Duty Session 234: The Mountain Memorial

During the time of the Firefly Festival, it is common for people to seek out old memorials in order to pay tribute to those who have passed. However, not all remembrance sights are easy to reach and some have been overrun by monsters over the years. A group of travelers have reached out to the Hunter's Guild, looking for aid from Adventurers in order to trek to a memorial stone seated high in the mountains. It will be a dangerous journey, but they seem willing to brave it in order to honor their ancestors.

OOC: This quest is only available during the Firefly Festival. This quest is largely 'Combat'-concept based.

Difficulty:    Easy
Rec. Party:    3+
Rewards:       1
World Rewards: None

Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The Firefly Festival has begun, a somber atmosphere has fallen upon Yamato.

The sun is up, the weather is still warm, yet the sunny appearance of nature is not reflected in the somber countenance of the family of landers waiting in a field. They are covered in heavy coats, walking sticks, and backpacks full of provisions. Adventurers might find this a bit too much.

A representative of the Hunters' Guild waits next to them. A black coat, a walking stick, a thick mustache.

The first to arrive is Uta, who has switched to a more somber black gi for the circumstances. Switching staffs wasn't much of an option at the moment, so that one is still the caduceus-themed white one she usually sports.
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider is here to help with the escorting Landers up the mountain thing. It's supposed to be some kind of special day for them, and while he's normally as cultural as a spare tire, he likes to be involved in things. No, seriously. Well, and he was getting a bit bored. So, here he is, attempting to look cool despite the somber atmosphere. He has skipped his coat, because his life is always Fiery. He smiles to Uta and looks around, nodding to he Hunters' Guild fellow. "This the escorting Landers thing?" he wonders.
Mikage
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The somber feeling of the Firefly festival doesn't really suit Mikage and her general tendency to look at the world in higher spirits. She has no lost family members or friends to mourn, either. So, rather than focusing on the real reason for the season, she seems to be more interested in spending the days exploring the unique events.

That is what lands her here, brought by the Hunter's Guild notice. How does the Ranger celebrate a time of mourning? By killing things. Probably, anyways.

"I don't think I've traveled into these mountains, so it should be interesting to see what's up there." She comments, resting a hand on her sword.
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

For all that the air has turned somber, there's something oddly /content/ about Estelle. There's an extra assurance to her stride, a flick to her tails; this is her time of year, as everyone turns to the Stars for Guidance. Her wand has been replaced by a fan; it's closed, but the open picture is a rich black silk, dusted with stars. "Good day, everyone." She says simply, bowing her head to the others.

"Let us proceed with this sacred duty, and assist this family in their walk of the mountain's shrines." She turns to the Landers, and gives them a curtsy. "We have the blessings of the Heavens with us, so fear not. We will see you through."
Proteus
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The Festival is a somber thing, but as someone who regularly roots through graves and tombs and the memories of the past, Proteus doesn't seem to be particularly grief-stricken. The Imp Archaeologist stands there looking over the family, nodding to herself. "Seems straightforward enough." She agrees. "I've been wanting to go to the memorial myself, so this works out well. I'll give you all a hand and we'll make sure everyone moves along safe and sound." The Mysterious Hood might not precisely instill confidence, but hey, Imps gonna Imp, right?
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    Mizuki heard there were adventurers LFG so here she is! She's in her combat gear, a midnight-purple ninja gi with long red scarf and sheathed long daggers at her sides. "Hi guys! What are we doing?" Although, as she sees the Landers, only then does she realize she's signed up for an ESCORT QUEST. She can't hide the look on her face but she's at least polite enough not to actually SAY 'Oh no, not an escort quest!' in front of the Landers.

    Actually... seeing their unease, she gives them a reassuring thumbs-up and a smile. "Don't worry! We'll protect you, nya!"

    As the montain itself is disgussed, Mizuki looks to Mikage. "You know... all these months, and I still haven't run into the real Eddga yet... but I haven't really gone looking... Every time we go into the mountains, I wonder if we're gonna run into him... I guess it'd be just another field boss encounter, but I guess I feel like there's some weird connection when this body's supposedly made from a monster, you know?"
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

So the Firefly Festival had started she understood the gist of it. Her tabbard was black today in keeping with everything else. She would look to Dark Schneider and nods to him. "I think so Dark Schenider." She notes before looking over to Uta with a grin, Uta might feel the gaze of Gwen upon her. Clearly Gwen's getting outfit ideas even now. Though she'll talk about them later, ideas of gothic styles for Uta are drifting through her mind.

"Hey Mizuki. Well, I suspect we'll run into it sooner or later. I'm still waiting for some things from the Tome of Gynax to show up."
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"I, Mister Mustache, welcome you, noble Adventurers. Indeed, this is an escort mission of the utmost importance." He gestures towards the Landers. "This is the Remembrance family. Please meet Mr. Remembrances, Mrs. Remembrance, Mr. Remembrance Jr., Mr. Remembrance Emeritus, Young Miss Remembrance..." The Lander goes on and on introducing everyone, down to baby Remembrance III.

"These mountains are beautiful," begins Mr.Remembrance with a soft voice. "But let yourself not be too distracted," interject Mr. Mustache. "Remember, you are here on a mission, not for sightseeing."

Mr.Mustache graces Estelle with a dignified nod of his head and with a very pleased smile. "Indeed, Madam. This is, in truth, the spirit of this hallowed time."

"It is good that you take your time to Remember, noble Adventurer," Mr. Mustache nods to Proteus. "May this bring blessings upon your soul."

Preparations are finished, and the team eventually goes on its way.

"What is an Eddga?", Uta asks, confused. She apparently is unaware of the monster Mizuki is based on. Or she forgot. "And what is the Tome of Gygax?" Also not familiar with D&D, it would seem.

The adventurers begin their climb through a mountain trail. Birds chirp, animals chitter, leap about. Flowers waft in the wind, and mountain streams glimmer in the sunlight.

The family of Landers, of all ages from babies to grandparents, however, keep their somber countenance all through this.

