[IC] Erde Chronicles

[Spore]

It is a rainy evening in the slums of Sector 6. The rain is beginning to cease, but the normally very loud and bustling district is a but more muffled. Most people took shelter from the rain after setting out various containers to collect rain water. Water supply and water treatment has never worked properly before, it really got worse in the last two weeks, with foul water coming from faucets and many drains not properly removing sewage. Several citizens have already complained to Shinra officials. Their responses ranged from an official statement trying to rectify the situation to downright verbal abuse by security officers threatening violence.

District 6 is filled with war orphans and widows, with all the soldiers of fortune seeking coin, refuge and home in a land destroyed by the war against the Shadow Lord. While Midgard also resisted the Shadow Lord, it tries to remain neutral in the upcoming conflict between the free nations and Garlemald. Genius architects from the Shinra corporation combined scavenged Garlean magitek with the beast tribes magics to create something more; mako energy. The first reactors quickly created enough energy to power a whole city, but it also empowered Shinra to create weaponry and a security force that could rival small countries.

You however are on the night before a great mission. Your benefactor Cid, a pragmatist Nu-Mou scholar searching for old artifacts requires you to do her literal dirty work. In exchange you have arranged a generous payment, and as a special treat before the venture you have convinced the scholar to have a night out drinking and eating in whatever stalls and drinking booths the District 6 market has to offer. The rain is slowly ceasing, and the stalls are happy for customers. The streets are slowly filling again, but the dirt below your feet is still soft and sticks to your boots. The air smells like rain mixed with hearty food and drink. Several shops are in want of your attention.

Spoiler: Food and Drinks (paid for by Cid)

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Pumpkin Potage
Beef Stroganoff
Scallop Curry
Aldgoat Steak
Apple Tart
Baked Onion Soup
Parsnip Salad

Wutai Chai (various teas)
Crimson Cider
Frozen Spirits
Apple/Grape/Carrot Juice
A newly fangled drink called coffee

This is your first foray together, you have worked for Cid in smaller groups or alone before, so it would be feasible to give your best impression.

Spoiler

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Please introduce your characters with a small description of what they look like including casual wear. You can remove armor and weapons, nothing will happen in this portion of the game, unless "paranoid adventurer" is already part of your character's personality.

That, or you pull yourselves into trouble.

[Gyrfalcon]

Anton is one of the first to arrive that night by the simple expedient that District 6 is more or less his home.

Though Cid is kind enough to provide basic lodgings for the new recruit, the former street rat spends more time on the streets then he does indoors in the spartan room he was given.

Anton stands over six feet tall, and a battered and torn duster wards off the last of the evening rain from his clothing – scuffed combat boots, jeans and a shirt with the logo of the local blitzball team – the Midgard Maulers.

He doesn’t bother with a hat, and the rain slicks his short hair to his skull and drips from the point of his once-broken nose and the tip of his chin, but like the rest of locals, he doesn’t pay it much mind.

A jagged scar interrupts the stubble along the length of his jaw, the remnant of an old wound that must have laid his face open to the bone. But what draws the eye first is his blue eyes – literally glowing with their own light and most visible when he walks through the shadows between sputtering street lamps.

Showing a shopkeeper a chit with Cid’s sigil on it, he grabs a portion of beef stroganoff and a crimson cider and settles in to lean against a wall near a street light where he is visible. Cid had given him a packet of information for the mission ahead, and it included descriptions of the other mercenaries who were tapped for the work ahead. He keeps an eye on the crowds – especially at knee height. The tonberry with a cowboy hat sounded like he’d stand out the most.

[Dakrsidder]

Yuki arrived at the market shortly after. Walking around carefree with a lack of awareness of his surroundings he preserves his energy while entertaining himself wondering what kind of people he'll be working with.

Standing at barely over 160 cm, Yuki appears in weathered black jeans and boots, an unbranded gray t-shirt, and a comfy looking oversized robe. If you didn't notice the ears, he'd look hardly any different from a young Hume with purple eyes and silver hair.

Yuki reaches a stall and shows his sigil before helping himself to an apple tart and coffee. Soon after, he began walking in circles while thinking about what he might encounter today.

[Merilan]

C'mon. Breathe, Eskha, breathe...

Eskha appears at the marketplace not long after the other two, a somewhat diminuitive Xaela Au Ra with gray scales, light skin and black hair tied into two ponytails with a traditional-looking hair ornament from where she hails, the Steppes, and has a headband covering her forehead. She looks a bit skittish and anxious, and well aware of it even as she browses some of the food stalls. She's wearing Steppes robes today, which doubles as a raincoat due to its hardy nature. She stops at a vegetarian stall selling their pumpkin potage, and picks up some apple tart as a dessert alongside it after showing Cid's own sigil.

