[ OPEN ] MANTA questing!

[philancer]

Who: Sylvain + you!
Status: Open
Where: Various
What: MANTA quests for August
Warnings: tba


QUEST: Beneath The Ink

[ The requests on the MANTA board for this problem had caught Sylvain's eye almost immediately. Shadowy figures that infected those it came into contact with... That was a threat that could quickly spread out of control. It might not be the same sort of thing as sickness and plague, but could be just as serious in its own way. So Sylvain is taking this seriously as he sets out to track these down, grateful for anyone who'd volunteered to come along, or seemed just as interested in getting to the bottom of this.

And while there had been quite a few clues to follow, either eyewitness reports, or where others had gone missing, he hasn't managed to catch sight of one of these Phantoms just yet. Were they looking in the wrong places or were the creatures just hiding? ]

The reports said they might be drawn by magic. Maybe we could bait them out somehow?

QUEST: The Scales We Wear

[ Sylvain had missed meeting the baby dragon during his previous request, but the request to control his fire breathing? That was something he could maybe help with. Not that he could breathe it himself, personally, but there'd certainly been a learning curve when he'd first stumbled across his affinity for fire magic. It was one of the more volatile magics to get a knack for, too.

Besides, he hadn't had much of a chance to try out whatever new magic his fancy new tattoo let him use, so maybe it can be lessons for both of them. What could possibly go wrong there?

Which is how he finds himself out on an empty beach, with several piles of driftwood stacked up in various shapes, some of them on vaguely resembling an animal shape or maybe a building, anything that could work as a target. He's crouched beside the baby dragon, both of them focused on the first target. ]

Okay, to start off, let's see what you can do first. Try to aim for that first target and try to hit just that one...

BOUNTY: Miss Praying Mantis

[ After having stopped in to talk with the sailor that had put up the bounty - and getting treated to a very gruesome and detailed description of what had happened to the poor fellow who'd most recently fallen to the hungry insect - Sylvain's wondering how smart of idea it was to pick up this particular bounty? This thing sounds like it might be a serious threat, but he's never really backed down from a fight before and he didn't really want to start now. Besides. It's not like they could just let this thing continue to eat people's heads. And the rest of them. He could only hope it wasn't too different from fighting Demonic Beasts back home.

Glancing over at his partner for this hunt, he casts you a crooked grin, seemingly in good spirits over this adventure, despite the danger. ] If this thing has a lair, it's probably up ahead. All the reports of its attacks have been surrounding this area. You ready for this?

Wildcard

(( feel free to hit him up for another quests, if we've plotted it, or none of these speak to you. Other quests he'd be interested in are It's a Take Down, Crystal Battery Testing, or Ties That Bind, or we can work them into another one somehow, too. He's also good for the other bounties, he makes a great bait tank. Feel free to hit me up at chaneystarr with plotting or questions! ))

Comments

Wildcard: Scales + Ties combo

[empyrean_mirror]

[Kaveh was here largely to help provide kindling, and because he seems to have become something of a dragon wrangler at this point. Besides, he was worried about the little one, all things considered.

But he'd stopped by Manta HQ and picked up these glasses on the way, and he's fiddling with them as he watches.]

Take a deep breath, there you go...

[The little dragonling inhales, musters his courage, and exhales as hard as he can--

...It's an impressive gout of flame but his range isn't very far yet, looks like. Might need to get a bit closer. Or check for singed fingers, that went a little wide.]

[philancer]

[ Wasn't Alhaitham-wrangler challenging enough, Kaveh?

Sylvain's focus is on the little dragon as he gives it his best shot, though. Even if he has to inch back a little to avoid getting hit by any stray sparks, because the fire... sort of does go everywhere, except for where the little dragon wanted it to.

But it gave a Sylvain an idea of how this worked for the little dragon, because it's not like he's ever done this before, either. ]

Alright, that's a good first try! [ He's quick to encourage the little guy, who looks disappointed that his target is entirely unsinged after that effort. ]

First of all, let's move a little closer to the target to start, and we can work on aim first, and work distance in once you get the hang of that, okay?

