Fantasy 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝟕

[hery]

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  location: forest floor

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  status: disoriented

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Zatanna Short Round

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

Eryth Rende

And what if it kills you?

...

The air was frigid and stagnant. Back to a tree, a man lay sprawled about, the black and gold of his body armor buried in a pile of wet, amber foliage. There was no feeling in his body; it wasn't quite numb, but instead a peculiar, momentary omission of his physical senses. Like he'd forgotten to feel at all.

And then, as he raised a pale, gray arm to shake off his crude blanket, the sensation of being alive slowly crept back. The fire-red shade of the lanky trees that loomed above grew more saturated, the light filtering down from the canopy gaining a golden hue that sparkled with a newfound complexity. It was an assault to the man's eyes, which glowed an even more vivid scarlet.

There was the bottom of a cliffside not far off. It was comprised of jagged slate, then layered with a dense blanket of gnarled ivy. With squinted eyes, the ash-toned man found that the sunlight closer to the rock was a cooler tone, vastly contrasting the color-soaked pop of the temperate forest. He was no authority of physics, but he was certain that couldn't be.

No. His name was Eryth, short for the comically ostentatious moniker "Luc-Erythus Rende". He was of a certain not-quite-human lineage, as made apparent by a paper-white head of hair, sallow skin, and a striking, unusual pair of carmine eyes. His warrior's garb was gaudy, not mentioning the accents of gleaming gold that ran across his wiry figure. But it didn't take a mirror to know this. It was the simple truth, and all Eryth knew was that he knew it.

He could hear a stir in the leaves, a short distance from the tree he rested against (by no actual acquisition of restfulness). There, a rather Herculean man lay in a similar fashion, eyes flitting between consciousness and the opposite. With that observation, Eryth realized that he, too, had been out cold. Ripping his eyes from the other man for a few moments, it was clear that this setting was alien. He had never been to a place like this.

Voices echoed.

The Woods of Vibrantia? It's unfinished. There's no way in.

Not anymore.

...

And across the way was a girl, seemingly about his age. Blonde locks obscured her face like an improvised masquerade mask, revealing but one serene, slumbering eye exposed to the light. It bathed her vixen form with a warm glow, and it would have been pleasant if it weren't for the bristly, plantlike tendrils that gradually inched across her torso.

In his state of groggy stupor, Eryth merely narrowed his eyes, then let out a gasp as they began to squeeze and drag her. With eyes the size of plates, he shot out from his place on the ground, immediately tripping and landing face-first onto the leaf-littered undergrowth. His body ached, but with a shot of adrenaline, he bounced back upright, kicking a crawling, brown vine like it was a viper. "Hey, get up!" his coarse, lifted voice shouted, making an immediate beeline toward the others.

A sword rested against his back, but by some oddity, he didn't remember owning it in the first place. And so, blindly, he drew a pair of fists, his hurried footsteps crunching leaves faster than the binding vines could slither through them. "How are you sleeping through this!"

nine lives

 

[Zatanna]

Faye Valentine
location: scary forest
tags: hery , Short Round


“Faye… There’s something I’ve been wanting to give you.” The tall, handsome man pulled out a beautiful necklace. It was a deep blue sapphire heart encrusted with diamonds.
“But wait a minute… I thought the old lady dropped it into the ocean in the end?” Faye took the necklace in her hands, inspecting it further. The way it sparkled made her feel so serene.
“Well baby, I dived down and got it for you. I love you Faye.” Her cheeks burned red but she didn’t break eye contact. The man stepped closer to her, grabbing her waist and pulling her in.
“I love you too…” she said softly, closing her eyes and leaning in for a kiss.
“Hey, get up!” His voice sounded different this time. Like an inflection of panic in his voice.
“What?” The man's loving expression had changed. His loving look was replaced with a more empty one. Then his arms wrapped around her waist, squeezing her tighter and tighter. This didn’t feel like a hug though. More like he was trying to snap her slender frame.
“Ow. You’re hurting me...” She protested, trying to free herself from his grip.
“How are you sleeping through this!” There it was again. His voice didn’t match his blank expression.
“Sleeping…?” She said out loud but mostly to herself. Just like that the handsome man and the necklace faded away. The feeling of being squeezed didn’t though.

