Palace Lands: Teratect Dangers

Traveling westwards all the way from Lumina Cloth is a great deal of travel. As such, the team has been dropped off half-way by a boat that was heading there. They were warned not to travel too far westwards, as monsters get rather dangerous that far out. Yet, their journey will bring them rather close to such dangerous grounds; the ruined lost town that is reportedly now overrun by a spiderous species called 'Taratect'.

With the sun high, and the clouds calm, the temperature is rather pleasant throughout Yamato. But being this far north in the Palace Lands is a different story; keeping things on the chilly side. Pulling around a hilled region, before they even reach the ruined town, they're managing to stay somewhat out of the winds. Strange movements showing within the sands ahead.

Taratect, taratect, such a mysteriously named spider, the taratect. But this is hardly Prophylaxis' first rodeo with giant spider monsters, and he must admit that these ones in particular are surrounded by... very interesting rumors. Who ever heard of spiders that go out of their way to heal people? That's like, the exact opposite of common monster behavior!

And so the doctor is here, dressed appropriately for the tundra weather with an extra fluffy scarf and an inventory full of antitoxins. "Keep your eye out for large, white spiders. Those will be what we're looking for." But... in a town? What is with insect monsters and liking to live in towns...?

    Setsuna and his three headed companion continue to hike through the tundra as the necromancer can't help but groans about the sand, as even in small amounts it always get in places that make no sense. Here, there, just everywhere. Every so often he can't help but nottice the movement in the sand, but it's just the wind right. Looking over at his compatriots he pointtst in the directiton of the lost town, " It is said that some of what we are looking for reside in a near by ghost town. That way." He points again a few more time before brushing the sand out of his face, and wishes he had brought googles.

"You act like that's the bane of existance." Vertina doesn't seem to mind. Then again, she did spend that long stretch of training in some far corner of Westelande's desert, she's probably use to sand getting into places by now. But this a tundra. Technically a desert but in a different way. "Huh. Ghost town. Fitting for something creepy like super spiders."

Schneider has just come over on the boat, and been rushed into this expedition, and things are going around pretty fast. That said, he's a basketball player, fast doesn't bother him. Nor does cold, with as much FIRE as he commands. He's followed the research mostly from the Yamato side, but when the chance comes to do the exploring, of course he's on the spot. He wouldn't miss this! Finding new things to set on fire is his whole raison d'etre. Well, and he's sort of officially a archivist still, so he's kind of keeping a log of what all we find and see. He's got a book open and makes notes and maps as things of interest come up.

    Mizuki got some cold weather gear just in case, but there are, after all, benefits to being covered in fur. Speaking of which... "Sand's pretty awful." Mizuki agrees cheerfully. "I remember, back outside, every time I'd go to the beach--" She stops, suddenly, staring at nothing as whatever train of thought she was sharing is just plowed through by a train going in a perpendicular direction.

    Sam used to swim all the time as a kid. But as he got older, he liked the beach less and less. He said it was sandy, and it was a bother to get cold and wet and then have to dry off after. By his late teens, he spent any family beach day finding a shady spot to read. But if it was about the cold and the wet and the sand, why'd he always keep a shirt on? Well, because he hAtED hOW hIs bODy lOOkEd...

    Mizuki shakes her head and looks around. What were they talking about again? Oh, right. More subdued, she flatly continues, "I never liked sand. It got everywhere and was scratchy." Then she smiles again. "One of the benefits of having fur in here, I guess!"

    Her ninja outfit isn't really all that different from a desert outfit, too, just, dark instead of light to reflect sun. Which works out, here in the cold.

    "Is it a ghost town *because* of the spiders?" Mizuki wonders. "Did they just... kill everyone? Did that happen *after* the apocalypse, or was it in backstory?"

    Scales on a trip, monsters with strange behaviour. Adventure that might involve battle and poking about in places Adventurers were not ment to be? Of course Wisteria managed her way to be with Mizukichi and Vertina. She just sets an enchantment on a bit of gear to keep toasty warm because who needs bulky clothes when you have magic. She couldn't really figure out a curse of warm cozy so she just went with your standard enchanting.

There is plenty of low brush greenery everywhere around them, as well as hardy grasses. The sands ahead seem a bit less populated with grass, but would otherwise be unremarkable if it is were for the fact that there is movement. In fact, such patches are all around them, and are common within tundra regions such as this.

