Ask Event Episode I: The Island

[Ora Trel]

'Okay, we have... a VP, a mercenary, a... slaver puncher, a queen, and a- '

"W- Wait! Tiger Lily!" It was no use, but Ora tried anyways to get the Cathar woman to wait as she called out after her, arm outstretched. "There could be- !" "...wild...animals...' The Nautolan woman stared after where Tiger Lily had disappeared into the brush, wondering what in the world was going on in that head of hers. 'No, forget her.' Ora promptly forgot about whatever she had said and turned back to the others.

She turned back just in time for Electra to begin speaking to her. The Nautolan's head tilted slightly to the side as the woman mentioned her being 'good with water', causing the tendrils on her shoulder to slip off and fall to the left. "Desalinate the water?" she repeated, confusion lacing the tone of her voice. "Desalinating it wouldn't get rid of the bacteria. I don't see the point," she continued, completely blanking on the fact that as a Nautolan saltwater was palatable for her, but not then.

In the midst of the conversation, Ora suddenly felt quite hot, and the ground beneath them rumbled as something far off into the forest shattered. A shriek and a roar followed, causing Ora quite the fright. The Nautolan flinched with her entire body, nearly jumping clean off the ground as her hands shot to her arms. Quiet and the peaceful lapping of waves returned, but the Coruscanti native was shook.

"I'll go too," Ora spoke up, interrupting Electra halfway through her words. They could stay on the beach all they wanted where they'd be nice and exposed to the sun and anyone who wanted to creep up on them while they waited on their rescuers. "We can look for some kind of shelter!" she chirped to @Peedunkee, trying to stay positive while she intently kept her eyes on his. 'Why is he naked.' Did she miss something?

Ora would start toward the treeline, wishing she had a weapon, after gesturing for the blue-skinned alien to follow her. Once they were in the treeline, she would sigh greatly as the heat of the sun was finally off her and her fuzzy soaked pajamas. She turned to Peedunkee and admitted her real plans.

"I think we should find some sort of shelter before we go looking for big scary noises," she said. "What do you think?"

If someone like the Vice President of the ISC and the Queen of- 'Junction? Jedha? Juv- whatever.' -had been captured, Ora didn't feel all too good about a rescue just showing up on the beach. Hell, whoever grabbed her had even gotten past Daisy! 'I hope she's okay...'

"Oh! You said you were a slaver puncher right?" she asked, turning to look at him with a sparkle of admiration in her red eyes. "That's so cool and brave of you! Do you know like, martial arts? I've always been too clumsy for stuff like that." The Nautolan was blissfully unaware that she'd misheard the little naked man.

"I- " Before she could get to what she wanted to say, the Nautolan's bare foot caught a sneaky root and she tripped forward onto her face.

tl;dr - Ora leaves Electra, Galek, and Lissa alone on the beach to go into the forest with Peedunkee. She wants to find some sort of shelter before they go running off after a mysterious and scary roar.

@Killa Ree @LadyRen @Altaris @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98

 

[Ezra Thorne]

Ezra stared at the outline of the creature that was gazing at him. A chill ran down his spine and he took a step back, deciding that it wasn’t something he wanted to mess with. He felt a lot more confident with the Force, but in its absence, he felt a tremendous sense of dread. There was a weakness he couldn’t quite cope with, and it felt as if every limb was heavier, his thoughts were jumbled, and he felt as if he lost a bunch of his senses. Was this what it felt like to be a non Force sensitive? This was awful!

The sensation of drowning made him drop to the ground, and he lost all sight of what was happening. By the time he came to, he was blinking up at the green guy and cat lady. Ezra bolted to his feet, clutching his throat. He was shaken from the experience, traumatic memories of when he fell overboard while sailing suddenly flooding his mind. The sensation of drowning impacted him far worse than it would others. His entire body was trembling, and he said nothing for a moment.

Ezra jumped a little when a mushroom started talking. Everything inside his head told him to run, but he began to realize there was no real way out the way they came. He suspiciously eyed the bizarre creature that had no business talking to him. Thankfully, he had close friends that always approached situations differently. He wondered what Dash would do - probably actually still be on the beach talking to people. Ferrin would punt the creature before it could open its mouth. Leon? Ah, Leon. Leon would make friends with it. @Zay

The part Sephi sighed and crouched down to be closer to eye level with the mushroom child thing, “Hello there. I'm Ezra. What can I do to enlist your help?” He asked with the most polite tone he could muster, cutting right through the pointless questions around how they got here, which direction to go and whatnot.

