Giggles watches Jazmine with trepidation, haltingly starting after her a time or two before the elf actually gives her permission to follow. Once the whistle is heard though, all bets are off! She immediately begins to change form, her mottled skin taking more of a striped look, and her forelegs lengthening to take the form of a Tiger. Once the transformation is complete, the dino takes off at a run, confident in her skills.
Unfortunately, the grease hits her paw just right, and she begins to slide off the edge.
Clinging to the beam, Giggles gives a full body shake before going for the next half of the beam.
Reaching the other side, Giggles playfully leaps at Jazmine, eager for her reward of attention and petting.
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Helgga slowly continues to shuffle her way across the log while muttering, "The gods are with me, I am with the gods. "
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Helgga uses the force within her to carefully manoeuvre the log. And eventually makes herself through.
Jazzmine follows the superstitious Helgga and makes it through with relative ease much like Rogan.
The captain starts barking at Cassanova to get him moving, "Well? What are you waiting for? Death?"
Helgga: 2nd attempt pass
Rogan: Pass first try. (Removed Armor?)
Jazzmine: 1st pass
Giggles: 1st pass
Cassanova:
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The captain begrudgingly accepts that the group has passed this obstacle, and moves you all on to the next. The next obstacle is the Bear Crawl, where you must wriggle under a tangle of metal wire scattered with glass, sharp rocks, and broken bricks. A crawlspace 2 feet in height is the only passage through the detritus.
"Well Come on! Get Moving!" She yells again.
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Jazmine runs towards the crawlspace at a run. After a moments hesitation, she closes her eyes and begins to concentrate. This time, she is the one to begin changing forms! Her face elongates and her wild hair takes on the striped pattern of a tiger before she throws herself under the wire and begins to shimmy through the broken glass.
Giggles runs back and forth along the side of the course, following Jazmines progress.
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Dropping to the ground in a pile of rocks still vaguely held together to keep his humanoid shape, Blood Stone begins to slowly, but steadily make his way beneath the wire.
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Following suite the waterling seems to have a much easier time at this obstacle, his body flowing and weaving beneath, without too much difficulty, (I assume).
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A little perturbed at being given tasks he is so poor at, Blood Stone drops down to give it another try.
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Helgga attempts shortly after the group, but gets herself very entangled within her first two tries, undoubtedly cursing under her breath. Bloodstone's 2nd yields a similar failure. But 3rd time's the charm as he makes his way in and out without too much embarrassment.
The group patiently waits for Helga, but after her third try, captain Othis starts barking again "Enough! We've spent too much time here, to the climbing wall!" Not very far off, A 15-foot-tall stone wall faces you. The sheer rock wall looks very difficult to climb.
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Jazmine hesitates, helping Helga to her feet before taking off for the wall just after Rogan and Giacomo.
When she reaches the wall, she is just in time to meet the shower of rocks from above. Crying out, she throws her arms above her head, hoping to ward off the worst of injuries. Shaking the dust from herself, she looks upward and suddenly her body begins to change once more. Hair begins to sprout as he arms and fingers elongate into the limbs of a monkey! She makes her first attempt at the wall, but quickly slides back down. Swearing, she casts a quick spell on herself and everyone else below the wall and then takes off again, just barely making it this time. Turning, she reaches back to with Rogan to help the others climb up behind her.
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Being slower, Blood Stone gives it the old Pathfinder try just as Rogan makes his way up to the wall but his short legs slip about half way up and he is left hanging.
"Hey" he whispers to Rogan and the group, "it looks like these rocks have been set to fall on us."
Knowing he has to redeem himself after the last obsticle's utter blunder, he gives it all he can to try and pull himself up.
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Captain Othis observes silently throughout your endeavours. Seemingly she is starting to lose her patience again as the party keeps failing the wall, not meeting her expectation or standards. "Enough! I can't bear any more of your failures! Next!" The rest that have not gone over, are forced to walk up the stairs of shame located right next to the climbing wall. The climbing wall overlooks an abandoned quarry filled with muddy water that is 15 feet deep.
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"Ah something I can do."
Casanova swims the whole thing under water and is first one across
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Jazmine shuffles up the stairs of shame, hurrying over to the shore. One look at the water tells her that she will be unlikely to make it with her heavy armor in her tired condition. Thinking quickly, she whistles for Giggles and begins doffing her intricately made mountain pattern armor. She secures the armor to Giggles back so it doesn't get left behind, and immediately begins shifting her form once more. Using the last of her shifting abilities for the day, she takes on the shape of a frog to aid her in her endeavors then jumps in. At first, things are going very well, but her strained and tired muscles just can't get her all the way across the quarry before she begins taking on water like a leaky sieve. Crying out, she begins to go under splashing and lurching around for anything to hold onto for a few moments before she gets herself under control and doggy paddles in the rest of the way.
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Dispite Helgga's physique, she takes like a fish to water and makes it across with ease.
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After everyone has completed the obstacle course, somewhat successfully. Captain Othis orders you all to get in line and stand at attention."Listen up, roaches. You need more than strength and agility to succeed in battle. You need to know what you're up against and how to fight it. Let's see how stupid and unprepared you really are." She explains that she will be asking a set of questions, and none of you are allowed to help the other in answering.
Her first set of questions requires some very good knowledge of the elemental planes and certain tactics used by elemental creatures, to the pile of rocks (Blood Stone) she asks "How would you counter the typical fighting style of salamanders?" and to the extremely handsome Undine (Casanova) she asks "What are possible ways of handling being set on (elemental) fire?"
