[AW in case anyone wants to throw their CF members in!]

Onyx-Three had been tasked, or rather, had taken up the task that had been presented by Vargas for members of the Chaos Forge to cleanse infected caves of Order. But it could not be done alone. The Sentinel would be coming along of course, and he had also talked to a few other members who had also expressed interest. There had been the giant fungi turtle, a dragon-like being (who he told there would be fighting to get her to come), and a coyote looking gembound. All in all, he felt quite confident in the success of the the mission. And having giant valkhounds coming along made him feel safer should they encounter any Order drones. Not that he would've minded fighting some Order should it come to it.

As he entered Gemini, the first thing he noticed was the fungus hanging off the crystals and geodes of the cave. So that was Order. He did not see any lessers at first glance that may pose a threat, but there was no telling if they may show up randomly. He had his bow and arrows at ready. "We are here." and then he wasn't sure what to say. Let's get to it? Start killing some fungus? Ah, the right initiating phrase escaped his mind. "Let us start... the process." That would have to do.

Onyx-Three took the lead, using his dagger to cut off an especially large clump of the stuff dangling from a crystal.

@The Sentinel
@Vjira
@V-Chaos-Ten
@Rue

The Sentinel was... well, he was here.

That was about all one could say. Once he arrived, he played the same role he did in Draco: he stood silent sentinel, going so still beside the fungus-swathed trunk of a tree that if it weren't for his dark coloration, he might as well have been a tree himself.

He intended to let the other Forge members work whilst he, himself, simply watched for trouble. It would be best if they were not so engrossed in their task that they were ambushed, after all.

The earth under his feet blackened, his inherent corruption fighting with the Order that claimed this place. He glanced down, lifted his halberd slightly, then dropped the haft's end back down with a sharp thud into the dirt.

Darkness roiled, a soft growling hiss rising from the earth around him and rapidly spreading, the fungus melting into black Oil in a wide radius. This place around him became a small fortress of Chaos, an oasis of darkness among the clots of rancid white. "Should they require respite," he rasped, "they will find it beside the Sentinel."

Translation: if they needed a break, they could stand by him and rest in the relaxing grasp of violent void, rather than fighting off the constant press of Order around them. Black tendrils and whispers shrouded him, licking at the halberd, making him an epicenter of Chaos in Mother's forest. From here, then, he went still again: keeping watch, blue eyes prying every gap of the forest canopy and trunks around them.

Where The Sentinel and V-Onyx-Three showed care and restraint, Rue is was for more lively. They did not seem to have any care for how perilous the grasp of Order could be. They paced, glaring at the sheets of fungus coating the crystals.

So, when they are instructed to proceed, they waste no time calling their magic. "Burn! Burn!" they chant, as dark flame flares to life and lashed against the walls, consuming the white into black ash. Their laughter carries amongst the faceted walls.

@V-Onyx-Three

Well, Vjira isn't quite sure how it found itself here. It has been ignoring the ways of the caves for some time, not bothering to get interested at all by the things any of the creatures do. Well, out of the things it can understand, anyway. (Food... Fight), of which, Vjira was offered with upon coming here.

The corrupted valkhound plods forward with the others. Most of which insignificant to the being. Normally, she would've chosen to eat this lot instead. Some of them smell like the big purple however... Instinct tells her to not damage those ones. So Vjira is left to her own devices, following them like a pet.

It feels gross, frankly.

Vjira was brought here for a fight, but there is nothing here. Where is the thing the catlike one said? Something is happening, Vjira does not understand what. Instead of being particularly useful, Vjira just sniffs around the area (avoiding the nasty things the others are destroying), to look for something worth her time. Is the... plant... the enemy? It does not understand.

Even if the Sentinel would not be participating directly, his presence provided safety and security for the group. And also an additional source of pressure for Onyx-Three to perform and do well as he would be watching. He was the one who had wanted to come after all. It would be rather embarrassing if he found himself struggling to make much progress. The fungus wasn't even alive, not in the sense gembounds were anyways. He could not fail at this task.

