May Catch-All

[sirnyxalot]

Who: Nyx and others
What: Quests and things!
When: Various times throughout the month
Where: Wherever the wind takes them
Warnings: Standard level of violence expected from going out to kill monsters


A catch-all for all Nyx's toplevels this month. Jumping on the bandwagon so I can keep things in order easier.

Comments

Questing with Dave - 05/04

[sirnyxalot]

Leaving in the morning wasn't entirely necessary for what they were planning on doing. The forest gets darker the further in you go, and Nyx was fairly certain that whatever the Jorogumo is it's probably not within the brighter patches of trees. It's very well likely that by the time they find it they'll be relying on other sources for light.

But he wanted to give the both of them as full of a rest as he could. He's still not sure where Dave's level of swordsmanship lies and, while he knows the kid doesn't get much sleep in the first place, every little bit of energy is going to help.

Having packed a small rucksack with some supplies, and donned his full glaive armor for the first time since he woke up in the town, Nyx waited for Dave on the edge of Ruga and stared out into the gray wilderness with an expectant energy. He'd missed a good hunt. The creatures closer to the town weren't much of a challenge, not in the way daemons and monsters are. He hoped the Jorogumo is big enough to be fun.

[parodeity]

Dave approaches without any noise but without much attempt to shield himself from Nyx's notice. He has no reason to be stealthy in town and the lack of noise is more habitual than anything else. He lifts a hand in a wave as he comes to a stop beside the older man. Dave looks about the same as ever. He's in his usual red clothes and doesn't appear to have a pack or weapon on him, but his sylladex is where he keeps everything.

Hammerspace is frankly wonderful.

"Hey," his voice sounds calm. "So apparently we're looking for some kind of giant spider?"

[sirnyxalot]

"Is that what it is?" Nyx cocks his head to the side, mentally pulling up strategies to fight the arachne and its minions. "Sounds like a breed of daemon. Shouldn't be too much of a problem then, if we watch our step."

[parodeity]

"I assume daemons are like, monsters from where you're from." Sounds like a demon, so. Safe assumption? Dave starts walking towards the woods, not quite sure how to track down a spider demon but assuming that the woods will eventually spit them out at her.

They tend to be questionably helpful like that.

[sirnyxalot]

"A step up from the usual monsters that roam around. Things like coeurls and dualhorns are native. Daemons are unnatural beings that only roam at night. Sunlight hurts them and there's rumor that daemons can infect living creatures."

He's not 100% on what the starscourge actually is. The Glaive liked to gossip about shit like that, and it sounded reasonable enough. Reason enough to kill them before they could return the favor.

Nyx keeps pace with Dave as he talks, at ease while they make their way. He's not worried about any of the animals that might jump out at them here, but once the trees start to get thicker he starts moving more carefully.

"There's one type of daemon back home called an 'arachne'. A creature with the torso of a woman and the body of a massive spider. Not pleasant things to face. They like calling on friends."

[parodeity]

Dave moves just as silently as he does in town. Someone trained him from very, very young how to move without being heard. It was not the sort of lesson that was easily if ever forgotten and he doesn't appear to think much of it as he does it. He's wary of traps without actively considering it, too, taking steps with care as half his attention is on the forest around them.

The half focusing on Nyx is enough to ask questions and make comments, however. "I mostly fought imps and ogres, at home. Also semi omnipotent dogs? So never spider things. Got any tips?"

[sirnyxalot]

"Depends on if you're expecting magical attacks, honestly." He holds up a palm, lighting a small fire in his hand to help light their path as the canopy gets thicker. "Arachne were deadly in multiple ways because they could also sling spells, but the benefit was that there weren't any fangs to deal with.

"The thing you have to remember most of all when fighting arachnids is that no matter how big the damn things are they're probably still going to be faster than you. Expect that going in and the worst that's gonna happen is you'll be right. Everything else can be adjusted for."

[parodeity]

"The faster than me thing probably won't be an issue." Like. Maybe??? "Unless they can flashstep, in which case that's chill. But I think they probably can't? That would be so totally lame if they could, that's a proprietary skillset."

[nascere]

[ So, here they are.

This is also weird and sort of interesting, Noctis supposes? He's aware that finishing quests from this nameless person nets them gifts, which is entirely strange in the grand scheme of things, but he's busy trying to figure it out. Hence, his and Estelle's presence for this particular endeavor.

They're here to learn something new, which apparently means forest survival of some sort -- something that seems to be Gladio's forte (turns out, Nyx is pretty good at it, too). ]

Estelle, this is Nyx, ki -- uh, my friend.

[ Oops. No one ever said Noctis was good at obfuscation. ]

Nyx, meet Estelle. Also my friend.

