[SP-F18]Lurk in the Murk<<Feeding Your Enemy>>

Faerie · February 27

The eighteenth floor was by no means Fae's favorite, far from it in all honesty, but even in Sword Art Online you had to make some sort of living. And that was how Fae found herself struggling through the thick mud and plant life that covered floor 18, boots sticking with every single step as she foraged for materials. Fae had always thrived more outside than inside, and that hadn't changed when she got trapped into SAO, but rather she was able to enhance and capitalize on those skills in order to sell her services as a guide and a gatherer of rare materials for the craftsman that don't have the ability to go out for themselves. One of those very same craftsman was paying for Fae to procure some rare fungi that grew only on this floor, she had found all of what they had been looking for already, but there was no reason not to take advantage of the situation and gather materials for her own purposes.

Fae was beginning to regret that decision as the loud sucking sound of her foot pulling free from the muck around her echoed in the flat expanse of murky water and muck. Fae had been doing this long enough at this point that she could go just about anywhere in Aincrad without encountering monsters, but this floor was one of the hardest, there was nowhere to hide and almost every single one of the monsters liked to hide in the water and jump out at the last second. Floors like these still had the power to make Fae shiver, remembering days long past when less was known about the floors, and dungeons and floor bosses could just be ran into without any warning.

Fae was taken out of her reminiscing by smoke curling into the air in the distance, normally she would have ignored something like this, but her curiosity got the better of her as she veered course towards the smoke on the horizon, making sure to place her feet more carefully so that no noise came out while she was moving. The carefulness that she moved with made the journey slow, and it took her nearly an hour before she passed through a copse of sickly gray trees and could see what appeared to be a wagon sitting on one of the few areas of land in the area that was neither murky nor muddy. 'How did they even get the wagon there.' Fae studied the wagon for a few minutes before determining that it was safe to approach and making her way to it.

Spoiler

Faerie | HP: 220/220 | EN: 40/40 | DMG: 12 | MIT: 20 | ACC: 1 | LD: 8 (5+3)(10 When hunting for familiar)| PROSP: 2 | QTY: 2 | +2 CD when taming familiar | -5 required posts for familiar searching

Name: Faerie
True Tier: 2
Level: 11
Paragon Level: 0
HP: 220/220
EN: 40/40

Stats:
Damage: 12
Mitigation: 20
Accuracy: 1
Loot Die: 5
PROSP: 2
QTY: 2

Combat Mastery:
- Combat Mastery: Damage R1

Combat Shift:
-

Familiar Skill:
-

Custom Skill:
-

Skills:
- Cloth Armor R5
- Projectile Weaponry R3
- Searching R2

Extra Skills:

Inactive Extra Skills:

Addons:

Mods:

Inactive Mods:

Housing Buffs:

Guild Hall Buffs:

Scents of the Wild Totem:

Loot Dice Breakdown:
- Gathering:5
- Looting:5
- Finding Chests:5
- Looting Chests:0
- Finding Dungeons:5
- Finding Labyrinths:5

Crafting Profession:
- Cooking[36exp] R2
Gathering Profession:
- Forager[0exp] R1

Spoiler

Consumed Items:

- An Mhaighdean Mhara | Familiars Sight | +2 LD when searching for Familiar

- gelato. | TIERLESS DESSERT | LD III | +3 LD

- Spyglass | Search for Familiar/Field Boss/Labyrinths 5 posts earlier

The Stars Collide | TIER 1 PERFECT SALVE | PHERMONES | +2 CD when taming familiar

Spoiler

Word Count: 437

Edited October 6 by Faerie

Faerie · March 1

One of the biggest downsides to the 18th floor was the immense difficulty in moving around, most of the water wasn't deep enough for boat travel, and the land was too watery for travel with a wagon, but there one was. Fae carefully approached the wagon, nothing had yet made it seem dangerous to do so, and curiosity had won her over long before she decided to move in. On further inspection, Fae only grew more and more confused, not only was there no perceivable way for the wagon to have made it this far into the swamp, there was also no perceivable way that the wagon could move at all. Even though SAO was a game, every wagon was still pulled by some sort of animal, but there was nothing in sight, no sign of there having been any animal to begin with.

