Test Drive Meme 2

[labyrinthian_mods]

☙ Test Drive Meme

☙Gladsheim

You wake up in what looks like a cryogenic pod. There are other pods around you, some of them still sealed shut and others open with people stepping out of them like you did. There’s some technology around you but all of it is overgrown with plants. There are some panels but touching them only causes a sad whirring sound before...nothing happens.

After a moment there’s a pinging sound before a blue panel, like the one that brought you here, that pops up.

New Quest!! Make it out of Gladsheim alive! Fight your way to safety!

Then the door leaving out of this area opens up, draw your weapons and prepare to fight!

Most of the monsters seem to be some kind of small woodland creature but bigger. Be careful! In Gladsheim there are a lot of blocked corridors, locked doors and dead ends...try not to get cornered alone!

Though unlike the previous arrivals, you’re in luck, because as the door keeping the monsters out open, everyone who were brought before suddenly get a ping as a blue menu opens:

New Quest!! Rescue those lost in Gladsheim!

Anyone going into Gladsheim and successfully rescuing a new arrival gains:
1000 gold
ITEM: 10 beeswax candles. Heals status ailment BLINDNESS when lit. Each candle is one use only.
ITEM: 1 potato. HP+5 when eaten.

New arrivals...get nothing! Unless one counts the pinging sound before a blue panel pops up again. Congratulations on making it out of Gladsheim!

...following that is an unskippable tutorial teaching you how to open the menu, access your inventory, read messages and see your status! There is a grayed out selection that says ‘Guildmates’.

☙ More Merchant Caravans Arriving in Etria:

There sure have been a lot of caravans coming through Etria lately, each more well-stocked and colorful than the next, some clearly from countries wealthy enough to edge even their own flags in gold thread. At least it has been livelier and it gives you some variation in terms of NPC dialogue. (Even if these merchant NPCs only ever seem to be complaining about the weather, about how long it takes to get here and about some guy named Alian.)

A. Merchants Giving Out Weird Samples
Come one and come all to look through the wares from far and wide.
Hey you! Yes, you! Can I interest you in this lovely spider's silk robe (DEF+8, BURN RESIST+1)? Guaranteed not to burn until at least the third wear!
How about some hardtack (TP+10, HP-5), dear adventurer? At least a year old but still tasting like it was baked only two months ago!
No, no, come look at these rare golden statues (sells for 10 gold), inscribed with ancient symbols that shift in ways that could drive any sentient being mad! In a good way!

B. Inn
Maybe you haven’t yet found a guild so you’ve been staying at the Lady of the Lake. But today when you return from a hard day of adventuring, Vivian tells you all the rooms are full. There are so many merchants! It’s making so much more work for her!

She complains for a little bit before getting to the point: there is no room for you tonight. To compensate you, she offers to let you pick a piece of yellow candy from a jar as compensation. None of them are labelled but this is what’s in there:

Lemon Candy (LIGHTNING DEFENSE+2)
Banana Candy (LIGHTNING ATTACK+2)

☙ A Suspicious Spring:

A long hot day of adventuring later, the sound of running water is probably music to your ears. Or maybe you've been here long enough to never trust anything, not even the water.

The sight you come upon seems to be a bit too good to be true: a forest grotto with a waterfall splashing into a shallow pool of clean cold water, the shadows deep green and the light dappled as it filters through the trees.

What do you do?

A. Drink!
One sip and you'll feel your armor getting heavy, large and you can see the growing horror in your guildmates eyes as you shrink down to be no larger than a hand.

EFFECTS:
EVASION +10
SPEED -10
ATTACK -10
DEFENSE -10
Of course, a quiet sit of about two hours and you'll begin to grow back but you don't know that yet.

B. Bathe!
Just because you don't see monsters doesn't mean they don't like to congregate near water!

Except when you come out, dripping and trying to dry off? Nothing even remotely dangerous shows up. When it does for some reason, you always manage a critical hit. When you eat suspicious berries? You survive. You trip over something and it's a treasure chest that has actual money in it. If you try to steal from a monster, you always get something good. What gives?!

EFFECTS:
LUCK +100
This effect also only lasts for two hours so take advantage of it while it’s there! Just make sure it doesn’t wear off somewhere dangerous...

☙Building Traps and Nets:

Everyone is abuzz with talk about how they’ve found shed skins of Star Fireflies in the labyrinth! These rare monsters are said to be able to grant wishes once they pupate! No chrysalis have been found on Floor 1 but everyone is beginning to prepare by making nets and traps.

