Duty Session 232: The Mountain Memorial

    It was a beautiful day! The sun was shining, birds are singing, a bunch of helpless NPCs needed to be escorted to the top of a mountain....

... Oh right. Escort quests, these are a THING.

When Vafrum arrives he peers at the landers, looking at the children, before looking at the parents, then to to representative. The man rests his hand to his forehead, "... this better be worth the trouble..." He mutters under his breath.

Reputation after all was needed before he could do his real plans and so was more money in his rather empty coffers. While the Were Fang hiding as a human has plans, very big plans, there are things that must take place first.

As others arrive, the representative waits before he goes on with the quest objective. "Hail everyone! You have been asked to come here to help get these wonderful people up the mountain so they may say their blessings to those who have passed on and then get them back down safely."

The representative then smiles, "I am sure," He motions to the group, "This will be an easy task for people such as yourselves! Just remember, keep them all safe, alright?"

Event Quests are always rewarding. Prophylaxis knows this well, having taken part in most of the events in the past several weeks. They always, /always/ end up paying out well, even if they sometimes require some fairly... onerous work.

Like escort quests.

Now, Prophylaxis usually doesn't mind escort quests. He's a pharmacist! Keeping people alive is kind of one of the things he's good at. But historically speaking, his luck with escort quests hasn't really been the greatest. He's almost died on several of them, in fact!

So why do it with people he knows and ostensibly sees every day... When he can instead inflict his terrible escort quest luck on some relative randos?

Hence, he is here, standing next to the representative as cheerfully as cheerful can be. "I'm sure it'll be fine," he says with a knowing smile. "After all, what's the worst that could happen, eh?"

Goldenblade is heading up the mountain for the memorial ceremony, with the side purpose of participating in the ceremony, herself. Her wife never played, of course, but she still feels the loss keenly, and so when she found out about the ceremony thing, she allowed herself to be sidetracked from her roadbuilding project to join this group, both as guard and participant.

She nods a distracted greeting to Vafrum and Proph, looks over at the Landers, then sighs. Even -she- is a bit annoyed with the way escort quests seem to work in the game. On the other hand, it's an event quest, so is should have an interesting reward.

As far as what could happen, she says, "Please don't jinx us like that."

Ah summer, always an interesting time. Tenko has her cold weather gear for something a bit more appropriate for this mountain, though her armor is still quite appropriate for her. The masked kitsune currently has her hand resting on top of her daisho, "Has anyone ventured to this memorial before?" She asks, as she looks around the rest of the group. She has never done this, so she'd love to know what to expect.

    June arrives with her fur cloak open, the frumpy middle aged woman in her barbarian finery. She waves to Golden. "I haven't been, didn't really care much about the party side of things before and didn't bump into this particular quest." she says "Ooh I'm June, Junko... um Arima Junko." she bows with her hands on her thighs like she's introducing herself at a new job or school. "I was stuck in Ezzo so I haven't gotten back to anything like my strength before so please take care of me." she stops realizes she's doing it again and stands straight. Her language shifts into something very fluid, Sindarin for those who might recognize it. "Junnie they don't care, you're over sharing, just do the quest." she says rubbing her knuckles at her own temple. "You just do what you need to do and let them do what they need, and dont bother them with things they don't care about." The elvish is obviously directed at her self from tone and volume, even if everyone can understand what she's saying thanks to the translations.

    Vafrum slowly looks over to Prophylaxis as he opens his mouth to say those horrible, horrible worlds. "... If this goes side-ways... I am 300'ing you off this mountain, my dear sir."

Seems Goldenblade shares the same feelings, though Vafrum turns his ire predatory gaze from the dear doctor over to Tenko, "I have not! I tend to stay away from," He looks at his fingers for a moment. "... Dirty jobs.. But times are changing. The world is growing and I," He fixes his collar of his vest, "Must do the same if I desire to prove something to myself... Along with create my dream home for all to enjoy."

As June expresses who she is, Vafrum raises a brow and then goes to step over to her. "I actually love to know more about you, miss June. I am Vafrum Fonias, it is a pleasure." He gives her a respectful bow.

