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Post by Xentus on Aug 24, 2020 9:18:10 GMT -6
"Tread with care", Xentus warned the golems in a hushed tone. There was no telling what they might stumble across down here. The cave was pitch black, save for the beam of light from his flashlight. Dust and dirt danced in the beam, kicked up by his intrusion to this forgotten place. It sullied the light, making it's reach much shorter than he would've liked. Careful steps forward tested the ground. This new environment was oddly suspicious and the sound he heard didn't help ease any tension. The hall was cramped, barely letting him stand at his full height. Not that he minded getting a dirt on his clothing. One couldn't venture into the earth an expect to come out as clean as they went in.
The two earth golems took up after their master's caution, crawling after him on their three limbs. No clatters rocked their shells for once. They did their best to be as silent as their master was, slowly and carefully waddling forward. They weren't unnerved by the looming cavern. Rather, they were delighted to be surrounded by their element. But now didn't seem to be the time to relish in the abundance of earth. Feeding would have to wait.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 24, 2020 9:26:28 GMT -6
The golems didn't mind waiting for the right time to settle in and absorb some earth. They felt the waves of awareness extending from the leopard. Even if they didn't know what they were attempting to mask themselves from, they would dutifully follow suit in whatever mood their bonded one set. The two crept along, side by side, right at Xentus's tail. The fluffy appendage twitched at its tip, telling of the man's sharp focus.
Each step further into the cave revealed more of their surroundings. There indeed was a river of sorts settled in here, carving through the center of the long, widened room. The noise he heard seemed like it came from a chamber to the right.. His ears flicked in that direction, hoping to refine the location. But the sound didn't echo. Whatever it was, it didn't make the noise often. Was it some kind of movement of a creature through the earth? An odd, distorted echo from something further away? An exhale of a gigantic beast, even..? It was impossible to tell. But from the looks of it, nothing was in this part of the cave except the gently flowing water. The liquid shimmered in a bluish-brown tone as he illuminated it with his light.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 24, 2020 9:31:45 GMT -6
Taking a dip wasn't in his best interests.. Not due to the quality of the water, but because the golems with him would likely follow him in and drown themselves. Er, if they could even drown that is. They.. Probably could? The sudden quandary made the leopard's brow furrow. He stopped his slow crouched walk to turn around and get an assessing look at his company. The two walkers froze mid step, as if they'd just been caught doing something bad. It almost made him chuckle. If he wasn't trying to remain silent, he probably would've laughed aloud and called them silly little things. Well, he couldn't tell if they even breathed. But he supposed their inner seeds could suffocate if submerged in the wrong element.
Anyway, back to careful exploring. Xentus moved his gaze to the opening in the wall to the right. The ceiling was high enough that he could straighten and walk over there normally, but he felt the crouch kept him quieter. He didn't want to disturb anything that may be lurking in the darkness. The floor here was damp from the underground stream. Uncomfortable bits of mud stuck to the pads of his feet. It was difficult to overcome the urge to shake the clinging goop off..
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Post by Xentus on Aug 24, 2020 9:38:14 GMT -6
Still, he did his best to suppress the feeling so that he could proceed. His path took him along the slate stone wall of the cave. A clawed hand reached out to touch the surface, assessing the quality of the rock. Slick with condensation and grainy.. Probably not the best surface to take up mining on. His hand retracted, wiping the remnant grit off onto his pants. The closer he got to the naturally carved opening, the slower he went. If there was something big around that corner, he wanted to be able to back away without causing any alarm. The echoes of the expansive room did make him question whether or not he even heard the sound coming from this direction.. For all he knew, it could've come from deeper within.
If anything, his continued progress was going to give him piece of mind. As he made his way to the entryway of the adjoining cavern room, he looked to his trailing golems and gave them a very pressing look. For them to remain quiet, no matter what they came across. The last thing he needed was for them to start clacking at something again. Nothing like potentially waking a beast with the sound of applause.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 24, 2020 9:46:13 GMT -6
The golems felt the silent waves of energy from their one. To be quiet. Stealthy. Cautious. Alert, but not alarmed. They could manage this.. Probably. If they perceived any danger, they would normally make a fuss about it. Bringing something to the attention of their master so that he might be able to react in time. Such an instinct was difficult to suppress. They weren't exactly the most powerful or intimidating thing to come across. The most they could do was try.