[ Guiding the little dragon closer to the kindling, Sylvain shoots Kaveh a bemused grin over the little guy's head. ] Still in one piece over there? Not extra-crispy?

[empyrean_mirror]

I'm just fine.

[Kaveh looks a little contemplative about the breath results...he wishes it were the season for Ocard to be closer, so he could go ask the adult dragons. Then again, this little one probably doesn't want the other dragons involved.]

Hmm...let's try something. If you can hit the target this time, I'll let you try this out.

[Kaveh comes over and pulls a strange spikey orange fruit out of his pocket--after all, he'd noticed the dragons on Ocard seem to favor heavily spiced foods, and a dragon can probably handle a raw harra fruit. But to do that, he goes ahead and puts those glasses on.

I'm sure it's fine.]

[philancer]

[ Sylvain has no idea what the glasses are, actually - some weird sort of fire safety, maybe? - so he pays little attention to it, other than chuckling over how they were a little funny-looking.

He doesn't realize it will reveal a red string between them, or the fact that while it might be thin on Kaveh's end, it's exceedingly thick on Sylvain's end. Maybe more than one would expect, despite Sylvain's simple claims of their former friendship.

But his focus is still on the dragon for the time being, unaware of anything odd. The little guy seems excited about the fruit, whatever it is, so that seems to be good motivation. ]

When I first started learning how to cast fire, aiming was the hardest part at the beginning, but once you tackle that, the rest gets easier. Now, since yours comes from your breath instead of your hand, like me, you might be able to narrow your aim if you keep your mouth a little more closed. Can you try it that way?

[ ...Hopefully the little guy can't like. Burn his tongue or something. ]

Closed for Basch: The Picture of Dorina Gray

[philancer]

Are you sure you wanna do this?

[ Sylvain's squinting up at the studio where this artist is looking for subjects to paint. The request had been a little strange, although not in a way Sylvain could put his finger on. But it had seemed a simple enough request, especially given there was a special request for companions.

He hasn't sat for a portrait since he was a kid. All he remembered was being exceedingly bored and constantly getting chided to hold still when he inevitably forgot and started fidgeting. ]

Although I suppose as long as the portrait doesn't start moving or telling us to do things, it'll probably be the most mundane picture we've come across. [ That's said with a hint of mischief now as he glances over at Basch at his side. ]

[bardische]

[ Basch's fingers brush through Sylvain's hair, sensing the other's nervousness. It's automatic these days, not even something he registers. ]

I think having a portrait of us together would be something we'd both cherish, and if it is terrible, then we can laugh and either hang it or destroy it.

[ His smile cracks and he laughs, shaking his head. ]

Who knows. Perhaps when it's done it will move. Let's hope she paints us with our clothes.

[philancer]

[ Sylvain just gives a snort at that, sounding amused at the implication. ]

Well, that would be a change of pace, wouldn't it? [ Grinning, he leans in to press a quick kiss to Basch's jaw before twining their fingers together and tugging him towards the door. One that sent a tiny bell jingling as they pushed inside.

A voice called them back towards the back of the salon and, stepping through a curtained doorway into a bright, plush room, they find the artist.

The... blind artist?

Sylvain blinks at her a moment. ] I'm. uh... not sure we're in the right place?

[ Which just gets a laugh from her as she waves them over to a settee by the window, where she urges them to sit while explaining what she needs from them. Sylvain again finds himself glancing to Basch, just to doublecheck, even though he automatically listens to the instructions from the painter. ]

Beneath the ink

[beshackled]

Mayhap so. The posting upon the board suggested they were drawn to magicks and negativity both. Although I must wonder both how... and why.

[Negativity... is that not a descriptor of emotion?]

As I understand it, negativity implies a state of emotion. 'Tis a fundamentally different form of energy than that which is known to fuel magicks on Etheirys. Do they feed on both? Or do they use one as a means of locating prey that they might feed on the other?