As the team carefully proceeds onwards just a little, the ground begins to shake beneath them. The sands begin to wear away, making the long grass and shrubs seem longer in nature. The trembling gets harsher by the moment, until there's a sudden BITE as a swarm of white-and-red-striped creatures lash forth.

Pincers grab hold of Schneider and Wisteria, tearing into their legs and causing them to bleed. A BIND status immediately being applied to them.

< Mermitect > It indicates as the rest of the team gets out of the way. However, they'll spot two larger spiders suddenly unrooting from the ground they'd seen shaking ahead. Sand bursting and being pushed off of the large Spiders, easily the size of a large van each, with large white spindly legs stabbing into the ground; Greater Taratect.

These creatures immediately begin to spew webs forwards at the outnumbered team.

    Setsuna looks at the worms and then the spiders and then tthe mermitect and then the greater taretect. Taking a deep breath he shouts, "We need to get the worms off them, if we don't it could be bad. How bad? Well Jim I'm a monster handler not a doctor. Unfortunatetly probably need to rip them off , so if you can punch something punch the worms. " Looking at the spiders spewing web , " Everyone else probably should handle the the web, try not to hurt the deadly taretect monsters. " With a slash of his hand he sends out a wave of air trying to stop the web.

    Movement in the tall grass! "Is it a pokemon?" Mizuki jokes.

    And then the ground shakes and she stops smiling, ears turning this way and that as she tries to locate the source... sand is wearing away? Is this an antlion type monster? She leaps back in a high arc, JUST in time to avoid getting bitten, but sees them get-- "WIS!" She shouts in alarm when she sees red running down her leg, then notices it's glowing and the familiar DoT indicator is on the party HUD. *PHEW*.

    It makes sense to prioritize the small ones, nonetheless. And what's good against large groups of small creatures AND against webs? That's right, fire! Prophy is here too, of course, but... look, it comes naturally! Mizuki's already taking a breath before she's finished landing, and then spews forth a great plume of fire ahead of her!

Schneider cries out as he's grabbed, his arms and legs pulled clear, unable to avoid the grab in time. These spiders are in trouble, though, he's got them just where he wants them. Normally he saves this for the finale, but he's doing to drop this right on his captor's face, and maybe that will give him a chance to squirm free. It's only got his legs, and it's about to regret that.

"Kaizard, aruzard, kisk!" he chants, and darkness surrounds him. "Hansay Glossik! Unleash total destruction! Sage of Hades use the seven keys to open the gates of Hell!" He takes a deep breath, and shouts, "HALLOWEEN!"

So, this is his big boom, and the dark and evil miasma are noticable, but with the amount of fire, they're not /very/ noticable. The real tragedy is it's such an intense spell that it's mostly wasted, a spell like that digs out a crater beneath him and slams the thing that grabbed him, burning and smashing it horribly, but there's just so much damage that a lot of it spills out with no one to hurt.

    Wistiera cries out as she tries to jump away, but fails, the pincers of the worm monsters snapping on to her legs. The tall albino girl shifts forms becoming a caerbannog girl and envokes the curses on her armor. "Lets get these worms!" she cries out, the impact of jaws on her legs dark smoke drifts from her armor turning into dark metal chains lashing the worm to the ground slowing and weakening it.

There's something unsettling in the way the ground shifts. Its just enough to put Vertina, despite her bravado, in a slightly more wary state. Which is all it takes for reflexes to be ready to move at a moments notice, and fast enough she seems to briefly blurr from the speed before skidding to a crouched stop a few paces away. "Looks like the spiders brought their own friends to this unwelcome party."

Someone said punching. Punching is what she can do. And she can do it in fancy ways, too.

"Time to shake things up!" She leaps from her spot, wheeling around an arm as she does and channeling her earth magic into her fist as she does. So when she comes down to land it's also punching said fist into the ground, causing a shockwave to roll through it and hopefully knock the worms free from the ground so they can't burrow back underneath to avoid the attacks being flung at them.

And as expected of a place rumored to be packed full of DANGEROUS SPIDER MONSTERS, the moment the party gets anywhere close to the Taratect hive, it's... Well.

It gets ambushed by... dangerous spider monsters!!

