Fantasy Four Suits Volume 3: Shadows Of War

[Xanto]

Kaiden Alderidge​

Mana bombs rained from Kaiden's air fleet, causing left-central front to mid line enemy soldiers to scramble for shelter. Meanwhile, all operating airships were moving just as ordered. Front lines fired canons at regrouping sky steeds, ranged mages took sky steeds out, and wind mages pushed the fleet forward at a faster pace. It didn't take much longer for the air force to reach Argossian backlines. Cheers erupted across the deck once Hudson announced the team's milestone, but those same cheers were quickly silenced by the establishing scene ahead. One sky steed after another flew into view this time charging at the airships. With a different strategy up their sleeves, Argossian planes maneuvered through the airships' tight formation and prompted both forces to nail numbers on each other.

"Sir, I think I found them," Hudson placed a hand against his right temple, "Sending their coordinates to the main drivers." Kaiden's eyes shifted down at the battlefield in time to see a large chunk of land disappear. A wall popped up shortly after, no doubt due to the club king's abilities. At least the battle was happening on top of X's army.

Kaiden squared his shoulders, ready to give out his next command until- "Watch for the glitter!" "Huh?" The commander whipped his head around, witnessing the confetti mage jump overboard. "Watch for friendly fire!" He instead called out to his troops without moving his eyes away from Vivianne. She was taking on the planes with far and close ranged attacks. It was good; however, her method made it trickier for the air force to hit planes without tagging her. Usually "ranged mages" referred to those shooting out spells within the safety of the airship. But with everything going on, anyone could've forgotten the newbies up in the skies with them.

"Wrym has reemerged," The telepath slightly flinched at the overlapping messages in his network, "Archers in the left flank are helping attack sky steeds." His train of thought was cut off when Kaiden firmly grabbed the his shoulder and nodded in approval, "You're doing well, Hudson." It was a gesture most people were familiar with. The much weaker messenger nervously smiled in return at the unintentional force, but nodded in gratitude nonetheless. Felt good to be appreciated especially in a time like this.

Once they were officially within position, Kaiden ordered all collapsing airships to target enemy lines close to planned rescue load in points. "Enough space to buy time for our load in points, while avoiding friendly fire," He further clarified before moving his arms in signals, "Operating airships commence landing and prepare for load in! Ranged mages, fend off attacks! Remaining paratroopers drop and expedite load in time!"

On cue, collapsing airships started diverting toward rescue points and crashing near X's wall. These damaged vehicles also cleared the way for stronger operating airships to land. "Lines of 30 descend! Load in troops then fly in 60s back to Valencia," Kaiden rapidly calculated after receiving an incoming numerical report from Hudson. This meant roughly 13 waves of 30 rescue ships were projected to save the approximately 17,000 suits troops remaining in the back lines.

Line by line groups of 30 airships took turns landing and opening their doors to load in people. Meanwhile, the other eyes in the sky tried battling their airborne enemies. They used almost the same earlier tactic, but with very minor adjustments. "Ripple! Outer ring, 16% of wind mages in each ship channel. 34% on ranged attacks. Inner ring, 40% on channeling. Remaining wind mages facilitate landing and rotation," The commander moved a hand through his hair when he finally felt his own airship descending with a line. He'd probably stay on the field until it was guaranteed the club king himself was on his way to Valencia.

"DO I NEED TO GO DOWN?!" Hudson screamed once their ship touched ground and doors swung open. Friendly troops flooded the entrance in an instant. "Stand by the entrance," Kaiden coolly replied, tilting past the stampede.

Kloudy LazyDaze Goonfire Mechking

 

[Goonfire]

THREE WAY

Leolin Hravart III
Goonfire
+
Guineverre Y Blanca
. D O V E
+
Zephyr Terwilliger
Coyote Hart ​

Deductions made from clairsentient revelations led to a potentially fatal last-minute decision...

Leolin rushed towards the open maw of the wyrm, frantically yelling “Jump! It’s a trap! JUMP!!!” The pulsing mana began charging, signaling there would only be about ten seconds tops before the wyrm annihilated Valencia and the royals.

It was good that Leolin had screamed to jump since Twig had been more concerned about the wellbeing of Valencia. Granted, having more of the city demolished would cost quite a bit less compared to what had already been demolished, but it was still money out of the pockets of the Heart treasury, which already was at the end of its line with the strain that the war was putting on it.

Envigorated by Leolin’s command, Twig immediately took stock of the situation. His understanding of wind magic could probably allow him to tumble down the wyrm unscathed, but he wasn’t sure about Four. ThereFour, the only solution would be to piggyback off of Guin’s blink ability.

Using his wind magic like a tiny cocoon, Twig gathered himself, Guin, and the ensnared Four into a tight squeeze.

The unanticipated series of actions caught the Queen by surprise. She was still stunned by Three’s reverberating voice and the sight of their devastated city when Leolin’s warning came and Twig pulled her with his magic. Thankfully, these caused her to return to her senses, catching on to the Jack’s plan before it was too late.

Without any delay, Guin grabbed both Twig and Four, pulling them even closer that they wound up sandwiching her, before disappearing from their position. In a matter of seconds, she chained her blink spell to evade the wyrm’s blast and reach the ruined grounds of Valencia, taking the other two with her.

Guin immediately dropped her passengers upon landing, following them to the ground moments after as her legs gave in to exhaustion. “...L-Leo…” She strained in between pants before looking up the wyrm’s towering form where they left their fiery Ace.

“Wind…?” Leo had no time to process the realization that Twig might be the masked Joker. As soon as the others were clear, the Ace retrieved his sword, which had been rolling around for some time, and then rushed to one side of the wyrm’s mouth. Squatting, he aimed himself for a cannon jump. Only about five seconds remained; his decision for where to steer this thing had to be quick. That was when he spied something off to the side, in the distance: the Argossian War Engine. “Ace of fools… You’re gonna learn today, Three…”

With only two seconds left, Leolin launched himself into the other side, utilizing his full physical strength and momentum to hammer the wyrm’s front end, forcing it to swivel around to face the War Engine. It would have no time to correct its beam’s trajectory now. On the flipside… well… Leo was about to get the full brunt of the laser, too.

Meanwhile, the two royalties watched as their Ace countered the blast. “Leolin!” Guin cried out in panic as she pulled herself back to her feet, witnessing the result of his actions with widened red eyes.

“Did… he just body slam into the wyrm?” Twig asked. He was disoriented from Guin’s blink ability-- he never got used to the weird feeling of going from one place immediately to the next-- so he misinterpreted what had occurred. He winced and realized the repercussions of Leo’s act, and he prepared himself to go heal Leo. “I hope he knows what he’s doing…”

Guin then brought a hand to her face and massaged the bridge of her nose, feeling her stress level spike even higher. “We might need to call for backup.” She then looked at the unconscious Four, still ensnared by her manifestations on the ground, before attempting to reach a telepath.

Kloudy TPBx Athanas

 

[Kloudy]

The Battle of Aces
(Valencia - Inner City)

​

Quillon watched as William dropped two figures from the sky, each plummeting down towards the earth before they came down with a resounding crash. Before the dust even began to settle, Quillon eyed the ghastly figures that began to manifest before their eyes. Hollow eye sockets stared out atop their towering frames, watching and waiting for either of the two combatants to make a move. Quillon looked back up towards the sky to see just a glimpse of William disappearing into a separate portal, now obscured from his line of sight. He could still sense the presence of his mana around them, but at this point, Quillon was unsure whether it was William’s own or the same aura that radiated off of the skeletons before him.

“Have a chill break, Quillon,” Rohan said, stepping forward with his sword sheathed. Instead, he was holding Mia in his hand, the sword glowing as it charged, “I’ll take care of this.”

“We’re as chill as it’s gonna get, brat. You forget we’re fighting a cryomancer.” Quillon responded, before placing one palm over the other and pointing both towards the skeletons before them.

As he stepped towards the skeletons, Rohan knew that he needed to stall for as long as possible while Mia did her business. So he looked at the two terrifying skulls - likely the same two skulls that led to his demise. He had to buy Mia some time.

“Why was the skeleton afraid to die?” Rohan asked, “Because he didn’t have the guts!” Knowing that a short five-second joke wasn’t going to do anything, Rohan continued:

“Did you hear about the skeleton that was almost picked apart by a group of wild dogs? He marrowly escaped!”

The Chaos Skulls wasted no time. Striding towards the two Aces, each raised an ethereal hand and began blasting cryogenic mana in a sweeping 5ft wide beam at the two of them.

“Oi brat, stop with those jokes already. Those aren’t gonna get under their skin!”.

There wasn’t a moment’s hesitation from Quillon. As he saw the skeletons release the blistering beam of cold ice in their direction he retaliated with a blast of his own, a blast like a wave consisting of the charged mana that he had meant to use to finish off the rest of William’s sight. Meanwhile, recognizing that his plan had failed, Rohan charged forward to meet the two skeletons, using his deft electricity mana to avoid any beams that threatened to hit him. As he neared the skeletons, Rohan raised Amelia, striking down in a vanilla blow. The first skull stopped beaming and jumped high, flying upwards as it noticed its beam was being stopped by some invisible force being projected by assumably Quillion. The second skull repositioned itself so that Rohan was between Quillion’s psychic wave and summoned forth a wall of ice in an attempt to block both attacks.

With the first skeleton leaping into the air, Quillon forced the wall of ice between Rohan and the second skeleton into the air, in an attempt to intercept the airborne fuckwad. With his danger senses screaming at him to run, Rohan grabbed onto the ice wall, and with cat-like agility climbed over it to leap at the skeleton feet-first to hit its head, all the while screaming, “I’ll crush you like cantaloupe!!”

The second skull raised its hands and locked in place, apparently concentrating on holding the wall still. The skull was then knocked backwards by Rohan before quickly recovering and leaping backwards out of immediate melee range as the psychic wave demolished the wall and forged onwards. The first skull formed a platform of ice to launch off of and sprang towards Quillion with a straight punch that would cause a 20ft crater in the ground.

Quillon launched himself off of the ground, pushing himself backwards and into the air to avoid the airborne skeleton’s strike. The zombified mage hunters, now with the skull within a closer vicinity, began to unload their guns into it. Meanwhile, with his danger senses still screaming at him, Rohan was sent tumbling by Quillon’s wave attack. The bullets pinged uselessly off the second skulls ethereal body and it also leapt high after Rohan, bringing a leg to bear on him with a vicious downward kick. Meanwhile, the first skull landed on the ground with a large impact crater, then beginning to charge mana while Quillion was still airborne.

Quillon began to channel his limit break as he descended, the fibres of his body rippling as his physical capabilities quickly rose to nearly double their normal limits. With a roll on the ground, Rohan narrowly missed getting hit by the skeleton, the momentum of the roll allowing him to smoothly return to his feet. Meanwhile, even as Rohan was struggling, Mia was perfectly concentrated, and she released a powerful bolt of magic at the skull, rippling with miasma. The skull generated a small ice barrier on its hand to block the bolt, which managed to blast through the swift barrier and damage the skull’s forearm. It then manifested a dense ice-longsword and swung it diagonally for Rohan’s neck. The first skull fighting Quillion continued to charge it’s mana before casting a subspell Rohan would recognise, eight snaking chains of ice rushing out from its hand to clasp onto Quillion’s limbs and hold him down.

