#cyberengle o1

[2501iv]

"Are you someone that accepted this "quest" as well, or someone looking to face off with the Candy Witch?" Ivy addressed the figure that approached as she examined a low entrance door to the castle. It was locked, which meant either no one else had used it yet or they re-locked behind anyone that entered.

"...Either way, from the looks of you... I can be useful to you, and you can be useful to me." Her red eyes fixed analytically on the candy corn axe carried by the new arrival. Without moving them, she pulled a spicy bean from her utility belt and pushed it firmly into the door's keyhole. The hard candy lock sizzled and cracked sharply.

Taking the handle in her hand, she pulled it open and stepped aside, propping it open for the other to step in first.

— ☾ QUEST ACCEPTED: The Candy Culling (Candy Witch Castle) w/ @cyberengle

[2501iv]

The warrior did a fantastic job of reducing the walking armor to immobile shards. Ivy returned the dagger to its sheath with an appreciative nod in her partner's direction.

The ghost appeared in silence, and the warrior noticed it at the the same time Ivy did. When she gave a warning about this one, Ivy took a moment to think. Magic was the obvious next choice, but she had no damaging spells in her arsenal (and a very weak grasp on the non-damaging illusions).

The thought of running occurred to her next, and her hand dove down into the pouch of beans. When her fingertips brushed the candies, it dawned on her that they, in some way, counted as magic too.

"Perhaps a combination..." she mumbled, blindly plucking out a bean. Her eyes flickered down, registering it as a "lemon bean".

"We might be able to overwhelm it with a bean or three," Ivy suggested, then darting to the side to divide the ghost's attention and make her throw less predictable. It was enough time for the other to grab from her own pouch if she wished, or start their escape otherwise.

A moment later, she hurled it toward the ghost.

"Understood."

Engle pulls out her axe from the wall, and with a whirling swing, she topples the armor in a single blow. Whenever the pieces start to move, she brings the axe down on them, until they're nothing more than mere caramel bits.

So busy is she with this hacking process, that she fails to notice the sugary specter behind her... almost.

It's only inches away when she swings her axe at the ghost, but it only dissipates and giggles at her. A couple more swings are enough to prove her theory.

"Physical attacks won't work..."

What now?

[2501iv]

Her temporary partner skillfully disposed of the second skeleton, earning a point in her favor from Ivy. Her eyes moved to follow the suits of armor next, her feet cautiously rooted to the floor.

A suit of armor... if nothing was inside, would a stab to the back change anything? It might be worth the attempt. She stepped to the side, all but fading into the shadows. Deftly, she moved through spots unilluminated by torches.

Right before her goal, she felt a hand on her arm and a sickly sweet scent overwhelm her senses. Ivy jerked away from it. Her analytical gaze found the pink fingers that had snaked out of the painting just before they disappeared back inside of it, and an idea came to mind.

Darting behind the closest hostile armor, she jabbed a dagger into a gap between two pieces of caramel. It didn't react to anything until the hilt tapped against the armor, and then it froze and began to turn toward her.

Nothing inside after all. Well, Plan B wasn't too difficult: as it rotated, she kicked out hard against its side, causing it to stumble directly into the painting Ivy disturbed before. Pink arms embraced the armor, working to drag it in as it struggled.

One down, or at least temporarily removed from the equation. The next turned toward her, putting its back to the owl warrior.

"There's nothing organic in them to harm," she warned her collaborator, careful to keep her attention entirely on the second suit.

"Noted."

Now's the time to put her axe-throwing skills to the test. She leans back, then chucks her candy corn axe right at the second skeleton's skull.

It explodes in a burst of sharp, sugary shrapnel. Engle makes a move to retrieve her axe from the wall, but the noise has alerted the suits of caramel armor, who creak to life and brandish their swords.

The suits move slowly, but they're heading their way. Engle stands back so she has room to move. They have their weapons and dwarf her in size, so she either needs to find an opening, or hope that her partner can make one of her own.

[2501iv]

Ivy nodded her acceptance of the other's plan and followed her inside. Rather than sticking to her back, Ivy put a bit of distance between them at her side. She kept one hand on the hilt of a dagger as she walked cautiously, her eyes attentively scanning their surroundings.

"Torches... this is even more primitive than I expected," she remarked. The fire could be of use against candy enemies, however; they'd just have to find a way to utilize them.

Before she could consider that further, a pair of candy skeletons shuffled out of an open doorway ahead, blocking their way. Ivy immediately abandoned the dagger in favor of the crossbow attached to her back. A bolt struck the first skeleton and the targeted bone shattered violently, candy shrapnel biting into the closest wall and causing the second one to stumble back.

"It's dangerous to get too close to these foes. They explode if heavily damaged."

"I'm here to confront the Witch. Failing that, we will defeat the beasts."

She's focused on her mission, as always. This newcomer had better keep up.

The lock-melting jelly bean is given a look. She has a similar one on her own utility belt. With the door opened for her, she's robbed of the opportunity to kick it, so she simply steps inside and takes the stealthy approach.

This place is... strangely quiet. Suits of armor stand at guard, paintings line the walls, and there's the smell of something sweet in the air.

It doesn't feel right.

Engle looks around, then waits for the other woman to catch up. Her instincts tell her to watch her back. There could be danger anywhere...