Fun In the Sandpit

Fun In the Sandpit
Date of Scene:	13 October 2012
Location:	Figaro Desert
Synopsis:	There had been rumors of holes and sandtraps appearing out at Figaro Desert that are smaller than an antlion's sandpit. There had been rumors of treasure, but those that went to explore it had never came back.
Cast of Characters:	Riku, Reize Seatlan, Beatrix, Pixi, Katyna Redsvaren

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Reize Seatlan has posed:
Scorching sun, dry heat.
The wind blows its heavy gust.
Blinding sands brings naught.

Figaro desert is hot and arid with the sea of golden crystalized sand. This is where monsters often lurk in the area ranging from the occasional boulder or hiding in plain sight.
Sandy mantarays and seahorses lurk.
It is odd how there are desert sea creatures.
The rumor mill passed about the patches of sand appearing in the area. They say that it's smaller than the presence of the antlions. Many of those patches were told to have untold treasures while others say that those who explored never came back to tell the tale.
That is why it is up to the Shard Seekers to check this out.
The fearless leader is shrouding his face with his scarf, hoping to stave off the searing sands. Its painful presence offers nothing but harshness. Nevertheless, he remains rather cheery. Yet, he is not alone. He decided to take two of the Shard Seekers with him.
"...Well, this is supposed to be the spot, I think..." He considers, "Maybe I should consult the map." He reaches from his pouch a large sheet of paper, which he unrolls.

Riku has posed:
Riku rubs his hands together, cracking his knuckles as he squints into the distance around them. He has stayed wary this entire trip because of the rumors of monsters in the area, but he hadn't been really ready for the full hammerblow of an actual desert weighing down on him.

The desert is almost hypnotizing in a way, a sea of golden sand rolling out into the distance that confuses the eye and clouds the senses. Riku has a pale cloth tied around his face to keep out the stinging sand and wind, but it was stiflingly hot to even breathe.

Riku shades his eyes with a hand. It was also searingly bright, another reason why he's beginning to think this wasn't the best idea he's had for awhile. He had observed some of what others had been wearing in hot, dry environments and had adapted his attire to keep sunburn and heatstroke at a distance. Still..

Riku shuts his eyes, pulling the flapped sunhat over them as he turns his head back and forth as if he's shaking his head. He pushes the cap back from his face, rubbing his stinging eyes for what had to be the half hundreth time. It wasn't doing anything for his mood really, which had curdled somewhat for no reason he had been willing to divulge.

He glares at Reize's back with a flat annoyance, but it could just as well be his annoyance with the concept of a desert as anything in particular to do with object of glare. "How can you tell?"

Katyna Redsvaren has posed:
Mmm, nothing quite like the hot sun beating down on you in the middle of a hot arid desert, full of...Sea creatures? Well, this is certainly interesting, but Katyna Redsvaren isnt' here to 'save the world' or make it a better place.

Instead, she was here searching for the rumoured 'untold treasures' that are to be found in such places..And the possibility of finding other rarities that might be helpful to the cause of the heartless.

In this heat, Katyna Redsvaren had traded in her hot metal armour for more comfy red and gold flame themed tunic, and black leggings, having draped a long black cloak over her outfit to protect her from the desert wind as she travels through the hot sand, searching for..Something..

Beatrix has posed:
One thing can be seen in the distance, quickly approaching. To add to the oddity of 'desert sea creatures', the approach of an 'airship' seems quite fitting when you consider. It looks like it would be sea worthy, if it wasn't for the windows and holes that aren't on the bottom of standard boats at least. So ships that fly, how fitting.

Either way, its a rather large airship that approaches too. It does a small turn away from Figaro... and then turns back toward it, a long arc as it loses altitude, and comes to land in the sandy plain nearby, kicking up sand and dust all over. Fortunatly its away enough from the others doing so, although it does get attention from the occupants as well.

After the landing, a plank stretches out, allowing the exit of those inside... a regiment, not overly big though, of female soldiers, which are wearing leotards, which honestly clashes with the sturdy boots and iron helmet they wear, as well as the various kinds of weapons they carry. Most of them carry a sword and small round shield, but there's also spears along the ranks.

A half dozen of them line up on each side of the plank... and out steps the regal looking general. Reddish-brown hair, which is flipped casually away with a hand, blocking a bit of the sunlight with the other. Wearing a white leather vest emblazoned of a red rose in the back, she steps toward the group she spots there, a hand on her the pummel of her sword, which rests on the side and across her back.

"Is this the place?" She asks one of the nearby soldiers, who nods and salutes in answer. Then she turns that single eye, the other one being patched over by a thick leather bandanna, toward the group that is there. "Perhaps they came here for the rumor as well." The solider offers up.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Overall, Reize is pretty pleased. Despite that the fact that it is unbearably hot and the sun has been beating on Riku and Reize for some time, the boy is still in good spirits. His interests more or less relied on trying to figure out where they were exactly.

Where is Riku is pretty annoyed, Reize turns to face Riku with a bright smile. An index finger extends up, "Well, they said that there were supposed to be gaps and holes that would show up once in a while. Those gaps were either the monsters or the treasure."