"After all, we are a team right now and perhaps could even help one another in future endeavours, hmm?" There is a soft smile, before the group goes to move onward!

The walk so far is fairly easy. The wildlife serenades the air with beautiful music from the feathery kind. Though the trees become less and less as they continue their climb.

It isn't long however that a roar can be heard and also the bears with bloody maws that start rushing toward the group along with the adventures that they are protecting.

Vafrum's eyes narrow sharply. They almost take on a slit pupil due to the bear's territorial roar. "... I... was really hoping I would never have to do this.."

Just what is he having to do? More than likely as he said, get his hands dirty...

Goldenblade shakes her head to Tenko about having been to the memorial before. "I haven't, no." June gets an entirely confused look before she realizes it's an internal dialog that's leaking externally. She smirks at Vafrum, wondering, "You'll do what to get him off the mountain?" But then he's flirting with June, and she'll leave them to it.

She's paying attention to escorting the Landers up the mountain as much as she's paying attention to anything, a bit distracted, when everyone spots the bears. "Ah, let's ... animals hunt by scent, right?" she wonders, and she'll let the subtle air currents mask their presence and bring the smells of the bears' meal back to them, to remind then what they're doing.

"Ahhh, don't worry about it!" Prophylaxis laughs the laugh of a man who knows that he's in for a long and probably thankless day. A laugh which resounds with the utter resignation of a soul who has seen escort quests go Wrong in ways that even the foulest devil in the deepest pits of hell would have a hard time visualizing.

But, onwards! And already, the very first obstacle the party encounters is something that most people would call 'kind of a bit much.'

Those are bears over there. And they are very quickly making to come over here. "Hm," Prophylaxis taps at his chin, then... raises his staff! It's a strange staff by standard set by most staves. The wooden shaft is surrounded by odd tubes and funnels that at times seem to be on the verge of falling off. But they never do.

And, when the wind begins flowing around that staff, those same shapes begin to emit an eerie, keening melody that cuts through the air and reaches just the right frequencies to scare away some of those bears.

"Huh," he says with a shrug. "I guess they couldn't /bear/ the sound of good music. At least I've given them claws to leave us alone, though. Hmhmhm~"

    June actually blushes and tucks her hair behind one ear at Vafrum's words. She walks along quietly however not giving more info or even 'thinking' just being. She's getting better at 'being' lately even if that can get her in trouble. Then the bears are there and she looks grumpy about it, but hey she doesn't go into a murderous rage instead, iron scales grow over her and her shape changes, bulking up until she looks like a 5ft power lifter, with an iron clad bulls head. The Werefang takes a deep breath, and bellows. It isn't the bellowing of a bull.. not exactly, it's something between the bellow of a bull and the roar of an angry peice of heavy machinery. The sound is truely intimidating.

"Don't worry about getting your hands dirty." Tenko replies from behind her mask, "That's why I am here."

She loves getting her hands dirty. Though fighting off a group of bears may not be the best idea, at least not in the situation they're in.

So instead she steps forward to put up a wall of air between herself, and more importantly the Landers behind them, and the bears. In the event that the others are unable to stop the creatures before they can reach the Landers.

    Vafrum starts to move ahead of the group, first comes off the vest in digital pixels, then the shirt the same way, before like a fluid animation the man becomes a dire-raptor were and goes to punch one of the bears that breaks out from the other directly in the jaw and sends it back toward the others, which are distracted by their sudden sense of smell being thrown off by Goldenblade.

June's bellow, causes a few more of the bears to go running, and right behind the bull's challenge, comes Vafrum once more moving like a seven foot sonic rocket for a few more to 'yeet' them off the cliff with a powerful sonic, back flip kick!

He land on the ground just in time to see Tenko's wall of air cut off some more of the bears from access and Prophyaxis finish off the rest, including the confused one caused by Goldenblabe to further be 'yeeted' off the cliff!

Vafrum brushes off his hands together and decides best to stay in his Raptor form, as his tail flicks in annoyance, brushing his feathers back a bit with his clawed hands. "Nuisances." He rumbles out with a predatory growl.