A. Collection Materials
Shortly after the discovery, Napier’s Firm posted a list of required materials so she can make the tools needed. All these materials can be easily found on Floor 1 of the Yggdrasil Labyrinth. Here are the lists:

Star Net:
Spider Silk
Mandrake Branch

Star Container:
Giant Insect Eye
Sticky Sap

These items can be found as monster drops from Mandrakes and Spiders which suddenly started appearing in Floor 1. The Giant Insect Eye and Sticky Sap are rare drops. So the question now is...how lucky are you feeling?

B. Trapping the Trapper
As time goes on, someone mentions that in a far corner of Floor 1 there is a nest of Golden Spiders that leave behind rare drops more often! Those who haven’t had much luck getting Giant Insect Eyes may want to try their luck there. But beware...these Spiders are much more aggressive and if you get stuck in their web it’s impossible to escape! According to Ceft, the unique chemical properties of the thread means it can only be dissolved with human tears. Even just a drop will do! Maybe you should consider bringing an onion when you go after these creatures. (Fontayne and Vivian both will offer to sell you some onions if asked about them…but at a very inflated price.)

☙ Extra
Got something in mind? Want to play with the setting more? The sky's the limit, so feel free and make up your own prompts to play with!

Welcome to Labyrinthian’s August Test Drive Meme! Please check out the FAQ and rules as you test your characters out. The setting is yours to play with, so be creative and have a good time with it! The TDM will double as the intro log and threads in this TDM can be considered game canon after apping if you wish!

Existing players can make their own logs using TDM prompts!

A important dated to remember are August 1, 2020, 9pm EST when Reserves open and August 8, 2020, 9pm EST when Applications open.

If you have any questions about the TDM, feel free to ask us here. If there are any other questions, you can catch us via PM, the FAQ or the contact page. Thank you for your interest in Labyrinthian!

Comments

QUESTIONS

[labyrinthian_mods]

Re: QUESTIONS

[metalbendr]

My character is an earthbender, aka: she manipulates the earth to fight. At the same time, she's blind, and uses it as an extension of her body to be able to see. Can she use earthbending to see, but not to fight? Considering special abilities won't be available until she has access to custom classes.

[labyrinthian_mods]

Hello! Using it to see but not fight is absolutely all right!

[illustrix]

1. No One Here Gets Out Alive

To put it mildly, Neriene was rather disconcerted by waking up in what looked to her to be a fel orc transformation chamber. At least it disengages her quickly, and the helpful blue tablet tells her she needs to fight.

Seemed easy enough, but Neriene was old enough to know that nothing ever was as easy as it looked at first glance. The Lightforged certainly did make a ruckus as she raised sword and shield and began to bash her way through the dungeon...

2.Bathing?

At least her cloak doubles as a bath towel...

Taking a quick dip out in the open was not the wisest thing she'd ever done. But it did seem that luck was with the Draenei, as she managed to dry off and armor up without mishap.

No, the mishap would come when she settled down to make food; there was an unfamiliar herb that looked for all the world like peacebloom, a common one on Azeroth, and harmless. This one, however, will give her a demon of a belly ache, unless there's some stroke of luck...

1

[unwantedtwin]

When she'd gotten the message she'd been confused. Someone is lost in Gladsheim? Who could that be?

Without further ado, she'd left town and headed out to Gladsheim again. The creatures in the labyrinths always acted a little...strange, she thought. Not like regular animals she used to see in forests when she and Granpa used to travel through them or camp in them.

Still, at least she was still pretty certain running towards the source of noise was probably the right call.

So she ran in that direction, taking a turn that she remembers making when she was fighting her way out of this place a while ago.

And then, she sees...well. Not a person, but Dust also looked a little funny it didn't mean anything. Her class can't equip weapons but that doesn't stop her at all.

Which is why this eight year old takes a running start, then jump kicks a giant bat coming up behind this woman, sending it flying back.

"Are you all right?"

...actually, can this person talk? Or is this like the other "people" in town who could only repeat the same phrases over and over?

Re: 1

[illustrix]

Neriene swung her sword, letting its momentum carry the hapless, oversized woodland critter off the end and away from her, lifting her shield to dissuade another opponent that attempted to sink its claws into her. She saw the mass of another creature fly past her, and turns to look--down. Quite far down, considering she's 7' on a good day.

