Dragon turned, spinning in the dark, somehow--miraculously--untouched. Dark eyes cut to Brandle: still likewise unharmed. The Children of Rot were proving themselves, if by survival alone, at least.

"YOU ARE DOING WELL," he called to his child, the thought a booming one, echoing through their link. Farina's passage sent him rocking back, the water currents vibrating with her movement and her sheer power, and Dragon eyed the situation warily. He didn't want to get in range of those massive claws--would she care who she hit with them-?

"BE CAREFUL," he warned Brandle; "BUT NOW IS THE TIME TO STRIKE."

Then he was surging forward, a lurching lunge driven by thick-ridged tail, his jaws parting. His eyes gleamed with eagerness--the fight would, at last, be joined! Memories flashed back, back to his hatching, back to his first tangle with Aquarian; and later, to his fight against Raheerah. This Kraken was not as large--but still, it was a worthy foe! Something worth fighting, killing--even if Farina was about to hog all the glory. But fire wouldn't cut it--not beneath the waves. Despite Carja's screams along their link notifying him that she'd burned herself, he knew it couldn't consume her--fire needed air. There was none of that, down here.

But there was... related magic, and as the alligator's jaws fully opened, he called it forth with roiling heat.

The gob of superheated bile needed nothing so mundane as oxygen. Dragon's forward sweep averted as his spit launched out, and he curved neatly away, taking himself away from danger before really getting into range of it--the gob of bile aiming to slap against Kraken flesh and burn, and melt, and dissolve...

FRIEND
I WILL ALWAYS BE LOOKING FOR YOU

Plomp goes the fishy.

You see, getting both whacked by a massive tentacle and diseased is not a good lookout for a little barracuda. Friend sailed across the room with a sad "PPhhrghfd" before plopping at the far end of the room, his eyes glassy.

He managed not to instantly return to his egg after such a devastating hit, but only barely, and was far too hurt and stunned to do much else. Friend watched the battle rage on from the seafloor, a little kid admist a great battle.

BATTLE REPORT

0%

ATTEMPT: Recover
DEFENSE: None
INJURIES: Diseased, probably has broken bones, knocked out

Content Warning
This post contains potentially sensitive material:

violence

gore

Esther understands nothing that is happening. First, there is sickness. They feel... Wrong. Nausea battles inside their throat, burning, sending a wave of disgust to the very edges of their bones. They feel dizzy, unable to track the enemy in top form without the world spinning. They can't focus their magic without sight. Without their sight working properly, Esther is struck with a tentacle like a whip. It lashes at them and they are sent careening to a wall nearby. They smash into it, the air is out of their lungs before they can do anything and bubbles are sent to the 'surface' - whatever is closest to a surface down here.

Their whole side hurts - luckily the wing on that side of their body is not broken, but there is pain. It sears through their nerves and Esther craves. Their claws itch with the need to slash through the skin of the large beast, their teeth tingle, they want to bite. Esther sucks in a large breath, but they still can't get their bearings. It feels wrong, it hurts, something is not right. They can hear distant speaking through the mind-link, but none of it is directed at them.

Okay so maybe something is broken.

There's blood somewhere in there too, but Esther can't focus on where the feelings lie. It just hurts.

The void corrupts their vision, blackness coating everything they lay eyes on. Another them watches Esther through glowing eyes - nothing new. The whispers ring in their ears, and the maned wolf whips their head from side to side, nearly thrashing right back into the wall with their head before others are also knocked out or away or both. The crab is back - helping them they think. The group, that is. Too many are out of the fight but if the others can land hits... They gurgle.

killitkillitkiLLITKILLIT KILL. IT.

Their thoughts are violent and not exactly controlled.

BATTLE REPORT

0%

ATTEMPT: N/A
DEFENSE: N/A
INJURIES: Broken ribs, diseased, hallucinating, heavily bruised on one side, corruption is acting up
ESTHER IS KNOCKED OUT

ASCENT

There was no euphoric joy at Farina's arrival, only an overwhelming sense of relief as the kraken was distracted from its attacks. The water seemed to twist and bubble with fuchsia, though they had not observed such a thing when Farina had appeared before. The disease? they wondered through a fog of dizziness.

Now Ascent had a chance to rest and recover as the giant crab tore into the kraken--but others were fiercer than them, and they were also charging forward to land their own hits on the kraken. Including their mother, who was significantly more battered than Ascent was. "MOM!" they cried, huge bubbles bursting from their mouth as Carja screamed, wriggling toward the black dragon. "What's wr- burns?"

How were burns helped? They had family with the magic of fire. Ascent tried and tried to remember the proper way to heal fire damage, but the only thing that came to them was cold. Fire was hot, and ice cold--it was logical, right? In a panic, they reached for their magic. They could make ice--they could cool those burns.

Their maw opened, but instead of a freezing stream of magic that would make a block of ice for Carja to use, all that came out was a weak cough. Their throat felt hot and thick with disease--water would probably help, but this cavern was probably contaminated to all hell with whatever stuff the kraken was throwing around. Ascent gritted their teeth. "Hold on--let me try again!"

Attempt: make some ice for @Carja
Defense: armored with ice
Injuries: slightly battered, diseased

As the valkhound fired off its lighting, it was struck in many places, tendrils wrapping around its limbs, a slash splattering neon blood from its face. A few quick bites and they struggled to break free- they weren't being targetted exclusively, after all, and, well.

