Northland Iceland

[Keeper Decagon]

John, the Black Knight Mercenary

Having trained for a while now, John found his training beginning to have an effect on him. It was a small change, but the increase in his strength was yet noticeable with ever hit. The sword swung with that bit extra power and precision, evident on the training dummy he was using as a target. He felt determined to improve himself though. He was still not accurate and powerful enough to do his duty efficiently. As he continues to train, John ignored the slight twinges of ache and hunger that he could begin to feel developing. But it was all necessary, to drive his training on. He had to be stronger.




John Summary

Health: 100%
Level: 2
Gold Held: 0
Gold in Lair: 0
Mood: Neutral
Status: Training
Location: Training Room
Efficiency: 100%
Equipment: Sword
Experience: 4/25 (+18 training)
Quick Summary: John trained and leveled up, continuing to train some more.

[Metal Gear Rex]

Trapped in a physical body, Tesonu runs through a long, empty corridor somewhere within his dungeon. He sweats heavily as he hurries along as quickly as he can push his current body, but the path seems to go on forever. Maniacal laughter echos through the hall and fills his ears; laughter from the madman that he tries to escape. Tesonu pushes forward, hoping that maybe, just maybe he can escape this madman's power. A powerful shiver runs through his whole body as a shadow appears over him. Tesonu quickly realizes that it's too late; there's no escaping him now.

I've been looking for someone to spearhead my campaign!

The ground suddenly disappears below Tesonu as he feels a disgusting, massive hand grab him and yank him away. He swallows as he feels another shiver. It's too late now.

You'll make a fine... subject to serve in fulfilling my desires...

Tesonu continues to go up, lifted by this horrible hand of evil. Despite reaching the ceiling, Tesonu does not stop moving upward and transcends into darkness; his body now in an immaterial state. Despite no longer existing on a physical plane, Tesonu can still feel the evil presence of the being that holds him. In his mind, he sees the hideous madman as he laughs endlessly with only the darkest of wishes... the stupidest of goals...

A heartbeat booms into Tesonu's ears and suddenly he feels himself spinning. His mind escapes the darkness; his body flies away through the empty hall. Everything blurs right past Tesonu as his whole body spins wildly beyond his control. Suddenly he realizes there is an end in sight: a bright, flashing light. He quickly closes in on it, entering the light. His body abruptly jolts as soon as he enters the light. Tesonu hears another heartbeat, and suddenly his eyes... his mind opens.

Keeper Tesonu

"Huh? What?"

Tesonu searches around his dungeon, looking for something without knowing exactly what. Yet, everything seems to be as it should be. A moment of realization suddenly hits him as he recalls his existence as an immaterial being taken form within the physical plane.

Something wrong?

"Wha-Oh, it's you."

Yes. Me. Your humble servant. You fell asle-

Tesonu suddenly backhands the Informant.

Ow! What was that for?

"I just... had to remind myself..."

"Remind myself that I am the master and you are the servant."

I don't like this reminder.

"Shut up, no one cares about you."

:(

"I had this... horrible dream where I was the slave to this being... this mentor... It was horrible..."

That sounds... nice. I would like to be called Mentor, and be in control over people. And have slaves to work for me.

"You see, this is why you don't have any friends. Or a family, for that matter."

D;

"Yeah you just, go straight back to hell and cry."

"Now then, what the hell is going on in my dungeon."

Taking another look around his dungeon, Tesonu suddenly realizes that there is in fact something wrong: his creatures appear to be frozen in time! Perhaps he didn't realize it initially after just waking from his sleep, but they all need a good slapping or at least a wake up call. His women, of course, needed a firm slapping in the rear.

"Ahem..."

"CREATURES WAKE THE FUCK UP!!"

"There, that should do it."

"So I don't know if any of you creatures remember, but I need a small number of volunteers to deal with some... annoyances..."

While Tesonu almost named the annoyances as 'Tentacles', he quickly remembered that he does, in fact, have a Tentacle in his service named Terrence. Terrence comes from the Tentacle Tribe, and Tesonu is about to wipe the last of them out. Even though he disagreed with their methods, it's possible that Terrence would still take offence to Tesonu wiping out the last of his family and friends. No, he would likely take offence. Tesonu makes a note to kill Terrence later.

Tesonu suddenly realizes that he is, somehow, still holding Terrence after picking him up earlier for causing a fight in the Torture Chamber. Tesonu then promptly drops Terrence on his head somewhere.