@Logan @Wit @Killa Ree

 

[Kaladin]

Though unaware of whatever Ezra had experienced in the moment before he had caught up, Kal could see that he was shaken. And he got it, this whole situation was a crazy mess. Waking up Force knew where, with no idea how they got there, unable to use the Force, having a magical creature out of some old school fairy tail speak in their head and brand them, it would all have been too much anyone. And Kal would likely have been in a similar situation to Ezra if not for the simple fact that Ezra running off after the creature and Kal trying to keep up with him had provided an ideal distraction.

"Easy friend," he murmured softly as Ezra got to his feet, trying to calm the other Jedi. But before he could say much more they were interrupted by a voice from the shrubbery. Thankfully the arrival of the little creature pushed away any worries Kal might have had about more voices in his head, and the sight of him seemed harmless enough, specially compared to the cat-girl from earlier.

As Ezra greeted the creature, Kal circled around them, getting a better look at the creature, and noticing the bag of, among other things, berries. His stomach grumbled loudly, as if on cue.

"Sorry." He said through a sheepish smile, his apology immediately punctuated by another grumble.

"You wouldn't happen to have some food on ya, would you?"

@Logan @Sreeya @Killa Ree

 

[Lissa Blackhand]

Well, things were getting off to a good start.

Three of them already gone, sprinted into the forest, one who obviously doesn't realize the gravity of her situation, and one who doesn't even speak Basic...though admittedly she didn't have a problem with that last one.
"Oid uba teow nop Nar Shadda?" She asked, nodding toward the blue one (@Peedunkee). "Uta-sha accent namiliar jeesh." At least if she could communicate with the one person not knowing basic, they'd stand a better chance, though that would mean staying by his side...sigh. The queen piped up, actually coming up with a decent idea - Lissa was surprised she had it in her - though it was difficult to execute at the moment. Would survival even be a priority right now over exploration? The dryness in her mouth quickly reminded her that the answer was yes.

She was about to start looking for some kind of container when a thunderous crack echoed through the area, setting her hairs on end. Lissa's gaze snapped back to the forest, the sudden shriek making her shirk a little before the low growl filled her with that old familiar feeling - dread. What the kark was th- oh hey!! No no no! Don't go into the- aaaand they're going into the jungle too, great. Lissa looked back at the queen as she started to follow the Nautolan and the Blue one. "Your highness, with respect, I doubt any rescue party knows any of our locations right now, if they could kidnap you while surrounded by guards, they could logically keep you hidden too. I'd recommend following us so you're not alone." She gestured toward the small group before heading on after them.

One of them had literally screamed 'stay on the beach' and here they all were running headfirst into the danger...this could only end well.

Lissa caught up as the Nautol- Ora was talking about finding shelter. "Much as I'm curious about what made that noise, I agree. Water, shelter, find the others, though not necessarily in that ord-oh!" She was abruptly cut off when Ora had an unexpected appointment with the ground, cringing a little at the sound of the impact. She walked over and offered a hand. "You OK?" She asked, looking at the blue...Pazaakly. "Watah. Sheltah. Nind bu others"

@Pazaakly @lizziie @Altaris

 

[Galek Ordalos]

Galek paused for an especially long moment, glancing up and down at Electra. He couldn’t help the way that his nose crinkled with disapproval - either with her statement, wardrobe or the simple fact he needed to tolerate her presence in the beach. The prince was uncomfortable, alone, Livi was unavailable and someone had mistook him for a servant.

“It looks cheap.” He said with unimpressed side eye. “Or perhaps that is just the woman modeling it.”

Galek crossed his arms, listening to the numerous different ideas that were tossed around the beach. The Prince was a trained politician and negotiator - and his time as a provincial administrator on Indupar had imparted some knowledge of agriculture. But he hadn’t the slightest clue what to do in a survival situation, let alone how to desalinate the water. They all founded like awful ideas and Galek wasn’t having a good time.

His eyes narrowed somewhat when Electra pronounced her titles. Juvexia? She was Tionese? Suddenly her attire made sense. The Tion Cluster was about as remote and antiquated as anything that far into the Outer Rim - and Galek was convinced the woman was about to suggest banging rocks together as a solution.

It wasn’t until he heard that roar - echoing across the jungle - that the fear truly flashed across Galek’s face. He stood, frozen as a statue - as those around him either fled into the jungle or camped out on the beach. As much as he hated the idea of moving in the direction of the noises, a thought quickly crossed his mind.