At the sight of the chains, Quillon pushed himself immediately towards the ground and out of the air. He had already begun to charge mana for a spell that would break the chains skittering out from above him before he gracefully landed and pushed backwards, putting distance between him and his foe. Meanwhile, Rohan jumped high to land on the diagonal blade, then immediately pushed off of it to give the skeleton a flying kick in the air, enhanced with his electricity mana. The second skull, being faster than Rohan, simply dodged the kick by leaning back and swiped the sword at the Ace four times in quick succession. The first skull maintained its position as the ice chains continued to fly at Quillion swiftly.

Quillon just maintained his distance from the chains, turning to encircle the skeleton’s perimeter while retroactively continuing to charge his mana for a stronger attack. As for Rohan, he simply raised his forearms, which charged up with electricity. The sword slashes clanged off of his reinforced skin and pushed him to the side more than it did damage. For the four quick slashes, Rohan was tossed back and forth before the last strike tossed him to the side. He landed evenly, and from where his feet touched down on the ground, electricity emanated outward, crackling across the ground. It bounced up into the air and imitating the path of a bouncing ball, it aimed to not smack the skeleton he was facing, but the skeleton that Quillon was fighting. The skull fighting Quillion was forced to relinquish its chain subspell and conjured forth layered ice walls between itself and Rohan's ball of lightning. It crashed through several of the walls before bursting out the other side, however, it had been delayed enough for the first skull to only barely dodge to the side due to the surprise value. Even so, the resulting explosion flung the skull somewhat through the air for it to then land on its feet gracefully. The second skull broke off from combat with a couple of leaps backwards.

With Rohan’s lightning distracting his target, Quillon took the opportunity to finally close in on the skeleton. Quillon’s eyes quickly darted back and forth through the shards of ice that were being flung into the air, and dove to the side the skeleton had dodged towards. Quillon would end up right beside the other skeleton just as it landed onto the ground, and with all the charged mana focused into a single point in his palm, he thrust it forward like a nail where he predicted the skeleton to be. The skull reacted in time to slap the side of the spike off course, however, it still pierced the shoulder of its ethereal body and sent it flying backwards. As it came to a steady landing on its feet, the nail-like projection began to expand and the wound widened considerably until the needle dissipated. Quillon backed away as quickly as he could, jumping backwards and landing paces in front of Rohan. He was just about at the point he found himself taking larger breaths, not exhausted, but having to run at full speed for that amount of time while simultaneously charging was no easy feat.

“Saved my ass, I’ll give you that one brat.”

"Rule one of the Gold Standard: We fight as one!" Rohan proudly exclaimed as he walked up to be right beside Quillon, "Although these buggers refuse to just quit! At this rate, I won't have anything left to face William. Damnit. I really wanted to crush that pipsqueak's head."

SentinelSevn Coyote Hart

 

[Thelostdwarf]

The beginn of a adventure​

"It was not long ago, that I met those soldiers who spoke of a battle. They told me about the new King of Diamonds. Now I might want to find him and see for myself if he is the hope that our Kingdom needs.
The war has caused huge damage to me and everyone else and I don’t have the ability to defend myself against anything.
I need to think long and hard about what my next step will be.

My current life is only about survival to preserve myself and my knowledge, which is only based on facts and I am making my money from lying to the brave citizens.
Something needs to change but I will decide that in the coming days.

For now, I need to make some progress in my current research project:
"Is it possible to create gold out of stones?"
I know that it sounds crazy to do research on something so obscure, but in the last weeks, I have found a way to get small amounts of gold from other metals. For now, it’s inefficient and needs lots of time, but it’s a start.

My map of this region is about to get finished as well, so I will have the possibility to continue on my way and hopefully, the war won’t disrupt my research."

Lemmy closed his huge book and went to the kitchen to get some bread.


On the next day, he finished his map of the surrounding area by going into the forest, climbing trees and hills for a better view.
Back in the City, he went to the market and prepared for his departure to his next stop.

After some questions from the citizens, he explains that his work here is done and something about needing to find his King.
Lemmy never tells anyone about his past or his plans, because he is all about living in the present.

He never made any friends for as long as he lived here, but he was well regarded for his (perceived) honesty and directness. The few visitors Lemmy had talked about the weird stuff he had lying around and recommended his willingness to answer any question they had, even trying his best to answer those he had no clear answer to.

Now, Lemmy left to find the next place where he can spend a few days on his journey.
He decided that he has to find the King of Diamonds as he seems to be Lemmies only hope to finally come home.

 

[Kloudy]

Arimand & The Watcher
(Valencia - Frontline Trenches)

​

Around Arimand the battle ensued. It was organized chaos, shells, ballistics, arrows and magical missiles flying back and forth as the icy hail of comets rained down from above. The War Engine’s main guns bore deep ruts across the Coalition forces as the metal goliath churned onwards. The left flank had been abandoned entirely by both sides due to the impassable broken terrain and the fighting had been focused onto the mid and right sections of the frontlines. The midsection was continuing its counter-charges valiantly thanks to Commander Bellarmont’s efforts, but the Argossian forces were seemingly limitless and more came to fill the ranks that fell under magical destruction. The smell of blood, smoke and excess mana hung like a haze over the trenches as each side traded fire and lives in the midst of the minor skirmishes and pushes.

Arimand was hunkered down in a trench on the frontlines’ right flank after having engaged Ethan’s Beast of the End. Recovering from the fight and low on mana, it seemed as though his role in this war was soon coming close to completion. If he revitalized any more of his mana using mana stones, he would contract full blown Mana Sickness, an affliction more than a few amongst those at the frontlines had already died from. While they were holding off the initial progress of the Empire, with the War Engine continuing its advance and no end to the stream of Argossian infantry, the situation was beginning to almost seem hopeless. As King and Acting Commander of the Coalition, he could not show such doubt, but anyone seeing the big picture would notice it. What more could be done?

“King Arimand,” A vaguely familiar voice was heard, “I have come to fulfill our deal.”

The King turned and found himself faced with the enigmatic armour-clad man that he had spoken to before.

“Watcher, you have returned.” Arimand bowed as he refocused himself away from the battle, exhaustion clearly visible on his entire body. “And not a second too late it seems.”

“Raise your head, a King should not bow to another power.” The Watcher smiled fondly, before his expression grew serious once again. Despite being in close proximity to Arimand’s comrades, none of them seemed to notice their conversation.

“I trust you still wish to go through with this?” He inquired, grey eyes watching coolly.

Raising himself, Arimand’s thoughts were spinning in his head. The war, the battle, the beast, Ethan, the War Engine, the Royal Flushe and now the Watcher again, it was too much at once.

“One moment.”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Now with a clearer head, he began going back to their previous conversation, to his hesitation. But his heart was free of doubt and his mind filled with confidence, however desperate it might be.

“You are correct. I will not go back on my words and take this leap of faith that you have presented me. I accept your deal.”

The Watcher nodded solemnly and glanced up into the sky. He hoped Dorian would not mind this transgression. Returning his attention back down to Yune, the man drew his bastard sword and held it aloft - tip facing to the ground. It hummed with an aura of intense mana.

“I relinquish ownership of this relic. Heed thy call, your name is Hofund.”

The Watcher then released the sword and allowed it to fall to the ground, where it sunk into the dirt a few inches. The name etched on its side glowed bright blue before fading. The aura the sword projected died down. The Watcher gestured to the blade.

“Take it.”

Arimand was slightly stunned for a few seconds before he slowly knelt and picked up the ornate blade with both hands. The Watcher nodded to himself once again, apparently satisfied.

“That is Hofund’s Blade and it is now bound to your soul. Call its name and it will come. I trust you will know how to use it.”

Carefully rising again and inspecting the blade, Arimand whispered its name, “Hofund’s Blade...” The sword responded with a ripple of blue energy that travelled up the length of the blade before dissipating at the tip.

“Remain vigilant, King Arimand. Things are not always as they seem in this realm.” He walked past Arimand and out of view.

“How can we prevent fate if not for vigilance…”

“Until we meet again, Hofund. I will remain ever vigilant.”

Arimand watched until he couldn’t see him anymore before turning to the battle and the War Engine before him. No one seemed to have noticed what had just happened and he didn’t really plan on changing that. With a quick wave of his hand, he called his War Golem over as he charged towards Ethan and Syl. Seeing the troops before him, Arimand channeled his mana through the sword in hopes of clearing a path. Hofund’s Blade obliged as powerful energies ran from the hilt and through the blade. Immediately, a number of ethereal blue swords began to float around Arimand. When an enemy got within 10ft, one of the floating swords would shoot off to impale the target and another sword would manifest in its place.

Now very impressed with this display of power, Arimand wanted to find out as quickly as possible what else Hofund’s Blade is capable of doing. With this in mind, he charged an Argossian tank, his mana surging into the sword as he went to strike it down. A layer of luminescent energy lit up around the blade as it sensed Arimand’s mana, and as the blade met with the tank, it cleaved through not only its entire chassis but also sliced a deep rut into the ground below it. It hummed with energy.

Arimand cleaved through a few lines of Argossians, his Golem following closely behind him. Now being very close to his destination, he pointed the blade at a tank division before channeling his mana through it. For a moment nothing happened as Arimand channeled the energies. Then a shadow cast over him. Looking up, he noticed a giant ethereal sword had manifested several hundred feet up in the sky. It bore down on the tank division and plunged deep into the earth, a powerful explosion of blue mana erupting from its centre and obliterating the tanks and anything within a 50ft radius.

“...I guess it truly is time to end this!”

Arimand was in utter awe of the power held in his hands. Now realizing what more he can do, he pointed the sword first at the War Engine and then at the Wyrm, mana flowing through the sword each time before he challenged the Argossian commander.

“Ethan Lenor Kaloronos! Face your death!”

Mechking TPBx

 

[Colorless Spectrum]

Adelleid Frey

A very high-risk mission. Luckily he is just in the area, having been in the Kingdom of Spade for a few years now gathering intel and doing what is needed from him. Yes, the Jokers. A faction that he has joined after his time with the nobles, the methods were extreme but he did not care for the details and just the result. His time as a slave with his family gave him an irrefutable hatred for the Magocracy, especially after being bought by a noble. They never saw him as a person, just a tool for their political games. Just thinking about such things fills his chest with fire.

But that is enough mulling from him. There is a plan being discussed and it was better to listen. He observed and watched everything unfold from the side with an easy smile on his face, an expression that is more often than not plastered on his lips. He was one of the last few to go in, not wanting to push through like the young man before him.

The place reminded him of the Jhoust family, how lavish they live. Undeniably so, this place they are infiltrating is much more luxurious than the aforementioned family. Frey wore the guard’s outfit with a bit of struggle, considering he does not really wear armor. It doesn’t really suit his pretty face and it doesn’t help with movement that much, but the added protection is nice. It’s a good thing that he has encountered a few guards he could take reference for the mission.

The scarred man would have helped the new recruit, who called out for help, but Declan was able to handle the problem easily. Frey watched at how Cass stood, a noble who joined the Jokers which he found interesting, it was clear that the man knows the way of being a guard. Seeing it in action would definitely help him portray the role better, so he walked towards the noble and gave him a light tap on the shoulder.

