[Event] Pocket Lessers - Obstacle Course

Fox-imps hustled to Galleon shortly before the starting shout, fishing hastily in a hat while fixing her with far too many grins.

What was whipped out of the tophat was a dangling little rodent-like creature: a gemless Gilded Catsquirrel, only about two feet long (plus its bushy tail) and bright-eyed as it stared at Galleon. The irate howl it gave off, like a yowling cat, was nothing like what one might expect from such a little critter. The imps hastily dropped it before her and, as its link slid into place, it bounded to leap onto her, its howling silenced. A few flicks of its bushy tail and it went about washing its face with both forepaws, ready to begin.

This should be easy--right? Oliver thought, eyeing the hurdle. The moth, flitted to his shoulder, lifted tiny spindly limbs to wash its antennae. He couldn't tell if it had seen the hurdle, or agreed, or disagreed, but when Nemean called the start, he fretted just a little.

"Be careful, okay? There's a lotta big guys out there. Don't get hurt," he urged, then directed--as best he could through this clumsy, tenuous new link--the moth toward the hurdle.

The dust moth seemed to comprehend that it was meant to do something; and it was willing enough, but it fluttered out into the chaotic mayhem of much larger moving bodies and became confused. The flashing spotlights didn't help, and instead of going for the hurdle, it flew up toward those, instead.

Vaati shrunk back at the sight of all the many creatures suddenly appearing - pulled out of a hat, it seemed. The sandworm in particular had him almost darting to hide behind Wilder but her encouragement kept him still. It was safe here. They wouldn't eat him. He wasn't quite sure about that, though.

So, when Nemean called for the race to begin, and chaos truly began as gembound called out orders and their lessers ran (or didn't), Vaati was frozen in place as Wilder called over and over - "Come on, you can do it! It's okay, I'm right here!" But his fur was puffed straight out, head swiveling back and forth to watch the others, terrified.

POCKET LESSERS!

Part I: Obstacle Course!

Rats and lizards, mice and moths, a giant sandworm, and a single staring Wall-eyed Rabbit; deer and dinosaurs, a spider and a squirrel... it was certainly a sight to behold, all these varied creatures racing for the hurdle. Some cleared it; some climbed it; some wandered off, and Nemean could be heard cackling somewhere overhead. The spotlights didn't know who to focus on; one pinned the sandworm for awhile before seemingly deciding it didn't need a highlight, while others switched between Lessers as they cleared the hurdle (or milled aimlessly about).

Far off ahead were the next obstacles--but to get there, the Lessers now had to race across simple, flat, clear ground. The sand of the arena floor was raked clean; surely it couldn't be hard to urge their Lessers to cross...?

"LOOK AT THEM GOOOO! AND ALSO NOT GO! WHAT ARE THOSE MOTHS DOING HAHAH-... NOW FOR THE FIRST FLAT RACE! RUN RUN RUN! OR FLY! -WHATEVER!" Nemean crowed.

Obstacle Course - Round 2!

Players should roll Other (or, if their character is Other-path, physical combat--to keep roll thresholds fair) to bypass the second obstacle: a straight foot-race to the next portion!

Keep track of your Lesser's score: 1 point for a Barely, 2 for a Success, and 3 for a Crit. The highest end scores will be the fastest placements, with prizes for First, Second and Third!

A Failed roll can be attributed to the Lesser misunderstanding, moving too slowly, or becoming distracted by all the light and sound, etc.

New characters may no longer join this thread. If anyone had already joined but failed to post in time, they may double-post to catch up. The next post will take place on June 24th, so please post by the end of the 23rd!

Note: these rolls cannot be used for character progression.

Oliver winced, watching the dust moth flutter confusedly. He tried to convince it to head over the straight, at least; to race to the next obstacle. Keep high, he warned it, with a mental image of altitude above the rest--because getting smashed accidentally by some of the far larger racers was a very real concern.

Oliver felt afraid for the little thing, potentially crushed in the chaos.

It grew further confused, if anything; it did head vaguely toward the next obstacle but not in any sort of hurried way. Instead it spun upward toward the lights, a faint sparkle of its hallucinogenic dust trailing along behind it.

It's okay, Oliver reassured it, his ear-tufts flattening back. Don't worry about it, or the lights. They're not real, okay? Which was hard to explain, because of course the lights were actually lights. They just weren't whatever the moth thought it was looking for.

The worm had gotten over (through) the hurdles, and now it was a straight-away. Easy peasy. Just... go forward.

Which is what the worm was doing anyway. Charging over flat ground wasn't particularly easy for something designed for digging, but at least its squirming got it somewhere. That somewhere was in the vague direction of forward, sort of... meandering, despite its size, undulating across awkwardly.

This just sort of hurt to watch.

Sir little bat could still catch up! She didn't need to worry about jumping anymore; she just needed to wing it, and fast. "GO!!" Knightly hopped in place as he screeched at well as his little bird lungs could.

And it worked! She was off in a flash, darting forward finally over the hurdles she'd missed and aiming straight over the ground. Yes! "We will WIN the RACE! GO! YOU WILL BE... AMAZING!!" She needed all the encouragement she could get, and Knightly could do nothing but feel total elation as she conquered the straight-away.

What sequence of events follows in Yvan's attempt to cheat— (Unbeknownst to Ryoto, because the concept's beyond her where "fun" is involved, because cheating is inherently fun!)— is enough to overwhelm anyone, maybe.

The ryoto yelps and scampers backward as the giant, vicious and shrieking bird is thrown at it; and again, as a massive death-noodle meets Yvan's negotiations. She bristles her mane and shuffles to press into Yvan— as if she can defend him from the collective wrath of their horrifying new... um, companions? Feeling the sense of a link click into place does little to help matters, and suddenly the panic is ping-ponging between two consciences and amplifying itself tenfold.

Talons clatter harshly around the stone in Ryoto's palms, and she grinds her teeth, pinning her ears back as all of the noise and lights start. The vulture's rustling its feathers, spreading wings to half-mast as it scrambles toward her in an equally overwhelmed panic. Not that she blames it, because it's just a dumb animal, even if she feels like being one of the same degree and lunging right back at it.

Crouched and hunched into as neat of a ball as she can manage, Ryoto loudly slaps the length of her tail down on the ground and snarls at the bird with all her teeth, "Go away! M'scared too..."

It's supposed to be a race, right? Can she tell it to go away— over there? Over the hurdle? Maybe it'll eat something else in there; or flounder over the top of it, squawking disgracefully and battering its wings on the stone.

At least it is going away, along with half of the many bodies here, at least. The noise is still all too much, though, and it's too hard to focus on the task at hand. It's only coincidence that the next leg of the course is to go in a straight line and to 'go away'.

Viridescent eyes hardly even watch the vulture as it gets its footing to run across the stretch and make up for lost time, favoring legs over broad gliding wings. She's too preoccupied with dropping her gaze to stare blankly and teary-eyed at the floor; with suddenly remembering that she needs to breathe and gasping softly. Yvan's front claws happen to strike against the floor with whatever anxious shuffling, and suddenly she remembers that that lifeline is there too.

Ryoto murmurs softly as she pats at one of his paws, then hunches further inward as she loops her fingers around an ankle and pulls it closer.