He holds onto the map, not looking at Riku. What does catch his attention is the passing of a large airship that hovers over them. "Oooh..." It looks like it is getting closer and is about to land at a distance nearby.

"Oooi! Riku! Did you see that?! He beams, "That is amazing! I think it's coming nearby!" Attention brought back to Riku, eyes still on the airship, "Oh, they said that there should be some large patches of holes around----"

Slip.

"-----HEEERRRRRRREEEEEE!!!!!!"

The loud shout is enough to echo across the sand. Reize lands pretty nicely onto something. How can you tell? A loud sound of what sounded like vases breaking stirred.

"Atatatatatataaaa..."

If one was to look further down, Reize had landed on a set of vases. A welt appears on his head. The now broken vases spill out the munny about.

Riku has posed:
Riku watches the approach and landing of the airship with no small measure of suspicion. He doesn't recognize them or the people piloting it, and the women piling out of the airship are obviously soldiers.

He shades his eyes, squinting hard to make out the one in the middle of the others. Reize doesn't seem to be worried, but then that was one of the reasons he was annoyed with the leader of the Shard Seekers this fine day in the desert. Riku peers over the edge of the hole, noting with a flat note of amusement.

"Reize, didn't your dad teach you not to break other people's things with your head?" He looks at the airship, uncertain for a moment, then slides down into the hole to help Reize out and gather up what they can.

Katyna Redsvaren has posed:
Well now, isn't this interesting. It's that Reize boy again, the one who looked like..Someone else she knew. And, some other guy whom she doesn't recognize. Katyna Redsvaren starts to head towards Reize however. She still had questions for him afterall..

And then of course the airship appears, casting a noticeable shadow over the desert dunes. "Woah, I dont like this, better keep a low profile.." The heck did they come from? This could mess things up. But first thing's first..

When Reize suddenly slips and falls, she quickens her pace to meet him. "Reize..Hey! Are you alright?" Even as she says that, Katyna Redsvaren's already busy making a quick grab for all the spilled munny as she makes her way towards him.

Beatrix has posed:
The rose general waves a hand as Reize disapears, the soldiers around her dispersing right away. They carry various instruments with them, like ropes which are tied to the airship itself. Considering the problem of finding solid ground in the desert, its probably part of the reason they brought the huge flying thing too.

Using the ropes, two of them drop down into the hole after Reize, with the rope in tow. At least no worries about getting back out of it for now. The general steps up toward the hole, but a safe distance away "Looks like the rumors were true then. There might be something buried underneath the sandsea." she muses, crossing her arms over her chest. She imposes just by her presence it seems, her soldiers are skilled as well, showing in their execution which is quick and precise.

The general calls down "Is everyone alright? You can use the ropes to climb back up." Two more soldiers slide down the ropes, starting with the investigation of the area Reize uncovered. The soldiers seem ready for this too, with other tools at hand, using magic to light up the way if need is, drawing out maps if the area is large, shovels to dig away the sand...

Reize Seatlan has posed:
"Knight's Vow #79: ...You break it, ... you buy it."

Reize's face hits the ground with a thud. As Riku finally joins the boy to assist him in getting back up to his feet, the boy staggers around with a dizzied look.

"Heee, thaaannkksss Riiikuuu..."

Shaking his head quickly, he regains his senses. Katyna Redsvaren shows up, which earns a smile from the boy, "Ooi, Katyna Redsvaren!" The young man brightens, "It's good to see you again!"

And then, they start to get more visitors. Soldiers send ropes down and he looks up. "Oh! Riku!" He brightens, "Ropes and more people!" As the soldiers come down, he blinks at the attire. The antenna hair whisks to the side a few times, as if scratching Reize's head as he tries to figure things out.
When the general arrives, Reize looks over towards her presence. Wow, that is quite a presence she has. "Ooi! We are fine! Thanks for the help!"

They will find that there is nothing else there. It's pretty small, and a bit more cramped.

"We better start climbing up."

Back to the hot sun they go. Reize begins climbing up along the rope, making his way up to the top.

The area, for some reason, is now becoming filled with many holes on the ground.

"....I don't remember there being that many holes earlier."

Pixi has posed:
Desert.

Somewhat familiar territory to a tall Viera, just not this particular desert. Pixi wiped her brow as she walked through the desert. Of course, she heard the yelp of someone falling and she didn't hesitate and ran over to find the hole, and she makes a face. She takes a good look at the one-eyed woman nearby, but doesn't say much.....yet.

Riku has posed:
Riku has to wonder about someone who can talk and snatch at the same time but relaxes when Reize seems to know them. He nods to Katyna Redsvaren, not adding anything to Reize's greeting. Well, at least they have probably claimed this area in the name of the Shard Seekers by virtue of fearless leader sprawling on top of it.

It's 'he who breaks it, buys it' in a somewhat skewed fashion, and there is even a knight's vow on the subject. He's going to have to grill Reize later on whether he is just making those up, or if there is an actual list somewhere.

