The Hunting Grounds III - Second Most Dangerous Game

[Fenric]

[Huh?]

The fox wakes up and sniffs a few times, then looks around for the shiny beast. It stretches with a squeaky yawn, and its three tails wave gently as the breeze ruffles its fur. It hasn't noticed Leah yet.

[Recaiden]

[Fox!]

The shiny beast pops up, right on cue, slinking out of the tall grass.

And a net comes whirling through the air, straight towards the dire fox.

[Fenric]

[EEEK!]

The dire fox turns its attention toward the shiny chaither, and therefore gets quite thoroughly netted!

It squrims and snarls and wiggles and snaps and struggles and ends up hopelessly tangled with one foot up by its ear.

[Recaiden]

[Game!]

The chaither comes up, hissing in amusement.
Leah walks up behind it, speaking soothingly.

"Hello there. Do you like the net? Such a nice fox, with so many tails to get tangled in..."

[Fenric]

[Caught!]

The dire fox is chewing on the net to no avail. It's ears swivel around at the sound of Leah's voice, but it is breathing very shallowly and rapidly in its panic and it is droning on in a squeaky fox snarl.

The dire fox is a little bigger than a large german shepherd. It's mouth has three rows of teeth, and it has three tails. It is darker reddish-brown than a usual red fox, and its belly is a medium brown rather than white. It still has black socks and ear tips.

[Recaiden]

[Fox retrieval]

"Don't you worry now. There's great things ahead for you."
Leah casts a second net over the fox, and then gets out a pole to tie the thing to, the better for carrying it away.

[Fenric]

[Two Nets and a Pole]

The dire fox isn't particularly comforted by that, and struggles more. But then another net! Sheesh! It settles on giving the chaither a glare.

[Recaiden]

[Two monsters and a fox]

Leah whistles to call the chaither along, and carries the fox off, back towards the færie circle.

All the while, she whispers soft encouragements to it.
Meanwhile, preparations for the bizarre monstrous dire vulpan project begin.

[Arkhosia]

[Titan Hunting]

Jax is standing in the area where the aberration is supposed to be, but not finding any sign of the crazed man eating giants. You would think something that large would leave noticeable footprints...

As he waits, he pulls the Tuning Fork of Mehet Nogs from his jacket pocket and taps it against the hilt of his sword before holding it to his ear. In the hushed hum of the fork, a strange war chant-like song can be heard: "Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Attack on Tee Tahn!"

"Not bad. Kinda catchy..."

He may hear loud footsteps running towards him, far off but getting close!

[Calemyr]

He may hear loud footsteps running towards him, far off but getting close!

Jax turns to face the sound, holding his sword at the ready. "Odonata Epiprocta" he says, an even tone in his voice, and his cloak splits into a set of dragonfly-like wings, each an iridescent red in color. He flexes the wings, getting used to them once more - it had been a few years since he'd last used them, after all.

"Now let's get a look at you, shall we?"

[5a Violista]

AMEN's Animal Round-up

Maria and Ivaz reach the place where the wild things are. They have ropes, time bombs, and red paint. The obvious goal is to capture three animals or beasts or monsters.

If you have any suggestions for animals or beasts or monsters, give them. My first idea is a magic rhino thing, which I'm sure someone could find around here immediately if they were good at following tracks.

"So here we are. The wild. Do you see anything?" Since it's near AMEN, the landscape is very desolate and empty, full of dead trees and things.

[Arkhosia]

Jax turns to face the sound, holding his sword at the ready. "Odonata Epiprocta" he says, an even tone in his voice, and his cloak splits into a set of dragonfly-like wings, each an iridescent red in color. He flexes the wings, getting used to them once more - it had been a few years since he'd last used them, after all.

"Now let's get a look at you, shall we?"

As the titan runs into view, Jax is greeted by this.

Spoiler

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What? You expected more typed words? There's no way to describe that with mere words!

[Calemyr]

As the titan runs into view, Jax is greeted by this.

Spoiler

Show

What? You expected more typed words? There's no way to describe that with mere words!