Uta turns towards them, in an attempt to politely break the ice, not sure if the circumstances allow it or it is considered to rude. "...So, uhm, it's my first Firefly Festival, and I was wondering, uh..."

"Look out! A bear!", exclaims one of the Landers, pointing in the distance.

Uta turns to look. A roaring black beast of a bear, muzzle covered in blood, is headed their way! He looks more scared than the adventurers probably are, but in this case... well, it's not a good sign.
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider perks up when Gwen addresses him as Dark Schneider. He winks to her, then looks to the Landers. The ... Remembreances? Well, it's as good as anything, he guesses. He joins the others heading up the mountain, looking around. Ostensibly for danger, but mostly just sightseeing.

The roar of bears is his first hint of danger, and he chuckles, calling out in a clear tone, "Spirits of Air, serve me!" An elemental, a swirling whirlwind of air is summoned, and spins toward one of the bears, badly confusing it more than anything else, and it tries to find a way around, but the elemental continues to badger it, forcing it slowly back and away from the party.
Mikage
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

There is a slight tilt of the head that Mikage offers out at Mizuki's comment, before she nods. "I haven't run into any instances of my monster-spirit, either." She admits. "Maybe certain monsters are just rarer to find since the Apocalypse?" It's a guess, and she doesn't sound entirely sure of that.

That thought falls to the wayside as they get a long set of introductions which cause her to stare. Shaking her head, the Ranger follows along with the group as they start to head off towards the mountain.

As the bears appear, Mikage is one of the first to step forward, holding her hands in front of her, "They're likely just being territorial. We can probably just show them that we aren't a threat." She pauses, perhaps already expecting what will come next, "Or... just scare them off with loud noises."

She recommends.
Proteus
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Proteus squints at some of the words of the others, and she gives a wry little grin. "Cute little trick." She murmurs to Gwen and Mizuki, but she focuses on the Remembrance Family and the Mustached One. "Of course." She nods. "And also to yours." She says politely in return. Frankly, her soul could use all the blessings it can get at the moment.

Still, everything is moving on, and Proteus looks around to keep an eye out for trouble. And trouble happens. Bear-shaped trouble. "Tch. I'd rather not be tangling with wildlife here if we have a choice." She says, an Ability window snapping open next to her hand as she gestures: ^ X o

There is a compression of air near the bear, before it detonates in a loud thud, a quick, magical flashbang. If she had targeted the bear directly there might be some damage with it, but she just wants to scare the thing off.
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The vixen shakes her head, at the walk-through of the Remembrance family. Someone was having... way too much fun, there. Still, she readies herself with a breath in and out, nice and slow, before they start off up the mountain, Landers in tow. "The Firefly Festival is a time of many things, Uta." She comments to the spriggan. "And I can answer some questions on its nature, if you wish."

The shouting about 'bears' doesn't phase her at all, her ears twitching a little at Mikage's 'recommendation'.

... because, yes, 'loud noises' is easiest. And so she makes a simple invocation of the stars; "Mul Uga Mushen, your cry heralds the rain. Perform now Adad's thunderous refrain." Corvus shimmers into view above her head, its wings spreading and its beak opening wide as a peal of thunder rings out, its 'might' focused towards the feasting bears.
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    Mizuki blinks at Gwen. "The Tome of Gygax? I didn't think CC Corp had the D&D license, although... man, there could be stuff added in the update that hadn't been announced yet, huh..."

    And then she just... :| as Mr. Mustache introduces the Rememberance family. See... she's trying to treat NPCs like people, but stuff like this keeps happening...

    She answers Uta, "Eddga the Thief is a reference to a Japanese idiom about 'when tigers could talk'; I guess meant to imply during the sort of... mythic animal fable age... So, he's an ancient tiger who doesn't like civilization encroaching on his mountain. Has fire magic, summons hitstun, resistant to bears." She blinks. "Err... swap those two. At least, that's what he was in Ragnarok Online... I don't know anything about him here, but I expect the thematics are the same..." She holds up her hand and forearm. "Honestly, when I was hitting random on the avatar I was just trying to get a cat with roughly this fur color."

    And then there's a roar, and her tail bristles. This is... a challenge! No way does a mere Beast get to think it's higher on the totem pole than someone who's part monster! She faces the bear, claws out and hackles raised, her mess of hair making her look bigger, and

                                 * R O A R ! *                                  

    No, Prophy, being a were fang isn't affecting her mind. In real life Sam sometimes barked back at dogs that were being annoying. That just made them bark more, though, so hopefully this goes better.
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Gwen bows to Mister Mustache and listens to what he has to say. "Good to meet all of you I am Gwen Pendragon." She will look over the party of Landers and when she's asked she looks to Uta for a moment. "The monster Manual of D&D." She kept expecting Beholders and worse to show up at some point. Then comes the Bear, a freaking black bear of some sort. However this wasn't a normal one either, she'll stand her ground start chanting an air spell.

"GALE-FORCE!"

She sends powerful cutting gusts of wind at the charging bear. It may end up very grizzly for the party or the bear in short order hopefully they don't fall into pandamonium because of it.
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Uta turns to Estelle, "Oh, I'd love to! I can never get enough of lore, or stories, or meanings behind celebrations. Please do explain!", Uta urges.

Mikage's gesture seems to calm the bear a bit. He stops, he sniffs the air. He's still scared, but he tilts his head, considers these creatures once again.

Schneider's elemental takes the bear by surprise; despite the beast's effort (and roars) to press on, he is an exact match for the powerful summon.

They appear to be locked into a stalemate, until Proteus's flash-bang sends the beast flying sideways with a bang. It lands uncerimoniously on its side, and it takes him a bit to get up. He shakes his head, stunned, until more thunder rains down, courtesy of the Fox of the Stars.

"Wait, you hit random on the avatar too? Wow, nice! Maybe some time or other we could get together and exchange funny stories about that and... tips... er... I guess there wouldn't be much to say. But still, I'm sure it'd be a really fun ten minutes."

