North Sea Dungeon

[Rokuro]

A pale ogre man with an enormous spiked club at his hip had been a fixture near one of the pillars in the plaza for more than an hour. Whether his extreme earliness was nerves or excitement didn't show on his face, but he had been quietly waiting for the rest of his assigned party. He had made no move to interact with anyone else in the plaza, content to watch and take in the sights and sounds of other would-be adventurers coming and going. To anyone else assigned to the Spruce Party, his race and garb would easily identify him as being the 'Rokuro' listed on the bulletin board.

[Theriot]

Being on time was never one of Theriot's strengths, he knew this and still decided to leave the prepping for the dungeon dive until the same morning in which he had to leave. He quickly donned his adventuring clothes and belt, as well as a small pouch for any essentials he might need.

Theriot rushed into the plaza carrying his staff, the bottles and canisters on his belt clinking loudly as he slowed to a walk and then to a stop near the center of the place. He huffed and panted, catching his breath as he looked down at some writing on his hand, then back up and around at all the people gathered there, it was probably almost 9:30 and he still didn't see his companions. The tall, pale creature near a corner caught his eye easily and he approached hurriedly.

"Ah, so sorry I'm late! Rokuro, yes? Has the event started yet?" He stood up on his tippy toes to lift a hand up at the stranger.

[Rokuro]

Hearing his own name seemed to shake Rokuro out of whatever haze he'd been waiting in. "Ah-- No worries, I don't believe it's anywhere near the cut-off time...! That attendant, Jaide, I believe their name was? They're still busy sorting out some of the other groups." He quickly tried to soothe Theriot's worries, a pleasant smile on his face. He considers Theriot's outstretched hand for a few moments, before leaning down and shaking it. Just how much people here seemed to enjoy their handshakes surprised him. Wouldn't a bow be faster? As he pulled his hand away, he laughed a bit.

"I wonder how you guessed who I was." Rokuro joked lightly as he straightened up slightly. For his sake, he hoped their final party member wouldn't be so short. "I won't embarrass myself trying to guess your name. It's good to meet you...?" He trails off for Theriot to finish.

[Theriot]

"Huh, really? Could've sworn it was later..." The gnomish man trailed off, still somewhat out of breath he placed his hands on his hips. He inhaled slowly and sighed, finally seeming to relax after rushing to get here.

"Well, I was told I'd be paired up with an ogre of all things! And you aren't exactly easy to miss considering..." He made a vague gesture with his gloved hand as he looked up at him, then shook it dismissively and smiled again "Yeah, well. My name is Theriot, it's quite a pleasure! Now I just wonder where our third companion might be..." He hummed, looking around as if said companion would simply manifest out of thin air.

[Cobalt]

Said third companion, regretfully, overslept terribly. They’d already done all the necessary preparations the night before, but the excitement kept them awake for hours. Eventually, Cobalt nodded off, and they don’t remember their dream exactly, but they do remember that it was a nightmare, eventually interrupted by the furious chittering of Seymour, jumping up and down on their face. On the first morning of the rest of their life, Cobalt woke up sweaty, disoriented, with a rat on their face, and already utterly late to the very first important meeting.

Minutes before the deadline, almost choking on the block of cheese they’d stuffed into their mouth while running—Seymour still nibbling on his own, much bigger portion—Cobalt finally stumbles onto the Dungeon Plaza.
Already, people have formed in groups, talking amongst each other excitedly. The Spruce party has an ogre, Cobalt remembers, and immediately they spot him, Rokuro, his name was, if Cobalt remembers correctly, at his side a spiked club that seems as big as Cobalt’s whole body. And he still needs to swing that thing. Someone so cool, and Cobalt messed up the first impression this badly.
There’s also a gnome next to him, Theriot. Thankfully, it’s not a name Cobalt recognizes, though it’s still best to stay on guard. He doesn’t seem hostile, but first appearances can be deceiving.

Cobalt scrambles over, panting, their face completely flushed and their clothing disheveled. They try to introduce themselves, but need to catch their breath first, doubled over for a few embarrassing seconds. Finally, Cobalt rights themselves again, brushing off their clothes in a hopefully convincing and suave attempt to salvage the remnants of their pride. They cough, ready to recite the words they’ve been practicing since they first signed up. "Hey, I’m Cobalt. You guys will be the ones working with me, right? Pleasure to meet you—and a pleasure for you to meet me too, as you'll soon find out."

They wink—or rather they blink, attempting to wink—and reach out their hand, though they can’t quite decide who to aim it towards; it ends up just awkwardly hovering in the air between the two other adventurers.
"Also, I’m not late, right?"

[Rokuro]

Shaken from his beginning pleasantries with his new party member, Rokuro turns to see yet another gnome, this one red-faced, doubled over and gasping for air. Raising his eyebrows in concern, he nearly kneels to see if they were alright, when they pop up again and give their breathless introduction. It sounded like an merchant's business pitch, and it didn't help that their face was so red. In fact, both of his new companions had arrived similarly in a whirlwind. Keeping an amused smile from cracking on his face, Rokuro nods instead.

"So you're Cobalt! I was starting to get worried." Rokuro says, crossing his arms and leaving Theriot to the fate of shaking their hand. The ogre had had quite enough of such a gesture. "You made it just in time. There's no need to worry."

[Theriot]

Theriot turned to look at the gnome, he tilted his head and raised an eyebrow at their words, but chuckled and shook their hand anyways.

"Ah, you made it! Nice to meet you" He placed a hand on his chin as he took a better look at them "I like the 'handsomely disheveled' look, it fits you nicely!" He gave them a bright smile as he clapped his hands together.

"So! Shall we go register?"

[Cobalt]

Cobalt nods enthusiastically—though hopefully not too enthusiastically. They try, and fail, to hide the blush forming on their face. Nobody has ever called them handsome before. Maybe, this guy really isn’t so bad. The ogre seems so nice too...
"Oh, um, thank you," they stutter, before clearing their throat and glancing over at the pile of equipment. "Yes, let’s go register!"

They have no idea how to do that, but aren’t willing to admit the extent of their cluelessness quite yet. Hopefully, someone else is willing to go first.

[Rokuro]

"Most of the other parties have already left, so it should be fast." Rokuro says, pushing off of the pillar he was leaning against, heavy club swinging dangerously at his hip as he walks between the two gnomes. "It's just over here." He tosses over his shoulder, walking to the center of the plaza. Only a few dwindling packs were left there, dotted in piles about the feet of a somewhat tired looking tallman, a list in their hand. Behind them, a sign that said "EVENT PARTICIPANTS INQUIRE HERE." Rokuro raised a hand in greeting as they approached.

"Spruce, right? All three present..." Jaide muttered under their breath, checking their list. "You're checked in, just in time. Grab your supplies and head down." They said, gesturing to three bags, sectioned apparently just for them. It'd feel more special if every bag wasn't filled with the exact same supplies.

[Theriot]

Theriot gave Cobalt a smile before following behind the ogre, thankfully he walked slowly for someone his height, otherwise the two shorter party members would struggle to keep up.

He gave the tall-man a polite thank you and leaned down to look at the bag and grab them, handing each of his companions one before keeping the last one for himself. As they walked away he stuck his hand inside, then made a triumphant noise as he found what he was looking for.

"I managed to acquire a map that should help us navigate the first floor at the very least" He unrolled the scroll to show his companions "I assume we should be fine as long as we avoid having to run around much"