sixth shot ⊗ open september log

[flamekthunder]

🧙 WHO: Eustace and anyone
⚔️️ WHAT: various quests
🕒 WHEN: throughout September
🗺️ WHERE: various
⚠️ WARNINGS: none except for any potential violence that might happen in the combat oriented prompts

⊗ a: task - shear determination

[Shearing sheep...that takes him back and although it's been a while he heads over. Even if he can't, he can at least use his magic to try and help keep them calm. So for shearers, Eustace can assist some of the nervous sheep, quietly speaking to them and stroking their heads to keep them calm. And he'll also give some advice.]

You need to get all the way down to the skin and be quick about it, so don't hesitate. Be firm or it'll just come out jagged and you'll have to do it over. The faster you are the, less time they'll be like this and remain stressed.

And watch its right side—seems like it's more sensitive there. Could be a skin irritation, but we can treat it after it's been sheared.

[He'll call out any other such problematic spots a sheep might have. Sensitive leg, ticklish belly, don't be too rough, don't be too gentle—being able to hear and understand the sheep certainly has its benefits.]

⊗ b: task - cult classic

[If it's not one set of idiots it's another...

Having recovered from his injuries from last month, Eustace will take this as a prime opportunity to "warm up" and get back into it. Although there had been no deaths, it's clear the guy is being too reckless. Except with him sticking to the rooftops in the late evenings and around the places the incidents have occurred, it wouldn't be too unusual for him to be momentarily be mistaken. Especially when he's always wearing his own cloak.]

⊗ c: tdm - the fighting badass

[Zombies and undead... Well he's used to fighting them, but carrying back their remains? Not the most pleasant thing, but a job's a job and it's something he can do. He needs the exercise, anyway.

1. Combat. Although he'll plan on going solo, he won't helping anyone who is also dealing with the zombies. And wouldn't you know, lightning is fairly effective against them. Not wanting to push himself too, he's setting himself on a high point and sniping down the zombies, shooting lightning down immobilize and down them. Should he have someone that's more close combat, he'll be careful with his shots and let them finish it off.

2. Night watch. For the journey back, Eustace will be definitely guarded and alert on the captured remains. If camping out with someone, he'll secure the bags or boxes used to hold them and eye them warily.]

It would be better if there was some kind of sealing magic... Go ahead and sleep, I'll keep watch.

⊗ d: wildcard

[Considered the Take to the Skiesish prompts but he'd need some convincing to drink the vials. Should anyone want to take that up, I'll be game for any of the other prompts (flying, catching stars, giant bats). If interested in anything else not included here, just hit me up on laenavesse or discord and we can work something out!]

Comments

[flamekthunder]

In that case I must have misunderstood. This entire situation has been unclear and unnecessarily complicated to me from the start. [Another reason for his ongoing frustration with everything. It's not that he hasn't done his research, but it gets a bit muddy when trying to find a specific route. Having to try and learn an entire world's convoluted history doesn't help either.] But no, I have not heard of it.

[Well there is an Excalibur floating around that may or may not become relevant in some event with the Camelot based group but for now we play it safe and assume its eventual significance has yet to be revealed. Or something. gachas man]

[flamekthunder]

[Yes that is indeed a terrible vision, stop Maribelle!]

I do not know if I have a hard limit, but currently I can only transform into animals I have physically seen either in person or in a video. Even those can be of varying success depending on how familiar I am. Canines seem to be the easiest ones I can change into.

[starshower]

[Tifa grins back through a bite of her porkchop.]

You're not going to adopt all of them yourself, are you?

[Everyone loves animals, but don't be unrealistic!!! Plus, what would Gran say if he went back with fifteen dogs and a dozen cats? Maybe a bird or mouse?]

[sighsheavily]

[so the real fix for this conundrum is purchasing an egregious amount of ingame currency, got it.]

Names have power. The name alone may be the linchpin that has sewn together the destinies of so many realms, but from what I've researched, Excalibur is more often than not a sword. [she has yet to hear about the existence of sword anime waifus] And while one in part may have been the sword in-question, it may have...echoes in other places. Enough to be dragged into this, at least.