The bear gets hit once again by Gwen's gale, pushed further around, and, at this point, is too stunned to think straight. Unsure whether to respond to Mizuki's show of dominance, or just dart away. After much doubting, it seems to go for the former, but it's clear it takes just a little bit of nudging more to send him running for the mountains.

The... mountains he's already on.

...you know what I mean.

Uta lowers her stance. "Begone, foul beast!", she exclaims, swings her staff around her body the way one normally does with nunchucks, spins in the air a few times, and finishes by casting it the way one does with a fishing rod.

Thunder materializes and crackles. An electrical whip imbued with the terrifying powers once believed to be Zeus' undisputed domain zaps the ground in front of the beast, which halts in its track, sniffing at the ozone rising from the darkened spot in front of it.

"...I can do that?!", Uta exclaims, a cross-eyed stare of disbelief directed at her staff. "...coool."

The team continues on. Uncontaminated nature gives way to an iman-made structure, or at least, iman-dug: an abandoned mine. The party ventures in, and the deeper they venture through the caves riddled with abandoned carts and equipment, the darker it gets.

The dust who has lied undisturbed for who knows how long eventually gives way to dust which has been disturbed relatively recently: kobold prints! The adventurers will have to take the lead at this point, because, would you really send Baby Remembrance first? Would you, you /monster/? Thought so.

And that was a good idea: kobolds, chittering in an incomprehensible tongue, leap at our heroes from the darkness!
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider concentrates as his small elemental engages the bear, pleased that it's still pretty effective, if less dramatic than some of the others' efforts. Well, control of the elements is only a small part of what he does.

When the party moves on, he moves with them, of course, into the cave and through the detritus of broken mine carts and discarded tools. He holds one hand aloft, surrounded by flame like a torch, but Light shines from it because while fire is cool, he'd really like to see through the gloom. The powerful light, holy and intense, weakens the kobolds' attack, so that the ambush is less effective, and even Schneider's weak swordplay is enough to finish them off.
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"It's 'when tigers smoked', hence his pipe, and isn't Japanese." Estelle corrects, absently, as they drive the bears off. Even as she unflattens her ears from the storm of sound the group unleashed, one hand reaching up to rub along the astral flaps. "Though there is a lot of cultural bleed in the region, so."

"It's a festival of remembrance, of mourning. A time to celebrate the past, and all those who played a part in it and are now departed, and look forward to the future. Memorials and shrines are visited, to reflect on those they represent, offer up tokens of remembrance, and light lanterns to guide spirits home." She gestures back to the Remembrances behind them, and the path they walk to such a memorial, the painted stars on her fan glinting in the light. "Meanwhile, the Stars are sacred to this time; it is believed the Ancestors share their wisdom through them, alongside the usual guidance of the Heavens. Fortunes are read, plans are made, and steps forward are taken under their auspice."

And then they're pressing into the mine, and she shakes her head. "Polaris, the Guiding Star, light our path near and far." Her fan snaps shut, even as she raises it above her hear - a brilliant point of light shining at its tip, before it pulls up and away to illuminate the mine. "Grand us your trusted light to augment our feeble sight."

As for the Kobolds... Well, she makes what shots she can with simple invocations of "Sagitta", arrows of light peppered in amongst the rest of the group's assault.
Mikage
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Delving into the dark places beneath the mountain seems to spark Mikage's curiousity. "I wonder why this place was abandoned." She shines her torch into the spaces around them, trying to get a look into the darkness beyond. She does stick with the others, though, despite that ever-present interest in seeing all the world has to offer.

Soon enough, she finds out just why the place might have been abandoned as the Kobolds show themselves. "Guess that answers that question."

"They spend most of their time in the dark, so let's see how they like a little bit of light." She grasps the blue gemstone that normally hangs from her neck, channeling magic through her sword until it blinds a few of the nearby creatures, causing them to cry out and flail backwards.
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    "Err, everyone either chose random or used body scan..." But then there's a bear.

    Once that's dealt with, she's corrected by Estelle, and holds a finger to her chin. "Oh, it is? Huh... That explains the pipe. So which culture is it from? Chinese?"

    Mizuki smiles at Uta's 'I can shoot lightning!?' moment. "Right? I guess we've gotten pretty used to being able to do amazing stuff in here, but... it's good to remember it's cool. Kinda like how back in the real world we could communicate across the planet in an instant... or look up all of humanity's knowledge on the Library of Alexandria... or how we sent people to the Moon..." She slumps slightly and her ears splay. "Man, I guess there's a lot of things we could once do that we could no longer do, huh..." But then she straightens up and holds her arms out in an expansive gesture. "FullDive technology is pretty cool, though, so there's that!"

    "So I guess we need to appreciate the little things like shooting lightning spells or spitting fire. Or being able to climb a mountain. You know, back in real life I hiked up a mountain a couple of years ago, but it *sucked*. I was out of shape, had to stop and rest every few minutes... But now..." she throws out her arms and spins around once, "I can climb mountains no problem! So, that's cool."

    Into the mines they go. As usual, Mizuki forgets that most people don't have darkvision -- or rather, that she's benefitting from it; she's just still able to see with even dim, distant light and doesn't think anything of it. Although, deep enough in a cave, even she can't see unless there's glowing fungus or something. Presumably someone has torches, she'll light one with her breath if needed.

    When they find kobold prints and put the Landers in the rear, she points out, "Actually, don't we want them in the middle? With all these branching tunnels, we could get attacked from behind..."

    And then, sure enough, kobolds! She uses fire when they're bunched up and darts around and between them with ninja speed, stab-stab-stabbing! Once they're down, she checks on the Landers, since she can't see their HP bars on the HUD. "Everyone alright?"
Proteus
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Bear problem: solved. Proteus nods to herself and helps usher the Rememberance family along. "Please do not feed the animals." She instructs them in some parody of a tour guide, in a way. They move right along into the darkness, and Proteus mostly absorbs the commentary from the others as she steps ahead, helping to ushes the big family along and keep the Landers together. Not that they need that much more encouragement, given the darkness... And the signs of Kobolds. "Careful. We're not alone here."