[Head dipping, he lifts his hand to his chin in thought, question after question rising in his contemplations.]

And if their state is of a contagious nature... why? Are they a parasitic existence latching onto a host? Or some manner of... magical affliction that can be more easily cleansed?

[philancer]

Those are all very good questions.

[ And ones he has zero answers to.

Sylvain's still eyeing the shadowed area up ahead of them with a skeptical look, however. Searching for any sign of movement, but not coming up with anything. Yet. ]

Maybe they'll even answer them, if we can find one. But from the sound of all the reports, they're not really all that sociable.

[beshackled]

Would that we had the facilities of Pandæmonium at our disposal, to observe them and to find a means of separating the affliction from the host.

But I suppose shackling magicks will have to do for quarantining them in the short term.

[Lifting his head to glance at his temporary companion, the prodigiously tall Erichthonios offers a small smile.]

Would you like me to attempt to lure them out?

[He doesn't like the thought of entertaining the idea of someone else being bait.]

the scales we wear 🐉

[activatingcombatmode]

[Zack did manage to talk to the little dragon when the poor thing was requesting help last month. He's glad to see that the little guy has decided that maybe he doesn't have to change who he is to be a good dragon. And having a dragon around on the paladin side of things that wants to be a good dragon seems like a good idea to him.

He's walking up to the scene and he crosses his arms to watch for a moment.

Because the little dragon is promptly jumping up, opening his mouth and ... ROARING OUT a massive huge breath of fire so big that the little wooden shape that was set up for him gets BURNED and EXPLODED on sight.]

... Well, okay. Looks like this little guy is having issues with... learning how to dial it back a bit.

[philancer]

[ The moment that fire roared out, Sylvain had leapt backwards with a startled look. Maybe he shoulda seen that coming, dragons were supposed to be dangerous and fearsome, after all. But he'd only come into contact with one once, and honestly? He'd been too busy running the fuck away to pay much attention to what it could do. Other than, you know, landing on and squashing half an army. And half the Academy at the same time.

Now, he just stares ruefully at the the smoking remains of what had once been a rather large pile of driftwood. ]

I think I should have brought more kindling...

[activatingcombatmode]

[To be fair, this little dragon whelp cowers sadly when he realizes that he just exploded the target like it was nothing. He wants to be a dragon that can control himself! He doesn't want people scared of him!

Zack grimaces and crosses his arms.] Yeah, looks like it. You okay? Need a hand?

[He'll be glad to help, though!]

Maybe some hearty tree stumps would work better for this?

Beneath the Ink

[netherese]

[Finding like-minded adventurers to investigate with was often a simple enough task, and this particular request had caught Gale's attention immediately— the rumor that these creatures were potentially drawn to magic not only made them a subject of interest, but potentially made him excellent bait.]

My thoughts exactly.

[Gale offers the knight he had teamed up with a knowing smile, raising a hand with two fingers extended, poised to perform the somatic component of a spell upon a moment's notice, the first few strokes of a glowing rune following his movement mid-air.]

For anything that might seek to feed on magic, I have a veritable feast to offer.

[philancer]

[ Sylvain casts the guy next to him a curious look. He'd been a little surprised when they'd been paired together to investigate this threat, but if the man was a caster of some sort, that made much more sense. ]

Warlock?

[ he asks, using the most common term for an advanced caster where he came from. This guy didn't look the sort to be a bishop. Although he's not sure his knowledge of magic - slim though it might be - translates to all the other worlds people seem to be drawn from. His healing spells certainly hadn't been apparently.

Then again, considering it was faith magic in his world, he supposed that required a common religion to translate? how should he know, that's a Linhardt or Lysithea question. ]

I don't think letting it feast would be a very good idea, though.

[netherese]

[Gale gives a brief shake of his head before offering a bright and chipper response.]

Wizard— though depending on your origins, they may well amount to the same thing. Not so, where I come from, but I understand we all come from vastly different backgrounds— the learning opportunities offered by such being one of my favorite features of this place.

[A lot of words to confirm that yes, he casts spells.]