This line of thought lasts until the soldiers fly into action. As long as they were over there, he could deal with the implications later. They look prepared and competant, with ropes and shovels and magic. Riku frowns, made uneasy despite them being helpful. His feet shifting into a ready stance.

There is very little stopping these soldiers from simply declaring the territory as theirs and kicking out a couple of adventurers. They had force of numbers and equipment, and he hadn't come all this way through the blazing heat for a pat on the head or a brush off. He eyes the Viera also amongst them, who doesn't seem to have come with the soldiers. This rumor had attracted quite a bit of attention.

"Reize." he warns lowly, although he changes what he is going to say as he pulls himself up out of the hole and looking around at the area. "Did you bring enough holes to share with the rest of the class?"

Katyna Redsvaren has posed:
Katyna Redsvaren blinks, peering up as the ropes come falling down. "Woah, Reize, you sure know how to get alot of attention!" She grins and winks at him before helping him to his feet. Then, since there's not much to look at down here, she follows the others to climb out of the hole. Riku is given a friendly smile and nod too. "Another friend of Reize huh? Must be fun..Getting pulled into all sorts of trouble just by being near him, huh?"

Finally she glances at the general, arching a brow. "Wow, who're you guys? And what's with all these...Holes?" Amber eyes narrow. No way, those holes weren't there before! Something's not quite right here.

"Everyone, be careful..I think something's about to happen!" Well..She's not exactly sure *what* yet but.. She glances downwards..Was it attacking from below?

Then Pixi makes her appearance, and Katyna Redsvaren arches a brow. "Pixi, watch out! The ground's breaking away..."

Beatrix has posed:
The soldiers climb back up as they see there's nothing else worth investigating below. But already more of them are busying themselves at extending ropes down the new holes, after making sure its not the maw of a monster waiting for them either.

The General turns to the others, as they climb up "We heard the rumors about the holes forming, and our scholars offered a few predictions as to their formations. It could be monsters obviously, but also could be that there is something else below. Monsters or world shifting could be breaking out a rocky ceiling and opening up access to an underground cave system, for example."

She flips her hair casually again, letting loose some of the sand and dust that is caught in them from the wind. "We chose to investigate. Call it security check or treasure hunting if you wish." No doubt the rumor of any sort of treasure would threathen security if they were monsters there.

Pixi has posed:
Pixi shrugs a bit. "I just happened to be in the are-" She then looks down and spots Katyna Redsvaren. "Hey Katy!" She says cheerfully. "What're you doing there?" She even helps others out of the hole as they get to the top. She then looks to Reize and tilts her head, but looks back to Katy. Beatrix isn't ignored, but the viera doesn't know the general either.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Thanks to Katyna Redsvaren and Riku, Reize was back on his feet.
Now, arriving at the top. "Guh." Reize finds himself scratching his head, a bit perplexed over the surroundings. He sweeps around to look at all of the holes that suddenly appeared. The boy may be inattentive with his map at times, but he does have a good memory.
His eyes drift over to see the tall viera.
Smile.
"Oooi!" The boy waves a hand excitedly her way. When the others climb out of the hole, Reize looks over towards the group, "You know, there was something about the area. The rumors have been going around that the holes made are a lot smaller than the antlions." He considers, "I would agree. The antlions' holes are generally a lot larger with.... about a near five meter radius."
Reize starts to wander ahead, both boomerangs now drawn out. "It's something smaller than an antlion. The rumors have been that those that investigated it previously had not returned." He turns to the group with a frown.
As the General offers her theories, Reize considers her words, "It's possible. I don't know. Hopefully that is what it is." When she offers her explanation for the investigation, Reize grins, "Hee! Then we shall treasure hunt!" The boy turns to the group to introduce himself, "I'm Reize Seatlan!" He looks over towards Riku, a bit uncertain if his friend will introduce himself or not.
Reize is not going to infringe on his friend's privacy.

Riku has posed:
"Tell me about it." Riku rolls his eyes, cracking a smile at Katyna Redsvaren's comment which shows more in his eyes than his covered mouth. The smile vanishes as she continues, and the formation of the holes takes on a different and sinister light under that new information. He listens to the leader woman talk. It seems like this is not an unusual thing to happen here?

He's no longer certain any more what anyone calls unusual, but she didn't seem particular interested. This might well be a routine thing. An airship, full of soldiers, shows up to investigate rumors of treasure, in a .. in a desert.. full of holes.. and sea.. monsters. Right. No. Even if he wrote this down in his journal, later on he's going to look back on his writings and wonder if he's lost his mind.

A loss of sanity would certainly explain a great deal of things. Riku is almost to the point of consigning Reize and his Shard Seekers to an glob of mustard or an undigested bit of beef when Riku is supposed to say something at this point. Pointing out Reize is sort of naive because treasure hunting usually ends up with more problems between the treasure hunters than the monsters seems like a moot point.

So instead, he introduces himself. "Riku." he looks uncertain for a moment, and then leaves it at that. "When people go out.. and not come back.. that's never a good sign. Where next, fearless leader? We seem to suddenly have a great number of options."

