrees of equipment to aid him on avoiding detection.

The group is having a good time about it all though, even without his assistance or his help. But...Kirito watches in silence, perhaps learning all he can before attempting to do this quest in his usual solo fashion...or if its a bit too intense for where he is and be forced to join a party.

It just depends.
BlackRose
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Arm wrestling is something BlackRose might good at, but her strength is mainly for forging things and wielding her sword. Of course if someone were to make the mistake of challenging her...

Ahem.

Yuuki's humming and then slashing draws a cocked eyebrow from BlackRose, but then it turns into a smirk as she realizes that this young lady is quite a talented one. "That is rather cute," She comments to herself as she continues on her way. She can't help but wince a little at poor Yuuki hitting her head though, as that does sound painful.

They continue until they reach a possible dead end, which causes BlackRose to stop and bite her lower lip. "Well, now what?" She asks, scratching her head before glancing around.
Shiroe
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    "Doesn't Viggo have two g's though, not one?" He doesn't even have to worry about attack this time as he lets the others do the heavy lifting. What? You were expecting the Enchanter to do physical labor? That's really funny. He just ends up watch as people choose to lift with handles, shield bash, or break rocks into bits inorder to achieve success. Though when he does watch Yuuki get bonked on the head, he does seem to find himself smiling a bit. Not laughing, or smirking like she deserved it but uh, just that it was entertaining. "The mighty Zekken, caught off-guard by a rock? Truly the new update is quite treacherous. You alri-" Shiroe stops his jokes for a moment as his eyes shift to the corner. He looks behind the group, using electrical fuzz to have acted as a form of light to help illuminate the way and show what was in the path. And yet, he could see nothing pasts the shadows in the darkness... "..."

    For the time being he says nothing, but keeps his wits about him as he follows the other into the square chamber. "Mmmm, don't remember this route." The place clearly is filled to the brim with dust, webs, and frankly just seems... He couldn't put his finger on it. Used? Maybe it wasn't the exact word, but he keeps observing his surroundings regardless. Though something catches his eye, "Hey, someone mind coming with me for a second? Want to check something out in the corner." First rule of exploring, don't break formation. So with that in mind he at least makes sure to bring someone with him just in case he triggered something while heading towards the unusual rock formations in the corner, curious to see where they led.
Amalthea
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    Those rocks were nothing that couldn't be handled by some good old elbow grease and stubbornness. Though the impressive display of the final rock exploding into bits earns a chuckle as Yuuki gets bonked on the head for her efforts.
    "You alright, there?" The old Paladin asks gently before everyone gets to...
    A dead end.
    "That's not right. There's no way this could be a dead end." She murmurs, motioning for the floor. "The dust and webbing's been disturbed. Not too long ago looks like." She points out, before she begins rapping on walls with her knuckles. SUSPICIOUS.
Miyako
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    Miyako shrugs. "One G, two G, sooner or later you're talking millions." She pauses to check with Yuuki and make sure she's already after that bump. "You doin' okay there? That can't've been fun."

    With the rocks out of the way, she walks along with the group, until they reach... a dead end?

    No, no, that won't do. "Okay, who had 'secret door' on the Dungeon Bingo tonight?"

    She starts off where Amalthea did and moves the other direction, knocking and tapping as she looks for the concealed exit.
BlackRose
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

BlackRose isn't one to give up that easily. She takes the time to give the room a good, scrutinizing look around. "There's no way this could be the end, it's too soon for that." And as soon as Amalthea spots the strange area, BlackRose runs over to look and confirms what Amalthea has noticed. "Definitely something unusual here."

BlackRose taps on the walls and listens carefully, stopping as soon as she hits a spot that doesn't quite sound the same as the others. "I think we've found something here!" She calls out, gesturing to the spot where she knocked.
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

After she finishes her spell she backs up to watch the others work on the barrier. On hearing Miyako, Shaskur turns to give a thumbs up towards the sapphire eyed Spriggan. Was that acknowledging the thanks, or was that an agreement about Viggo? Hmm, probably the latter. Yeah, it was definitely the latter.

Just then Yuuki finishing her technique and the boulder explodes into a shower of fragments. Shaskur squints at Yuuki in displeasure, but what is done is done. Time to move on. They continue forward Shaskur continues to remain mostly silent but is now walking a bit closer to Miyako as she continues to peer around looking for traps.

And that uneasy feeling of being watched. Even here. Was she going crazy? She hoped not. It was a primal gut feeling, someone or something was there. This was the last straw. Later she would take steps to try find out exactly who it was stalking her. This couldn't continue. But for now, finish this duty. With a deep breath she refocused.