Farina had arrived. Its master. Snapping their wings, the valkhound fluttered away, wide-eyed in astonishment. Why hadn't she arrived sooner? It growled, baring its teeth, but- well, it supposed now was as good as a time as any.

And, besides, look at that carnage.

Cracking its jaw open again, the valkhound drudged up its magic, and yet nothing came but the painful sparks arcing up its neck. Damn. Hissing and flexing its gills, the valkhound hovered out of the way, brimming with anger that the last blow would not be caused by it.

At least they had a Master.

BATTLE REPORT

10%

ATTEMPT: Shoot lightning and drag it across more pustules
DEFENSE: N/A
INJURIES: Battered (again) by the Kraken

He was safe! And Dad was safe, too! He would've felt relief, if the fight had actually been over- The big crab Farina was here, now, but the Kraken was still fighting, too. And so many people had gotten injured. Would they all be alright?

A tiny silvery blur and a cry of 'PPhhrghfd' was the first glimpse of his Fish Friend he'd seen for, well, the entire battle. He'd dart over to friend, trying to catch them before they hit the seafloor or else scooping them up to hold carefully in his webbed hands. "Are you alright?" He'd ask the fish, concerned.

BATTLE REPORT

100%

ATTEMPT: Catch/Protect Friend
DEFENSE: Currently hiding by the sea-floor
INJURIES: Untouched (as he should be)

@Friend (Vis)

I'd of blown the scoundrel up
Watch his head and heart hiccup
Erupt in tinsel and blue cinders
turn August into winter

That had backfired.

Hard.

Tentacles had slammed into it, spiked-tips slicing gashes into it's sides, the force sending it slamming into the ocean floor. It watched dimly as Farina entered, all spiked carapace and snapping claws and rage. It searched for Khavur- whether it was still fighting above or had joined the fallen below. It was hard to focus, with the sickness still making it's head spin, the adrenaline leaving to make it fully aware of each injury it'd accumulated.

So it just sat like a sunken stone, trying to will enough strength back into itself to continue the fight.

BATTLE REPORT

0%

ATTEMPT: Recover
DEFENSE: nah
INJURIES: Diseased, delirious, bleeding, battered by the Kraken

Electrum

He... can't move. Not well, at least. Even his fins hurt, and a part of his is roiling in anger that he's failed again. Failed Haven, failed Telesto, failed to kill this Kraken who is, quite frankly, too big for it's own good. The other lightning dragon... thing, the one who was much better at conducting it's cursed lightning, is still up and about, but most of the other dragons had fallen. Blight, a distant blur and light, Carja, screeching and bleeding, Haven, hissing out bubbles from her sprawled position on the floor. Electrum has a small surge of pride at his mate's spite and vigor, and a small thought of how nasty the firebeast that had attacked her had to be, for her to be still hissing and spitting at this thing.

A decision is made, then, to try and haul himself near his family, to find them both and try and keep them together and hopefully out of the way of the crab that had just come charging in. Is that Farina, another Master?

If anything, he preferred the aesthetic of the Vargas master he'd heard of. This one looks like she'd been boiling in acid for several cycles and scrubbing with sand.


Tear that stupid beast limb from rotting limb-! The lapis dragon calls, baring his teeth in a half snarl, half wince as he does his best to haul his battered and broken body towards what he hopes actually is his family. Hallucinations are still writhing in his vision, turning his insides, but he does his best to keep all of that sensation out of his expression, and raising his fins in an attempt to look bigger... for some reason his instincts insist it'll help.

Cirrus


The whole world is tilting- or are they? Their insides are tilting the other way, vision swimming and sensations it'd rather forget existed ravaging it's body as it settles into the divot it had made when being slammed into the wall. A stubborn streak in it's personality rises, and so they fight the encroaching red in it's vision, and thankfully they do, for they get to watch Master Farina slice into the Kraken, and the... they can vaguely recognize it as an older design, now, then it's vision is crossed and chaotic, as a Valkhoud.

Hah. The irony.

I have toxins, by me on the floor- and aim for the beasts sores, the hybrid offers, wondering if the advice or added mental noise is wanted in the heat of battle. Hopefully they can at least be useful from the dirt... if they could feel any of their limbs.

Then, they mildy recognize a dark shape ... one of the other members of the Forge. Labradorite-One, are you still aware? It's Garnet-Epsilon. Maybe they'll get a response. maybe not, but now they begin to cast about in vision full of spots and stars to locate Fahl. Where had that other one gone? Hopefully better than them?

Good news! She'd hit her mark!

Bad news! She was now spinning blindly through the water, completely disoriented and struggling to right herself or locate her parents. Only aware of her golden blood staining the water in inky clouds, of the deepening pain every time she tried to thrash towards the surface.

Okay, coming here had been a really really bad idea.

She just wanted to be home, in her nest, with her family. Not bleeding and broken at the bottom of the ocean.

She could feel the gemstone on her chin crackling, looking to consume her, to return her to an egg of green and gold to be rebuilt as good as new. She refused, she fought against it with all her might.

She wanted to go home, first.

BATTLE REPORT

0%

ATTEMPT: Recover/Don't Chrysalize
DEFENSE: nah
INJURIES: Diseased, delirious, bleeding, battered by the Kraken