"So I'll need some warriors, maybe a healer because I don't feel like going to the effort of casting heal-I mean I should probably save up mana for the big fight with Hannibal, and yeah."

Smooth.

"Go back to your sobbing, tubby."

I'm not... I'm not fat, I... *sniff*

"Now then, as for the rest of you, as in, everyone who is too lazy to go on this Tenta-annoyance hunt... Well you can just do whatever the hell you want, I don't care unless you're a female getting naked."

"Oh, but if anyone of you leave the dungeon without my permission..."

"I'll kill you."

"Right then, you have your orders, off you go!"

"Oh, also hi Valkurath. Whatever."




* * * * * * * * * * *

Important Actions:
Tesonu wakes up from a dream
Tesonu calls on his creatures to wake up from their sleep in time
Dropped Terrence on his head somewhere

General Orders:
All Creatures: Rest up before going to usual duties
Volunteers: Need small number of melee fighters, spell castors, and a healer
Zukia: Infiltrate Hannibal's dungeon and learn whatever can be learned

Research Orders:
Thunder Spell
Destroy Wall Spell
Disease Spell (second priority)

Manufacture Orders:
Braced Doors
Lightning Traps
Steel Doors (second priority)
Iron Barricades (second priority)
Sentry Traps (second priority)

Imp Orders:
If Vampire Rises Shortly, Dump More Bodies in the Graveyard

Research in Progress:
Thunder: 0%
Disease: 0%
Destroy Walls: 46% (+10% I guess)

Trap Production:
Nothing (lazy)

Current Gold:
22224, +1364 (Gem), -3276 (Suria Payday)

[Dark_Omega MK2]

From the portal, a woman wearing a suit of armor appears climbing up into the dungeon, she has a curved spear on her back and a sheated sword on her waist along with small backpack. The woman takes a quick glance at the empty room and mutter to herself. "So this is Tesonu's dungeon. No doubt about it." With that said, she takes a short walk towards the Dungeon Heart, the woman kneels whle taking her helmet and placing it on the floor. "Dungeon Keeper!" says the woman with a loud and clear voice. "Due to circumstances which i am sure you are not interested in hearing about, i am in need of a dungeon and a new master which to call Dungeon Keeper. My name is Ariadne and i am but a simple vampire with no much purpose other than surviving in this harsh world. I offer you myself, as insignificant as such offer may be to you, so please, heed my request and let me stay!" After a few moments, Ariadne takes that Tesonu might be busy and puts her helmet back on while standing up. Ariadne leaves the room and goes towards the lair taking a quick glance at the creatures and the variety of lairs in it.

Immediately what catches Ariadne's attention the lair with a huge pile of gold and couple of chests adorning it. "Interesting." she mutter to herself. Not seeing anything else out of the ordinary, Ariadne chooses as spot for her lair, which immediately spawns a rockin chair. She puts her backpack on it and leaves the room heading towards the training room, passing the hatchery observing her sorroundings every now and again not noting anything interesting.

Ariadne arrives to the training room and takes a longer look at each creature. With a subtle smile, she says to herself "So this is where the freak show circus is at. Might as well join them." Ariadne pulls her sword and starts smacking on a training dummy, but mostly she's taking a look at what everyone else is doing.

ARIADNE'S SUMMARY

• Health: 100%
• Level: 1
• Gold in Hand: 0
• Gold in Lair: 0
• Location: Training room
• Status: Training.
• Efficiency: 100%
• Summary: Ariadne introduces herself, makes a lair and starts training in the training room.

[Dark_Omega MK2]

Having successfully finished their duty with the imps, Diana and Grith head over to the hatchery for a much needed respite, with excitement on their faces, both creatures speak of their endavor. "That was a sweet experience, like, oh my gosh! I thought it would be just a normal mission but boy... OH BOY were we wrong!" Grith nods at Diana looking happy. "Remember when we rescued private Johnson from the rage of the intergalatic tentacle empire? Then a vortex opened up out of nowhere and the mutants started pouring all over the place?" Grith, once again, nods. "An... And we had to escape the enemy hideout before the self destruct sequense countdown reached zero!" Diana agrees. "Yeah! We are like bread and butter, we are on a roll, we are an unstopable force of nature!" Diana throws a couple punches in front of her in the hair. "Also remember when the tentacles grabbed and tore my clothes and then-" Diana pauses suddenly and her eyes open wide "...Let us never speak of this EVER again." Grith nods happily. "Yeah!" Both creatures arrive at the hatchery and start munching on some chicken.