What happened if the source of that sound sniffed them out on the beach? Galek was dashing and intelligent but he wasn’t a fighter. His gaze briefly flicked towards the Queen amongst them.

Fuck that.

Figuring that his best prospects at protection were up ahead, Galek turned on a heel and began marching to the forest - ignoring Electra and following after Ora. Along the way, Galek casually snagged some berries from a bush and tucked them into his pocket. He wasn’t quite peckish yet, but they’d come in handy later.

Unfortunately, this meant that Galek wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings. He didn’t see where Ora had fallen, or where Lissa had crouched down to help her. This meant that the Induparan walked right into both women - accidentally kicking purple-hair before tripping forward. The result would likely be the them of them piled on top of each other. All of them felled by a single root,

Galek glanced down at that two women who he’d tripped over. “Ugh.”

 

[Peedunkee]

Peedunkee was eager to make himself useful and gave a hearty salute to the old lady (@LadyRen) and before he even had time to think of an ingenious way of completing his mission he already had a volunteer to aid him. This day just kept getting better. New, exciting locales? People to be in charge of?? It was enough to make an Aloxian drunk with power. Granted he wasn’t really in charge and couldn’t give comprehensible orders anyways but the thought alone made him happy. When Ora (@lizziie) asked him what he thought he simply repeated “Shelter!” and hissed while baring his teeth. He was so ready to hunt down whatever kind of animal a shelter was.

He was also very surprised to hear someone speak with the words coming out of their face actually making sense. He quickly turned heel towards Lissa (@Panda Hermit 98) and she probably regretted doing so soon after <“Yes!! I’m from Nar Shaddaa! My name’s Boy. Wait technically I’m from some place called Zav Alox but I was never really there cuz I got sold as a baby to kill stuff but it wasn’t too bad because y’know it’s hard to remember stuff when you’re a baby but now I’m fully grown and still super strong trust me I can still pulp a punk and good as when I was this big”> He said, signaling to the waist of his already short stature.

He marched with Ora “in tow” and paid little mind to his surroundings. He’d seen forests before, but deal. He was already looking forward to cooking whatever shelter they caught back on the beach. Nothing tastes as good as when you break its neck yourself. Unfortunately with her the language barrier was still present so he had to do his best. “Peedunkee punch all arts! Good slave. Free now. Punch master.”

He was distracted momentarily by the arrival of Lissa, which meant he was looking back at her and not at Ora who face planted soon after. Realizing she’d taken a spill he quickly tried to pull her back up on her feet to make sure he was okay. No one had ever cared for him so he had at least some practice in first aid from all the times he’d patched himself up. In this case though where he didn’t even have clothes it was safe to assume he didn’t have much to treat injuries with. But as an act of solidarity he made sure Ora saw him punch the root that tripped her.

Turning back to Lissa who seemed to be giving inane orders he replied <“The water’s back that way!”> Pointing towards the beach. <“And the people are over there too. You’re going the wrong way if that’s what you’re looking for.”> It’s a shame, it appeared he would need to be the brains and the brawn of the group.
[/abox]

@Logan

 

[Syrina Ro'shyn]

Her eyes bugged out almost comically wide at the appearance of a tiny mushroom man. When she saw one of the guys (@Sreeya) collapsed on the ground, she would have asked he was okay, but... he seemed fine a moment later? If not a little shaken. Green Machine was already there to help before she could, so she simply kept silent, greenish eyes taking in the odd creature's appearance a moment later as if it was nothing unusual.

What is it about this place that gives me such heebie jeebies?

"Hi," was her automatic response to the small fun-guy, giving him a little wave. Still, his words were oddly ominous, and she found some of the hairs on the nape of her neck bristle.

To find the way, huh...

Her gaze panned over the forest surrounding them, carefully taking note of which direction her footprints came from in the soft dirt, then attempted to glance up at where the sun might be in the sky, but there was too much plant life in the way.

To piggy-back off of Tall, Dark-Haired and Handsome and Green Machine's questions, she asked one of her own, though it was quieter, more contemplative as her gaze returned to the mushroom guy.

"And once we find the way...?"

@Logan @Wit @Sreeya

 

[The Storyteller]

Into the Woods

It didn't take long for those on the beach to abandon their sandy safe haven for the dangerous unknown of the forest, leaving behind Electra, Champion of Desalination - unless the royal decided to follow, that is.