Just as expected, the little creatures begin menacing, but even having had her Level reset, Proteus smiles toothily. "Kobolds. Cute." Her hand flicks again: ) K

A gleaming dome of light appears, a shield of bright energy repelling the weak attacks on one side and keeping the Landers covered from one vector. "Come on. Everyone, keep your hands and legs inside the defensive fields."
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Gwen grins at Uta and Estelle. "More lore the better as it's starting to become needed to get by." She would move onwards and she thinks for a moment looking at Uta and Mizuki for a moment.

"I didn't body scan myself." She may have hit random a few times though. She moved along with the party and thinks for a moment and laughs a bit at Uta. She seemed to be in a good mood. "Yes, you can it seems Uta." With that, she'll move on and with what's going on here she'll end up chanting a spell.

"Heaven's wish it to smite down the wicked. HOLY!"

A ball of light energy forms ahead of the party and then explodes at the charing Kobolds.
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Uta taps her chin. "Interesting. I suppose it is a good plan to set some plans into motion..."

But let's go back to the main battle -- blinded by all the light wrought upon them by the adventurers, and finished off with swords, arrows, and staff blows to their face. "Yeah, I think I left because of all the dust and the broken carts. Seriously, this decor is disgusting, anyone would want to leave," jokes Uta.

Panting with elation at the successful battle, Uta replies to Mizuki, "...yeah! It's... pretty nifty actually, once you think about it. And... who is to say that we won't be able to do some of those things here as well soon? I mean, we already have chimlinks. And automatic translation." She taps her chin. "I should really look into that Babylon Signal thing at some point..."

"Oh, here's another thing I can do in this world!" She heads over to the family, and flicks her menu open to activate medical inspection. This skill, as experienced players might now, requires physical contact with the patient, so she performs the action which, in medical terms, is known as 'booping the snoot' on every member of the Remembrance family, from Grandpa Remembrance to Baby Remembrance. "...they're all fine, seems like Proteus's protection did an excellent job! Let's move on!"

After what seems like an eternity trapped underground, the way angles up again. As the cave opens up into the mountainside again, the light from the day's travels has dwindled, leaving a brilliant red and gold sunset that is breathtaking this high up in the mountains.

The journey continues through narrow ledges in the stone, sometimes making the party have to walk single-file. Along one section, large boulders seem to have become nesting places for some sort of feral birds. The ground is littered with avian refuse.

From above, there is a squawk of alarm which seems to rally a number of others. Wingbeats follow as dire eagles take flight, trying to protect their nesting place from these intruders. Soon, birds are diving at them in numbers, sharp talons slashing out towards the party members and Landers alike.
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider goes through the underground, holding his blazing, glowing sword aloft. The sword's not special, but he'd be a lame sorcerer if he couldn't heap cool magical effects on starter gear and make it glow like a Christmas tree. Though in his case, it's after the wiring has started an electrical fire, but before the lights have gone out.

Once they get outside, the problem is a bit different, though, and he calls out, "DAMEDO! Magic shield!" That quick shielding incantation may be what saves his eyes from being plucked out by attack eagles. Which are much more dangerous than Land Bears. Holding the flaming shield, the fire burns the eagles when they get too close, and so all he needs to do is keep the shield going. Though these eagles are pretty butch, and it takes all his concentration to keep the shield up under the attack.
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"Korea, land of the liver-eating foxes," (is that a flash of fangs?) "and human-faced birds." comes the easy continuation of the conversational thread with Mizuki, before she nods to Gwen. "This world's history is more important now than ever, as we delve ever deeper for answers to its many mysteries. Comparing and contrasting it to the myths of other lands can provide insights, but it is its own place, and so deserves proper study and attention. Even if I prefer the Stars."

"... I wonder, though. Would it be an ill act to spend some time mourning Alexandria in this festival?" It's brushed off almost immediately, though.

Especially when dive-bombing birds enter the picture, and everyone starts throwing up shields to keep them at bay. "Scutum, shield of the skies! I bear you now to protect my allies!" She chants, in her tried and true method - slipping the silvery veils of her shields in amongst the riot of everyone else's work, a minor thread woven amongst them.
Mikage
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

As they step out into the light yet again, there is a feeling of relief. Mikage takes in a deep breath of the mountain air, pulling up her hood against the temperatures as they start to grow slightly colder.

What she doesn't expect is the claws from above that come sweeping down their way. Raising one arm defensively, talons dig into the leathers as she curses under her breath, reaching to pull the bow from her back.

Drawing back an arrow, she channels magical energy through it, causing the tip of it to glow as she fires it towards a mass of the dire birds, trying to disrupt them and drive them off as much as possible.
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    Korea? "That woulda been my next guess, but at that point I guess I'm just guessing 'somewhere in asia'... ugh, sorry I got them confused, that's kinda culturally insensitive isn't it..." She does feel a little foolish. She brings her hands together. "Forgive the ignorant American." She smiles, making fun of herself.

    Mizuki furrows her brow in thought as Uta brings up the Babylon Signal. There's so much to investigate in this world she's forgetting some and losing track of it... ugh.

    They emerge from the cave and Mizuki wrinkles her nose at the avian refuse. "Oh come on! Did you bug the kobolds when THEY came here?!" She jukes to the side and swipes claws at a bird that takes a dive at her. "Cat vs Bird, do you know who wins that fight?! Ugh, they're Dire Eagles, though... are those usually hyperagressive?"

    Suddenly she imagines one of the eagles snatching Baby Rememberance to fly off -- and, with the eagles striking from the air, forming a defensive circle isn't enough to guaruntee the landers' safety. "I got you!" she calls to the landers, "Incoming buff!" Mizuki plants her feet firmly on the ground, squatting in a low stance, then reaching out with her hands as if grabbing at the earth before standing up tall and bringing her hands together and upward, as stone rises up from the ground around herself and the landers, forming itself into plates of armor that not only protect from claws but are heavy as stone except to the wearer! That should give the eagles some trouble trying to carry anyone off...
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Gwen is in full agreement with Estelle on looking for lore. "We should go see if we can exchange somethinf ror lore from the Devil With Glasses." She notes as the last monster falls. "We should also look into clearing out th monster nests near the capitol cities too. Might get the noblity more friendly too us, also would make things safer for people in general. Nice job Proteus! Oh when this job is over I want to talk to you on a thing I found."