[brightlyshines]

[Estelle isn't that unused to doing strange jobs for strange people, though the lack of meeting the client isn't exactly the norm for her either. The requirements of the job were the most strange thing, honestly....

But a job was a job and hey, it could be fun! She offers Nyx a bright smile, either choosing not to comment on Noctis' slip or missing it entirely. The chances were pretty even on either side there, really.]

Nice to meet you, Nyx! You're a friend of Noctis' from before here, right?

[At least, she assumed so.]

[sirnyxalot]

[Nyx just raises an eyebrow at Noctis, amusement shifting across his face at the two of them. He'd almost been expecting them a bit later, knowing his Majesty's tendency to sleep in, so colour him impressed and looking forward to the next couple of days if this is the kind of dedication he can expect.

Estelle admittedly doesn't look like much to the eye. She's possibly about Noct's age, with a stance that implies a strong personality only further confirmed by her smile. He likes her immediately, instantly warm to the friendliness she radiates. Nyx can't tell whether or not she's trained in any kind of combat, but luckily survival lessons don't necessarily require battle.

The forest here is a bit tricky, he's learned, but the first half a mile would be more than manageable for the two of them.]

It's a pleasure, Estelle. You could say I worked with his father. He gave me a home when I'd lost mine, so it's nice to be able to help Noctis now in return.

[Can we have Massive Understatements for 500, Alex?]

Questing with Tonbokiri - first week of May

[sirnyxalot]

Nyx makes his way to the edge of the forest where he said he'd meet Tonbokiri. He hasn't actually spent a lot of time with the man, yet, despite having met him the very first day. Lost in his own head and concerned with what he thought was inevitable death, his first month wasn't very productive.

He got over it, eventually. And now there's missions out there that he knows for sure he can do. Eradicate a monster threatening the town? Piece of cake. It's his job. Literally. So when he saw Tonbokiri (the man's name sounds off in his mouth and he's certain he has to be mangling it) asking for a blue to help him kill this thing, Nyx about jumped at the chance.

[youwillbeunequaled]

(To be fair, that would be an understandably heavy thing to be occupied with!)

This quest is also very much like his job, but given the lore of the monster Tonbokiri anticipates it to be somewhat tricky. Hence his request for an experienced partner.

In full armour and with spear already unsheathed, Tonbokiri meets Nyx (easier to think than to pronounce- he can't help but add an extra 'su' sound at the end) at the forest's edge. He raises a hand in greeting as the other man comes into view.

"Good morning. Thank you for teaming up with me for this hunt. As you have the air of a veteran, I expect together we shall make short work of the monster. But I would like to ask, do you have Jorogumo in your world?"

[sirnyxalot]

The two of them certainly don't look like they make any kind of team, with Tonbokiri in his armor and Nyx in durable leather. But like will recognize like nonetheless. Nyx has to agree with him that the likelihood of coming home unscathed rose a significant amount.

He nods in return to Tonbokiri's greeting and crosses his arms, head tilted to the side thoughtfully. He hadn't been able to find any information on the monster on his own. Without any frame of reference he couldn't even see if any of the books in the library might have had mention. Even fairytales could be useful in the right context. But there had been too many to skim through in so short a time, so it's a little reassuring to hear the question. "Never heard of it before. Wouldn't be the first time I went to war with too little information, but I'm not gonna say I wouldn't rather have it here. I take it you're more familiar with them?"

[youwillbeunequaled]

He nods his head both in understanding and confirmation.

"Yes. It is a relatively famous monster in Japan." He beckons for them to start walking further into the forest. It may take some time to find it, and it's easy to brief Nyx as they walk. "Of course, the stories of it vary by area, so be on your guard for anything. But if it is truly a Jorogumo, some points should be the same." He begins ticking them off on one gauntleted hand. "It will appear to us as a gorgeous woman. It may very well pose as being in distress. If we find a woman in this forest that neither of us know, we must immediately be ready to strike. Second, once it knows that we will not fall for any lies it gives us, it will change into a terrifying spider-like monster. I have not seen one in truth, but all of the images of it are horrible meldings of spider and woman, so brace yourself. Third, its attacks. Of course, it will have spider webs with which to entangle us, supernatural strength, and perhaps even have small spiders that it can use against us." He pauses pensively. "There was a story of the small spiders being fire-breathing, which would be much more of a danger, especially in a forest."

His report concluded he smiles over at the other man. "Thus forewarned, I expect we shall have little trouble. I must admit, I am looking forward to seeing what your battle strengths are."

[sirnyxalot]

Nyx nods, listening intently and storing the information for future use. Some of those details are just familiar enough to daemons he's fought back home that he almost relaxes. Just another day at the office, really. A call back to a familiar and comfortable time; back when being kingsglaive meant something.