“Hello, sir.” The platinum-haired man greeted with a very friendly smile, giving a wave to the leader of the faction named Jake, and continued, “Adelleid Frey, at your service. I’ll be sticking with you for today, I hope my Illusory magic will be of great use for this mission.” A few hands and smoke grenades are hidden in his armor, his sword fits well with the role he will be portraying, he was quite set to go, his lilac eyes gaining more alertness to it and removing the smile of his mouth to give him a serious demeanor. He copied exactly how a guard stood, recalling with his memory the way they act and speak. By now he was just waiting for orders to move.

location: Spades Capital || interactions: Athanas || mentions: Coyote Hart vielpotato AI10100

 

[Ambiloquous]

[class=bo] margin: auto; width: 90%; [/class] [class=he] margin: auto; max-width: 70%; font-size: 30px; text-align: center; font-weight: bold; [/class] [class=img] margin: auto; max-width: 150px; height: 150px; border-radius: 50%; background-image: url('https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D6ZKK-vXkAA1EiK.jpg:large'); background-position: center top; background-size: 120%; [/class]

[div class=bo][div class=img][/div]
[div class=he]〘 Jyotiranjana Baila 〙[/div]

♣​

Once they were in the forest proper, Jana quieted down, oddly enough. Maybe it was the trees, or the danger looming, or the unsatisfying finish to her retort. Either way, she didn’t make another ruckus for Callum to clean up.

His idea of throwing a rock was a good one, something Jana herself would never think of. She waited until he was done with his experimentation and carefully hopped on the spots his stones had touched, reaching the tree in a few steps. The closer she went the more grotesque the tree seemed, a behemoth of twisting branches that looked like veins crawling over the grey sky. Carved smilies and stick people, no matter how stupid looking, didn’t help with the unsettling image.

“Do you think... people hanged here?” Jana avoided staring at the ropes, reaching out to touch the trunk mangled with scratches then hesitating and pulling back. She didn’t want to become a root-man like the corpse from the party with that irritating dwarf. Shifting her attention to the broken blade, she asked, “Can I pull out the sword?”

She wanted to see the make, hold it in her hand, and guess who had held it before, but she knew her ignorant actions might cause a catastrophe to fall upon them. Like they usually did. So this time, she waited for the strategist of their group to declare his stance. She was not afraid to admit she was less meticulous than Cal; it was almost a certainty now that most people were. But here, her thoughtlessness could kill. Well, it could always kill, but this time surely much quicker and with much more agony. Definitely not a death for bards to sing tales about.

♣

| Interacted With: AI10100 | Mentioned: Kloudy |​

[/div]

 

[LazyDaze]

OPERATION SAVE THEIR ASSES!
By: Xanto Goonfire and LazyDaze

STARRING
KAIDEN ALDRIDGE | VIVIAN FRISK | XIXIX VALENTINE | WYSTERIA BEACON

​

X was still alert, giving orders, but not doing much else since he was conserving mana for his next move. In the midst of surveying the battle something took his focus. A sparkling, fleeting symbol of hope and peace, fluttering against the wind and bejeweling the blood soaked earth, glitter. He immediately recognized the ability, serving to reinforce his belief in the usefulness of all types of magic. If seeing the air force was not enough to revitalize the soldiers, this glitter, out of place but very welcome, definitely did the trick as many began to cheer prematurely. Even X was almost moved to raise a fist, but all he did was rub the back of his head sheepishly in relief. Nevertheless, perhaps on instinct, X eyes shot to a piece of falling debris. His eyes narrowing on rapidly descending object to realize it was actually Ms. Frisk herself.


“Good Grief…,” X said as he looked around for Wysteria to make a cloud for her to land on; however, she was off killing as many Argossians as possible. Plus, there was no guarantee that she would help. After stretching his legs a bit X took off, running up the wall he created earlier while activating Asura. He then kicked off the wall, soaring through the air to catch the free falling Vivianne before she literally hit rock bottom.


“Hold on, I’ve never tried this before...we might die.”


With a light “Eek”, Vivi held her breath on the way down. “Great to know…!” she whined through gritted teeth as she disconnected the shredded parachute.


As X began to fall he utilized one of the free floating Asura hands to loop around, palms out, beneath his feet. He then kicked off of the weapon, halting his momentum and simultaneously changing direction mid air. He repeated the process several times before finally landing on the ground. He looked up into the sky as if to envision what exactly transpired and then shrugged his shoulders as if to complement himself. Realizing he was still holding Vivianne he let her down and dusted himself off.


“If you’ve come to save me, you’re off to a great start…,”


Vivi bent down and stretched, letting go of that held breath. “You help me, I help you, Lord X,” she replied a bit more coolly. “The air force has enough mana bombs to blow these guys back to prehistory. Let’s mark some key targets and kick off this fireworks show, hm?”


On cue, collapsing airships started diving into nearby Argossians, clearing the way for operating airships to land. The vehicles then descended line by line before their doors flung open and welcomed friendly soldiers.


This time it was X’s turn to let go of a held breath. There was no guarantee that the air force would be able to make it here in one piece given the defection of a fairly important mage. He merely gave a calm nod to the telepath next to him to instruct the surviving soldiers to implement his previously stated plan of evacuation. The soldiers, inspired by the sight of their eventual saviors, just as the Argossians initially rallied around their iron behemoth. Without delay they began to load up the injured and mana depleted. A few mages secured the perimeter although they wouldn’t have to work too hard given the wall and aerial attacks. From the looks of it they would be able to escape by the skin of their teeth.


X then turned to Vivianne. He had received telepathic messages like everyone else, but he had to know from someone who had traveled across the battlefield and witnessed what was happening with their own two eyes.


“Level with me Viv, is everyone dead?”


“Still kicking,” A lower voice responded as a uniformed man nonchalantly made his way out the crowd. “Commander Kaiden Alderidge at your service, sir,” The newly deemed air fleet leader formally saluted to the king. His arm then returned by his side, “Loading everyone in for Valencia.” Despite his own order, Kaiden knew he would still return to the battlefield and contribute in other ways. But for now, he’d keep his focus on the team. “Left over air fleet members will either assist with medics, or be sourced to the field for extra support. Any questions, concerns, or better ideas?” He asked with an almost serious expression, while his gaze shifted from Vivianne to X.


X rubbed his temples as he signaled for Kaiden to drop the salute. If he had a silver coin for every time he had to remind people to act normal around him, he would have- “...Who cares, screw Will.” X whispered to himself as he cut through his own thoughts. He could have defected AFTER transporting them back. He swore everyone just had the worst timing today, and this is coming from him of all people. That aside, for some reason he felt as if he had met this Commander Kaiden before...well...because he had.


“(....hmm I heard that voice before...who was it) Cave in...Cajun...Kaiden...OH...you’re that wind guy. We really have to stop meeting like this, but I suppose we’re even now,” X said while taking out what appeared to be another IOU and ripping it to pieces. Kaiden just stood still, merely raising a brow at the royal. For a moment he wondered how X managed to put two and two together when the “wind guy” had a mask on during their earlier meeting. Then again, X had a mask on as well. Maybe the king was some sort of professional at guessing faces behind covers . . or maybe he could have just seen Kaiden’s uniform. Oh well, it wasn’t his intention to hide from him anyway.


“Won’t be needing that anymore. Anyways Wind Guy, I trust your judgement on this. Even with ships that have...a great personality…...you managed to get here without dying and (assuming all goes well) totally save our asses. I’ll can live with whatever decisions you make regarding your fleet. However,” X began once more as he turned his head toward the frontlines where the main battles were taking place. “It would seem that I have gained a debt in lives. I can’t leave Valencia without repaying it…”


X’s hand twitched as he couldn’t help but envision crushing the windpipe of an Argossian soldier...or a William. “If it’s not too much trouble, could you spare a ship and pilot? I need to get back into the heart of this battle.”


Vivianne gestured for people to board the rescue ships, reminding the soldiers, “Wounded and exhausted first!” She could see the situation with the wyrm in the distance, but had no clue what was coming next. “Only one ship? That’s pretty badass.” The correct word was ‘suicidal’, but in all her time serving under these royals, she’s seen the most suicidal actions pan out.


“No more badass than leaping out of a flying ship without a proper parachute,” X joked. “...Now I just need that pilot…”


“My parachute got destroyed,” Vivianne chuckled, a bit more quietly knowing Kaiden was a few feet away and looking like he had something important to say.


“I will go with you,” Kaiden muttered before quickly pivoting his body to catch a limping soldier from falling, “Airships need 20 wind mages to pilot. We’ll keep the crew at minimum and fly to your destination.” The commander firmly held the lightheaded soldier’s back as he then passed her onto two mages. Unfortunately, the backline’s fighters weren’t the only weakening forces. “Few more tags and the ship’s barrier will break. We’ll have to depend on its frame to keep it up,” Kaiden nodded toward the airship next to him, “I’m sure you could hold the sky steeds off our strongest?”


X, like Viv, took note of several things taking place around the battlefield during this time; however, if he was not going to immediately take care of it, they were only mere distractions. He was sure Ari, or Iris would let him know if they needed him to specifically remedy a situation. When Kaiden cut into the conversation, and his thoughts, an inquisitive brow raised on X’s forehead as he processed his words. His eyes then drifted to the airship to be piloted; it had seen better days.


“Hmmm,” X hummed while stroking an imaginary beard. Depending on the frame of this vehicle sounded like the beginning of a bad dream. He would hope it would never come to that. “If you’re looking for sky protection, she’s your mage,” X said while casually pointing his thumb to a woman who appeared to be laughing maniacally as she repeatedly stabbed the body of a dead Argossian soldier.


“DIE DIE DIE DIE! ALL FILTH BEFORE ME WILL BE EVISCERATED...neatly. W..why a-are you guys looking at me. I-Is everything okay?”


Kaiden blinked, almost caught staring at the scene with wide eyes. The wildness of it all quickly broke his unusually serious demeanor set on by battle. In fact, he randomly cracked an innocent smile at her sudden shift of character. “ . . heard you’re quite good at providing sky protection,” He mentioned, taking some steps toward the pink haired woman before stopping a few feet in front of her, “Mind giving the air fleet a hand?”


Vivi also caught herself staring; she normally wasn’t one to judge, but that girl had issues. She glanced between her superiors and the lady of slaughter over there, wondering if it was a good idea to enlist the help of this woman.


Wysteria’s innocent eyes reverted to a more sinister glare as her eyes shifted to X, who then pointed at Viv as if to say it was all her idea. She stood tall, her spear lodged in the ground to punctuate her regal demeanor. “...I suppose I could provide such a service in exchange for the chance to kill the man who had most recently wronged me.” As she said this, her eyes drifted to the sky while her fist clenched around her sword handle. Ace or not, William’s sins against her had to be punished. As she proceeded to move toward the airship she paused just after passing Kaiden. She flashed a wicked grin as she reached out to him. “...Could you imagine...the beautiful innards of a ship commander atop his burning coffi-” Suddenly, her right hand took hold of her left, bringing it down and abruptly whipping her body to follow the intended path. She turned around once more...this time with a smile and closed eyelids to hide her forming tears and glass eyes. “We should get going. Our soldiers need us now more than ever…”


‘What the hell…?’ Vivianne took a step back when the finger was pointed at her and the scary one approached. Clearly, that chick needed to be watched carefully. The trickster cautiously proceeded behind Wysteria, an awkward silence ensuing.


