194 lines
8.6 KiB
Markdown
194 lines
8.6 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: 00030
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created: Sat, 05 Nov 2022 12:51:43 -0600
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updated: Sat, 05 Nov 2022 12:51:49 -0600
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public: yes
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syndicated: yes
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---
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### 00030 {#00030}
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> Inky flips backwards and up, narrowly avoiding the tentacles'
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> grasp. From their courier bag they shake out an inflatable
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> bubblebee[1] of the sort made for aquatic camping. It is one of the
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> fancier models provided to each member of their party courtesy of
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> the well-endowed Benefactor. They yank on one of the cords and
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> scramble inside, hastily closing the flap as the bubblebee rapidly
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> draws in water and fills out to its full size.
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>
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> The bubblebee rises as Inky pulls on the flippers and allows the
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> drifter to buoy the bubble upwards, a bat from the end of one
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> tentacle sending the bubblebee forward a short distance before it
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> slows above the flailing tentacles. Inky switches on the lights to
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> try to get a clearer view of the source of the tentacles.
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>
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> [1] Specific features of bubblebees vary among makers, but they
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> generally have a transparent or translucent spherical body, a pair
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> of small translucent wings that act as flippers, an opening flap at
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> the back with a short rudder attached, and two cords inside at the
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> front near the top which when pulled inflate the bubble with the
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> surrounding air or water. Premium versions might also include
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> headlights, a buzzer, built-in filtration, improved insulation, a
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> drifter and thruster. Like tents they come in various sizes, from
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> small ones that can fit one or two people at average elven height,
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> to larger ones for group outings. Their portability and rugged
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> durability make them very popular among tourists and campers who
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> can enjoy a range of water sports, such as water walking on the
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> surface, riding the bubble down river rapids, or bobbing along
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> underwater to watch the sea life wander by.
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Inky climbs into the inflatable bubblebee just in the nick of time. A
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tentacle bats them a short distance away, and then the apparatus's
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lights cut on and illuminate the murky water.
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You see the tentacles recede into the depths into, from this
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distance, what looks like the outline of a shipwreck.
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At the moment, you are out of reach of the tentacles. And the
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bubblebee affords you some extra maneuverability.
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> Corraidhin eyes inky as they drift away in their bubblebee. "hmm a
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> wonderful idea, that seems safe, but I need to get in closer."
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>
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> While Inky drifts away Corraidhin swims down and towards the
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> tentacles to get a better view of whatever creature stole his new
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> found bear friends. "I simply cannot bear any harm to come to my
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> bears!" As he approaches the creature he prepares a spell should he
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> need to vanquish the monster.
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>
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> ```
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> (fn vanquish [target]
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> (match target.state
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> [:living] (searing-bolt {target target
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> radius "narrow"
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> intensity "high"})
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> [:undead] (smite {target target
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> deity "Larani"})))
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> ```
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Corraidhin charges up a spell!
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The tentacles pull your dear bear friends downward, and you struggle
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to get a view of whatever creature is abducting them.
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The long, slender tentacles appear to originate from within or behind
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a large sunken ship!
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Could it be the SS RSS?
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> Gabs was stunned by the majesty of the two bears, and upon seeing
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> these two beautiful creatures be pulled down, got unreasonably
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> angry. She made sure that the breathing bell was properly attached
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> to her head (a marvelous thing, she thought. She had always
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> wondered what it would be like to have a jellyfish on her head).
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>
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> Gabs bundled and tied up her skirt, as she started to bolt toward
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> the edge of the ship. She reached into her purse and moved away all
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> the loose candy and pulled out two long stiletto daggers. She
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> begins stabbing with unusual precision at the tentacles reaching up
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> on the ship.
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>
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> She yells, “Come’on y’all! We gotta save those babies!”
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>
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> She dives in.
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Prior to the incident, Gabs would have noticed that there was a very
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slight, wobbly weight to the jellyfish. Kind of like getting a gentle
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hug from a helmet of warm spaghetti.
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Some loose candy floats up and away as you rummage through your
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purse, the brightly colored wrappers attracting the attention of a
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curious passing manta ray. It glides over and has a nibble.