"We're not going to have much trouble. The hardest part is going to be finding the thing and keeping it pinned down long enough to kill it. It could be different in this world, but webbing is easy to deal with where I'm from. There's not much out there that fire isn't the answer to." Nyx grins, locking his fingers together behind his neck.

[youwillbeunequaled]

"'That fire is the answer to?'" Tonbokiri repeats that back curiously.

"What do you mean? ... Can you use the fire-breathing spiders to your advantage?"

[sirnyxalot]

A thoughtful sound. "Probably, if I get creative enough," He's going to have to try, now. Is it weird to pray for fire-breathing spiders? "But that's not what I'm talking about. I can cast elemental spells. It's hardly any effort at all to cast Fire should we need it." A pause. "I wasn't the best mage in the squad but I have enough control to be useful."

Training with Aqua - 05/20

[sirnyxalot]

Nyx shows up to the broken lot not long after giving Aqua the location. He leans against one of the last few walls still standing, arms crossed, and closes his eyes while he waits.

Someone from another world that can use what sounds like the King's magic. Is it possible? Should he tell his Majesty? The answer is 'probably' but he wants to be sure, first. He could be wrong, of course. It's likely that he's wrong. A lot of people here can wield similar magic. There are a couple who can cast fire, for example. That's not exclusive to just Eos.

But it just feels like more than a coincidence.

Nevertheless, he was being honest when he offered to assess her abilities. Even if nothing else comes of it, he'll have information to give to Guren for when he readjusts the defense teams. He hopes he can prepare her for what this place can do.

[shotlocking]

Thankfully, she finds it without much trouble. If she were honest with herself, she's only a little nervous about sparring. The last person she'd fought had been... well, a phantom of herself, hell-bent on destroying her. Before and after that, it had been only those creatures in the realm of darkness. Fighting against another person who's merely curious and not interested in truly hurting her?

She's going to need to remind herself of that.

Regardless, she clears her throat when she sees him. She assumes it's Nyx, since he's the only person around. She raises her hand in greeting.

"Hello--Nyx, isn't it?"

[sirnyxalot]

He pushes away from the wall, gaze immediately assessing, even as he approaches to offer his hand. "Aqua?"

She's young. A fact that's less and less of a surprise the longer he's here. Everyone is young, and skilled enough to have already dedicated years of their life to some kind of battle it seems. It never stops hurting to hear.

"Glad you could come out. This could take some time, so it might be late before you head back. Have you eaten?"

[shotlocking]

She takes his hand, her grip firm and sure. He's strong, she can tell that much from just looking at him, and as she pulls her hand away, she nods.

"Don't worry, I have," she says, and she almost sounds sheepish. How long has it been since she's had someone care about her in any way? Even if it's just a comment like this, it makes her think of home. "And I'm used to long training sessions, so I'll be just fine. What would you like me to start with?"

[sirnyxalot]

"Good. If your energy starts to wane, let me know. I brought something to snack on just in case." He's already impressed, just by the basic knowledge of how to prepare for a session.

"I figure we'll start with a magical warm-up. You show me what you can do, and we'll compare notes. Once we're done with that we can get down to actually sparring."

He gestures to the wall he'd been leaning against. There's a darker gray mark on the dirty brick, some sort of lazy target. "The houses on that side of the lot are still empty, so we can throw spells without having to worry about how strong they are. But for now we'll just demonstrate small, okay? Starting with your elemental magic."

[shotlocking]

He's prepared, and Aqua can admire that. It reminds her of herself, of the times when they'd had harder training sessions and she'd been the one to remember to bring food and water. It's a memory that makes her heart ache, but she can't dwell on it when she has a purpose for being here.

"Alright." Her keyblade appears in her hand in a burst of light. "Small isn't an issue." Her control is excellent, after all. Aqua raises her weapon, sending forth a chain of fireballs. They're small, but powerful, and Aqua hardly breaks a sweat as she cycles through her spells: ice next, then wind, then thunder, then magnet, which she uses to pull a few rocks to her.

When the rocks have hit the ground, she turns to Nyx. "Those are my most basic spells, but I'm capable of making them much, much more powerful."

[sirnyxalot]

He watches, nodding along with each spell. They're not quite the same as his own, different in the way they're cast. He can tell right away that it's definitely not the King's magic that powers them. As she cycles through the spells he doesn't know, his eyebrows raise towards his hairline and by the time she's finished he looks appreciative.

"You have a wider range than I do. I've never seen your wind spell or the last one."

Offering up his own ability in kind, he holds up one hand, fire flicking to life in his palm. Focusing the magic down his arm he casts towards the target: first a single burst of fire, before bringing up his other arm to throw a bolt of thunder behind it. His blizzard is a little strong, cooling the damage he caused instantly and spreading frost across the ground towards their feet.

Nyx wipes his hands on his coat.

"What's that weapon, by the way? Is that the key you mentioned on the forum?"