"Oh! I am all right, but what are you doing here? This place is dangerous!" So much for stating the obvious, but the Draenei was more than a bit startled to find a human child here. "We had best find the way out..."

She paused for a moment. This place was just strange enough...

"Do you know the way?" It wouldn't be the first time a human youngling had gotten into mischief in her recent memory. The Light knew the Junior Explorers' League had done so in Drustvar...the most important part, however, was that they'd been retrieved safely. So long as they made it out of this place in one piece, she could rest afterward.

1

[mithrarin]

Dust was quick on good days. With the news that people were in danger and needed rescuing, he was downright lightning. Not long after the alert came through, the Sen-Mithrarin crashed through Gladsheim, barely seeming to stop.

That sent him vaulting through an open door, only to find a tall woman thwacking away at the monsters inside. So he did the only logical thing -- he leaped over her, landing behind her to cover her from a giant chipmunk-thing that wanted to take advantage of a back attack.

Re: 1

[illustrix]

...that was quite a leap, considering her height!

Neriene bashed the critter she was fighting in the face with her shield, following with a downswing of her blade--sorry, Big Bambi! Her golden eyes widened a bit, considering who she was fighting alongside.

What in the name of the Light was a Vulpera doing here??

She did not have time to inquire, as Big Bambi's...father? boyfriend? Something staglike pressed the attack on her now, and she raised her shield again to take the horn strike on it. A hammer of light coalesced in the air and dropped upon it, making it bleat in pain.

"Have you any knowledge of the way out?" she asked, plaintively.

1.

[levelthreehooligan]

Pinya could follow the trail of destruction as easily as she could read Eorzean, and apparently someone had decided to just become a Bulwark onto the rest of the dungeon. She wasn't going to complain.

Still, she kept an eye out, for even the best of Tanks can make mistakes.

There-

An Arrow flies straight past Neriene, striking one of the Yarzon-like creatures directly in the eye and preventing it from reaching the horned woman.

"I have you," she calls, not taking her eyes off the monsters at all.

Re: 1.

[illustrix]

Nor was she the best of tanks--normally, healing was the job that the Draenei undertook; but she'd found herself with a sword and shield, and she'd had enough practice tanking at least that she could fake it until she made it.

Or not. Then again, the hunter had only helped. Neriene hucked her shield at the stricken yarzon, drawing its attention towards her.

"You know what to do!" Clearly! Neriene isn't about to insult the other woman--she'd keep the beast's attention on her, and let the other pick it off. So far, things were going so good. At least that was her opinion!

2

[chronull]

Leon recognized this woman: she was one of the people who arrived with him and she had just charged straight ahead as if it were nothing new. He had created gods of the battlefield, but he'd never seen anything quite like that.

It seemed as though she was through with fighting for now, content with preparing something to eat. While earlier he would have admitted that her strange looks had caught and held his gaze, that was not the case here. He was focused on the herb in her hand. His expression was quite neutral as he watched her, but he made no attempt to hide as he examined what she was doing.

He hadn't quite made up his mind if he wished to speak up: it would likely be on her to ask what was going on.

Re: 2

[illustrix]

Neriene was aware of the strange fellow's observation. It made the rune riding her brows dip as she furrowed them--she wasn't certain why she demanded such scrutiny, unless he'd never seen a Draenei or a Lightforged in the past--which, she had to admit, might be likely.

It didn't make her feel any less uneasy. She lifted her gaze and narrowed golden eyes at him.

"Must you really be skulking there like some sort of warlock? What are you waiting for?" It made her take a closer look at what she was doing, and she put the plant down--it was not peacebloom, as she'd first thought, nor was she certain what it actually was. Better safe than sorry--she didn't need a case of the turkey trots or worse if she consumed something wrong, whether she could cleanse herself of toxins or not!

1

[fightcreamsundae]

Siobahn followed the tall weird goat lady as she left the beginning area. She was really strong! The way she could just deflect some of these critters' attacks with her shield, the way she swung her sword - she sure was a paladin, alright! Siobahn decided it might be worth sticking around her while they went through because there were so many of these awful little critters that she knew she could easily be overrun.

...And overrun she ended up being, as one such critter sprung her from behind, throwing her off balance and chittering for some friends to come over and help defeat this irritating cat thing that had swiped at them earlier.