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You fetch your stiletto daggers and start stabbing at the long,
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slender tentacles. Your unusual precision causes the tentacles to
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coil and retreat, releasing the merbear in the process. It shouts
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through its tears, "My brother!" and dives back into the fray,
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fighting to free the tardigrade.
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From here, you can see that the tentacles seem to come from the
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wreckage of a large ship lying on its side on ocean floor.
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**META**: Gabs rolls a 6 on "Do Anything 1" and gains a new skill:
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Stabbing 2
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> Seeing his new comrade enter the fray heroically Corraidhin gathers
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> himself. "I suppose this is no time for errant curiosity, can't
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> have anyone getting hurt after all."
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>
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> Ensuring that he doesn't hit either Inky nor Gabs as they near the
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> creature, Corraidhin throws the spell he prepared in the direction
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> of the center of the tentacles. (vanquish "tentacles") And releases
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> a pinpoint thread of searing energy from his palm, guiding it
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> through the mass of tentacles in a random and chaotic pattern,
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> attempting to sever as many tentacles as possible.
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>
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> As that goes on the sysercoerr calculates his retreat plan, he
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> won't be able to prepare another spell like that on the fly, far
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> too meticulous work to do mid combat. As soon as the spell runs
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> out, best case will be to retreat somewhere out of reach, or as far
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> away as is possible there.
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Corraidhín takes careful aim fires off a searing bolt into the center
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of the mass of squirming, reaching tentacles. The bolt of energy
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bounces from tentacle to tentacle creating a chaotic web of energy.
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One of the final bolts of energy pierces the tentacle that happens to
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be gripping the tardigrade. It releases the water bear, but not
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before the tardigrade takes the full brunt of the final blast of the
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dying searing bolt. It cries out and curls up into a ball.
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Motionless, it starts sinking downward. "BROTHER!" the merbear swims
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after it heedless of any nearby danger.
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A wayward crackle of energy blasts outward toward a giant manta ray
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happily crunching on a piece of hard candy. It flaps out of the way
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at the last minute and continues to angrily enjoy its candy, glaring
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at you quite indignantly.
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**META**: Corraidhín rolls a 2 for "Do Anything 1", which means
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things go bad, and gains 1 xp for a total of 1 xp. You can spend xp
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to turn any die into a six for the purpose of advancement.
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> While Master Corraidhín and Gabs confront the tentacles to rescue
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> the bears, Inky looks around the sea floor. Maybe if they found
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> suitable replacements for the bears, the tentacles might be
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> distracted long enough to release the bears, or provide an opening
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> advantage for one of their party?
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>
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> A small distance from the fray, Inky finds a load of discarded
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> bottles among a large pile of other trash carried there by the push
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> and pull between the water currents and a hot spring. Gathering up
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> some bottles, Inky ties them together with twine in singles and
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> small clusters until they resemble two large, crudely-made
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> multi-coloured tanokuma[1].
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>
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> With some difficulty due to the additional weight, Inky attaches
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> the tanokuma to the back of their bubblebee and drags them back
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> above the tentacles, roughly near the spot where the previous bears
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> were taken. When the valiant members of their party dive to one
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> side for another strike, Inky loosens the rope around the "bears"
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> and lets them sink down within reach of the tentacles.
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>
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> [1] First featured in the garden play *Teatime with Tanokuma*, the
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> fluffy purple, jam-grabbing, tea-guzzling bear became an overnight
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> hit among children as well as the fashion-conscious youth who
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> frequent the trendy "Shin-ku" district of Vay'Nullar.
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The decoy tanokuma float above the tentacles as they retreat from
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Gabs's stabbses and Corraidhin's bolts. They grope about weakly, wrap
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themselves around the tanokuma, and finally withdraw.
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You can now clearly see the wreckage of the SS RSS. The
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tentacles---and whatever beast they belong to---is either within,
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behind, or below the ship. It is definitely *ship adjacent* wherever
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and whatever it is. The large double-masted ship is lying on its
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side, teetering precariously on the edge of a large, deep ocean
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trench. There is a large hole in its hull providing unfettered access
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to its insides.
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The tardigrade is sinking inertly toward the ship deck, and the
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merbear is swimming blindly after it.
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WHAT DO YOU DO
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[www](https://framalistes.org/sympa/arc/tildepals/2022-11/msg00043.html)
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