She'll head onwards with that and soon there's even more trouble come the bird are comming and well Gwen knows just what to do. She'll trigger her most known tanking ability.

"ANCHOR HOWLLLLLLLLLLLLL"

The green wind comes and she pull a lot of the birds to attack her rather than her comrades.
Proteus
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Proteus lends her aid where she can to keep people safe. Alone it might have been dicey against so many, but there's plenty of perfectly competent adventurers here to cover the other sides. "Yes. FullDive technology is pretty interesting. There's all kinds of traits about it that bring up questions to find answers to. Hard to do so from in here, however." Proteus replies to Mizuki. "But you're right. It's the little things that we get to appreciate, right? The little things. The big things. An expansive world to mold and grow, with the agency given to you to do just that."

Of course, now that they've gotten past bears and bolds, now there's birds. There is a deep frown on Proteus' face. "Maybe we should spend some time looking over all the old monuments and securing them against hostile wildlife and monsters." Proteus asides to the other adventurers. "This really isn't acceptable." Again, there's another gesture: + U K

This one, however, puts a buff on Proteus as she begins interposing herself in the way of the birds, swinging her arms out and blocking the incoming attacks with precision parry maneuvers, knocking them off balance before swiftly smashing them out of the air with a followup or setting them up for one of the other adventurers to finish off.
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"I don't think it would, Estelle," Uta replies to the Fox's doubts. "As you so eloquently put it, this is a festival of remembrance, of mourning. A time to celebrate the past, and all those who played a part in it and are now departed, and look forward to the future." She shoots Estelle a knowing grin. "Sounds like a by-the-book definition of what you were planning to do, to me."

The wall of rock shoots up just in time to slam against a few eagles which were, indeed, attempting to snatch Baby Remembrance.

"You make an excellent point, Proteus. Memorials are built explicitly so something wouldn't be forgotten... which... usually means it's important. What we look for might be hiding in plain sight."

The battle against the flying creatures is successful... except, possibly, that Estelle's protection getting pierced after some time holding out, and Uta.... running around and getting pecked at a lot. Unlike Gwen's Anchor Howl, she's not supposed to be a tank and draw aggro.

It seems like the Landers weren't as dumb as one might have thought. When the sun disappears, the temperature drops sharply, and all those heavy coats make sudden sense. Beaten paths give way to vague shapes in the rock that look slightly more fit to support a foot than the rocks around it. Narrow, unsteady, slippery. The Landers need all the help they can get to avoid falling off and getting seriously hurt. Or worse.

The party reaches a bridge, an affair made of rock, which spans a massive chasm.

Or used to; the central part has collapsed, and has been replaced by a few boards hastily thrown on.

"Well, I mean, it could be worse," comments Uta. "We could have met a Troll-"

"Look out!", calls out Mr. Remembrance. "It's a Troll!", he points, as the beast approaches with a growl, and a very large club.

He doesn't look friendly.
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Once the birds are dealt with, Dark Schneider will continue with the party further up the mountain. Coming to a rickety bridge, complete with troll, he wonders, "How does the troll not fall through the bridge?" BUt that's not important right now.

What's important now is what to do about the troll. Of course Schneider has one solution for everything, but for trolls, it's particularly effective. "GUNZENRO!" he shouts, and hurls flame at the troll, melting away it's HP like ice on a summer sidewalk. And with about the same result.
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Gwen looks over to Proteus. "There was a man from a company that worked with Cyberconnect he confessed the current-gen of full drive could do full-on brain scans like entirely so. As for that sounds like a plan Proteus. Just need to get a good hat and a whip. Maybe a good leather jacket too." There Gwen goes again. "Paying respect to the dead is never a bad thing." Things go well for a while but then the Troll. "No Mutton or hobbits for you!"

Gwen starts chanting a spell sending a bolt of electrical energy which might also debuff the target.

"ELECTRICAL FUZZ!"
Mikage
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The moment that Uta comments about Trolls, Mikage looks over in her direction. When the Lander calls out the warning, she just raises her eyebrows. It's almost as if the Spriggan had summoned one out of the ether just to prove the point.

"Right, let's see what we can do here." Miki chooses to go the melee route for this particular enemy, which probably isn't the smartest of moves. She seems to feel confident in her own ability to dodge the slow attacks.

Except, they aren't as slow as she expects and it isn't long before she gets slammed into and nearly sent toppling over the edge of the bridge and off the mountain.

The Were Fang clings to the stone, scrambling for purchase, breathing heavily as she tries to pull herself back up.
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"There's a difference between remembering people and places." The fox points out, closed fan jabbing in Uta's direction. "But I suppose so." She concedes, shaking her head. Then she snaps the fan open to wave off Mizuki's clasped hands and bowed head, smile playing at her lips. "Like I said, there is a lot of cultural bleed. I'm just in a... pensive mood, I guess, for all that the festivals speaks to my place in the world."

Of course, then the call of 'Troll' is being raised, and she turns her gaze forward to study the latest barrier in their path, fan hiding the lower half of her face in a very traditional stance.

"Stellar flames drift from on high, as your wings spread 'cross the sky. Oh mighty Firebird of yore, char my foes to their core." She raises her fan, sweeping it low with a final snap of it the wooden ends clacking together - and silver fire bursts into being around the troll, a swirling torrent of heat and pain...

... and then she procedes to duck over while it's distracted, offering Mikage a hand while her tails wrap around some of the bridge's remaining supports and spars. There are no words; she doesn't think they're needed.
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    "...I think it might be appropriate... although, does the festival's symbolism imply that that which your mourn can never be rebuilt or reclaimed? I should hope that one day, we'll be able to rebuild Alexandria... not exactly the same, but the same idea. It burned down once before, after all."

