Duty Session 345: The Phantom Colosseum

    June is as June does, she found out about the Colosseum. Decided to take a party there and just started shooting off party requests based on proximity and some random feature of her own brain.

Gwen has also found out about the Colosseum and seem eager to go. She almost made up some armored battle bikini outfit but want to get a feel for that and would save that outfit for anotehr time thoguh such a place she mused. Hopefully draggin her 'sister' along when she did so for now though she seems pretty eager to get going. Once again the towering woman is vibrating just about.

"This is going to be so much fun!"

Vertina cracks her knuckles, making little sparks of light and fire pop from her hands as she does so. "You think there will be ghosts? Or maybe undead gladiators? I wouldn't mind putting some of my recent training to use."

Schneider has been following Doc and Setsuna around lately. It's a bit odd, Scale's lack of drive since the tenth floor debacle, and he's been concentrating on non-Tower things since then. As have the others, it seems, because here we all are. He nods as he sees June, calling out, "Hey there!"

Everyone's seen his new coat by now, and the Peko Peko Riding Hat, the item he made from the racing series award.

    Setsuna had heard of this new quest that had been issued, something about going out to some island to partake in some kinda of fight to the death. This combat between mortals was an interesting warm up for the upcoming tournament so here Setsuna was making his way there anyways when the party invite popped up. "Sure, I suppose I could use some help. Best not to try to solo run the new stuff. " His egotistical comment made to himself he accepts the party invite happily and begins to walk to gather with the group. As he bumps into Schneider he looks him up and down for a moment, " New shoes right?"

Please do not fight to the death, especially when you're a necromancer named Setsuna. After all, you've already got one foot in the grave......

...

"Did someone call for a medic?" The Doctor asks, scanning a glance over at Setsuna and Schneider both. "Shoes...? Hm, no I don't think that'll do at all. These are gladiatorial matches, at least use a net or something. Although I suppose fishnets /are/ a popular footware in some circles."

Beat.

"Nice hat, Schneider. Very festive."

    June has a battle bikini... it's like her default dress code. Red Sonja chic the only style she cares about when adventuring. "I'm hoping there will be lots of good fights but you know sometimes stuff happens and I don't feel like being dedicated heal." she sticks her tongue out at Proph. "Ready for a boatride?" she asks leaping into the boat.

Schneider hrms as Setsuna mentions new shoes, and he peers. "Oh, you're jerking my chain," he says when he gets it. "You're just a regukar chain jerker, jerking people's chains." He sweatdrops at Doc mentioning fishnets, and says, recalling another old movie his dad liked to watch, "What is this, a /floor show/?"

But that's not important now.

He'll hop into the boat, admiring June's battle bikini, even if she's a bit older.

"Good enough for me!" Vertina is never one to back down from a challenge, regardless if it's a boss battle or exploring a new duty. Daredevils only move forward! Quests so right you can't move left!

    Setsuna climbs into the boat as he looks carefully at it for a moment before he gets in. " We really need to invent more reliable travel methods then rickety old boats. " Taking a seat he lets out a loud whistle and from the bushes carrying a tree branch, the three headed puppy is doing its best to logistic it's way to Setsuna before giving up on the branch and just running to jump in to the boat and sits on Setsuna. Unfortunately it is obvious that this so called, 'puppy' was now closer to the size of a large adult canine. Taking a breath Setsuna adds, " I can't be a chain jerker. I don't have any chains. Just animals,knives and darkness."

    June grins "Heeeeeeeeeeeees just a sweet transvestite from traaaaaaaaaansSEXual Transylvaniaaaaaaaa." she croons and flips her hair before dropping onto a bench and doing an exagerated burlesqe leg cross.

Prophylaxis considers this boat. "Well, it does have nets..." he says aloud, stepping aboard with a shrug. "But I've got no idea what that has to do with..."

Whatever it is June is singing about. What the heck, even?

Gwen grins at Schneider.

"My friend I think you will like this."

She will take a moment to tap her menu and there's a flash of light as Gwen's outfit changes, or at least it's appearance. She now has two white thigh-high boots with flat heels. Also the boots have armoured knee guards. A white leotard with a tabbed over it, two detached white sleeves, a heavy chest plate and very nearly 40kish or old school fantasy anime shoulder pads. Schneider.

"Not quite the actual Thunder Empress but I think I'm close."

She grins widely and seems ready for action.

"I can bring the lighting though."

    June watches as the water passes by. The reefs coming into as the boat moves through the fog. When she spots the first ghost she grins and stands up. "Anyone good with navigation help the captain, everyone else, time to repel boarders!" she laughs brightly punching her knuckles together and stretching.