She sits down nearby and begins to eat quietly, which coincidentally puts her near Anton and Yuki as she looks up to them. She waves quietly, but then looks back down at her food.

[Gyrfalcon]

Anton recognizes Eshka, even more so when she waves at him and makes his way over to sit at her table. He sits carefully on the bench across from her, the aged wood groaning under his weight as he settles above the legs on one side. He waits for her to finish a mouthful of food before extending a hand.

“Name’s Anton. Good to meet you. You’re the one with the flash sword-gun?” He says to break the awkward silence after it grew for a few minutes.

Don’t draw attention that she’s an Impy too loud, oaf, or you’ll get a riot going he berated himself.

[Bayar]

Vanya shuffled around the market stalls, picking up some chai and scallop curry. Spotting Cid amongst the crowd, she moves towards the group.

"Greetings Cid, thank you for the treat." Then, turning towards the others in the group, she pulls down her tan hood, revealing a pair of slightly twitching mithra ears covered in light violet hair with eyes to match.

"Greetings, I am Vanya, travelling healer. Pleasure to meet you all."

[tonberryking]

Easy to miss, and hard to not be nervous around, there's a tonkin sitting like a lump of crumpled laundry with a fish tail on a stool in the same food stall as Eska and Anton. Holding a Pumpkin Potate bowl up to his head, he's been softly slurping the entire mess down his unseen gullet. If he was on the ground, he'd be hard to spot but for the gray cowboy hat sloped on his head that's been keeping him almost dry through the entire storm. When he puts the bowl down, to regard the other two youths, it is completely empty, his pale yellow eyes looking over them, and the sigil that gets flashed around.

"Oh. I see. You must be some of the other of the other operatives, correct?" his "voice" is nearly monotone, yet incredibly nebbish, "Pleased to meet you. You may call me Bert." He continues to stare, but doesn't offer them either of his hands. Usually when a tonkin holds up a limb people get nervous...

[Merilan]

Eskha swallows a little as people manoeuvre closer; she regards Anton with a nod, but then says, "That's me. Eskha, it's... nice to meet you three," she finishes pushing out after the hitch, shaking his hand. She's probably only pushing twenty at most; she didn't do much but finish basic training in Garlemald before everything she saw got too awful, and she took off. It's also relatively common knowledge that she's from Garlemald and deserted, and has a third eye underneath that headband, but... she keeps that on the down and low in public.

Bert's hat and look definitely get her attention for a moment. She quietly thinks it looks kinda cute, and it's nice to know a friendly Tonberry!

[Dakrsidder]

A few minutes after it began, Yuki ended his trance and notices the group of misfits a few meters away. Considering there's a good possibility they're the ones he'd be working with, he considered introducing himself. The only issue is he finds introductions boring, but at the same time, he doesn't want to interrupt, especially when he has no idea what's going on. As he had just finished his coffee, he decides to walk towards the stall for a second cup.

After taking a step forward, he tripped on some trash, but using the momentum, he flips back onto his feet. He whispers to himself "physics has nothing on me" before taking his more creamer than coffee beverage and getting into a position to subtly observe the group.

[Spore]

Cid is a small esoteric Nu Mou woman. Normally the small mammalian creatures are covered in fur, but without pronounced hair, but somehow Cid is sporting a blonde mane. Whether or not this was a wig you dared not try to ask yet. Her heart-shaped glasses are rose-tinted and her general appearance marks her as anti-war, though you have heard stories of her magic and research helping the war effort.

The scholar was just trying to leave as the smell of exotic dishes and her favorite drink, Garlean Absinthe caught her nose. Sitting a bit away from your group trying not to interrupt, she shortly waves when she is thanked for the food and drinks. As you warm with each other a bit, Cid finishes her drink. With a newly poured one in hand, she walks towards you, her path already being curved by staggered steps. She waves all of you to join her.

You guyssz need to loosen up. she says, clearly drunk of a single shot of liquor. Marie? Bring us ze pipe. before downing her second drink. Wat we do needs trussst. You need to trust each other an me, to....to... Cid lost her thought, staring at a lamp for half a minute. Marie, the bar maiden interrupts you with a cylindrical contraption made of glass. It is similar to a vase with a burner attached to the lower side. A mouth piece is attached with a small hose. Cid unpacks a small tin can filled with spicy tobacco and a small paper bag filled with different herbs. She empties the tobacco into the pipe for now, leaving the other things for later.

