Wilder continued to urge Vaati forward, gentle purrs and tail wiggles and all the encouragement she could muster. With the sandworm ahead and most of the more terrifying creatures no longer in his immediate vicinity, he was more responsive. He started with a few steps and then he was running, and Wilder was running alongside him from the side, purring praises and cheers.

"Good job, Vaati! Keep going, don't worry, you're doing good! Keep going!"

Score: 1

Given how he didn't see too many ways not rude and uncalled for that would urge his familiar forward sooner rather than later, it hadn't taken long for Richter to make the decision to get comfortable while Harvey mustered the necessary motivation to properly join the competition. After a second bout of staring which achieved nothing but establishing the Walleye Rabbit cared little for the concept of a race when growing hunger dominated his current needs, the kangaroo had casually flopped onto his side behind the starting line. Leaned on his elbow, he looked more like an unusual model for a portrait than a Lesser handler. Another sip of drink was sucked through his bendy straw, the subject of advancing forward broached again in the same tone one would use to discuss the weather.

"So," he said, carefully drawing the first word out, "how about that jump, Harv? Looks like you'll have to do a bit of running too if you want to catch up with the rest of those fellas."

Eye stalks swayed as the rabbit remained almost a living statue in terms of activity. The calm focus picked up by the bond was the only sign this talk had an actual listener, all other observers stuck with the ludicrous image of a hopeless, one-sided conversation.

"Oh, I know you've got a hankering for something tasty. I do too. Maybe we can deal with that quicker if you really put some pep into your pounce?"

A mental visual further prompted Harvey: a lush field of flowers, no doubt intended as a mouthwatering motivator. And, boy, did it turn out to be a particularly potent one at that.

Acknowledgment and the promise of satisfying the main reason behind the familiar's sedentary state had him burst into motion that up until this point would have been absolutely unexpected from him. Powerful hind legs launched the rabbit well beyond the hurdle in his path, and upon touching the ground, paws beat out a regular rhythm which kicked up clouds of sand behind him. Bioluminescent stripes flashed along his pelt, rendered streaking lightning bolts by the speed on display. Apparently the allure of a good meal shouldn't be underestimated.

And can you believe it! From a score of absolutely nothing, our wall-eyed contender has jumped to 2 points.

The mouse seemed completely unabashed at its mischief. Tourmaline looked down at it with an unimpressed expression, saying "Okay. You've had your fun. Can you please go now?"

The mouse thinks a little, before scurrying off to leap the hurdle. But its pretty far behind already...

I seem to be a lousy mouse wrangler...

0 points.

"WOOOO! Yeah! Fetch! You're doing great!" she cheers loudly from the sidelines, fans on her back flaring open. She's excited, but maybe that was a bit much through the link - the Pitch Rat slows, looking around frantically. Before long Fetch is running circles in the sand, not particularly going anywhere.

Oh. Whoops.

2 points

POCKET LESSERS!

Part I: Obstacle Course!

The cameras, for the most part, were fixed on the giant Sand Worm wriggling across the ground. Nemean's cackling choked her so much that she could barely narrate what was happening: "Th--LOOK AT IT--hahaha--they're OFF, racing across OH MY GOD IT'S WRIGGLING-"

The rats, bats, moth and mouse got far less screen time: a brief glance here and there before the image swung inevitably back to the comical vision of the giant struggling worm.

"Next up--THE TUNNEL--oh no can it even FIT--hahahaha-!"

A tunnel--just barely big enough for a sandworm--lay ahead, crinkly with sparkly pink and gold fabric wound tight around a giant spring, like an agility course tunnel. It would be up to the Gembounds to guide their companions through the tunnel: into the dark space, and out the other end.

---

Obstacle Course - Round 3!

Players should roll Other (or, if their character is Other-path, physical combat--to keep roll thresholds fair) to bypass the third obstacle: a TUNNEL!

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, getting briefly lost in the tunnel, moving too slowly, or becoming distracted by all the light and sound, etc.

This thread is closed to new entrants. 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 30th, so please post by the end of the 29th!

Note: these rolls cannot be used for character progression.

@Anala @Mocha @Sair @Hysteria @Tourmaline @Knightly (Yvan) @Richter @Rhapsody @Raiden @Yanyue @Cyg @Luminary @Edeltraud @Yume @Galleon @Oliver @Wilder

Mocha

'Cause I'm having a good time

Now that Nori had somehow cleared the hurdle, it was seemingly smooth sailing. Or at least it seemed that way, given the next part was a flat race and then... a tunnel? He couldn't remember.

But what came after didn't matter! What mattered was now, and now was the flat race! Mocha let out a series of encouraging barks and cheers, verbally and mentally urging Nori on, and fast! You did the hard part! Now, just run! Uh... Slither!

Sure enough, Nori slithered, trying his best to keep up with the rest of the crowd. And trying not to get stepped on. That was important too.

Score: 2

Mocha

'Cause I'm having a good time

"You did great!" Mocha cheered as the lizard approached the tunnel. "You'll have no problem here either friend!"

Spurred on by the words of encouragement and the constant cheering from the crowd, Nori happily made his way into and through the tunnel, thankfully managing to enter before the sandworm that surely would not leave room for any others. Across the bond, Mocha got the impression that it was just glad for a break from the lights. Whatever the reason, Mocha sang his praises all the same, barking and yelling away with the other greater gembound.

Points: 3

ANALA
From a spark to a flame

Rat having safely leaped the hurdle, both it and Anala seemed relieved that the next section was a flat race. She urged it to keep to the edges or carefully tucked beneath a larger lesser to avoid being stepped on, but otherwise expressed no concern. Rats were good at running!

Both reassured by the simplicity of the current part of the race and stressed by the large number of lessers, thankfully the rat did take off. It wasn't as fast as some, given the doing and weaving it had to do to keep safe, but Anala made sure it knew she was proud of it for running anyway. That's it, buddy! Just a little more!

OOC Notes: 2 points

ANALA
From a spark to a flame

The next part of the challenge was both more and less concerning. Less concerning because what rat didn't like a dark tunnel, and more concerning because... Well... Not every lesser was going to fit into that tunnel at once. Especially not if the sandworm beat the rat to it.

Anala's concerns were heard by the rat, of course. It still made it into the tunnel, and she cheered, but as the seconds passed and the rat did not come out of the tunnel... She realized what had happened.

Oh buddy it's okay! They can't actually hurt you in these games I promise! Just keep moving! It took some pleading, and the rat had definitely fallen a bit behind, but eventually it did leave the 'safety' of the dark tunnel.

OOC Notes: 2 points

It's hard to deal with a sandworm. Especially one that could eat pretty much everyone in one bite, but seriously, why have that in her bag?

Yvan cares far more about Ryoto, though. Ryoto, who's scared of her own lesser, who seeks comfort with his paws. Shit. He's too distracted to tell the worm to do anything but go forward, pulled away with Ryoto's anxious reachings, its desperate bid to ground itself with him.

He knows what's wrong: there's too many people for her. It's not laid back at all. Even if he's having fun, she isn't, and he tugs her closer as he keeps his attention between her and the vulture. "You okay?" He's wide-eyed and worried and it only projects across the link, that insatiable hunger turning furious in response. No, no, there's no reason to be mad at Ryoto. Why is he getting mad? Hissing out his emotion, Yvan bows down his front half and does his best to scoot her into his metaphorical lap, arms held at her biceps.

"C'mon, look, your guy's doing real good! They've just gotta keep going, alright?" He gestures forward to all the racing beasts, wincing at his worm struggling to fit through its tunnel and feeling the scraping of its quills along the edges. "Just keep going. It's fine!"

points: still 2