    Setsuna sees a hoard of skeleton pirates stepping up to try and lure them to the locker. So how does Setsuna respond, he stays seated and gives them the eye of intimidation. It is a secret necromancer technique that allows one to negotiate for the dead to leave you the hell alone. It also works on those with a shy nature. Unfortunately it appears the pirates have built up an immunity, perhaps they had rum. Such rum provides a buff against the technique called liquid courage. So Setsuna just continues to sit as his three headed hound barks...still standing on Setsuna.

Vertina watchs the ghostly presence emerge from the spooky sea mists, and her expression cracks into a wide fanged grin that looks a little on the unhinged side. "Oh look, I got exactly what I asked for!" She balls her hands into fists and they start to glow brightly in the grim fog from the ki energy being channeled into them. "The only booty here..." She punches right through the first ghost to come close to her, the light radiance discharged from her punch shimmering across the spectre'ss form as it dissolves down into death motes. "IS YOURS THAT I'M GONNA KICK!"

~Spoooooky ghosts~ make their collective appearance. Prophylaxis stares at the translucent shades as they alight across the placid waters. A reef like this is sure to be a veritable graveyard of ships. How many have run aground here, he wonders?

Well. No matter.

Prophylaxis may not be capable of exorcising spirits with light magic, but he /does/ know a thing or two about fighting the intangible. That is to say, they are particularly resistant to many forms of magic... And weak to one in /particular./

"Try to fifty-percent dodge chance this...!" He declares, lifting high his staff... Which begins spewing bolt after bolt of incandescent, silver-blue energy.

That's right-- it's a magic missile storm! Hit-scan force damage for everybody!

Schneider looks up as Gwen changes outfits, and whistles, impressed, despite himself. "You really did a good job on that," he says, impressed, and wonders, "Should I call you Arshes Gwen now, and teach you my 'Halloween' spell?"

But the ghosts eventually pry his eyes away from Gwen, and he says, "Undead, you've been bound in a pact, yes. But who owns your alliegance? Some crusty old necromancer, or a suave, handsome hero? Who would you fight for, who would you serve?"

Schneider grins, and is that a glint from his teeth? Some of the ghosts hesitate, too, at his words. "Cast off your shackles," he exhorts them. "You may now follow who you please!" The ghost whisperer, he's not, but his words do seem to compel at least a few of them to wander off.

Gwen grins at Schneiders comment. "I'd not say not if you were willing to teach me that spell." She beams at this, however more banter is cut off as the undead show up.

"I blame the undead army for this somehow...this is their fault."

With that Gwen moves to engage channeling holy magic though hrr blade or casting holy upon the undead who get too close.

"BE GONE! RETURN TO YOUR GRAVES AND YOUR REST!"

    June grins "Yo ho, all together!" She starts to gather light into her hands to batter the crap out of the undead, only to get jumped from behind. "Hey no fair, fight fair... damn pirates always cheating." she says fighting her way through the group grappling with her. But she really gives up more HP than she should and everyone else has to work a bit harder to clear the decks.

    The ghostly fight gets the captain confused and he finally pulls up on a beach on the wrong side of the atoll. "Ooh man..." she says "That's a stupid long walk... and I wouldn't swim there... sirens live around here." she sighs until someone opens the doors to release... Bosun Jake Robin or whatever... stupid pirates always with the parlay. "Well... crap anyone got any booze?" she isn't giving up her OWN booze that's for HER to be irrisponsible with.

Schneider nods to Gwen about teaching her the spell, though obviously now is not the right time. When you're up to your ass in alligators. Or, y'know, ghosts. But soon enough the ghosts are dealt with, and we land .... but on the wrong side of the island. "Who was navigating?" he complains. "I don't want to go back out into /that/ again." The ghosts might need more convincing than he can muster.

So, we land, and manage to find some old islander it seems, who's looking for the booze. "I am, too, friend," he says sympathetically. "Let us look together?"

The cameraderie is a bit forced, and the fellow seems to sense Schneider's insincerity, glaring at the Wizard until he backs off. "Fine, be that way," he grumbles.

So after all that fighting, they find a castaway pirate that's not dead (maybe?) that wants a good strong drink.

Vertina is all over this, your own stash is safe June. "Well then have I got the thing for you, matey." Vertina pulls out one of her large flasks and hands it to the man, just grinning broadly and slightly disturbingly (with the cute but very sharp little fangs showing) as she does. "Yo ho ho and the finest alcoholic elixer the Dragon's Larder has to offer~"

People that do missions with Vertina often will recognize the flask -- That's the super hot and spicy liquor she uses to super combust her fire breath....