As the boss, she takes the first drag of it, coughing heavily, but sitting happily after. It smells like cigars after the smoke went cold for a bit, but with a hint of cinnamon and oranges. She offered the next willing group member the pipe, but not after enchanting the mouth piece with a self-cleaning charm. Two small elementals made of pure water take turns splashing the mouth piece with elemental water.

Erryone now. Take a puff and introduce yourself. That's an order! For a moment you can hear the stern and direct advisor you know in her voice before she smiles contently.

[Gyrfalcon]

Anton is the first to take the water pipe from Cid’s unsteady fingers and takes a deep draw. The smoke burns almost pleasantly in his throat and lungs, and he exhales it in a long plume into the night sky above them, letting the taste of the spices linger for a moment.

“My name is Anton. I’m a Dark Knight and I’m trained as a linebreaker. I prefer a two handed weapon so I can put my weight into the swing. Aside from that, I know a few tricks to play the enforcer - I can bluff and I’ve been told I can be intimidating.

Otherwise, I grew up on the streets around this District, and I’ve survived running the sewers once - I’m looking forward to having a weapon this time. And a light.”

He holds the mouthpiece out for the next to speak.

[Merilan]

Eskha looks a little startled as Cid comes around, looking already pleased as punch. "C-Cid, I think the drink's already getting to you," but the hookah soon comes and she looks towards the mouthpipe after Anton introduces himself. She sags dejectedly, but then accepts the mouthpiece and takes a draw--

And starts coughing uncontrollably, wheezing as she turns to one side. "E-Eskha, gunbreaker..." Wheeze. "I can act in both close combat and at range, and I'm not bad at handling machines and technology..." She might start crying anytime soon.

So she passes it to the next person, since she's busy dousing her throat in pumpkin soup to try to clear it.

[Dakrsidder]

Yuki turns towards Cid and smiles before saying, "If I wasn't so curious about trying that thing, I would've tried debating you on the order."

He then takes the mouthpiece from Eskha and inhales as much as his lungs allow him to. Not long after, he's on the floor having a coughing fit and finding himself unable to get a word out, so he just lays there for a while.

About 20 seconds later, he jumps to his feet seemingly fine despite what had just happened. "Introductions are lame, but I'm Yuki. I dabble in time magic and recently picked up a gun although I'm not a good aim. I can manage some support, a bit of damage, and I have a pretty decent reaction time.

Besides that, I don't remember much anything, but sometimes my subconscious can save the day. Oh, also this floaty thing follows me around."

He then passes on the mouthpiece and goes back to his coffee.

[Bayar]

"Oh, um ok." Vanya receives the hookah, takes a puff of it and exhales the smoke through her nose. "Owowow, that hurts! Seen smokers doing that before, turns out it's a bad idea."

After regaining her composure, she continues: "Like I said, my name is Vanya. Healing is my area of expertise, I can conjure up lights and clean water. In dire situations, can climb on structures and provide reconnaissance."

Passing the pipe towards the next person, Vanya returns to her tea.

[tonberryking]

Bert thinks better than to protest, though he covers his mouth with his hand holding the pipe as he takes a pull. For a moment nothing happens, and then thick plumes of smoke erupt from either side of his head where ears would be on virtually any other humanoid.

Probably best not to ask...

"Well. That was unusual... But you may call me Bert. I am very proficient with knives, and am also good with...other capabilities." he doesn't elaborate, but he tugs on the rim of his hat out of habit, "I do not wish to divulge anything any further in public, but rest assured I will have all of your best interests at heart out in the field."

[Gyrfalcon]

Anton can't help but chuckle at the antics of the others, particularly as Bert apparently breaths through the sides of his head? Anton concluded it was better not to ask, but filed it away as 'interesting tidbit about tonkin'. It was obvious the rest of the group had never encountered the cheap sort of tobacco that was bought, bartered, scavenged or stolen by the slum dwellers - in comparison this was quite high quality.

The Hume did keep a wary eye on Cid's pouch - tobacco was one thing, but he'd rather not have his mind clouded the night before a mission.

[gac3]

Queso hurried over to the table with their plate filled with as many different foods as they could get it with Cid's generosity. Seeing that the group has already started and is passing around some sort of pipe, they squeezed in a seat near the end of the line.

They are wearing a simple dirty and stained outfit with a shining thick belly warmer and a chef's hat. A giant fork hangs off their back and a frying pan hangs from their hip.

