Fantasy Cursed Island

[Darkling0096]

Once they were away from the pools, Beri turned to face Asta. "Prepare yourself." He lowered himself to the ground to pounce.

------------

"Do you think it's safe to touch?", Veo asked, likewise hovering over the pot. She wasn't sure what properties the cursed item had, Jerry hadn't had the chance to identify them. But likewise she didn't really want Emil to touch something that might do to him what it had done to that poor orchestra.

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta nodded and crouched into his own ready stance. "Likewise."

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"As long as it's purified, it should be. The spikes have receded and it's not steaming from the water, so it should be safe." Even so, he hesitated before leaning up further to reach into the pot. As he grabbed the instrument, however, he fell completely limp against the pot, save for the death grip he now had on the violin.

 

[Darkling0096]

Beri closed his eyes, and then growled. With a roar the leopard sprang across the area, markings glowing an eyes blazing.

----------------
"EMIL!", Veo screamed when the bard fell limp, drawing the attention of some of the others as she threw the pot to the floor to lay Emil on the table, checking that he was still breathing, his heart still beating, and making sure he wasn't physically injured.

 

[Fangs9090]

Asta narrowed his eyes and likewise charged him head-on.

----------

Niudisa glanced over towards the sound of the commotion. She paused as she saw them by the pot, and the instrument in the bard's hand, before she started heading over.

Emil's pulse and breathing were normal, and he had no injuries, but he was otherwise unresponsive.

~~~~~~~~~~

Emil found himself laying on what seemed to be clouds, only solid enough to stand on. He groaned as he got to his feet, rubbing his head. It felt like he'd just slammed his head on the edge of a pot. He looked around to take in his surroundings. All around, the cloudscape seemed to stretch on without end. It was hard to tell where the ground ended and the sky began, mainly because the sky looked like just more clouds. His ear flicked as he caught a song on the wind. Seeing no other options, he started walking towards the sound. "I swear, if I find another 'stage of the gods'...."

 

[Darkling0096]

Joanne, Jerry, and Adran also looked up at the noise rushing over to find Veo panicking over Emil clutching a rather ornate violin. The thing almost glowed with magic. Whatever it was, it was potent, even Lyak by Erina's loom could feel it. That violin was pulling in and exerting a massive amount of mana.

"Oh, shit." Jerry tried to pry Emil's fingers off of the violin, but his grip on the thing was like a vice. Emil was too small to have that kind of grip strength, this thing was holding him with magic.

 

[Fangs9090]

Niudisa spoke up as she got to them. “Hold on, hold on. Even if that worked, I wouldn’t recommend it. That’s like pulling a blade out of a wound before you have to patch it.” The fairy fluttered around Emil, holding her hands out to magically check on him. “Hmm....”

~~~~~~~~~~

Emil found the source of the song before long. Up ahead, there was a pool of water among the clouds, a large polished stone sitting in the middle. Atop the stone sat a mermaid, singing the song Emil was hearing. Her hair was golden blonde, counter to her blue eyes, and the scales on her tail were silver, though they seemed to reflect every color, depending on the angle of the light. As Emil was briefly stunned by the sight of her, she stopped singing and looked at him, beckoning him to approach.

 

[Darkling0096]

"What's the verdict?", Adran asked while Joanne tried to persuade Veo to let go of the bard so that the magic item people could handle it. Veo would not, so Joanne employed the tried and true method and putting Veo on the floor unconscious.

"You didn't have to do that," Jerry commented.

 

[Fangs9090]

Niudisa furrowed her brow as she shook her head. “I’m...not sure... He’s not possessed, I know what that looks like, and it’s not a possession in progress either. It doesn’t seem like what happened to the person we found this on. I think there’s something...in his head? I feel another presence, but I can’t get enough of a grasp on it to identify it or find out what it’s doing.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Emil walked over to the pool, stopping at the water’s edge. The mermaid gave him a smile. “Hello. It’s good to meet you.” Even when she spoke, it sounded almost like a song.

“Ah... Hello. May I ask who you are? And where I am?”

“My name is Aria, and we’re currently...inside your mind, I suppose.”

 

[Darkling0096]

"What do you mean 'in his head'? That's exactly what a possession is!", Adran was just as confused as Niudisa.

"What, do you mean like me and the dragon?", Jerry asked. It had been a minute since they'd heard from Jeri, actually, Jerry wondered if she'd finally gone away.