X simply followed suit with an expression that gave nothing away. In fact, he was gesturing for Kaiden to go first.


Meanwhile, the airship commander was stuck. Did he miss something? One moment the lady threatened to lay his innards out, the next she wanted to rescue their soldiers. Did Kaiden wrong her in the past without knowing?


The guy ran a hand through his hair, shifting his attention away from whatever occurred. They had other things to attend to. Pink haired woman could wait. With no time to waste, Kaiden proceeded into the airship with X and Vivianne in tow. Once their group was inside, the commander ordered all doors shut. It only took a few moments for their airship to lift back off into the sky.


X gave an exasperated sigh as he leaned on the walls of the airship and appeared to nod off. Nevertheless, he was still alert, taking this brief time to rest and recover before his foot hit the bloody soil of the city again. Of course it had nothing to do with being in a rickety ship flying myriads of feet in the air. Wysteria began to charge and channel her mana so by the time they were ready to take off, she would have her spell ready. Originally, this spell was meant as a death trap for her enemies, but it could be reworked for defensive purposes. A mass of thick gray clouds swirled above the ship, taking the form of a black halo. The rumbling, foreboding sound of thunder echoed above as a warning to their enemies.


“Tell your friends to stay away from this ship if they want to live,” X said through a yawn as he lazily opened one eye, only to slowly shut it again. The giant halo would hold about a half of Wysteria’s mana. Should any enemies approach, or fire, she would be ready to smite them down with her bolts of judgement.


Vivianne thought she understood now. By the looks of the forming clouds, the magic fit the master—powerful and fickle, like the turbulent weather. In anticipation for the coming aerial attack, she drew Reverie and slowly swiped from left to right with it, several quasireal copies appearing in its trail. The swords fanned out to orbit her, pointing down for the moment. After taking a moment to focus her mana, she raised her head and announced with a puff of confetti, “AND NOW, FOR SOMETHING SPECTACULAR! OPERATION: SAVE THEIR ASSES!”

FIN
Kloudy ​

 

[TPBx]

Arimand & The Watcher
(Valencia - Frontline Trenches)

​

Around Arimand the battle ensued. It was organized chaos, shells, ballistics, arrows and magical missiles flying back and forth as the icy hail of comets rained down from above. The War Engine’s main guns bore deep ruts across the Coalition forces as the metal goliath churned onwards. The left flank had been abandoned entirely by both sides due to the impassable broken terrain and the fighting had been focused onto the mid and right sections of the frontlines. The midsection was continuing its counter-charges valiantly thanks to Commander Bellarmont’s efforts, but the Argossian forces were seemingly limitless and more came to fill the ranks that fell under magical destruction. The smell of blood, smoke and excess mana hung like a haze over the trenches as each side traded fire and lives in the midst of the minor skirmishes and pushes.

Arimand was hunkered down in a trench on the frontlines’ right flank after having engaged Ethan’s Beast of the End. Recovering from the fight and low on mana, it seemed as though his role in this war was soon coming close to completion. If he revitalized any more of his mana using mana stones, he would contract full blown Mana Sickness, an affliction more than a few amongst those at the frontlines had already died from. While they were holding off the initial progress of the Empire, with the War Engine continuing its advance and no end to the stream of Argossian infantry, the situation was beginning to almost seem hopeless. As King and Acting Commander of the Coalition, he could not show such doubt, but anyone seeing the big picture would notice it. What more could be done?

“King Arimand,” A vaguely familiar voice was heard, “I have come to fulfill our deal.”

The King turned and found himself faced with the enigmatic armour-clad man that he had spoken to before.

“Watcher, you have returned.” Arimand bowed as he refocused himself away from the battle, exhaustion clearly visible on his entire body. “And not a second too late it seems.”

“Raise your head, a King should not bow to another power.” The Watcher smiled fondly, before his expression grew serious once again. Despite being in close proximity to Arimand’s comrades, none of them seemed to notice their conversation.

“I trust you still wish to go through with this?” He inquired, grey eyes watching coolly.

Raising himself, Arimand’s thoughts were spinning in his head. The war, the battle, the beast, Ethan, the War Engine, the Royal Flushe and now the Watcher again, it was too much at once.

“One moment.”

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Now with a clearer head, he began going back to their previous conversation, to his hesitation. But his heart was free of doubt and his mind filled with confidence, however desperate it might be.

“You are correct. I will not go back on my words and take this leap of faith that you have presented me. I accept your deal.”

The Watcher nodded solemnly and glanced up into the sky. He hoped Dorian would not mind this transgression. Returning his attention back down to Yune, the man drew his bastard sword and held it aloft - tip facing to the ground. It hummed with an aura of intense mana.

“I relinquish ownership of this relic. Heed thy call, your name is Hofund.”

The Watcher then released the sword and allowed it to fall to the ground, where it sunk into the dirt a few inches. The name etched on its side glowed bright blue before fading. The aura the sword projected died down. The Watcher gestured to the blade.

“Take it.”

Arimand was slightly stunned for a few seconds before he slowly knelt and picked up the ornate blade with both hands. The Watcher nodded to himself once again, apparently satisfied.

“That is Hofund’s Blade and it is now bound to your soul. Call its name and it will come. I trust you will know how to use it.”

Carefully rising again and inspecting the blade, Arimand whispered its name, “Hofund’s Blade...” The sword responded with a ripple of blue energy that travelled up the length of the blade before dissipating at the tip.

“Remain vigilant, King Arimand. Things are not always as they seem in this realm.” He walked past Arimand and out of view.

“How can we prevent fate if not for vigilance…”

“Until we meet again, Hofund. I will remain ever vigilant.”

Arimand watched until he couldn’t see him anymore before turning to the battle and the War Engine before him. No one seemed to have noticed what had just happened and he didn’t really plan on changing that. With a quick wave of his hand, he called his War Golem over as he charged towards Ethan and Syl. Seeing the troops before him, Arimand channeled his mana through the sword in hopes of clearing a path. Hofund’s Blade obliged as powerful energies ran from the hilt and through the blade. Immediately, a number of ethereal blue swords began to float around Arimand. When an enemy got within 10ft, one of the floating swords would shoot off to impale the target and another sword would manifest in its place.

Now very impressed with this display of power, Arimand wanted to find out as quickly as possible what else Hofund’s Blade is capable of doing. With this in mind, he charged an Argossian tank, his mana surging into the sword as he went to strike it down. A layer of luminescent energy lit up around the blade as it sensed Arimand’s mana, and as the blade met with the tank, it cleaved through not only its entire chassis but also sliced a deep rut into the ground below it. It hummed with energy.

Arimand cleaved through a few lines of Argossians, his Golem following closely behind him. Now being very close to his destination, he pointed the blade at a tank division before channeling his mana through it. For a moment nothing happened as Arimand channeled the energies. Then a shadow cast over him. Looking up, he noticed a giant ethereal sword had manifested several hundred feet up in the sky. It bore down on the tank division and plunged deep into the earth, a powerful explosion of blue mana erupting from its centre and obliterating the tanks and anything within a 50ft radius.

“...I guess it truly is time to end this!”

Arimand was in utter awe of the power held in his hands. Now realizing what more he can do, he pointed the sword first at the War Engine and then at the Wyrm, mana flowing through the sword each time before he challenged the Argossian commander.

“Ethan Lenor Kaloronos! Face your death!”

Mechking TPBx

Ethan realized he was beat there was no way he was going to contest with an artifact of that power even if he attempted to match the mana output of the sword by absorbing the dysidia of the fallen soldiers around him. Though maybe there was a chance, but it would be a long shot. Ethan stepped forward and reformed a sword of darkness in the palm of his hand. He pointed it toward Arimand and beckoned him to try and strike him down. At the tip of the sword, purple energy began being drawn toward it as he summoned the dysidia around him to his aid. Purple lightning shot out from the ground around the war engine from the bodies of the fallen and still dying as Ethan forcibly drew all the energy towards him.

The Eclipse Holder opened his grimoire and then began his incantation in the ancient tongue of the first mages. The book, being held in his off hand, glowed an unearthly dark hue of violet.

"From death does life come forth, from life comes death.

Hear me oh goddess above as I call down these unholy energies

Forgive me for what I must do.

The moon shall never shine upon this land.

The sun shall never rise again.

As I call upon darkness to rule above all."

Mechking Kloudy

 

[Kloudy]

The Royal Flushe
(Valencia - The Wyrm)

​

Three’s screams and cackles reached a crescendo as the wyrm’s laser beam went critical and loosed off a straight line of pure magical energy. Leo’s kick had been sufficient to jerk its head to the right slightly and now the War Engine was in its sights. While Leo had saved the city and had set up a mighty blow against the Empire, he had put himself in mortal danger. The beam crashed into his body and sent him flying backwards in a blinding rush. As he hurtled through the laser, another projectile would collide with Leo - the giant sword-construct summoned by King Dornwell in the wyrm’s direction. The beam and the sword clashed in a giant magical explosion that shook the battlefield, but the beam persisted on and proceeded to impact on the War Engine. A secondary explosion was heard as the giant tracks on the left side of the monolithic metal beast was ripped to shreds and ruined.

The War Engine came to a more permanent stop.

But it's guns were still in range and firing. The Coalition forces were unable to make too much progress taking ground with its heavy batteries and armaments punishing anything not in a trench. It’s guns impacted on what was left on Valencia’s shielding. The wyrm let off a mighty roar after having finished its attack. Three stood atop the wyrm’s head, her hands clenching her dress tightly and a simultaneously shocked and ecstatic look painted across her face. She pointed a shaky finger at Guin and Co.

“You! I will get you! Eat you! D-Destroy you! I-I-I- You have not seen the last of th-the Flushe! You have not seen the last of Farlene!!!”

With her frantic exclamation, Three and her wyrm turned from the battlefield as the giant monstrosity dove back underground and disappeared. It seemed the Royal Flushe had withdrawn for now…

. D O V E Coyote Hart Goonfire

The Elven Ambush
(Hearts Kingdom - Road to Port Elfin)

​

“I’ll kill ye, bastard!”

The bandit leader snarled as his sword was batted to the side by some kind of magical gauntlet Throm was wielding. The elf was an ex-soldier and had enough sense to realise that Throm was trying to break his sword, and so he shifted it just in time to avoid having the centre balance struck. The blade swung wide to the side and stuck in the earth. The bandit leader struggled to pull the blade from the ground for a moment before wrenching it free and attempting to slice at Throm’s steed’s flank.

The archer raised his eyebrows in surprise as his arrows all missed somehow. This guy didn’t seem all that more powerful than them, the ranged bandit simply could not comprehend how his shots had failed to hit their target. What kind of trickery was this?! He had no further time to ponder the hopelessness of this doomed ambush as a long icicle flew at speed directly at him. The weakest point in his stance was below his extended left arm, under the bow he was awkwardly grasping due to his previous shoulder injury moments ago. The icicle flew under his arm and directly between his ribs, piercing his heart and killing the man instantly. His lifeless body toppled to the ground.

