"Little is known about the enigmatic species the [system] has named the Hypnofrog. That's mainly because any attempts to study it results in quote, "having a good time." end quote. We do know that it's close relative the Discotoad has been spotted at sites of mass indulgences. Typically followers of more primitive aspects of Charisma will have Discotoads on hand. Some reports claim that followers will even lick the toads, causing an extreme status effect. What we can confirm is that they must both have an evolutionary ancestor in the more common "Singing Frog." Thus, should you be caught in a remote area and hear a chorus of your favorite music playing, evacuate posthaste. Their evolved cousins may be about."

--Excerpt from, "Amphibians of Arthos: An Adventurers Almanac." AC 1748.

Wow... a ton has happened in a short period of time. I've discovered that I'm not alone here in this dungeon. I've met Luna, Octo and TODD. Yuck, I'm even thinking of his name in bass. Anyway, I've met all these new people. I guess the question is... what do I do now?

I take a seat at one of the benches helpfully provided and Luna joins me, sitting across from the table in front of me.

"So, Luna... thank you for bringing me here to the [Safe Zone] and all that. But, what now? I mean, what is it you want? I want to get out of here and meet up with my friend at the coast. What about you?"

"I..." she seems a little hesitant in her response, but after a moment manages to barrel through in a rush.

"I want to get out of here as well. I know some creatures are okay with living their life in the [dungeon] but I want to explore. See the world, and all the places in it. I don't want to just be constrained to living in ten floors until something eventually kills me."

I nod in acknowledgement. That makes sense. I can't imagine being stuck in a [dungeon] indefinitely. I would probably go mad. Plus, Erica is waiting for me. This is just a small detour Crabby! You'll get there eventually!

"Well... in that case, do you want to clear the [dungeon] with me? It seems like we worked well back there, and..." I quickly count numbers of arms and legs... "twenty two limbs are better than ten I suppose."

She laughs, her starfish body rippling with the motion. After the chuckles pass, she pauses for a moment before sweeping her arm expansively. "In that case crab, this young mistress invites you to join her [sect]!" Her tone rises, becoming haughtier and more confident, "Together we will explore and conquer this dungeon, crushing all opposition before us!"

She ends her declaration half out of the bench, an arm held high and holding motionless as she awaits my response. There's only one thing I can say to that.

"What's a [sect]?"

She immediately collapses back down on the table. Her response is in a more normal tone as she seems a bit sad and confused.

"Umm, I don't know exactly? I think I should have one, but it's just me here and I'm not sure what they're for. I have an idea that they're a group of people who do something? The class [Knowledge] is all very fuzzy."

Hmm... I understand her problem. I've had to deal with information coming out of nowhere myself. As I think about how I can help, it comes to me.

"Hey! Don't be sad!" I pat her splayed out arm with my claw. "I think I have something that can help!"

"Really?" She perks up, two legs holding my claw. "What can you do?"

"Well, [knowledge] and [lore] meet in the [akasha] and I can get some information from there. I'll try and see if I can get more info about it maybe?"

"Yes! That would help a ton! It might help me figure out what my class is pushing me towards."

I nod, disengaging my claw from her grasp. I turn to her and say,

"Okay! Just give me a little bit, I'm going to try now."

I cross my claws, going into the dark shadows of my mind to search the [akasha]. I activate [Eyes of Intent], pushing out thoughts of the word "sect." Images flash before my eyes, unclear, hazy and without context.

A [sect] seems to be... a group of people who sit around thinking about their stomachs?

No, that can't be right Crabby.

More flashes and more information begins to intrude into my mind and my concentration starts to waver. I'm eventually forced to break contact and return to the waking world. As my surroundings start to register I see the starfish waiting expectantly.

"So? What did you find?"

I think about how to say it. "Umm... well it could be a couple of things. It could be a bunch of people who get in tournaments for no reason."

"What's a tournament?"

"I'm not sure. Or it could be a group of people who hang out waiting for a single guy to show up. They then send out progressively stronger people one by one to defeat him but only end up making him stronger."

"That's dumb. Why would you only send out one person at a time when you had an entire group of people?"

"Yeah, that didn't make sense to me either."

She collapses on the table again. A bit of a whine enters her voice as she says, "these are all terrible ideas. I'm never going to figure this out."

I hurry to reassure her. Patting her arm I say, "No, no. It might also be a group of people who go on adventures and missions together and rally together for attack and defense. They pool their resources in one spot and whoever needs something can get it based on their contribution to the group."

Luna perks back up. "That... that sounds pretty good actually!" She sits all the way up and says, "Alright, I'm going with that! If we do that would you want to join?"

Her voice becomes more and more excited as she speaks and I'm drawn in by her happy tone.

"Yeah! Yeah, that sounds like it'd be fun!"

"Okay then! I, Luna hereby establish the MoonCrab [sect]! I invite Sir Crabby McCrabbington as head!."

'ding'

Factions Unlocked.

You have been invited to be the Head of the MoonCrab [sect]. You will have equal power and privileges as the other head. Do you accept?

Y/N?

I reach out a claw to accept. "Y"

Congratulations!

You are now one of the Head's of the MoonCrab sect.

Sect Members:

Luna (Head) - Lvl 8.

Sir Crabby McCrabbington I (Head) - Lvl 5.

"Yes!" Luna takes my claws in her arms and jumps up and down in excitement. "This is great! I, no, we have our own [sect] now!"

I don't really understand her excitement, but I'm caught up in how happy she is. We dance around the room for a while before slowing down. As the rush of emotions fade, the events of the past couple of weeks catch up to me.

At the end of the day, I'm still just a small crab and it's been a harrowing couple of weeks in the [dungeon]. I mean, I had gotten some rest because I needed to, but I hardly got any sleep. I had to always keep one stalk open in case I was attacked. As Luna went to go talk to Todd, the fatigue began to creep up on me. Before laying down though, I went to go ask Luna one more thing.

"Hey Luna? The crab part is obvious, but why Moon?"

"Oh!" Her colors slowly darken in a response I was beginning to recognize as a blush. "I must have forgotten to properly introduce myself. I'm Luna, but my race is technically a Moonstar."

I look at her, at her fluctuating bands of black and silver, her body seemingly made for the shadows. I nod, acknowledging her words.

"Okay! I'm going to lay down for a while and get some sleep. When I get up how about we go tackle the [dungeon]?"

She waves an arm. "Go ahead! I'll get some rest myself after I get done talking with Todd. Thanks for everything Sir Crabby! I look forward to working with you!"

As I lay back down on the kelp floor matting, I feel the tension leak out of my shell. It's been a long few weeks Crabby... and while nothing's going to stop me from getting home, maybe... just maybe... I can make some new friends along the way.

*zzzzzzzzzzz*

Aethir: "Great! Now there's [sects] on Arthos!"

Toriana: "It's just the one! What could one [sect] do?"

Lira: "Oh yes, because a single [sect] with no competitors always turns out well."

...

Toriana: "You guys never let me have any fun."