Eggciting Hunt! [Monster Hunting Mission]

[Ikki Ko]

Name: Catacomb Clearance!
Rank: B
Description: The Catacombs beneath the mountains are full of filthy monsters and need to be cleaned out immediately. They rushed the miners and ran them out, leaving them without work and without pay, and that just can’t be allowed. Get in there and get rid of them. We have no idea how many are down there though, but it was definitely a nest or two. Once that’s done, report to the Tavern and find the leader of the Miners, the Foreman, Dan. He’ll pay you.
Reward: 5000 Ryo per monster slain (bring proof)

Ikki Ko stood before the mission request board in the center of the small town, which was built almost in the side of the mountain, which must be the same mountain that the ledger was speaking of. It would seem there was a monster infestation going on in there and that it was ruining the livelihood of the people that resided in this peaceful village. Well, she could not just stand by and let that happen, not with there being a reward for killing those monsters in any case, and so she was going to take it! But, there was no way she was going to clear that herself. It would be nice if her father was here with Sekizen, but it looked like she was going to have to wait and see if someone else could come along and give her a hand. Naturally, she has all of her listed gear on her, because being armed to the teeth all the time is just the way it goes.

[Deleted]

(Assuming control)

[Takeuchi]

It had been a while since he was out of the country and out on a simple, old fashioned monster hunt. He stepped up beside the girl that was checking out the request board and saw her eyes locked on one of the missions. Taking a look at the job she had her eyes on he saw the Catacombs Clearance which was exactly what he was looking for. He had Banryu on his back and was still wearing the tattered shorts and tank top with the word 'TANTOR!' printed across his chest and a black and yellow skull cap on his head. The job was best done with multiple people with at least one nest being present. "Hey, you looking to clear the Catacombs? Mind if I join you in that?" Banryu was also in it's leather strapping on his back with the oddity being a sizable steel soup ladle at his belt.

[Madame Loki]

Name: Catacomb Clearance
Rank: B
IIC Length: 2 days
Difficulty: Difficult
Objective: Eliminate unknown treat from Catacombs
Description: The Catacombs beneath the mountains are full of filthy monsters and need to be cleaned out immediately. They rushed the miners and ran them out, leaving them without work and without pay, and that just can’t be allowed. Get in there and get rid of them. We have no idea how many are down there though, but it was definitely a nest or two. Once that’s done, report to the Tavern and find the leader of the Miners, the Foreman, Dan. He’ll pay you. Proof of death is required.
Reward: 5000 Ryo per monster slain (bring proof)

** Mission Start **

[Deleted]

The winding mountain cave was wide and spacious. The mouth of the mine entrance was wide and vacuous. The remnants of a once great emerald mine. The mine once brought great wealth into the land until the miners broke into an underground catacomb. As the catacomb was breached the multi level mine was flooded with terrifying beasts and undead alike. All striving for one thing and one thing alone. The complete and total defense of depth of the catacombs and the immense riches below. 

There are 10 levels of the mine. The further down the mine you go the tougher the encounters will become. If anyone survives and defeats the evil within the catacombs you can claim the great treasure below. 

[She of the Mighty Bow-Gun]

Clair had flown in on her massing Roc and parked the behemoth outside the message center that lay in the town. The notice board had been barren on days previously when she entered Bear or anywhere around it. Now the notices and flyers were hanging off the board, stapled and stitched together to hang almost to the ground. It was unreal what the seasons did to the lands that hadn't cultivated and the people hadn't tilled the minerals and such from the rich earth. This was nature fighting back while it still had a hand in it's own destiny.

Clair brought her piston, heavy and long bow. 80 bolts with various tips and razor fletching fo rover 100 of those bolts to add distance to her shots. Even as she approached with her hood up (Put ya hood up, put ya hood up! Throw ya click up!) the royal purple and blue bright as well as the sun beating down outside suggesting this was the middle of summer, but the heat was dry thanks to the biome.

"Take one of those flyers?" She noted at approach, checking her hip quiver and the rack attached to her sniper bow, "I came flying through here almost a year again to the day and found nothing out of place and missing dry. It's bonkers a nest opened and thrived to the point of problem within a year or less. The more the merrier is that where you guys are headed... if not well... I mean total should." Dropping the hood revealed the young huntress and her deep blue hair, too a royal color. "Claire, by the way." Standing caddycorner she offered both of them a hand, arms crisscrossed.

[Ikki Ko]

Previous meeting with Claire

Two people had joined her at the board shortly after she completed reading the mission, one man who quite honestly looked odd, even as far as odd looking people went. Cap and tanktop, tattered shorts and an impressive looking weapon, but who was she to judge a book by its cover? Her own blade was on her hip, her skin was a very light pink and her hair was blonde, which was an oddity all its own. Right before she could answer, another oddity arrived, although it was one that she knew, if only briefly. Claire, the woman who had aided her on the road when she began this journey, how many years ago was that? Probably not too many, but it was nice to see a familiar face again.

