6.05

“What is with this obsession with the number five!? That’s the eighth party this week of young adolescents who thought they could assassinate me with only five people!” - The Revenant King.

Noam slammed his head into the ground.

“I’m sorry.”

Tai snorted, before wincing as she moved her injured arm, “Fuck that hurt.”

Shaking her head, she continued, “Don’t be, my fault for getting bit.”

“I was the one who insisted on going there,” Noam replied, raising his head slightly.

“And my fault for following you,” she replied, rubbing her sore arm, “my grandma told me that between the idiot and the smart person following the idiot, the smart person is the dumbest for knowing better yet still following the idiot.”

Noam raised his eyebrow at that, “Thank you? Well, thanks for dragging me out of there, you two didn’t need to.”

“It was Utoqa’s idea,” she shrugged, “again, smart person following idiot.”

Utoqa didn’t reply, only nodding.

“You guys faced off against a giant spider?” I asked.

Utoqa nodded again.

“Really big spider,” Tai noted, “larger than our rooms combined.”

“Fought exactly like a spider though,” Noam added on, “venomous bite, net attacks, and hits you with its legs occasionally.”

“It had a lot of fucking legs,” Tai said, rubbing her still sore arm. By their recounts, if Tai wasn’t blocking one of its legs, then she wouldn’t have been bitten.

“Hard shell,” Utoqa said, “Gift only scratched.”

I sighed, “And you say it was an Elder Brood Mother, Celine?”

She nodded, inspecting the fang that was lodged in Tai’s arm. “The venom and fang both match the creature. They’re pretty dangerous, difficult to put down unless in experienced groups. I think the guild lists them as CR 10 - 15, depending on how big their swarms have gotten.”

My fingers drummed the wooden table. “You three should get a pretty good bonus for revealing the nature of the creature, we can leave it there.”

Tai looked at Utoqa and Noam, “I think we should split the bonus five way again.”

Celine jumped up slightly, and I raised an eyebrow.

“Why?” Celine asked.

“Oh don’t think of this as charity,” Tai shrugged, “you two healed me right after, and whatever we split is bound to be cheaper than paying the real sum of the healing at a church or something.”

“Not to mention,” she winked at the two of us, “being on the good side of two healers is just common sense.”

Celine wrapped her cloak around herself, disappearing within it, but she was within my manavision so I knew she was blushing.

Myself? I just nodded and said, “Smart.”

“You two in agreement?” Tai asked Noam and Utoqa.

Utoqa nodded.

Noam shrugged, “Fairs fair.”

“Give half of my split to Celine,” I said, to which Celine seemed to look at me with muted panic.

“Aight boss,” Noam said.

I shrugged, I didn’t do it for charity, after all, Celine did most of the work, and like Tai said, being on the good side of a dedicated healer was just common sense.

“So, what about the fang?” Celine asked.

We went silent after that, turning to Utoqa.

“I can make a pretty strong sympathetic link using this fang,” Celine continued, “but it will only last so long, and I extracted enough venom to make one without, just not as good. I can do something with alchemy, create a stronger poison, but that’s about it.”

“My decision changes, do we wish to hunt the eight-legged?” Utoqa answered.

We went silent, each considering the problem.

Utoqa hit the crux of the issue, while he could make a decent weapon from the fang using Scavenge, Celine could create a one use sympathetic link with the spider, ideal for cursing it. If we could kill it, Utoqa could Scavenge the corpse directly rather than use the fang. Whether he wanted the fang was dependent on whether or not we planned on hunting the spider.

However…

“I want at least one of us to be around Johnny at all times,” I said.

Celine nodded, “I agree.”

The guild receptionist was showing him around the building right now, but they were still near enough we could react quickly to any abnormality.

And most of us weren’t about to drag a child into a dark forest with an active monstrosity, even if the ghost that followed Johnny could theoretically protect him.

I sighed, “If we wish to hunt the thing, it seems that we must be a man down.”

Which was a damnably bad idea. Though the Holy Water I bought allowed anyone here to deal damage to the ghost, only I could see it at the present moment. And I would be required to deal with the swarm that the spider called, meaning someone else would have to stay behind.