"M-ma'am! A little help!?" One critter launched at her and Siobahn put her hands up to protect her neck and face. "PLEASE!"

[levelthreehooligan]

I. So I get to do this all over again, huh?

[The elevator door rings, and she steps out, only to fall, fall, fall-

She opens her eyes with a sharp gasp as a pain lances through her mind- What?
She's overwhelmed with feelings of disorientation, displacement and... loss? It's all she can do to just keep breathing. That is, until she comes back into her physical body enough to realize that she's in a pod. The spark of panic starts from there, worst case scenarios playing over and over and everything is too bright, too much like an Allegan Construct, too much like the G.R.I.D.

In a surge of desperate power she smashes her fist into the door of the pod, drawing her hand back and about to Punch again as it slides open.

Pinya stumbles out as fast as she can, her legs feeling weak from spending only Fury knows how long in there. As soon as she thinks she's a safe enough distance away she looks around, trying to get a better idea of her surroundings. A dungeon?

She doesn't get to think about it for very long, though, as the pod next to hers opens and-]

"Fenrir?" She asks breathlessly. The large black wolf slumps out of the chamber, clearly conscious but just as groggy as she is. She runs over, helping him out of the contraption and looking around as other chambers start to open.

"Where the fuck have they put us this time, Fen?" She says, but she isn't quite sure what she means. The wolf simply whines and bonks his head into her chest.
"Yeah, me neither."

It's then that the blue screen pops up, telling her to fight her way out. She growls.

"Yeah, no shit." Without further preamble, picks up a serviceable looking bow and a shoddy quiver of arrows from the floor and attempts to make her way out of 'Gladsheim'.

If anyone in the pods looks particularly distressed, she'll go over to assist them.

2. I feel like I'm going in circles...

Pinya has decided to ignore the very obvious 'Quest markers' this new blue interface is clearly trying to get her to go to. The first person she tried to talk to only seemed to know how to say three things over and over, and didn't respond to any sort of other prompting.

She was not into that at all. She'd learn instead by experiencing herself.

Pinya and Fenrir pad around town and the surrounding areas, exploring and being nosy as they can be. There're trees to climb and buildings to scale and reagents to find and-

There's no... For the first time in a long time her head feels... private? She can't remember what had happened. She remembers Hades, remembers the Exarch- and there was something in between, but she can't quite grasp it. It makes her feel uneasy. She tries to push it out of her mind for now. She'll get there eventually, she thinks.

One could call her path circuitous

[chronull]

Finding out that his own things were in his inventory was something of a blessing, if you could call being here a blessing. Maybe it was, given he probably was supposed to be dead.

He had perched himself atop a building that was away from the main streets, his legs dangling over the edge. He was in the process of checking over and cleaning his gun. The assholes he paid to watch his stuff, well. They did an adequate job. It was only his obsessive tendency that caused him to go through this right now.

Leon stopped as he heard someone else step foot on the rooftop and he turned just enough to see who it was. Just a glimpse: he needed nothing more once he saw the wolf and blonde hair.

"You were there too. In Gladsheim."

1

[mithrarin]

She didn't have long to wait -- or investigate -- before the sound of fighting drew closer. Well, one-sided fighting, anyway, as a sword and the occasional kick cleared a path through the cranky wildlife littering Gladsheim.

Then Dust came around the corner, and at last found one of those newcomers he'd been sent to help.

"You all right?"

[chronull]

1. Shame, I Would Have Prepared More Bodybags
Waking up in a cryogenic pod was enough for Leon to feel his heart begin to race in an uncharacteristic panic. The last time he saw this sight he fell forward and he could feel his skin fall away from his bones as they grew arthritic and calcified... The fleeting memory of his hand turning to dust lingered on his mind as he looked to see if he was okay. His hand seemed fine, he couldn't stop himself from seeing if he was still one person, looking down. His clothes were not what he remembered, but he seemed okay. His left hand reached for his right arm to find whatever clothes he was wearing tied, right arm missing, just as he remembered. He could feel himself relaxing a bit, though he was confused. He had no recollection of changing his clothes, no, his recollection was of his untimely death. This was unexpected, and he hated the unexpected.