As Ora and the others pressed further into the trees, they would be met with little in terms of danger.. at first. Though, what the pink Nautolan thought was just a pesky root that caused her to fall flat on her face would swiftly reveal itself to be something far more sinister.

Before she could get herself back up, the root Ora tripped over would suddenly and viciously wrap itself around her ankle and begin working its way up her leg. Tiny, sharp thorns would slice at her skin as the root started to pull itself taught and before she knew it, lift her up into the air and dangle her there like a rabbit caught in a lasso trap¹.

Unfortunately for Galek, he too would suffer from his inability to watch where he was going². As the vice president lay splayed out on the ground, vines would wrap around his torso. Thorns would tear into his clothes as the vines tightened, though he wouldn't get raised into the air like his friend Ora.

Instead, the vines would start trying to drag the poor man underground, a fate far worse than death. Though, appropriate for a politician depending on who you asked.

The shambling sound of twigs and leaves would begin to stir from the undergrowth as a creature - the clear owner of the vines that currently strung up Ora and Galek - emerged from its hiding place.

For now, Lissa and Peedunkee could only watch in horror as the plant monster snapped its leavy, thorn filled mouth - the ground starting to shift under their feet.

- - -​

Do You Know the Mushroom Man?

The mushroom man didn't answer anyone's questions right away, though he found each of them curious in their own way. He had thought of them as a team but each had such different priorities. One so very direct, another with such ambiguity and the third.. well, he was just hungry.

And the mushroom man could definitely understand that feeling, more than all of the rest.

All your questions can be answered, if that is what you want. He said with a knowing chuckle, like a parent hearing a funny question from their child. But once you learn your answers, you can never unlearn them.

Tilting his head up to look at Kalladin, the mushroom man kept his same chibi smile before sliding his tiny pack off his back and retrieving a spring of berries.

Of course I do my viridescent friend, He said, taking the spring and holding it out towards Kalladin. You need only take it.

Whether or not Kalladin chose to take the berry spring or not, the mushroom man would move on, turning his somewhat airy attention back to Ezra.

My help for yours, hm? He said cryptically, his smile never faltering, his tone never changing. A tylwyth deal is unbreakable, dear Ezra. It is wise to take it into great consideration before you decide.

If the group decided to ignore the musings of the sentient fungus, they would find little insistence from the mushroom man himself. It was not his prerogative to force people to do anything. No, much the opposite in fact. A rule to live by for all such creatures in the island woods.

Still, the footprints that Syrina had hoped to rely on to find her way back would no longer be there should she look again, simply vanished as if they'd never been left at all.

For not all creatures were bound to such rules, especially not the forest.

Do not dally for long, he said, starting to walk deeper into wood.

Dear Ezra has seen the reason why.

¹Dice result of 9 fails the check.
²Dice result of 6 fails the check

@lizziie @Sreeya @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Wit @Killa Ree

 

[Electra Juvexia]

Wow. She couldn't help but to chuckle at the overly catty prince for his cheap insult. Pff. She didn't even bother putting up with such a peasant that claimed to be a Prince or Vice whatever of this ISC. He was no King. Does she didn't care. The Nautolan didn't prove herself either and suddenly, they all wanted to move into the forest, thus towards the screech and roar!

"Have you lost your mind?!" she screeched, shaking her head. "You can't just enter...something really angry dwells inside and you want to go in there you fools?!", she kept shouting after them, but they just left.

"Ugh...idiots" she muttered under her breath as she clenched her firsts and walked off, walking along the forest edge, keeping an eye on the entry they had used but looking for something useful on her way.

She was looking for anything that could be useful, but the first thing she grabbed was a branch that had fallen off as a makeshift weapon for all cases, not intending to follow these idiots inside and waiting for her people instead, but after the first few minutes she already didn't like this loneliness.

Electra was rarely ever alone as she always called someone into her Chambers if she was feeling this way, yet here, she was all alone and that made her reconsider her choice. "Gods be good" she muttered, momentarily as she swallowed her pride and slipped inside.

@Logan @lizziie @Pazaakly @Wit @Sreeya @Altaris @Panda Hermit 98 @Killa Ree

 

[Peedunkee]

Peedunkee watched for a moment, paralyzed by confusion when the vine began moving in a very non-vine like way. Maybe he just hadn't seen enough vines yet to know the different kinds. By any stretch this seemed to be an incredibly mean take on the classic woods variety. Finally jumping into action he decided to put his one good skill to use and punched anything nearby. If the woods were attacking he'd attack the woods.