The wagon was a simple one, made of a soft green wood fully enclosed like a small house on wheels. Herbs and other trinkets hung from all different places on the wagon, and a woman sat outside next to a large fire watching as Fae approached. The woman just stared as she approached, keeping her eyes fixed on Fae until she spoke "What are you doing out here?" her voice broke through the silence like a crash, sounding far too loud for the dim swamp. The woman jumped, almost as if startled by the sounds, even though she had been watching Fae approach the whole time. "Oh, I'm just a friend of the animals. I have some feed that tends to make even the most hostile creature friendly." The woman spoke as if she wasn't fully there, with a dreamy quality that made her seem unreal. That coupled with how she seemingly just appeared out of nowhere in the middle of a dangerous swamp was quickly making the whole experience surreal. "Friend of the animals? Like the swamp monsters?" the swamp wasn't full of much in the way of small creatures, mostly just insects and fish, and most of those were far larger than anything that people would normally befriend. The only things that really survived in this harsh environment were the larger monsters that could eat instead of be eaten. "I am a friend of any and all creatures in this tower. Here, why don't you take this. Give it to any monster you would want to treat you as a friend and they will." The woman held out a small brown bag loosely, offering it to Fae and letting her hand fall back as soon as Fae grabbed it. "Now off with you, I have preparations to make, and I can't have you just standing around my camp." the woman left no room for argument, so Fae made her way from the small wagon, reeling at the whole experience 'What even just happened, I think I have whiplash from that'

Fae eyed the small bag of what appeared to be some sort of kibble one last time before pocketing it and making her way into the swamp. Maybe it would come in handy, but for now she had a reason for being in these god forsaken swamp, and she intended on finishing so that she could leave as soon as possible.

Spoiler

Word Count: 547

Edited March 1 by Faerie

Faerie · March 16

Gathering on the higher floors was always risky, no matter how skilled someone was and how they had memorized the floor's monsters and landscape, there would always be the chance of running into something that one couldn't handle. And for Fae the creatures she could actually handle on the eighteenth floor were none. She wasn't necessarily a slouch in combat, she was a good shot with her bow and she could avoid most dangers pretty well, but there was only so far that skill could take you when you didn’t have the stats to back it up, and she most definitely did not have stats that could put her on par with the giant insect and other horrid monsters prowling in the swamps.

The danger would make the trip all that much more lucrative though, as they got to the higher and higher floors it got harder and harder for craftsman who were not themselves high level players to even acquire the materials that they needed to supply the frontlines. Thus a career in gathering and exploration had been created for those people who either couldn't or wouldn't join the frontlines but still wanted to be able to help in a more active role. Fae couldn't yet help explore the newest floors to hunt for the boss rooms and the Labyrinths that would lead to another floor, so she contended herself on memorizing everything about the floors she could manage to scrape by in so that she could supply crafters with materials and in turn allow them to supply the frontliners with much needed gear.

A self satisfied smile passed over Fae's lips at her own musings, she was playing her part even if it was small, and their was a sense of accomplishment there that couldn't be taken away. It was soon replaced by a grimace as her leg sunk to the calf in a section of floor that was more mud than it was dirt. Pulling her leg out Fae finally saw the area that she was looking for. It was a much dryer section of the swamp, the same dead and gray trees densely covering the mound of ground that rose above the swamps water. At first glance there was no obvious glint of materials, but that was to be expected, if she wanted to find something she was going to have to get her hands dirty, most likely quite literally.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID243357: LD: 5 | Failed! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [3-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 404

Edited October 3 by Faerie

Faerie · October 3

The small hill that Fae was on could barely even be called that, it was more a mound of mud and muk that had built up in the area, a thick copse of trees having taken root the whole thing could be walked through in just a few minutes, though itbwas almost always easier to just walk around as the tangle of roots on the mangrove like trees made traversal tricky. Those very same roots also made an ideal place for mushrooms to grow and for other plants to hide.

Fae took her time pursing through the roots until she was confident that there wasn't anything hidden in its depths. This was disappointing as the island was one of the very few places that Fae truly didn't have to worry about any monsters, the lack of water made it a less than ideal area for most of the ambush predators that stalked other places of the swamp, and the labrynthine trees and roots were almost too tight for even a human to traverse let alone a giant insect. Fae sighed as she stepped out of the other side of the island from where she had started, the lack of items meant she'd have to go somewhere more dangerous, somewhere that had the chance of her actually running into a monster

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254121: LD: 3 | Failed! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [6-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 220

Edited October 3 by Faerie

Faerie · October 9

Stepping back into the mud that made up that vast majority of the eighteenth floor was regrettable, and Fae grimaced at both the sound and feel of the muck under her boots. There were a few more areas that she could still go to with relative safety, and she figures she might as well check them all before she returned home, materials were always good to have on hand and the ones in the higher floors were almost always better.