-

Faye’s eyes slowly fluttered open to a forest. How had she gotten there? Where even was she? The fog started to lift as she looked around. There was a man running towards her. His eyes were glowing red like some kind of demon. Who was this man? Was he saying something? His mouth seemed to be moving but she didn’t understand what he was trying to communicate. Blinking a few more times, things came more into focus. Like the wrap around her waist. She then started to realize that she was in trouble. What the man had been saying before. Some slimy vine was the thing wrapped around her, not a handsome man! Starting to panic a little bit, Faye looked around in search of help or to see what was even attacking her. She saw a very large, mustached man with some sort of shield(?) next to him. He didn’t seem to be asleep but he wasn’t moving either. Just… sitting there in some sort of haze. Then her attention changed to the demon guy who was doing his best to get over to her but kept falling.
‘I hope this isn’t who is supposed to save me…’ She thought before she felt a small tug on the vine. Whatever had her was starting to pull her back into the brush. That was definitely not a place she wanted to be. Faye wasn’t just a damsel in distress though. She knew she could at least escape this weird monster's grip and get back.
“Starblast!” Raising her hand, it generated a pink energy blast that cut through the vine. A low growl came somewhere from the darkness. Obviously it didn’t like that so much. Getting back near her new friends. The enemy of my enemy is my friend after all. Once the vine was severed its grip loosened considerably. She used her tails to help pry off the rest of the vine and tossed it away.
“I think there’s something bigger out there…” Faye’s voice was sweet but sultry. She was somewhat of a master manipulator and men were MUCH easier to control than monsters.
The growling from the brush got louder and out it came. Faye hadn’t seen something so horrifying in a while. The creature was large and walked on all fours but not in the usual way. It seemed more like it was hunched over to walk like that. It almost blended in with the forest. Its skin looked like rough bark or maybe even armor. It was also covered in jagged edges, especially on its spine. It had black sunken in eyes and a large mouth full of sharp teeth. Its head was covered in what looked like the autumn leaves. If that wasn’t all bad enough it also seemed to be able to produce vines to trap prey or to defend.
“Ew! What is that thing?! Red eye sword guy, I can give you a buff to go fight whatever that is. I’m better from afar. While you do that I'll see if my magic can snap mister mustache out of it.” Lovespell could be used to grant an ally temporary boosted speed and damage dealt.
Touching both hands to her heart and doing a pulling like motion, she materialized three small, pink orbs that circled around Eryth. Then the orbs seemed to absorb into him, giving him a faint pink glow.
Faye then moved to the big guy who still seemed to be out of it. Now that she was so close to him she really understood the size difference. This guy was huge! She couldn’t remember if she’d ever healed someone as big as he was before. Though her memory was still a little foggy anyways.
“Alright big guy… This is a lover's blessing.” She said to him quietly. Hovering her hands over him, they started emitting a soft green glow. Closing her eyes so she could really focus on healing. She had to wake mustache up so he could help red eyes kill this creature and then they could figure out what the hell was going on.

 

[Short Round]

Monty Armstrong
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Monty's eyes flicked open. Above him, the soft glare of sunlight winked at him through a thick canopy of fall colors. A peculiar warming sensation coursed through his body. For the briefest moment, he was almost content to hover in this sleepy state for a bit longer. Unfortunately, the warmth soon ebbed from his body and was replaced with a whole-body sensation of dampness and odor that told him that he was currently lying in a pile of wet leaves. A creeping realization that he wasn't supposed to be where he was washed over him and forced him into action. Springing upwards while instinctively scooping up a large shield off of the ground that had been besides him, Monty showered the area around him in leaves. Whipping his head around, he realized that he had no grasp on where he was, why he was there, or when he had arrived.

Looking down, he saw a young woman with purple eyes, blonde hair, and a fascinating number of tails. Based on the faint green glow still emanating from her fingertips, she was the one responsible for waking him up. Besides her was a striking individual dressed in sleek black and gold armor, with ivory skin and crimson eyes. Both were sufficiently covered in slick golden leaves from his upwards leap. Neither seemed particularly familiar to him, and based on the way they looked back at him, the feeling was mutual. In any case, both seemed to be more concerned about something behind him. Turning, Monty found himself staring at a beast that looked like it had crawled out of a campfire ghost story. Turning to his newfound companions, he smiled widely without fear and spoke in a deep voice tinged with the faint lilting of a Scandinavian accent.