After a short while, Grith looking at Diana, realizes that she doesn't have her mask on. Her face, resembling more of a human girl than a goblin, radiates with beauty. Grith asks "Hey! Why you wear that mask?" With chicken stuffed on her mouth Diana asks back "Fuat do yu mean?" While gulping the chicken in her mouth. "You look like one of those hoomans, i thought you had like a horribly disfigured ultra horrible face like "Oh my gosh!" or sumthin'" Diana, looking at Grith, laughs at his expression. "You silly! i wear it because it gives me tactical advantage." Grith looks confused. "My father taught me that enemies will be more afraid of you if you wear a mask and then make like a "i'm gonna kill you!" stare at them. It's common knowledge, I'm surprised you don't know this yourself! As for why i don't like my other goblins, well, that would be because of my mother." Diana continues munching on a chicken. "Oh right, I almost forgot, it's been payday a while ago maybe we should-" Before Diana can finish her sentence Grith goes like lightning out of the hatchery towards the Treasure. "-Go... collect... gold?" Diana let's out a sigh and heads to follow the demon spawn "...Kids these days" while doing a shrug motion with her arms.

DIANA'S SUMMARY

• Health: 85%
• Level: 4
• Gold in Hand: 100
• Gold in Lair: 0
• Location: Hatchery
• Status: Happy
• Efficiency: 100%
• Summary: Goes to Hatchery with Grith, eat some chicken and heads towards the Treasure Room

GRITH'S SUMMARY

• Health: 80%
• Level: 5
• Gold in Hand: 1
• Gold in Lair: 200
• Location: Hallway, just outside the hatchery towards the treasure room.
• Status: Happy
• Efficiency: 100%
• Summary: Goes to Hatchery with Diana, eat some chicken and heads towards the Treasure Room

[Metal Gear Rex]

After finally returning to her Lair from what appeared to be an endless journey of walking through murky water and killing Tentacles, Nalina lets out a deep breath as she sets down her gear. It was a long and tedious journey but the War Maiden finally returned. The filthy Tentacles offered some fight but only because they were in their natural element of water. They appeared to be sorely lacking in skill, although there was a bit of a number advantage and Nalina wasn't in the best condition either.

Still, despite everything, it was overall fairly enjoyable. Although... there was one particular moment that Nalina didn't quite like during the main encounter with her foes. One of the dirty-minded Tentacles suddenly came in from the side while Nalina fought another and lunged at her. He went wild on her as he swung his tentacles about, eventually accomplishing what appeared to be his real goal: tearing Nalina's bra off. The Tentacle had only a fraction of a moment to try and fondle her breasts before she impaled him with her sword. That particular moment was easily the worst part of the whole escort. Impaling the Tentacle was fine, lots of fun. Losing her bra, not so much. As it stands now, Nalina uses her shield to cover her breasts from Tesonu's prying eyes.

The Tentacles' behavior was odd, to say the least. Perhaps that also explains their lack of skill. What they did to that Goblin girl was also quite atrocious. Fortunately for her, Nalina was able to get her out of that sticky mess, as well as that red Demon Spawn creature. She fought quite well; a strong warrior among her kind seemed rare indeed. Clearly she deserved better... If... Nalina could just... remember her name. Surely she's heard it before but... Nalina has always been really bad at remembering names. It's shameful of Nalina to have fought beside her and not even know her name. Although she wants to pay her respects to the Goblin girl, Nalina wants more to avoid embarrassing and shaming herself. Perhaps she should try to avoid the Goblin girl...

"So I don't know if any of you creatures remember, but I need a small number of volunteers to deal with some... annoyances..."

Nalina looks up, concerning herself with what Tesonu suddenly has to announce.

"So I'll need some warriors, maybe a healer because I don't feel like going to the effort of casting heal-I mean I should probably save up mana for the big fight with Hannibal, and yeah."

Nalina shrugs and rolls her eyes before proceeding to search her bed for a spare bra. It's true that Nalina's body ached a bit, but only from her injuries. She does not feel truly tired, nor is she, or any other War Maiden for that matter, going to let this battle opportunity slip by. Injury isn't enough to stop her. If Tesonu is too lazy to heal her wounds, then Nalina will go elsewhere for her healing. She did not seek his perverted touch nor to give him any opportunity to get his dirty fingers on her.