Fae didn't have the skills for stealth like some players would have, but she knew how to be stealthy without aid of the system. Sticking to the mostly dry portions of land she made her way through the swamp, stopping only when she heard the sound of something move in nearby water, or the faint bussing of insect wings in the distance. If one of those distant creatures saw her, she was certainly dead. It was moments like this that made Fae truly reconsider her life decisions. She didn't really have to be on this floor, and at any time she could leave, but due to stupidity or stubbornness she risked her life and kept going, pausing briefly again to check a small wooden shack for materials before moving on when she found nothing.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254530: LD: 7 | Failed! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [9-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 214

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

So far Fae's hunt was going remarkably poorly, hunting for materials was always something that relies heavily on luck, but normally her luck swayed in her favor not against it. She had picked up an official job title for foraging, something that she had assumed would help her gather materials faster, which it probably would in the end, but so far it had honestly seemed to make her less likely to actually find anything to pick up.

Shaking her head she made her way to another one of her regular spots where materials wefe more common, itbwas almostbthe exact opposite of the small mound of an island she had stopped at first, this one being a basin of water deeper than most areas of the swamp got. It was more dangerous than any other spot she had looked so far, so Fae made sure to thoroughly check both the bank and the depths of the water before taking a deep breath and diving in.

The bottom of the small basin was home to an moss that grew on sunken wood, but due to how dark and murky the water was it was something she could only find by feel. Fae waited as long as she could before returning to the surface, her hands empty of anything useful, and clothes soggier than ever.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254531: LD: 11 | Failed! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [12-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 222

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

Buzzing was all Fae could hear as she crouched low in the dead grass and bushes that covered the dryer sections of the swamp. It wasn't uncommon for giant dragonflies or even nastier insects to patrol just about everywhere in the swamp, so Fae had gotten used to having to spend long periods of time pushing her face into the muck to wait for the flying Vermin to pass her by and allow her to continue her movements. No matter how careful one was, and Fae most definitely was, there was no way to completely avoid monsters on any floor. But with luck and skill they could avoid the monsters notice for as long as they were around.

This was the exact situation she Fae had found herself in, lying prostrate in the mud to hide from an insect she hadn't even been able to see before she'd needed to take immediate action. That was how it always was, you'd here the wings way before they'd come into sight and then if you didn't take action immediately you'd almost always be spotted. It took a long time for the sound to dissappear into the distance, and even after it was completely faded Fae gave it a minute more before she returned to her crouch, wiping the mud off of her face to the best of her abilities before continuing, she was heading to her last checkpoint before she headed back to town, and if she didn't find anything there, than the only thing of note on the trip would have been the odd wagon she'd encountered earlier.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254532: LD: 10 | Failed! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [15-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 267

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

The place that Fae was looking for wasn't exactly easy to spot, the swamp was all fairly identical, without all that many landmarks to be used for navigation. She was looking for a larger than normal mangrove tree surrounded by a tangle of bushes, sometimes there flowers would bloom and they were perfect for alchemy which made them useful to gather. It was far away from any of her other searching spots however, which meant more often than not she'd end up over shooting the tree and seeing the crumbling ruins that housed a camp of some form of trolls. Fae hadn't ever fully scouted that out, the creatures inside having more intelligence than one would suspect made it hard to search through, and Fae hadn't wanted to get spotted by the foul creatures.

Seeing the ruins Fae knew where she needed to go and doubled back angling towards the large tree, staying low to the ground she stalked her way through the swamp, this time in the right direction. The monsters of the ruins would sometimes make there way out in this direction hunting or foraging which meant that she needed to be even more careful for having overshot her destination.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254533: LD: 10 | Failed! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [18-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 202

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

It wasn't long before Fae saw the tree in the distance, and she picked up her pace closing the last meters quickly before she saw the bushes and, in turn, the bright yellow flowers that were growing there. A smile spread on Fae's lips 'Finally, I was beginning to think that i was doing this for absolutley no reason at all.' Fae thought to herself as she moved to the flowers and picked one before putting it into her bag. It wasn't much, but anything was better than leaving completely empty handed, even if it was only a single flower.