[Titan Hunting]

Spoiler: Elsewhere

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"Well... that is new."
"Is it... Is it having a stroke?
"Don't underestimate it. Ridiculous as it may look, it is still clearly very dangerous."
"Dying to something with that expression has got to be the most embarrassing way to go..."
"It's moving really fast for something that big..."

"So glad you're enjoying yourselves." Jax mutters under his breath. The wings pulling him aloft, just a foot or so above the ground, he gets ready for what may well be the most stupid looking chase scene of his entire life. But first, a test. He holds out his free hand and fires a lightning bolt in the direction of the titan. He's aiming for the shoulder, hoping to test a few details of the situation: the effectiveness of classical magic in this world and the effectiveness of magic at all against a titan. Also, to ensure that it follows him. This would be pointless humiliation otherwise.

"I don't know what I was expecting, but a brain damaged naked man with the anatomical accuracy of a doll was certainly not high on the list."

[KerfuffleMach2]

AMEN's Animal Round-up

Maria and Ivaz reach the place where the wild things are. They have ropes, time bombs, and red paint. The obvious goal is to capture three animals or beasts or monsters.

If you have any suggestions for animals or beasts or monsters, give them. My first idea is a magic rhino thing, which I'm sure someone could find around here immediately if they were good at following tracks.

"So here we are. The wild. Do you see anything?" Since it's near AMEN, the landscape is very desolate and empty, full of dead trees and things.

Ivaz hooks her thumbs into the top of her skirt and looks around. Very different from the desert she was at earlier. At least she wasn't getting sand everywhere.

I see a bunch of dead crap. A female voice comes from the gun at her left hip.

Yep. Not much in the way of animals yet. Ivaz closes her eyes and takes in a deep breath through her nose.

Uh-oh. She's using her magic. Look out. A sarcastic voice now comes from the gun on her right hip.

Ivaz doesn't give a verbal response. She does give it the finger, though.

After a moment, she points off to her right. Something big over that way. Let's go look. And then she starts walking that way, her eyes still closed.

[The Alexandrian]

[Have you seen a little dragon girl?]

In the jungle, the mighty jungle, Alexis crash landed. Probably had something to do with those massive enchanted barbed harpoons which were fired at her. Probably.

In any case, Zefir should arrive here first before he can rescue his little girl! Where is here, you ask. Here is a mucky swamp that is not too far from the area where Alexis crashed. Much of the ground here is so squishy that Zefir might find himself knee deep in icky mud if he is not careful about where he steps.

Not a thing will ambush Zefir straightaway today! That would only ruin the drama of the ambush! We need one more post to build more tension!

Once that's done, however...

[Arkhosia]

[Titan Hunting]

Spoiler: Elsewhere

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"Well... that is new."
"Is it... Is it having a stroke?
"Don't underestimate it. Ridiculous as it may look, it is still clearly very dangerous."
"Dying to something with that expression has got to be the most embarrassing way to go..."
"It's moving really fast for something that big..."

"So glad you're enjoying yourselves." Jax mutters under his breath. The wings pulling him aloft, just a foot or so above the ground, he gets ready for what may well be the most stupid looking chase scene of his entire life. But first, a test. He holds out his free hand and fires a lightning bolt in the direction of the titan. He's aiming for the shoulder, hoping to test a few details of the situation: the effectiveness of classical magic in this world and the effectiveness of magic at all against a titan. Also, to ensure that it follows him. This would be pointless humiliation otherwise.

"I don't know what I was expecting, but a brain damaged naked man with the anatomical accuracy of a doll was certainly not high on the list."

The blast won't seem to have much effect on the tiran: the charred flesh the electricity leaves behind heals, and the titan is unfazed.
The titan, meanwhile, tries to bellyflop onto Jax. Brain Damaged Titan can't tell the difference between ground and water, and has terrible diving skills, y'see.

[Calemyr]

The blast won't seem to have much effect on the tiran: the charred flesh the electricity leaves behind heals, and the titan is unfazed.
The titan, meanwhile, tries to bellyflop onto Jax. Brain Damaged Titan can't tell the difference between ground and water, and has terrible diving skills, y'see.