Beatrix has posed:
The Alexandrian soldiers keep investigating hole after hole, while the general lady overviews it. She's not about to hop down unless something interesting or dangerous is found after all.

She nods to the Shard Seeker, a fist over her breast as she offers the salute of her kingdom "General Beatrix, of Alexandria. I am acting on behalf of my Queen for everyone's security. If it is monsters, it would be dangerous to leave them loose."

Katyna Redsvaren has posed:
Katyna Redsvaren flashes a smile at Pixi. "Good to see you again, how've you been? You here lookin' for treasure too?" A nod is given Riku when he gives his name. "Nice to meet you, I'm Katyna Redsvaren'." Finally, Kat glances at Beatrix as she gives an explanation and nods. "Seems possible, but..If these arent Antlion holes, what are they?" She bites her lip, considering.

"So..Either monsters, or..Another realm below our feet? I guess we just gotta find the right hole, to find the door then!" Well that should be fun! She glances around, pondering where to start, but it seems the others are already investigating the holes.

Maybe she'll just wait for them to 'sweep the mines' first so to speak, close in one the immediate danger is over.

"Hmm, so you two are here, lookin' for treasure too then?" she chuckles at the thought. "Or was it..Something else? Hear y'all callin' yourselves 'shard seekers' or something now.."

Pixi has posed:
"I'm not here for treasure." Pixi says to Katyna Redsvaren. "I don't see much point to treasure, except for someone to look fancier." She then shrugs. "Magical artifacts are a different story though." However, she does look towards Reize and RIku, then to Beatrix above. The General gets a tilted ear, but little more. "I am Pixi. It is a pleasure to meet you all." However, she toes the ground and clicks a heel upon it. "Some beings should not be disturbed...."

Reize Seatlan has posed:
"We're the Shard Seekers!" Reize turns to face Katyna Redsvaren. "Riku is one as well! We're working on establishing ourselves to be an actual clan. We're trying to pay off the fee to become an official clan." He gives a sigh of exasperation, "It's expensive."
With the situation possibly leading to something bad, Reize's survival instincts take over. In fact, Reize extends a hand out near Riku as in 'hold it'.

Reize's time in the forest gave the boy a chance to adapt in his life. Naive, definitely. However, the field is where he is generally where he is mostly keen. That is why Reize is a ranger. But what good is a ranger, raised in a forest, in a desert?

Some instincts never die.

"There is something I've learned." He starts to reach into his bag of tricks, then he pulls out a marble. His hand touches the ground, feeling how grainy the sand can be. This will have to be done carefully.

With careful aim, Reize keeps an eye out on what's ahead, then he winds that marble back and he tosses it across the sand. With the way that it's pitched, it soon smacks onto the ground and then the boy slowly takes a knee.

The marble lands on the ground...
...and it rolls.
It rolls.
And it rolls.
As it continues to roll...

Reize is watching along the rolling, observing the marble carefully. He can see it stop. And then it shakes.

Reize's eyes widen. This is not right.

"OOOIII!!" He calls out towards the soldiers investigating one of the holes. "GET BACK FROM THERE, NOW!"


...The ground starts to shudder along the holes that few of the soldiers are nearby.

From there, something emerges out of that hole, which is nothing more than a quicksand pit.
It looks like a strange plant creature. It's a large bulbous looking plant with several pollens and flowers attached to its tendrils.

It releases a shuddering roar.

Meet the Sandragora.

Riku has posed:
Riku doesn't know what to think when being included in the Shard Seekers. It makes him faintly uneasy.

He nods to Pixi, deciding to reserve judgement on the soldiers since they don't seem to be aggressive against adventurers. "Could be any or all of them Katyna Redsvaren. We'll find out." He turns his attention back to Reize, his eyebrows raising as he watches Reize carefully. A faint look of annoyance is replaced by a note of what might be, what.. relief? But when Reize reacts he quickly backpedals away from the hole as the ground starts to shudder. The roar is deafening as the Sandragora lets loose a sudden cry.

An instant later, Riku has a sword in hand that he brings up to a ready position. "I think we found what happened to the other adventurers."

Beatrix has posed:
The general shows absolutely no signs of nervousness, even as the ground rumbles and the monster comes out from hiding. She looks up toward it impassively, flipping her hair "... So it was a monster."

The soldiers scurried out of their holes rapidly as well, moving back on the defensive. They seem to be trained in a multitude of things, and fighting obviously is one of them. Many of them move over to the airship, picking up spears to throw at the monster, while the ariship starts a slow ascent, staying off the ground to avoid a direct contact with the monster.

Beatrix draws her sword, a beautifully and intricately carved sword, which matches the elegance of its owner. She answers up Riku "No need to wonder, just focus on the task at hand. Watch the footing, it likely will try to swallow you from below." A quick observation of the monster's skills, considering the amount of holes in the vinicity relative to its position "It probably uses roots or seedlings to cause them."

Swinging her sword in a wide arc to her side, she starts with what knights do best, protection.