Though Prophylaxis does wonder why the things that just burst out of the ground are worm-shaped and not spider-shaped, it's only a brief distraction. He quickly ascertains what the creatures are doing and decides that he absolutely does not like what he sees. "Get those things off of your legs, quick! Parasitic creatures... I don't think 'bleed' is the worst they'll do. Watch your steps, everyone! And--"

There are more spiders coming from up ahead. Large, much more obviously challenging spiders. Prophylaxis grunts, a bead of flame blazing to life atop the head of his staff. With a quick flick, he sends the fiery globe hurtling into the webs and the spiders spinning them. With a wave of heat and light and searing fire, the sphere explodes, tearing webbing to shreds and leaving the scraps burning like embers in the breeze! "What a warm welcome," the doctor drawls sarcastically, "Well. Maybe if we cause enough of a ruckus, their god will come and see what all the chaos is all about?"

The 'worm' like creatures squirm and wriggle, their red and pale white bodies trying to press into their targets. Wisteria and Schneider can both feel the pressure intensify as the creatures seem to try and press beneath their skin. But notably, it seems they can't quite make progress due to the telling red light of damage seemingly halting further invasion.

Then suddenly, there's a violent flaming detonation. A catastrophy of flame that surrounds Schneider with such intense impact that Schneider's own health drops from all the debris that tears about his body. A crater forming beneath him, with sand sinking into it. The worm that was latched onto him released, and revealing that it's sticking out of a far larger still spider's body beneath the sand.

That intense blow did not destroy these high level worms that were trying to grab him, of which only one had managed to get to his leg. But he's gotten them to stop holding onto his leg and is able to get back and away from their grasp. More of those 'worm shapes' stick out of the sands, focused on any kind of movement against the tundra's surface! Each time someone steps, it seems they are followed by a worm moving through the sands, or one popping out near them!

Wisteria's chains curse the worm that was holding onto her as it tries to bite down, weakening it and tugging at its pincers. Slowly tearing them open like an already sprung beartrap being wrenched apart with much difficulty!

Vertina's blow to the ground nearby sends a ripple through the ground, which causes a great deal of the multi-legged and pincer bearing worms to go back into the ground, dizzying them and making it harder for them to pinpoint where the Adventurers are as they move - allowing them the freedom to move as they wish for a short moment.

A second blaze - formed by Prophylaxis and Mizuki working together with their flame magic - eradicates the webbing that was intent on capturing the group. But there's an unnerving amount of tactic being deployed here. More webbing is flowing towards them, but Setsuna's wind magic is stopping it from getting close enough.

As such, it seems the Greater Taratects change their tactic, moving from deploying web to suddenly spewing viscious acid that begins warping the ground beneath them the moment it touches. Their spray isn't a neat line, but rather is blowing forward into a fine mist that starts covering the battlefield, with occassional jet-like accurate sprays, intent on forcing the retreat of these 'invaders'.

Vertina knows how to deal with moving lines of attack like that especially when they appear to be some manner of mist or spray. Thankfully, because she doesn't want to try and physically block something that can instantly dissolve the ground like that. Instead she takes a deep breath, draws on the deepest reachs of her Salamander being, and exhales. Flames spew from her maw, then upon striking the ground leap up into blazing pillars forming a barricade. A barrier of fire that incinerates the sprayed mist that comes into contact with it.

Vertina takes a few steps back, just in case that produces some manner of noxious fumes or such that she isn't going to want to breath in. Her tail lashes, as she's still on the guard for any more sneak attacks from the ground too. "If you're going to do something fancy you two," she remarks towards Proph and Setsuna, "You better do it fast!"

Schneider is reoriented after blasting the worm-thing off him, and looking down and seeing it coming out of a spider is not high on his list of things that are encouraging. "The phrase 'Kill it with fire' comes to mind," he says, but he will hold off because this is supposed to be ... "What are we doing here, again? Looking for something?" It was explained to him, but not clearly, and now he's not sure if he should follow it up with steel-beam-melting levels of fire. "Someone had better do something fast, though..."

The massive spiders switch tactics, spewing corrosive acid in calculated bursts. Below, the worms reveal themselves to be yet more spiders. While Prophylaxis has absolute faith in his party's ability to handle monsters (they are, to a one, skilled and experienced raiders), the fact is... This is not why they came here.

And if this continues, battle and bloodshed is all that they're likely to find.

The doctor's expression clouds as the air around him bursts into flame, blasting aside a spray of acid aimed squarely at his position. "I'm not sure how well this will work," Prophylaxis grumbles, as a simple, but crystal-clear glass sphere appears in his hand, "But I've been saving these for a reason."