Jax was ready for an attack, although this was not the type of attack he'd been expecting. He darts out of the way, grateful that the wings were already up and active before the attack. Otherwise, he would be quite flat right now.

"So your reputation for being tough to kill is not without merit. Good. Come along now!" He throws a small ball of fire at the titan in a bid to keep its interest.

Perhaps he wasn't the best choice for this mission, after all. Logic and rational thought were powerful assets usually, but against senselessness on this scale they were a detriment. They were leading him to make false assumptions and that could kill him quickly.

[5a Violista]

Animal Round-up

Off in that direction, then, is the six-legged rhino. He blends in pretty well with all te dead things and rocks, and (fortuitously) he‘s asleep. Don‘t worry, though. The other two won‘t be nearly so easy to capture.

“So. That was a little too easy. Maybe we should wake it up just to lighten the chase,“ Maria suggests as she grabs one of the ropes.

[Arkhosia]

Jax was ready for an attack, although this was not the type of attack he'd been expecting. He darts out of the way, grateful that the wings were already up and active before the attack. Otherwise, he would be quite flat right now.

"So your reputation for being tough to kill is not without merit. Good. Come along now!" He throws a small ball of fire at the titan in a bid to keep its interest.

Perhaps he wasn't the best choice for this mission, after all. Logic and rational thought were powerful assets usually, but against senselessness on this scale they were a detriment. They were leading him to make false assumptions and that could kill him quickly.

Simple Titan runs after him, appearing to be doing a halfhearted backstroke as it occasionally swings an arm downwards to swat at Jax!

[Zefir]

[Have you seen a little dragon girl?]

In the jungle, the mighty jungle, Alexis crash landed. Probably had something to do with those massive enchanted barbed harpoons which were fired at her. Probably.

In any case, Zefir should arrive here first before he can rescue his little girl! Where is here, you ask. Here is a mucky swamp that is not too far from the area where Alexis crashed. Much of the ground here is so squishy that Zefir might find himself knee deep in icky mud if he is not careful about where he steps.

Not a thing will ambush Zefir straightaway today! That would only ruin the drama of the ambush! We need one more post to build more tension!

Once that's done, however...

[Have you seen a little dragon girl?]

Well due to the landscape Zefir left the bike he used right before the swamp. Cou can't drive in knee deep mud, unless you have a hover bike.
And here Zefir is stepping slowly through the swam. every few steps he sinks down into the mud, while making a bad step. Every time he curses the landscape and the fact that Alexis had to land here. Why can't she crash land into a harem or a treasue chamber or just Inside. Step by Step he heads forwared where he saw Alexis last.

[KerfuffleMach2]

Animal Round-up

Off in that direction, then, is the six-legged rhino. He blends in pretty well with all te dead things and rocks, and (fortuitously) he‘s asleep. Don‘t worry, though. The other two won‘t be nearly so easy to capture.

“So. That was a little too easy. Maybe we should wake it up just to lighten the chase,“ Maria suggests as she grabs one of the ropes.

Animal Roundup

Ivaz shakes her head a bit as she grabs another. Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, right? Odds are good the other two won't be this easy. Might as well save our energy.

What do you know? She actually has some intelligent thoughts up there. I thought your head was just full of sex and violence.

Ivaz casually takes the gun out of her right holster and tosses it into the shadow of the creature, where it disappears. She glances at her left gun.

You got anything to add?

Nope.

Good.

[Calemyr]

Simple Titan runs after him, appearing to be doing a halfhearted backstroke as it occasionally swings an arm downwards to swat at Jax!

[Titan Hunting]

One of the nice perks of the Ruby Wings is that, like the dragonfly they're modeled after, they are exceptionally good at rapid changes in direction. Darting out of the way of titan's swipes, he makes his way towards the trap. He continues using various low-level magics against it during the chase, testing for any vulnerabilities while trying to hold the titan's interest. He keeps his magic expenditure as low as he can manage, however. If and when the midden hits the windmill, he won't want to find himself out of juice.