Pixi has posed:
Perking her ear, Pixi turns her head and takes a step back to see the Sandragora explode out the hole. Even as Beatrix moves to aid Reize, Pixi extends her spear from the simple stick it was, and leaps into the air. She doesn't hesitate to try and entangle the monster, and whip it with numerous spawned chains from the spear...

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Reize scowls.
With both boomerangs withdrawn, the boy leans forward to take up his more aggressive fighting stance. His boomerangs are twisted to where he holds them at the back of his hand.
Keeping his body in a rythmic bounce, he turns towards one of the soldiers as they scramble out and they move to the defensive. Reize is glad that the soldiers reacted as quickly.
Lunging forward, Reize is zooming in towards the beast. Along the way, however, the boy can see strange glass-like shapes appear before him. They become like shields for the boy. He can feel the magic, but can't quite see it, thanks to the fact that his pendant is gone.
"Thanks, Beatrix!"
He lunges forward, leaping forward to launch a kick the creature's way, along with two swipes of the boomerangs.

Riku has posed:
Riku takes a step, hesitating for an instant. His face is turned downwards, hidden by his cap and so the moment of doubt comes and goes on his face.

His hand tightens on the sword in his hand, magic crystallizing around him. He startles, head snapping towards Beatrix.. but the magic feels benign so he nods in her direction in thanks. Turning his head back to the monster he takes a moment to steady himself, closing his eyes for a moment before throwing himself forwards, lunging forwards with a quick series of short slashes that rake upwards.

Thunder rumbles across the desert as the dry, desolate heat of the desert is sparked into a flare of heat lightning that slams down at the monster as Riku ends his flurry of strikes.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
The beast is hissing as the spears are lobbed out at it. It twists and howls out its wrath. There are tendrils becoming expanded and larger. Those tentacles are launched off from the sands, seeking to ensnare the soldiers.
As for Katyna Redsvaren, she will be busy dealing with one of the seedlings that Beatrix mentioned about. The seedling is likely nabbing her by the leg. Many of the seedlings are bursting out.
Unfortunately, Katyna Redsvaren will be distracted from the main fight ahead.
With Pixi's chains spawning from the spear, it suddenly becomes entangled by the chains. It hisses and it struggles. When it sees Reize approaching, the tentacle slinks away and the body shifts away, another tendril slapping against the boy.
Once Riku lunges forward, the slashes are met witht he tentacles sweeping out to strike against the swordsman's arm. It seeks to send him knocking off balance for what is to come next.
Those tendrils sweep out everywhere, seizing to smack against the brave adventurers that are within its range.

Pixi has posed:
Smacked by the chains, Pixi stops most of the attack by leaping into the air, which she forgot to do in the heat of battle. Her leg is still whipoped by the tendril, but she's still in the air, launching her spear at the monster.

Beatrix has posed:
Beatrix shrugs off the attacks of the tentacules. She gets glanced by a few of them, but the general is definitely made of very sturdy stuff. Flipping her hair away, and hmphs "Pathetic. Is this all you can manage with that size?" She shakes her head, and this time pulls her sword up, leveling it up toward the monster "How about we cut you down to size some more then?"

She leaps at the monster, chaining up three thunderous attacks on the monster. The first one brings a wide slash, aiming at cutting some of those tentacules away, while she's coming straight at the monster. The second crashes down from above, a vertical split aiming at the monster's defenses. And finally, as she lands, a snap of her fingers bring out a thunderous boom, thunder from above, following the path left by the previous slice.

Riku has posed:
Riku is flung backwards, ears ringing as the crack of lightning falls on a shielded tentacle, the flailing limbs coming after him as he impacts the sand. The teenager coughs, the wind knocked out of his lungs as he hits the sand, rolling to the side just in time to avoid most of the beating the tentacles want to hand him.

He gets clipped in the head by a smaller tendril as he flips back onto his feet, knocking him off his balance and making the world spin sideways and upside down for a few seconds. It would probably hurt more without those shields robbing the tendril of most of it's forward energy. He watches Pixi's arc through the air, looking around to see the positions of the others. Riku takes a moment to revise and extend his plan of attack to something other than 'see that bad guy over there? Whack it' smiling to himself as he does so. He knew better than to just throw himself at a problem.