Now that the bears are dealt with and the landers are safe still, the group moves on still. This time coming to what seems to be an old mine shaft.

At first things seem alright, but it is fairly dark in the shaft, because of this the Landers hang back, allowing the adventurers to fully take the lead. As they go to move into the shaft, they find tiny lizard prints, before the next thing they know, spears are being thrown in the direction!

It is a kobold ambush and one they now must deal with the best way the adventurers know how...

The bears are vanquished! Long live the weres!

Or at least, these two weres. Prophylaxis is not a were. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that his eyes tend to glow ominously in particularly dim light (and only in particularly dim light), it'd be hard to tell that he's anything but a very strange Human.

Though, by some definitions, he IS in fact a very strange Human. Just, not one in form.

But where the bears have been removed as threats, the reign of the kobold is just beginning. "I think this might be the first time I've seen these little guys since the Apocalypse," Prophylaxis observes as an adorable lizard-man tries and fails to penetrate his trademark MAGICAL FORCE FIELD with a rusty knife. "I'm glad to see they're still being obnoxious as ever."

He taps the ground with the back end of his staff. Viciously jagged stone spikes begin to sluice out from the walls and the floors alike, catching the swarming kobolds in a flood of flesh-tearing earth before dashing them against the walls of the mine. "...And as easily dispatched as ever."

    After the bears have been run off June shifts back in to human rolling her neck. "And your mother smelled of elderberries." she announces, however the language she uses is gutteral rather than than being Japanese or even the Elvish she was using before. One might recognize it if they know the dwarven language of Khuzdul. Then she's humming to herself happily and walking with a bit of bounce to her step.

    When they enter the mine she looks around cautiously. "Mines usually mean ambush..." she says in Japanese before she licks her lips. She flicks her fingers through a few gestures prepping a Wave art. When the inevitable ambush shows itself it's just kobolds. She laughs and makes a few more gestures before taking up a martial arts position her hands held before her in a triangle. "FLARE!" a golden light starts as a bead between her fingers before exploding into light that is bright enough to be painful to look at for a normal person, much less the subteranian lizard folk.

Goldenblade smirks as the bears are left behind, telling the Landers, "Not to worry, we've got this under control. This is called into question as soon as the abandoned mine carts and broken tools come into view, and as she looks around and wanders through, it turns out to be an ambush.

So, not as under control as she'd claimed. Both swords come out, though, and she fends off the kobolds, slashing and stabbing, her height and the blades' reach proving decisive in dealing with the little menaces. They're not fast enough to slip in under her guard, and she fights hard as the party repels the assault.

The kitsune can hear all the kobolds skittering around. They're a threat, of course, but she's not showing any concern. Not that she ever shows a lot of emotion on her face one way or the other.

She moves towards one of the groups of the kobolds with their spears, and then stops, shifting her stance, and then making a swift movement with her katana, before re-sheathing the weapon.

A moment later, as the weapon clicks back into the scabbard, the ends of the spears of the several kobolds fall off, cleanly cut through, and clatter onto the ground. They should probably run, if they know what's good for them, because the next strike will be aimed for their necks.

    The cave is dark and Vafrum's reptile, raptor golden eyes almost glow in the dark or when light reflects across them as June summons her magical flare. Cause the Kobold's to screech in pain.

As the spears are thrown almost blindly now, Vafrum shifts his body one way to another, before swinging his foot around and /slashing/ one kobold into pixellated dust, and then swinging his tail to catch several more slamming them into Prophlaxises earth barbs that he summons.

"I never was the type to do adventuring." Vafrum admits. "I used the game for business deals and corporate agreements." His nostrils flare gently in a huff.

"Not that any of that matters now. We have to carve our own way in this damnable world until some means can be found to get out." The Dire Raptor continues to work in tandem with the others in helping dispatch the Kobold issue.

Moving under Goldenblade's swords, to make sure none would escape and observes as Tenko finishes off the rest of them. Good riddance!