    She taps her chin. "I suppose we might also mourn... not the old world, but... those plans and opportunities that are likely to have passed us by, unless this is somehow all happening in an instant and it's still January 1, 2013 when we return..."

    Cold is another thing Mizuki doesn't have to worry about -- at least, until it gets really bad. She has a fur coat built-in!

    "I guess trolls on bridges is a classic, but aren't they supposed to make some conversation before they try to eat us?"

    She can't think of any other witty quips to make about trolls at the moment, so she just joins the others in burning the reoll with An Unecessary Amount Of Fire, spitting a plume of flame at it like a living flamethrower!
Proteus
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Time passes and there's a whole lot of birds being knocked out of the way. "I do wonder why they're being so aggressive." Proteus asides to Mizuki. "It might be overpopulation or natural territorialness. Either way, they're causing problems for the Landers." Uta gets a nod. "I think we could benefit from looking back at all the old places that maybe we didn't pay enough attention to before." She hums. "Well, those of us who did, anyway. You never did get the chance, did you? Maybe we can go on a tour."

Still, there's a point at which things start verging on the absurd. And the bridge is about it. "A troll bridge. Really? REALLY?" Proteus fumes, sighing as she shakes her head. "Enough of this ridiculousness." There is a flick of her hands, and another Ability is called up: ^ - O

With a leap, Proteus launches herself up before the hulking thing and hurls her hand out. "Dawn take you all, and be stone to you!" She says, blatantly stealing from old nerd books as there is a flare of crackling light in her hands, an Electrical Fuzz flashing bright to help blind the thing. "Take it down or run past. I care not which, but move!"
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"I'd love to take that tour, Proteus! I did... pretty much not get a chance to see anything but the New Year's Party before the Apocalypse..." She grumbles. "The black wave erased my screenshot in the crowd at the concert, with Reika on-stage in the background!", she mutters.

"...full-on brain scans. Oh great." Uta mutters while she leaps in the air to dodge the incoming blow of a massive club, which finds the rocky floor instead of her squishy face. "...So... it is theoretically possible that some future archaeologist found all that was left of us: a bunch of computer data, which happens to be our brain scans and our game accounts; they decided to bind the two things, together, and boom. Now we're living inside the Matrix, as our characters." She bites her lower lip, then leaps away before the Troll's club shatters the stone pavement. "...or we went Jurassic Park minus the part with the cells. They needed to give our minds a body... and they went with the only data they had to re-create them: our in-game appearance."

You guessed it by now, she leaps again just in time to avoid being squished. "Or a mix of both, we live in a post-singularity world where matter has become irrelevant..."

Her pupils narrow as she perches on a rock, too high to be reached now. "...oh goodness. It would mean that now we are stuck as our avatars..." She turns to look down at Mizuki. "It would mean we don't have a 2013 to go back to..." She slaps her face.

Mikage seems to be in a tight spot, but Schneider, Mizuki and Estelle with their flame, Gwen and Proteus with their bolt of energy soon shatter the troll into polygons.

The farther the party travels, the more of a chill the air carries. Eventually, the ground begins to crunch beneath their feet with frost and snow. There is not as much of it here, in these summer months, but it is still bitterly cold.

"Not much further," Grandpa Remembrance informs them.

It is not an easy climb. Made worse by the howling wind and cold. Then, just as the memorial stones come into view, something massive blocks them. The creature has long, white fur that seems to lie in clumps, with long arms and a hunched build. The Yeti seems to have made this place home, and is not happy about intruders.

It grabs a chunk of rock and begins to launch it down the mountain towards them.

"Watch out!", exclaims Mrs. Remembrance, pointing. "It's a Yeti!"

"Oh, I've heard about those," exclaims Uta. "Other players told me about them. They're natural predators of skiers, so, whatever you do, don't wear skis around them!"

...Seems like the one at the bridge wasn't the only Troll.
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

After incinerating the troll, Dark Schneider follows the trail upwards with the others, his breathing heavy but not labored. Years of basketball has left him with a good constitution, though it's more of an attitude than a capability. Wind and cold don't faze him much, though the Yeti's a bit of a surprise.

"Brain, Brain dead. Obey your blood oath, come forth from the land of Avalon. Fire of Gehenna, become a fiery blast and burn everything around us!" he chants, gathering arcane energy. "EXODUS!" He drills the yeti with a fireball, and its HP drops by a nice chunk. More fire spells incinerate the yeti as Schneider casts over and over until there's nothing left to burn.
Mikage
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Mikage clasps the land of Estelle, using the help to pull herself back up. "Thanks." She pants, goving a nod of appreciation to the woman as she tries to catch her breath. "I owe you one." She murmurs.

She seems to be a bit winded as they continue towards the memorial site, occassionally leaning on the rock wall as she follows at the tail end of the group, closest to the Landers.

So, she is likely the last to see the Yeti. Luckily, being far back works for her, since it makes for easy targeting with her bow. Channeling storm magic through the newly forged weapon, it seems to form a swirling visual effect around the arrow-tip as she fires it towards where the Yeti is standing.

Where it lands, it seems to explode into a whirlpool of water and wind energy, causing a massive burst of damage the moment the Yeti steps into range.
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"Don't worry about it." is the simple answer to being owed for the save, as Estelle helps the Were-Fang back onto the bridge. Though she does keep an eye on Mikage all the same, as they progress forward.

"It could be worse. It could've been a Yuki Jiji." is the vixen's comment as the Yeti makes itself known to them, her head shaking. Still, she snaps her fan open, spinning it in simple little swirls. "From the earth to the heavens you stand, bridging the firmament's span. So, implacable Mensa I do thee bind, your spectral might with our flesh twined." The plateau mountain briefly shines above and around her, stretching the earth on high. And it's implacable resilience (a buff against knockback, once upon a time) imbues them all.

Tumbling down the mountain, or being bowled over by a pseudo-avalanche from the yeti's thrown missiles, would be terrible after all.

Then she moves to simple support fire, trying not to get targeted by the massive beast.
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    Proteus brings up the idea of a tour. "That... does sound like a good idea, for those of us who only joined this server right before the expansion..." Mizuki agrees, as much as she dislikes agreeing with Proteus.