Fae quickly spun around, instantly on alert as a buzzing sound filled her ears. It was faint, and that meant that it was far away. She let out a sigh of relief, she would be leaving in a second and the buzzing was coming from the completely opposite direction she was heading so she'd probably miss the creature making it. Leaves rustling pulled her up short. Creatures in the distance didn't audibly rustle leaves, and her face blanched as she turned to the bush that was moving ever so slightly.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254534: LD: 19 CD: 2| Success! 1 Mats (+8 EXP)

Forager EXP: [26-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 190

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

Fae nearly jumped out of her skin as a small shape flew out of the bush and rushed at her, it was so fast that she couldn't even tell what creature it was. Startled she fell back and landed in the dirt, the bag that the wierd lady in the wagon had given her catching on the branch of a bush and tearing spilling some of the soft kibble like food all over the ground. The creature seemed to stop in the air as the bag broke open, giving Fae a full sight of it for the very first time. It was a dragonfly, though a lot smaller than the monstrous ones that hunted these lands, only as long as her forearm. It was looking towards Fae, and it looked almost as if its blue head was tilted sideways like a curious dog, its large compound eyes almost seemed full of curiosity.

The sudden fear and dread that had filled Fae suddenly washed out, even as the insect darted through the air faster than she could keep track of landing next to the kibble and nibbling on it, still staring at her as it ate what was on the floor before dashing back into the air and hovering moving from place to place in quick darts that made Fae a little nervous. But the creature looked completely harmless, and the feeling of peace that washed over her almost seemed purposeful, like the game was telling her everything was fine.

Spoiler

Finding Familiar:

ID254535: LD: 17 + 10 = 27 | Success! Familiar Found

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Word Count: 249

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

In this moment the words the odd wagon woman had spoken came back to her. She had said to give the feed to a creature she wanted to be her friend and that it would do just that. "Oh, what the hell." the creature didn't seem to startle at Fae's sudden words, or her reaching into the satchel at her hip and holding some of the feed out in her hand as an offering to the creature. "I've got plenty more where that came from. Come on, I'm not going to hurt you." Fae spoke with what she hoped was a calm and reassuring voice, she didn't know why she suddenly wanted to befriend this creature, all she knew is that she felt a connection with the glittering bug.

Fae tried to smile in a way that wouldn't seem intimidating to her new friend, and with time the creature came closer in short quick bursts of speed before closing the distance in a final stride of speed. Fae resisted the urge to jump atbthe sudden quick leap, keeping her hand steady as the new creature landed on her hand and fed on the kibble, before looking up at her and fluttering its wings, head tilted inquisitive again. "I think I'll call you Zazu." at the sound of her voice the insect, Zaza, launched into the air again, dashing around her head in incredibly fast but shirt bursts before landing on her shoulder wings buzzing softly before coming to a rest.

Spoiler

Taming Familiar:

ID254536: CD: 8 + 2 = 10 | Success! Familiar Tamed

Spoiler

Word Count: 250

Edited October 13 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

Zazu sat comfortably on Fae's shoulder as she got off the floor, brushing the muck off as best she could. This had been the last stop she was hoping to make before she headed back home, though she now had a new companion her plans hadn't really changed much.

Fae started walking back towards the wagon, she figured she should at least stop there first to thank the lady for the food. She hadn't really ever thought of wanting a pet. But already the small amount of companionship was nice. Fae reached her hand up to her shoulder, and in quick flurry of buzzing Zazu jumped onto her palm letting Fae get a closer look, almost seeming to pose for her as she did "You know, you're surprisingly cute. All the other bugs around here are ugly as sin, but you, you're just a baby." she reached a finger up and scratched the chitounous plate on the top of his head "Though i don't think you'll be very cuddly." Zazu's wings buzzed loudly and he dashed quickly into the air and out of Fae's reach quickly disappearing into the bushes. "No wait, i didn't mean it!" Fae moved to start chasing after the insect, but before she could take more than a step or two he flew back into sight, flying quickly in two circles before taking off again. 'Does he want me to follow him' Fae quickly followed after her new companion's and friend, wondering all the way where he wanted to take her.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254537: LD: 8 | Failure! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [29-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 255

Edited October 16 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

Following Zazu was harder than Fae had been expecting. He definitely knew how to sit still and hover, she had seen him do it periodically, but he clearly didn't like it, instead he buzzed around at full speed in straight quick lines darting from one angle to another, and while he was large, his size wasn't big enough at distance too make it easy to follow his darting. All of this combined to make Fae dash faster through the mud and muck than she normally would have, her boots sticking on multiple occasions almost causing her to trip face first into the grime.