Meanwhile, the dagger-wielding elf furrowed her brow in concentration as her strikes were artfully parried. The ice-hook that came to disarm her managed to snatch away one dagger before the elf flipped backwards to disengage. She landed agilely on her feet before dashing forward again, leaping over Throm as her dagger ignited into flames. As he sailed over his head, she attempted to slash at his neck and face in a flurry of attacks that would hopefully penetrate his seemingly impossible defence.

None of the bandits had noticed the observer in the foliage.

Count Brimstone

 

[Goonfire]

Leolin Hravart III

The impact from the scorching laser was every bit as painful as the Ace had anticipated. However, he endured the powerful blow, hurtling towards the war engine at record speeds.

Leolin saw something about two seconds before he impacted it: a gargantuan sword, by the looks of it. He spun, mimicking the twist of a bullet, listing out of the way to barely avoid cleaving himself in half. As a result, Leo fell out of the beam, skidding past Arimand, bits of near-cremated fabric and fresh blood left among the skid marks on the earth. He came grinding to a halt several meters away, panting heavily and looking worse for wear. “Did it work...?” He said aloud to himself while struggling to rise. One thing came to mind when his head cleared up from both the shock and visions of recent deaths: the other Hearts royals. “Hey Ari?” he asked shakily and barely-audibly. “I wouldn’t be c-compromising-g anything if we let my companions know I’m o-okay, riiight?” The man was really seeing stars after that whole sequence.

Mechking Kloudy Athanas TPBx

 

[Coyote Hart]

​

The kindness of the Jokers... it was really unexpected coming from what seemed to be a hardened group of criminals trying to overthrow the status quo. Cass and Declan's eagerness to help showed Cilantro that the risk that he had made-- the risk to leave Miss Taylor's side and join the Jokers-- was not a mistake. The warm hospitality that the circus showed him was as present there as with the Jokers.

Unfortunately, Cilantro had the same amount of courage to speak as he did when he was in the circus-- close to none. In response to Cass's warm encouragement, Cilantro could only reply, "Thanks, I'm Cilantro."

And then Cass was gone, back into his persona as a guard. It bothered Cilantro how easily Cass was able to see his inability. Why was it that the ones with magic had everything? Class, strength, all of it?

Of course, there was also the fact that Cilantro didn't like how he was described as "courageous." It was nice being called it, but it was also completely wrong. Courage was something only those who were strong had, such as those with magic. Courage was when a knight in shining, impenetrable armor and a sword capable of slaying dragons went on a task to test the limits of his strength. If someone didn't have strength, they couldn't have courage. Everyday peasants are never the "heroes" of the story. No, if it is a peasant, they're aided by some magical deity, and if it isn't a peasant, it's a well-trained knight or a seasoned mercenary.

There also is always a sense in the word "courage" that the person being described will surely survive their ordeal. No, Cilantro knew that he was going to die sooner or later. For someone as weak, pitiful, and pathetic as him, death was around every corner. However, if Cilantro could even just spit in the face of the ones who were oppressing him, he'd do that with his pathetic, weak life. No, he wasn't courageous. He was suicidal.

In this situation though, Cilantro understood that he couldn't just charge in and waste his life. From what it seemed based on his eavesdropping, they needed the location of the damned telepath that was in their way. Cilantro willed that he would help out. He liked helping out. It gave Cilantro the impression that he was appreciated.

Donned with his servant attire, Cilantro stepped into the castle halls. He was careful to remember every single twist or turn that he made so that he could backtrack. As he was walking, he struggled to formulate a story to use to figure out the location of the telepath. Back at Miss Taylor's circus, Spike was the best at making and telling stories, in his gentle, growly voice. Whenever there was a campfire, Cilantro sat in the back, listening to Spike's stories meekly as he stared deep into the dancing flames. It was one of Spike's stories that Cilantro called upon for inspiration: the story where a servant woke an entire castle because they ran out of butter.

Cilantro stopped a servant along their way with a simple, "Excuse me, can you help me?"

Then Cilantro said his made-up story, all the time unconfidently staring at the servant's shoes.

"I'm in a real big panic right now, the folks in the kitchen were told to make a cake, and well," Cilantro started feeling a sort of redness spread across his cheeks as he spoke, "Some dumbass knocked over the milk jug, and now we don't have milk."

Even though Cilantro was lying about being in a panic, he was slowly feeling panicked just by making up the story, "I was told that there was a telepath that I could contact to ask them to ask everyone if anyone has milk, because the person who wanted the cake really really really wanted the cake, and I..."

At this point, the panic had turned into an utter breakdown and Cilantro squatted onto the floor in a ball as he sobbed and did his best to finish his story, "Please please help me! I was told that this was my last chance, and if I screw up, I'm done for!"

Damn, he was shitty at social interaction. And the worst part was that Cilantro didn't have a clue how to make a cake.

Athanas AI10100 Kloudy
vielpotato Colorless Spectrum

 

[LazyDaze]

TOGETHER!!!!

STARRING
ZEPHRY TERWILLIGER|IRIS BASTILLE|GUINEVERRE BLANCA
Coyote Hart | LazyDaze | . D O V E
​

The sound of the wyrm’s laser reverberated as it shot Leolin out of its mouth and towards the War Engine’s direction. As though to make the matters worse, another beam from an unknown source crashed with the first one, potentially sandwiching the fiery Ace of Hearts.


Guin winced upon witnessing the impact. While the attack did reach its intended target, rendering the War Engine incapable of locomotion, she couldn’t keep herself from worrying about her childhood friend. She knew that the beams didn’t kill him since he was naturally resistant to fire, but she also knew that he couldn’t have gotten away unscathed.


It was then when the wyrm roared and Three’s voice resonated from its crown, causing the blonde to crane her neck up and meet the sight of the disoriented Flushe, pointing a finger at them. Guin felt her blood boil once more.


“You will pay for everything you’ve done!” The Queen retorted with potent conviction right before the wyrm moved to flee beneath the ground with its master. “Where do you think you’re going!? You pathetic coward!” She hailed bullets towards the retreating monsters until they were out of sight.


“Damn it!” Guin hissed out of frustration, “The worm slithered her way from us again.”


Meanwhile, Twig looked at the direction that Leolin was launched, his jaw dropped with surprise. Thankfully Twig's masked his thoroughly unprofessional expression. For anyone weaker than Leo, with Twig himself included, the power of the wyrm blast would have been lethal. He couldn't imagine what sort of shape Leo had to be in. Knowing that he would want it later, Twig picked up Leo's sword.


As Guin raged at the fleeing Flushe, Twig tugged at Guin's arm. Urgently, Twig said, "Please, come on. We can't dally. We've got to help Leo and deal with that… thing over there. We don't need to worry about the Flushe for now. Their capabilities are exposed to us now. The next time we see them, we'll be ready."


Guin looked at Twig sharply, her eyes boring through his mask with trails of anger, frustration, and exhaustion. In a matter of moments, though, it shifted to worry. “You’re right,” she sighed, “Let’s go regroup with the rearguard first.”


"And they've left behind Four…" Twig looked at the unconscious half-Elf in her cage, "How horrible, leaving behind a comrade just like that."


“They’re unlike us, Twig. They’re heartless monsters who have no care for people.” Her eyes drifted to the path ahead. “Even so, I doubt that they won’t attempt to retrieve Four if they find out that we plan to keep her alive… for a time.”


Urgently leading the way, Twig used his wind magic to drag Four's cage behind him. It wasn't that he was apathetic to the fact that the Flushe had escaped. His jaw was clenched with the displeasure and disappointment of letting the terrorists run wild to do their evil once more. However, he knew that there was a battle going on. The longer they waited and fumed with anger, the more the preventable deaths piled up.


While the two royalties continued their travel, Guin couldn’t help but detect the bursts of magicks coming from the interior of Valencia. She remembered seeing three individuals engaged in combat inside her ruined city when they were still up on the wyrm. Two of which owned familiar mana signatures. “The Ace of Diamonds and the former Ace of Spades…” She muttered, reminding herself how traitorous the two of them were, “Why are they wasting their powers fighting one another when our enemy is up ahead? With such great powers… they could’ve helped the Coalition win faster and prevented a lot of deaths.” If she had their powers, she would have used them in better ways.


“Quillon is here?” Twig asked. He concentrated for a second, and yep, there it was. The familiar taste of Quillon’s mana, the very same that covered his back during the Parma battle, as well as the one which in conjunction with Twig’s unstable wind magic, also led to the deaths of many, Twig included.


“I’m somewhat glad that he’s here to hold the Ace of Diamonds back,” Twig commented.


About halfway through the outskirts of the city, Guin decided that she had recovered sufficient mana and asked Twig to stop. She requested for him to round them the three of them up again, so she could teleport them all the way to the rearguard. Twig hesitated for a moment, concerned at whether or not Guin could handle another blink. Nonetheless, Twig gathered himself and Four close to Guin using his wind magic, and in the span of seconds, they were at the frontlines.


This time, Twig only needed a moment to regain his senses, but as soon as he did, he realized his folly. He hadn’t changed out of his Joker attire, and right now, it seemed that the Queen of Hearts was hanging out with the infamous White Plague.


“We finally made it," Iris stated breathily to herself after managing to get away from the main battle. "If you are suffering from mana depletion, take the severely wounded to our healers then return towards the back of our formation. Everyone else we will regain our formation; however, we will focus on regaining stamina. Squadron 4, splinter off and support the frontline with your range fighters. Should the enemy break through retreat back to this position….(Damn this war).”


Iris wiped her face and then gazed at her bloodied palm. That action did little to stop the blood from trickling down her face. Her armor had several cracks, and had been completely destroyed in a few places. Her left pinky finger was wrapped in a makeshift splint. She had mostly stuck to commanding the forces that were left for her and they managed to escape relatively unscathed after she was quick to follow Arimand’s orders and leave what was becoming a hell pit. Despite her injuries, the adrenaline would not allow her to feel pain; however, she could feel the war….she was definitely in it now. Even with all the losses and commotion, she couldn’t help but feel a certain pride at this moment. Nevertheless, she couldn’t deny that this battle was becoming too big for her. Yes, she noticed everything. The Wyrm, William, Arimand, and city sized tanks. She noticed it all and still there was nothing she could do but to survive and pray that those in power would figure it out. Just before she could begin strategizing for her next move, a group of mages suddenly arrived at the rear guard in the blink of an eye. She immediately went for her sword, but quickly relaxed when she saw a face she recognized.


“Dear Gods, It’s the Queen of Hearts...at ease soldiers!,” she told the congregation of soldiers in her vicinity; some were probably already experiencing PTSD. She walked briskly to the Queen of Hearts, working quickly to inspect her condition. “Queen of Hearts, what happened to you? Nevermind that, please allow me to assist you and your…,” Iris’s eyes panned off to her strange comrade and the unconscious elf they captured as her sentence trailed off into the void. “...Friends?”