    When Uta brings up... that hypothesis, Mizuki stares at her, folding her arms and lashing her tail at 'stuck as our avatars' and pouting a bit at the 'no 2013 to go back to'. But it's not like she hasn't thought about it too. Still... Mizuki raises a finger and corrects, "It doesn't /scan and copy/ our brain, or at least /didn't/ as far as anyone knows -- obviously CyberConnect had capabilities far beyond what anyone realized, whatever's going on here, but /that/ one we don't know /for sure/. What we do know for sure is it has complete /access/ to our brain. Thus the translation effect, and us being able to feel new limbs and stuff."

    She slumps a bit. "It may be that we've been... transferred, somehow, out of our bodies and are living in a computer system, somehow, but we don't know..." She straightens up. "I guess we need to figure out how to test some of these hypotheses..."

    As it goes from cold to /bitterly/ cold she rezzes her cloak and mantle for a bit more protection and starts using fire magic to heat herself. When the stones are pointed out, she asks over the howling wind, "That's them?! Why were they put all the way OUT HERE, for crying out loud?!"

    Uta says something that brings back a memory of frustration. Of what felt like hours trying to find a way to win. "No. THIS ISN'T SKI FREE! THIS TIME, WE CAN BEAT YOU!" Mizuki shouts at the Yeti, casting Ozocubu's Armor -- ironically, the magic ice that doesn't feel cold kind of acts as insulation from the nonmagical, actually cold ice -- and starts scrambling towards it, trying to get too close for it to throw rocks so she can engage with plumes of fire, try to drown its head with water magic, and dart in to stab and claw and rake! She takes some hits for her trouble, but at least the ice softens the blow, melting and shattering as it absorbs the worst of the yeti's strikes!
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Thing are not over yet, but Gwen's still in good spirits and she looks to Uta for a moment. "Could be I don't know for sure on any of this but hey a second life where I get to be Gwen? I'm okay with that." She really does seem so. "Either way we don't know for the moment so just operate as yourself. Who knows there was a horror RPG based on the world like that. Look, Uta, I didn't know you before this but your a friend now we are alive we are here, we think we feel. Just focus on that. Our origins don't matter it's who we are."

Gwen is being deep well for Gwen as the party moves on as they get near the end. This has honestly as far as escort quest go? Been amazing the people coming to mount have not got in the way or been a problem at all. However, they see something ahead it's a Yeti she heeds the Lander's warning as she starts chanting a spell.

"May w wind from the gods come down and strike down the evil that is before me! DIVINE WIND!"

Gwen then throws herself at the Yetti in a flurry is magical wind sword strikes.
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"Oh, that's comforting!", Uta says after a sigh of relief at Mizuki's explanation.

But then Gwen interjects, and Uta goes pensive again. "Hm. There's that too. According to Kita's estimates, it'll take about eight years to clear the tower at the current pace. Eight years. Assuming nothing goes topsy-turvy." She pushes herslf off her place on the rocks. "We have no choice but live as what we are, until then. Might as well make the most of it." As she begins her own punching and kicking of the monster, she grins at the Sylph. "I'm glad you like your new existence here, Gwen." To Estelle, "As far as we know, the legend of the Yuki Jiji might have originated from a yeti. And the Yuki Onna might be a female yeti." She frowns. "Wait, no, Yeti are as much a legend as- nevermind."

A little known fact: Yetis do not like being set on fire. They scream and flail and get generally mad, especially at the person who set them on fire, and chase after them with the intent of unleashing violence upon the perpetrator. And blasting them with magical arrows that explode into massive bursts of damage on impact only makes the situation worse. Isn't nature fascinating?

The adventurers do not have the satisfaction of defeating this beast, though: once it reaches the yellow, it begins beating its chest, stomping on the ground, with the shockwave causing partial collapse in a nearby structure of scaffolding (and possibly knocking over Estelle, if her spell wasn't strong enough), whereby the horizontal beams end up being tilted, it grabs Uta, and then it begins climbing upwards. "Hey! No! Let me go! What- NO! This is so wrong!"

Once it has reached the top, it looks around, seems to notice something disappointing (probably an utter lack of barrels), throws Uta off the scaffolding, and it continues climbing upwards.

Uta's wings might not be good for much, but slowing down falls is one of those things: She spreads them open, and glides down to touch the ground with one foot. "...that was weird."

Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The Yeti disappears in the mountains.

A short walk later, the Remembrance family, relieved to have finally arrived, scrambles up to the crude set of stones that marks their destination. They light a set of candles there, bowing before it and placing offerings out onto the rocks around it.

Mr. Remembrance Junior III, the youngest in the family (if we don't count Baby Remembrance), sniffles as he looks out to the night sky around him, obviously showing just how much loss has effected him.

The family sends him on a short break from the core of the memorial service, to distract him a little; but not for idle play, but for serious purpose: to offer a token of appreciation to each Adventurer
Estelle
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

"Oh, no. According to some of the others, Yamato has a proper Yuki Onna - a great elemental spirit of Ice and Cold, whose power can alter the weather on a decent scale when it gets out of control. There's a gem that helps control its might that has to be replaced yearly, much like the Kirin during the Storm Festival." The vixen has been listening and networking, with other lore enthusiasts.

She does, however, remain entirely out of a discussion on the VR Dive technology. Especially as they all beat the yeti into fleeing.

Still, Estelle dusts snow from her hair and her tail from some of the hits she took; Mensa enhances knockback resistance, but her base was still poor enough to get thrown around, some. She accepts the token from the child with a soft smile, and then examines it for... long, long moments, blinking at the glyphs and images sprawled across the rock. She frowns softly, fingers stroking along it, before look around at the others and their gifts.
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider isn't entirely sure he saw what he thinks he saw. He accepts the gift from the child, but looks back to the others. "You guys are way deeper into this game than I am," he says flatly. "But no one will ever say anything plainly. I'm supposed to guess or know. But I haven't played computer games all my life and I don't know all your secrets, and it's a bit frustrating being out of the loop."
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

The fight ends and Gwen will fall in to keep watch as their clients go to mourn their loss. She looks to Estelle for a moment. "Yeah a lot of things that were myth to us are real here like many of the old gods." She notes seemingly still grappling with that. "It's not being cryptic it's just stuff that's often assumed, right?"
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Uta bows to the child, accepting the rock with both hands. When the small Lander is no longer into view, she runs her finger on the stone. She glances at the etchings which appear as she does so. The glance becomes a look, the look becomes a stare.