"Zazu, please. Just slow down a little. I'll go wherever you want, but i can barely keep up."" this was not the first time that Fae had called out to her new insectile companion, and it was not the first time that it fell onto deaf ears. She had no idea where the little guy was going, but she knew it wouldn't slow down until they made it.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254538: LD: 2 | Failure! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [32-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

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Word Count: 171

Edited October 17 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

Fae had been getting lucky so far, despite how quickly she was splashing through water and rustling through brushes they hadn't encountered any monsters. Fae was beginning to think that it was because of Zazu, more than once he'd stopped suddenly and zoom in a new trajectory, making Fae slide, or splash, to stop before she could continue chasing him, making her have to run even faster to make up for the distance that he had pulled ahead while she scrambled not to lose her footing.

Zazu again stopped and Fae did her best to stop knowing that he would soon be flying in a completely knew direction, but this time she wasn't so lucky, her boots sticking in a deeper well of muck. The lower half of Fae's body got the message that they were coming to a halt, but her upper half hadn't gotten the memo. Fae could do nothing as her momentum carried her directly in to the murky swamp water and mud. Normally, on fully solid ground, she'd be able to throw her arms out and catch herself to keep from faceplanting, but in the mud, her arms just broke through the somewhat more solid and thick layer of mud that covered over the more soupy mud beneath until her hand finally met solid earth, and her face met mud and water.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254539: LD: 9 | Failure! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [35-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

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Word Count: 226

Edited October 17 by Faerie

Faerie · October 10

Fae quickly sat up scooping all of the muck off her face and flicking it back into the mud. "Zazu! I swear to god, if you don't slow down, I'm going to leave you in this god forsaken swamp." the bug stopped where he was hovering over a bush and fluttered his wings harder, making the buzzing sound even louder. He hovered in the air right above a bush with some flowering plants on them zipping from side to side.

Standing Fae brushed the rest of the muck that she could off of herself and made her way to the bush. The small gleam that materials gave off was coming off one of the flowers and Fae smiled despite herself as she approached "Okay, fine I accept your apology, but please slow down, I have to worry about things like sudden holes and rocks unlike you." Fae reached her hand up and Zazu landed on her fingers, cooking his head again like a dog before clacking his mandible excitedly and launching into the air again.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254540: LD: 18 CD: 2 | Success! 1 Mats (+8 EXP)

Forager EXP: [43-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 175

Edited October 17 by Faerie

Faerie · October 12

Zazu sped off again as Fae pocketed the materials that the little guy had pointed her towards and, for a second, she was worried that he hadn't understood or listened to her but his pace wasn't as extreme as before. She still had to move quickly, and Zazu cared very little about what was convenient terrain for her, only leading them apart from the obviously large and in the way rocks, but the pace was merely hard instead of near impossible. When Zazu changed directions she no longer had to skid to a stop, but could instead simply pivot and move in the new direction.

Not for the first time Fae wondered where her new companion was taking them, she worried for a second that maybe he was leading her to a trap. She had a feeling though in her heart and gut that the insect not only didn't mean her any harm, but even more wanted to help her in some way. She simply accepted her fate and kept up with her new friend.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254760: LD: 19 CD: 4 | Success! 1 Mats (+8 EXP)

Forager EXP: [51-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

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Word Count: 175

Edited October 17 by Faerie

Faerie · October 12

Fae wasn't sure how long she jogged through the swamp with Zazu, but it had been early when she had set out and now the sun was high in the sky, so a decent amount of time had definitely passed both in the course of her search for materials, and for her run. "Is it much farther Zazu? I promised Angel I'd be back in town before it got dark, and at this rate I'm going to run out of time." she glanced back up at the sun estimating how much time she had left, and when she looked back Zazu was spinning above a decrepit shack on stilts.

