ORIGIN - [EVENT] The Trial of Hydra

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Morpho is falling.

The mantis notices quickly, one of the creature's appendages slips. This is not good. If Morpho had teeth, the mantis would be clenching them as hard as the gembound could. Only mantises don't have teeth, and Morpho really needs to get the brain working. It goes for a grip. Being a mantis it probably wont end up well but... Morpho is not going to die here, surely.

It reaches for a ledge.

Kaizer barely sees the scorpion barb before plows into his side, but with a panicked bleat of "KOORU!" it manages to will its magic to life.

The fur of his belly turns to scales, causing the scorpion's strike to hurt, but not pierce his skin enough deliver its deadly payload. He's safe enough, for now.

Before it can attack again, he whips his head towards the lesser, hoping that the threat of being gored on antlers is enough to get it to back off.

Too close for comfort.

He was just landing--hooves settling gently against the rust-stained earth--when movement caught his eye. The little bustard, a flap, a fall, a hooked tail lashing from a crevice.

His fading golden wings--ethereal feathers that had folded against the likewise ghostly armor that had formed around his flanks and legs--sprang back into more solid brightness. His leap for the cliffside was clumsy, but true; a graceless scramble of his front hooves at the ledge, a shove with his haunches, a flap of wings and he was sweeping up beneath Star's falling body.

His attempt was to catch her on his back, to shove away from the rock before the scorpion could haul her away. If he were lucky, his approach would even frighten the predator off--but he could not predict such things.

And should he safely catch the falling bustard on his back, his descent would be careful, less a mad scramble and more a falling feather, his hooves again settling on the earth as his calm voice offered questioning reassurance. "Are you all right-? It's safe now."

As safe as Hydra gets, in any case.

@Star

He'd land after a final hop, turning to see if Star was still following.

Star was not following. Star was about to be snatched by the two grotesque tails of a sand scorpion.

He'd yelp in panic and fear, scrambling forward without really thinking. He didn't have time to think what to do- not before a massive shadow descended upon them all. He'd manage to not be trampled by Warrior's hooves, staring up in awe at the grey horse and his ethereal golden wings.

"T-thank you." He'd squeak gratefully, trembling slightly with either relief or fear- most likely both. Craning his neck up at Star- she was quite a bit bigger than him, even not on the horse's back- he'd add. "Be careful. Please."

@Warrior @Star

The ravine was deep, and already he'd watched some unlucky fools nearly plummet to it's depths.

Which gave him a wonderful idea.

Many of those who had forged ahead had wings, making a fall of little consequence. But some did not. Below, he spotted a deer with green-pointed antlers. A wonderful target.

He would suddenly dive down next to Aran, striking out at him in an attempt to shove him off the ledge. But it wasn't a particularly strong blow, and Huntsman himself was wary of being pulled down to the same fate.

@Aran

Aran did not notice the stranger approaching. Targeting Aran is rather easy, something Huntsman would find out by how quickly he gets tripped up by the gembound tripping him into the depths. The deer panics. He's never been in this situation before! His pendant is a bird, he knows it, but that does not make Aran able to fly. He got eyes, not wings.

As he tumbles, Aran reaches to his magic.

It doesn't work.

The deer didn't know what he was expecting.

Duck Duck gathered herself after the scare, her breath steadying as she slowed her pace to something less frantic and more sustainable. It was ok - she was still ahead. She was still safe, for now. But the problem was she wasn't alone.

The attempted sabotage on the part of The Huntsman was of little significance to it. It had been expected, even desired - it held no moral qualms. This was a competition, as they had said before. So perhaps they wouldn't mind if the tables turn on them this time.

The little cat got dangerously close to his legs, tail raised high in greeting, but she seemed to reevaluate the situation when a stray limb got dangerously close to her comparatively frail body. She offered a mmrrp in greeting - perhaps the sabotage would be interpreted as naive affection or a morbid sort of approval.