Upon quick refreshment, Nalina remembers that the sister of that commanding magic user, Crystice, is in fact a healer. Yet, where could she be in this vast dungeon? Where would she have gone while Nalina ventured away? Nalina can't seem to come up with any real answer, and so she seeks to perform a quick search through the dungeon. Tesonu will have to wait for her if he desires to be lazy. Nalina's first instinct for a place to search, being a warrior, is the Training Room. But as a magic user, perhaps she could also be in the Library? Why would a healer be in the Training Room anyhow? Creatures are almost never injured there.

Gathering again her basic weaponry, Nalina takes a deep breath before setting out for the Library. She can't help but notice that she's a bit... nervous, but she's not quite sure why. All she has to do is speak to the sister of the most important person in the entire dungeon who may be the only one capable of stopping this realm's ongoing madness by making up for Tesonu's incompetency through the power of her own intellect and strategy... So it's important that Nalina represents herself quite well as to avoid... being overlooked in the future.

Nalina stands at the entrance of the Library, feeling incredibly uneasy as her heart seems to be beating faster. She takes a few deep breaths before pulling her eight legs forward, searching through the different Library lanes for the healer.



Nalina
Health: 58% [-15% D:]
Level: 5
Experience: 36/60 [+25 lol]
Gold in Hand: 0
Gold in Lair: 0
Equipment: Short Sword, Steel Shield, 2/2 Tomahawks, Quiver (12 Bodkin/5 Broadhead)
Location: Library
Status: Neutral, Searching for Emmra
Efficiency: 80%
Summary:
Hey DarkOmega, here's a 'Summary' for you ( ° ͜ʖ͡°)╭∩╮

Nalina returned from the Imp Escort topless after an encounter with Tentacles. Hearing of a hunt while replacing her bra, she decides to volunteer as she feels no need to truly rest but figures she should have a quick visit to a healer first and searches for Emmra.

[Dark_Omega MK2]

After a quick glance at everyone in the training room, Ariadne's attention is caught by a knight which is also training, she can see he's having a bit of a hard time sparring with the dummy. "How convinient." Says Ariadne with with a smirk on her face. Sword on hand, she aproaches Guillermo Ortega from the side, Ortega does not notice the vampire next to him so she pats him on the back and Ortega realizes there is someone next to him. "Ah? What?" Ignoring his question, Ariadne scans the knight from toe to helmet, after a brief moment of silence she replies. "You look bored, obviously training with an immobile target is not for you, how about we train for real? A friendly sparring match, what do you say?" Confused, Ortega agrees. She was right, training with dummies can only get you so far, but training against an opponent that can respond and counter attack will hone his skills much faster.

Both oponents get on the side of the training room and ready their swords, Both point at each other and Ariadne notices something odd on Guillermo's stance, Ortega's sword is shaking a little. She looks at Guillermo with a bit of anger and with a firm voice she exclaims "Is this a joke?" Ortega gets confused by her statement but before he can reply anything the vampire girl swats the sword out of Ortega's hand with a single swing, She then points the sword at the dissarmed Knight. "How-?" "How was i able to disable you so quickly, despite you being stronger?" She sheats her sword back to her holster, aproaching the knigth, she grabs her wrists and put them in front of Ortega. "You really didn't notice did you? Your technique at it is is very sloppy and amateurish, you can barely hold a grip on that sword." Ortega looks more confused, he doesn't understand what the vampire is saying, freeing himself from the hold of the girl he exclaims "What you mean? Que sucede?!" Ariadne calmly responds to him "When was the last time you eat? The most basic rule for a warrior, never go to a battle with an empty stomach!" Ortega's anger suddenly turns into surprise. She was right, he has not taken proper food ever since he joined Tesonu's Dungeon, with that realization it was obvious what was going on, he was weak, he's been sloppy and careless all this time.

Before Ortega can finish his sentence the vampire speaks to him "Come with me." Guillermo retrieves his sword on the floor and follows the vampire towards the hatchery. Ariadne grabs a chicken by the neck and offers it to Guillermo "Eat this." Ortega looking more confused, estates "But, raw, no fire. cocina!" Ariadne understand what is going on, apparently the knight had not realized that you can eat the chicken raw in a dungeon with no consequences. With chicken in hand, Ariadne replies calmly. "I see..." almost like replying to herself, she looks at Guillermo. "Just, who are you? That you don't know the rules of this place which are common knowledge? hm?" Ariadne smiles slightly paying close attention to the knight. "Guillermo Ortega! i from away far land country!" Ariadne replies "I see..."

