Neverrest is a pain in my non-existent butt. I’m pretty sure I’m making more mana from this than he is, but he just keeps sending more and more undead at me. I get the feeling we are probably just not able to do too much damage to the other right now. I mean, undead get digested as well as anything else my slimes catch, but they definitely keep resisting longer than living things.

The healing ants do a number on them, though, which is good. Some swarming bites before the jellies get ahold of them speeds the whole process up, but I still get the feeling I’m guarding the pass at Thermopylae; holding my own, giving at least as good as I’m getting, but in a worse position as time goes on. I haven’t had to retreat or anything yet, but I’ve been rotating my slimes as quickly as they can move. I’ve even upgraded the spawner and Jello!

Jello seems to love the taste of undead, too. She’s actually earned a title from all the things she’s killed: Purifier. It certainly helps, and seems to make her less corrosive to living things, too, which is great for the ants.

I give a mental sigh of relief as I sense the three adventurers return… and then immediately wonder why there’s still only three of them. They didn’t seem very confident about their odds in the graveyard, even with me supporting them. As they hurry towards the war room, though, I can see why they are back. They’re all decked out.

Aelara has what I can only assume is mythril mail of some kind. It sure looks to me like what Frodo had in the Lord of the Rings movies. She’s also traded out her prismatic-styled staff for one that looks almost like a thin, living stalactite, with a large bit of onyx or something on the flat top.

Ragnar still has his family shield, but I guess he didn’t have family armor. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was a metal golem or something, but the beard sticking out under the helm kinda gives it away. That plate mail looks good on him, and I can only guess what kind of punishment he can take with it on.

Yvone has some kind of black leather on. Not like Catwoman, but leather armor that is black. Looks pretty slick, maybe it’ll help her with stealth or something? That new bow looks pretty cool, though. The, uh… main… bow… part? Whatever is usually wooden, looks like it’s made of cloud, and the string looks like a contained tornado. She has a regular quiver of arrows on her back, though, so I dunno how it’ll actually work.

I’m glad Aranya’s still in the war room. She’s been mostly staring at the map and watching the battle unfold. I’m just glad she didn’t grab a weapon from the armory and charge in, because that’s what it looks like she wants to do. She recognizes her skills, though, and when to stay out of danger. I guess the deep tunnels don’t suffer fools to live long down there.

She perks up when Tiny, Teemo, and Fluffles enter the room, and notices the three adventurers on the map. She seems to take a few moments to try to compose herself. She’s basically my representative right now, so I guess her taking it maybe a bit too seriously is better than her taking it not seriously at all… or way too seriously. With the stories she’s told to my core, I should probably be glad she’s not founded a creepy cult around me.

She stands beside the table by the time the three enter, and seems surprised to see the change in their attire. “Nobody else would come?” she asks, before looking like she realized how rude that could be taken. Aelara and the others look a bit awkward and shake their heads before the mage speaks up.

“Unfortunately, all the other adventurers are out on quests, but the guildmaster was at least able to lend us some potent gear.” Aranya looks relieved to hear that.

“It does look impressive. It’s enough to change your minds about your chances against Neverrest?” she asks, and Ragnar nods.

“Aye! I’d wager I could go toe to toe wi’ th’ big spider f’r a while in this!” Tiny doesn’t look impressed, though. Yeah, Ragnar probably forgot that you can weave… or he doesn’t know you can in the first place. Either way, if you only swiped at him, that armor could probably take quite a pounding, big guy.

“Are your preparations complete for your dungeon?” asks Yvone, and Aranya can only give a slow nod. If I could, I’d tell her yes. Tiny has tons of my ants on him, so they can distribute themselves on the walk over. Speaking of, I have Teemo squeak and Fluffles tap the map with his tail, drawing everyone’s attention back to the plan.

“Ah, yes. We believe your plan to walk through the streets to be a sound one. With the element of surprise, and some luck, we should be able to destroy Neverrest’s core before it can rally its troops,” says Aelara, and the others nod. Tiny shifts from where he’s sitting and extends a leg. It’s only after Fluffles and Teemo zip up it that the others realize they’re supposed to climb aboard, too.

Yvone doesn’t look like it’s anything out of the ordinary. She’s gotta be some kind of ranger or something to be so comfortable around Tiny. Ragnar looks amused at the idea, though he has a bit of difficulty climbing up, at least until Fluffles just levitates him. Aelara looks uncomfortable with the idea, but steels herself and climbs aboard as well.

Once again, Aranya looks like she wants to join, but restrains herself. “Listen to the Scions, Delvers. The Sanctuary speaks through them without words. They will guide and protect you, but you must be willing to listen.”

I wonder if she practiced that little speech in her head while watching the map. Either way, though, it’s time to get this road trip started. We didn’t pack any snacks, but I’m sure it’ll be fine. Tiny! Head ‘em up and move ‘em out!

The party clutches onto Tiny’s tarantula fuzz as he starts moving. Despite all the legs moving around, the body stays pretty level and it seems like a smooth ride out of the tunnels. Once on the surface, I have Teemo squeak to get their attention. They all look at him with varying degrees of curiosity.

I have the ants swarm in front of him, and have Fluffles levitate one of the healers for the heroes to inspect. Ragnar doesn’t look too interested, but more for not knowing what he’s looking at than for being disgusted by them or something. Yvone and Aelara, though, each take an interest.

“The gaster is swollen and red,” observes Yvone, and Aelara gives her a curious look.

“Gaster?” The birb chuckles and points a talon at the rear of the ant.

“The butt. Normal ants will store food or water and swell from it, keeping it safe for the colony. These ones have… something else.” Aelara nods and speaks from her field of expertise.

“It appears to be concentrated healing potion, and I suspect these ants actually create it themselves. Nobody is quite sure how, but dungeons with labs will often create alchemical creatures. This is the first time I’ve heard of one making some with a healing element, though.”

At the gate, I have Tiny carefully open it, and am a little nervous. If it’s like the other expeditions, they’ll all vanish from my awareness, which would be bad. I trust my Scions, but I don’t know what they’ll do without me there to give them orders. Well, it’s too late to back out now. Tiny. Teemo. Fluffles. If we go radio-silent, be safe, and keep the party safe, too. And be on your best behavior in the town. We want to make a good impression.