    Setsuna iis happy to get off the boat as he looks at Prophylaxis, " I think I need to look into a water monster. Something that is faster then a boat and doesn't face the issue of well... normal issues. Do you think we could dig a tunnel from the tower to the sea?" Setsuna is only half paying attention until the flask appears and he realizes what is happening. " Woah woah woah, not so fast. Directions first pal, then you can be black out drunk."

"I really don't want to find out if the tower can flood," Prophylaxis admits with a groan, "But if you mean a canal... That's still a hell of a project, Sets. Like, we're right smack dab in the middle of--"

Oh, there's some kind of pirate hobo accosting them for booze. Vertina seems to have the alcohol covered, at least, so Prophylaxis instead... quietly pockets what might have been a vial of some extra high-purity medical-grade ethanol, and instead says: "Hey, hey! No freebies. Vert, you have to ask for payment first!"

Gwen is happy to get though the fight with the undead and she seems to be in a good mood as they get past but now there seem to be other issues to worry about she pauses for a moment and she thinks as she looks the man over. She grins at him.

"I think I would love to parley."
D She'lll set some money down with a grin and get to haggling.

"Make this worth our while and you'll get this, Half the money up front and half upon delivery."

    June smiles and when the booze is held out she swoops in and takes a swig "Answers first....oooh that's good." she says blowing the fumes into the pirate's face before handing the flask back to stagger off to one side. Yah... she's forgotten she's not with the Sleeping Knights.

    Following the secret path the pirate divulges. The team ends up in the colosseum, at least the art pallet changes to indicate this. After a while of wandering and kicking fish people they find themselves in a room with a blocked path full of water... and a water breathing buff. "Well isn't that convinent? Satan!" she shrugs "Guess we swim from here." she says with a shake of her head. When the party starts swimming through and of course some gladiator flushes the toilet... or something, sending everyone whipping down the tunnels while their breathing buff drops... because of course it did the level designer was obviously Satan.

    Setsuna looks at his pup as they both enter the water and its unclear which one whines as they go into the cold water. It is a slow going moment before suddenly the current is picking up and his puppy is puled under and then he is pulled under. However Setsuna is not even thinking about that he is only thinking about his puppy, as it is tossed in the current. Grabbing the dog he quickly pushes himself through some air bubbles regaining a little air before trying to make a break towards whatever passage looks like it has air.

The drunkard pirate's words prove to be true to get them to the collosium. From here we get a montage of Vertina gleefully punching, kicking, and occasionally kicking a chunk of debris at the various fishmen they come across while trying to find their way through the wreckage. Until they get to the stairway to water hell. Then she lets out a groan. "I know this place is taken over by Shanguin, but seriously, a water substage now?!" Muttering aside, she dives in. She can't bend water but she's not adversive to it.

At least until it picks up enough current to actually toss them around. But instead of panicing the Salamander actually calms herself as she tumbles about, focusing inward as well as she can in the circumstances, using both her control of air and ki to keep her breathing low and allowing her to hold her breath longer to find a way back onto a dry surface.

The treck goes on as they make thir way into the Coloseeum the man apid up well and she was happy about that. No fights can be a good thing to her but now comes how they get in. She'll pay the man and will end up having to fight. There are puzzels she'll leave those to her friends. THe fishmen? those are going to get a face full of Thunder Empress Gwen. She's able to use her own raw power to keeep thing in order with them but she's going to be so soaked when this is over...

Schneider wanders through the colosseum and peers around curiously as we go, avoiding or incinerating fishmen as the situation arises. When we find a submerged pathway, he presses a couple buttons, and boom, he's in his board shorts. The one he wore for the beach competion last summer. Slipping into the water with the group, he submerges, and is whisked away under the water. At first, he's just curious to see where the current goes, but as our oxygen meters continue to run down, he'll channel mana to try and resupply them, replacing oxygen with mana, as it were. He's partly successful, in that our meters start to hang tough as we struggle to swim back to where we're supposed to be.

"Why is she invoking the Christian Devil...?" Prophylaxis stage-whispers at Setsuna. Really, the question he /should/ be asking is 'why does a pirate want them to go swimming in a flooded ruin?' Something at the back of the doctor's brain is screaming that this is the worst possible idea. Water breathing buff aside, this seems entirely like a ploy to get them all to die so he can take their stuff once it floats to the surface.

...Not that they lose anything material on death, anyway.