"We'll have time for questions later. First, we must fight, yes?"

Turning to the creature, Monty rolled his shoulders. The monster gnashed its teeth as a string of drool dribbled from its slavering jaws. Whatever it was, it definitely wasn't friendly. Bracing his shield against his right forearm, Monty summoned a burst of energy and dashed forward with the force of a train, feeling a satisfying crunch as his bulwark impacted the creature and stopped it in its tracks. Looking over the top of the shield, his eyes widened as he realized that the monster had sprouted a clump of new vines, halting his advance by forming a living shield of its own. The vines were already creeping along the edges of his shield, grasping it and anchoring him in position. With a sickening groaning sound, the creature sprouted another tendril from its back, which snaked over Monty's shield and reached for his face. Using his left hand, Monty reached out and grabbed the vine at the last moment. With a swift motion, he wrenched his arm back and tore the vine out of the creature with a tearing noise. The monster's maw cracked open, letting out a screeching howl of pain that almost curled his moustache. Shrugging it off, he pushed against the beast, gaining a few steps as the abomination was forced backwards.

The grim determination in Monty's chest turned to confidence; Whatever it was, it could be hurt. And if it could be hurt, it could probably be killed. And if it could be killed, there was a good chance that they could sell its body parts for drinking money afterwards. Monty turned his gaze to the red-eyed swordsman. Appraising him swiftly, he guessed that the swordsman was light enough. Hoping that the man could figure out what he was about to try to communicate, he let go of the shield with his left hand. Lowering it towards the ground as far as he could while keeping his palm up, he tensed his arm and prepared to use it to catapult the man up and over in order to assault the creature from above.

Interacted with hery and Zatanna

 

[hery]

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  location: forest

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  status: owie

  
  
  
  
  
  
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  Zatanna Short Round

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

Eryth Rende

It came as no surprise that the fox-tailed girl entered a state of panic, especially following an abrupt end to, seemingly, a rather pleasant nap. Brushing the dirt off his sides, Eryth charged forward, skidding to a halt as the stranger raised a hand. "Starblast!" she cried, summoning a flash of pink to sever her organic bonds. Eryth flinched, lifting an arm to shield his face. She was stronger than she looked.

Whatever said vines were attached to let out a low, resounding growl, drawing the white-haired man's attention away from the new acquaintance he had found himself awkwardly standing over. It was when the girl stood up that he came to realize he'd been no help whatsoever... he may as well have been a mouse skittering through the shrubbery.

He had the thought to congratulate the girl on her show of strength, but there came no appropriate words to describe their situation. She had no problem gathering her bearings, attempting a verbal read of the situation before Eryth could even process the shame of his clumsy first impression. But the situation called for quick thinking, and so he roared confidently, "No matter how big, we can take it!" Did that come out right?

And amid all the chaos, the rough-skinned creature made it a great feat for Eryth to maintain a brave face. As it trudged out of the darkness, fangs glittering in the dim, golden sunlight, the red-eyed man's fists loosened a little. For a moment, all he could do was stare in awe and terror, but that apprehension was fleeting. This wouldn't be the first weed he'd whacked.

The larger, foreign-sounding man was right; they hadn't the time to make sense of things. He gave a resolute nod in a delayed response to the other man. As instinct took the reins (and the woman's peculiar mention of a supposed "sword"), Eryth tentatively reached behind his back, dragging a slim, golden blade out of its sheath. It was jagged, littered with intricate engraving, and especially firm for an object that appeared to be almost entirely comprised of gold. He stifled an astonished gasp; how had he forgotten that was there? As memories of sword fighting flooded back in, he entered a combative stance.

Now glowing a soft pink, Eryth's complexion was almost like any other ordinary human. It felt warm—dare he say fuzzy—enough to kickstart his beating heart into overdrive. For someone actively being hunted by a forest monster, he almost sounded amused. "I've never met a witch that could do this!" He softened his stance, inspecting his newly-glowing arms.