The group would eventually find their way out of the windy, underground mines to come out on the side of the mountain to be offered a beautiful view of the world outside and the setting sun.

A sight Vafrum looks out and just stares at the beauty before them. His tail rests gently down and cranes his head softly to the side, before inhaling the cold mountain air. "I'll take up the rear," He looks over to June. "Given your were form, you probably should lead the front. You-- seem a bit more tanker than I." He laughs gently. "Everyone else can file as needed, but lets keep these wonderful people," He motions a clawed hand to the landers, "Between us and possible trouble."

Though if the group follows the suggest, who knows! What does happen however is as they all walk single file, is some angry dire eagles take great exception to them walking so close to their nests.

Those massive predatory birds come swooping down, threatening to claw any below them and perhaps try to knock them off the very mountain!

Goldenblade follows along with the others past the kobold ambush. She wonders, "Shouldn't we clear the route first, before we try and escort people?" But they don't want to go back, at this point, and we are pretty far along. So, it'd have to be something planned for the future. For the moment, the present involves walking single-file along ledges, which is nothing new to her after fifty years in construction, and dive-bombing birds of prey, which she didn't have to deal with in real life. A single blade comes out, she uses it to block and parry as the birds get close, slashing at them to drive them back from her and from the Landers.

"You would think so." Tenko replies to Goldenblade, as the group finds the next challenge, with the eagles screaming and slashing down towards them. She doesn't want to bring up respawn timers or event triggers, however. That would break the illusion and she hates breaking character.

"Keep the Landers safe!" She calls out, as she moves to conjure a storm above them, but far enough out that it won't hurt the group and their rather small path. Unfortunately she seems to place it too far out, and the hail of ice doesn't affect more than a few eagles who's flight paths take them through it. She'll need to bring it a lot closer next time.

Biiiiiiiiirds!

"This is incredibly unsanitary," the doctor decides, visibly cringing at the sight of an entire stone walkway just utterly slick with... bird poop. Has someone been adding coffee beans to their daily seed? Have they recently gotten into someone's supply of ultra-high-fiber bread!? Whatever it is, this is all gross. Too gross. Prophylaxis keeps his distance as the eagles descend, talons bared...

...And hurls fireballs up to meet them. But really that's incidental. What he's /actually/ doing is sterilizing the path forward with cleansing flame. Plus, given how narrow the passage is, worrying about stepping on anything too slippery to serve as a decent foothold is potentially more dangerous than the birds themselves! He's doing everyone a service, really.

    June laughs, her laugh is small and cute, it doesn't really match the middle aged librarian look... or the Barbarian Princess she dresses like. She speaks to herself... or so it would seem as she switches into elvish. "If only he knew, godhands are crap at tank... but there are two ways to take point right Junie?" she smiles and the smile is something agressive and competative rather than matching the cute laugh from just a moment before.

    She does take point, and when the Dire Aerie goes into attack mode, she starts to flow, moving through smooth martial arts poses that would make a wushu actor proud. "Thorn Bind Hostage!" she cries before thorny vines of earth energy snap from the ground pulling some birds down into their nests, and of coures amplifying the damage done to any of them with each hit someone else delivers.

    The ice does keep a few eagles away, but not enough to really help. Goldenblade is able to keep a few more eagles back with her blades and keep some of the Landers close to her.

A few more birds end up squwaking as their feathers get caught on fire by Prophylaxis cleansing fire! Who is also making sure no one slips on birdy white turds along th way. Something that Vanfrum was silently thankful for.

The Dire-Raptor were meanwhile in the back was using he height and jaws to snap at the raptors when they got to close. One point getting some tail feathers in his mouth which he spits out with a 'bleh!', causing a few lander children to laugh, taking away their fears a bit.

Then June handles the rest that others might miss with her impressive use of Thorn Bind Hostage, making sure that the birds cause no more harm and any further attacks /increase/ the harm to them!

Once the group at last gets higher up and where they don't have to be so single file. Vafrum lets out a huff of air. The cold setting in on his scales as he gets reminded just how 'real' some things are now.