[flamekthunder]

[A small laugh.]

I'd only be interested in the dogs, but no. Eria is enough to handle.

[Among other practical reasons but this is supposed to be a "date" so need to keep it lighthearted.]

[flamekthunder]

[it's a foolproof plan]

...Would it be possible to create a "new" Excalibur? Either by taking in essences from other worlds that hold its magic or somehow siphoning it from... [He looks back up... Yeah okay probably not.] ...Nevermind. But if it can't be destroyed, if it could be neutralized or "reversed" and contained by a similar force that created it...is that even possible?

[sighsheavily]

[it's good his attention is skyward, because she can't hide the grim kind of smile that pulls on her features for a moment there.]

What makes you think our efforts aren't an Excalibur reforged?

[flamekthunder]

It's hard to tell with everything else that's been going on taking more immediate attention.

Then what's the plan?

[sighsheavily]

Right now...it's to prove one's self worthy to be privy to the plans the court has in process. [she sighs, tapping her quill on the page before deciding she's done, straightening up and closing the book.]

Carry what you've seen here with you; you're now in a better position to assist than you were before seeing it. [she pauses, then shrugs.] Unless blind faith is being given higher marks. I'm afraid I don't know the rubric.

[feisticuffs]

[It's quite something to watch, all in all, but there's no time to stand around admiring Eustace's handiwork at the moment. She nods quickly in response, taking only half a moment to catch her breath before she starts to round up every piece within reach.

Thankfully, what had been quite a distance for all those little severed digits wasn't too far from the crate they'd come in.]

Fast, I can do!

[He can take a moment if he needs to— that whole display looks like it had knocked the wind out of him— but she'll quickly set about snatching up every digit and broken bit that's been caught by the ice. It's a shame her own magic had done more harm than good in this situation, but she's grateful that they hadn't been entirely without options.]

Check over there, make sure none stay loose!

[flamekthunder]

...

[A hard rub to his brows. All right, he can understand that. One would be stupid to just blindly reveal potentially universe altering plans to just anyone, especially when it's been made obvious that not everyone who's been brought here are to help per se. Doesn't make it any less frustrating that he's still back at square one of having to be strung along on this wait and see sort of plan. With his background, that kind of situation is more annoying.

But it's also true that he has a much clearer understanding of what their problem is. Just hearing about an already abstract, complicated problem was not enough, and now he can truly see the scope of their problem. So after a moment of literally rubbing that bit of frustration away, he lets out a small, cooling breath.]

While there may be something to that, I'll let others take that chance. [He then looks back to her.] But even so, thank you for letting me see this. I only wish I could have provided any kind of insight or help in return.

[But this is really beyond his scope of expertise. Unless, you know, shooting it would do anything but probably not—]

Is this something I should keep to myself?

[It's not that he would go around blabbing, but better to be safe than sorry.]

[sighsheavily]

Absolutely not. [she lifts her chin, fixing her eyes on him.] Ideally, everyone would come to see the full impact of what looms overhead. [beat.] Well, everyone with the capacity to do something about it and not be left a weeping, emotional wreck.

You're a firsthand witness. Share your understanding.

the hot knights will 🥰

[starshower]

With a drink.

[Where she would have otherwise lingered to keep that a bit quieter, Tifa's already leaning and turning away. Now that they're inside—after having to practically drag him through the door—there's no need to waste any more time than they already have. That, and she's certainly noticed the way he shows his displeasure in multiple ways, and she's not just talking about the club, but she's chosen to shrug it off. There are some things she doesn't want to talk about, and they have a job to do here.

For it being a strip club, it's a lot more crowded in here than she was expecting, and as she leads the way further inside, she's going to make a concerted effort to ignore the people dancing on the floor to the music, as well as the men and women up on the stage that lines either side of their path to the bar, and one of the men even leans down to greet her in his... can she even call those underwear?

It's only a sideways glance that she sees him before she's scurrying to the bar and ordering them a pair of drinks—nothing fancy, but nothing too plain either. Whatever the drinks are, they've got a bit of a sweeter zest to them, and she sips as she sits on one of the booths.]

