Season

[Nether]

Winter, Day 3, Morning The second step in surviving winter, after making sure your village isn't overrun by rampaging orcs and snowstorms aren't able to enter your house: actually keeping warm. Ash had saved some logs from his earlier adventures in the forest for a fire, but there was something else he direly needed. Namely, blankets. Even some heavier clothing wouldn't have hurt, but that was finesse he'd take care for later. For now, he just needed to be sure his ass wouldn't freeze while sleeping, which wasn't guaranteed yet. Plus, he had seen in passing a reward for people who brought back fur.. perhaps he could find enough for both his purposes and this request.. even if he wasn't optimistic: his fighting skills weren't exactly top notch, even if he had heard the denizens of this place weren't the most dangerous man-eating beasts around. How deadly can fighting a giant apple turn out to be, after all? He had seen the two that accompanied the elf girl, and they didn't look too though. Of course, logging didn't seem too hard when he read about it in his books, either. He shuddered at the thought, even if the climate near the cave entrance was noticeably warmer than outside He took the first step into the mossy caverns, holding his breath, ready for anything and secretly hoping "anything" would be "nothing". At the very least, he heard that some useful herbs could be harvested from similar places.. even if he wasn't completely sure he'd be able to recognize them. Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

First Encounters Lucky for Ash, the first monsters to appear were a pair of Pomme-Pommes. They seemed to be aggrivated though, and might not be as friendly as the others in the cave. It would be best to fight them off before they notice the foreign wanderer.

[Nether]

Great. The giant apples. Better than dragons, to be sure. The only problem was defending oneself without looking like a bully, there were people who actually considered the fruit monsters poor little innocent creatures.. and they did indeed give just that impression, until they rolled you over. Ah, well.. if magic was good for risking to ruin a perfectly good cultivable field, it had to be good enough to ruin the day of a couple of monsters, right? Might as well get over with that, or he'd never actually take a step inside the caves. At least he had the benefit of surprise. He took a step forward, one hand firmly clutching his staff, the other aiming at the closest pomme-pomme, an arcane whisper brushing against his lips as he tried to replicate the formula from a couple days before, eyes half-closed in concentration. With the usual aqua blue runes shining softly on the staff, a stream of high pressure water burst forth from the magician's hand towards the closest monster. Not quite the razor-sharp blade he had in mind, but better than nothing. [Magic +1] Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

First Encounters The water spell seemed to do the trick, as the first Pomme-Pomme, unaware of Ash's presence at the time, was hit with the jet of water, and toppled backwards, defeated. Seeing its harmed ally, the second Pomme-Pomme growled, in a cute tone, and proceeded to turn on its side, and roll at Ash. Ash obtained an Apple.

[Nether]

Feel like a bully, indeed. As the first monster toppled back, the second one rolled against him, bent on bloody vengeance.. while at the same time managing to look about as threatening as a wet puppy. Without thinking, Ash jumped to the side.. and ended up being reminded that he was indeed in a rather narrow cave when his foot connected with the hard, hard rock, almost making him lose his balance and causing him to mutter a rather loud curse. At least he had managed to avoid the monster.. even if he wasn't really sure he made the right choice. Unsteady on his throbbing foot, he aimed at the second critter before it could launch a second attack, the same spell already at his lips. [Magic +1] Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

Victory ! The second spell hit its mark, and down went the second Pomme-Pomme. Ash may continue along in peace, for now. More dangerous monsters are sure to cross his path in the future. Ash obtained an Apple.

[Nether]

As the second monster toppled over, Ash felt his breathing become regular again. Apparently, even relatively minor danger was enough to make him lose his cool. Not good, but nothing he could really do about it. Grimacing, he searched his fallen enemies for their spoils. He really, really hoped the apples they walked with were collected from trees, because eating baby fruit-monsters definitely wasn't on his to-do list. He took a few steps deeper into the cavern, the throbbing feeling from his foot beginning to subside. Probably nothing broken. As he moved forward, the cave widened: apparently only the entrance was that narrow: the room he was in now was definitely larger.. probably larger to allow a human-sized creature to dodge comfortably. He tried to remember what the elf had told him. Something about green and black grass growing in this cave. "Thin stems, large, soft, heart shaped leaves. Relatively small. That was pretty much all he knew, and he had to go by. Hoping to not get steamrolled by a giant apple as he was distracted by rummaging through rocks and lichens, he set himself to search. As he took his time to look in every nook and cranny, he noticed a different plant: a larger green plant, creeping along the rocks. He had seen an illustration somewhere else.. it had bland disinfectant properties, if he remembered correctly. Or was it flesh-melting poison? Maybe he'd ask the elf about it. Making sure to be using gloves, he reached towards it, and packed it separately from the others. [Green Grass Found: x2. Black Grass Found: x3. Medic Herb Found: x1] Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

