Garnet-Epsilon

Everything is happening so quickly- so loudly- that a few flashes of dark water and writhing limbs spring to mind, of toxins and burning lungs in sickness... and they can feel their blood begin to burn as well.

Direct combat is never their forte, or at least, they presumed as much, because in trying to keep the beast from focusing on the others, they indeed draw it's eyes and ire. One swat would be enough to do more than serious damage to the small, flighty hybrid, so with a hiss and a mental clutching of their pearls, they pull in their wings and dive out of the way of the incoming attack... hoping they're more than fast enough to do so.

Am I allowed to complain about this though, given it was... sort of my goall? they think almost hysterically as they plummet.

Let's see if they splat, shall we?

THE CREATOR'S TEST

[THE BLACK SERPENT]

215 / 250 HP    86%

▼ BLEEDING ▼ INFESTED

A screech emitted from the coiling Serpent as claw and halberd hacked through its Oilflesh, and spores took root beneath its scales. It thrashed for a moment--and then Madhukar's lightning began to lash around it.

The Black Serpent spun, slit pupils contracting down to mere lines, its gaze locked now on Madhukar. That power. It was drawn to it, inexorably, relentlessly--and with a sudden snap of immense muscle it had lunged for her, attempting to coil her in its grasp. Fangs drove for flesh. Yet it wasn't blood or meat that the Black Serpent was after. Even before it connected, Madhukar would feel a draining sensation on her magicka pool... a horrible, dizzying sensation like her very life force being drained away.

Vargas 20/20	Nidhogg 20/20	The Sentinel 20/20
V-Hiddenite-One 20/20	Ruby-Beta 20/20	Azrael 20/20
Garnet-Epsilon 10/20	V-Labradorite-One 20/20	Rue 20/20
Khavur 20/20	Relic 20/20

[ ACTION LOG ]

> THE BLACK SERPENT has lunged for Madhukar, casting LEECH. Failure to dodge will inflict 8 damage and will inflict one point of Corruption on those who are struck. Madhukar's Magicka will be leeched by 8 points next round, or 4 points if she dodges!

All other characters may act as they see fit! Physical contact with the Black Serpent will inflict one point of Corruption damage.



> THE SENTINEL casts RIP, inflicting 15 damage on THE BLACK SERPENT and bleeding it!
> VARGAS uses Berserk, inflicting 10 damage on THE BLACK SERPENT and receiving 1 Point Corruption!
> RUE casts Wither, inflicting 10 damage on THE BLACK SERPENT and infecting it!

> THE BLACK SERPENT strikes at Nidhogg, who dodges!
> THE BLACK SERPENT strikes Garnet-Epsilon for 10 damage!
> THE BLACK SERPENT emerges, and begins attacking!

This quest is open to new entrants!

@Vargas (Nidhogg, Sentinel) @V-Hiddenite-One @Ruby-Beta (Azrael) @Garnet-Epsilon @V-Labradorite-One @Rue @Khavur @Relic

Magic and claws fly, and the vociferous clamour of combat rings in Rue's ears. The chaos drives them on, cackling wildly. Commands and words are lost in the din, except for one. BURN! rings in their mind.

They prepare to cast, not out of any loyalty to follow Vargas's orders, but instead because fire is always an amazing idea in their little corruption-poisoned brain. Black flame spurts to life, both on the serpent and Rue's own front claws. They howl, the pain driving them on further.

ROUND 2/?

90%

ATTEMPT: Burn that snake!
DEFENSE: yeah no
INJURIES: burns on forelimbs

Lightning lashes outward as their jaws meet air, the serpent's writhing body moving well away before Relic moved to land the strike. A half-hearted attempt, they knew they were well out of their depth. They debated running again. They had came, tried and failed, maybe that would be enough. They had no business here, not with this coalition or the beast they fought.

Blood flowed from the wounds that the other had carved, and yet it awakened nothing in the hyena. Where was that blind, brutal excitement from when they had hatched? The adrenaline was their, but all that it told them to do was run. Light flashed past them, they swiveled immediately to catch sight of its source, (vaguely) recognising the gembound who had appeared to summon it.

To say they knew each other would be a great overstatement. The cat was nothing more than a silhouette in Relic's mind, part of the background. But as the serpent surged towards her, they couldn't help but feel shame at the detachment. Besides, they hadn't even landed a bite on the thing. If they wanted to consider quitting early, they better do their part.