You got the details of the job, right?

[troubadamsel]

What do you mean, "varying success"? If you don't have a clear image in your mind, can you not transform at all? Or does the result look... less than perfect?

[starshower]

Seems she's got a will of her own.

[Are all familiars like that? The fact that she was able to open the door and usher Tifa in the first time she visited Eustace and Gran's place was pretty impressive, if not a little terrifying. She hopes she never has to deal with that with her own.]

We should get Eria to meet mine sometime. They'd probably get along well.

[Or would cause chaos for both of them, but at least that would mean they were getting along???]

[tempredmental]

[Keith nodded.]

When I saw someone running around in a cloak like that, I figured... [He sighed.] Are you after him, too? You know you look like you could be him with that cloaked getup, right?

[flamekthunder]

A bit of a both and more. The most often case is I can't transform at all, but if I do manage, the form might not hold for very long or it could be the wrong size. Some other...abnormalities would be slightly deformed limbs, such as shorter legs or missing a tail. If the only issue is size I can hold the transformation with more effort, but if there are other inaccuracies then it won't last for more than a few seconds.

[flamekthunder]

A strong one.

[Too strong at times, but he knows she has a soft side and she's the closest thing to having a wolf again. So although he doesn't always show it, he's quite attached to his familiar.]

...What is yours, anyway? I don't think I've ver seen it.

[flamekthunder]

[He is definitely going to need to take that moment. As impressive as it was, elemental magic is still his secondary so it takes a lot more for him to use. It's unfortunate that his animal magic doesn't have as much use... He'd rather not risk some critter carrying off one of the digits or worse—eating it.

So after catching his breath, he straightens up and and looks at the area nearest him. Quickly he'll snap up any before tossing them into the crate, and between the two of them they're able to collect them all.]

That should be all of them.

[flamekthunder]

[A nod.]

Understood. I'll keep it to those I sense are interested so as not to overwhelm you should they want to see it for themselves.

[flamekthunder]

...The thought did occur to me, but in a way I'm also hoping to bait him out for that exact reason.

[flamekthunder]

[Normally he wouldn't think anything of her behavior, but something pricks him when she turns away. Again she's avoiding him, and everything just feels—off. This isn't something he should be "worrying" over right now, but it's back again.]

Tifa—

[There's a hard, heavy tone in his voice as he calls out to her, but she's already moving ahead and he can only grit his teeth and click his tongue. Maybe he's just more agitated because of this place. The noise, the everything. There's no way he could feel anything but irritated by it all. So after roughly running a hand through his hair, he stalks off after her... Though it's not a very pleasant walk. He's getting similar attention, and for some reason the cold, harsh glares only seem to fascinate them further?? Ugh, he doesn't need this.

Nor does he need to witness Tifa getting called on. Not that it's completely unexpected, but once again, he finds himself not really liking it. It's fortunately not an overly strong feeling, but...it's there. And it shouldn't be there.

...

Once he reaches her, he'll just continue to remain wordlessly by her side, that cold aura of his slightly stronger than usual. And once they're in the booth, he only holds his drink, looking at it before his eyes flick over at her. There's still more on his mind than there should be, but all right. They're here for a reason, so if he needs to shift mindsets, he'll shift.]

...Only as much as you told me, but I've heard about this one. This place has taken some knights to be used, correct?

[tempredmental]

[Keith considered that.]

So, hoping he'll get frustrated by a copycat or see you as a rival? [He nodded a little.] I could see that.

[flamekthunder]

Something like that. I'm not really one for the theatrics and would rather just hunt him down directly.

According to some pigeons there was a strange sightings in this direction.

[tempredmental]

[In any other context, Keith probably would have stared at Eustace like he had lobsters in his ears, but, somehow, that statement didn't alarm him in the least.]

Okay. [Keith nodded.]

You want some company? [If Eustace was worried about blowing his cover, Keith could easily follow from a distance and teleport in with Kosmo when he was needed.]