He also had to brace himself against the flash and abrupt noise of another thunderclap from close range, which was more disorienting that he liked just now. Riku watches the pattern of tendrils, how they react to Beatrix's attack, shifting his feet back and forth as he steadies himself for the next pass.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Well, this is not a good position for Reize. Considering that the beast deflected and avoided his kicks, Reize is trying to take a couple of steps back. When the tentacles attempt to sweep his way, well....
Reize yelps and he leaps off of the ground. He leans forward, grabbing both of the tentacles and he starts riding it. "Whooooooooaaaaa!" Holding on for dear life, Reize then leaps down. Then...
Reize swings across the air, shifting his weight around. He twists his weight around, shifting out to dive down towards the airborne sandragora. He springs his foot downward to strike the creature to the ground...
Only to land on his feet and he springs his foot up for a flip kick to knock it back into the air. "HAAA!"
Though, Reize can only hope his tactics proves effective.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Hisss!!!!
The Sandragora can only stare and loom before the adventurers. While Riku and many of the other adventurers find themselves facing the beast, the tendrils are stretching out.
It tries to feel around the area. It hopes to find its next meal.
The wide slash cuts against the tentacles, releasing green ooze as it writhes and screams. The feelers are pointing towards Beatrix, the other slash striking against its strong body. It shudders and drops on its face.
This is where the thunderous boom crackles against the beast, shuddering at the monster.
While it is down, Reize has taken advantage of striking it with his feet, sending the creature sprawling around. Shuddering, the beast screeches and it whips back up.
It is mad.
Soon, it makes a strange, throaty noise...
There is a shuddering screech roaring through the air, loud enough to pierce the ears to give its victims flenching.
What comes next are flaming seeds being spat towards the group like machineguns. Last, but not least, it lifts the remaining tentacles up, seeking to bash anything all around its path.

Pixi has posed:
The problem with trying to hit Pixi was that she was a LOT faster in the air. Now, Pixi could attack with a bit more impunity. In a blur, Pixi was after the gigantic monster and attacking with a mixture of a spear attacks, and a move reminiscient of a monk, before trying to knock it out of the air.

Beatrix has posed:
Beatrix never used a shield, and this attack from the monsters show exactly why. Her prized "Save The Queen" moves swiftly, intercepting the flaming seeds, deflecting them away, bouncing off the metallic edge of the sword harmlessly around her. Bringing the sword back down, and hmphs again "Still not enough. Anger is only making you blind instead of more powerful."

And that's about the only pity she has for the beast as well. For what little it was. She takes a moment to assess the state of this side of the battle field. Everyone seems to be in fighting shape still, so she can move on the offensive again. That monster certainly didn't seem to appreciate the anger from the gods of thunder... so let's see if it likes it times 3? Three precise slashes are sent toward the monster, crackling with lightning magical energies, making thunder fall whenever they hit.

Riku has posed:
Riku watches Reize 'ride' the tentacles, smirking at the effects. He gets an idea of how the creature responds to attacks now, and moves forwards to implement his observations. He walks, almost strolling down the sand. He cuts a diagonal shuffle down the sand waiting patiently for the first tendrils to sense and come after him.

He doesn't leap into action all at once, but a pressure like an oncoming storm system is building around him as he just seems to be waiting and taking in the situation with the sword over his shoulder. All of that energy is discharged at once, but not exactly in the way he intended it. An instant before he sets to attacking, the creature lets out a maddened wail. The sound is unbearable, causing spots to explode before Riku's eyes and robbing him of his moment of opportunity. He's so stunned by the wail that he stands there a moment too long, feet planted too firmly into the sucking sand to dodge the next assault.

Burning seeds singe and tear at his clothing as he flies backwards a second time to the sand. He should have seen that coming. His ears are ringing, numbed by multiple lightning strikes. It makes it difficult to think and his mental recitation of how much a moron he was is cut off by a moment of panic. Riku pulls himself up a little less easily this time, though it's not because of the strike. He coughs, closing his eyes and forcing the fire back down. Not now.

The teenager takes in a steadying breath, picking himself up and looking up at the airborne creature. "Let's.. try this again, shall we?" Focus. He needed to focus. There is a blur of motion where Riku had been only a split second before. He sweeps the sword towards the Sandragora in an upwards arc, heat heavy winds blasting upwards as another thunderous boom echoes through the desert as twin lances of lightning lash across the air in quick succession.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Ow.
God. Why.

Reize is on both knees, clutching against his ears while screaming. The pain of the screeching is hurting his ears pretty hard. The boy is rolling on the ground, trying to get to his feet. That is in time to get pelted with the flaming seeds spraying him and to top it all off...
Reize is bashed into the ground.
Ow.
To make matters worse...
Reize's head is buried in the sand.

Ow. My head.
Ow. My head.
And GOD OW MY HEAD!

Reize is trying to figure out why his head is hurting so bad. He turns his head over to see something shiny.

Annnd, he sees that it's just a rock with a bit of shine on it. "...Crap." And of course, a tentacle lashes out towards his pouch to snatch something out.

 !!!!

It reveals to be....

... The hookshot.

"NO! That's!!!"

*CHOMP!*

> Reize has lost the Hookshot!

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF-------------

Reize grits his teeth.
Reize is on both knees, comical tears streaming along his eyes.
"...I just got that..."
He shakes a fist, then he screams out.
"I JUST GOT THAAAAATTTTTTTTT!!! YOU JEERRRRKKK!!!!"
The Boy With The Long Yellow Scarf looks pretty angry now.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Pixi does prove to be very well versed with her power. When she moves towards the gigantic monster, it is assaulted with her spears, and then it is caught with the maneuver to get sent flat towards the ground once more.
When Beatrix moves in for the beast is assaulted by the lightning charged slashes. The beast gives a shuddering howl as it flails about weakly.
Yet, when Riku charges forward with the sweeping sword. One of the tendrils seek out the arm before it the slashes can home in at it. The beast sweeps the tendril out to knock Riku off balance again.
Then... it starts releasing a strange, hypnotic noise. And a noxious gas is expelled out.
Then... if you think it was spitting out one hell of seeds before? It's spitting seeds out like it's a gatling gun at the entire crew.

