[open]

[spellslots]

who: Taako & whoever wants in on this
what: Fighting monsters in a tunnel basically counts as a dungeon crawl, right?
when: Late March
where: Those tunnels!!
warnings: Uh, violence, eldritch horrors maybe, he's got some weird spells
notes: If you wanna do something that doesn't involve fighting hmu at batsecretary!!


[Regardless of who asks, Taako will maintain that he had a shitty cleric back home, but suddenly being without one at all is making him appreciate Merle way more than he ever did. Not having a team to rely on makes battle a lot more uncertain; there's no Magnus to take the brunt of the damage, no Merle to heal or buff them as needed, no helpful NPC to swoop in and save the day.

But a threat to the city means a threat to him, so he's signed up to help cull the creatures in the tunnels. He needs the experience, too, if he's going to level up and figure out a spell strong enough to get him home.

Really though he's just hoping that these creatures are easy enough to dispatch, and mostly he's right. Compared to some of the shit he's had to put up with, over-sized lizards aren't particularly scary, nor particularly threatening, though the amount of them is concerning. Luckily he has a lot of area of effect spells.

In the interest of not immediately running out of spell slots, he starts with low level spells and his single attack cantrip, which results in a lot of frozen creatures leaving a trail behind him, although a few of them have also been on the receiving end of a magic missile, leaving them just straight up dead.

Eventually he moves on to stronger shit: a large sphere of fire moves through the tunnels, directed by Taako, held still when he comes across any allies so that they can move around it, and he'll encourage people to stick with him, since he's used to fighting in groups. At some point, a little troupe of water elementals follow after him, attacking any of the creatures that get too close.

It starts to take it's toll, though, both the spellcasting and the attacks that the creatures manage to get in. His clothes are torn and bloody, and he leans a little more heavily on the Umbra Staff at some points, just needing to take a breather. Finally, he realizes it's worth spending two spell slots on fixing himself up, and waits until he comes across a large group of the lizards.

Sleep knocks them unconscious, and Taako kneels down in the middle of them, reaching out with a hand wreathed in shadow. When he touches the creatures, they awaken for a very brief struggle, before they just... die. Taako's wounds knit themselves back together, he sits up a little straighter, and moves on to the next one and the next one until they're all dead.

And then he gets back to work.]

Comments

[inlaid]

[Bryn isn't the sort of woman who any back home would consider to be Council Agent material. She's extremely skilled, to be sure, anyone in her former unit would attest to the fact that she earned her promotions, but it's her personality and appearance that lowers her in the estimation of others. She's short, barely over five feet, slight in build and as of recently doesn't really have a hair color that allows her to blend in. She's bright and she stands out.

More than that, there's something in her personality, a certain sort of sociability and laid-back attitude that doesn't lend itself well toward the mental picture most people have of the agents. Strong, fierce, sneaky and ruthless.

But what most people don't know about the Council Agents is that they're not an army of people who all look and act the same. They don't all have the same skills or strengths. They come from all parts of the country (and a select few from beyond) with a formidable collection of knowledge and abilities to intimidate any who would trouble the people of Askoupur, within its borders or past them.

Riverview isn't Bryn's country, not even her world, but she's understood from the start that she's also the only representative of it. Her actions count not only for herself but for the Council who rules her country, who claims her as their own. Even if it didn't, she's too much a product of her parents to sit idly by when a city of innocent people are in danger.

She's already joined onto the perimeter guard as part of the surveyors, and immediate volunteers to help clear out the tunnels when someone can finally point her in a direction where she can be useful. It takes her a little bit of time to get ready, but before long she's armed and geared up to go. Her ikenium bangle is with her of course, hanging off her right wrist and ready to slide into sword form at her will. Her only pistol is settled in its holster, strapped to her leg. She carries ammo on her person wherever she can stash it away, pre-loaded magazines of bullets made to fire out of an ikenium barrel, and a handful of supplies in a bag strapped to her back, but otherwise she travels light. Her coat is the only part of her gear that's armored, and only lightly so, but it means she can travel quickly, react nimbly around the creatures who may prove to be more wily than she expects.

In many ways they're less of a challenge than she'd worried, more animal than clever monster, but in others they're more. She hadn't reckoned how many of them they would be and what close quarters they would keep with one another. Despite managing fine on her own at the start, silver blade dispatching them quickly, she's glad to see a familiar face not long after the enters the tunnels.]

Taako, blighting keep, it's good to see you.

[Her eyes flick over his form at once, checking at once for wounds between keeping her eyes and ears open for any sound of approach, and finding the tears and blood draws her concern immediately.]

Are you alright?