Guin weakly shook her head, feeling the consequence of her earlier actions catch up to her. Even so, she felt relieved that she had sufficient mana left to deliver the three of them to safety. “...They’re not my friends.” She told them as she stepped forward, her legs doing their best to keep her upright. “The elf’s an enemy- a Royal Flushe.” She didn’t know if the other was familiar with the said terrorists, but she was too tired to care. “And the masked man, I’m not familiar with him, but he aided me and my Ace in fighting the wyrm.” It was flabbergasting how natural her lies escaped her lips.


Twig flashed a look of concern towards the Queen of Hearts, although he stayed silent. He was firstly worried about Guin’s wellbeing. Blinking towards the backlines seemed like a mistake. Twig moved to support Guin by allowing her to lean on his shoulder. But as he did, his second worry nagged at him. Guin lied so easily, so easily that Twig wouldn’t have been able to discern it was a lie if not for the fact it was about him. Just what else could Guin be hiding behind her perfect lies?


“My Ace… he,” Guin breathed out, “He sacrificed himself to damage the War Engine… but I know he’s still alive…” He has to be alive. “...I need mana to search for him.” The white-haired female sounded capable, so she hoped she could provide them with what they needed without any unnecessary fuss.


Twig took a moment while Guin was talking to think of something mean to say, and he finally decided on shouting, “Don’t just stand there, you fool! Get the Queen a manastone!”


“R-right!,” Iris said, a little flustered by the masked man’s command. Too shocked to respond to him she complied, giving a nod towards another mage who hurriedly prepared a mana stone. Twig winced a bit, regretting how he startled Iris. While they were delivering said stone to the Queen, Iris scrutinized the new faces. Who was this masked figure, and what was his purpose? For the time being, he appeared to be too passionate about the Queen’s health to be a mercenary, or bounty hunter. Perhaps he was some sort of rogue soldier, a vigilante, or super fan. Iris shook her head as she felt her thoughts teetering on the edge of ridiculousness. Then there was the elf. She couldn’t help but feel a bond with her since they were of the same race. The Royal Flushe, their power was enough to leave Guin in this state and leave Leolin missing in action. Moreover, they had killed so many soldiers in horrific fashion. Just what was their purpose anyway? She couldn’t help but wonder what they would do to her. Whatever the case, it was bound to be unpleasant.


Iris returned her attention to the Queen of Hearts. Even in this condition, she could not deny her toughness. To face off with that monstrosity, capture a Royal Flushe member, and fight alongside an Ace without dying. (My Ace, she must mean Leolin…) “Heart’s Queen, I understand your eagerness, but if I may be so bold...may I suggest you conserve your energy as much as possible. If you know of your Ace’s location, I can send soldiers to retrieve his bod-...retrieve the definitely living Leolin! Oh, my manners! I’m Iris Bastille of the Club Kingdom and King Valentine’s assistant. I have been left in charge of the squadron here….I...probably should have started with that...”


The Queen narrowed her eyes at Iris. So, she was the King of Oaf’s personal assistant. How someone could endure King Valentine’s slothful nature and unchaste humor everyday without drilling a knife straight through his skull was beyond her. Nonetheless, the conscious elf appeared to be an interesting individual. Guin can’t detect any formidable aura oozing out of her and yet, she was leading the back lane squadron. The Coalition, despite the war, still functioned in the same flawed system, and yet a low-ranker was given such responsibility. If she was hailed to the position because she was capable, despite rank, then she’s a representation of what Guin wants for the future.


These thoughts barraged through the Queen’s head as she carefully refueled herself with mana. She knew that the mana from the stones are from someone else, and even the most common of folks would know that a rash refuelling could lead to poisoning. “Thank you for the assistance, Ms. Bastille.” Guin picked herself up from leaning against the disguised Twig. “Leolin- I fear he got blasted to the frontlines.” She straightened herself and pointed at the direction her best friend got fired to. “Somewhere near that gigantic warcraft. If you could arrange for someone to check on his well being, please do so as soon as possible.” She has no knowledge of the tank’s entire capabilities since it appeared while they were busy warding off the Royal Flushe.


It was then when voices erupted from the west. “It’s the Queen!” It was a shrill cry that urged Guin to look at its direction. “She’s alive!” A deeper voice bellowed. A thick group of soldiers made their way towards the royalty, adding to the already formed crowd.


“My retinue…,” she muttered as they approached. She did tell them to retreat to the rearguard if she was to disappear. Mainly to protect Frank John from being eliminated, in case she was still synchronized to him.


“Our Queen, we saw the wyrm swallow you and the Ace before diving into the ground! We thought you were dead!” The main telepath, Rosette Everest, said as she and the group fell to one knee. “We saw the wyrm resurfaced behind Valencia and immediately went on our way. Are you alright?”


Guin nodded her head at her retinue before facing the general crowd of soldiers, including Iris. “Your concerns are appreciated. We managed to subdue one of the Flushe, but the other one unfortunately managed to escape. The fight took its toll on my mana reservoir, but I am recovering.” She glanced at the mana stones to emphasize her point. They knew full well that she could simply use her drain, too. “I need to replace my armor’s stones, and see to it the man who assisted me is tended to as well.”


“The war is not yet over. Once I have recovered sufficient mana, I will head to the frontlines.” She eyed Iris, as though addressing her earlier suggestion, before facing the crowd once more. “It’s not just about retrieving a friend. I want to fight alongside my people. There are mages, even an Ace and former royalties, who have betrayed the Coalition, but I’d like to remind everyone to remain firm, because together; we are stronger. So offer up your hearts and fight with all that you have! Together, we’ll be welcoming a new dawn!”


“We offer up our hearts!” The Hearts soldiers cried out. It was the Kingdom’s catchphrase- one that ignited with hope and patriotism. Soon, the soldiers moved to assist the royalty and the masked figure.


Guin then turned to Twig. “I don’t know who you are, masked man, but your acts of valor are greatly appreciated.” If they need to put on a show for their audiences, then so be it. “As such, I’d like to bring you with me to the front lines. However, this would mean that we’ll need to leave our captured subject to capable hands.” Her eyes drifted to Iris.


“Err… no problem,” Twig said awkwardly. He wasn’t particularly good at acting, and it was already taking substantial effort to not burst out laughing. He accepted a manastone from one of Guin’s retinue, putting it into his trenchcoat pocket. Twig was personally averse to using manastones unless absolutely necessary, but knowing that he was probably going to have to use most of his mana to heal Leo, it would be wise to have one just in case.


(A Queen who truly fights for her people…) Iris saw first hand that Guin’s spirit was just as formidable as her mana. After all that she has already done, she reserved every right to remain in the relative safety of the backlines, yet her immediate thoughts after a grueling battle was the well being of a comrade and the well being of her people. A brief flash of sadness and doubt glanced across her face as she unconsciously gripped the hilt of her blade. Compared to her, she was...a rank 4...that was exactly right. Iris quickly snapped out of her self loathing and stood at attention, easily discerning Guin’s intentions. “It will be my honor to watch over her while you are away. I’ll see to it that she remains under our custody.”


Immediately, she ordered a few troops to secure Four while the others moved to defend their position from all directions. Iris then took out a piece of paper as if she had just remembered something and held it out in front of her. The paper started to glow for a few seconds before fading as Iris stashed the paper in her left glove. “...Since you are going to the frontlines I went ahead and informed my King of the situation just now. I heard through the telepaths that he got picked up by the air fleet and was heading this way. I’m certain he will be of some help. (hopefully).”


A smile formed on Iris’ lip as she took a one last gaze at the Heart’s Queen. This was someone she could inspire to be, even if it was an unattainable dream. “Good luck!”


Twig smiled, glad that someone could be so bright and motivated during a war, as well as one that was able to lead and command even though they were of low rank. It was proof to Twig that people of lower ranks were just as capable as nobles. In a fit of spontaneity, Twig walked forward and stretched his arm out towards Iris. The wound on her head, which blood had been slowly dripping out of, sealed itself. The pain faded from her left pinky, and any remaining wounds quickly vanished.


Iris blinked in confusion, unable to react to the mysterious ally’s kind gesture. Her eyes slowly drifted to her hand as she flexed it in and out of a closed fist, and then back to the faceless warrior with an expression mixed with gratitude and disbelief. “...I-It’s healed. My injuries,” she whispered with a shaky voice.


“Stay safe,” Twig said gently to Iris, “We need your skills on our side.”


At the same time, Guin shot Iris a smile. The other female wasn’t one of her people but she was one of the redeemables. People like her are waiting for someone to shepherd them- a responsibility that Guin is more than willing to undertake.


“A great future awaits us, Ms. Bastille.” Right now, she wouldn’t know the full meaning of her words, but a time will come when she will. “Let us all fight for it together.”


Iris could not understand much of anything at this point. Their words, their actions...the hope and warmth that welled up inside from such a brief interaction from people that were both foreign and strangers. Strangely enough, even more peculiar given Guin’s status in all of this, Iris wanted to fight alongside them. Not as a soldier in servitude but as...friends? Iris did not even try to hide the fact that her face was beginning to turn a light shade of pink; that habit didn’t seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. However, she simply saluted, her smile even more genuine than before as she tried to compose herself amidst her storm of reasoning. “...Right, for our future!”

 

[AI10100]

Declan

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"A promise is a promise..."​

location: Castle of Spades, Spades Kingdom
interactions: vielpotato
mentions:

​

Declan wasn't surprised when they found the treasury quickly. It was easy to weave through the Spades servants. Just keep your head down and keep moving. Looking unsure about anything you were doing would made people question your motives. Thanks to the war, the presence of the royals were non-existent, but they still had to be careful not to arouse suspicion. Because if something suspicious gets to the telepath and said telepath were to send it all the way to the main battle... well, they would be screwed all over.

Cass, Jake, Frey and Cilantro were all going to find the telepath. After all, their top priority was to dispatch him first before they can bust in. They couldn't exactly expect to be able to slip into the vault knowing that the alarm system was still active and could send an entire battalion on them with one message. Declan had connected himself to Frey and Cass so that he would be able to update them on where he was and when they would enact the plan. They had to be well coordinated or else this would be a mess.

Declan paused just before they were in sight from the guards of the treasury. He looked at Samael, gesturing towards the heavily guarded area. If this was the amount of protection it had even with the war going on, Declan could barely imagine how tight the security was in normal days. Declan observed the area of the treasury to see if there was anywhere they could sneak in without having to go to the main door as well as studying the patrol patterns of the soldiers.

[/div][/div]

codedbycrucialstar | hidden scroll​

 

[Coyote Hart]

​

Seven years ago...
He was stuck in a dimly lit room with a large alter circle beneath his feet. His ankles were tied together, as were his arms. The cult of mages stood around him, one walked forward to reach a sickle around his neck.

“No! No! Let me go!” the nameless boy shouted desperately. Why? Why him? Why did he have to be born into a world where he was given high expectations that he could never accomplish? Why was he the experiment?

“Shut up boy,” the mage leader commanded, “You still got the phoenix’s soul. Your soul will fetch a fine price to the demons.”

“No! Stop! Someone help!” the nameless boy thrashed against his bonds, but they were stiff and unrelenting.