The moment was short, because as soon as Eryth turned his head, the much larger man had gone hurtling straight into the monster. Quickly, he dashed toward the two as they struggled, hacking at every branch and vine that snapped at him like whips cracking. It would strike at his last location with alarming precision, narrowly dodging the edge of Eryth's sole every time.

The creature's shriek was bloodcurdling, and as the onslaught took a short pause, Eryth winced, teeth gritted more tightly than the grip he held on his sword. One hand grasped the hilt, while another shielded his face. However he had done it, this man had devastated the creature enough to grant a momentary lapse in the level of mayhem.

And right on today's theme, he was just moments too late to be of any real help to the situation. So far, it had mostly been a defensive game. He glanced back at the magic-wielding girl, guilt tugging at his heart as he noted that her buff was going to waste. That had to change.

Turning his attention back and forth between the big man and the rapidly recovering creature, he cocked his head to the side. He seemed to be lowering his shield, the weapon that had bought them this time in the first place. "What are you doing!?" he shouted frantically, failing to interpret the plan he'd wordlessly crafted.

And by the time the realization hit him, a mass of intertwined tree trunks came slamming down into the earth, separating the two. The glow enveloping Eryth flickered weakly as he stumbled backward, dust encasing his wheezing lungs. With narrowed eyes, he glared daggers at the monster, snapping to his senses enough to clench his fists and reinvigorate the rosy hue that covered his form.

With a newfound spring added to his step, he bounded back into the action. "Damn this thing!" Barbed vines shot to and fro from the giant cloud of dust, scraping his skin as they lashed at the ground. And with no consideration and even less warning, Eryth leapt atop the shield-bearing man's shoulder and freely into the air, just in time for the creature to shoot and wrap a vine around him. It was kind of like a frog catching flies.

Tightly, it constricted around his armored torso, but it failed to calculate for the sword he held upright against his body. All he had to do was push, and the blade cut straight through the vines, which hastily retreated back into the mess of foliage it called a body. With a free hand, he grabbed a withdrawing vine and allowed it to bring him into close quarters with the behemoth.

It snarled grotesquely, turning its hulking maw to swallow him whole. But, in a feat of acrobatics, he let go of the vine just in time to grab hold of the main body. Sharp thorns dug into his hands, but as the pain grew too great to withstand, an even greater vigor covered his body. Now, dangling off the monster like a strand of cloth, Eryth drove his sword into the creature's side, using the blade to hold his place. It groaned, then roared twice as loud. The smell of burning wood permeated throughout the air.

Vines moved from the fray below to whip at Eryth, serving as a distraction from the magic-slinging girl and the stalwart hulk below. "Y'know, I liked your plan better!" he shouted, grunting in pain as a wad of vines proceeded to hold him in place like an ironic thorn in its side. His voice grew ragged and labored as he wrestled with his bonds. Somehow, he was slowly dragging his way to the creature's head, one agonizing stab and drag at a time.

"It really... doesn't like... when you do... this!" Again he thrust his sword through the creature, driving it through more and more tangles of vines. "I think something inside is... holding it together!" That was as far as he'd gotten. There was no plan...

nine lives

 

[Zatanna]