He punched not just the trees, but the bushes and leaves too! No part of mother nature was spared from his flurry of fists. Unfortunately he didn't seem to be making any progress seeing as Ora (@lizziie) was still suspended in the air. Leaping with arms outstretched he tried to reach her but to no avail. He was far too short and vertical jump too underdeveloped to have a chance. But then he had an idea.

Turning to Lissa (@Panda Hermit 98) he said <"Let me get up on your shoulders and between your pushing and my jumping we can get her!"> If she went along with it he'd mount her shoulders and do his best to get a good bounce off them towards Ora, aiming for her dangling arms. With his weight and momentum he hoped to pull her from the grasp of the vines, unaware of the thorns that would definitely make such a maneuver painful.

If Lissa had a different strategy in mind he'd go along with her idea, or simply continue to assault the nearby vegetation and soil to try and get the forest to unhand his walking buddy.

@Logan

 

[Ora Trel]

"Ow..." Ora slowly lifted her face from the ground, dirt smudged along the side of the cheek that had taken the brunt of her clumsiness. She looked up to Lissa — who had followed her and Peedunkee into the forest — as she offered a hand and asked if she was okay. She was about to answer when she felt someone's foot kick into her, and then the weight of a full grown ass man pile on top of her.

"Ow! Hey- !" Before she could finish her sentence, she felt the root beneath her move. The Nautolan didn't react remotely quick enough — she couldn't with Galek's heavy ass on top of her — to scramble out of the way before thorned vines encircled her leg and abruptly dragged her backward.

"Ahh! Help!" Ora screamed as she was whipped up into the air and held hanging there like a worm on a hook. She scrambled to grab the bottom of her fluffy shark hoodie, pulling it quickly upward toward her stomach so that there remained only one person flashing their privates to the world. Heat turned the Nautolan's face bright crimson, and her emotions were split between embarrassment, panic, and pain.

"What the fuck is that?" A giant plant? "Ow ow ow ow- " The thorns dug into her skin threw her fluffy pants, though they at least saved her from the rough texture of the vine.

"No don't!" She yelled down to the little blue guy as he jumped and tried to grab her. "The thorns! Cut me - ow! - cut me down!" It would be easiest for them to grab one of her head trendrils, but damn would that hurt.

Curling forward with a tightened core, Ora attempted to curl up and reach out with her free hand to grab the vine and try and pull her face closer to it. If it was the woodier sort, she would forgo any nibbing, but if it was softer the Nautolan would open her mouth wide and attempt to chomp right into the plant flesh. She tried to avoid thorns while doing this. Ora didn't have any weapons, but Nautolan teeth were sharp.

If it was too woody to bite, she would just attempt to throw her weight up further, hoping the change of weight placement might force the plant to lower her a bit.

tl;dr - Ora freaks out, tries to bite plant or just force the vine down.

@Logan

 

[Ezra Thorne]

Ezra first waited to see what Kalladin (@Wit) did with the snacks offered by the mushroom. If he ate them and didn’t drop dead, Ezra was more inclined to make some kind of deal. He may have been a Jedi, but it wasn’t his job to babysit grown adults. He wasn’t that kind of Jedi. The Thorne turned to regard the creature, recalling what he saw past the woods.

“There’s something out there,” He confirmed to the others, “Something powerful. Stronger than we can fight,” He explained, “We are entirely on our own, so we have to work with the resources we have.”

Ezra turned back to the mushroom man, “You shake on a deal after you hear both sides. Tell me what I have to do for you before I have to agree to it,” He said flatly. He was desperate, but he was also cautious.

He could hear some commotion in the far distance in the direction of the beach, but he wasn’t the type to rush towards what sounded suspicious. As a result, he stayed put, prioritizing on finding a way out. Before he was interrupted by the sensation of drowning, he spotted the symbol on his hand on a tree. He took a moment to inspect it closer, trying to glean any clues that might help.

@Logan @Killa Ree

 

[Syrina Ro'shyn]

Smug little...

She could feel as her teeth bared in a grin partly out of frustration as the mushroom man seemed... a little condescending to their current predicament. Ears flicked slightly back, she let out a slow breath, willing to calm herself a little more before answering anything.