@Huntsman [vis]

Round Five

And again, by some miracle, they lived. Watching over one another and simply skilled, each Gembound would eventually ascend--despite near-misses and injuries--to the vast plateaus atop the Crucible.

This expanse of red rock was blisteringly hot, without cover to speak of; huge swathes of dead foliage (dried grasses and dessicated branches) were curled into enormous nests here and there. And within them nested the Eyehooks: variable vulture-like Lessers with twenty foot wingspans or even more, roosting and squabbling and keeping careful watch on their surroundings. Some of them had leathery wings, some feathers; some had quills and others sported long, whiplike tails with pointed ends. Many Eyehooks were dusty brown, others reddish, buff or even black, but all held a vicious, savage look. A few more circled lazily, high overhead, ready to--as their namesakes suggested--go for the eyes of their prey... or intruders.

It was into this terrible gauntlet that the Gembounds would have to go: to scatter the seeds they had been given, or even to grow them if they held the magic for it.

Captain has taken another injury, and fallen back one place. Huntsman has successfully sabotaged Aran, pushing him back one place.

• Gembounds must now roll to successfully scatter the seeds from their pouch among the nests of the Eyehooks, allegedly to pacify them.

• Upon a successful roll (Barely +), please specify in bold text underneath your post/posting table, whether your character chooses to move ahead of those who fail, or remains behind with the pack, or even deliberately falls back one place with the stragglers.

• Failing this roll will result in attack by Eyehooks; a Critical Failure will cause the Gembound to lose an eye.

Placement:

First: Spinnaker, Duck Duck, Fleas, Anselm, Hymn, Huntsman

Second: Corsair, Wisperia, Aran

Third: Kaizer, Fiver, K'cil, Conleth, Ketur, Jim, Zhusha, Morpho, Ivory, Reverend, Star, Galleon, One, Glory, Ruby-Beta, Whistle, Warrior

Fourth: Captain

The next post will take place on September 9th.

@Wisperia (Hymn, Star) @Galleon (Fleas, Anselm) @Ruby-Beta (Glory) @Whistle (K'cil, Duck Duck) @Ketur (Morpho, Aran) @Zhusha (Captain, Jim) @Conleth (Huntsman, One) @Reverend (Spinnaker, Kaizer) @Warrior (Corsair, Ivory) @Fiver

The tumble was a harmful one. Thankfully, Aran did not lose any limbs. Nothing is broken, but there is a harsh feeling of pain in is middle-area. It hurts. But he still stands. Many are going ahead of him, he needs to catch up with them.

Despite his fall, Aran continues on, trying to keep himself safe from the oncoming enemies, as he traverses the area below them. Surely there will be a path for him to meet back up? If not, he's on his own. Seems like he was anyway - he has his eyes on that stranger. They'll be his target.

He'll make them get left beind.

They had reached the top the plateau at long last. The shade no longer protected them, and blistering heat rolled across the barren stone as though the Hydra itself was huffing with anger at their intrusion. Fiver scampered away from the edge, frightened sincerely that the sheer force of the wind here could blow him off and send him to his timely death down the crevasse he had only just conquered.

He tried to stay low, quiet, and in the shadows of the others. The massive birds that seemed to live here in equally massive flocks watched their approach, from their nests and from above, and he decidedly did not want to meet their talons.

The birds reminded him of the day of his birth and Anubis, ushering him away from the prying eyes of mother. Smaller birds had chased them then. Paranoia clawed at his belly, and he kept his head down. Focus on the task at hand, and keep moving. As long as he didn't linger behind, they wouldn't try to pick him off, right?

Wing beats pounded in his ears. Suddenly, much more quickly than he had been prepared for, the birds descended, and any attempt to hide was made a mockery.

They wanted him to bleed, and as the shadow dropped over him, he froze in fear. Stupid. He was vulture-food, and he wasn't even dead yet.

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