Ariadne looks at the chicken on her hand. "Let me give you a friendly advice, clumsy knight with a broken tongue. Life, in this place is as expendable as the life of this tiny little thing. Imagine, being borned with the only intent to fed someone else, unable to feel pain, hunger or sorrow" As she says this, Ariadne starts calmly plucking the feathers on the chicken. "Unable... No. Forbidden to even feel on your own or take a path for yourself." Ortega looks at Ariadne still confused by her words. "What you mean?" Ariadne with a smile on her face looks at Ortega, "you'll understand someday." Ariadne tosses the partially feathered chicken at Ortega and the knight catches it. "Eat plenty of these chicken and rest. After you are ready maybe we can then see to resume our little training session, don't make me wait too long, sir knight." Without waiting for his response, Ariadne leaves the hatchery and heads back towards the training room.

Guillermo, not understanding what was going on, decides to take a bite on the chicken Ariadne gave him, with disgust, he bites the soft body and to his surprise, it was delicious! Guillermo starts eating some more chicken and after a moment, he's full, Guillermo realizes that he is indeed tired, even after sleeping last time, and decides to follow Ariadne's advice, he heads towards his bed and sleeps.

ARIADNE'S SUMMARY

• Health: 100%
• Level: 1
• Gold in Hand: 0
• Gold in Lair: 0
• Location: Training room
• Status: Training.
• Efficiency: 100%
• Summary: Talks with Guillermo, goes to hatchery with him and goes back to the training, alone.

GUILLERMO'S SUMMARY

• Health: 100%
• Level: 2
• Gold in Hand: 0
• Gold in Lair: 0
• Location: Lair
• Status: Sleeping
• Efficiency: 0%
• Summary: Gets scolded by Ariadne, eats at hatchery and goes back to lair to sleep.

[Keeper Decagon]

Terrence

"Oof!"

Terrence landed squarely on his head, his body following quickly to slump on the ground beside him. He shook his head slightly as he slowly clambered to his feet.

"Well, I guess I deserved that..."

He felt terribly sore, what with all of the cuts and bruises from the whipping. Letting out a sigh of relief at the fact that he was not yet dead, the Tentacle looked at his new surroundings.

"Where the heck am I?"

It looked like a corridor, like any other, with the frosty air freezing onto the stone of the reinforced walls. He couldn't spot any kind of activity from where he stood, but he could hear a jumble of noises echoing in the distance. Stepping toward the sound, Terrence kept a look-out for anything in the way of traps set up by Tesonu. Perhaps this was the way he was going to be executed, as he was sure that any promise of service to Tesonu would be pretty much void after the incident in the Torture Chamber... meaning he was just another Tentacle Tribe member that needed disposing of. The images of the torture of Karla flickered through his mind, but he shook them off as quickly as they came.

Why do I even care about what happens to them? They brought this upon themselves...

He stumbled against the wall, taking a few deep breaths as his body ached. He was really quite tired after all of the emotional and physical strain, and it appeared to have happened in too short a time for him to properly handle. More than that, now, he was also fearing for his own life.

The corridor came out in a junction of sorts, with the clanging of pickaxes smashing against the precious Gem seam emanating from one direction, directly opposite to him. Walking down the other passage, as to not get in the way of the Imps, he noted the doorway leading to the Combat Pit. Suddenly, the booming voice of Tesonu echoed through the dungeon. He wanted volunteers or something to deal with annoyances. Terrence could quite well guess what he was referring to.

Following the familiar corridor to its end, he ended up in the ever-comfortable Lair, where he slowly made his way to his own lair. He looked around nervously for a moment, before attempting to fall asleep.




Terrence Summary

Health: 49% (-1% falling on his head)
Level: 2
Gold Held: 0
Gold in Lair: 0
Mood: Quite worried
Status: Sleeping
Location: Lair
Efficiency: 0%
Equipment: None
Experience: 23/25
Quick Summary: Terrence was dropped by Tesonu in the north corridor, and slowly made his way back to the lair to fall asleep, ignoring any announcements that were made.

[Keeper Decagon]

Maiden of the Nest
Chandra
The Banishing Priestess

"So I don't know if any of you creatures remember, but I need a small number of volunteers to deal with some... annoyances... So I'll need some warriors, maybe a healer because I don't feel like going to the effort of casting heal-I mean I should probably save up mana for the big fight with Hannibal, and yeah."

Chandra turns to regard the Dungeon Heart with excitement, holding up her hand as though that would make her stand out more.

"I'll be the Healer for your mission, Keeper Tesonu! I've been practicing a lot, and I think I can handle this responsibility."