Rue was already burning away at the fungus, while Vjira is... off doing her own thing. Fair enough. Onyx-Three had to do some convincing, much of which consisted of saying that there would be fighting to get the valkhound to come. A part of them hoped that some Order lessers or something would show up so that Vjira would get the fight that they had said there would be. But for now, he figured he could explain things. "We are here to remove Order. The white fungus." he attempted to demonstrate but found the clump he had grabbed to be much too thick to cut through. Well, hopefully Vjira got the point. "Order lessers may appear. We can fight those." He nodded a 'good job' at Rue. He would not be alone in attempting to rid the cave of Order if Vjira did not want to help with the ripping fungus part of things which was understandable. He much preferred fighting himself.

@Rue

Rue is not unwilling to chime in and join V-Onyx-Three in their explination. Was it superfluous? Probably. But they're helping! They're helping! Rue is helping!

"Order needs to burn! It's so weird and icky and rotten, and not in a good way," they offer, glancing over at Vjira. They don't really know who that Valkhound is, but if they're here, then clearly they're supposed to help too, right?

Wait, what was I doing? Oh right, the job. Rue turns back to the crystals in front of them, willing their magic to life again. And come to life it does, just not where they wanted it to.

Black flame erupts from their stone, flaring up before licking back down over the hybrid's spine and neck. A pitiful wail comes from their jaws as they fall over, flailing on the stone, begging for it to stop.

@Vjira

Onyx-Three nods as Rue adds on their own explanation, thinking it's much more descriptive than his own had been. It really captured the essence of why Order sucked overall. Except he couldn't really burn it so he was sticking to just ripping it off. And suddenly Rue burst into flames. Concern immediately flooded through him. Had Order attacked already? No- it was their own magic. But it still looked incredibly painful, and he had to help. This was not something that could be fixed with his preferred skills, and though he didn't like it, this situation called for magic. Unpredictable magic.

His gemstone obliged, and what came was Chaos. The area around them dimmed, shadows drawn to the place where they were located and enhancing the light of the cursed flames that burned at Rue. But it did nothing to put out the fire. At least it hadn't made things worse, right? Onyx-Three could not get close for fear of getting burned himself, not that he knew what to do exactly to help. Normal fires could be put out by rolling around though. "Magic does not work. Try to roll out the flames." but other than that piece of advice, nothing could be done.

@Rue

The thick black flames cling to their hide, as they flail about. The pain sears at their mind, taking the reins. So much for stealth, considering all the screeching Rue is letting out.

Though eventually Onyx-Three's advice clicks in their little pea brain, and their mindless running and flailing instead dumps them on the floor, as they attempt to put the corruptive fire out. Not that it seems to help. At all.

@V-Onyx-Three

Shoot shoot shoot- Onyx-Three felt helpless in this moment, knowing that no matter what physical skill he possessed, it served no use when it was self-inflicted magic that was the culprit. His body was tense, eyes darting around as if there was some hidden answer among the crystals of Gemini that would put out the fire. But he knew there wasn't. All he saw was Order, what they had to come to purge, and now they seemed to mock him and his uselessness.

Chaos beckoned towards him once more, though this time in the form of corrupted magic that controlled the air. He did not know if it would hurt Rue- but perhaps creating a vacuum like pressure change in the air around them would put out the fire? He did not trust magic, but it was the only solution. He could only hope it would work.

@Rue

The winds rush around Rue, leaving them in a dark whisper-filled void. For a moment, it's hard to breathe, too hard... But the flames die out, allowing Rue to stumble to safety. "...Thank you," they croak, voice hoarse.

Their whole back is raw, charred black and red by the the flames. Maybe they should use something less... destructive. The Order is magic, right? If so, Rue could sap at it, and feel a little bit better in the process.

Sure enough, the patch of the fungus they'd started staring at seems to loose some of its vitality. It doesn't heal Rue, but it does make them feel a little less drained.

@V-Onyx-Three