Utoqa might be able to sense the ghost with his high Perception, and he was the hardest to kill here, but we would lose a valuable front liner against the spider. Tai could fulfil the frontline role, but she excelled in damage. While Celine would be needed to keep us healed and to curse the spider using sympathetic magic.

“It would have to be me,” Noam said with a heavy tone.

I nodded, of this group, Noam had the most general skills, he could hold his own as a fighter with Tai and Utoqa, but both were simply better as melee fighters. Noam’s actual martial skill as a fighter did not matter when both Tai and Utoqa were just as good but also had better stat spreads and abilities for the role.

Noam could theoretically fight off the large spider swarm with mass insults and Catch these Hands, but he wouldn’t be as good as me. His mana pool wasn’t as high as mine, so he would have trouble aggroing every spider.

He was a true jack of all trades in this group, he could do melee fighting or spell casting, but only half as good as one of us specialised in it.

“Wait,” Celine said, fishing out several dolls. “It doesn’t have to be Noam.”

She told us her Path.

“Do you trust me to do this?” she asked us.

Tai furrowed her brows, thinking, while Noam and I looked at each other.

“I would be trusting you completely with my life,” Tai said. “It’s a hard decision.”

“The link may remain even after we die and respawn,” I noted, “so it gives you the opportunity to attack us whenever.”

Her sympathetic magic was focusing on healing, but its roots as curse magic remained.

Utoqa pulled off one of his scales and handed it to Celine.

“Is this enough?”

Celine sat there, frozen with muted shock, before sputtering, “Is- is it really ok to make a decision that quickly?”

“It is necessary if we wish to hunt the eight-legged and keep the hatchling safe,” he simply said.

Celine hesitatingly took the scale.

Noam shrugged, and took out his knife with the glowing red eye, cutting off some hair, before passing Celigarn to me.

I took the blade, and cut off some flesh from my arm, ignoring the blade’s accusation that I was a plant, and therefore not pleasurable to cut.

Seeing the three of us do it, Tai sighed, and cut off some of her hair, “Make sure to break the link afterwards.”

Celine took all the pieces, holding them as if they were the most precious things in the world.

Before we set off, Noam dragged me to the side, saying, “I want your opinion choosing my level up stuff.”

I raised an eyebrow, “Why suddenly now?”

Noam leaned on the side of a tree, glancing towards the rest of the party doing their own preparations.

“Because I suddenly realise this isn’t a game for some of us,” he replied. With a heavy voice, he continued, “I’m still the same person, but I don’t want my hedonism to hurt anyone else.”

Silently, I nodded. “Tell me your options.”

“I can pick three skills, anything from the level six pool, and the abilities seem a lot stronger than the ones we could pick at level three…”

“Are all of us prepared?” Dustin asked, glancing towards the midday sun.

Nods and agreements all around.

Celine stayed back, in her hands, she held a vial of Holy Water. Standing beneath her were Yellow and Greenie.

Nodding towards the two, Dustin said, “I’m relying on you two to keep her safe.”

Both wisps nodded seriously back to him.

“Lead the way then Utoqa,” Noam announced.

And so the lizardfolk took point, walking forward as he tracked the scent he had caught just the day before.

Their journey was silent, nothing but the sounds of our footfalls and the wind crinkling the leaves.

Until the trees became silent, and white grey webbing covered everything.

A loud screech echoed in front of them, as seven red eyes stared hatefully from deep within its lair. One eye blinded by Utoqa’s Gift.

Another great screech, and skittering sounded throughout the forest.

“We’re here,” Dustin simply declared as he raised his arms, flicking dozens of prepared poison Sporages around them.

Green spores erupted around as the sounds of skittering were soon replaced by screeching. All three fighters took off at this moment, Utoqa leading the charge!

Sensing the new threat, the giant spider screeched as it raised its abdomen, firing a direct web shot towards Dustin. Noam could not dodge it before, and neither could Dustin as the web slammed him into a tree.