Without his permission, the boy had been born into the world with experimental phoenix magic embedded into his soul. He had no idea how the cult accomplished it, but they were hellbound to have him learn the magic only a phoenix would know, one which they lovingly called “Armageddon’s Wrath.” Problem was, he didn’t have any capability for magic. He wasn’t as strong as the cult wanted. They tried for five years, with only the boy’s weak flame to show. Then, they gave up, instead, they now were going to sacrifice him to the demons.

“Does someone here know silencing magic?” the head cultist asked. Everyone around him shook their heads. “Well, fuck.”

“Help! Stop!” the boy shouted.

“Shut up!” someone from the crowds walked forward and slammed the sole of his foot into the boy’s, crushing his nose. Blood spurted out everywhere, causing the boy to cough as he choked on it.

“Tam,” the head cultist admonished. Tam began to shake as the magic was slowly sucked out of his body. “Don’t touch the boy.”

“Yes, yes, alright,” Tam replied in a choked voice. The head cultist then stopped Draining him.

“Someone help me!” the boy shouted. He didn’t care who it was. He was willing to accept the help of an angel, willing to sacrifice any part of himself to any demon willing to make a contract. All he wanted was to get out of this nightmare. He shut his eyes, willing for a demon to hear his pleas.

Then, at that moment, abrupt chaos erupted.

“Lads and lasses!” the front door of the church was thrown open, and a woman with long, flowing black hair walked sensually through the front doors. Her* voice was as thick and sweet as honey, and she was so pretty that the nameless boy was certain she was an angel, if not for her next words, “Revel in the presence of Miss Taylor’s Cirque Delirium!”

“Who the fuck are you?” One of the cultists asked appropriately.

“Sic ‘em, boys!” a short, red-headed boy** stepped in after the angelic woman. There were no dogs following him, only a single duck on his shoulder. And looked like it was a girl.

But when the duck on his shoulder quacked, the sound of angry ducks reverberated throughout the echoey church, and an absurd amount of male ducks burst through the doors, attacking every one of the cultists.

As if the day couldn’t get weirder, a werewolf*** wearing a torn-up clown costume slammed through one of the windows, picking up a cultist and slamming him into the wall.

A duck landed on the head cultist’s head and shat on it, and as the cultist was reeling, he picked up the sickle, using it to expertly cut open the boy’s bonds.

“Thanks,” the nameless boy asked in a confused daze.

“Your welcome,” the duck replied before flying away to keep assaulting the head-cultist.

“Way to go Oswald!****” the red-haired duckman encouraged the cultist-assaulting duck.

“Thank goodness we heard your cry for help as we were passing by. Can you stand?” Miss Taylor asked as she offered a hand to the nameless boy.

“Yes,” the boy replied shakily. He stood up to assess what was going on. It was pure chaos. The cultists, who were weak due to a sacrifice session, were being spun around in circles by the red-haired man’s ducks.

“No, my beautiful plan,” the head cultist reeled around as he watched in horror. He finally managed to swat Oswald out of the air, and he fell into the nameless boy’s arms.

“What’s your name?” Miss Taylor asked as if Oswald wasn’t thrashing around in the boy’s arms.

“Name?” the nameless boy asked, confused by what she meant. He had heard of the cultists calling each other by names, and he heard the names of Miss Taylor’s circus, but he himself didn’t have a name. He was never given a name. He wasn’t important enough for a name.

“No name huh? Let’s change that,” Miss Taylor furrowed her eyebrows as she thought, “How does Mark sound? Mark Thunder. A strong name, really fitting for such a strong man such as you.”

Oswald finally got his act together and hopped out of the nameless boy’s arms before he hobbled away to the redhead duckman.

“I’m not strong though,” the boy said. He was told that over and over in his life-- just how weak he was, how disappointing it was that he was incapable of calling upon the magic they wanted.

“Yes you are,” Miss Taylor put her hands on the boy’s shoulders. He didn’t realize he was shaking in fear until she did that. “Believe in yourself.”

“Thanks,” the boy, now Mark, said.

“I will sacrifice myself with the cursed sword of Mida,” the head-cultist decided, “Our goal is too important to lose now!”

The cultist drew the sword at his side, and a dark power surged in the room. The cultist was slowly becoming translucent as the darkness surrounding the sword became thicker.

“Stick! Get in here now!” Miss Taylor shouted out the door.

“Vanilla or chocolate?” a butch voice***** called.

“Chocolate,” Miss Taylor replied.

“Oh shit,” the voice said in surprise. Then, she emerged from the broken window, carrying a dazzlingly beautiful chocolate cake. Then, with a high-pitched war cry, she lifted it above her head and slammed it onto the ground.

Before it hit the ground though, it vanished, and a surge of mana circled around the tomboy as she charged at the sword-wielding cultist.

The cultist raised his glowing sword and waves of miasma burst out in his every swing. Stick simply hopscotched over them as she charged at the head cultist. When she was close enough, she raised her leg to deliver a high kick at the cultist, but a large strand of darkness emerged from the ‘cursed sword of Mida,’ grabbing onto Stick’s leg like a giant monkey tail and threw her into the walls of the church.

At this point, the cultists had all collapsed, either from being assaulted by an ungodly amount of ducks or by the draining powers of the Mida sword. When Stick rebounded off of the wall, no worse for wear, a small, deep rumbling emerged from the church.

“I think the building is about to collapse,” the werewolf said. He had reverted into human form, and Mark could see that he was an unruly looking man with a mop of brown hair and a strangely well-maintained beard.

“Spike, you ruined your clothes again,” Miss Taylor said disapprovingly. Spike’s clown outfit had definitely seen better days. Miss Taylor clucked her tongue, “Now I have to fix it. Damn it.”

“Hey, boy, we’ll get you out of here. My name is Roc… hey where are you going?!” the duckkeeper had walked up to Mark to introduce himself, but Mark was already heading off, the sickle in his hand.

It was obvious that the head cultist had the upper-hand over Stick. Mark could tell that the sacrifice of one cake barely compared to the number of lives the cultist had sacrificed. As the head cultist managed to score a hit on Stick, scraping her on the forehead, Mark knew that he had to be the one to end it.

Mark was good at sneaking around. Before, he had been given free rein of the church, but never let outside. However, that didn’t stop him from sneaking out and experiencing firsthand the incredible, bustling colors of the world, the sweet honey bread samples at the local market, or the calm peaceful lake.

Now he used the same sneaking skills he had developed to loop around the church to sneak up behind the head cultist at the alter. Stick saw him, and her eyes widened when she realized what he was about to do. She took a defensive stance, and the head cultist laughed as he wrongfully assumed that she was acknowledging that she was weaker.

“Let this be an example,” the head cultist said as he menacingly advanced towards Stick, “That you should never underestimate the power of the Church of Scientol--”

The head cultist never was able to finish that threat. Mark reached behind him to loop the blade of the sickle around the man’s neck, and with one swift jerk of the arm, he slit the man’s throat.

“A cult is not a church,” Stick said as the man gurgled out his last breaths.

“Oh dear me,” Miss Taylor rushed towards Mark, who was stained with blood, “Are you okay?”

Miss Taylor did a swiping motion at Mark and all the blood flowed off of his clothes to form a small gemstone, which she pocketed. Mark didn’t say anything. He didn’t know what he wouldn’t be okay about. To be fair, he had never been taught that taking the life of another person was not okay.

“Well, now what?” Roc asked as he walked up to where Miss Taylor and Stick were. With all the ducks perched on his head, shoulders, and arms, he looked like a crow-infested scarecrow, “What do we do about the boy? We can’t just leave him here.”

“You could have him join our circus,” the duck on Roc’s shoulder suggested.

“Absolutely not Janice,” Stick said, “He’d be of no use, just be another mouth to feed. We don’t have the food to spare.”

“But remember, Stick, talent is simply made from nurture,” Miss Taylor reminded, “When you first came to us, you didn’t know a thing about baking. Look at you now: likely the best baker in the Four Suits.”

“So what do you say, hun?” Miss Taylor asked Mark, “Will you join us? It’s hard work, but it is also really fun.”

“Fun…?” Mark asked. The word was vaguely alien. An entire life confined to the church didn’t have many opportunities for fun. Was fun like the burst of good feelings whenever he could sneak out and sample the amazing cinnamon toast with blueberry jam? If so, Mark decided that he would like to experience more of that.

“Sure,” Mark said neutrally.

“Heck yeah!” Oswald cried as he landed on Mark’s head and nestled in with his hair.

“Well, I’m glad that’s taken care of,” Miss Taylor said, “Come on, Mark, let’s go before people get over here and ask us what we’re doing.”

And when the boy, who had been nameless just minutes ago, followed the four eccentric circus members to their caravan, Mark Thunder, the dart-throwing circus performer was born. That same boy would seven years later stand in the halls of the Spade castle, the administrative capital of the kingdom that failed to save him from his dark fate. With that bitter resentment, Mark, or as he was known in the Jokers, Cilantro, decided to help take power away from the government and return it instead to the people-- the people who had saved him.

Spoiler: NPC Information: Miss Taylor's Cirque Delirium

*Miss Taylor (6 of Clubs): The transgender leader of the circus troupe. She specializes in boob magic and mimicry magic but also knows a bit of blood magic. This culminates into what she calls “beauty magic.” Stats: 450/150

**Roc (4 of Diamonds): The half-dwarf duckkeeper of Miss Taylor’s Cirque Delirium. His magic is the ability to speak with animals. A female duck named Janice has taken a liking to Roc and sticks by his side. Roc is not pleased with this arrangement, and neither is the harem of male ducks that follows Janice around. Stats: 200/200.

***Spike (7 of Clubs): A boisterous werewolf who works for Miss Taylor’s Cirque Delirium as a clown. He has trouble not scaring away the children with his loud voice, but he’s working on it. Stats: 50/700

****Oswald: A duck that is a part of Janice’s harem. Good friends with Cilantro in the present day. Stats: Quack.

*****Stick (6 of Hearts): The tomboy acrobat of Miss Taylor’s Cirque Delirium. A former member of a cult, she joins Miss Taylor’s Cirque Delirium as a form of redemption. She bakes fantastic cakes, but she sacrifices them to a demon with a sweet-tooth. Stats: 250/350

 

[Nyq]

Flokr Grongrsson
"Oh, you have no idea how much effort I went through to find ya, ya glorious wanka!" Flokr said with a beaming smile on his face as he slowly pushed through the surrounding vegetation towards a stone arch that would've been left unnoticed by someone that is less experienced in the matters of archaeology. Said arch was almost entirely covered up by trees and vines, and the elaborate sculptures carved onto the stone had long eroded and crumbled to the point that one can no longer tell what they were supposed to represent in their glory days. As Flokr moved closer to the arch, he could see several ruined buildings behind the arch, similarly covered in vegetation, some spotting burn marks, some covered in blobs of solid metal, and some crumbled into heaps of stone.

Flokr took a moment to admire the ruins in front of him, pondering about the circumstances that lead to the destruction of what was once the prosperous city of Lumar. Situated about 30 miles northeast of Nalore, the city was once a regional center of trade, and prospered from it. Great monuments were erected, and thousands came to the city every year for the opportunities it provides. However, that would not last long, as the city's mages, lured by the promise of power, decided to attempt adopting necromancy. Their attempt however, was swiftly discovered by the kingdom, and the city was put under a three years siege that ended with it's destruction. Thus, the city of Lumar faded into history, forgotten by most people except the most well-studied scholars, never to be rediscovered until today.