I don't intend to let it do anything, fortunately, but I certainly have enough magic about me to draw its attention. I imagine it might find an especially convincing projection to be a rather tasty morsel.

Mantis

[makoglow]

[ Are you seriously looking at him and asking Cloud if he's ready? His arms are crossed over his chest and his Fusion Swords are broken up at the moment. There's at least three different looking blades in Cloud's fancy holster.

Does he look ready? ]

Are you sure you can keep up?

[philancer]

[ Well, you're not actually holding any of your weapons, so he just thought he'd check.

Still, that question gets a cheeky grin from him, because that actually sounds like something Felix would ask him. Even if his best friend would already know the answer to that. it's okay, he's used to being doubted. A lot of times he uses that to his advantage. Right now, though, he's not really up to tricks, more focused on taking care of this bounty.

He likes his head attached right where it is, thanks. ]

I think I can manage.

[ he even has a spear again. Even if it's not his. Which he's really find with, because if he never has to see the Lance of Ruin again, he'd still die a happy man. he's still getting used to the balance of the new weapon, however, hefting it a little to get a more comfortable grip before looking back at the stretch of beach ahead of them. ]

Then again, considering its choice of prey, we could just stand around here looking pretty.

[makoglow]

[ Bro he doesn't need to. Not when he is able to do magic!

Anyway, Cloud doesn't know what to make of that cheeky grin. kind of rubs him the wrong way. Past experiences and all. But this guy has a lance. Probably knows how to fight. Probably? If not, Cloud's pretty sure that he can cover some guy's ass if needed.

But then he says "just stand here looking pretty." It makes Cloud squint. ]

Do you really want to give it an opportunity?

mantis!

[sparkstrikes]

Wouldn't be here if I wasn't.

[And yes, she may still be lacking the magic tattoos, far too stubborn still to get one, but she pats her gunblade in its holster. She needs the money if she's going to manage to do much of anything around here, and it looks like she isn't going to be sent home anytime soon. Can't take that kind of risk for much longer. A girl needs to eat.

But there's a dubious glance over at this guy... Sylvain, he'd said?]

Should be asking you that. I hear she's gone around hunting pretty boys like you.

[That's not the compliment he might think it is—]

[philancer]

[ He's gonna take it as one, anyway. Shooting her an impish grin as he spreads his hands in a carefree shrug, he doesn't seem all that bothered by the prospect. or the potential danger ahead of them with this hunt.

Also he has no idea what her weapon is, but that's pretty fascinating looking. ]

So I've been cautioned. But doesn't that just mean we'll have a better time of finding her first? Maybe we'll get lucky and she'll come right for us.

[ There's benefits to having a pretty boy along, Lightning. ]

[sparkstrikes]

[So it would seem.]

So you're perfectly fine with being tossed into her arms... got it.

[Why does he remind her of a certain brother-in-law, and she barely knows the guy.]

There's a clearing up ahead. You can leap in there and start calling for her if you want.

mantis

[draganea]

[Aranea just returns the grin with a casual one of her own. Yes, she would definitely use him as bait, no questions asked—]

Don't worry about me. But if there's a lair...

[A low hum as she considers their options.]

We either bait it out or trap it in there. Either way, we don't need to give it an advantage.

[philancer]

[ She definitely looks like she can handle herself, so he takes her words at face value. After so many years training beside Ingrid, it doesn't even occur to him to question it.

He's too busy studying the area ahead of them with an assessing eye. ]

I have a feeling it's already going to have plenty of advantages without us giving it more. I guess it depends on if we think there's enough room to fight in there. Otherwise we might just be handicapping ourselves. But luring it out might have some disadvantages, too. Did anyone mention if this thing can fly?

[ All he'd seen was 'giant people-eating bug' which was, frankly, pretty nightmarish. ]

[draganea]

[A bit of a smirk at that.]

If it can fly, then it won't be a problem. Aerial combat is my specialty.

So that said, if we can have it out in the open that would give me more room to maneuver. If it goes up, I can knock it back down.