But when Tall, Dark-Haired and Handsome mentioned something else out there, she found her gaze panning up to look at the surrounding forest slowly, feeling her hands flex and her claws begin to lengthen ever so slightly. She wasn't a Force user, but she had grown up defending her own and carving her own path in life by less... honorable means.

So the possibility of her life being on the line was definitely not something she wanted to hear. But something else caught her eye, something that pitted her stomach.

Their footsteps were gone.

"What did you see?" She asked the first guy... he had a name, hadn't he? Ezra? The name vaguely rang a few bells, but right now it was almost getting too hot for leggings, and she itched to ditch the shirt already.

Man, she hated jungles.

@Sreeya @Wit @Logan

 

[Kaladin]

Kaladin accepted the berries from the diminutive figure, and while his stomach egged him on to pop the lot of them into his mouth, a part of his mind remembered a few instances of eating some questionable berries as a padawan. A song started playing in his head, leaving him wondering if he would end up in a similar situation or worse. Being the trusting person that he was, he was inclined to pluck a berry from the sprig and give it a try, but the mushroom continued talking to Ezra and started talking about deals, and mentioned something called the tylwyth.

Noticing Ezra's eyes on him, he would give the other Jedi a non-committal shrug as he popped berry into his mouth. "Doesn't taste too bad." But he didn't eat any more, curious about what Ezra had to say and this deal that the mushroom man had mentioned. If what Ezra was saying was true then he was right about having to work with what they had, and working together. So whatever choice he made, Kal would follow.

So while the Cathar asked Ezra for more details, and Ezra asked the mushroom about the deal, Kal followed up with a question of his own. "You mentioned the tylwyth, is that what you are? We aren't from here, there are things we ought to know that we might not."

@Logan @Sreeya @Killa Ree

 

[Lissa Blackhand]

Lissa didn't even realize what she was doing as she did it, her body simply reacting on reflex alone. She had turned to see the Vice President about to fall and knock her into Ora, which he did, leaving her in the dirt grunting, annoyed to say the least. Then it felt as if the ground started to shift beneath her, the dirt and grass shifting and rising like something was burrowing beneath her. Next thing she knew, she was rolling out of the way of whatever had snagged Ora and the Vice President, jumping back to her feet and watching as the pair were lifted into the air.

The creature before her, some kind of giant plant, could have been what made the noise, but she couldn't think about that right now, have to act before Ora gets badly hurt. She looked at the Nautolan, seeing blood trickle from her legs and the thorns this thing had along it's stalk. She turned and grabbed a branch from a nearby tree, bringing her metal arm down on it to try and splinter a large jagged sharp piece from it. Assuming she succeeded, she would head toward the plant, specifically the stalk holding Ora, and plunge the piece of wood into it, using the wound to try and rip the stalk from the plant, thereby freeing Ora.

<"Attack the stalks!! Burn them, punch them, stab them! Whatever!"> She called out to Peedunkee, hoping he could do something similar for Galek.

 

[Galek Ordalos]

Galek was - quite frankly - not having a good time. In the process of landing on top of Ora, the Vice President managed to kick an uncomfortable amount of mud into his custom-made shoes, squeezing between his toes as he proceeded to eat shit. He could smell fish and promptly looked down at the Nautolan, barely masking his irritation with the entire situation.

“Would you both kindly get—“ The Prince was interrupted by the roots that suddenly coiled around his torso, slicing into his Kurta and nicking the flesh underneath. “WHAT?! Get off of me!” He shrieked, rapidly hitting the vines that grabbed at him. His legs kicked at nothing in particular, effectively tantruming into the dirt while the flora attempted to swallow him whole.

“NO! NO, BAD!”

At some point, the Prince a managed to look over - watching as both the little blue man and Lissa attempted to cut down Ora. Didn’t they have priorities?

“HELP ME FIRST!” He shrieked. From their perspective, the request likely was due to his own condition being slightly more dire than the woman being hoisted in the air. In reality, it was entirely because Galek considered himself the more important victim.

 

[The Storyteller]

Into the Woods

As Electra treaded along the treeline in search of anything useful, she would at first be disappointed in her findings: absolutely nothing. Just like where they'd all woken up, the sand here near the forest's edge was entirely clear and bereft of anything that even looked like a potential tool.

That was, of course, until a nearby mound of sand shifted and started.. moving?

From beneath the sands emerged a crab larger than any Electra had likely ever seen. Maybe three feet tall and easily just as wide, it scuttled past her, its eyestalks shifting and turning to regard her.