And of course that's when they come to a dead end. Amalthea is tapping the wall and points out how it looks recently disturbed. Then BlackRose thinks she's found something. Looking closer Shaskur spies what appears to be a small hole in the wall. A key hole? Was it a door? She tilted her head. Well, this she could probably figure out if there was any kind of locking mechanism quickly. She pulls out a lockpick and tension wrench and begins to fiddle with what seems to be a lock.
Yuuki
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    The glowing red spot fades from Yuuki's head. But the girl sticks her tongue out at Shiroe for a moment, before saying with a laugh, "Hey, even the great Zekken is no match for Mother Nature!" Shiroe seems to get distracted, Yuuki wondering by what. And then Yuuki is distracted by Amalthea and Miyako, giving the two a grin, "I'm fine! Nothing a little spider killing won't fix." Speaking of. Onwards!

    They come to a dead end. Yuuki crosses her arms, agreeing with Amalthea, "This looks too much like a dead end to actually be a dead end." Gamer logic. Two things draw the eye. The stone formation and the hole in the wall. Yuuki doesn't know much about geology. But she does know a bit about holes. More putting them into things than studying them. But she's willing to give it a shot.

    A quick examination of the hole reveals there to be a mechanism inside. Though it appears to be locked. Yuuki grins, "Locks usually mean treasure!" That's definitely why she has the lockpicking skill. Yuuki reaches up to her headband, pulling out a couple thin pieces of metal. She stalks towards the lock-

    -Only for Shaskur to beat her to it. Yuuki frowns for a moment, but then smiles. It's okay. She'll supervise!

    "No no, it goes there. No. There! Yeah like that. Now slowly turn-the other way! No! Too far! Go back. Yes. That's it. Now push it in gently. Gennnntly. Gennnnnnnnnntly."
Kirito
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Kirito has a feeling that Shiroe may be looking to see who might be watching them, so Kirito makes his steps that much lighter, his tactics that much more precise, and his timing more efficient. Better not tip anybody off to his presence until its time. He totally wouldn't be around that corner or what have you.

Kirito, however, is amused at Yuuki's reverence of mother nature, though he mutters to himself. "No dead end is a dead end." but instead, he just waits until there seems to be a solution discovered. His attention then falls on Shaskur and notices the body language.

He may have to be careful.
BlackRose
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

"This isn't my forte," BlackRose comments as Shaskur takes out a lockpick and begins to work on it. "I'll cover you while you handle this." She draws her sword and keeps an eye on things, looking out for potential mobs or things like that. Who knows what they might be up against?

Eventually, the door is opened and as they start to go forward, BlackRose looks down at her boot-clad feet and scowls. "Looks like we might be getting closer to the source of all of this." She bites her lip a little, before widening her eyes as the light comes into the chamber and she gasps a little.

"I think we're closer than we thought," She says to no one in particular. "No turning back now, though, I guess we're going to have to deal with this somehow..."
Amalthea
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0


    The webs grow thicker as the group makes their way into the next room. In fact, it's just about everywhere; on the floor, the walls, the ceiling. Every step is sticky and labored, but that's not the worst of it.
    There are eggs everywhere. Sacs brimming with spiders, ready and waiting to burst at the lightest disruption.
    "Ah..." Amalthea murmurs before quieting down, glancing upwards before she holds a finger to her lips and motions quietly for others to look up as well... At the two massive spiders close to the ceiling, guarding the eggs...
    "Quiet may be best here." She whispers her suggestion. But it's just that. A suggestion.
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Shaskur is glad she has her facemask, her cheeks are rather rosy after Yuuki's.. ehm, descriptive guidance. Either way, between the two of them they were able to get the door open, leading to.. more webs. A lot more webs. Of course.

The room was utterly filled with webs and spider eggs, and then the large spiders that seem to be sleeping. She agreed with Amalthea, if they were careful they could sneak by without disrupting the webs.

Shaskur raises a hand to halt the others. She then clasps her hands together and places them on the floor. Once again darkness seeps out into the floor, but this time it spreads out and covers the floor along with the webs, dampening the vibrations.

She then turns back to the group and gives them a nod before she silently moves through the path of darkness she created across the room.
Yuuki
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    Yuuki's eyes light up at the sight of the spider nest as they make it past the so-called dead end. Finally!

    Wait, they're going to SNEAK through? Yuuki fidgets, eyeing those dangerous looking guardian spiders. They look like a fun challenge!

