Fantasy The Guild Stone ((Old Questing Thread))

[Sylph]

As Themisto cast the blinding light the crustacean seemed momentarily stunned, and one of the fast acting kitchen staff managed to smack it with a pan. Doing so sent the small creature flying as the knife tumbled out of its claw. It hit a wall and fell onto its back, legs waving in the air.

Sheri, a young elf and one of the newer barmaids, was quick to take advantage and lunge forward with a pot, slamming it over the top of the malicious creature and smacking a foot down on top for good measure. The other cooks, armed to the the teeth with ladels and rolling pins, waited on baited breath, as if fearing there was still more to come.

Azalea Gibraltar
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Vagabond Spectre​

"Do not let it escape!"

Azalea paused as Elias burst back out of the doors, slamming them shut behind him to keep whatever monstrosity had arisen inside. His breath was heavy, appearance in disarray as he glanced around the hall and finally noticed her.

"Madam... How may I say this... But as of-- No! I'm afraid. I-i'm afraid..." His normal, advisory tone was gone, stumbling instead over words and sentences as he faught for composure. "Oh! By the gods! I'm afraid the seafood that I wish to serve you... ...Has fought back..."

"...?"

He refused to meet her eyes and she was beginning to suspect he was more afraid of her than the issue itself. "Madam, this is something I cannot surprisingly handle with just the cooks. A powerful creature lurks in this guild, and it's right. beyond. those. doors."

She believed him, absurd as it might seem. The haunted look in his eye was the mark of something truly terrible. Azalea covered her mouth as she glanced again to the doors. Things had grown unnervingly silent right after she'd seem Themisto enter. "What... exactly, is this threat?" she said. They were in a guild of powerful fighters, some whose strengths were renowned across the land. What could possibly stand against that?

Ymir
Location: Icewall Outskirts
Mentions: Key of Stars Funnier President -ferret-​

What lay before her could barely be called a glacier. Sure enough, it was made of ice, with jagged ridges and a crystalline blue to rival the ocean. One could clearly see fragments of the past within, frozen forever in time, but its cliff face near blocked out the sun with its height.

It wasn't what she was looking at though.

Ymir's eyes were ringed with light as she stared up at the sky. It wasn't the clouds either, swept as they were into salt-lake fields above the precepice, that kept her attention. She saw nothing of the world as it seemed—only as it was. A realm of items with no aspect but its ability to exist.

It was of little surprise then when a humanoid shape appeared trudging up the slope. She saw the mountainside around her stretching out in all directions. Their presence was but a speck in it, though she stirred as they set a hand down on her shoulder.

"Hey, are the others not here yet?"

The glow faded from her eyes as she turned. Colour bled back into her sight, filling in the faceless void she knew the world to be.

"We find ourselves before a mountain quite grand, whatever will we find within this here wasteland."

"Grand, huh..." She supposed it was, looking at it in colour.

"The only thing we'll be finding in this wasteland will be one Loraine the Fell. And any monsters nearby."

The second figure she hadn't seen coming. Ymir paused, nodding stiffly by way of greeting. They were waiting on one more before theh moved on. "Speaking of, I found a cave system running through the ice. Should be a good place to start once Mazus gets here."

 

[-ferret-]

Mazus was struggling. How in Bast is she supposed to use a waystone? She just wanted to go to the outpost! Oh. She's there. She growled a bit at the stupid waystone and put it back in her bag. She then trudged her way up a hill to the outpost and saw the others.

"I'm here!" she shouted, bounding up the hill and towards her guildmates and the outpost.
interacting: Funnier President Sylph Key of Stars

 

[Key of Stars]

Klein Eshwald
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Minma SilverbackActual ​

"Your senses have not failed you. Although my rank may suggest I'm not as skilled I assure you I'm more than. With that being said I don't know if my skill level is that of gold rank. What I do know, is that one of these days it will be far surpassed any level of rank here." Klein raised an eyebrow at the statement. “Ho? That’s quite the statement.” Klein smiled. “Though I can’t say I dislike your attitude. I’ll strive to show you the capabilities of a gold-ranked adventurer.” He said, straightening his collar. “Although, if I were to complete a mission to the best of my abilities,” Klein started, revealing an uncharacteristic and somewhat sinister smile. “You wouldn’t know I was the one to complete it in the first place.” He said before he forcefully scraped his throat, his expression returning to normal.

Klein considered mixing himself in the situation that seemed to have taken over the guild kitchen but ultimately decided to observe a little more first. "Pardon me but I seem to notice a bit of distress coming from you Elias. Is there something I could help you with? If so don't hesitate to ask me." Seeing that both Lynx and Themisto seemed eager to prove themselves by helping out with the situation, Klein idly stood by. "I have no qualms with the two of you lending your assistance in this situation, however, I do ask that you wrap it up as soon as possible. I intend to leave for the town of Gaenet in 4 hours and I do not expect to be kept waiting." He said in a voice loud enough for both Lynx and Themisto to hear but not loud enough to disturb anyone who might be resting somewhere else in the guild hall.

