karma's a relaxing thought, aren't you envious that for you it's not?
Team Walkthrough (Flora, Sohalia, Mateo)
The crab in Soh’s talons is flailing wildly, its spoon clattering to the sand in defeat. Flora’s about to call this a win—one down, a dozen to go—when the colony reacts like they’ve rehearsed it. Claws snap in perfect unison, sand sprays in little arcs, and the watermelon-sized spoonless ringleader stomps forward like he’s auditioning for a duel.
"Oh, fantastic," Flora mutters, instinctively stepping closer to Mateo as two of the smaller crabs break rank and start scuttling toward his ankles, beady eyes locked on their driftwood-wielding opponent.
Then the sand behind the group...moves. Not just a little shift—heaves. A wide, rising mound bulges upward, spilling grains in rivulets, until something even bigger than the spoon-crab is clearly about to surface. Flora’s eyes widen, her bracelets jingling as she flaps a hand toward Soh. "Uh, babe? I think you’re about to have a mini-boss fight on your hands." err, wings.
Team Perimeter (Niki, Sunjata, Remi, Ronin)
While Ronin’s firebolts scatter two of the hels, the third—a bold little menace—tucks its wings and dive-bombs Niki, going straight for the rolled-up plans. Sunjata’s macaw form is quick enough to intercept, but the hel snaps at his tail feathers before veering off, circling higher as if plotting another run.
Team Supplies (Danta, Asta)
The trail of scattered nails leads them around the nearest dune—right to where the sand darkens with shadow. A long, scaled tail flicks lazily from beneath the dune’s lip, the faint creak of wood giving away that the crate is just out of sight. When they get closer, there’s a low, rumbling hiss from the shade, and a glint of yellow eyes watching from under the sand.
The crab in Soh’s talons is flailing wildly, its spoon clattering to the sand in defeat. Flora’s about to call this a win—one down, a dozen to go—when the colony reacts like they’ve rehearsed it. Claws snap in perfect unison, sand sprays in little arcs, and the watermelon-sized spoonless ringleader stomps forward like he’s auditioning for a duel.
"Oh, fantastic," Flora mutters, instinctively stepping closer to Mateo as two of the smaller crabs break rank and start scuttling toward his ankles, beady eyes locked on their driftwood-wielding opponent.
Then the sand behind the group...moves. Not just a little shift—heaves. A wide, rising mound bulges upward, spilling grains in rivulets, until something even bigger than the spoon-crab is clearly about to surface. Flora’s eyes widen, her bracelets jingling as she flaps a hand toward Soh. "Uh, babe? I think you’re about to have a mini-boss fight on your hands." err, wings.
Team Perimeter (Niki, Sunjata, Remi, Ronin)
While Ronin’s firebolts scatter two of the hels, the third—a bold little menace—tucks its wings and dive-bombs Niki, going straight for the rolled-up plans. Sunjata’s macaw form is quick enough to intercept, but the hel snaps at his tail feathers before veering off, circling higher as if plotting another run.
Team Supplies (Danta, Asta)
The trail of scattered nails leads them around the nearest dune—right to where the sand darkens with shadow. A long, scaled tail flicks lazily from beneath the dune’s lip, the faint creak of wood giving away that the crate is just out of sight. When they get closer, there’s a low, rumbling hiss from the shade, and a glint of yellow eyes watching from under the sand.