"Oh boy, I can't wait to start working on ya!" Flokr rubbed his hands together before taking out his notebook. There's a lot of work to be done today in these ruins.​

 

[Ambiloquous]

Callum, Jana and Good Ol' Kloudy

In Yisstra's Grove​

A Collab With AI10100 and Kloudy​

Callum looked up at the tree after following Jana when the stones didn't trigger any traps. And as far as he knew, there were no magical traps either. "I don't know what kind of horrible deed you would have done to be hanged inside such a dangerous place." He muttered back and then shook his head as he turned back to her. "Well, I hope it isn't a place for death." He continued.

"I think you can pull it out. I'm not seeing anything in it or around it. Aside from a poor attempt at a durability enchantment." He responded though he still seemed wary. "Be careful though. If something feels off, let go immediately." He wondered for a moment why a sword would have been stuck in the tree. Was it a misstep? Someone swung and accidentally buried their blade deep within the bark of the tree and suffered the consequences?

Or could it be that they were attacking the tree itself?

Nevertheless, as he pondered over these possibilities, he began to study what the scribbles on the bark were and if it was familiar in any way.

Jana snorted. “You hope this isn’t a place of death.” She waved at the rest of the grove. “Yisstra’s. Death. I’m very sure this is a place for death.” What she didn’t add was that perhaps they weren’t hanged for crime. Perhaps they hanged themselves. Suicide. Why? They couldn’t handle Yisstra and it was just a matter of sooner rather than later, or the deaths of others gave them reason to kill themselves, or maybe the tree caused insanity. Wait. That’s a thought.

“You think this tree causes insanity?” She shuddered. She had seen a man go crazy once. At least, she thought he went crazy since he seemed perfectly friendly just the day before. He attacked his wife and child, with an axe in one hand, his sword in another, and a knife or two between his teeth. Whenever she told this part of the story to those who stayed long enough to listen, they all assumed if anybody, the spouse and daughter would be maimed. They were wrong. The wife was a mage herself, and she cursed him something painful before he could get two steps in front of his daughter. She didn’t know what happened after that since she was swiftly whisked away by her parents.

But when she heard that she could rip the blade out of the roots, Jana quickly forgot about the crazy family and grabbed the handle. “One, two, thr—” It popped out the roots, almost causing her to fall backwards. “Son of a flaming hellspawn!”

The sword gave away more easily than expected. Whoever had jabbed it into the tree apparently had done so without much heart, or perhaps strength. The jagged end of the blade seemed to be a wound inflicted through shattering, although there were no obvious pieces of metal nearby. Indeed there was not much to be suspicious of aside from the mysterious scratchings, probably etched using the broken sword itself. Upon closer inspection, all the ropes seemed to fray at the ends as if they had been cut at some point. Some were green with mold and vines. They varied in lengths, either wrapped close to their branch or trailing all the way down to the ground. Upon even closer inspection of the rope-branches, the two would notice that a few branches had snapped off, disturbed by something with enough weight to break the bark. As if to confirm this, there were indeed broken twigs and bits of wood at the foot of the tree.

Callum did entertain the idea that the tree may cause insanity to those that are within the vicinity, but nothing was happening yet. As Jana pulled out the sword with minimal difficulty, Callum's eyebrows furrowed now that he could see closer. The ropes were obviously cut by something or someone once upon a time. Now they were just collecting mold. And the branches seemed to have snapped off by… something. Callum looked down to survey if any of the broken pieces were around and there they were.

"Jana?" He called out as he cautiously looked around, kept his senses sharp for anything moving. "I think we should move…" he muttered as he took a few steps back, consciously moving where he was sure it was safe so that he could survey the tree from a further perspective.

“Mm, yeah?” Jana answered absentmindedly, twirling the sword in her hand. Not bad, but not anything amazing either. It was expected, but it was still a bit of a let down that nothing happened after it was drawn. She sharply turned her thoughts away, not wanting to jinx herself. “Sure, sure, let’s move. There’s nothing more interesting here anyway.”

She dropped the sword without looking at it again. It was old, not particularly light, and a broken sword wasn’t better than a nicely sharpened dagger in hand. Hopping away from her place by the tree, she reached Callum and then went past, beckoning him with a hand pointing in all the directions they could go. “Where are all the birds? Here I was hoping we could grab a roast chicken or something.”

Jane had unknowingly made a really good point. There were no birds in sight, nor the calls or feather-ruffles of flight or nesting that usually came with traversing a forest. Actually, it was not just birds, there were no animals at all. No tracks, droppings or signs of dens having been made at all. Perhaps strangest of all was how quiet it was. As if nothing but the two adventurers were moving and everything around them was holding its breath in silence. A light breeze drifted through the clearing, rustling some leaves as it did occasionally.

But this time, a twig snapped too. Behind them from the bushes, as if crushed underfoot.

"Hey, Jana," Callum called out as he turned around to the source of the sound, hands already grabbing for his weapon as he scanned the surroundings. "How much are you willing to bet that there's something there that would very much like to eat us?" He questioned, the joke falling a little flat as he watched for any sudden movements.

He might be a little too overcautious, or something could actually be waiting to kill them! Wouldn't be the first time and it certainly won't be the last.

Jana whipped her head around. “I’d bet a wagon of paring knives. Or a storehouse of matches. Or both.” Under her breath, she muttered, “You haven’t given me any money, after all. Stingy.” Not that she had the other things either, of course; she didn’t simply care or wasn’t aware of the fallacies.

She had noticed the sounds as well but didn’t think it of any importance until Callum reached for his axe-hybrid. Only then did she put her full focus on bushes behind the tree, tugging the kukuri around her waist. It was one of the few blades on her person usable as a visible weapon in a fight, though one really couldn’t underestimate the lethality of a fruit knife in the eye. The daggers and such tucked in her sleeves and pants were more for surprise attacks and lifestyle necessities, but she could probably make do with them in a pinch. Probably.

“Come out, you chicken-hearted milksop!” She was still serious about eating that chicken, and it showed in her speech.

The wind died down and there were no more rustles. The leaves held still with bated breath, holding it in anticipation. The breeze carried faintly the scent of fresh fruit. Perhaps wild berry. Whatever had snapped the stick in the foliage did not respond to Jana's attempt at communique. A stillness spanned between the two travellers and the bush in question. For a moment, it seemed as though nothing more were to happen, that the odd sound was merely nothing more than the sounds of the Grove.

But then the bush rustled again.

There was no wind this time. No temperance of nature or weather to mask the distinct disturbance that gave immediacy to the presence of… something else. A good fifteen to twenty metres away, a small nondescript hand extended from the cluster of leaves. Thin, spindly grey fingers unfurled to reveal berries. The colouration was red and upon closer inspection would appear to be freshly picked. The skin had not yet dried and shrivelled. It was an offering.

Callum turned to Jana for a moment as the hand began to extend from the bush. “Cover me.” He told his companion before slowly advancing towards the hand. It wasn’t a very bright idea but if there was a chance that they’d maybe get out of fighting, it would be ideal. But he made sure Jana was close by as he moved so she was within slashing distance if he ever got attacked.

He inspected the berries, trying to think if it was the same berries that he had picked up earlier. Callum kept himself out of reach from the hand and reached out his right hand slowly to see if the hand would react. It did not. The hand was noticeably smaller than Callum's, only able to hold two berries in its palm. Whatever the hand was attached to made no effort to move closer or further away as Callum advanced.

Jana tensed, staring at the hand-thing. “What in the babe-cursing world is that?” She wrinkled her nose and slipped a dagger into her left hand, out of sight of Callum and the thing both. She wasn’t perfectly ambidextrous, but it was good enough for some injurious flailing with the blade, which was probably better than no injurious flailing at all at the enemy.

“Don’t tell you’re going to touch it?” As she said so, she slowly turned around, making sure nothing was sneaking up on them with their backs turned. She knew she would if she was whatever wanted to kill them. Jana didn’t even entertain the notion that there wouldn’t be something out there gunning for their deaths because a) that would be a lie, and b) while she didn’t mind some motivation boosting self-delusion on a good day, today was not one of those good days. Unfortunately for Jana, she could make out the sight of several pairs of red dots peering at her from across the clearing. Masked in bushes of their own, these bioluminescent eyes winked out of view quickly upon realizing their discovery. Nothing else stirred.

Jana grimaced and whispered without moving her head. “There’s something in the bushes behind us. Glowing red eyes or spots or buttholes or something.” She faked a step towards the back experimentally but received no reaction.

“They’re… watching?” Callum asked, lowering his voice to a whisper as well but he made no move to turn around. They’re certainly not non-intelligent beasts. Because if they were, they would have attacked them without missing a heartbeat. No, they were biding their time and observing their movement. But he was almost confident that they would have to fight their way out if they made the wrong move.

Callum spread out his hand and carefully manipulated gravity so that the berries would float away from the hand and into a free space. It wasn’t moving earlier so this might provoke a reaction. And if not, well, he would be able to collect the berries. The hand pulled away and disappeared back into the bush as the berries left its palm. A confused chirp came from the foliage, similar to that of a small primate. It seemed whatever the hand belonged to was unfamiliar with Callum's magic.

Then out of nowhere, the sound of fumbling footsteps came from the edge of the clearing nearby.

Two adventurers entered the clearing, a man and woman decked out in your average run of the mill iron equipment. Half their stuff seemed to be enchanted with at least one spell, but nothing particularly impressive. Upon their arrival, the creature in the bush before Callum used the opportunity to retreat in a rustle of leaves. The two adventurers waved Callum and Jana with cautious regard, glancing about the clearing with intrigue. They seemed to be in their twenties, both of them human and in relatively good spirits.

“Oh, that looks like rope on that tree," one mused to the other.

Callum looked curiously at the hand as it retreated back, but it didn’t seem like the creature had escaped. It seemed surprised by what he had done too. But it didn’t seem like it was aggressive, more curious, than anything. Before he could coax the creature to come back out or reveal itself, two adventurers stumbled into the clearing. He cursed under his breath as he heard the rustling of the bush, indicating that it had left.

He looked towards the newcomers. It didn’t look like they were top-tier adventurers or anything like that, but it was good to see other humans in the vicinity. “Hey.” He called out after they had waved. It wasn’t like they could have hidden anywhere. He looked at the berries in his hands, wondering what they were for. He took out another container and put it in for further study. Even if it was just food, it’s still an essential part of the study.

“What brings you two here?” He called out but made no move to come closer, once more sheathing his weapon for now.

Jana gave them a careless look over while giving out a half-hearted acknowledgement. “Morning. A good day for death seeking, huh?” It wasn’t morning, but “morning” as a greeting sounded better than “afternoon”.

The two looked very, very beatable, but Jana shifted on her feet, waiting for Cal or the pair to do something first. A fight? Nice, and very welcome, but something that would likely end in a distasteful amount of inglorious death if it brought the grove’s attention on them. A talk? Boring and the most obvious choice, but the easiest and probably the one happening right now. A leave? No way, she wasn’t going to let some inexperienced youngsters take over their spot. Though if they left, she wouldn’t be telling them otherwise.