@Laserdragon14 "Worry not--your skill will get better as you battle." Aine smiled. "But it is always a good idea to hone and train your skills."
Taking this information in, Atelier an Eevee representing Starlight on his drawing. "If you do want to focus on healing and curing, and minimise your fighting, Starlight, it might help for you to provide support for Blacky, as he's taking the most hits. Either Xuehua, Aine, or..." He glanced at the Flareon, as he didn't know his name. "...our Flareon friend can come with you and watch your back. I could even come too. In fact, I shall do that." He sketched another Eevee beside the Eevee and Umbreon, representing the forward advance. "As Xuehua has gladly explained, she can provide helpful fire support and outflank the enemies from behind. If she and another ranged unit can make it good enough, we might be able to reach the deepest parts of the lair with minimal injuries." Atelier sketched a Glaceon in the space outside the lair - in front of advance party - along with the Sylveon. Then he sketched a Flareon with the advance party. "The only risks we have is that if Blacky falls in battle, the advance party might collapse. And if our ranged units on the flanks get spotted, it might give time for the Dragon King to summon reinforcements. But if we're okay with this strategy, then I'll leave it to you to decide when to launch it. Do we have any questions?" (Proposed strategy in brief: Blacky leads the advance party with Starlight, Kelvane, and Atelier as support; Aine and Xuehua attack from the trees to outflank the enemy once the enemy is preoccupied with the advance party)
(Aight. All Blacky knows is that minstrels can be quite versatile with their music, though.) "Sounds good and all, but..." Blacky turned to Xuehua as his curiosity ensued. "Sorry Xuehua, but can you actually do fire magic? I mean, since you're a Glaceon and all..."
"I do not know any fire spells, but Aine did say the Dragon King is also weak to ice as he is fire." Xuehua nodded. "My main concern is if the spells would also affect our party as it would the foe, unless only the Dragon King is my target."
Starlight listened intently to the conversation that was happening in front of her. She had no skills or experience when it came to combat. She started to feel a sense of uselessness as the others talked of their abilities and skills. Starlight let out a quiet sigh.
(Asking because Starlight is a ranger, supposedly) Atelier could sense a depressed vibe from Starlight from her sigh alone. He could guess from her facial expression that she must be feeling left out, as she had healing abilities. But something else stuck out for him. "Starlight... Would you be comfortable using a bow? Some fire support to cover our advance party as well as healing would be invaluable. I mean, look at me. I'm just a tactician with basic combat skills on from tomes. At least you're not carrying a load of books!" He then went to address Xuehua's concerns. "For the same reasons that you might harm us, you could outflank the enemy from the side and we wouldn't be in your way. At most, you only have to worry about anyone in front of Blacky. We can't really reach the Dragon King - I bet - until we breach the perimeter. All you have to do is sneak up on them. If you are worried, you can try thinning out their numbers, but you might risk getting ganged up on. But if you time it right, we can break through fast enough that they won't catch you."
As he listened more to the others talking, Blacky realized something: he did hear Atelier right, but somehow took it in the wrong context. Blacky, you dolt! he facepalmed, silently condemning himself.
@Laserdragon14 @SAF @ChocoChicken @122 Generation @Kecleon352 "Let us not forget that the lairs have many traps and puzzles inside." Aine cautioned. "So you won't just be dealing with minions in battle."
"Ah, right," Aine's warning snapped Blacky back to reality. "Have you researched on that too? Or... will it be a surprise for all of us?"
Atelier merely stayed quiet. The strategy was in place, so if there were any traps about, Aine could fill everyone in.
@Laserdragon14 @SAF @ChocoChicken @122 Generation @Kecleon352 Aine unrolled another map, this one of the Earth Dragon King's lair. While the map was not complete, there was enough information to form a rough idea of the route, and what minions, traps, and puzzles were inside.
Blacky had a closer look at the map Aine had just unrolled. She really had done her homework, it seems. "Hmm..."
Atelier took a careful look at Aine's map. This information still could factor into the strategy and the advance party could still avoid triggering the traps provided it stayed together. Alternatively, those on the flanks could destroy the traps in advance. "I'm ready to launch the raid whenever you are," he finally said.
(Perhaps... is it just how Atelier worded it?) Remembering the flower shop mess earlier and how Aine desperately healed the Flareon kid when he was about to sneeze, something popped up in Blacky's mind. "I think it would be even better if our Flareon friend can direct his sneezes to the foliages somehow..." he muttered.
@SAF Aine found this idea amusing, but practical. "That's a wonderful idea--especially if we need to clear a lot of foliage at once."
“Suppose that might be a good use of resources,” Atelier agreed. “If we can find where they are, then our Flareon friend can take charge of that.”
Starlight looked back up at everyone, focusing on listening to the conversation again. She suddenly felt pressure building on her head and it soon turned into a headache. She closed her eyes, trying to hide the pain from everyone else.
"Guys," Kelvane spoke up from his notes, a slight tinge of irritation in his voice, "I would really appreciate if we didn't weaponize my allergies like that. I can use fire magic just fine, and it does the exact same thing." Suddenly realizing that he spoke out of turn, and rather rudely at that, he quickly plunged his nose back into his notes and said with a much more contained voice, "Also, my name is Kelvane. I guess I didn't say that before. I'm sorry about that."