“Hey, Claire, nice to see you again! Also, hello Mr…you? I don’t know your name, sir. I’m Ikki Ko.”

She took a step back from the board and managed to place herself in a position to look at them both, facing them from a more acute triangle point position. Typical of her, she wore her blue jeans and sneakers, along with a T-shirt of her favorite band ‘The Sages’, which had the band in a very colorful set with their instruments and horns on their heads, the shirt itself white with long black sleeves. Brushing aside her darker blonde hair, having darkened with age to a more reddish hue, her blue eyes were still bright as ever. The large backpack shifted and moved her Recurve bow, along with the quiver of arrows, signifying that it was rather packed.

“To answer you, Mister, I am definitely going into that tunnel. It looks like you and Claire will be too, so maybe we can team up? If so, let’s get going!”

Pulling the bow from her back, she only waited long enough for them to get acquainted before making her way toward the cavern at the edge of town, the mountain that held the mine, as well as the catacombs below. There was no telling the number of monsters that were within those dark depths, but she was not afraid, at least mostly not afraid. Notching an arrow, but not readying it of course, she would enter the cavern slowly and ready for anything. [Observation: 37 SP/Stealth: 16]

[Takeuchi]

The Uchiha looked at the two, the girl from before and the newcomer to the party. It seemed that the trio was heading in together and he looked over their equipment while taking Claire's hand in a handshake. His own meaty paw practically engulfed the girl's hand, both girls seemed capable of better range than he himself was. "Claire, Ikki Ko, I'm called Takeuchi it's nice meeting the two of you." Releasing the handshake he made sure that Banryu was loose enough in it's wrappings that it could be easily removed if the need came. "A team up sounds good, you two look like you can handle range and, being frank, that has never been my strong suit."

It would be a relief to have someone capable of fighting at long range while he went in close to bust heads. "I'm sure my appearance alone is pretty indicative of my manner of combat, though." Really, his appearance had no subtlety and hid nothing about his abilities in combat, though he could pull a few cards from his sleeve as need be. After acquainting himself with the two, it was about time they headed to the tunnels and go inside to rid the world of the beast within it's depths.

{Observation:125}

[Deleted]

In the entrance of the cave there was nothing  that seemed out of the ordinary of the mines. They were clearly abandoned in haste. Pick axes and old food left out and about in the frenzied rush to evacuate. There were pitchers of potatoes and even a few loose bits of precious metal that were dropped on the ground. Someone with some looser morals might acquire some of it if they wished.  Eight small nuggets littered the ground spilled over onto the ground from an over turned bucket. The cave was empty in the first section but there were three passage ways that could be followed from here. 

The pathways led left, forward and to the right. Each of the passageways would go on for hundreds of yards before meeting up again eventually in a main passageway. The adventurers were under no obligation to split up. But they might find more rewards and peril if they split up.

[She of the Mighty Bow-Gun]

Handshakes distributed, Claire turned off towards the direction of the cave as they traveled, cursing that she'd forgotten her goggles in the whole mix of things. "I'll have to use flares in the event the cave is super dark, just a heads up." She called to the group as a whole. The one with the blade seemed to be content with himself, no armor, not protection from what she could see and Ikki looked a bit older from the last time they had met and she'd gotten a tad taller too.. or maybe Claire was shrinking!

Off to the entrance Claire spotted what appeared to be overturned items (assuming these rolls apply to her) However she made nothing of it, dipping into that surplus of inner energies to check her levels. Overhead her companion, Krogger the mighty Roc screeched but did not appear to them. She took a slower stride, putting away the pistol bow for the now sniper she loved with all her heart. The fletching of her loaded bow was spiraled and the tip loaded on was a Dragon's Dream explosive gas.

"So do we want to go charging in or do you want me to fling a little explosive in there, see where if we can shake loose anything and pick it off. I'm all for fighting but I'm next to useless in hand to hand. I've enough to defend myself and escape." Sh was already aiming down sight, the bolt tip still sharp but augmented for the gas chemical. The explosion that could spark off was moderate but she also thought of a mine collapse blocking them out entirely... maybe.. worth it though if the monsters never got out!

"Comments? Suggestions? Oh and... can either of you see in the dark? I feel like it's going to be dark in there."

[Ikki Ko]

They had all shook hands, but Ikki Ko had been so mission focused that she had only paid attention to names and handshake grips, noticing that Mr. Takeuchi’s grip was very strong. That wasn’t surprising though, considering his build

”Don’t blow up the cave please.”

She would plead with Claire, standing close to the woman and looking down at her, when she had to look up at her before. They were the same age, but she had at least and inch on the girl, which was something that she had not thought would happen. Suppressing a grin, she forced herself to continue, refocusing on the mission itself.

“I can’t see in the dark either. Maybe Mr. Takeuchi can?”