FAYE VALENTINE
location: scary forest
tags: hery , Short Round
Faye’s magic seemed to perk mister mustache right up. Not that she was surprised. He wasn’t injured or anything so it didn’t take much energy either. Upon coming to and getting a look at the surroundings, the giant spoke.
"We'll have time for questions later. First, we must fight, yes?"
He seemed to have some kind of accent. European if she was correct. He had a good point. Whatever this weird forest monster was, it was pissed off and wanted them dead.
"No matter how big, we can take it!" Did that come out right?”
At least her new companions were funny. Faye liked funny people. Serious people were so boring most of the time. Then the boys jumped into action. The giant guy had this huge vault door that he was using as a shield and a weapon. It was honestly pretty cool. Faye would never think to use a door as the ultimate defensive and offensive weapon. She had always wanted a weapon of her own. Sure she had magic but something about all the types of unique weapons were just fascinating to her.
“I’ve never met a witch that could do this!” Red sword guy exclaimed with a joy similar to a little kid. He must’ve been talking about the love spell she had placed on him.
“Well thanks! It’s my patented love spell. It will give you a temporary boost in speed and power.” she explained, figuring she should probably explain to her newfound allies how her powers worked.
“What are you doing?!” Red sword asked Mister mustache who had lowered his shield? First rule of battle, you don’t lower your shield! It didn’t matter what reason though, the vine monster separated the boys. Worried she wasn’t helping enough, she enchanted Eryth again with her love spell. Giving him a slight nod that she knew he would understand. Then Eryth soared into the air like an eagle. He had used Monty as a catapult which thankfully he didn’t seem to mind too much. It was hard to place what was happening amongst the chaos of vines and fighting. She took her eyes off the action for a moment to defend against some incoming vines, then when she looked back, red guy was caught by the monster and it was dragging him towards its mouth? In an eruption of beautiful, red light came from him. Was this finally him showing his power? Upon further inspection it was a sword! She knew it. He had cut himself free and landed on the ground, much closer to the monster than before. Had that been his plan all along? Maybe he did have a mind for battle. The monster seemed to also have a mind for battle. Sending out vines and hurling sharp thorns in a state of animalistic fear. Eryth got the last laugh by impaling the creature with his fiery sword of justice.
“Y’know I liked your plan better!” Eryth hollered to her from in the midst of battle. His sword had sent a somewhat pleasurable smell of burning firewood into the air surrounding them. Hopefully a warning to any other visitors this forest had in store for them. This disgusting beast wasn’t finished yet though. Even as it was having its head sawed in half, it continued to flail and attack blindly. This didn’t leave much room for strategizing or getting closer to Eryth. Faye realized she and the other man needed to help him somehow. He had thrown himself right into the line of fire without a plan and now he needed some back up. That is what good supports do after all.
“I think there’s something inside holding it together!” A hint.
Taking a cue from her red devil of a friend, she ran towards Monty before using his shield as a springboard for herself.
“Sorrrryyyyy!!!” she hollered back to him, before turning her sights on the monster.
“I’m gonna immobilize it and then try to destroy whatever's in that core!”
Once she was positioned right above the monster and had a clear shot. She blew a kiss down at the creature. On impact the disgusting monster finally stopped its wild attacking and just kind of bobbled back and forth, in a state of love.
“Do it!”

 

[Short Round]

rblock=102]

Monty Armstrong
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Feeling a light pressure on his shield, Monty looked up and saw that the woman had used him and his weapon as a stepping stone to leap into the air. Waving off her apology with a laugh and a two finger salute, he moved up as well. Monty watched, intrigued, as the woman projected an ethereal heart from her fingertips, befuddling the creature and distracting it. Realizing this was a good moment to go all in, he dropped his shield. Dashing towards the monster, he reached into his vest pockets and slipped on a pair of spiked knuckle dusters. Weaving and brushing through the sluggish vines, he reached the creature's body. After a quick appraisal, he could see a faint red glow through a few cracks in the creature's side. Giving the spot a couple of quick jabs, he smashed through the bark-like armor. Slamming his fingers into the wound, Monty found purchase and tensed his fingers. At the same time, the creature emitted a low moan and awoke from the love spell, having been shaken out of it by Monty's punches.

Summoning a titanic burst of strength, Monty took in a huge breath and pulled apart with tremendous force, hearing plant fibers snap and pop as the creature's armor cracked and gave way, exposing the creature's glowing red heart. Monty got an eyeful of the twisted, multi-chambered, pulsating organ, then turned his head and almost retched. Realizing that it's heart was exposed, the vine creature twisted its head around and roared into Monty's face with enough force to curl his moustache. With it's back against the wall, the creature summoned a desperate effort. Lashing its vines around Monty's body, it pulled him closer and began to tighten its grip in an attempt to force him to let go. Monty had supernatural durability, but even so, he could feel the pain as his body was squeezed. Looking at the heart again, he saw that the creature was attempting to close the gap and protect its vital organ by bridging the space with a new layer of fresh green bark. Channeling all of his energy into his arms to keep the creature vulnerable, he shouted his words at the top of his rapidly constricting lungs, hoping one of his teammates would hear them and act.

"Hit it! NOW!"

Interacted with hery and Zatanna

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