While his attention is on the Titan behind him, however, the terrain in front of him has somewhat slipped his focus. He slams into a tree branch and it takes a second or two to recover, barely pulling out from crashing into the ground before straightening his flight out again. "Right. Eyes forward, enough playing around."

[Arkhosia]

[Titan Hunting]

One of the nice perks of the Ruby Wings is that, like the dragonfly they're modeled after, they are exceptionally good at rapid changes in direction. Darting out of the way of titan's swipes, he makes his way towards the trap. He continues using various low-level magics against it during the chase, testing for any vulnerabilities while trying to hold the titan's interest. He keeps his magic expenditure as low as he can manage, however. If and when the midden hits the windmill, he won't want to find himself out of juice.

While his attention is on the Titan behind him, however, the terrain in front of him has somewhat slipped his focus. He slams into a tree branch and it takes a second or two to recover, barely pulling out from crashing into the ground before straightening his flight out again. "Right. Eyes forward, enough playing around."

He'll find that the only injury that seems to cause the titan pain is a hit to the eyes, which cause it to barrel ahead blindly, howling as it's eyes regrow for about a minute.
He may notice a small titan, 4 meters tall, slowly following him now. It does have a bit of a derpy looking expression with a rather... disturbing grin, and disproportionately long arms, but otherwise is just a fat giant ken doll.

[Calemyr]

He'll find that the only injury that seems to cause the titan pain is a hit to the eyes, which cause it to barrel ahead blindly, howling as it's eyes regrow for about a minute.
He may notice a small titan, 4 meters tall, slowly following him now. It does have a bit of a derpy looking expression with a rather... disturbing grin, and disproportionately long arms, but otherwise is just a fat giant ken doll.

Spoiler: Elsewhere

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"Don't look now, but I think you're being followed."

"You think?"

"There are two of them. A slower one is following further behind. Even if you successfully crap this one, you'll be forced to engage the second. Judging from how your target reacted to your spells, you're not going to get the better of it with your sword."

"Hey, I changed its composition to ada-"

"It is still a rapier! It won't have the force to cut through that! You saw the girl's weapons, yes? Disposable blades, because even a cleaver like that is insufficient to the task in short order. Allow me to fight it. I'm better suited to fighting such creatures!"

"You've fought creepy smiling naked killler giants before?"

"Of course not, but they don't seem that different from dragons. Superior size, strength, and endurance coupled with a surprising agility for their size and a crude approach to combat that only works because there is nothing in the world that can counter them. It would seem applicable. Let me handle this!"

"No! We are in an unfamiliar corner of reality. We have no resources, no contacts, no allies, no clues... the Will is acting unfocused, capricious even, so we don't even have a direction! This girl is currently our best chance of getting some ground underneath us, so, no, I'm not about to alienate her with a stunt like that!"

"Don't be stupid. You know the cost those wings will demand. The longer you use them the worse this is going to get!"

"No!"

New strategy. No more magic, not unless absolutely necessary. No more delays, get the target into the trap as soon as possible. Conserve as much time and energy as possible in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, there will be enough left over afterwards to survive what comes next.

Spoiler: Elsewhere

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"He's shut us out. Not being sensible. He can't win this."

"He's the oldest among us, Jer. You don't get to be old in here without being very good."

"I don't want him to die."

"... 's not your choice..."

"No. Find me an opening, JC."

"That's against the rules, he'll be very mad."

"If he has the breath to yell at me, then I'll have done my job."

[Arkhosia]

Hunting Grounds

As Simple Titan chases after Jax, it reaches the trap and is ensnared!
Titan 2 is not too far behind, but far enough to not be a problem this round.
Sophia waves to Jax, as a way to signal to come here.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Titan Hunting]

Jazirian crouches in the treetops, keeping out of sight for the moment. The titans seem to have overlooked him, and he'd like to keep it that way for as long as he can. The denseness of the forest would inhibit the movement of his preferred form to be fighting these things in, so it looks like he's going to need to be a little more creative when it comes to corralling them into the trap.