Her jaw clenches, as a shiver runs down her spine. She shakes her head and stuffs the rock into the pocket of her black gi, head tilted down and off to a side in a wince. She inhales, she exhales. "...I'm fine."

Uta turns to Schneider. "People tell me very little as well, to be fair. And as I was telling Estelle, our alliance doesn't even bother to compile reports of their missions at the Tower Pushes, or the Waves of Calamity! I'm left to my own devices, to pluck the barest hints of hearsay here and there, and beg for little bits of the scraps of what's left after the people who get to be there have had all the fun." Despite what one would expect at this point, her mouth expands in a wide smile. "...but I'm cool! Scraps are more than enough for what I need this time." She clenches her fists. "...I've heard they've seen a /dragon/ this time! A real, live /dragon/! Not a fake drake, or wyvern, or whatnot! The real deal! The genuine article!" and one can almost see her eyes glimmering. "I'm gonna acquire some leftover scraps after people make armor out of it, and feed them to a grunty-sized slime!" Her lower lip bitten, she jumps from one leg to the other. "...I'm gonna have the best. Mount. Ever!"
Mizuki
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0


    The fight transitions into... "Are we doing Donky Kong now?!" Mizuki starts climbing up the scaffolding after it, but... apparently it's done with Uta (brief scare there, before she opens her wings) and fleeing. "Yeah..." She climbs back down. "Are you okay?"

    Once that's settled, conversation can continue. "We make the most of it, huh...?" Mizuki echoes, staring out into the distance for a long moment. Then looking down at herself. "Nnh." She looks Uta up and down, like she's deciding whether to say something, then says: "I guess you're doing that as the world's premier slimologist, huh?"

    Mizuki looks up at the scaffolding extending into the distance. "I mean... I could see a yuki-onna being a female yeti in some settings. Especially a game or anime, with the, ah, peculiar gender dimorphism monsters tend to have in some works..." She looks to Estelle. "What's Yuki Jiji? I don't know that story."

    As the ceremony comes up, she tries to figure out what to do as a memorial... accepting the gift from the NPC with a less-flippant-than-usual 'thank you' as she's deep in more somber thought.

    Eventually she steps up to the rock, rezzes a pencil and paper, and scribbles IOU - $200 on the corner of the paper before tearing it off. "I'm sorry I didn't donate most years. I always said I'd make it up when I had more money someday, but for you, there was no someday."

    Her eyes water a little bit as she crouches down and puts the little scrap of paper on the rock.

    She returns to talk to the others. "At least you're researching slimes! You're learning things probably no one else in the game knows, right? The tower battles... you know, I'm not sure we really learn that much lore from most of them; the boss battles themselves I mean. At least you haven't died fighting a floor boss..." she shivers. "...you can still come and help explore the floors as they open up, you know. Next time we find a floor with a town on it, there might be a lot to learn from the people there, right?"
Gwen
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Gwen gets this look on her face sighs amd will sit down right there open a brank book and start writing in it...
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider shrugs to Uta and Gwen. "You guys know and assume way more than me," he says with a shrug. He doesn't really have anything to add to that, so he will look around the scene then look out over the family, then look up to see if the yeti is coming back. It'd be pretty bad if it did, his big boom is on cooldown.
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Uta scratches her head at Mizuki's words about the tower. "...I don't know," she admits. "Maybe we have a Brockian Ultra Cricket scenario here." She quotes, in either a perfect or near perfect Received Pronunciation ('British accent') depending on how much the Translation Effect comes into play here, "the frustration experienced by the audience at not actually being able to see what's going on leads them to imagine that it's a lot more exciting than it really is"

She scratches her head. "...I mean, uh, it's... slimes." She says, hunching over a little in a bit of a self-conscious gesture at being called the world's premier slimologist. "It's probably the silliest, lowest level, most easily defeated and least threatening of the monsters on this game." She then mumbles, "and I worried everyone I know by /almost/ getting killed by /those/ so many times that-" She beams up, all of a sudden, "Oh! Oh! I'm taking lessons in monster handling! I can touch slimes without taking damage now!" After clearing her voice, more serious, she continues, "But... yeah, it's a start. Who knows, maybe eventually I'll grow the whole outfit into a more general Monster Lab. As you might have heard, I've recent hired Setsuna as a professional Monster Handler to handle day to day business," (read, as a partially paid intern to feed the slimes and clean up their cages), "and we've recently acquired our first /animal/. Potpourri the rat." She nods. "He outranks Setsuna."
Schneider
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Schneider shrugs to Uta, "So what you're saying is that you're happily spinning on little info?" He explains, "I usually got in trouble by assuming things I wasn't sure about, so I try not to. But then I wind up not making connections because they're a long shot. But the net result here is that I'm left out of conversations."
Uta
Overworld - -40 - 10 - 0

Uta replies to Schneider, "Well, Rome wasn't built in a day. You grow your knowledge bit by bit. And now you have gotten some bits to go by! You know about the depth of the Dive Gear's abilities. You know that the Babylon Signal exists. You can go look for it. You know about the Firefly Festival, you know that there are monuments to visit... I could go on. That's a lot to get you started..." She cracks her knuckles, and cranes her neck left and right, then begins to perform a few little jumps on the spot, looking like she's starting a warm-up before a training session. "...the rest is legwork. Ask on your alliance's channels. Get in contact with people who know things. Start your own projects to dig into things. Go ask nobles to pretty please look at their books. Get doors slammed in your face. It's all part of the game. Happens to everyone."