D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad - Chapter 1865 - 1865 Raving Ravine Reviews
— Kat —
Leaving was only made harder by the fact Lily was staying behind. In all other ways it was a lot easier. Apparently while they’d been having tea Weaver was hard at work cleaning things up. The hanging black sheets were now arranged into pathways, the random cobwebs were sucked up into the ceiling and the dust was getting cleaned up by feather dusters on the end of webs. Kat hadn’t noticed how much work was already being done. *It also tells me why Thyme didn’t want to play every character on the island this is ridiculous.*
Oh, and of course the giant web arrow that was sitting above her head and making sure she knew which way to go. It was reactive too, as when she was coming up to a corner that she needed to take the arrow would shift towards it until eventually pointing right down the corner. Kat was currently ‘running’ as fast as she could but the bangle meant that it was closer to a casual jog at this point.
Eventually, this series of twist and turns lead her to an old wooden construction. It was half collapsed and currently being held up by webs. Kat eyed it with some concern. The door was just barely intact enough for her to walk through but she wasn’t sure how stable it was. At least, until the webs changed. ‘Sorry, I didn’t realise this was in such disrepair. I’ll keep it together while you pass through’
Nodding at the webs Kat stepped inside, careful to make sure that her horns didn’t clip the doorframe and destroy it more. The floor inside was somewhat unstable but Kat was able to use her tail to balance along it with no trouble until she got to a completely destroyed ladder. There was no way for it to support her weight, it was missing more parts then it still had. Luckily, there was a sturdier version made of webs… and even more important, Kat could fly.
Flapping her wings gently Kat rose up to the door and pushed at it a bit. The door was stuck. Hmm. A glanced around found another set of webs. ‘Feel free to break it if you have to. It’s just an old door’. Kat nodded at the webs once again and slammed a fist into the trapdoor. The old wood shattered under the hit but all Kat really got for her efforts was a face full of dirt. “Yuck,” grumbled Kat as she spat out a few bits that got in her mouth.
Closing her mouth and eyes, Kat pulled one arm back as she rested lightly on the webs for a firmer foundation. A breath passed, and then Kat slammed her hand back into the remnants of the door. Dirt went flying but only small amounts rained downwards. Kat cracked open an eye to see blue sky. Flying upwards Kat found herself in a ravine as promised. What she hadn’t expected was to be on an isolated platform with no way off.
The trapdoor had a small landing of rock around it… but that was it. Any pathways or structures that had once supported it were long gone. Kat brushed the satchel containing the node for weaver a few times to clean it as she settled down nearby and took in the ravine.
Mushroom vines were everywhere. Mycelium roots dug in and out of the walls with small mushrooms growing from them occasionally. The air was damp and somewhat musty, but the sky was clear. Kat could just fly out… but the problem was actually down below. From her vantage point Kat could see quite a few dots of light shining along the ravine. Not all of them would be orbs… but at least a few were and she hadn’t restocked in a while. The problem? The ravine wasn’t empty.
Some odd combination of tortoise, fungus, and maybe a honey badger roamed the walls. They were short, squat things with long claws that stabbed into the walls cleanly, allowing them to move about however they wished. The interesting bits were the fact that after the claws were removed the dirt and stone was placed back, preventing the walls from just being a collection of holes… and that the thing had a shell of mushrooms on its back.
The shell was barely visible under the mushrooms… and after watching for a few moments Kat noticed that the mushrooms rose and fell slightly as the monster moved along the wall. *Ah, the shell stores dirt! It’s moving as it takes in and quickly replaces the stone along the wall. Not sure why the mushrooms are there but perhaps there’s something I’m missing?*
The problem was the considerable number, and variance in size. There were plenty of the monsters all around the ravine and they were currently leaving her alone. Which was good because a few of the ones lower down, usually right next to potential orb spots, were the size of small cars. Even if they weren’t fast they looked solid and strong. Taking one out while restricted to Rank 2 strength could certainly be a problem.
*So… best to just fly past them then. Pick up the ‘orbs’ that are furthest away from the biggest of them and depending on my success rate either swoop down for another pass or just leave. There’s quite a few orbs here but frankly none of them look particularly large so I’d bet it’s a combination of those stupid berries and 1-hour orbs.*
Kat considered leaving the node behind for a moment before shrugging and diving down into the ravine. The monsters ignored her for the most part until she swiped the first ‘orb’ off the world. It was just a berry in the end but if anything that seemed to make them more annoyed because every monster in the place stopped to look at her. They hadn’t moved yet, they were just watching.
Kat wasn’t sure she liked that, still, she swung past the next orb and found this one to be real. A nearby turtle let out a puff of spores from the mushrooms on its back but she was already gone by the time it did so. As Kat angled for the next potential orb, several of the nearby monsters sent out puffs of spores around the area to block her path.
Kat sucked in a deep breath and then released it all with one big ‘HOOO’ blowing a path through it that she could use to grab the orb. Only to not be quite so prepared for the stone nearby to slam down on her hand with a cracking sound. Luckily it was the stone cracking not her… but it had also broken the orb…? Kat flew off as she glanced at her dripping hand. *Well at least that one was actually a berry. Still annoying because now I know it’s not safe to just grab the rest of them. Hmm… do I risk it?*
Kat decided that yes, she was going. At least, she was going to risk going for one more. Kat angled down towards the largest monster and the orb it was guarding. She didn’t know if it would be real or not but Kat felt good about it. When the puff of spores came up, dispersed it and moved through… to crack the thing on the head. It wasn’t a killing blow but it should stun it for a bit.
Kat moved down to the orb and changed her hand to water, wincing a bit as she failed the semi-conversion for her nerves but it was just a little bit of pain. She was still able to ‘grab’ the orb and pull it out. The fact that two different bits of stone pierced through her now watery hand simply didn’t matter. Still, Kat was thinking she’d overstayed her welcome here.
Kat kicked off the ground and rocketed upwards and out of the ravine, dodging more clouds of spores, but the place was wide enough to make that easy. As Kat crested the top of the ravine she noticed more than a few mushroom trees and a few of the turtle monsters that were up around the edges. Deciding just to not bother with that, Kat flew up a bit higher until she was atop the giant mushrooms. It was squishy under her feet but safe from things. It also likely wasn’t high enough for to get dive bombed or lasered.
Kat tapped the few orbs she’d collected against her band and watched it fill up… before wincing. *Woops. I was meant to keep some of those for Hedera. Eh… it’ll be fine. I’ll just keep a note of it and make sure to grab some extras. Pretty sure those two I just used aren’t going to be the only ones I find on this little trip. Though… where is the place?*
Kat glanced around, looking for any signs of buildings or civilisation. No smoke, no pointy huts. Nothing as far as she could see. There had to be a clue though…