[5a Violista]

Animal Round-up

I imagine, as they work on tying the rhino-thing, it eventually wakes up but is already too tied up to react more than a little thrashing about. Maria already paints a big number 1 on its side.

I also think the next one should be a great cat.

“Well, there‘s that. One down, two to go. I think we should go west a little.“ Or, they can split up and get he other two animals at the same time.

[Calemyr]

Hunting Grounds

As Simple Titan chases after Jax, it reaches the trap and is ensnared!
Titan 2 is not too far behind, but far enough to not be a problem this round.
Sophia waves to Jax, as a way to signal to come here.

Jax meets up with Sophia and comes to a landing.

"Will you need my help with the other one? If so, we need to act sooner than later. Using these wings is extremely tiring, but it won't hit me until I cancel them."

What he neglects to mention (but could be figured out by an observant person) is that the longer he uses them, the bigger the backlash will be. If he canceled the wings right now he'd merely be exhausted. If he kept them active for a prolonged fight, he'll be too tired to even stand up.

[Rebonack]

[Beach Brawl]

Giant enemy crabs are bad.

Giant enemy chuuls are worse.

Imagine, for a moment, all the worst parts of a crab, an octopus, and a scorpion. Then mix them all together into a twelve foot tall abomination with paralytic venom and a hunger for flesh. Now imagine that there is a whole swarm of hungry mini-chuuls in addition to the hulking mama chuul. This wouldn't be the sort of situation that most people find at all conducive to remaining alive. The vile creatures would quickly swarm and overwhelm all but the most resolute foes!

And, as it happens, the chuuls have stumbled upon a very resolute foe today.

This doesn't dissuade them in the least, however. This interloper has crossed into the chuul's territory and the only payment for such a transgression is life. Unfortunately for the chuuls, their foe isn't proving to be particularly cooperative with them in that regard.

*NOM!*

The foe's prehensile tongue lashes around the one of the mini-chuuls before yanking it off its feet and into the foe's waiting maw! The poor crab doesn't even survive long enough to register pain as its body is broken down, its bio-mass absorbed and processed, aaand-!

*POP!*

A white egg with yellow spots plops into the sand, gently swaying back and forth for a moment before hopping into the hand of the creature that just laid it. The strange monster hauls back before hurling the egg at another pair of mini-chuuls with deadly precision, the projectile ricocheting back and forth between them several times before detonating in a deadly cloud of razor sharp shell shrapnel and bone-shattering force!

*NOM!* another still living mini-chuul is yoinked before it can skitter away. Again swallowed, but this time no egg results. Instead...

"Hup!" the strange monster leaps into the air toward a Giant Enemy Chuul, determined eyes set upon the beast! He then does an acrobatic flip in mid air, "Boin!" before launching himself toward the Crab at rocket-like speeds in clear disregard for the laws of physics. "HAWT!"

*THOOM!*

A huge cloud of sand billows into the air! Screeches and sounds of rending chitin echo out of the melee within! And when the debris clear the Giant Enemy Chuul is left battered, broken, and shattered in an eight foot deep crater.

And the monster that just triumphed over it?

A Yoshi. A Yellow Yoshi, to be specific. Clad is glossy black Buzzy Beetle carapace armor with a Super Mario 3 Inventory belt clasped around his waste. The Yoshi's armored boots crunch across the broken remains of his foe as he stoops down to retrieve his prize.

A melon!

Omnomnom melon! Mmmm...

The adorable yellow dinosaur climbs out of the pit o crab remains and goes tromping off across the beach in search of further challenge, four eggs bouncing along behind him!

[KerfuffleMach2]

Animal Round-up

A great cat sounds good to me.

When the rhino wakes and starts moving, Ivaz grins a bit and kicks it. Just because she can.

Then she puts her hands on her hips and nods a bit. West sounds good. She doesn't want to split up because she doesn't want to miss any of Maria's wacky antics.