The tank opened and he stepped out. This time it seemed that the appropriate procedure had been followed to release him from his sleep and... Could you have nightmares in cryostasis? Was that possible? Was that what happened? He looked around and... This wasn't New Mecca. This couldn't be. The slaughterhouse couldn't look like this, not so far down where he had tucked himself. He put himself before one of the seeming control panels and dusted it off with his hand, then do anything to make them spin to life. He was met with a disappointing whir that led to nothing. He had expected as much given the dilapidation of where he found himself.

The others were rousing now, and it was not long after that that same irritating blue prompt appeared yet again. A carefully neutral expression with an equally measured gesture dismissed the prompt with what could be mistaken as infinite patience. There was a gun that looked as if it hadn't been cleaned in who knows how long tucked in a corner nearby and he picked it up, grimacing as he looked it over. The weight wasn't the same as his own, but it would have to do as he loaded it deftly with his one hand. The bolt moved without resistance despite it's shoddy appearance and it closed with a satisfying solidness. He took a kneeling position a bit further back from the others, but holding the gun with a very practiced one arm, looking through the scope and pulling the trigger as the first creature streamed through the door before anyone else had a chance to move.

Well, at least he would wake up and get back into the swing of things. It'd been a while since he'd had some target practice.

2. It's All Just Never-Ending Errands, Isn't It?
He wouldn't be here, he wouldn't bother at all, but he needed the money to pay for an inn room... For the times that the inn wasn't full, of course. He always found this quite the chore.

Leon had found someone that was willing to go on this quest alongside him so they could work together to wrap this quest up nice and neat. They weren't too lucky with drops but they were moving steadily through the spiders, a good rhythm going between them as they filtered through the mobs. It was methodical.

The whispers of a far flung corner with increased drop chances had just reached made it to their ears. He relaxed and let his gun rest lazily on his shoulder.

"Do you think it's worth the risk?"

3. Wildcard - He'll be exploring around, feel free to poke him literally anywhere.

2

[reborn_fang]

It was strange. Fighting here was actually easier. Her knowledge of how to move and fight from her last life was useful without being as hindered by her lack of stamina in this life.

Of course she is a class that uses magic so all she needs to do is aim and dodge.

She held her staff behind her back, parallel to the ground as she thought about that. Her experience as a squire tells her...no, it wasn't worht the risk. But if this were an RPG--and it certainly seemed like one--then the answer would obviously be...

"It's worth the risk as long as our levels are high enough, I guess...and if we fail we'll definitely cry so that takes care of getting out of the thread. Then all we'd need to do is run away, right?"

She's mostly joking...but also not entirely.

2

[metalbendr]

Toph didn't like it, but in the end, there wasn't much she could do - not with her being stuck in a foreign land and none of her friends to work with. She could handle herself and could stand her ground, sure, but having her friends around made it easier

"... Nah," She admitted at last. "There are better ways of getting money."

And by better, Toph actually meant easier. Much easier, and neither of them needed to make such an effort to get a miserable amount out all of it. She had promised it to not do it before, and had promised herself to avoid thinking about it. But. Well. Desperate times, desperate measures and everything that came with it.

That sorta stuff.

"You'd be able to afford more than an inn room," And if this wasn't tempting, then Toph didn't know what it was.

[metalbendr]

1. Waking up

Moments ago, she had been high in the sky. Falling, slipping, and Sokka's grip certainly wasn't enough to keep her there, wasn't enough to keep her alive.

She had never been so scared, and Toph could still feel the tears that had escaped her eyes one last time.

Did she--?

No, she didn't.

But it was gone, and the heat that came with Sozin's Commet certainly wasn't there, only a constant beeping noise.

And if Toph was confused before, she certainly got even more confused as something that Definitely Wasn't Fire Nation Soldiers approaching her. Stance ready, Toph punched the earth beneath her, and--

It didn't budge and nothing had changed.

"The heck?" It wasn't a squeak, because Toph certainly didn't do any of that. She could feel the vibrations of these big, huge creatures coming for her, even if, deep down, the earth sang to her.

She tried again, and nothing. Toph could hear them coming, could feel their strength, and, well, she could really use some help right now-- Katara's or Aang's or Zuko's. Hell, maybe even Sokka's.

And, door opening or not, she pressed her foot down, sending vibrations all over the place. It was good time as any to leave. She really needed some help right now, even if she wasn't going to admit it to no one but herself.

2. Bath Time

There was no way Toph was getting inside the water, especially not to get herself cleaner.

Except for maybe drinking. Maybe. Which wasn't happening now. Before, the ones responsible for gathering supplies were Katara and Sokka, but mostly Katara.

