The White Sand Sea was unforgiving. The sand burned beneath Xalmann's feet as he walked atop it, thankful that the hot sand didn't harm him. The sand might have been scorching, heated to what many would consider unbearable to walk on barefoot by the harsh sunlight, but the pyromantic Lizardman wasn't phased. His scales might even have burned hotter than the sand did. The sunlight didn't bother him either, his red scales not likely to get a sunburn even if he wasn't teaming with fire magic. No, he was practically right at home in the hot desert despite being born in practically the polar opposite type of environment, a soggy marshland full of life and always wet, unlike the dry, barren desert.

The heat might not have had much effect on him, but that didn't mean he didn't need some food and water like any other living being. He was glad when he could finally see a town up ahead. There was no road in the desert. The shifting sands would have just covered up any that anyone tried to pave too quickly. He just had to rely on the direction of the sun to hope he was going to come across the town as he travelled across the desert on his way toward the Ashlands, but he'd managed it.

The town wasn't very large. Just a small collection of shops and an inn or two built around a small oasis. The place wasn't large, but it was still an important place and so bandits and criminals had to respect it or risk the ire of everyone who travelled across the desert on foot that needed this rest stop. There was also a rumor of a powerful being that protected the place, but whether that was true or not wasn't clear as no one wanted to be the one to anger who or whatever it was.

Xalmann just walked into town, his cloak concealing most of his left side, and into the first inn where he could get some food and water. He'd refill his supplies here and set out again as soon as possible. He didn't think he'd stand out with the place already likely full of other criminals keeping a low profile, but he still didn't want to chance being recognized by anyone from the Fighter's Guild right now.

As he sat down at the bar, a cart full of kegs of some kind also arrived and the good started being brought into the place. Probably the first refill the place had received in a while. He must have had good timing for once.

SPOILER: Click to show

Quest Name: I spy with your little eye
Participants: Two or more
Location: Anywhere
Post Requirements: 6 post per person, 200 words per post
Reward: +1 Renown, +1 Mimic Slime, +1 Ooze Core
Description: Locals have asked for help in dealing with a rather nasty creature that has taken home in one of their buildings. Shops, homes, basements, regardless of what it is, a Mimic has decided to hole up there, killing pets and livestock while threatening the life of those who own the building. These creatures are difficult to get rid of because of their ability to blend in with their surroundings and literally become a normal object, like a chair or rug. Go in, root out the mimic and dispose of it the best way you can.

Just as Xalmann starts to get settled in and the barkeep approaches him, a commotion breaks out in the tavern. A door behind the bar bursts open with a shrill shout, and a cask of ale comes flying out full force and slams into a support beam in the room, shattering on impact and splashing perfectly good drink all over the patrons.

A girl, not older than twelve and not fully grown at least by human standards, comes rushing out of the darkness with an electrical hammer in hand. Child as she may be, she looks ready for a fight. “I found ya, ya disgustin’– Oh.” The barrel exploded. It was full of ale. She probably could have done a better job testing that out.

People in the bar are angry and exasperated at the events.

“Girl, I agreed to let you check the cellar if you didn’t make a mess!” The bartender says with a grimace. “That was a perfectly good cask of ale!”

“What? It was shiny, slimy! I thought it was the creature ya’ve been complainin’ about!” Astrid protests, setting her hammer down. “Besides, looks like a new shipment just arrived. I’ll pay fer the one I broke.”

So much for his good timing.

Xalmann let out a low, annoyed hiss as he turned around, his cloak dripping with ale, to see just who had splashed a whole keg on him. He was surprised to see someone like that here. A small girl in a place with a reputation for being a hive of criminals. Not nearly on the same level as Darkveil, but still definitely not somewhere he would associate with children. Just looking around at the other bargoers, it looked like a tough crowd.

But then another thought struck him. Had she really been the one to throw that keg hard enough to smash it like that? That wasn't normal! How could such a small child do such a thing? Wait. She looked kind of familiar. Had he seen her somewhere before? The mismatched armor and the big hammer, the unusual strength, the horns.

Shit, he did recognize her! She was in the Fighter's Guild, like him! He'd seen her in passing in the guild hall one of the few times he'd been there. What was she doing here? Was she sent to hunt him down?

Xalmann's hand instinctively went toward his axe at his waist, before he thought about it for another moment.

No, but then why would she be talking to the bar owner about slimy creatures. That didn't make sense. She must have been here for some other reason and he happened to arrive while she was here. He didn't have good timing at all. His timing had actually turned out to be horrible. Members of the Fighter's Guild were exactly the people he was trying to avoid right now.