Beatrix has posed:
Beatrix isn't that good at deflecting that many flaming bullets though. This time she takes quite a few of them. And yet, she's standing as if nothing. Even as there's small flames eating away at her clothes, she didn't even bend a knee at the attack. "Looks like you do not understand easily. Let us see you take divine punishment then!"

Two more thunder strikes are sent flying toward the sandragora, emitting crackling energy noises as they hit. But as they strike, the general is gone. In fact, she moved in at the same time as the flying slices, moving right underneath their path... and at the same time they hit, the general's sword pierces into the monster's flesh... and then as she jumps up, she drives the sword over the entire lenght of it, releasing holy explosive energies along the deep cut, landing behind the monster afterwards, almost as if flying.

Pixi has posed:
When the fire seeds are fired at her, Pixi turns into a serious blur. Deflecting some of the fire seeds and dodging others. She's still hit by a few of them, but she's still in good shape. Seeing her allies in trouble, Pixi launches her spear at it, which also extends it's chains out to whip the monster in a rather flashy display.......

Riku has posed:
Riku is feeling somewhat indignant at this point. No. Indignant seems sort of a mild word for the sort of ire he feels. What he feels like is an amateur. He's been semi cooked just getting out into the desert, and the first monster he encounters outside of the heartless slaps him around seemingly without effort.

Riku is starting to get a serious grade brooding session together when Reize loses his hookshot. The teenager is knocked sideways and into the sand again and at first it doesn't register on him because he's so deep into his own self-flagellation, his clothes still smouldering from the burning seeds but the wail of despair and comical anger cannot be denied.

Riku looks up and across at Reize shaking his fists and screaming, and oddly enough starts to feel better. Even though it looks very silly to him right then, he doesn't laugh (out loud) but instead pulls himself out of his own thoughts and into a ready position again. When the creature lays in on the attack again, he believes he has seen what it has on offer. He is sadly mistaken. The tendrils near him cause him to roll out of the way, but he has no way to escape the noxious gas quick enough to keep from getting it into his lungs. They seize, trembling and paralyzed as the hypnotic noise repeats and repeats.

He shakes his head hard, the movement becoming stiff and lifeless as he rocks forwards slightly, then back.. and forwards and back, eyes staring into the distance. A fitful curl of wind tugs at his clothing, that sense of building pressure beginning to shimmer around Riku like a heat haze as he rocks forwards and backwards on his heels.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Reize is pretty angry.
He just got that tool! He loved that tool! It was his favorite tool! But no, it was eaten before his very eyes.
Profound... sadness.
Reize shifts his stance, now taking a more aggressive stance. Time to kick some butt.
...Not before he gets repeated blastings in the face and the chest with what is essentially a machinegun rippling his way. "Argh-argh-argh-ow--ee-ow-ow-ow-ow!"
Reize finally tears through the barrage of the seeds shooting his way. He is charging straight towards the beast, his eyes lit with rage as he gives out a devastating battle cry.
"MEEEEEELLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNN!!!!!"
Reize lunges forward, releasing multiple barrage of kicks. When he springs off of the ground, he starts springing his feet out to spring forward against the beast, lunging up into the air with...

A spinning roundhouse kick at the beast.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
It's pretty intense...

All considering.

The divine punishment comes towards the sandragora. As the crackling energy strikes true to the beast, the monster releases a fiendish howl. It tears through and it writhes in the air. It tries to sweep out at the group, except the sword releases the holy explosive energy to send the creature sprawling across the surface of its sandy pits.

While Pixi releases the chains, the creature quickly recovers and it sweeps its tentacles out the chains barely grazing against its bulbous body. And then, the boy with fury starts lunging at it. It hurts... Kinda.

It almost tickles.

The creature is, however, worn down and is slowly falling.

It slowly reels his head up.

It spits lots and lots of seeds once more towards the group. Then, it seeks to bash the group down with the tentacles for good measure.

Its wear and tear, however, is showing. It is, in fact, becoming sluggish.

Riku has posed:
Riku blinks several times, rocking coming to a halt as the wind dies. He looks around with confusion, as if not entirely sure how he got here. He slaps gingerly at his smouldering clothes, the last few embers dying away as he tries to remember the last minute or two.

He was supposed to remember to do something.. but he wasn't sure what it is. A heat haze shimmers around him as he looks with vague abstraction at the scene. Oh look. There's a giant monster up there. It's a.. plant? That's a new one. He steps to one side as he looks up at it, firey seeds pelting the place where he had been. A tendril slams down at his head and still Riku has that abstracted 'Oh look. It's a giant vine.' look, still stunned from the hypnotic daze.5r
He steps to the side again, twisting his body just enough that it slams down at his feet. Riku closed his eyes for a moment, rubbing at them as stinging sand blew into them again. As the tendril retracts he grabs on, sword slicing into it and pinning it to the sand. He's flung upwards by the spasmodic jerk of the grabbed tendril trying to escape the sword, and there is another blur of motion.