But the spider had exposed itself, three simultaneous attacks, sword, tomahawk and hook blades. Fangs met Utoqa, dripping with venom as Tai’s blade carved bloody lines in the creature’s flank. Holding his hook swords like axes once again, Noam slammed both into a joint, knocking a leg down. The minor loss of balance allowed Utoqa to disengage his blade and slash the creature’s head, directly drawing blood as together they forced it back.

Acid hissed behind them as Dustin freed himself, Acid Spit still dripping from his mouth, melting some parts of his Bark Skin, but not yet significantly.

“As we’ve planned,” Dustin said.

Far back at the guild, Celine sat in her room, gently rubbing the head of Johnny who was asleep on her lap.

In front of her were four dolls.

Unlike her other dolls, they were almost lifelike replicas, not simple grey bases that only had the sympathetic component added.

Utoqa, Noam, Dustin and Tai.

“As we’ve planned,” the Dustin doll suddenly said, its bark like mouth grinding.

Following him, Noam’s doll began to swear loudly as it began insulting the spider, whose corresponding doll began to singe slightly at the edges.

A hole appeared in Utoqa’s doll, situated right on his left arm, and Celine raised a needle and thread and prepared to Stitch.

Utoqa’s injury was almost instantly closed by silvery threads, healing energy directed from afar. From Dustin’s understanding of Celine’s Path, her range was vastly increased through one of those dolls, but the flaw was that they had to be made from willingly given materials, compared to her normal ones that used whatever. Not so good for cursing someone.

But perfect for a far ranged healer.

Utoqa exchanged blow for blow with the spider, his slashes and scales keeping the brunt of the spider’s attention on him, standing strong with terrifying stoicity as Celine simply healed every injury.

All the while Noam danced around the spider, hurling insults and causing the occasional fire. His blades striked it at specific points to disrupt balance and weaken its footing.

Dustin kept refreshing the circle of spores that surrounded them, creating a barrier in which the spiderlings could not enter, and the greater spider could not escape.

All trapping it long enough for Tai to charge her attack.

Her blade flashed out, and the spider, blinded in one eye could not see or dodge quick enough, two legs severed instantly, causing it to list on its side, its balance permanently disrupted.

Screeching in pain, it roared and slammed into Utoqa, throwing him into the air as it raised its abdomen towards Tai, blasting a web right at her!

But Tai stood her ground as her blade flashed again, easily severing it down the middle.

Then something happened.

Dustin, watching the entire battlefield from the back, noticed it first.

Reproduce.

A second web appeared right behind the one Tai slashed, heading right towards her! Her blade still held high, she could not redirect nor dodge in time!

But Noam was the second who noticed. He jumped, flying feet first as he fly kicked Tai out of the second web!

The elf fell out of the way, as the second web slammed Noam into the ground.

“Noam!” Tai yelled, already bringing her blade up to cut him free.

But that thrum of power emerged again, as the spider used its Path the second time.

Reproduce.

A leg stabbed itself through Tai’s stomach, as a second, smaller Brood Mother appeared behind her.

“Tai, get away!” Dustin yelled, his hand raised, aiming at the second spider.

Tai spat blood, yelling, “I can take it!” as suddenly she clenched her abdomen and grabbed the leg through her body with a death grip.

The spider tried to wretch its leg out of her, but she stood firm.

Dustin's decision only took a moment.

“Rot Spores.”

The wave of purple spores ripped through the second spider, causing it to screech in pain as necrosis burned its way through its carapace. Grass and trees died around it as wayward spores killed everything they touched.

Tai choked, finally letting the leg escape her body as her back was blackened and rotted from the fallout.

Celine was already working on her though, silver threads stitching her stomach back together as a health potion was simultaneously poured over Tai’s doll.

But the large spiders weren’t dead yet, and though Utoqa was having an easier time keeping the original occupied, he still could not move back to assist them.

The smaller, skittering spider brood had stopped in their tracks, but after forming a perimeter and casting the expensive Rot Spores, Dustin’s mana was low.

Tai was gritting her teeth as she forcefully pushed herself up by her sword. The health potion Celine was pouring over her doll was helping, but it wasn't enough to fight through the necrosis which weakened healing.