With what almost seemed like a bow in reverence to her station - doing its best to prevent the little pirate's hat atop ts head from falling - the crab clicked its one good claw as if to say "Pleasure to meet you," before continuing its scuttling towards the water.

In the space the crab had vacated, Electra would see a small wooden chest. If she were to approach it and flip open its lid, the Queen would find several items, though their true purpose wouldn't be totally obvious at first.

The chest contained a solid iron rod, maybe six inches long, with small, intricate runes carved into it. There was also a glass phial filled with some sort of white crystals, stoppered with a cork. Finally, a necklace of yellow flowers daisy chained together.

The Queen could take all of none of these items along with her, though her intuition would lean to the former rather than the latter. As she slipped into the forest, the sounds of her compatriots and their battle would be obvious to her, and she would know that they hadn't made it particularly far. Whether she wanted to rush to their aid or not, well, that was entirely up to her.

--

Meanwhile, the others were dealing with their own set of problems. Though, things were going slightly better for Ora than they were for Galek.

The combination of sharp Nautolan teeth and the improvised spear from Lissa was enough to relinquish Ora from the vine's grip, causing the pink woman to drop to the ground with a heavy thud. Luckily the loam beneath them wasn't particularly hard, so injuries would most likely be to ego than anything else.

Galek, on the other hand, was in much more dire circumstance. With everyone focusing on Ora - and who could blame them, she was both cuter and infinitely less insufferable - the Vice President would find himself currently waist deep in the ground as the vines continued to pull him down.

There was still time to save him, of course, but the would-be saviors would need to make a very quick decision. Would they try to pull him out first? Or would they try to fight the plant monster that was now coming right for them, in hopes they could defeat it before it put Galek in an earthy grave?

Regardless of their choice, a curious gaze watched the group as they struggled, hidden on a high branch in the forest canopy. A knocked arrow primed, though not aimed, could potentially help them but it was too soon to intervene.

The group fighting the monster had yet to prove they deserved to be rescued.

- - -​

Do You Know the Mushroom Man?

As Ezra inspected the tree, he would feel a slight warming on the palm of his hand. The Jedi would feel a strange compulsion to press his palm onto the tree, and if he did so, he would notice something strange when he removed it.

The symbol on his hand had turned slightly so that the central twig was now aimed a different way than it had before. He was a smart boy, perhaps smarter than either of the two that gathered with him, and his brain would tell him that he now knew which direction they should go.

As luck would have it, it was the same direction they were heading in now. Whether that remained true, well, that was hard to say.

The single berry that Kaladin popped into his mouth would quite possibly be the greatest thing he'd ever tasted. Despite being so small, it would burst in his mouth with more flavor and juiciness than he would have thought physically possible. It sated his hunger completely and fully.

What do you mean by shake, dear Ezra? The mushroom asked, an eyebrow raised in curiosity. Like this?

The mushroom man would shake his entire little body like a dog who'd just gotten out of a pool, before laughing jovially at his own tomfoolery.

What I need from you is very simple, the Mushroom Man said as he continued to lead the three deeper into the wood, away from the sounds of their friends and their fight. I need you to kill the Beast.

Without any further elaboration, the Mushroom Man turned to Kaladin, leaving Ezra to contemplate the lack of details, a very amused look on his face.

A tylwyth is as a tylwyth does, my green friend. He said with a chuckle. Yes, you are from somewhere else. Far, I take it? No way to go back, no clue how you arrived. Not the first, that much is true. Perhaps the last if the girl's wish does come through.

Turning his attention back to Ezra, the Mushroom Man smiled knowingly at the Jedi.

There are ways for you to return where you came from, but none of them come without cost. What are you willing to pay for freedom? He let his question hang for a moment, giving the group time to figure that one out for themselves.

After what seemed like a sufficient time, the Mushroom Man would speak again.

Do we have a deal?

@lizziie @Sreeya @Pazaakly @Panda Hermit 98 @LadyRen @Altaris @Wit @Killa Ree

 

[Ezra Thorne]

Ezra thought he was hallucinating when he saw the symbol on his hand change before his very eyes. However, nothing made sense here. He still couldn’t use the Force, and yet unnatural things were happening. The creature he saw earlier still sent a chill down his spine. He already knew what the mushroom man would say before he did - that they would have to confront the monster. And they would have to do it without the Force and in their pajamas.