They spend the time waiting for their turn using their massive tongue to grab and eat different foods of their plate, the tongue never really going all the way in their mouth. When their turn comes they consider taking a bite out of the pipe but since no one else did, they just took a puff and smiled.

"Sorry I late. Food so good here. I Queso. Apprentice chef. Good goblin. I eat monsters. I have tricks. I cook for you. Nice meeting."

After a moment of pause, he passes the pipe on and continues eating.

[Spore]

Cid shakes her head seeing the shyness and reserved nature of the group. I picked you for your skills, but you need to work as a group if you are to succeed. she claims openly, unafraid of consequences. And maybe as friends. she adds. The place became more crowded as the evening went on, with other clients give the table with the Qu and the Tonberry a wide berth. It took less attention for Shinra Security to search your person and staying place, though the passerbys took to themselves or ignored you completely. If anything, Eskha looked positively normal in this group of half-breeds, monsters and next to an eccentric Nu Mou liberal.

As Cid retreats, the hands you the keycard to a warehouse at the outer wall of the city. As you leave for the night, or stay to party, you nonetheless find the warehouse in a desolate part of town. You enter, and inside you find a handful of crates of varying sizes. They are mostly empty, though some are filled with basic scrap that a skilled engineer could use to at least jury-rig their own contraptions. Cid had given you money for sleeping bags and adventuring supplies, and with her lab still unknown to you this was the only free place you could decide to stay. That, or you could get a room uptown. The deal was to secure and bring any artifact to the warehouse, and you could use it as a sleeping place too.

Spoiler

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Please post a pic of your character in Discord or on your sheet if you haven't already. Also post a marching order.

[Gyrfalcon]

With only a few Gil to his name, Anton is one of the ones who sleeps at the warehouse. The following morning, he begins to gear up. The combat boots remain, but now armored plates are strapped over the tops of them to make it less inviting for a foe to shove a blade in his foot. Quilted leggings and gambeson provide some protection from crushing blows, and then an old set of battered but otherwise functional scale mail tops that off. His gauntlets have been modified with a series of brutal spikes jutting from the knuckles, and a hammer swings at his waist. A brutal looking great axe leans against the wall next to where he's sitting, giving his helmet one last inspection before the team is ready to descend into the sewers.

[Merilan]

Eskha notices some of the passerbys treating them oddly, frowning quietly to herself at that. If anything, she doesn't treat them particularly oddly; they're going to work together, and that's that. She's kind of curious what 'monster cuisine' is like, though...

She accepts the keycard and, much like Anton, she doesn't have much Gil to her name, so she decides to crash out with her sleeping bag here. Some of the scrap draws her eyes, and her gunblade does still need repairs, but it's going to require more parts than what's available here.... in the morning, she too gears up, dressed in a white coat that layers over a light chain shirt with thin plates of both leather and metal, with slim pants and boots covering them. She's definitely working in a less armoured, and more mobile category than Anton. Her gunblade -- a battered-looking Garlemald model, slightly modified with the Imperial markings and manufacture info sanded out -- is strapped at her side, and she has an almost gauntlet-like buckler armed at her right hand.

She loads the cartridges into the gunblade, and nods. "Ready whenever."

[gac3]

Queso happily naps on a pile of whatever in the warehouse. Their tongue hanging out onto the junk. They snore slightly through the night. When morning comes they roll off their pile and literally bounce to their feet. They strap on their belly warmer and sling their giant fork to their back. They then make their way to stand by the sewer entrance.

"Ready. Hungry. We go now?"

[Bayar]

Vanya spends the night with anyone else that stays at the marketplace, eating drinking and chatting. When the time comes to call it a night, she contemplates going to her parent's place but decides against it. Not only is it in another sector but with the composition of her newest mercenary group trouble might spring up at any time. So she joins the rest of the party at the warehouse where she sleeps atop a couple of crates.

The next morning, she's wearing the same clothes as the day before, with a rod attached to her belt. "I'll do my best !"

[Spore]

As you spend your night however you please, you make your way to the sewer entrance. The area is poorly maintained, between several warehouses. Partially abandoned, partially maintained, nonetheless most of the structures seem to be in disrepair. The war took many ressources, and while the quality of life in Midgard was not that poor, the buildings were still in poor quality.

As instructed you manage to avoid major attention from the officials, as you descend underground. Cid told you to follow the unmistakable smell of death and rot, but for now you are overwhelmed with the smell of fecal matter, mixed with a damp badly ventilated area. As you entered the northern-most maintenance tunnels at least one thing is clear. You ahve to go south. You manage to get your bearings and organize a single file line. Crossing the main canal filled with sewage several times, you begin to notice movement. You cannot pinpoint it, and as you walk in the shine of whatever light sources you provide, Vanya, quickly followed by Queso and Yuki notice something ahead.