Just as they look to be making progress though, something goes... decidedly pear-shaped. The currents begin to surge and churn wildly, throwing the party into wall after wall. The doctor grunts as he slams into a stone column, the impact forcing air from his lungs. His breath meter begins to deplete all that much more rapidly, but...

Then, suddenly, the currents... subside. They suddenly become much more focused, less random. The doctor lowers his hand, still glowing with pale, blue light. Enormous ice walls solidify over several of the side passages, reducing the number of directions that the water could be flowing from. "We need to hurry," he cautions, his O2 bar running dangerously low, "Before we drown down here."

    June... June just bounces off the walls, turning to plant her feet and kick off from this wall then that. Not really swimming so much as platforming her way through the powerful current.

    When they party finally gets past the current they find themselves in ... the arena. Well job done, swimming or not, it seems the breathing enchant is back and that's good enough for her. Bright lights show the party, and the screams of the devil fish people things well that's just fuel for the fire. June poses and makes rude gestures... and in general hams it up something fierce. Looks like tourney fighting is on the card and June is going for top score if her body language says anything about it.

The party finds their way into interrupting a Sahuagin tournament... And Vertina is positively estatic. "BEST. DUTY. EVER." She bears her clawed battle gloves and hurtles herself into the fight without a second thought or concern on the matter.

Don't you hate when the DPS gets all Leeroy Jenkins into the encounter?

To be fair, Vertina is kicking more than enough fishman keister around. But due to the numbers of opposition she's on full out offense, and thus getting her fair share of hurt as well. The healers are going to have to keep pumping health back into her if they want the Salamander to keep up the murderhobo spree for them.

Schneider finds the underwater paths much easier to navigate with Doc's well-placed ice blocks, but is confused at where we wind up. It looks like a tournament, but this -is- a colosseum, so maybe that's about right. And we're in a fight with some fishmen? "This is for Mrs Paul," he says. He loves those fish sticks.

"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 poses dramatically and shouts, "EXODUS!" The explosion is only muted slightly for being underwater, and the shockwave from it can be felt even back here. The shockwave at point blank must have been awful, though the fire itself, even underwater, is pretty intense. Schneider's spells tend to be like that.

    Setsuna would have only been able to respond to the doctor at the time, " Why do people invoke the goddesses?" Truthfully Setsuna will just be happy to get out of the damn water even if it has thrown them into a damn arena to fight for their lives. At least this is what Setsuna came for, so all the better." Ok my demon lets try that. " Standing behind the cerberus, he begins to channel magic aroound them both, it is a rather rough spell however with Setsuna's guidance the cerberus forms a ball of black fire and unleashes it upon the enemy. After a few moments to let Demon recover, they would repeat the process.

Gwen Sees all the fishmen she stares for a moment she's a younger person for a moment, she's in one of teh early Alliance Zones, and one murloc gets away. The next thing she knows the rest of the zones worth of them is on her. It ended poorly and she eyebrow twitches.

"MERLOCS!?!"

She's having a moment here and she'll just start ... healing her friends? Yes Gwen can heal some people forget this, she had to given how her Mother was one of those healers who knew the sort of power they had over the party...

The party finally emerges from the water! This is a good and undeniably fortunate thing.

But they arose in the midst of what looks to be a merpeople-run underground (literally and figuratively) arena. And by virtue of merely showing up now /they/ are expected to take part in it! This is probably EXTREMELY ILLEGAL, but they're fish-people, what do they know about law?

"Well, you asked for a healer," Prophylaxis says with a shrug. Technically, he's not a healer. Neither his main nor his subclass has any natural access to healing magic. But that hasn't stopped him from being a /doctor./ Prophylaxis pulls open his soaked jacket and grabs a handful of colorful vials from pockets hidden within, tossing them out to the rest of the party. "Drink up! Just one dose will keep you nice and not-dead!"

    June joins in the fighting, working light into her attacks, but it isn't nearly so much useful as it is middle of the road. She manages to keep herself healed up but she doesn't output the damage she normally would in a fight.

    As the party manages to take down the Sahuagin. Then in comes the boss Sahuagin. "BOSS FIIIIGHT!" the slightly unstable woman in the scalemail bikini is suddenly an iron clad bull woman bellowing as the battle starts.

Well now as they fight their way through the arena. She sees the warlord there'sa grin on her face it's not a very nice one as she channels magic into her sword, energy dances about the balde as she stares the monster down for a moment. Then she will end up rushing int to uinleahs a savage chain of stike but then the big shocker comes. She lets several bolts fly from her shield...