She grins widely as she holds her staff firmly at her side as she stares at the Heart, watching the pulses of mana twinkle brightly above the pit whilst she waited for more people to volunteer.




Chandra Summary

Health: 100%
Level: 3
Gold Held: 260
Gold in Lair: 0
Mood: Happy
Status: Waiting
Location: Heart Chamber
Efficiency: 100%
Equipment: Magic Staff
Experience: 28/35
Quick Summary: Chandra volunteers for the mission.

[Keeper Decagon]

Lord Ecthelion

The repetitive cycle of beating on the inanimate training dummies eventually began to pay off for Ecthelion, and through trying some new fighting techniques he finally could feel he had a better grasp on battle tactics. He also felt stronger too, though he put that down to the magical influence of the Training Room.

When the call came for volunteers after what seemed like an eternity since the last mission, Ecthelion felt he could do with getting out of the dungeon for a while and get some proper fighting in. Squeezing past the mass of creatures in the Training Room, the Lord headed first into the Hatchery to stock up on energy. He nabbed one of the chickens as it crossed his path, swallowing it in one. The others seemed to had taken note of the large Salamander after that, trying to keep away from him in fear of being eaten. That didn't stop Ecthelion moving to catch them, however, and several other chickens quickly met their end in the jaws of the giant lizard.

"Nice and flavorful, as always."

He waddled out of the Hatchery quickly, turning left through the Secret Door to enter the Heart Chamber. There were a number of other creatures in here already, he noted, and almost all of them were female.

"Hm."

Ecthelion approached the Dungeon Heart, bowing before he spoke.

"My lord Tesonu, I wish to volunteer for the task you need done. It's about time I got back out there to fight."

The Salamander's gaze switched from the mesmerizing sparkles of mana above the Heart to the other creature that was stood before the Keeper. He recognized her as a Maiden, though he could not recall a name for her as of yet. She seemed to notice him looking in her direction, grinning at the lizard as she moves to introduce herself.

"Hiya, fellow creature! You're a Salamander, right? I think I saw you being dragged off by an Imp after the Hold Audience spell."

Ecthelion chuckled slightly.

"Yeah, not one of my better moments. I'm Lord Ecthelion, by the way."

He held out one of his little arms, which was quickly accepted by the Maiden.

"Chandra, nice to meet you! So, what are you a lord of, may I ask?"

"Uh... well, it's... you know... ugh, who am I kidding. I used to be a lord, in whatever case, of one of the holdings in my homeland of Summermarsh Swelter."

"You're not anymore?"

She was particularly intrigued and curious about the Salamander's status, it seemed.

"Well, uh, it's kind of embarrassing really. You see, I was a royal guard for her Majesty Queen Heatress. I was assigned this one day to guard her chambers as she slept, and well, I kinda lost my head."

He squirmed uncomfortably as he explained, but the curious look on Chandra's friendly face somehow compelled him to continue the story.

"How so?"

"I... sort of touched her. It was nothing sexual though! So yeah... touching the Queen without her permission is, apparently, punishable with exile... and here I am, as far from the fires of home as can be, in an icebox of a realm."

Chandra's look remained ever friendly, even as she took in the strange details of the story, offering a look of sympathy.

"So you can't ever go back home? That's so sad."

"I was told, and I quote, that 'should I ever step foot in Summermarsh again, I would be decorating the palace for the next 50 years'."

"That doesn't sound that bad-"

"With me as the decoration."

"Oh. Yeah, that does sound quite bad. I'm really sorry to hear that. Did you still have family in that realm?"

Ecthelion shook his head slowly.

"My parents died some 10 years ago now, and I haven't seen my sister for another decade on top of that. She left Summermarsh in search of some sort of treasure, or something. She always was the adventurous one."

"Ooh, you have a sister? So have I."

She pointed to the other Maiden of the Nest in the room, one who had a powerful sense of magic about her.

"We come from a Academy that's..."

She stopped herself suddenly, remembering not to divulge any important details about her home.

"It's not that far away, let's just say that. We were both trained in magic there! She has power over a whole bunch of different magics. Me, I'm trained more along the lines of Healing people and banishing the undead, ugh."

She shivered slightly at the very mention of that wretched class of beings.

"I don't like undead very much. Even less so if they're not on my side."

In a twirling motion, she cast a weak iteration of the Shine spell, covering them both in the bright Light magic.

"Very impressive. I never could get much into magic. Salamanders tend not to have much magical ability other than the odd Protect or even Word of Power spell."