The Simple Icon of Enigma - Oracle is consumed. What happens then is something that some among this party have likely gotten quite used to by now. "I invoke the power of Oracle to gain the voice to speak to those who would otherwise heed not my words," The Doctor commands, then intones, once the Oracle has taken effect: "Taratects! We don't need to fight! We, representatives of the Scale Emblem Alliance and the Adventurers of Yamato come in peace. I am a doctor, Prophylaxis, who has heard legends that your kind-- and your goddess-- are healers as well. I know not how long this magic might last, but while it does, I'd like to request permission to enter your territory. I promise we shall inflict no harm on you and yours while we explore. If possible, might one of your kind who speaks our language be present that we might continue to communicate once this magic expires?"

    Wisteria jumps back, bouncing away when her legs are freed by her dark chains. Then the werebun builds up a ball of dark magics in her hands. "Keep the worms down while Proph makes a deal with the spiders!" she says dropping the nightmare sphere down onto the worm infested spider carapace down in the hole. "NIGHTMARE SPHERE!"

    Setsuna is struck by one of the jets of acid and his left side takes the hit, his arm, his face, they are melting off his body, even the skeleton leg is looking kind of stained by the acid. Meanwhile his right side looks completely fine as he stands up back on to his feet." I am of two minds on this, on one hand we are trying to meet this damn spider goddess. On the other , that was rude. " So out comes a coin that gets flipped and caught and the result is not quite examined as tthe doctor seems to be up to something so hears Wisteria's advice and turns sending dark flames out to roast the worms.

The group proceeds to play defense, keeping the acid from harming themselves too much - with Setsuna being the unfortunate exception. Pockets of red glow forming over his body as the acid begins to dissolve him.

The large spiders then slow, and the worms temporarily halt their assault, as Prophylaxis begins to speak. Everyone around him can understand him just fine. But there's this strange tremmor in the air. Almost like a heatwave's sheen that causes the visual spectrum to shake.

"YOUR REQUEST... IS REJECTED." The Spiders answer Prophylaxis and the others. Their voice audible to all around him in that moment. Their voices hiss and warp, sounding alien in this very uncomfortable way. Like something is being strained to let them hear this voice.

The spiders just have their maws open. It is very obvious that they are not the ones speaking, but are being used to speak _through_ by someone or something.

"YOU, WHO BROUGHT THE HOUND OF ULSTER. YOU, WHO RELEASED THE QUARANTINE UPON THIS ALLY OF THE LAST DEUS. YOU, WHO RELEASED THE CAUSE OF OUR SUFFERING. YOU - ARE NOT WELCOME HERE. LEAVE. OR BE DESTROYED."

That would appear to be their answer, and they begin to move forward, rearing up to attack once more.

    Setsuna frowns at the spiders, as they comment on how bad they are, " You know it's one thing when the nobles tell us to go away, butt now even monsters. We so need bettter PR." All the bad ass gusto he was throwing around a moment ago gone as he looks a the doctor. Before turning around and looking at his cerberus for a moment, " Your not a hound of ulysses or who ever right? I didn't think so. " Looking back up at the taratects , " Maybe if you stopped speaking in riddles and filled us in on somethings we could clean up our mess. We are Scale Emblem, we are very good at taking responsibility for our messes." It is true, we as an alliance were quite good at cleaning their messes up, even if most of them were self made. If the others decided to leave, he would for now but no reason to go without trying to squeeze a little more chit chat out.

The Hound? Prophylaxis knows only one monstrous hound. Two if you count the thing that took off his arm and then had to be apologized to profusely before it removed anything else. But the spiders do reply, with something that...

...Is not the answer Prophylaxis had wanted to hear. The doctor's expression darkens, but out of disappointment, not out of malice. "I see. Very well, we will take our leave. But please, we have heard so many accuse us of such things, but to our knowledge we have had no hand in what you speak, nor will we know what we look at if we continue to lack this knowledge. We will leave, but before we go, please tell us: How will we know the mark of this hound? I have seen visions of a terrible beast in the haze of a goblin cave-- but I do not know its nature. How can we right what we have been accused of doing wrong, if such a thing is possible?"

He holds up his hand to the others, as if to signal his intent to halt hostilities, and takes a step back to demonstrate his sincerity, but... If nothing else, he has determined one thing. These are enemies to that damnable hound... And if so, possibly the goblins as well. "At least, please give me your name. If nothing else, I will see to what is possible within my power that this place of yours can be protected."

Schneider will hold his fire, literally, it seems, since Proph has got these fellows talking. They don't seem happy, and he will definitely need to work out what this is all about. Since they don't seem to be attacking just at the moment, he will pull out his notebook and scribble down some brief impressions, and a quick sketch of the strange monster's we're facing.