 

[Fangs9090]

Niudisa shook her head. "It's not a possession because it's not trying to take control. It's sort of like the dragon, but it's not definitely another soul. A spirit of some sort, maybe? Whatever it was, it was bound to that instrument, and now it's latched onto Emil."

~~~~~~~~~~

Emil glanced around. "I had hoped my mind would be less empty..."

Aria giggled. "You're quite charming, aren't you?"

Emil paused before looking at her. "I am bard, after all. But I'm taken."

"Oh, of course, of course. Don't worry. This is a professional arrangement."

"What arrangement?"

"Well, you said you're a bard, so that would make me your muse."

 

[Darkling0096]

By the look on Jerry's face, Niudisa was practically speaking another language. "They're communicating, not bonded," Adran clarified, once he figured out what Niudisa was saying.

"So how do we cut this conversation short?" A pillar of fire erupted out of the woods where Beri and Asta were sparring.

"Fia!"

 

[Fangs9090]

Fia spoke up from where she was standing with the group. "What?"

~~~~~~~~~~

"My...muse?"

Aria nodded. "Yes. But more than inspire you, I'll grant you greater musical power than you had before."

"Musical power... Was that you controlling those people we fought?"

Aria frowned as she nodded. "I'm afraid so... One of my previous wielders became corrupted here, and that spread to me. But I have been purified, which I'm sure I can thank you for."

"In part, yes."

 

[Darkling0096]

"Go make sure Beri doesn't set the forest on fire," Jerry called, pointing towards the second pillar of fire to erupt.

 

[Fangs9090]

Fia nodded and flew off towards the source of the fire pillars.

~~~~~~~~~~

“So... Why exactly am I in my head and not just standing where I had been?”

“Because I must teach you how to use the power I’m giving you, and it’s faster this way.” Aria waved a hand to Emil and a violin manifested before him. “Let’s begin.”

 

[Darkling0096]

At the source of the fire pillars, Beri and Asta were still sparring. Beri looked less like a leopard and more like a cat-shaped ball of fire, and Asta was smoking in spite of the ring enchantment. Their collisions and separations seemed to be what caused fire to erupt into a pillar.

"So can we cut this communication short or not?", Jerry asked.

"We probably need to know how it's doing that, can you ID the item?", Adran asked.

"Not without spending an hour or two screwing with it."

 

[Fangs9090]

Fia kept her distance as she watched, knowing better than to get in the middle of it. Asta was a bit winded, but he was still going.


Niudisa glanced at Jerry. “If you can do that while Emil’s holding it, get started. Otherwise...” She looked at Emil. “Well, turning off his brain might work, I just can’t promise I can get back on properly.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Aria’s instruction was as much teaching Emil magic as it was teaching him new songs and musical techniques.

 

[Darkling0096]

"I can't," Jerry shook her head, "I need an item's full attention to learn it's properties," If the magic item was in use, it's attention was divided and any read Jerry could get on what it did would be incredily flawed at best, and downright dangerously wrong at worst.

 

[Fangs9090]

Niudisa shook her head. “Then I guess we watch and wait. I’ll keep a close eye for any change.”

 

[Darkling0096]

Jerry sighed, "Who's gonna tell Veo?"

 

[Fangs9090]

Niudisa shook her head. “Someone who can keep her from freaking out.”

 

[Darkling0096]

"I'll handle it," Adran shook his head as Veo started to stir.

 

[Fangs9090]

"Good luck." Niudisa turned her focus to keeping watch on Emil for any magical changes. Physically, he had yet to move, though she could've sworn she saw a finger twitch earlier.

 

[Darkling0096]

"Yeah, yeah," Adran waved it off and worked a floating disc and Hold Person to tie Veo up and relocate her to her tent. Jerry took her stylus out of her hair and started scribbling around Emil.

 

[Fangs9090]

Niudisa glanced over at the rouge. "What are you doing?"

 

[Darkling0096]

"I've been experimenting with the stylus," Jerry explained as she kept scribbling, "And I've been looking at Adran's barrier circles. I think I can make a barrier to keep Emil and that thing in if this goes sideways." She paused to rub her hand where the stylus rubbed, "If this thing wasn't so painful to write with it'd be easier." That was a bit of a stupid gripe, but she'd been Etching a lot today, and since her stylus was a chunk of Asta's horn that she hadn't done anything with to make more comfortable yet, it was starting to rub the spot between her thumb and forefinger raw, even through the scales on her right hand.