Chandra nodded.

"They are still very useful spells in the right situations. Not to mention that you also will have your fire spells too."

"I wouldn't really class them as spells, per se."

From the pit of his stomach, the Salamander brought up his Fire Spit, catching the glowing projectile in his hands.

"It's more of a physical reaction, see? Eventually, I'm meaning to learn to create Fireballs and Meteors too. It takes far more experience than I have currently, though."

He smirked, throwing the smoldering ball of flame across the room to smash into a wall, melting the ice upon it. The pair continue chatting about magic.




Ecthelion Summary

Health: 100%
Armor: 100%
Level: 3
Gold Held: 250
Gold in Lair: 120
Mood: Interested
Status: Talking
Location: Heart Chamber
Efficiency: 100%
Equipment: Armor
Experience: 32/50 (+35 Training)
Quick Summary: Ecthelion leveled up in training and makes his way to the Heart Chamber to volunteer for the mission. Once there, he begins to talk to Chandra and reveals the real reason why a Summermarsh Elite Guard is not in Summermarsh, and instead as far as you can get away from the blazing realm. They then talk about magic.

[Metal Gear Rex]

Tali takes a deep breath as she stands at the entrance of the Heart Chamber. She shakes tremendously as she releases the air from her, revealing her inner feelings of anxiety. Mistress Valira had just left her there, speaking so cold and uncaring towards her. Tali had just cured her of her curse, yet Valira still seemed quite upset with her. While her Mistress might not be the most expressive, Tali has always felt some warmth from Valira when she acts towards her. Yet, this time, Tali could only feel the cold air around her. What did Tali do to anger her Mistress so? Did Valira wish for her to stay behind instead of running off to slay Tentacles in the name of Imps? Did Tali betray her by leaving her alone while she was ill? Tali's heart aches with pain at the thought that she has somehow disappointed Mistress Valira. She has always looked up to Valira, and still does.

"Oh, hey. How's it going?"

Tali jumps and takes a step back, suddenly seeing the speaker as a black-robed Vampire standing right in front of her. How did she not notice him suddenly appear before her? Clearly it had to do with some powerful Vampire magic that all of his wicked kin possessed, just like her evil Mistress. These dark powers are what Tali only dreams of possessing, hoping that one day she will be worthy and that her Mistress will be able to teach her such ancient magic.

The Vampire before Tali resumes speaking and asks, "A bit rude to be eaves dropping, don't you think?" Tali swallows nervously, trying to be careful with how she responds. The last thing she ever wants to do is anger a Vampire, and she may have already done so already... "Um... I..." Tali tries to answer clearly but struggles heavily, only mumbled words manage to come out, "I wasn't... doing anything to upset you..." Tali's voice trails off as the Vampire simply shrugs, "You're kind of cute for a mortal anyways so no hard feelings. You got this white hair thing going. It's all the rage in the land below the ground under the ground." Shaking, Tali takes another deep breath, "Y-Yes... I do have white hair, and with this white hair I..." Tali blinks, suddenly realizing she has no idea what she's trying to say.

Remembering what she's supposed to be doing and that her Mistress is waiting for her in the Guard Room, Tali blurts out, "I have to speak to Tesonu!" Tali slowly steps forward, dragging her unsteady feet along past the Vampire, hoping to not have angered him. If she came off as too rude and disrespectful, he could vaporize her in an instant with black Vampire magic that she hardly understands. Tali has yet to prove her worth to Master Tesonu; he will likely not care if she goes. Such is the way of the evil life. Breathing heavily, Tali closes her eyes as she tries to prepare herself to speak before her Master. She can't seem to make her nervous feelings disappear, as she reflects in her voice, "T-Tesonu, u-uh-I mean-M-Master Tesonu! I've come to... to... join the hunt! Yes, I will join in the killing of those evil, undeserving Tentacles! Er... that is, if you do not mind... I will be in the Guard Room irregardless!"

Tali hurries out of the Heart Chamber, unable to shake the feeling that perhaps she just embarrassed herself further. How shamefully terrible a Knight she is turning out to be. She can't even present herself before her Master without messing up somehow. Her Mistress is probably angrier with her for taking needless time to drop a simple message by Tesonu. Tali takes a few more deep breaths as she rushes through the dungeon, not even stopping for a quick bite despite her temptations. She's not quite sure when she last ate, but she cannot stop for even a moment. She cannot afford to disappoint either her Mistress nor her Master any more than she probably already has. If she can prove herself this time, then maybe, maybe then they will find some redeeming value in her. Tali has to believe that maybe there is some hope for her yet.