While the second spider was listing and spasming in pain, its carapace lost, its raw, rotting flesh was exposed to the world, it was slowly regaining its bearings,

Both of them were heavily injured, Tai would recover, Dustin calculated, but he wasn’t sure if Celine would be fast enough to get Tai up in time to face the second spider.

So low in mana, Dustin began running to place himself between her and it. Thankfully, the spider seemed to shift its attention to him, the source of the pain.

A spray of webbing slammed into him, but was quickly broken through as Dustin spat acid. But in that brief moment, though slowed and weakened, the spider was still quick enough to reach and sink its teeth into Dustin’s flesh, and venom swiftly coursed through Dustin’s veins!

To zero effect, as his Fungal Body resisted it.

Pacifying Spores slammed into the spider, causing it to droop as Dustin removed his arm, stepping back. He was mentally counting his mana, waiting for it to return enough that he could safely throw out another Rot Spores.

He would not make it in time, Dustin calculated, as the spider began to shake off the effect of Pacifying Spores.

“You’re a fucking idiot Noam.”

In this active battlefield, with Utoqa still duelling with the prime spider and Dustin was running out of options against the second, Noam’s voice sounded out, muffled from underneath the webs holding him.

Insulting himself.

The webs holding Noam in a bundle exploded in flames, burning away as Noam’s burning form emerged.

His body was fully on fire, swords included.

Like a fireball, Noam dashed towards the weakened and rotting spider, leaping onto its head, fire burning its exposed flesh.

It screeched, trying to throw off the burning tiefling as Noam stabbed down with his swords, it did not penetrate well, but created enough of a dent that he hooked onto them, allowing him to ride it with his hook swords as demented reins.

“GO!”

Dustin didn’t need to be told twice, as he turned towards Utoqa and his stalemate with the prime spider.

His mana had finally recovered enough.

“Utoqa!”

The lizardfolk leapt away, just as a puff of Rot Spores exploded where he was. The prime spider leapt, and unoccupied, it was able to dodge most of it.

But its abdomen was exposed to the Rot Spores, ripping it open, its raw spider silk and thread spilled out like water from a bucket with a hole, dripping in thick white strands, then hardening as they stuck to the ground like glue.

Holding it in place.

Tai stood beside it, standing as it struggled, her back still blackened and rotting.

She sheathed her sword, holding the hilt as she entered a stance.

Then, with a singular, perfected action too fast for anyone to see, she split the prime spider in two, and the blade returned back to its sheathe before anyone knew it had left.

The two halves spasmed, once, twice, then never again.

And as the prime spider died, Noam spat on the second, his spit strangely orange coloured and viscous like a melted candy.

His new level six skill.

The spit ignited, lighting up the dark forest with a white flash as it burned inside the spider’s skull.

It slammed and rolled around, but the fire within its head was too much. As Noam jumped off, it slowly burned itself to death, the flames leaving behind an ashen shell. When it finally died, Noam dispelled the flames on his body, his skin slightly charred by the experience.

Tai staggered, the adrenaline holding her up no longer as potent, Dustin immediately went to her. Checking her for wounds, but found that Celine had done a good job of patching her up, her flesh was still tender and weak, but it was healed.

“I am sorry for that,” Dustin apologised as he acted as a soft crutch for her, helping her stand.

“Fuck that spell stings,” Tai complained. “You are buying me drinks later, get me the strong stuff. I don’t want to be awake to feel this heal.”

Dustin disapproved of the habit, but stayed silent as she did deserve it.

As Utoqa knelt down to examine the corpses, Noam waved his hand in the air, “Thanks Celi, if you can hear this. We got em.”

They all felt a reassuring pat on their backs.

“I’m not gonna lie that is a bit creepy,” Tai commented, “but fuck that saved my life so I’m not gonna complain.”

“Look at this,” Utoqa suddenly called out, now further away, and behind the corpse.

Dustin and Tai limped towards where he was, Noam following shortly. He was digging something out from the ground, unearthing soil and dirt.

After removing some significant portion, Dustin began to see with his True Sight what it was.