“We have a deal,” He said with a sigh, not seeing too many other options. Ezra didn’t delay further, watching as the tiny creature started to walk ahead of them. This was going to take forever. He turned to look at Green Guy (@Wit), “Can you carry him? We’ll cover more ground that way,” He said to the Mirialan. After all, he did mooch some snacks off the mushroom, the least he could do was provide first class transport.

“This way,” He said as he began to walk in the direction of the arrow on his skin. He was always aware of his surroundings, looking for more symbols in the trees. He had a feeling if he touched any of them, they would update him on directions. Despite how innocent the mushroom appeared, Ezra didn’t entirely trust him. He had a feeling the symbols would lead them where they needed, but perhaps the mushroom would be instrumental in defeating the beast.

“Who came here before us and what happened to them?” Ezra asked the mushroom, recalling when he remarked they weren’t the first.

@Logan

 

[Ora Trel]

"Oof-" Ora hit the ground straight on, and though it wasn't particularly hard, it still nearly knocked the breath out of her. She was about to spend a few moments wallowing in pain from the bloodied cuts on her leg, but wasn't there someone else the plant had grabbed too?

The Nautolan jumped up onto her feet and took several steps back as she l looked around for the source of the voice she'd heard shrieking earlier alongside her own panicked yells. Her crimson eyes landed on Galek as he was drug further back, but before she rushed to his aid, she remembered exactly what he'd said.

'Help me first!' Ora's face tensed up into a look of disgust as she recalled his words, her gaze settling upon him as he struggled with the thorny vine that intended to drag him down to the pits of politician hell. From her point of view, having been dangling upside down so close to the plant and its mouthful of teeth, his insistence that he should be helped first was nothing but pure selfishness.

Still, Ora wasn't exactly the type to just let someone be dragged off by a giant presumably-carnivorous plant, so after a momentarily wrestling with her morals she hurried forward to try and grab the man wherever she could. "Grab my hand!" she called out, falling to her knees and reaching out her left while her right gripped around an exposed root from a nearby tree.

Unfortunately, Ora was not very strong. The most she could do was keep him from being dragged down any further, and she was unlikely to be able to pull him free herself.

"Keep hitting the plant thing!" she called out to the others through gritted teeth as she tried not to let go of whatever part of Galek she'd grabbed onto. Feeling her foot slipping, she dug her heels into the forest soil, wincing as the straining of her calf muscle caused the cuts on her leg to sting.

tl;dr - Ora decides to be a decent person and tries to help Galek.

@Logan @Panda Hermit 98 @Pazaakly @Altaris

 

[Electra Juvexia]

As Electra met the crab, she froze up. This thing was gigantic!! Perhaps...tasty as well, but without anyone to hunt, skin and cook it, she wouldn't find out. The thought did cross her mind though. Also, why did it even greet her? Or was she hallucinating already? Perhaps an early sign of dehydration? She was confused for sure.

What immediately caught the Queen's attention though was the chest the massive crab had left behind and with a quirked brow, she immediately approached it. She couldn't believe she hadn't seen the crab at first and that it had left behind a chest like in a cheap adventure holo...

It mattered little as the Queen's curiosity was piqued and so she immediately went to open it just to find some actual interesting stuff. "Well..." the greedy ruler of Juvexia was left with only one choice - grab it all. The necklace and the phial she put in the back pocket of her silken night gown and kept the iron rod in her right hand.

She paid the runes little attention as she knew it would only be a waste of time, especially because there were clearly signs of struggle in the forest. She followed the commotion, only to find a weird beastly plant attacking the other stranded people who had abandoned her just a bit earlier.

She scanned the scene in horror for a moment until she gripped the iron rod tighter, a fierce determination flicking in her gaze. Who would build stuff? Or hunt stuff? She found it hard to admit. Those people were unpleasant and apperently uncivilized, so she did at least want to have those imbeciles in her debt in case the heroic Queen suddenly came to the rescue...

Letting out a feisty growl, she darted to the vine that had the bad dressed 'prince' in its grip and intended to ramm the rod into its flesh, turning the rod and obviously using one of the sharp edges to slam it towards the ground with full force. Maybe this would help...maybe she'd die a heroine. She made sure she wasn't accidentally stabbing the prince or Ora and was wondering whether the bystanders (@Pazaakly, @Panda Hermit 98) intended to do anything useful after all.

@Logan @lizziie @Altaris

(@Sreeya, @Wit, @Killa Ree)

Spoiler: TLDR

Electra grabs the loot and rushes to the rescue, wanting to stab the plant's vein that is still holding Galek with her rod