"You call it dirt," Toph said, "I call it a healthy coating of earth."

And being able to bend or not, having it all over her body and clothes made Toph feel safer, if only slightly.

3. Wildcard

(Feel free to bother help her. Toph's around, can't bend and might need someone to read for her even if she won't admit it).

1

[reborn_fang]

The moment Hiroki wakes up she regrets pressing that 'New Game' button. But it was too late for that, she guesses.

She sees a younger girl doing...actually she's not sure what but that doesn't matter. She reaches out to grab her by the hand, fully intending to drag her behind her towards the now open door.

"Come on!" There are monsters but she has...an old looking sword she picked up and that...that would have to be good enough for now.

1

[mithrarin]

Help was on the way, in a whirlwind of violence. Dust had little patience for the monsters that blocked his way, vaulting over or around half of them and cutting through the rest.

"Can anyone hear me?" he said, as he hit an intersection. Not precisely loud, but carrying.

2

[fightcreamsundae]

The explanation didn't really help explain why she was doing this, but Siobahn knew that sometimes cultures just did things that were weird and that's how it was. Mr. Kha sometimes did weird things because he was from the Steppe and Doma and she didn't really get those either, but they were not smearing mud all over himself.

"Um, I mean sure, but." There's a splashing sound as she splashed some water on her face. "But doesn't it get like. Itchy? Or something? As it dries? Is it not uncomfortable? And doesn't it make your clothes really heavy?" Her tone suggested she was curious and confused, not particularly judgemental.

[fightcreamsundae]

1. what's a gladsheim
Honestly? Siobahn had no clue what this thing was, but she knew she wanted OUT. She didn't like it. It wasn't home and it wasn't her bed and she wanted OUT RIGHT THIS SECOND. So she punched. And again. And again. And... Oh, it was open. Heh, whoops. That last punch would take her stumbling out of the chamber. She didn't lose her footing, but the moment she straightened her tail started to lash about wildly as she looked around. She already hated it, and that Twelves-damned prompt was up and before she could even finish reading it suddenly monsters were banging the door down.

By habit she went through he motions for her fists of fire stance - the place any monk starts - but... Nothing happened. She tried again, quickly, hurriedly... Panicked, she tried fists of wind, fists of earth... Both to no avail. A giant squirrel was on her and in a fright she reached out and swiped with her claws, backing up and into a wall as the thing recoiled in surprise at the cat swipe. With nothing but her claws and her hands she at least knew she could keep throwing punches. She set her jaw and took a deep breath and started to punch that squirrel into tomorrow.

She moved just as fast as she did at home, but without her fists of wind. That was... interesting and exhilarating. She grinned and ran into the labyrinth, happily punching away at anything that stepped before her fists.

2. owo such shinies
In a classic sign of both cat-dhd and teenager-dhd, Siobahn is way in over her head at the market. She seems to be swooned by just about any seller that calls out to her, taking time to run her hand over fine silks and robes, smell the foods at this stall, watch a 3 minute long sales pitch with a deep, mired, interest at that stall. Her tail is moving with delight as her ears dart this way and that listening to all the pitches to be thrown.

One might mistake her curiosity as wanton spending and decide her an easy target for a con, or may wish to warn her of local scams....

3. i'm so... thirsty....
The forest grotto was such a welcome sight for sore eyes. She entered the shade and took a moment to splash her hands in the water, splash some water on her face. Her ears were twitching at the sound of all of the movements around her, listening for danger. Once she was sure there were no enemies around, she cupped her hands and took a drink of the water, and then another, and another. She started to splash a little water on her ears when she notced that everything was becoming bigger... Oh no.

She cupped small hands around a small mouth and called out. "Is anyone nearby? Hello?" Her tail was lashing wildly from distress as they would find a hand-sized Siobahn, upset at her latest predicament.

3

[unwantedtwin]

This life of going into the labyrinth, fighting monsters, then going back to town to sleep suited A-Ting just fine, really.

When she suddenly hears a voice she stops where she'd been collecting some dropped item from a monster she'd just defeated. She straightens up, looks left then right...then looks down when she realized...the sound was from below?

Being all of eight years old, she's gotten used to pretty much looking up at everyone else in this place. This is the first time she's seen someone much smaller!

She crouches down, placing her hands on her knees, looking curious. Oh. This person has a tail. "Hello." Then, "You're very small."