[EXAM]The Hills are Alive[Yin]

[ramenli]

Yin could hear dripping, assuming it was from the creature, but as they walked on...he could still hear it. And he was constantly stepping in something wet, but almost seared his flesh rather than just soaking it. He had assumed the noise had come from the minipet...but as the finally emerged and the moonlight hit them...it was painfully obvious that the sounds had indeed been coming from her.

He froze as he caught site of her, torso missing an entire hunk, dripping, leaving the trail that he had been walking in. He felt like retching, he felt like running to her side, he felt like never washing his foot again scrubbing his feet until the flesh was worn from them, he felt...he felt like a failure. He had let this happen to her. He had not been good enough. This was the result of him faltering in the darkness.

Her movement was what really alerted him, forcing him into action. He was panicking again, fluttering almost. His hands sought out his first aid kit, trying to open it, almost dropping it as he made his way to her. Maybe there was something in there, anything in there, that could help. "I will carry it," he said, voice cracking as he tried to look for something, anything that could help. Maybe he could try Fear healing? He had taken her first aid class after all.  

[demon_pachabel]

Cricket coughed. "Just..give me a minute. I'll carry it myself." she half insisted, but she didn't exactly seem to be in a rush, leaning her head against the side of the cave before she took a deep sigh and found a place to settle down, crossing her arms and seeming to ponder.

Should she continue up further?

She sighed again, running her hand over that spot in her side. "I'll need some rest and some FEAR to restore this before we continue on." she sighed, rolling her head back.

YIN'S FIRST AID KIT

Inside of the first aid kit Cricket packed:

Bandages, a strange half-pill (with a note about it being used to restore healing energy. The lid won't budge on it, though), a jar of something odd and blue, some thread and a needle, gauze, painkillers, and a splint. It's rather basic.

 

[ramenli]

"I do not wish you to push yourself if I can take it from you," he said worriedly, staring down at the items as the Fear kit came open.

Why, oh why had he not familiarized himself with this in the train? Some of it looked useless. A needle and thread on oozing plasma skin? A splint? Maybe it would work, but he had no idea how. Bandages might just get soaked through though maybe they would hold. The pill...he did not have the time to read it. By the moonlight he was able to make out that it was about restoring. But he could not get the lid open.

The jar of blue was a mystery. It at least would open for him. He held out the jar and the pill to her, hating to be a bother in her time of need but desperation in his voice. "Will either of these work? Or is there any way I can try to give you some of my Fear?" If he had to...lids were not the only way to open things. He would get to the pill if that was what she needed.  

[demon_pachabel]

Cricket shook her head. "No. Just.... let me rest for a time." she sighed, before reaching out to take the blue liquid and giving it a small sip. The blue seemed to rush through her system immediately, and if nothing else she stopped...oozing.....

Ew.

She didn't look much better beside that, however. The nurse seemed content to settle in for a few minutes, but not dozing off. The nurse never slept, so for her to even be lethargic was startling. But after about fifteen minutes she wobbled back up to her feet and seemed to at least contain herself... literally.

With a deep breath, she began to trek on. "It may be better if you keep a hold of my bag there." she noted, motioning to it. "Just....I don't want to.." Ooze on it.  

[ramenli]

Yin put back the pill, and closed the first aid kit, tucking it back into his waistband underneath his sweater. Then, for fifteen minutes, he was a nervous wreck, backing up a few paces and just staring about at shadows, waiting for something to pop out of one. Constantly on his guard. Nerves strained when she moved it was all he could do to not jump forward, offer to carry her, offer to do absolutely whatever he possibly could for the Nurse.

It was almost pathetic how happy he was to be allowed to take her bag for her. He scooped it up, carrying it as he stuck with her, sticking with her pace but now off to one side instead of directly following whenever he could, a mere half-step behind her, ready for any intruders. He could not let her get hurt again. Not on his watch.  

[demon_pachabel]

A pair of eerie green eyes looks out from the next tunnel at the pair, meows, then runs away into the darkness.

Cricket hesitated for a moment, before taking a deep breath and paving her way into the darkness again. A few things run past both of the pair's feet, but seems to keep moving, nothing taking the time to slobber and drool and be a general nuisance towards them. At least not until they get outside again.

A rather large Ant Lion, with no mane, is curled up at the top of a rock, several younger ones curled up around her sides. Three large males pace the rock, watching the intruders with no curiosity and all grouchiness.

The closest one reaches out and swipes at Cricket before retracting its paw, her poison seeming to burn into its paw as it begins to hiss and flail. The female rises up, moving to lick the male's paw clean before pulling away as well and beginning to twitch.

Cricket frowned.

"This is bad." she said firmly. "I think right now you might want to try and get that female patched up or her babies might die when she does. I don't exactly want to be responsible for killing a local ecosystem."

