JesterLavorre

Ara nervously held the Duster in front of her. Considering it was shaped like a paintbrush, it probably wasn’t very threading, but it was the best she had right now. ”Memory, can you do anything?” ”I will try to block anything that comes to hurt you.” ”Or comes to hurt my friends.” ”If you wish.”

Ara fumbled in her satchel, searching for anything she could use. Her hands fell on cold metal. Pulling the plate out, she paled as she saw it’s face, quickly shoving back in. After a few more seconds searching, Ara brandished forth a new etching. The Duster should have been part of a sculptor’s toolkit, but Ara had snagged it on her way out. Meanwhile, as she fiddled to turn in on, Ara began feeding Memory some of her fear, hoping they could do something with it. At least she had plenty of fear to go around.

Ara followed as quickly as she could. She wasn’t as athletic as Exodus and Minuet seemed to be, but she tried her best to keep up. Shouts behind them heralded the elves noticing their escape.

“This shroud will fade soon, Ara” Ara gasped. “Quick! Mem says the invisibility is fading. Everyone hide!”

Kaesiel started walking out the tunnel, not paying any attention to the conversation happening behind her.

Oof I assume this wasn’t first level, but I always have problems designing encounters for first level characters. They’re just so squishy. I’ve nearly TPK’d so many first level parties...

Ara quickly tried to follow the advice, silencing her movement a bit more.

Ara started into to motion. Quickly making her way toward Exodus at the front of the group, wincing at the crackling of dead leaves under her feet.

Ara hurried behind as the group picked their way as quickly as possible through the forest underbrush. After a few seconds, even as they tried to skirt a wide path around the elves, Ara began to hear the noises of a large group and the flickering of firelight through the trees. The noises were rough and guttural, but Ara could make out snippets of common and elvish through them as she tried to listen more closely. Something about... food? Ara gulped, pulling her attention back just in time to notice the creature standing just five meters to her left. It was well camouflaged, grey scarred skinned with a cloak of leaves wrapped around it to hide. Its angry eyes peered out at the forest. Ara stumbled back in surprise, and a twig went snap under her heel. The elf, probably a perimeter guard, looked quickly to the source of the sound. Ara had a moment of panic before his gaze seemed to pass right through her. Then, panic welled up again as the guard began to creep toward her, looking for the source of the sound. It its guttural language, it called out something, and another of the voices answered back, not twenty meters away it seemed.

Sequence hummed back and began greeting the cryptic he recognized.

“I prefer to think of it as a tactical retreat. I was reckless before. It got me killed. I won’t be again.”

Ara almost yelped, but clapped her hands over her mouth before it came out. “Yes. Going. Definitely.”

Memory glided over to where the group stood, and a strange pearlescent-white veil of light fell around them. “It is done. I can not hold it for long. Move quickly.”

“That doesn’t sound good. Shall we get out of here?” Kaesiel began walking through the dust into the tunnel in the wall.

Sequence hummed from his place on the ground, slowly making his way up the wall. “Liiiiikkeee you could force mmmme to do anything if you wanted to. Mmmmmmm.”

Same! I was happily surprised by some of the really interesting discussion around this, which was something I had never really thought about before.

“Almost... done!” Dust littered the floor around Kaesiel, as she pulled back and slammed her hands into the rock one last time. The cavern wall burst outward in an avalanche of rock and debris, the largest pieces maybe only some five centimeters in diameter. Kaesiel was left in the middle of the remnants of the avalanche, which had split around her in a V shape. Sunlight shone through the new, ten foot hole in the wall. “Finished”

Sequence hummed excitedly.

It’s so great of you to do this, Tesh. I don’t have an diagnosed mental illnesses myself, but I have close family who do, and it’s always great to see it recognized. You are all amazing people, and I wish all the strength in the world to you. I don’t know some of you enough to give the sort of specific support I would like to, but I’ll do my best with those I do. @Shard of Thought, I hate seeing you hurting, too. That letter to yourself is maybe one of the most sad, but also wholesome and uplifting things, I’ve ever read. And it’s because you’re so genuine and real. And because I care about you. We’re a fantasy community here, and we read a lot of sad things that happen in fiction. Characters who go through horrible things. But you may be living through that in real life, and I hate that that has to happen to anyone. But I know that, just like the characters we all love, you will persevere and come out better for it, and that’s because of the kind of person you are. You’re fierce in all the best ways, and both you and your friends are lucky for it. You won’t let this get the better of you, and neither will we. @Tesh, you are a genuinely amazing person. I am constantly happily surprised every time I learn something new about you. I’m not generally into musicals, but your unbridled love of them makes me happy every time I see you talk about it. And the same goes for all your other passions. I’m so glad you’re coming to learn more about yourself. It’s always great when we can discover something new about who we are, or have what we’ve always know validated, and I hope it helps you deal with all the challenges you will have to face. Now and in the future. @Vapor, you don’t have to say anything, if you can’t put it into words. I understand that. But I do want to say that you are a sweet, kind, and strong friend. I say that as, I hope, a friend of yours, and also I’m sure for all of the other people who care so much for you. We are lucky to have met you. I want to give you a hug so much, if only to show you how much you really do matter. Every interaction with you, I have come out happier for it.

“Hmmm. It depends on what it is. I could probably kill a couple of those hostile creatures before my Notion ran out and I needed to replenish. I could make you invisible for a few minutes. Why are you not asking Auriel? She can do far more than me.” Ara’s gut reaction was to rebuff Mamory’s assertion. She couldn’t do anything. She was useless in a fight. But maybe I can learn. ”I’m really not that powerful, but... maybe I can think of something?”

“Oh, have you not met? Sorry! Uh, Mem, where are you?” With a static pop of electricity, Memory’s blue-white form appeared beside Ara. “I am always here, but now I am more here. Why did you call?” ”I just wanted you to meet Exodus, here! I don’t think I’ve properly introduced you two.” ”Hello, Exodus. I am a Memory.” They turned to Ara. “Auriel, were you aware there are several dozen humanoid creatures near you at the moment? They do seem hostile.”

Ara scratched the back of her head nervously. “Uh. Well, Memory has been able to make me invisible before. They only did it once, and it only lasted a few minutes. And that was just me. More people could be more difficult.”

Ara gulped. “Can we avoid them?”

Kaesiel walked to the far end of the cavern. “All right, what I’m doing is Manifesting a microscopic lattice of carbon tubes between the atoms of stone, thus creating nanoscale fissures that destabilize the rock and make it vulnerable to further forces applied. This can get explosive, and may take a few minutes, so it would be best if you all stand back and try to delay for me.” Kaesiel laid her hands on the wall, Manifesting outward the Notion she had taken from the Necromancer earlier. A large section of the wall began to shake as dust and chunks of rock broke free.