Yet the concern of the cold setting in is the lease of their concerns, as something large starts to walk its way toward them.

THUD

THUD

THUD

Each step goes, before the massive troll can be at least seen. Vafrum looks up and up toward the massive monster in the distance. One could swear his feathers sink close to his body, his natural instinct is to shrink a little, as his nostrils twitch a bit.

A predator knows when they are being out alpha'ed by another predator, even when a were-fang is only half monster, it /still/ knows. "That... Isn't good."

The troll lets out a bellow before its goes rushing toward the group, club raised high! They will need to act quickly and protect the landers from the massive monster!

Proper sanitation is a critical component in any public health strategy, don't you know?

They've been at this for quite some time though, haven't they? It seems like only a few minutes ago that they were all sitting at the bottom of the mountain, fighting bears. Now the air is getting frosty and thin, and each step higher takes more effort than the last. For his part, though, Prophylaxis doesn't seem all too bothered by the encroaching cold. Almost as if he's just sort of used to this kind of temperature.

But the cold is not what's going to kill them. That honor belongs to the bridge up ahead... and the troll living beneath it.

Prophylaxis glances to Vafrum, then to the troll, then back to Vafrum. "What? It's just a troll. Come on, you know how this goes. They regenerate if they don't get set on fire." The magus raises one hand and snaps his fingers.

...And promptly /bursts into flame./

"Hold my staff," he asks, passing said staff off to the nearest party member... Before surging head-first at the charging troll. With a sound of crackling flame and a roar of thunder, he kicks off the frozen earth and rockets upward...

To land a vicious RISING KNEE STRIKE right to the troll's forehead.

Said knee strike then causes a point-blank explosion, because that's just the kind of guy Prophylaxis is, apparently.

Goldenblade moves forward with the rest of the group, but pauses when she spots the troll. "Well," she says lightly. "I thought this might be a challenge. Looks like I was wrong." Because her element is fire, and trolls are weak to fire. Even a clueless player like her knows this, and as she steps forward, drawing her blades, they both ignite, flames licking up and down the length of them.

Goldenblade's swordplay is not particularly spectacular, but the heat from the blades is so intense that the steel glows white, and each time one touches the troll, a big chunk of health drops off. Health it won't regenerate, to boot. Her flaming sword technique is incredibly intense and she plays it mercilessly, slamming the troll again and again for huge chunks of health.

    June taking point still is out front and moving gracefully even over the unstable ground. And then the troll is there, she shifts, a rippling of iron plates. "Oh light of the heavens, spirits of purity, empower this servant with the blazing light of your wrath. Let us bring light unto darkness and crush the minons of darkness under hoof." she starts to chant out her prayer, which causes a holy aura of light to gather, a halo of light between her horns. And it completes just in time for the troll's club to take her off her feet and fling her down into a crack that takes her long enough to climb back out of that the fight is over by the time she gets there, a large red mark showing where she took heavy damage from the club, fading by the time she gets back.

    "As I said earlier," Vafrum exclaims to Prophylaxis, "I didn't have to deal with this adventuring stuff till now!" It is also hard to explain Were Fang senses and how they impact things, even when he, himself doesn't fully understand it all.

Thankfully the team has the troll well under hand, while Vafrum moves swiftly to avoid the attacks, including moving Landers out of harms way as the others heroically deal with the massive monster.

Once that is done, they are free to clear the bridge. They head up the windy path that bellows cold wind. This is where a Yeti is waiting for them and begins to hurl ice rocks in their direction.

The group once more cuts their way through the path, through the Yeti, though Vafrum nearly gets knocked off the path! Probably saved by someone or manages to get his claws into the ice enough to pull himself back up.

Goldenblade shivers as the air gets colder, using her inner fire more and more, practically lighting herself on fire to put off the cold. Her nature -is- fire, and her footsteps melt the snow where she walks, but the bitter cold is penetrating. The climb is rough, but the massive yeti is worse, and it seems unhappy to see them.

"OK, this is going to be a bit more of a challenge," she admits.