Lucky for Xalmann, Astrid is no longer a member of the Fighter’s Guild, but then again, not everyone in the guild knows that. She also doesn’t immediately recognize Xalmann because there are a handful of angry patrons giving her a hard time. Well, she did make a mess of them all. As a courtesy to everyone she can’t exactly clean (and to keep the patrons of the bar from picking a fight they can’t win), Astrid buys a round of drinks for everyone.

While she pulls some coins out to pay for the shattered barrel and the drinks, a handful of duplicatstrids manifest and start to clean the place up. They don’t have much means of doing so magically, so manual mopping and picking up broken wood it is. She puts her hands on her hips and looks around the establishment, proclaiming, “Don’t come complainin’ ta me when yer hand gets eaten by yer dresser!” But her expression quickly shifts into a goofy grin. “Just kiddin’, shout at the top of yer lungs, so I can save ya.” Then she makes her way over to the bar, clambers up in a stool that’s much too tall for her, and asks for a glass of cider.

She gets apple juice. Close enough!

While mopping, one of the duplicates notices the red tail hanging to the floor, close enough that mopping the area might touch it, and she’s at least not going to be more rude than she has been. “Erm, ‘scuse me, mister,” Bstrid starts. “I don’t wanna sop yer tail with dirty mop water.”

---

Replicant

Surprisingly, Xalmann also ordered something other than alcohol and was also given some apple juice. He wasn't a child, but he couldn't stand the smell of alcohol, which made being soaked in it a rather unpleasant experience for him. He could probably burn it off of himself, but that would also probably burn down the bar. He'd just have to deal with it until he was done here. Anyone that walked past him would probably think he was some alcoholic that reeked of booze. He was glad he didn't care so much about other people's opinion of him.

He was annoyed with Astrid, but he didn't want to pick a fight and get his whereabouts reported to the Guild. He wasn't aware of Astrid's departure from the Guild since he didn't go there often even before becoming a wanted criminal. Still, he couldn't help show a bit of his annoyance toward her. He narrowed his eyes in a look of disdain at her duplicate, but lifted his tail to let her mop beneath his stool. There was practically a puddle beneath him that was still growing from his still dripping cloak.

He couldn't even wring the thing out without showing off his prosthetic arm that he still preferred to keep hidden. He was already a Lizardfolk which wasn't seen often outside the Marsh flats, even more rare was that he was red. He didn't need his strange-looking arm to draw more attention to himself.

Once Xalmann moves his tail, Bstrid mops up the booze in the floor around him then starts moving on along the bar. This results in more than one sweep along the bar as the clothes of dripping patrons continue to soak the floor.

Astrid is glad she can make the duplicates do the boring stuff like that, but the mention of a tail by Bstrid catches her attention. Trying to stay totally casual, she peeks past her glass at the patron with a tail, catching a glimpse of the red tail and snout that belongs to the lizardman. Somehow, he looks kind of familiar. Oh, because he might be! Gripping her mug, Astrid shuffles over to the stool beside Xalmann and looks at him.

“Heya!” she says chipperly. “Ya wouldn’t happen ta be part of the Fighter’s Guild, would ya?” The question is entirely innocent as Astrid simply wants to confirm if she recognizes him or not. They never really had a chance to meet or talk, mostly having seen each other in passing at best. There’s no telling if she recalls that one of the Fighter’s Guild members who helped in a raid in the Marsh Flats was this very same lizardfolk.

Shit, did she recognize him? Xalmann's hand moved to his axe again, ready for this to become a fight, but before he could attack, the bartender stepped forward and started speaking.

"Oh, you're also from the Fighter's Guild? You take requests too then? We got a bit of a problem with these slimy things going around disguising themselves as objects, like that keg she smashed." He said, looking at Astrid with a glare before continuing. "We'll pay for you to get rid of them. We're getting real tired of trying to tap a keg just for it to try to tap us back."

Xalmann relaxed a little. That explained the smashed keg earlier, even if he was still a bit annoyed with Astrid for soaking him. Maybe he could even use this situation to his advantage. She seemed like she didn't actually realize exactly who he was. Maybe she just remembered seeing him in the hall, like he did. She didn't just attack him on sight after all.

"Yes." He answered, looking to the bartender with a nod. If he accepted this little quest, it might help his reputation a bit. It wasn't something as big as taking out a bandit hideout, actually it was kind of helping out a bandit hideout, really, but it was still a good deed and those helped his reputation recover from the mess the Mudworms had made of it.

Fighting alongside another FIghter's Guild member would probably also help, as long as they didn't end up fighting each other.