They may not be strictly healers but between Gwen and The Good Doctor she's kept in well enough order to keep fighting... until all the remaining fishmen flee back into the stands after the weird calls. "Hah! You better run!" Vertina turns back to the rest of the party with a laugh. "See that wasn't so hard was i--"

Cue the heavy steps of the massive Warlord striding onto the field as the cheering reassumes. It's enough to make Vertina stop in her gloating. "--The Final Boss is right behind me, isn't he?"

She glances over her shoulder, just in time to see two of the four hands grip the massive electrified trident and sweep it towards her, and dive out of the way. She tumbles several times before rolling back up into a crouch. "Okay, yeah, need to do something about that." She springs onto her feet, and kippups a bit of rubble with her toes, creating some sparks of fire as she does so. The two forces swirl together as she bops it back and forth a few times. Before finally letting it drop from the air and..

"METEEEOOR STRIKAAAAAAH!"

A powerful kick launches the flaming ball of stone through the air with such tremendous speed that it ... wedges firmly onto the end of the Warlord's trident when he tries to block the attack, helping nullify that electrical super attack.

Schneider's fierce fighting has given the sahaugin pause. He's not sure why they have paws, they don't really, that's just a random thought that occured to him.

But when they call out the boss, he supposed he will break out the big guns. "Kaizard, aruzard, kisk!" he chants. "Hansay Glossik! Unleash total destruction! Sage of Hades use the seven keys to open the gates of Hell!" He gestures wildly, and shouts, "HALLOWEEN!"

Sadly, his intent, to keep the underwater explosion from hurting us as well forced him to aim it behind the boss, and it's a bit hard to aim it under the murky water, so the net effect is it goes off well behind the boss, too far to really do any harm to him. Now the stadium behind him is another story, it looks like a bomb went off. A big one.

    Setsuna looks at the boss and tilts his head and then looks at Demon who also tilts it's heads and then they all look at the doctor, " This thing is the boss? Isn't it missing, well ...threat? " Setsuna looks back at the boss monster and is really waiting, for it to grow or glow green or summon its three brothers or something. With a shrug he looks at the Demon puppy before he draws his dagger and slashes the air sending waves of darkness at the boss that cut into it leaving claw marks.

Is it a threat? Good question! Too bad they're probably not going to find out today.

Technically speaking, Prophylaxis really /doesn't/ have access to most 'traditional' healing magic. No god rays break through the stone ceiling here today. But that doesn't mean he /can't/ magically heal, it just means he goes about it in a... slightly different way.

"Don't worry about incoming damage," he promises, driving the tip of his staff into the earth. "Whatever you lose will just grow back! O' flower of life which blossoms from winter's deathly bosom, spring forth! Come, power of rebirth! Rampant Regrowth!"

On command, the arena floor seems to crack and split, vines erupting from deep underground. As they emerge, regenerative magic flows into the adventurers, stacking a hefty rejuvination buff on each and every one!

    June rolls her neck, the woman pawing her hoof into the soil of the arena. And then she bellows charging the boss, lightning crackling around her iron scales and down to ground without slowing her down. And then one iron horn then the other smashes and slashes into the boss, digging great red rents in it's 'healing mesh'. When the Sahugin drag the boss off and the roses fall, June scoops one up and breaths in deep. "Ahhhh we're loved!" she says taking a bow.

    Setsuna is annoyed truly , he is rather tired of monsters running away and it is only by the off change of being in the habit of appraising everything that he sees the rose. " Hey doc, is this flower in the same anti time field your stasis crystals manage?" He picks one up and pockets it. Anything that can stop time does seem to attract the necromancer.

"I have no idea!" Prophylaxis says as he pockets his own flower. "Well, come along then. It looks like we've at least managed to put a dent in the local monster population, and that's a fine result by me."

"I guess they really like their aquatic Machamp," Vertina murmurs as the crowd drags the Warlord off into the depths of the unknown. She shrugs, scooping up one of the scattered flowers. "Oh well. That was still a pretty fun adventurer!" Since it was mostly fighting.

Schneider picks up one of the roses, looking at it thoughtfully for a long moment, then tucking it carefully in his inventory. Still in board shorts, he says, "We're gonna be prunes if we stay down here any longer, and I want some air." He nods about he adventure being fun, but also about getting out of here.

Gwen is in fairly good shape she's sad they big fish got away. Still clearing out the hordes of the fishmen was never a bad thing for the world when you got down to it. "We got a lot of left to deal wiht but I agree we need to get out an dry off."

    June nods and heads for an exit. "I need to get drunk, and it's a real pain to smoke down here." She grins.