But she darts in close, then leaps aside from its attack so fast that she's left a trail of fire. Like certain time-travelling sports cars, she is agile and blindingly fast, and the yeti would have to get quite lucky indeed to strike her. Meanwhile, her golden blads take bites from its flesh, whittling it down one slash at a time.

    Junie having been robbed of the last battle, not to mention clubed off a cliff is already on her last impressivly short nerve when the Yeti starts in on them. And true to June form she just snaps. The Iron clad bull woman, bellows, rocking the stones around her and then she's moving, and might as well be a billy goat gruff, given the smooth fluid way her hoves dance stone to stone as she charges the beast. Her horns lowered it's like small locomotive falling up a hill at the boss. Once she's up there it's a free for all, switching from wushu to wrestling looking moves, leaps back only to charge back in like...well and enraged bull.

Prophylaxis reclaims his staff, and just in time. The troll is replaced by something even more terrifying.

...A troll. BUT FUZZY.

Really, it's a Yeti. Prophylaxis winces at the sight of the thing, apparently remembering... something, from his recent past. "Okay, we'll be fine. It's not winter, so..." With staff back in hand, Prophylaxis... opens a mysterious book that had been dangling from a chain slung 'round his hip. The pages turn more rapidly than they aught to, even with the howling wind, as magical energy begins to draw up out of the tome, weaving arcane sigils that hang in the freezing air. With a sweep of his staff, Prophylaxis seems to gather the runes up and around its ornate head like a cloud of freshly spun sugar. The light accumulates and concentrates, before finally bursting forth as a ray of raw magical might...!

And clocks the Yeti right in the gut!! Repeatedly. That light doesn't seem to be fading any time soon.

Breaking out her flames, the kitsune uses them to rain fire down upon the troll living below the bridge. She hits it with several balls of flame, building a veritable wall in front of herself as she drops the shots down upon it. Dangerous to do when the bridge is made of wood, but she makes it work.

When the yeti shows up, she'll need to use her lightningstep to evade the thrown rocks. She uses that ability to get in close, dodge around the yeti and keep its attention on her while the others rain down damage upon it, landing strikes here and there when she can. She's good at keeping the big furry monster's attention on her.

     The Adventures all work together, minus Vafrum cause he is getting himself back up after nearly being knocked off to only watch as everyone puts in a good fight! Once he is fully back up he seems most impressed by June's go get them attitude!

Once things settle back down, he watches the Landers and the children each give a member a gift of thank you once they are back down. Which by the time they are back down, Vafrum is back to his human form and wearing his normal attire.

He looks to each and gives a nod of approval. "Good job everyone! And thank you for your knowledge on some of these beasts, Prophylaxis. It is useful if I should ever do this again or run into such creatures on my travels."

Then he walks over to June, "And you, my dear, should give yourself more credit. You are strong woman. One who deserves respect for not only your strength, but your grace. Don't let anyone think any less of you and own what you can be." He says grasping his hand into a fist in front of them as emphasis. "I am glad to party with you," Then he turns to the others, "And the rest of you as well." Before giving a respectful bow to all.

    June shifts back into her human form after... well savaging the Yeti, then some poor defenceless boulder, possibly a tree or three, and all the while swearing like a sailor on their first leave. The swearing is interesting, involving improbable situations, imposible physical acts, and quite often with family members who shouldn't do that kind of thing. It's all delivered in the gutteral tongue of Tolkien's dwarves. Once the rage cools however she's just back to being a middle aged librarian in cosplay. When they're back down and Vafrum gives her that compliment she smiles with a bit of a blush. "Don't worry, I know my worth." she says and gives him a firm pat on the butt that would likely get her fired if she were at work and may have caused issues in office life before the Apocalypse.

    Then she's switched to Sindarin "Good job Junie, you know HR said you aren't allowed to slap the cute men and women on the ass... drunk, sober, or otherwise... you or them... keep it cool Junie you need to remeber to stop and think before putting your hands on others... remember what the therapist said... keep it together, count it out, no positive or negative touching without checking rationally to see if it's okay in the situation..." she knuckles her temple the whole time obviously the werefang has some issues...