Tali finally arrived in the Guard Room, finding Valira and a beefy, familiar looking Orc. "Mistress Valira!" Tali greets, her voice appearing to crack up a bit. Valira doesn't even look at her, instead focusing on what seems to be the Steel Door leading out of Tesonu's dungeon. Tali swallows nervously, taking another deep breath to try and calm herself. Stepping closer, Tali resumes talking but in a much quieter tone to try and avoid annoying her Mistress, "I... did as you asked, my wonderfully evil and beautiful Mistress... Um... I told Master Tesonu that I... we... are going on the hunt." Valira doesn't seem to even acknowledge her presence, staring blanking at what is straight ahead of her. "M-Mis-tress?" Tali chokes.

"You alright?" The beefy looking Orc suddenly asks, his voice incredibly deep. Tali looks at him, puzzled for a moment but then responds, "Y-Y... I'm fine... My Mistress..." The Orc suddenly adds, "You sound like ya might be crying underneath all that armor." "W-What? I'm... I'm not..." Tali insists as she shakes her head. She immediately takes off her helmet without thinking, only to pause momentarily to really look at and check herself. Her vision is a bit blurry and her cheeks seem to be wet. Reaching up and touching her face, Tali finally realizes it to be true. She shakes her head, trying to cover her face as it turns red from sheer embarrassment. Why is her heart beating so fast and so hard against her chest? What is wrong with her? Why can't she control herself?

Tali suddenly feels a big, meaty hand patting her on the back. "I don't know why ya crying right now... But if you're gonna go on that Tentacle hunt the boss mentioned, then you best sober up and collect yourself. I've seen ya fight an' I think you're pretty darn good if I may say so myself. I've been meaning to pay my respects." Tali swallows as she attempts to hold back her tears. She slowly takes another deep breath before finally replying in a quiet voice, "Th-Thank you..." The Orc nods his head in acknowledgement before Tali puts her helmet back on, turning back to her Mistress.

Mistress Valira wasn't moving at all. She didn't make any gestures to even acknowledge what is going on around her. Tali can't help but feel that something is wrong. The Dim Knight steps towards her Mistress and calls out, "Mistress Valira!" No response. Desperate to get her Mistress' attention, Tali reaches out and grabs her hand. Almost like some sort of reflect, Valira turns to Tali so quickly that she causes the Knight to jump and take a step back. Tali's heart skips a beat, fearing that she may have awakened her Mistress' wrath. Yet... Valira simply stands there, staring straight into Tali's eyes. Valira's stare is completely unnerving, quickly working to disarm any control Tali managed to get over herself. Her eyes are unlike anything Tali has seen before; the only way she can describe them as is being deader than dead.

"Mistress...?" Tali suddenly chokes out, "A-Are you alright?" Valira continues to stare at Tali, causing her heart to race. Tali does not dare to speak a word nor to look away, despite desperately wanting to hear her Mistress at least speak to acknowledge that she still exists. She must wait for when her Mistress desires to respond, no matter how much this dreadful silence makes her heart ache. Valira suddenly turns back to staring at the Steel Door before answering with a soft whisper, "I am fine... Tali..." She says no more, leaving Tali alone in silence again.

Tali takes in a few more deep breaths, trying to calm herself before finally being able to speak again, "Are you... mad at me... Mistress Valira?" Valira doesn't say a word in response. Tali waits patiently for an answer, but it never comes. She got to hear her voice once, at least, but Mistress Valira did not appear interested in her at all. Is she too late to prove herself? Has she already disappointed her Mistress to the point that she is no longer any use to her? Tali closes her eyes, trying to find some place of calmness in her mind. Throughout all of her memories, the only time where she found that place of calmness is beside her Mistress. Her Mistress now ignores her and does not want her anymore. Why? Never before has she ever acted so from what Tali can recall. What did Tali do to finally upset her so? Why can't her heart just stop beating entirely?


Tali
Tali Health: 47%
Armor Health: 50%
Level: 4
Experience: 42/45
Gold in Hand: 0
Gold in Lair: 0
Equipment: Swordy
Location: Guard Room
Status: Anxiety
Efficiency: 60%
Summary:
Tali informed Tesonu that she and Valira are volunteering for the hunt, then left and went straight to the Guard Room where Valira waited. She struggles to grab Valira's attention as she's certain Valira is upset with her for some reason.