    Yuuki sighs quietly and decides to take one for the team. The imp proves that she does actually have some level of sneaking, as well as the ability to go more than a minute without speaking, by following the others quietly and sneakily.
Shiroe
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    He can't help but shake his head at that remark Miyako makes. "You sound like one of those people who yells at cell towers or something." That was still a thing in 2013 right? He's pretty sure that some group still caused hassles with towers back then. But that's not important right? What is important though? He quick chuckle back at Yuuki again, "So if I want to protect myself from you hide myself in some rocks. Got it." Okay maybe not that either but hey...At least he doesn't seem as spooked talking to Yuuki anymore! Back on topic though.The group makes it into the next room which was... "A spider nursery?"

    It was the only immediate thing he could think of when he sees the situation they're in. The plan was simple, try to avoiding waking the guards or popping the eggs. Just be nice and stealthy they could do that easy. I mean, if they just took a lesson from Yuuki's book they'd be damn ninjas even. Speaking of Yuuki... "/NO/." He scolds her in the most serious yet quiet tone he can give. Today he's learned something about Yuuki...She's a battle baka!!! Okay so new strategy formulates in his head. Try to sneak. Have Flame Shield ready just in case Yuuki ultimately decides that she wants to box the guardian spiders to burn the eggs. Perfect way to deal with crowd control while she aggros the bosses of the room...Hopefully it didn't come to that though.
BlackRose
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Sneaking may be fine for some people, but not for BlackRose.

She decides to use a little Dark Magic to keep the spiders at bay. Not to mention the magic should hopefully keep those egg sacs from hatching. Who knows how many might be in there? Sure, it's just virtual reality, but it still looks and feels real enough!
Miyako
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Miyako pads quietly along through the cave, once the secret door is found and opened. "Treasure, hmm?" She considers the Imp for a moment. "Were you expecting a box, all locked up with locks?"

    She chuckles a little as Shiroe calls the reference too. And playfully punches his shoulder. "Jinx. No touchbacks."

    Snark done for the moment, she pads along, stopping when she spots the field of eggs. "Oh, this is so not good," she whispers, and lifts her free hand to draw a series of runes in the air. The runes glow darkly for a moment before fading away, and shadows gather around her feet, muffling her steps and actually lifting her an inch above the floor as she slips quietly onwards.

    She looks over at Shiroe again and adds, "I say we take off and nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure."
Amalthea
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    Shaskur and BlackRose' spreading darkness is a boon in a situation like this, muffling footsteps as the group begins to cross the chamber. Poor Yuuki doesn't get to kill these spiders, but certainly there will be more for that later as the party progresses stealthily across the room without incident. Shiroe didn't even need to have that spell ready! Though it certainly would have been handy if things went pear-shaped.
    "Why would we need to do that? They mostly come out at night, mostly." Amalthea asides to Miyako with a sly little knowing wink.
Miyako
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    Shadow-magic and ninja-like stealth take the party slowly through the field of eggs, as the sleeping guard-spiders snore on - or whatever sleeping spiders do. Beyond the movie homage, however, lies the final challenge: huge and swift, mandibles dripping with vivid, acid-green venom. It skitters towards the intruders, chittering as its legs click along the floor and smoke rises from where its venom drips on the stone.

    The monster is huge, and fast, and well-armored. And that venom is definitely going to hurt if it gets any into you. Then, just as the party is surely all imagining things can't get worse, they get worse: It starts spitting balls of that same acid, leaving huge holes drilled into the stone when they strike the walls. If they should strike one of you... well, best not to dwell on that, just DODGE!
Shiroe
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    "How about we just stick with 'Killing it with fire,' first. That doesn't work then we'll go the nuclear route..." It's all he whispers as they finally leave to reach into the other room. A room that well..."Crap..."

    It's not because of the dripping acid onto the floor, or the fact they're in the boss room, or anything that would make sense of a monstrosity like this, it's a much simpler reason. "I've already been in this room..." Meaning he's not getting any new drops!

     "Watch out for the acid! It's not a joke on what it'll do to your health!" He shouts as he starts to get into formation with the others. Once again providing a group of debuffs and buffs over one another.

    Electrical Fuzz!

    Fierceness of Earth!

    Thorn Bind Hostage!


    It seemed like he really wasn't trying to play around. The group received another stat buff from the power of the earth, the spider's eyes would find their shots being slightly off their mark, and if they ended up getting a solid hit on the beast, well...Bonus damage. Go get'em everyone!
Amalthea
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    That. That sure is a huge spider.
    But as soon as it approaches, Amalthea takes a place at the front of the party, shield raised.

    "ANCHOR HOWL."

    It's a defiant declaration as her body suffuses with a bright glow. That thing is going to be punished severely if it attempts to attack anyone other than her as she braces behind her shield, holding it up and angled over her head and torso to guard from the acid globs.
BlackRose
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Sometimes the best course of action is to take action. And that involves BlackRose taking her sword and striking it at the giant spider as best as she can. She does her best to avoid being caught by its attacks as she swings her sword with as much strength as possible.
Yuuki
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    Finally! Yuuki is grinning from ear to pointed ear as they step into the boss room. And Yuuki is not disappointed at the sight of the giant spider, "It's a queen!" Yuuki knows those movies too!