A staff, charred and broken with its bottom half missing, but emanating a strange and constant warmth. Utoqa lifted it aloft, and as he held it, he seemed strangely vibrant, as if more hale and healthier than usual.

“That man, Tignflut, he mentioned something about the forest being unusually warm all year round right?” Dustin asked.

“He did, yeah,” Tai agreed. “You think this is the source?”

“Most likely,” he agreed, examining the earth with his True Sight.

Warmth had seeped into the land, leaving it magical.

“So…” Noam began, “What are we doing with it?”

As the festival died down, a certain stall owner began lounging, organising his spoils into towers and towers of coins. Smiling as he counted them all.

A soft knock on the wood, as a purple-bluish skin tiefling appeared. He smiled, flicking five coppers into the air, and they perfectly landed on the tops of the owner’s coin towers.

The owner smiled, taking out three darts, “You wish to try your hand?”

“I dabble a bit in darts afterall,” the tiefling shrugged with a smile. “And it’s not a lot of coin to lose.”

The owner laughed, “Then I wish you the best of luck-”

A dart slammed perfectly into the centre of his target.

A bead of sweat rolled down the owner’s face.

“Yo!” Noam yelled as he entered the guild hall, carrying boxes filled with festival foods and drinks. “I’m back!”

I turned my head to him, nodding in acknowledgement as he began placing food on the tables.

“Any progress?” he asked.

The guild receptionist, Tignflut spoke up as he examined the burnt staff, “I don’t think removing this staff would cause any damage to the forest, a lot of its power seemed to have already seeped into the land, removing it won’t make a difference anymore.”

“I think so too,” Celine said, raising a vial filled with soil, “the dirt even at the edge of the forest holds minor alchemical properties consistent with the staff’s energy. Which I believe to be of Summer.”

“The Arcadian court?” Tai asked, holding a meat skewer, “It’s a long place away from home then.”

“We’ve identified several effects,” I added on, “the first is a spell that causes targeted and rapid plant growth, the second spell is a powerful heal to whoever is touching the head. Along with two passive effects, basic strengthening of all nature and growth type spells cast, and whoever is holding it also becomes healthier and immune to diseases to an extent.”

Celine nodded, “I think that effect in particular grows stronger the longer they hold it, but we would need time to tell.”

Noam whistled as he sat down right next to Johnny, “This is a big find then.”

Quietly, Noam gave Johnny something under the table, only I noticed it, as it was in range of my manavision. It was a familiar wooden toy dragon.

“As mercenaries, you are entitled to this as your loot,” Tignflut said, “along with the pay for killing the Brood Spider.”

“And its corpse?” Utoqa asked.

“And its corpse,” the receptionist confirmed.

Utoqa nodded.

“This is a pretty good upgrade from your dingy old staff isn’t it Dustin?” Tai asked as she popped open a bottle that Noam had bought.

“Actually,” I began, “I don’t plan on taking it.”

For better or for worse, I was juggling two progression systems. The Indiri one of Paths like Tai, Celine and Utoqa had, and the levelling system that Travellers like Noam and I had.

That did not count well for my Balance, as both would progress whenever I did something. And while the charred staff was a definite upgrade, it would shift my Balance to the other end.

It would not do when I was so close to my next level up. Noam had already gotten his level six, and I can’t be much further behind. Traveller level six also came with a significant power spike, as evidenced by the skills Noam took.

Path: Spitfire

Beatbox (Inspiration): You have a pool of additional stats (CHA / 2 rounded down) that you may add through your Beatbox skill, up to a maximum equal to your Skald Level (6) per stat. You may now use your Beatbox on others so long as at least one stat is allocated to them in the process.

I’M LIT!: Once per day, you may use a verbal based attack on yourself and light yourself on Fire, gain a temporary +3 (Skald Level / 2, rounded down) in every stat, emanate magical fire, and all your attacks deal magical fire damage. While in this state, you can magically sense all fires caused by your skills so long as they are within the same plane and within a large distance of you. This lasts until you dispel it or perish from the damaging fire.