Riku drops down past the head, slicing arcs of water and lightning following in his wake as he falls down into one of the holes, which might hide the less graceful end to this attack sqeuence except there is a distinct sound. A thumping rolling and sliding as if someone was tumbling over and over down a steep slope.. and a crash.%r The crash of vases being broken, and munny spilled.

Beatrix has posed:
Beatrix actually bends down this time. The attack was rather harsh, and while she's not staggering, she still jumped and rolled to the side to try to avoid the incomming attack better. Although that didn't help her all that much, she's definitely not all that hurt either. She's definitely made of very stern stuff.

She rises up to her feet, just in time to see Riku... finish off the beast in one way or another. She's not entirely sure what happened there... but she jumps down the hole Riku disapeared into. She's not about to leave the boy down there anyway, not when he apparently got knocked out. A soothing glow can be felt from Riku, if he's not completly unconcious, as the general applies some curing power through her hands.

Pixi has posed:
Being really really quick can bite you sometimes, as Pixi finds out when she's smacked quite hard by a lot of the monster's seeds. It's not quite as hard as it could've been, but still, she's still hit quite hard.

But the seeds stop.

She lands near beatrix and collapses her spear. "I'm starting to see a pattern here."

Reize Seatlan has posed:
If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.

Or in this case, multiple seeds firing like a gatling gun. As the ripplefire of seeds are spilling in the air, Reize is shifting his stance to avoid the strike. His eyes shift about to move away from the creature.

Though, with the hypnotic noise and the gas finally taking its toll, Reize is looking over towards the creature, "..Wow.. That's funny, it's a plant..."

Then, his eyes can't help but glance over, drifting towards Beatrix and Pixi. He is staggering about. The hypnotic daze is slowly seeping in. Now taking over the boy. As his eyes drift over towards the two, the boy thinks to himself:

...Lenn's are bigger.

"Heh..."

But then, he can see the tentacles coming down to smash against him. Reize laughs and he shifts away from the tentacles.

Meanwhile, the monster's tentacles hit the ground, trying to bash against Riku and the others. However, as Riku grabs on its tendril, the sword slices against it to keep it grounded. The monster releases a bellowing cry of pain.

And when he drops past the head, the arcs of water and lightning.... It starts to glow. The light is shining from the inside as the body begins breaking down into Mist. In its death cry, the monster breaks down back into the Mist.


...Slowly coming to, Reize is rubbing his forehead. His eyes widen, then he shakes his head to try to come to. "Buh...?! We did it?" Blink. "RIKU!" The boy looks back and he starts to run off towards the hole that Riku is in. In fact, he slides down with abandon for self to check up on his friend.

Riku has posed:
Riku is eating sand at the end of a short but very steep slope that connects two of the holes. He doesn't get up until after Beatrix has done using her curative magic, and a little past that besides.

He rakes a hand through the sand in an idle fashion, drumming his fingers through it several times before he pushes himself up. He starts to shake the sand out of his hair, looking for the cap that has been lost in the tumble. With the very little dignity he possesses, he uses the cap to pick up the spilt munny. He looks to Beatrix and nods in gratitude, eyes shifting to the hat and his task.

"I'm alright Reize." he mutters in a frustrated voice, scooping up more munny. "Considerably rusty, but alright."

Beatrix has posed:
Alexandrian Soldiers come back out form the airship, throwing ropes down to the general, Riku and Pixi, so that everyone can climb back up to safety at least. Beatrix nods, moving a hand over Pixi to offer her some healing as well "You all fought well."

Once everyone is up and good, she climbs back up via the ropes, sweeping herself from the sand a bit stuck to her. "Let us hope there was not many of those monsters around here. Although it would seem the sand holes have stopped appearing.

Reize Seatlan has posed:
Reize looks relieved when Riku admits that he is alright. He looks over towards the General who had helped them in the battle. Reize gives a smile, then he turns to Riku. Placing a hand to his shoulder, Reize looks over towards the group.
"Well, we solved that situation." He looks towards Riku, "We cleared out the situation. " He listens to Beatrix's assessment, "Since the sandholes are no longer appearing, we can probably leave the area in peace."
He looks at Riku, "We'll have to make a report to the pub about our findings." He starts to climb out.
...He stops.
Then he drops onto his knees and he lowers his head.
Comical tears roll along his eyes.
"The jerk ate my Hookshot."

Beatrix has posed:
Beatrix loosk back to Reize, flipping her hair again casually "I would not fret too much about that. Your precious item is probably inside the monster, you could try to see if its salvageable." She nods to her soldiers, directing them to check on everyone's state at the same time "Also, you should considering this. If there are jars down there, that must mean there have been visitors or creatures to put them down under the sand, the sandragora simply revealed them. Maybe you should take a look below, there could be things of interest." she waves to her soldiers to return to the airship witht hat. The job is done after all, the area is safe again.