A Hungry Critter When Ash was finished plucking grasses and herbs, a flash of red could be seen skittering about the wet, mossy ground. It was a Chitter, and a hungry one at that. Chitters were not known to eat humans, or any sort of meat for that matter, but when nuts and berries were scarce in the Jade Moss Cavern, grasses were the next best choice. Smelling the earthy scent on the human man, the little Chitter squeaked a whimper, and pounced at him.

[Nether]

Oh gods.. a chitter now. What was it with cute-yet-bloodthirsty critters in this cave? Chitters weren't even carnivorous, did he smell like a freaking walnut to have it charge like that? Too shocked at being under attack by the small furry animal, Ash had lowered his guard, barely recovering his staff by the time the monster was within jumping distance. With too little time to prepare another spell, he clenched his teeth and closed his eyes, swinging the weapon with two hands in a powerful descending arc, using the arcane staff as a makeshift bat against the small critter. Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

A Hungry Critter When flying through the air, it's hard to dodge attacks like the one Ash threw at the Chitter. He managed to bat it away before it could reach him, but the Chitter wasn't quite dead yet. Ruffling its fur in anger, the Chitter wagged its tail and picked up a few rocks from the ground in its small paws. It then proceeded to throw the pebbles at Ash. Not a dangerous attack, but an annoying one.

[Nether]

"Eep!" A surprisingly well aimed pebble, and Ash found himself considering a dive for cover. Stupid.. little.. furry demon. More magic was out of the question, he had just entered this place and couldn't afford to waste too many energies on a single critter like this if he planned to stare more. So, ignoring the stinging wounds, he valiantly charged the monstrous demon, ready to face him in deadly duel. Or so is the way he'd tell the story in a second moment, anyway: the simple truth was that he jumped on the small beast, thwacking it as hard as he could with his staff. Not very stylish, but, he hoped, effective. Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

Victory ! A concussion was the least of the Chitter's worries... A strong hit to the head finished off the pesky little critter. It wouldn't bother Ash again (but it's brothers and sisters might...) Ash obtained Fur.

[Nether]

Excellent. One more victory against the foul denizens of the dungeon. Of course, for now they had been little more than enraged herbivores, but Ash wasn't going to let that notion spoil his success. He looked around, exploring the large cavern with his eyes, looking for more herbs, but it seemed like he had already found most of what there was in this chamber. Where to now? With exits in almost all directions, he only had to pick one, and being the consummate dungeon explorer that he was, he decided to handle the choice in the most mature way he could think of. Randomly, that is. Closing his eyes, he simply let go of his staff (One more use for the arcane weapon.. will wonders ever cease?). A clanking sound, and the piece of wood appeared to point forward, bending slightly to the left, almost directly aiming at a narrow passage. That was going to be his next destination. Grabbing a random small rock, he marked the passage he was coming from as best as he could, collected the remaining plants from the room and moved onward, with all the sureness of a lemming heading towards a cliff. [Green Grass Found: x2. Black Grass Found: x2. Medic Herb Found: x1] Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals

[Chamomile]

An Ant Nest! It seemed Ash turned into the path of an Ant nest. Lucky for him, there were only two around. It must have really been a former nest, else there would have been many more. The giant red insects looked at Ash with their many blue eyes, and clicked their pincers. Skittering towards him, they attempted to bite his ankles.

[Nether]

No more cuteness, apparently: the ants looked out for blood, with robust pincers aimed at his ankles; if their strength was even vaguely proportional to that of a standard sized ant, Ash didn't really want to be caught in those. Kicking the closest insect he jumped back, hoping to put some distance between himself and the monsters; keeping his guard up, he held the staff diagonally between himself and the creatures. The chanted spell was the usual, but this time all the accents were correct, and the result achieved the one desired: a razor sharp blade of highly compressed water aimed at the closest enemy. [Magic +1] Profile Skills Inventory Monsters Hearts Seals