Spitfire, but with a space in-between: You can turn your spit into an incendiary gel that is difficult to remove and burns magical fire that cannot be put out by mundane means. Creatures damaged by the fire have their Fire Resistance lowered by a level until the burn wounds are healed. The crackling fire can repeat short phrases in Infernal, and you may cast verbal based attacks through this method.

Feats:

Mobile (3 SP): You gain a +2 to AGI. You instinctively know how to traverse difficult terrain, you may completely ignore non-magical difficult terrain when running.

With his remaining stat points evenly split between strength, dexterity and stamina.

It would be best if my Balance was shifted away from me, giving me space to gain more skills. Which meant I had to let go of other opportunities so that I won’t face a powerful backlash.

Tai raised an eyebrow, “Then Celine?”

She had a complicated look, “I could make a staff work… but I’m not that kind of magic caster.”

“Utoqa then?”

The lizardfolk shook his head.

“Can no-one use this?”

“Hello?” Noam asked aloud, “Did everyone just forget there was a bard here?”

“Can’t you only insult people?” Tai asked.

I nodded before he could answer, “That’s right, it’s worth a trip back to Gaia to get his spell slots filled out.”

Noam was even worse than me, while I only had a few spell slots empty, his was completely empty save for Vicious Mockery. Granted, Biting Words was ripped from him due to a lost Clash, but both were basically the same spell so it didn’t change anything meaningful.

“You need Traveller gold for that right?” Celine asked.

“We could also barter, and I think I can scam some people by trading regular gold for Traveller gold.”

Noam coughed, and I quickly corrected my speech, “Oh, I meant fairly do currency conversion.”

Tai rolled her eyes, “So you want the staff Noam?” she looked around. “We all cool with him taking it?”

Nods all around, I said, “Though for fairness Noam can split his part of the spider bounty.”

“I’m fine with that,” Noam replied, taking the staff, “Though it’s gonna be a bit awkward holding it, Dustin can you-”

“No,” I firmly said. “I am not in any way laying any sort of claim onto that staff.”

It was best to be clear about this, not just to the party, but to the World enforcing the Balance.

Noam grumbled, and elected to hang the thing by his belt, next to the noble’s wand and Celigarn. Since it was broken, it was actually shorter than a staff, closer to a very large and thick wand actually, so it fit snugly next to them.

“For a large bounty like this one I need to fill out more paperwork,” Tignflut said as he shuffled out of his seat, “Do you guys have a name for your party or do you want me to just have your names?”

The atmosphere became quiet.

“I propose The Squad!” Noam immediately yelled.

“I veto that,” Tai spat back quickly.

“What about the Gang Gang?”

“A name should be professional,” Tai said, “it has to promote our image.”

“A name shouldn’t make a party,” Noam argued, “a party should make the name. Therefore no matter what thing we come up with, if we get famous enough they’ve gotta respect us regardless of the name. Back me up here Dusts.”

“I don’t really care,” I replied, “I agree with the sentiment, but don’t want to be part of something stupid sounding.”

“Right?” Tai agreed.

“You contrarians!” Noam accused.

Rolling her eyes, Tai asked the other two, “What about you?”

“I.. uh… have no strong opinion,” Celine answered.

Meanwhile, Utoqa was silent, staring at the object in Johnny’s lap. A wooden toy dragon which he held closely, but did not play with.

“That’s it!” Noam yelled, “We’ll be the Toy Dragons!”

Tai raised an eyebrow, “Comparing ourselves to dragons? Rather hubristic isn’t it?”

“That’s why we’re the Toy Dragons,” Noam said. “And when we get famous as shit, it’ll be fucking hilarious for them to be scared of a bunch of idiots called Toy Dragons!”

“So you admit that the name is dumb?”

“Can you come up with anything better?” Noam asked.

Tai frowned, before shrugging. I noticed then that her face was noticeably red, and her bottle was almost half empty. “Fuck it, how bad could it be?”

“All in favour?” Noam asked, raising a hand.

I shrugged, raising my hand, it was better than nothing.

Celine shyly raised her hand, saying she liked it, while Utoqa silently raised his hand, not having any opinion on the matter.

And that night, so was born the Toy Dragons.