A group of unusually large and aggressiverats is scurrying along the walkway and two bats hang on the ceiling in the north walkway.

Spoiler

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Queso, Yuki and Vanya noticed the creatures first. You get a surprise round (so move or standard action).
Eskha is fast enough to get her full turn in before the monsters act.
Then I will cluster the monsters as a group. Then we take our turns in blocks.

===>>> Surprise Round for Vanya, Queso and Yuki (in any order) vs. flat-footed opponents
Full round for Eskha

[gac3]

Queso sees the bats hanging from the ceiling and pushes their way past Vanya and Yuki.

"Yum! Food!"

They lick their lips as they brace themselves for an attack, opening their mouth wide while looking at the bats.

Spoiler: OOC

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Using a move action to move fifteen feet to the right in order to place Queso closer to the bat enemies than the other two mages.

[Dakrsidder]

Yuki sees the filthy creatures attacking and casts moment before attempting to blast a rat with his gun. The gun misfires as he moves 10ft backwards.

"I just fixed this hunk of junk how did it already misfire.."

As he gets in place, he feels immeasurable disappointment.

[Bayar]

"Watch out, vermin !" Vanya tries to warn the rest of the group, while trying to shoot holy energy from her rod at the nearest bat.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Attack: 20
Damage: 3

[Merilan]

"I feel that pain a lot," Eskha remarks to Yuki as his gun misfires. She feels it quiiiiite keenly, from personal experience. "Vanya, I'm following up!"

She hefts the magitek gunblade up and takes aim; the miniature magic reactor inside whirrs to life as it enchants the bullet within, and it fires in a brief spew of flame. After her shot's fired, she runs her hand through and continues to enchant her clip.

Spoiler: Action

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Full-round: Attack the bat Vanya fired at
Roll: 1d20+5 (20) -> 25
Crit confirm: 1d20+5 (4) -> 9
Damage: 2d6+1 (3 1) -> 5

[Spore]

Eskha's bullet hits the tiny bat. It drops onto the dry and dusty service walkway. Queso moves forward, pushing its friends to the side to stand in the way of the flying critter. It advances and delivers a nasty bite onto its rotund head.

In the south the rats advance. They hiss like a cornered cat and lunge at both Anton and Bert. Almost crushed under Anton's boots, the rat cries in frustration as the other rat finds purchase in the Tonberry's soft flesh. You flail and can remove the rat, but not before it taking a hefty chunk of green out of you.

To make things worse, along the edge a small orb of fire with a cartoonish face on it appears. It looks around happily, blowing fire onto Eskha, who turns her gunblade around to deflect the worst of it.

Spoiler

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Queso takes 1 damage.
Bert takes 3 damage.
Bomb misses Eskha with its Fire spell.

===>>> everyone is up

[gac3]

Queso flinches from the bite and the irony and tries to snap back. They let out a soft groan as the bat dodges out of the way.

"Food spicy."

He takes a moment to prepare for his meal, drawing his giant fork.

Spoiler: Ooc

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Standard action attack. 12 roll.
Move action to draw Qu Battle fork.

[Gyrfalcon]

Hate. Rage. Disgust. All the negative emotions that sapients could express, and it all fed into the Darkside. It was so easy to tap into - a heartbeat to will it, and the Dark flooded through him. It oozed from his body and weapon, ethereal flames of red and blue. Blue flames burned in the shadows of his helmet.

Anton swung his axe back, focusing on the giant rodents biting at his feet. One had found its mark in tonberry flesh and was shaking its head, trying to jerk his small companion around. “Cleaving. Hold still.” Anton said, his voice distant and monotone as most of his attention went to mastering the forces surging out of his body. He swung, axe low to the ground as its edge met rat and with a surprised half-squeak, cut straight through. He rotated with his hips, axe picking up speed as it went. He was still inexperienced, and failed to rotate the axe fully with his movements. The blade hit the next rat side on, but as it was transformed from static to high velocity, the wall that interrupted its journey made that a moot point.

“Caster’s open!” Anton called.

Spoiler: OOC

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Swift: Activate Darkside
Standard: Cleave

Rat #1: To Hit 17, Damage 9
Rat #2: To Hit 22, Damage 14

Anton takes 1 damage, AC -2 until next round and is healing-immune until Darkside ends