    One might expect Yuuki to charge right in. But she knows well the steps involved in boss fighting. First, Yuuki focuses on avoiding the initial attacks while the tank draws aggro. The nimble imp does this by using her speed to zig zag between the acid blobs lobbed her way.

    Then once it's obvious that Amalthea has drawn the boss's attention, Yuuki switches to the attack. She does this by calling out, "Amalthea, give me a boost!"

    Yuuki dashes towards the knight, leaping at the last moment to plant her feet on that shield. And then with the strength of two physical fighters, Yuuki is launched into the air. The imp slowly spins through the air as she rises, her sword beginning to glow with light, leaving a trail behind her.

    As she reaches the peak of her jump, Yuuki flips over to point downwards, sword outstretched in front of her. With a battle cry she quickly accelerates downwards, rocketing towards the spider queen from above to strike with a punishing blow.

    After she strikes, Yuuki flips away from the boss to land on solid ground once more. She gives Amalthea a thumbs up and a grin.
Shaskur
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A huge venomous spider? Acid spitting none the less? Shaskur's eyes just twinkle slightly in joy. Finally, time to stab something in the back! All it needs it the perfect lineup for the strike. She sidesteps away from the party as darkness seems to cling to her as she moves to silently flank the huge spider.

It really was high time Ms Dagger was introduced to Mr Back. Quietly. Almost there. Oh so close. She was finally in position. Dagger posed for the strike. Oh, it would be so sweet.

And the spider bursts into motes of light.

Shaskur blinked a couple times in disbelief.

They slashed it up too quickly! She turned to poor Ms Dagger, apology in her eyes. "Next time. I promise." She whispers.
Miyako
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The giant spider continues skittering about, advancing on the party in a zig-zag, irregular motion, seemingly designed to disturb the observer. Magic rolls across the boss chamber, and...

    The creature pauses as magic wraps around it, turning to face directly at Amalthea, spitting several bursts of acid straight at her. Even as more magic begins to affect it, the image of thorny vines wrapping around it not seeming to faze the thing at all...

    ... but a huge sword slamming down right in its face? Yeah, it notices that. Its carapace starts to creak... then cracks... the crack widens... a flying imp's swords play the snare drum along the crack, widening it to reveal the tender tasty XP beneath... and a shadow-wrapped naginata blade stabs down into the center of the hole thus opened up, straight into what passes for the creature's heart.

    "Okay, I guess kill it with fire worked," Miyako agrees, "Now do the same for the eggs on the way out, yeah?"

    She doesn't even bother to look back at it as it fades away into rainbow-glowing pixels that themselves float into the air and fade further into nothingness.
Shaskur
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

Standing and moving out from the shadows while sheathing her daggers, Shaskur brushes herself off casually. Yep, nothing wrong here. At least she gets some loot she reflects. She then turns to consider the party.

They were all skilled. Shiroe always seemed to have a plan, and then a backup plan. Yuuki was living up to being called Zekken - she was still undefeated as far as Shaskur knew - definitely one to keep an eye on. BlackRose with her strength seemed like she could crush her way through most obstacles. Amalthea, resolute and dignified as only an older lady can be. And finally, Miyako with that naginata, there was power there, and that darkness arte she used.. Shaskur wanted to learn more about that.

With the boss dead, the duty was all but concluding. She moved over to Miyako and expounded on her opinion of the situation with all the elegance she could muster. "Agreed."
Shiroe
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    As the battle ends and everone's health gets one last look over from his monitor he lets out a sigh of relief before looking back Miyako's way. "Don't bother, they'll just end up respawning. Not worth the XP even. That said good job everyone. For a pick-up group I think this worked out really well. Anyway...Shas, Miyako, when we're done here..." He puts a hand to his ear. Clearly a sign of wanting them ready to talk on the comms but for now. They should get out of here. This place kinda reeked of acid and spider guts.
Miyako
Overworld - -2 - 1 - 0

    Miyako nods and matches Shiroe's gesture, acknowledging the request. "It's a matter of principle," she objects to his comment about the eggs. "Sure, they'll probably respawn... but we can't really know that, can we? The way things keep changing, maybe they have a limit to the number of times they can... and after that they'll really be gone. This world keeps acting more and more real the longer we're here... we should treat it like it's real, because sooner or later..."

    She has no objection, however, to getting OUT of the boss room and its acrid fumes.