The swarm descended like a living storm.
Thirty-six wasps, their black carapaces gleaming under the merciless sun, swirled above in a chaotic, shifting spiral. Their wings beat so fast they blurred, their movements erratic and unpredictable, a whirlwind of hunger and hostility. Their bodies caught the light in flickering flashes, too quick for the eye to track, and the droning hum of their wings grew unbearable, pressing in from all sides.
Yet Sal didn't move.
You watched him closely, expecting… something. A shift in his stance, a flicker of tension, some sign that he even registered the incoming threat. But he stood there, relaxed, utterly unfazed, as if he were watching a dust storm on the horizon rather than a swarm of venomous creatures descending upon him.
"Can you handle that?" you asked, your voice calm, even.
Sal snorted. "Please."
The wasps struck as one.
The air rippled with their sheer speed, their bodies converging from every angle, a synchronized mass of stingers and snapping mandibles. Their shadows stretched across the dunes, flickering like restless ghosts over the golden sand.
Sal Roll - 100 (NAT CRIT! WHAT THE FUCK)
Wasps roll - 13
Then Sal moved.
A single stomp.
The sand bucked beneath his foot, and the desert roared to life.
A tidal wave of sand erupted around him, an explosion of golden grains that billowed outward in a blinding storm. The force slammed into the wasps, scattering them like dead leaves in a gale. The swirling mass of sand rose higher, twisting into a spiraling column that shimmered in the sun, a swirling storm bending to his will.
Then, slowly, deliberately, Sal raised his only hand toward the sky.
The airborne sand, still thick in the air, clung to the disoriented wasps as they struggled to recover. But before they could regain control, his fingers curled into a fist.
The sand answered.
It clumped together in an instant, coalescing into dense, crushing masses that gripped the wasps mid-air. One by one, they were dragged downward, their wings thrashing in futile protest. The desert itself seemed to consume them, yanking them from the sky like a jealous god reclaiming its lost children.
They hit the sand in a chaotic, writhing heap, their bodies twitching, their limbs scrabbling at the shifting grains beneath them.
Sal tilted his head, watching. Then he clenched his fist once more.
The desert obeyed.
The trapped wasps pulped instantly. The wet, sickening crunch of exoskeletons collapsing in unison filled the air, their once-frenzied movements ceasing in an instant. Green blood soaked into the sand, darkening it in thick, uneven patches, the only remaining proof of the swarm's existence.
Sal exhaled, lowering his hand. He flexed his fingers absentmindedly, rolling his shoulders as if he had just finished a light exercise.
"This worked better than I expected," he muttered, utterly unconcerned.
.
Qi - 44 (50)
[Earthbending Level 12 → Earthbending Level 13]
+2 trait points (0 -> 2)
-------
Available traits for buying:
Shifting Sands
Effect: Grants the ability to sense sand within a limited range, detecting vibrations to "see" through it without using sight. This effect also works with earth, though at half efficiency.(Cost: 4 Trait Points)
.
I Am. A. Sandbender
(Effect: +1 to earthbending skill when bending sand. Cost: 2 Trait Points)
.
Fratricide
(Effect: +5 to all rolls against those who share a close blood relation with the Host. Cost: 1 Trait Point)
-----
Proceed deeper into the nest or use another strategy?