Jaws open again, seeking purchase on the snake's right side. She shot forward, a brown blur at it's side, hoping to get a good hold and then wrench herself back, pulling whatever she caught with her. It was an attempt to slow its momentum, but the chance of that actually happening was miniscule. More likely, she'd either be pulled with it, or twist a chunk of snake meat away from the rest of it's body.

The rumbling of the cave aroused some interest within the creature who lurked in the fringes; he felt the tremble as it began and then thought he heard a voice within the cacophony of the stone; but he could not be sure. It was far from him regardless - and likely a figment of his lonely mind, but Teyouma had seen many things during his cycles, some which defied logical thought and much which was now forgotten. His instinct was to retreat, of course.

Teyouma chose a direction at random and scrambled his way towards safety, so far as he was aware; having been drawn towards the dark spire which had so fascinated him the first time he'd spotted it; he did not get much closer in the time between the rumblings and the seeping of the oil, but he saw the iridescent sheen of something moving, and his pace increased. Taloned fingers scratched the dirt - his toes caught rock, his wings once tucked, now spread with an eager reach.

He would be witness to the stone coming alive, he thought. A serpentine form manifesting where the oil coalesced, creating a snout, and eyes, and -- it moved rapidly towards a cluster of beings, as if to devour them. It was in this moment Teyouma noticed the many others who had gathered. Were they here for the serpent? They had to be; it had awakened hungry, and they offered themselves! It was a noble cause, he thought.

There was chaos amassing among the creatures. Teyouma winced when he thought he saw a flash of light and even ducked, jerking down low against the dirt, as if he might be fast enough to avoid a shock of light to his system; thankfully the entity that channeled such energy had failed, and it was only the brief flourish of their magic that he saw. All the same, Teyouma's eyes were upon the beings now, not the serpent.

One by one, the individuals struck at the serpent. There were teeth ripping, the shimmer of magic, and further chaos that Teyouma could not entirely translate from where he watched. He did not understand! They were here but they refused to feed this glorious creature. What purpose did fighting serve? They angered it! They hurt it! The poor thing.

Scrambling closer now, watching as bodies flew purposefully towards the serpent to strike at it, to burn, to bite. Teyouma did not know what to do, but he could not sit and watch like he usually did - and so he channeled his own energies, focused the feelings in his heart that had been aroused by all that he had seen, and unleashed a wave of ill-feeling in an effort to turn these creatures back.

As it had been many cycles since Teyouma had tapped in to his gem as a source of power, this did not go as well as he had hoped. The energy coursed through his body and he felt immediately destabilized by it, and as he lost his focus the power waned and then outright died. He'd done little more than stare imploringly at the fighting gembound creatures - a failure. His silence was broken by a sudden dry gagging, as the spell's failure had resulted in his own gut bacteria growing and changing, rather than the intended targets further afield, and he was left to cough and sputter uselessly.

The moment the black serpent was facing away, Nidhogg scrambled right back in for battle. Cowardice was forgotten in favor of bloodthirsty savagery, the ferocity of an idiot, and he scrambled with fangs bared to try and rush for the serpent's eyes.

He made no attempt to use intelligence, however. He was all claws and black oil, snarling and lunging for those eyes without a single thought to how, exactly, he was going to either avoid the crashes of lightning smashing around him, nor how he was to blind the thing. If he managed--scrabbling maniacally--he'd have succeeded through sheer dumb luck.

Then, maybe, he'd go for the throat. He hadn't decided yet--he hadn't thought that far ahead.

Really, he hadn't thought at all.

- THE LEVIATHAN -

He had made a dent.

And he could, unfortunately, feel the sharp spike of corruption that came with it. Vargas was unsure if it'd affect him the way it would have back when he was merely Overseer, and he really didn't want to find out; as much as he served the nest and its Creator, he valued holding an element that did not drive his self-control into the damn ground.

A quick glance around told him that--for the most part--the others were doing fine. In the melee he missed Garnet-Epsilon's small form being struck, but the rest of the monstrous beasts around him were as yet untouched, though Khavur had tripped and fallen-? Nidhogg was proving as irritatingly slippery for the serpent as he was for Vargas, and he took note of that with faint approvel--but there wasn't really time to think any of this over right now. He noted strikes of lightning crashing against the stone, and he wasn't sure who'd done that but it wasn't his main concern right now.