Astrid notices Xalmann’s hand reaching for his ax, but it stops when the bartender adds to the conversation, though not without giving her a look. She returns his look with a scrunched-face, childish sneer which quickly changes back to an overly friendly smile when he glances at her again. Still, why the heck would this lizard guy go for his ax? She’ll have to ask him about that later.

It takes her a moment to decide whether or not she wants to correct the man about her membership in the Fighter’s Guild. On one hand, she never actually claimed to be a part of the guild, and she never said that she was here on their behalf, but on the other hand, if they deal with this mimic problem on behalf of the Guild, it could help the Guild’s reputation. She does still quite like people who are a part of the Guild and wants to see it succeed, and if this guy is a member, then why not help out the same way she helped Leni a few weeks ago.

“Alright, mister, we can work together!” she says. “Nice ta meet ya! I’m Astrid Stormstone!” With that, Astrid offers her hand to Xalmann to shake, except… For some reason, the mug is still in her hand. Her brow furrows, and she tries to set it down, but the darn thing won’t come free. Wait–

“FOUND ONE!” Without warning, she slams her hand on the counter, smashing the mug under it. Rather than cracking and shattering, it snaps and splats. A creature with rows of teeth exposes them and tries to bite at her but only finds purchase in her gauntlet.

As soon as he recovers from being startled, the bartender looks angry. “Kid, what in the hells do you think you’re doing?? Haven’t you had enough breaking things??” Little does he know, the row of mugs on the wall behind him all have small, angry, beady eyes that reflect the tavern light like little shimmering voids.

---

-1 hit prevention (gauntlets)

Of course she introduced herself, that should be expected. It was only the polite thing to do. However, that was a big problem for Xalmann. If she didn't recognize him by appearance, she might recognize him by name if Shaa or anyone else at the Fighter's Guild spread it around after their confrontation. No, he'd just make up a fake name. In the end, he fell back on an old nickname given to him by someone he hadn't seen in a while.

"Red." He introduced himself simply as he raised his clawed hand to shake, but stopped when he saw the mug was still in her hand. Was she trying to toast with him instead of a handshake? Weird. He thought that until he noticed she was actually struggling to remove the thing from her hand.

As Astrid smashed the creature on the bar, Xalmann backed up off his stool, his hand grabbing his axe for the third time in a short while, but this time he pulled it from its sheathe and held it at the ready. Looking past the bar, he could see numerous eyes suddenly shoot open on the mugs and bottles lining the shelf behind the barman.

"Move!" Xalmann commanded the barman, motioning with his head for him to get out from behind the bar.

"Wha- What is this!? Some sort of robbery? We don't take kindly-" The barman started, but he shut up when Xalmann grabbed the front of his clothes and dragged him over the bar with a hand made of black wood just in time to stop a slimy tentacle from grabbing him as the mimics began to come alive, angry at one of their own being killed and ready to attack.

If Astrid wasn’t distracted by the fact that a mimic somehow stuck itself to her hand, she would think that the name Red is fitting but also a little too on the nose. There’s no time to dwell on that though, as the bartender immediately thinks that Red is robbing him for some reason and is only narrowly saved by Red’s quick movements. Astrid certainly does not expect to see an honestly really cool-looking plant arm on Red, and she struggles not to be distracted by it.

“That’s neat!” she cries as she whips out her small battle hammer and a massive, icy war hammer manifests in her hand. “Like, I’m sure losin’ yer arm didn’t feel great, but the plants are real cool!” She also doesn’t have time to think about any details about this member of the fighter’s guild because a wave of sticky creatures with sharp teeth leaps off the wall. Hundreds of tiny creatures start attacking patrons and the two adventurers alike.

“It’s about ta get real messy in here,” Astrid says. “Everyone get out and shut the door behind ya!” One of the creatures on the floor chomps down on her leg, but her armor protects her. Hm, maybe it’s better to be electrified. With the flick of a wrist, electricity starts to wreath around Astrid’s body to protect her or at least lash back out at anything that decides to take a bite of her.

---

Lightning armor [post 1/3]

"Oh, fuck this!" One of the bargoers shouted as he fled out the door, leaving his half finished ale on the table. It didn't take long for the rest to follow him out. It could be said that bandits and thieves, unsurprisingly, didn't tend to be very eager to help others out. They were generally much more concerned with their own survival, and that was apparent in their actions now.

Xalmann was too busy fending off the sudden swarm of tankards leaping off the shelf at him to comment on just how inappropriate Astrid was being right now, talking about his plant arm in the middle of a battle. Of course having it cut off had hurt, but he didn't think having to replace his arm made him very cool. It was an embarrassment that he didn't need mentioned to him!