"YOU WILL KNOW IT BY THE BONES AND THE TEETH THAT SHATTER AS THEIR POWER IS RELEASED. YOU WILL KNOW IT BY THE SHRINES, AND THE SMOKE, AND THE FOUL TOUCH THAT BREAKS THE LAWS OF ALBA." The spiders' maws remain open to channel the voice that comes from beyond. They pause for a moment, before they add.

"WE HAVE MANY NAMES, WE ARE THE TARATECT. AS ALL MONSTERS, BORN TO DEFY IMANITY." They finish up with, before they leer at them, their feet starting to more quickly tap and grind upon the stands, nervous, clearly rearing to attack.

"WE NEED NOT, YOUR PROTECTION."

    Mizuki is staying in the air as much as possible with RIDICULOUS ANIME NINJA LEAPS, once she sees what the worms are doing. Also: It turns out the worms are part of a spider, sure why not!

    So when acid coats the area, she quickly shapes some stoneskin boots and continues to leap around for minimal interaction with acid AND worms.

    But Proph is ready to try talking! Mizuki holds off on attacking again once diplomacy is initiated...

    Aaaand then it is SHOT DOWN.

    But... 'telling us to leave' is, at least, not 'wanting us dead right here and now'? "Holy shit, they DO talk!" Mizuki exclaims. "Uh... if they're letting us go I'm okay with that!"

    As Prophy and Setsuna try to get one question answered, she looks for a safe-ish place to stand.

"Imanity...? The races of Landers and Adventurers both...?" The term is new, but the intent is not. Who were the original inhabitants of this world, truly? "We have encountered such idols and altars before, and have destroyed them each time as well. We will seek them out more deliberately, now. I thank you for your graciousness. We will go now in peace if you would allow us, Taratect. Perhaps not today, but someday in the future, I hope that we might speak on friendlier terms. Perhaps not as 'protector' or 'born enemy' but as something more."

The Law of Alba. The doctor dips into a bow, but in so doing, is careful to allow the Dragon Opal dangling about his neck to glint in the lingering firelight. As he rises, he nods to the others and turns to leave. Is he struck down on the spot, or will the Taratects' good will hold?

"I think we might want to consider that leaving before they change their mind from talking." Vertina murmurs as she lingers protectively near Wisteria and Mizuki. "As much as I like to fight, I get the impression picking a fight here with these guys would be bad news for us in general."

    "I think they mean monsters are suppose to fight us and they're monsters! Aren't the glitches breaking the laws of Alba?" she asks skipping back and keeping up with dropping curses and dark magics into the pit to keep the worms down, no need for anyone to get infected because she didn't keep up on her crowd control job.

"Things are more complicated than they seem, Wisteria," Prophylaxis says with a shrug. "As they are in so many other aspects of this world. Regardless... We had best take our leave, as promised."

    Setsuna listens to the description of 'The Beast' and frowns a little as he asks one final thing, "You know , thats a real shame. I had hoped that it was the beast that led to monsters attacking us on sight. Surely you wouldn't let such labels as being a monster define you." Says the half melted necromancer with a skeleton leg. Really at somepoints he is really going to start to blur that line. He doesn't wait to get an answer just a sad glance to his cerberus who is taking more and more magic to control and follow the others away from the taratect.

We have been asked to leave, and have said we're leaving, so he makes with the leaving. It seems pretty straightforward. That starts with heading back the way we came, though he will walk backwards so he can watch these creatures. Schneider's not turning his back on them, no way! But he is going to get an explanation afterwards. He just hopes he can understand it.

    Mizuki stands awkwardly, ready to flee as she tensely looks between Prophylaxis and the spiders. It somehow jumps out at her, the way Vertina is standing protectively nearby.

    Oh good, Prophy said they're leaving now. Mizuki nods. "It was, uh... well, it was *something* meeting you, taractects." She looks at Setsuna. "They've chosen to let us leave alive, I think they already ARE not acting like just monsters."

    She looks to the spiders. "Thanks for that, by the way." She'll leave with the others.

    Wisteria keeps dark curses flowing at any worm thing that decides to move in her range as she backs away in small bouncing hops. "It'd be cool if we could find someone to just lay out the laws of Alba... maybe Sensei Gilgamesh knows them all?" she hrrms even as she retreats.

Vertina lets her fire barrier die down and turns to leave with the others. "Why do we keepp getting more questions than any answers?"