[spellslots]

[It doesn't really surprise him to see Bryn here; she seems like the sort of person who has a lot of fun, but that doesn't negate an ability to kick ass (see: himself) and he doesn't know her well enough to like, worry. So he jut gives her a grin, immediately waving away her concern.]

All good, compadre.

[He hurts easily, it's just something he's going to have to live with for the rest of his life.]

What about you, keeping outta trouble?

[That's the opposite of the goal here.]

sob forever later

[inlaid]

[It's the opposite of what she's doing too. Using a quick motion she flicks the blade at her hand, spattering blood on the wall and concrete beneath her feet.]

Everything but. Thought I'd head down here, knock a bit of rust off.

[She rolls her shoulders back as if to emphasize her point, glancing down each end of the hallway they're in to keep an eye on the giant lizard situation.]

Mind some company?

[It's a friendly question, one that perhaps hides the fact that she wants to make sure Taako is okay on his own before considering parting ways again. Besides, having a person to watch her back isn't the worst thing in the world.]

its okay i forgive you

[spellslots]

[If he was into girls that would've been really hot.]

I will absolutely not turn that offer down.

[He grew up alone, but he's spent most of his adventuring life with Magnus and Merle, so working with someone else is more familiar in this sort of situation. Plus Bryn looks like she can handle herself pretty well.]

I'll even do my best not to catch you with any spells.

[He's joking.

Hopefully.]

[greatcleavage]

Hey, I thought you said your adventuring days were done!

[Roy, frankly, appears to be covered in wounds as he calls out to the elf from a perpendicular tunnel -- scratches on his face, blood-edged nicks in his armor, gouges and cuts on his hands. But every one is shallow. Some loss of hit points is inevitable, no matter how comparatively weak the monsters and how many of them a cleave can dispatch before they can even hope to engage him, but he's a fighter. He can, and does, handle it, and his voice still has energy and even a little good cheer in it. A wizard is always handy to have in the midst of a long battle, after all.]

[spellslots]

[I lied is on the tip of his tongue, because he doesn't feels like his owes anyone an explanation for why he's does... whatever the hell he chooses to do. But there's no real reason not to be honest.]

Do I look like I'm down here for the gold?

["Adventuring" and "helping out when the city has a lizard infestation" are two very different things, in his opinion.]

[greatcleavage]

No, you look like you're down here helping out where the city needs you.

[And pardon Roy's grin, but seeing others do basically decent things is always a delight and a pleasure. He slows to a halt for what seems like the first time in hours, putting one hand up against the wall of the tunnel to support himself while he catches his breath.]

How are you holding up?

[spellslots]

You can call it whatever the hell you wanna call it, pumpkin.

[He's sure as hell not admitting that he's being helpful.

He's just here for that sweet sweet XP.]

I'm doing super, totally don't regret this at all.

[Honestly he'd love a nap.]

[advanced]

[If there's one thing that Bucky knows how to do better than anything else, it's fight. He's not in any shape for it yet, but that's not going to stop him when he can finally be of some kind of help instead of hinderance.

Not that he's intending to let anyone know that he's helping out, he wants to stay on the fringes of the fight and snipe from a distance. It sort of feels familiar, different from the kills he made as the Soldier. Which is why he's wedged up high between some pipes in the tunnels, rifle pointed at the lizards to pick some of them off one at a time with silenced bullets.

Then Taako appears and he's about to slip away, find some other prey, before--

He drops down, landing on silent feet like a cat, and stares over at the other man.]

How did you do that?

[Because it sure as hell looks like he just killed something and used its life to heal his wounds, and that reeks of 'bad guy' to him.]

[spellslots]

[Oh boy, it's his absolute favorite person.

Taako stiffens, standing up straight as his grip tightens on his Umbra Staff, just in case Bucky decides that a repeat performance of their last meeting is needed.]

Magic, pumpkin. Did you miss the part where I'm a wizard?

[He doesn't like this particular spell, it feels kind of gross and he's not really proud of resorting to it (or being caught doing it), but it's better than dying.]

[advanced]

I didn't miss it.

[He keeps a loose stance, not giving any indication that he's still wearing the splint beneath his pants, looking healed and ready to fight if necessary.]

But I did miss the part where you can take the life of something else to heal yourself.

[spellslots]

So sorry, my man, I didn't realize I was supposed to hand over my spell book for you to have a read!

[There's a lot of sarcasm in that.

He's feeling extra prickly and defensive, mostly just because he doesn't trust Bucky at all, even less so when Steve isn't around.

Also, he only has a limited time on both the Sleep spell and Vampire Touch, so he's just going to... move on to the next lizard thing, though he doesn't take his eyes off Bucky.]

[arsebiscuit]

Yeah, that ain't scary shite.