"What have you got there bud?" Fae gingerly picked her way through the mud trying not to stepping any of the particularly deep pools of water in front of the shack. The stairs had long ago fallen into disrepair, and she wasn't sure they'd even be able to support her weight. Instead she leapt lightly onto the floor of the raised building the floorboards creaking loudly and bowing under her feet, but holding. Inside she found some mushrooms growing in a corner and she put them in her pocket. "You're just a little treasure magnet aren't you. Was this where you were trying to take me?" but Fae was not in luck as Zazu sped off once again before she even finished talking.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254761: LD: 19 CD: 8 | Critical Success! 2 Mats (+16 EXP)

Forager EXP: [67-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 232

Edited October 17 by Faerie

Faerie · October 12

Fae kept jogging after her insectile friend, continually checking the sun as it drew nearer the horizon line, if they didn't make it soon she wouldn't be able to get back to town before nightfall. She followed Zazu all the way to the edge of a deep forest, one that she had never really explored, the mangroves roots and branches tangling to make it near impossible to squeeze through. She had expected Zazu to either turn and skirt the edge of the forest or to dive straight in without any regard for Fae's inability to follow, but to her surprise he zipped in circles on the edge of the trees seemingly waiting for you "Now you pause and wait for me, couldn't have done that before I fell in the mud earlier?" Zazu, of course did not respond but instead flew into the forest landing on a tree and waiting for Fae to make her way into the woods proper.

That was the way it went through the entire forest, Zazu would fly ahead and land somewhere until she had managed to pick her way through the maze of roots, branches, and muck. After some time the trees started to thin out and Fae that she could see something on the other side, and her breath was taken away when she finally made it through the last line of trees. It looked like the forest completely encircled some sort of sunken city, spires of rock jutting out of the water that were clearly the tops of buildings. It looked like over time the mud had made some areas traversable, but the majority of the city was under deep water.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254762: LD: 4 | Failure! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [70-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 279

Edited October 18 by Faerie

Faerie · October 12

Fae didn't need to wonder where Zazu was taking her anymore, with the insects trajectory it was pretty obvious that they were heading to the only building that was completely outside of the water. She stared in awe, not knowing how she had never seen something so monumental, she'd have to come back here in order to explore the place fully, there was no way she was going to leave something of this scale rotting and crumbling in the middle of the swamp. For now Fae contended herself with following her new friend, uncaring at the moment at the time passing , this was too big to abandon just because the sun was getting low.

"How did you even find this place? And how did you know I'd want to come here?" Zazu did happy little circles in the air at the praise and continued to lead them towards what appeared to be a ruinous church with mostly shattered stained glass windows covering most of the front and sides. Fae had some reservations about going inside, most places like this were teeming with monsters and might even have some sort of boss at the end, but with how Zazu had managed to steer them clear of all of the monsters on their way here, she figured he wouldn't lead her into any ambushes now.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254763: LD: 12 | Failure! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [73-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 223

Edited October 18 by Faerie

Faerie · October 12

The areas of floor in the sunken city that weren't completely submerged acted as a pathway leading to the church which only seemed to add to the sense of foreboding. "Zazu? you promise you aren't leading me into some sort of trap? there isn't anyone in there waiting to eat the souls of unwary trespassers?" Talking to her new friend helped relieve some of the mounting anxiety, especially when the large little dragonfly came and landed on her shoulder buzzing his wings before calming down.

There was a wrought iron fence surrounding the church one of the doors of the gate was completely missing and the other was hanging crooked slowly waving back and forth with an ominous creaking and groaning. "You know Zazu, you're a bug, so I don't think you fully appreciate how creepy this is. I hope whatever you wanted to show me is worth it." Zazu buzzed his wings in response, and Fae couldn't tell if it was in agreement or if he was annoyed at her questioning him. Either way Fae wasn't going to back down.

Spoiler

Gathering:

ID254764: LD: 2 | Failure! 0 Mats (+3 EXP)

Forager EXP: [76-49 EXP] Rank 1 - Novice Forager: Successfully forage for materials on a LD 14+

Spoiler

Word Count: 181

Edited October 18 by Faerie

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[SP-F18]Lurk in the Murk<<Feeding Your Enemy>>

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