He held the wooden arm in front of him to block three tankards whose openings at the top had grown teeth that clamped down on the blackened branches. They regretted that decision though, as as soon as they bit down, sharp thorns pierced through their bodies as they grew all over the wooden arm.

As he cut down several mugs with his axe, a mimic leapt at Xalmann's neck, but a vine shot out to smack it away before it could take a bite out of his scales. The mimic flew up into the air and was sliced in two by Xalmann's axe as it fell back down.

Fine, maybe the arm was pretty cool, but he still would have preferred he hadn't had his real arm cut off.

Xalmann looked to see Astrid had coated herself in electricity, and decided it might be a good idea to do something similar. The mimics weren't very strong, but there was just such an absurd amount of them. They threatened to overrun the Lizardman just through sheer number.

His scales heated up, glowing orange as if each scale was freshly pulled from a forge, before Xalmann's whole body burst into flame. The mimics jumping at him screeched in pain as they suddenly found they were leaping right into a fire. They didn't even find anything physical as they hit the flames, passing through like the Lizardman had become nothing but fire itself.

---

Sprout
Dancing Chain
Full Elemental Manifestation- Fire

Being coated in lightning helps deter some number of mugs and tankards with razor-sharp teeth, but they aren’t very smart because they still leap at Astrid, getting electrocuted upon making contact with her only for more to jump at her or try to snag her with their tentacles and tongues. Some of them have tiny hands and feet and run around like manic pixies hankering for a meal. She looks over to see Red doing a fine job of defending himself, and she’s once again distracted by his arm and skill.

“No wonder yer in the guild, yer a real natural!” she shouts with a grin, smacking away a couple of mimics with her hammers. What fun is a fight if all you’re doing is focusing on not dying? There can be some levity in situations like this! Even still, the number of mimics is kind of overwhelming, and despite the protective lightning, several of them still manage to chomp through her greaves to chew on her legs. It’s an uncomfortable feeling.

That’s when Red goes up in flames, literally. He looks really cool, and now the mimics can’t actually hit him! That’s a great idea! Why didn’t she think of that? Would it be copying to do the same thing? Hey, a good idea is a good idea. The lightning sparking around Astrid’s form starts buzzing more quickly and flashing brighter, arcs dancing off of her until they finally consume her completely. She takes on her own elemental form, though hers of lightning, and the whole tavern is cast in battling blue light from her form and red like from Red’s.

---

Lightning Armor [post 2/3]
Full Elemental Manifestation - Lightning

Outside the bar, the patrons sat and waited. Some of them nursed bite marks and scratches from some mimics that had come to life on top of their table or in their hands, but it looked like none of the little monsters had managed to get out the door before they had closed it. Still, there was a sizable gap beneath the door that they kept a close eye on and weapons pointed at.

As they watched, a flickering glow of blue and red started shining through the gap.

"The fuck is goin' on in there?" One of the men who was standing guard asked, puzzled by the unexpected lightshow.

"They better not be burning down my damn bar!" The owner of the establishment, the bartender that Xalmann had hauled over the counter, called out angrily. The building itself was in no danger, being made of nonflammable adobe like the other buildings in the small oasis town, but the furniture in there was wood and that was hard to get in a desert! It had to be brought in from other regions. If they burned it all to ashes, he didn't care that they took care of the creatures in his bar, they'd have hell to pay!

It was lucky for Xalmann that he had great control over the flames coming off of him and hadn't lit any tables or chairs on fire. So far.

Despite the fact that there are dozens, if not hundreds, of tiny mimics taking on the forms of dishware and being a general menace to Astrid and Red, their strength is largely in their numbers. Sure, they get a few well-placed bites in here and there, but with the two (presumable) members of the Fighter’s Guild being manifestations of their favored element, the mimics have little to grasp without becoming toasty or electrocuted. Before long, Astrid and Red are both completely surrounded by crispy mimics letting out the last squeaks of their dying breaths.

“Well, that was easy enough,” Astrid says with a giggle, looking around at everything with her hands on her hips. “Just hafta stand there an’ let ‘em take theirselves out.” It’s about that time that she hears a ruckus outside. The bar patrons must really be itching to come back inside. “It’s safe now!” she calls, and the door bursts open immediately. For a brief second, a few people hesitate seeing Astrid and Red still wreathed in elemental magic, but with the mimics dead, they decidedly don’t care.

“About time!” one of the patrons shouts, rushing inside and diving behind the bar.

“Well, that’s rude. What the heck is goin’ on?”

“Snake creatures are attacking the village now!” someone else cries, slamming the door shut.

Astrid looks over at Red. “Erm, ready fer round two?”