Vargas lunged for the creature's massive coils, aiming for the place where head met body. It was already bleeding--perhaps he could add to that.

A leap, and he came crashing down toward it, the blades on his arms tearing for its neck.

The Sentinel took perhaps more notice of Madhukar's lashing magic. He did not know where it had come from, only that it was striking all around, and he raised his halberd and took a short, sharp step back.

The next flash of lightning to strike for one of those present, he would lunge to intercept--a scurry and a leap, a slam of his halberd to redirect the lightning down through it. He could think of no other way to protect them from such power, and again, he wondered whose it was.

The chaos was deafening, and roared in his blood--it was all he could do to focus on this. Half of his mind simply roared for blood.

The Sentinel fought it, for now: he had to guard the others.

If anyone wants, they can say the Sentinel took a lightning hit for them, but probably only whoever 'claims' it first as I think it'll only protect 1 other!

THE CREATOR'S TEST

[THE BLACK SERPENT]

180 / 250 HP    72%

▼ BLEEDING ▼ INFESTED ▼ BURNING

Jaws snapped shut around Madhukar, squeezing, seizing. The sensation of magic torn away was obvious to those present--it was drawing Madhukar's very power from her, drawn by it, consuming it. But the beast was soon driven back by the other Gembounds. Claws, magic, fangs--the battle had become a tangle of loud violence.

The combined attacks left the Black Serpent hissing and reeling. Relic came away with shards of Oilstone and dripping Oil in her jaws; flames coursed over its hide, igniting its flammable black blood. Gleaming scales, glinting in multifaceted colors, spun and writhed as black fire coursed over its body.

Jaws snapped open, enormous Oilstone fangs gleaming; its eyes filled with hatred. It lashed outward, an immense and muscled body thrashing for all those close enough to strike: a sweep of sharp-scaled, burning tail aiming to knock Gembounds off their feet, or even cut or--if it were lucky--ignite them, too, in unholy black fire. Blind as it now was, it had resorted to wild--if deadly--flailing.

Vargas 20/20	Nidhogg 20/20	The Sentinel 20/20
V-Hiddenite-One 20/20	Ruby-Beta 20/20	Azrael 20/20
Garnet-Epsilon 10/20	V-Labradorite-One 20/20	Rue 20/20
Khavur 20/20	Relic 20/20	Madhukar 12/20

[ ACTION LOG ]

> THE BLACK SERPENT is now on fire, and is lashing out with a sweep of its sharp-scaled tail to try and strike everyone in melee range. Characters in melee range should roll to dodge, or may choose to take the hit and roll to attack instead. Critical fails on this round by characters in melee range will also ignite the character in black fire!



> RUE casts CURSED FLAME, inflicting 10 damage and IGNITING the BLACK SERPENT.
> RELIC attacks THE BLACK SERPENT, inflicting 15 damage.
> NIDHOGG uses BLIND, causing THE BLACK SERPENT to flail wildly for one round.
> VARGAS uses RIP, inflicting 8 damage.
> THE SENTINEL casts RIP, inflicting 15 damage on THE BLACK SERPENT and bleeding it!
> VARGAS uses Berserk, inflicting 10 damage on THE BLACK SERPENT and receiving 1 Point Corruption!
> RUE casts Wither, inflicting 10 damage on THE BLACK SERPENT and infecting it!

> Madhukar is struck by LEECH, inflicting 8 Magicka Damage, 8 HP Damage and one point of Corruption!
> THE BLACK SERPENT strikes at Nidhogg, who dodges!
> THE BLACK SERPENT strikes Garnet-Epsilon for 10 damage!
> THE BLACK SERPENT emerges, and begins attacking!

This quest is open to new entrants!

@Vargas (Nidhogg, Sentinel) @V-Hiddenite-One @Ruby-Beta (Azrael) @Garnet-Epsilon @V-Labradorite-One @Rue @Khavur @Relic

For how much a great idea fire seemed at the time, it turns out it weaponized the serpent as much as hurting it. Obviously, that means it's time for another plan of attack. Not that the plan was any better than the last.

Rue rears up, laughing and yipping, as they focus on their magic again. They try to summon something black and dangerous, but the called forth appendage does burst forth in front of them. Instead, it lashes out from their hip, and knocks them off balance. They flail from their new position on the floor.