Xentus felt that the beings got the message, even if their demeanor didn't change. He had to hope for the best. He held his breath as he turned the corner. In the shallow cavern room, he saw.. Not as terrible of a beast as he thought he might. But still a beast no less! In the center of the area was a strange little serpent-like creature resting atop an interesting dark blue stone. It didn't seem to notice his presence, curled up in the middle of sleep. As much as he would rather not disturb it, he did want the treasure it slumbered atop.. Perhaps he could slowly slide it out from under the creature and replace it with another, worthless rock instead?
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Post by Nadia on Aug 26, 2020 13:22:44 GMT -6
This jasper has a lovely shine to it.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 28, 2020 7:19:03 GMT -6
It was the best plan he had at the moment. After the experience with Greb the grub, he didn't want his inexperience with such tiny, pocket-sized creatures to go awry yet again. Not to say that he was afraid of the little being, no, not in the slightest. He was a man who preferred the company of giants. Such a small thing hardly passed as a beast. But, he figured that going about cave crawling would be the best when done with as few feet (and noisy mouths) as possible. There was no telling what might lurk in the depths. The stone was the only prize of value here.
Xentus motioned with a finger rested over his lip to the golems. Just to drill in one last time the need for quiet approach. The things seemed to get it.. No clattering, no odd shuffling. Good. Xentus crept up slowly into the open cavern room, eyes locked on the gem-critter duo. It was fast asleep.. It made no motion in response to his approach. Until he touched the rock. He was aiming for a quick grab, replace, and go motion, but executed the plan much less eloquently than he expected. The tiny beast's eyes snapped open, its frill splayed in a threat display.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 28, 2020 7:27:23 GMT -6
The leopard recoiled slightly, frowning that the thing had awaken. But it didn't bite his fingers immediately, so he nabbed the blue stone and backed away slowly. The small creature was displeased with this, obviously. It loosed the tiniest hiss it could muster, upset that its treasure had been thieved away. It crawled after the intruder, hiss-squeaking with all its might. Unfortunately, Xentus couldn't maintain his composure with this wholly threatening beast chasing after him. A gentle chuckle escaped him, tension easing.
"Apologies, little one", he murmured quietly to the creature, crouching down and offering a new, separate pebble for it to call its own. The green accented being dropped its display and curiously approached, slithering forward while reaching out with its paws. Easily appeased, it seemed. The pebble was accepted, though it seemed somehow disappointed that its treasure was gone. Not that the leopard cared much. He felt satisfied that the thing was appeased and begin walking away. The gemmorn followed. And the golems finally reacted, clicking their shells in distrust of this new odd creature. The two walkers stepped up out from around the corner, clicking with warnings to the tiny beast in their best effort to ward it away.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 28, 2020 7:35:23 GMT -6
Noticing this, Xentus glanced over his shoulder with a discerning look. The small creature didn't seem threatening in any regard. Yet the golems always put a fuss up at anything new and strange. He sighed, turning back into the room to gather his bodyguards.
"Hush now, the tiny beast is no threat", he scolded them quietly. Even his whisper bounced along the walls of the cavern. Remaining quiet was beginning to be difficult with the elementals. So finicky. The two brown creatures turned their attention to their master, seeming dejected. The waves their master let off felt not like anger, but of disappointment. The clattering stopped in response to this. With a wave of the hand, the man beckoned for the golems to follow, to abandon their duty in protecting him. A difficult task, considering the threat was in pursuit. As the trio walked back into the 'entry' room of the cavern, the gemmorn crept after them. After Xentus, specifically. It went unnoticed by the man, who was busy trying to assess the gem he'd commandeered from it. He turned the rock over in his hand, shining the beam from the flashlight into it. Light scattered off the many facets on the pebbled surface.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 28, 2020 7:46:58 GMT -6
The gem was a new one for him to encounter, but one he read of. Azurite. Not the most precious stone, if he recalled his readings correctly. But it was regarded as a powerful 'healing' stone, used by pseudo-mystics - thought to have the power to relieve mental, physical, and spiritual blockages on the body. Not something that he bought, frankly. Pretty stones were usually just that, simply pretty pieces of earth. Good to sell, he thought, but not one he was terribly interested in keeping.
The golems, wary of the following gemmorn, couldn't contain themselves. A quiet click emitted from one of them, to garner the attention of their master. The leopard glanced over his shoulder, shining his flashlight to the side so that the scattered light would illuminate them. It was a little surprising to see the little creature padding along with them, pebble in its mouth. Probably properly wanted its gem back. Or wanted more pebbles. Either could be a likely case. But nothing to be alarmed of. While he did appreciate the notice of an addition to their little exploration party, he didn't want the golems to be too concerned over it. There were much greater potential threats to be on guard for.