YIN'S TASK

Get the three males to go away with an attack or something else he may have in his bag, then see about getting some sort of medicine into the female who has inadvertently consumed Cricket's poison.

The males are back to 1 damage to make flee.

 

[ramenli]

A new tunnel was...ahead and as much as he wanted to turn back, to offer to go on alone, he could not. The small meow set him on edge, and then....things passing by, brushing his feet, never staying long enough but what if Nurse Cricket...He did not want to stop in the darkness, feeling relief as they passed through the tunnel.

And then he spotted it. And then the others. He could not hold back the hiss that spilled forth from his mouth, clutching the Nurse's bag even tighter as he shifted it to one arm. One was already swiping at the Nurse but it pulled away in pain.

Yin did not turn toward her, did not take his eyes off of them as she spoke. He wanted to refuse, wanted to tell her that they should all die, that they should not be allowed to live after what they had done, but she had already explained herself.

There were three, and he had to get rid of them. Without letting go of the glorious purse bag he was charged with. He tried to attack one, but as it missed another male charged the nurse. He could not defend her.

Option: Fighting - Failing.
Cricket Exam HP: 10/30  

[ramenli]

There were just too many. He fumbled about, trying to reach into his sweater and fish out one of the strips of jerky, chunking it into the brush as he tried to get into a defensive position. He almost whimpered with relief as one male ran after it. Two more to go.

Option: Using item - 1 jerky
Cricket Exam HP: 10/30  

[ramenli]

There were only two now, and he felt fairly certain that he could block against only two.

He was wrong. The weremantis focused too much attention on the one, and the other one somehow managed to slip by him to maul at Nurse Cricket. Genuine fear was in Yin's eyes as he turned to see her, oozing out far too much plasma.

Oh Great Mantis no.

Option: Fighting - How are you failing so much
Cricket Exam HP: 5/30  

[ramenli]

Yin pulled out the last piece of jerky, throwing it in desperation, watching as one of them loped off to investigate.

And then there was one.

Option: Item - Jerky used up
Cricket Exam HP: 5/30  

[ramenli]

Yin apparently had two modes. Fail miserably or overkill. He was finally reaching that second mode. He refused to let go of the bag still, lashing out with his foot, almost sobbing with relief when he kicked it and it scampered away. He could not turn around, could not check on the nurse. He knew what he had done. What he had allowed to happen. To her. He could not face it.

Option: Fighting - YAY IT GONE
Cricket Exam HP: 5/30  

[ramenli]

He had to help it. The female that had been poisoned by the Nurse, over there, twitching. He did not want to. He wanted to lash out as he drew nearer, dissipate her in front of the cuts, destroy them all for being the cause of his failure.

His shoulders hunched he fumbled to get out the first aid kit again, struggling to get out the jar of blue that had seemed to help the nurse and opening it. The painkillers...there was more to this issue than pain, and the pill seemed like it would be hard to feed to the creature. He was finally forced to set down the bag, jar in one hand as he tried to wrangle with her, though the poison seemed to have weakened her, took some of the fight out of her as he tried to pry open her mouth and pour in the liquid, watching as some of it spashed away but fairly certain she had gotten some in her mouth before he began backing away toward the Nurse's bag.

Option: Item - Blue liquid attempt!
Cricket Exam HP: 5/30  

[demon_pachabel]

The males forced away, the female shook out her body and huffed, licking her lips repeatedly and seeming generally displeased she'd had.. stuff forced down her throat. The cubs began to whine and fuss, obviously getting cold because mom had moved and after a moment of coughing and puking, she moved to go back to them, settling into her spot again and half-laying on the cubs.

As for Cricket, she wasn't oozing yet. Fortunately. She did, however, seem more tired than she had before, taking a deep breath before patting Yin on the shoulder and heading towards the next tunnel.

"Two more, then we're at the top." she sighed tiredly.

So.

Tired.  

[ramenli]

Yin's face...crumpled. No. Not two more. The Nurse had barely survived two tunnels as it was. "You...you cannot..." his voice trailed off, watching her head toward the tunnel, rushing forward to try to be there for her even though it obviously was not helping.

Two more.

Oh Great Mantis...let them survive two more.

And then the descent back to the town.  

[demon_pachabel]

The green eyes looked at the pair again, before they vanished into the darkness. Cricket seemed to once again take notice of the fact that something was...reverse following them. Never the less, the next tunnel was almost eerily empty. However, it seemed as though the pair was walking through....
...
...

Something.

As they passed out of that tunnel and to a walkway that was rather narrow, they'd be able to look down and see they were tracking something dark and sticky...almost like..

"..."

Cricket took a moment to check her side again. It looked OK, so... what had they...

"...?"