She would look over at the large man who was to aid them, asking him with that indirect question and her eyes, hoping he could before they went in. While that would help some, it would not be the largest aid they would get, but it was definitely a start if the cave was dark. He would have to run point for them, while she and Claire hung back as a rear vanguard. She was happy she was a mix of Range and Close Combat though, where the other two specialized in one or the other it seemed. Her father and Genkijo had prepared her well. Examining the cave entrance while they answered and reacted to her, she would spy the potatoes, the hasty retreat that left overturned barrels and clutter, and even the precious gems. Eight of them in total, but there was only the three of them, so how would they split that? Moving stealthily as she could, which was honestly not the best [Stealth: 16], she would move to the gems and collect all eight; the hand collecting the gems still holding the arrow and the other still holding the bow.

“I don’t know if you guys want these, but I only want two of them, so you both can have three each. I’m sure there will be better treasure further down too! So let’s get moving and save the mine!”

Arrow notched once again, she began moving into the cave, her eyes peeled and ears open, waiting for her sight to adjust to the new setting [Observation: 37]. Additionally, she would keep her eyes peeled for any tracks as well, human or not, going into the mine [Tracking: 67]. There might be people that they would have to save as well or return their remains to their families. It was within the mine's first section that she noticed the trail split though, the three branches, once her eyes had adjusted to the new lighting. That was not good...who builds a mine this way? She looked at her companions.

"Um...looks like there's three paths...what should we do? Monsters, treasure, and maybe people could be down these paths..."

Splitting up didn't scare her, but dying sure did, considering she still knew nothing of the Airontoku and wouldn't get to say goodbye to her father. However, it would not be a horrid idea either, since they were tasked with clearing the mine and backtracking allowed time for the monsters to regroup and refill once cleared areas. She hoped the others, with more experience than her, could aid in this decision.

[She of the Mighty Bow-Gun]

(Exit)

[She of the Mighty Bow-Gun]

//Enter

Claire returned with her goggles this time! Her three bows, pistol, heavy and rifle, the rifle loaded down to the teeth with enhancements and her bows all modded up. 50 razor fletched shafts, 50 normal and a bunch of different snares, explosives, lightning bottles and the lot.

"Hey, Ikki!" She came back waving, frantic, her goggles on zoom with the thermal vision turned off and the night vision on when they neared the mouth of the cave. "I've got my night vision this time so we can actually walk through here without getting ambushed. Well... not too much anyways." She wished at this time she had dark vision, she'd fought demons with that ability who'd escaped her time and again because she couldn't see in the dark. Pain. In. The ass.

"Catch you inside, eh?" She flashed her a grin under the regal cloak she normally wore, pearly white those teeth, and went charging headlong into the cave, pistol bow ready, her eyes trained forward and her mental alacrity turned up to 11.

[Takeuchi]

A branch of three paths, they could all stick together or split up and go their separate ways for this. The Uchiha personally thought that sticking together would be the best option, especially since the overall ability to see in the dark did not seem to be that exceptional. Claire herself left for a bit to rectify the situation and returned with some night vision goggles. "Good thinking, Claire, I say we should stick together. Splitting up when few of us can see in the dark isn't the smartest idea. I do have some proficiency in the fire element, so we can light some torches if we can find something to use for them." He then pointed towards the right path, "I say we take the right path and continue along it until our progress is stopped or we reach a way down. Any objections?"

[Ikki Ko]

Ikki Ko looked at the two, now that Claire had returned, and listened to their reasonings for the choices they were making. Sounded like a good idea to stay together and the right path was no better or worse than any other path, at least as far as she could see, so why not? Looking again at Takeuchi, Ikki Ko would nod her acceptance, before adding a few words of her own.

“Yeah, I would definitely not want to be alone in the dark, since I can’t see a bit. I don’t have anything fancy like you two do, I’m pretty poor.”

She grinned at the two a pleasant grin, the grin of a girl who was awkward and shy around people, but doing her best to be outgoing. Readying her bow again, she would then follow their lead, as they were the ones who could actually see what was going on in the cave, unlike herself.

[She of the Mighty Bow-Gun]

"Yup. Group up. Got it."

They needed to get moving less there be no time left before the mission expired. "I'll take the head, scout out and what not, see what we're up against here." To the right she went, veering, her goggles attuned to night vision and her pistol bow out and armed. The heavy crossbow say on her thigh and the rifle was vertical to her back.

The path was straight for the time being it looked though she smelled something akin to 'Cave Rot' usually meaning the occupancy of a creature nesting and feeding for extended periods of time. With a surge of inner energy she extended these gifts outward. While they remained in close vicinity of each other at roughly ten meters the other two would receive a burst of energy, an increase of one movement as well as the aura of safety that poured from Clair also linked to them. They all put off an aura of protection and while they were within ten meters of her they both received a +25 sacred bonus to their armor as well as themselves releasing an aura of +5 additional armor.

While she received a 35 point boost they each received 30. It worked out that way. "This place stinks yo.." She screwed her nose up in a deep sneering pout and checked the corners, swept the ceiling, searching for anything from massive cave spiders to dwelling carnivore they might be disturbing. Those giant flightless dragon could be an issue... Bandersnatches too...