To the rest of the group, it becomes certain to after asking the difficult questions that you cannot answer them. She starts to berate and mock you calling you worms and roaches before asking the each of you three easier questions. "Tell me, how hot is fire? What are Elementals? and lastly, what is one way you can travel to elemental planes?"
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Jazmine straightens and looks the Captain in the eye as she is called forward to answer the first of the "easier" questions. She racks her brain for a moment, then replies.
"I know that most combustible materials burn on average at 1,100 degrees in the natural world. This is, of course dependent on what is burning. If you are talking about creatures of fire, I imagine that they are somewhere between 1,600 and 2,200 degrees."
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Holding his sacred weapon up with pride, "The same way you counter anyone else's fighting style. . . With a big damn hammer!"
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"Well not so daft then I suppose." She says in responds to Jazzmine's answer.
To Rogan, more berating, "If a worm like you you can't answer a simple question like that, how do you expect to make an impact in the Ungrounded? Maybe you need an easier question, which elemental plane do earth elementals come from: the Plane of Earth or the Plane of Fire?"
The captain prompts further into Blood Stone's and Casanova's answers, asking them to explain themselves further. They clearly understand the material at hand and explain in great depthsinfuriating the captain. Turning to Blood Stone, she asks a more difficult question; "Tell me some unique monsters that you can find on the Plane of Water." And turning then to Casanova, " Tell me the capital of the Plane of Earth!"
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"What's one way to get to the elemental planes? That's easy! You respond to a vague letter that obligates you to leap through a Technicolor sparkle tunnel. "
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"The Opaline Vault, also known as the Rainbow Metropolis, is the breathtaking capital of the shaitan’s Peerless Empire, and a planar hub for entertainment and trade. The Vault’s diverse population includes a small percentage of noble shaitans known as pashas, as well as dwarves, elementals, elves, and oreads."
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"Um. . . the Dwarves that I grew up with had a legend. There was a natural pool underground, where water from seep down from atop the mountain, making its way slowly through the stone to collect in this pool."
"They believed a spirit of rain and thunder lived there, guarding her shores from those who would try and claim or spoil the pool, and speaking to lost children who couldn't find their way home."
"Im not really sure who would want to live in a place thats all underwater. Sea Cave Bears? Starfishies?"
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After much berating, It's plainly obvious that everyone is able to at least answer one question somewhat correctly. She sternly reminds at you, somewhat annoyed, "Might I remind you, about your fairly poor attempt at the obstacle course." And dismisses you for the day.
The next couple days, you follow the same routines.
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Over the next few days, Jazmine and Giggles manage to fall into the routine of their new environment. They awake each morning, make their bed, then choke down the cruel imitation of food that they are served for breakfast. Jazmine works hard at doing the best she can, and quickly adapts to the schedule, including Giggles as much as she can. During the evenings she sits with Giggles playing various games to keep the dino amused. Fetch seems to be the creatures favorite, as she tirelessly chases random thrown objects through the room and hallway. In fact, she becomes a bit of a bother after a while, as she happily returns anything that anyone tosses, be it trash into a bin or a personal item tossed onto their bunk.
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Though he doesn't agree with the Captain's methods for berating the trainees, instead of actually training them, he takes the time to ask some of the more experienced soldiers in the barracks about tips to impress her. Afterall, their mission is to make a good impression of the Society. He tries to buddy up with some of the veteran fighters, sharing tales of battle and exchanging tips on fighting techniques.
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Everyone treats Giggle's playful act as one of a welcome change. Everyone welcomes and plays with the little scoundrel.
Rogan doesn't find anything useful about the captain in his time asking around. The captain is always a mean spirited, and very nasty woman. Seemingly nothing impresses her. The crowd is generally friendly though as they gladly share their combat experiences.
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The group continues to undergo some rigorous cleaning, chanting and training the next couple of days, without too much trouble or complexities. The meals never change day to day. One unexpected day, instead of the obstacle course, you are lead to new form of training.
Just outside the mess hall, an oval of hard-packed dirt surrounds four columns made of black stone. Gray stone benches encircle the training ground, providing a clear view for nonexistent spectators. A raised balcony made of blue and purple crystal emerges from the stands. Dummies made of stuffed burlap sacks affixed to posts are scattered throughout the field, some wearing crudely painted smiles and posed in offensive gestures. Captain Othis stands in the crystal balcony, a mischievous grin on her usually stern face.
"Today wimps, you shall be doing a combat training, the rules are simple, use of spells or combat-enhancing items, such as potions or flasks, is forbidden, refrain from using lethal force or face the consequences.” The armory before you is a bunch of training weapons. .” Captain Othis allows you to select a blunted weapon of choice from the armory. The collection includes all martial and simple weapons.
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Looking over some of the practice weapons, I'd like to take a warhammer, but, if someone else has an eye for it because we are fairly limited to blunt weapons, I'll pick a Heavy mace instead.
In either case, a quick inspection of the weapon, just to make sure it is functional, if not pretty.
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During Blood Stone's walk around the complex, he finds nothing particularly special or out of place, it's a very small complex. Bunks, Mess hall, Training Yard, and the captain's office seem to be the only sites of interest.
There are enough warhammer's or weapons of other types to go around. And Bloodstone's appraisal of them weapons show them to be functioning A-OK.