[Sera isn't even there for the life draining. She's just there for the tiny army of happy water creatures murdering their way through life. Her bow is in hand as she slips out of the shadows (level who knows thief, man), arrow in place but not pulled taut. The elf might be a mage, but he was fun enough to go for noodle eating nonsense. She'll write him a pass. For now.

Still, she can't help raising her eyebrows and nodding at the elementals.]

Demons?

[spellslots]

[It's his second best friend after Bucky.

Except not really. He likes Sera a lot more than he likes Bucky, despite the demon accusations, because at least Sera didn't throw him into a wall.]

Elementals.

[They don't pay Sera any attention, which means Taako has apparently decided she's not a hostile.]

[arsebiscuit]

Right.

[Magic shit. Whatever. She looks around the tunnels for a moment, and half in shadows she is he might notice her eyes reflect back like a cats would in the low light. Because that's high fantasy for you.]

How's going solo working for you, eh? 'Cause it's pretty shit from where I'm lurking.

[spellslots]

[One of the lizards skitters out from a side tunnel and an elemental launches at it; Taako half-watches the resulting scuffle and half pays attention to Sera.]

Pretty shit about covers it, honestly. [Wizards aren't designed to fight alone.] If you stop with the demon shit you can stick around for a while.

[Such a kind offer.]

[somnioergosum]

[Quiet as Ronan can be, he's not sure if he's got any capability of sneaking up on this guy. Not that it matters, since not only is he out of breath from his own fighting but he uses the air he has left to let out a low whistle.]

Damn. You can do all that and can't scry into another plane?

[Or whatever it is he does with a magic jar.

Ronan runs his fingers over his scratched knuckles. His own style of fighting is far less elegant and after that display seems a lot less unneeded. But he needs to hit something anyway.]

Hope there's more where that came from. Just save some mosters for me.

[spellslots]

[Astral projection is a level nine spell, Ronan, let him live.

But he decides not to get into that right now.]

There's hundreds of these shits down here.

[So Ronan doesn't have to worry about missing his chance to beat up some more lizards. Though Taako does cast a brief glance at those knuckles.]

Tell me you're not just punching them?

[He might be judging a little.]

[somnioergosum]

Yeah but if you summon me a staff or kick ass sword I won't complain too much.

["Too much" because those are less satisfying than punching. Though there was a step or two in between but things happened. Ronan's bat broke and he's got a thing against tire irons and the like. Anyway, he's got more training and experience with his favorite weapon of all: his own body.]

We don't all have magic powers.

[Not that he means to include himself in that statement but hey, who's going to tell on him?

Ronan lifts one fist He spreads out his fingers, which produce a barely audible yet satisfying crack.]

Why? Too bloody for you?

[signifies]

[ Clark has the same idea about practice. Some of these tunnels he avoids completely. The monsters are too big and he doesn't know how to fight in a confined space.

He'd been planning to go through these tunnels instead when he spots the frozen and dead lizards. Clark hovers above the ground, following the trail back to Taako. ]

Are you all right?

[ Taako's never met him wearing the red-and-blue. No time like the present. ]

[spellslots]

[There's a lot to take in here, but Taako's immediate response is to clap his hands together in delight.]

I love this! I don't get it, but I love it!

[Superheroes aren't a thing he doesn't understand the need for a fancy spandex outfit, but that isn't going to stop him from appreciating it.]

[signifies]

[ Taako had warned him he wasn't predictable.

Clark's not less startled by his reaction, though. ]

Pardon?

[spellslots]

[from here.]

You're smarter than you look, my man.

[Not that Illya really looks one way or another, from Taako's perspective, but he's not going to let that get in the way of being a bit of a shit.

Still, he swings his umbrella up so it's resting on his shoulder and starts forward, not at all bothered by the low light in the tunnels.]

As much as I usually love having someone play shield, you should maybe stick behind me for this shit.

[It's alright when he's with people who know how his magic works, and who are able to stay out of the way, but for someone new to the whole process it's probably best that Taako's in front.]

[nikolaievich]

[Illya actually frowns and looks rather offended at that, because trust Illya to take the teasing judgement of a stranger personally.]

I am smart. [And he proves it by actually listening to the advice even though he would rather not hide behind anyone, at all. He doesn’t know this kind of magic so in this case it’s better to stay behind and learn.]

Impress me. Or try, at least.

[spellslots]

[Taako just grins at the assurance that Illya is smart, not too bothered if he took offence or not since he didn't really mean it, and anyway, they've got more important things to worry about.][The gods grant him good timing to be a show off (although not too much, he's only using a level 3 spell), as they round a corner to a dozen or so lizards skittering down the tunnel.

Taako points his umbrella towards them and a bolt of lightning shoots out, arcing across each of the lizards, some of them actually catching a little bit on fire, most of the just kind of, dying.

Who wants some well-cooked lizard?]