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Post by Xentus on Aug 28, 2020 7:54:54 GMT -6
How to convey this concern.. Ignorance toward the creature, he supposed. Xentus focused his will toward their surroundings, exploring, alertness, but disregarding the known. Exuding caution toward the unknown. Something to hopefully set the golems on the right track. They were in an unexplored place, with dangers that could present in an unexpected manner. Cave ins, tunnel worms, sudden floods.. These were dangers to be on the look out for. Not a tiny beast that posed no harm. The fortified energy the man sent out seemed to do the trick. The golems seemed less wary in their movements, shells completely closed. Good. No more clicking.
Satisfied with his disciplining, the leopard returned his attention to the cavern. They were following along the underground stream which winded down a somewhat narrowed path. The ground was saturated with moisture, making the dirt floor tacky. If he had to wager a guess, the water probably swelled at times. To rain or to tides, perhaps? He was no expert on this, but he went with his best guess. At the moment, the river was relatively shallow, no more than a couple feet at its deepest. It flowed deeper into the cave, serving as his guide. Where would it take them..
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Post by Nadia on Aug 28, 2020 14:52:46 GMT -6
What… what is that smell? Is that gas? Oh no! The cavern you are in is full of slowly seeping natural gas. Not only do you risk explosions if you are not careful with sparks and open flames, but if you stick around for too long, you will surely pass out from lack of oxygen!
[The next 5 posts yield no results]
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Post by Xentus on Sept 1, 2020 7:54:36 GMT -6
The ground was moist beneath his feet as he traveled along the tunneling path. The river soon spread across the area, the ground where he walked becoming coated in a thin layer of water. Not much a bother for the leopard, but the splashes of the party's combined footfalls made their movements quite evident. Any attempts at skulking through the underground cavern were moot at this point. A bit to the mammalian's dismay, but there was little to be done about it. Their spelunking adventure continued onward. Xentus lead the golems along the cavern wall, careful as to where he placed his feet all the while keeping a look out for things of interest. The single stone he commandeered from the gemmorn so far was nice, but as any who came to wander beneath the ground, there was always that craving for something more. And as luck would have it, a glimmer on the wall took his notice. The man perked up and headed straight for it, beckoning for the two golems to keep pace. He didn't need more than to hear the pitter patter of their feet to know they were right behind him. The pickaxe in his hand was at the ready.
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Post by Xentus on Sept 1, 2020 8:38:20 GMT -6
"Now, what have we here?", the leopard quietly asked the two golems, looking over his shoulder at the knee-high creatures then back to the glimmer to direct their attention. They followed their master's eyes, tilting their heads at the rocky wall. They.. Didn't quite seem to understand what they were supposed to be looking at. A couple of quiet clatters rang from their hardened heads, chatting to one another about the details of the stone wall, perhaps. Despite feeling like he was starting to catch on to the meaning of their various kinds of clicks and clatters, they were still hard to read. Whether they were directing their clattering at himself or somehow communicating with each other was a mystery. Did they even care for one another? They seemed on edge when meeting foreign creatures.. The presence of other golems weren't an issue however. His best guess was that they could sense the bond that he shared with them all. It was impossible to see another as a threat to their master when it also served said master. They seemed.. Tentatively accepting of the TROD, for example. And perhaps they might even be alright with Basantai. He'd need to bring that behemoth out and about sometime..
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Post by Xentus on Sept 1, 2020 9:12:39 GMT -6
But, back to the task at hand. There was something meekly hiding beneath the surface here and there was no way he was about to simply let it slip by him. First, though, he scanned down the length of the tunnel, waving his torch into the murk. "Keep a look out, yes?", he asked the earth walkers, a hint of caution laced in his voice. He directed their attention away from the wall and out to the darkness. They wouldn't see in the dark, as far as he knew, but perhaps they had some other sense that would help them stand guard. Keeping watch over his well being was their favorite thing to do anyway, so the question went without saying. The earth golems focused down the tunnel, staring out into the inky dark to keep watch.
Satisfied with their dutiful nature, the leopard turned his attention back to the glimmer that he saw embedded in the wall. To his surprise, the little gemmorn was still tagging along and also curious about this gleam. The creatures of the underground loved their shiny rocks, it seemed. He appreciated the help, but somehow couldn't imagine that pocket-sized wyrm to be able to do much here.
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