Speelunkk's Shiny Cave

"Is the ooze still out there?" A voice called out wearily from beyond the giant pylon. "Can anyone hear me?"

"Oh!" Speelunkk, rifle in hand, dashed to the voice deeper into the cavern, his companions following not far behind. It didn't take long for the adventurous skritt to catch the faint glimmer of something shiny, which immediately caught his attention. "Heard something. Over here!"

"Who's there?" The voice asked. "I need assistance."

Speelunkk slowed to a halt at the sight. It was one of their new shiny rod neighbors from the golden city--the other races called them the Exalted. Its armor was caked in dust and soil, dulling its golden gleam. The Exalted laid collapsed on the dirt, the glow of its energy faint. It was weakened but still alive.

"Something shiny down tunnel!" Speelunkk exclaimed, kneeling down as the others arrived to see what was going on.

Essher raised his head, his vision coming to focus on a heavily bearded skritt carrying a rifle and a group of warriors standing behind him. "Oh, there you are." He couldn't believe he was saying this, but he had never been more relieved to be seeing a skritt of all people coming to his rescue. "I feared I might spend eternity here."

Speelunkk placed one of his hands on the weakened Exalted's arm while one of the adventurers cast a healing spell to treat the fallen sentinel. "What would trap such shiny pretty person?"

"An ooze ambushed me," Essher informed them, slowly feeling reenergized thanks to the spell. "I may not survive another of its attacks. I wonder if you might have better luck?"

"No worries!" Speelunkk tapped the butt of his rifle to the ground and beamed Essher a confident grin. "Will smash ooze and free pretty floaty thing."

At that moment, the ground started shaking as something started thumping closer to the group. The viney wall nearby collapsed from all the shaking, revealing another tunnel underneath, and a massive golden ooze that now ominously loomed over them...

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Some Guild Wars 2 fan art is here! It's been a while since I drew about my two favorite races from the game. This piece features an original reimagining of the skritt Speelunkk and the Exalted Sage Essher, in the golden ooze's cave in Auric Basin. 😎✨

I was looking back on my past work of Tarocheeki's farm. I really wanted to create something new in that style again this time. I think this piece was a step up from that, particularly in terms of the shading on Speelunkk, and the anatomy of his hands. ✌

At this rate I may as well draw the rest of the Westwatch skritt in this style. Wouldn't that be something, eh? 😄