Having communicated the time of departure to his two soon to be teammates Klein sat down again, calmly observing the situation around the kitchen. He absent-mindedly tapped the edge of the table as he went over what little information he had about the upcoming quest. A simple wraith normally wouldn't justify a quest being gold-ranked. So that leaves me with three options, it isn't alone and we'll be up against an army of other undead as well, this wraith is a particularly terrifying and strong creature worthy of gold rank or, worst case scenario, both. Klein sighed. I'll have to do some extensive scouting as soon as we get to Gaenet.

Leonidas Hood
Location: Icewall outskirts
Mentions: Sylph -ferret- Funnier President ​

"The only thing we'll be finding in this wasteland will be one Loraine the Fell. And any monsters nearby." Leonidas turned around at the voice calling out and threw up one of his hands in greeting. "Oh you are here already, did Mazus come with you?" He asked, failing to spot the new member behind Zeno. He pinched the bridge of his nose. He left her behind, didn't he?

"Speaking of, I found a cave system running through the ice. Should be a good place to start once Mazus gets here." Leonidas briefly switched his attention from the fact that Mazus probably didn't know how to get here to Ymir, nodding as to agree with her suggestion. "Yea that sounds like a solid plan. I'll go see if Mazus-"

He was about to offer to travel back to the guild hall to help Mazus when a voice cut him off. "I'm here!" Leonidas grinned and turned to wave at the new arrival. "Yo, good job on figuring out how the waystone works. Sorry for leaving you on your own, I had a very important matter to take care of you see. I also expected this guy," He pointed his thumb at Zeno. "To help you out."

"Anyway, now that we are all here, let's go and take care of this Loraie the whatever." He gestured to Ymir. "Lead the way."

 

[Uasal]

Eiru Eagna
Gold Rank Support
Location: Inner forest ​

Eiru Watched the young price with piercing eyes as he moved to distance himself from the group. Fortunately, he didn't seem to be fleeing this time around and at least with him in view Eiru could move to protect him if necessary. Zion too. OKAY! More so Zion. With this in mind, Eiru decided not to push much further save the spoiled royal get fussy all over again and throw his proverbial toys out of his proverbial pram. With the group relatively in close proximity, they finally began heading inwards by the lead of the ferret duo. Who Eiru still found adorable as they scampered through the increasingly more drained landscape.

Of course, Eiru wasn't able to ride on her broom for much of the inward journey but this didn't concern her all too much, she had three allies around her and with all the undead around there was no chance that a group of slimes was anywhere in the vicinity. Unless of course slimes could be made undead but that was very unlikely. Undead slimes were an exceedingly rare species and mainly only dwelled within the upper levels of the underworld and its associated underground caverns. Even demonic slimes were more common! And those were rare in of themselves! But never the less Eiru made sure to stay close to Zion as they made their way inward.

After a hike and a half, the group finally made it to the outpost in question. The dishevelled husk of a fort gave off a despicable feeling of dread and anxiety to all those living. With so many tethered souls in close proximity, Eiru felt her skin crawl and her mana was aflame as a result of the unnatural forces at work within the walls. There was no mistaking it now, the spirit mentioned before was most certainly of great power and it was not happy. Not at all. In fact, Eiru had half a mind to have Zion grab the prince and flee for reinforcements but with so many undead around there was most certainly going to be a sacrifice made soon. With no idea what the scouts sacrifice would be for Eiru couldn't waste any time. The scouts had to be rescued now or but to rest before the ceremony started. At least, the ceremony would increase the speed at which the forest decayed and at worst they would be used as catalysts to bridge the gate between worlds so that the spirit could fully manifest. Both very terrible outcomes.

Twirling her broom in hand Eiru thought for a few moments and spoke quietly "The scouts are likely being held near the centre of the fort. They're more a precious resource than prisoners and thus worth protecting. Zion, you have the light affinity, right? I believe I heard that at somestage. What is the extent of your spells? Tyronn you too, tell me what you can do"

Vol Sylph Zufaix

 

[Minma]

Minma Gate
Location: Guild Hall

Minma moved his tounge around in his mouth. His opportunity to show a small amount of his skilled had been thrown out the window. He could have easily defeated the creature with his bare hands. Although he was annoyed at that fact, he was happy to see it under control. He knew there would plenty of more moments where he could show what he was capable of. "I have no qualms with the two of you lending your assistance in this situation, however, I do ask that you wrap it up as soon as possible. I intend to leave for the town of Gaenet in 4 hours and I do not expect to be kept waiting."

Minma gave a slight bow to Elias to show he was about to walk away. After Elias he gave the same treatment to Azalea. With a turn of the heel he began to make his way to Klein. He stood on the other side of the table with his hands inside his pockets. "Don't fret. A simple task like that won't take up four hours of my time." He said it in a joking manner. A small grin on his face. "Could you do me a solid and show me to the training grounds here? If this place doesn't contain such, any place where I could do so would work fine. I want to get a little bit of training in before the quest. If you wish to not walk me there, simply pointing in the direction would do." Minma then gradually bent down and picked up his dragon. He placed it on his neck. "What do you think? Should I allow it to come along on the quest? I want it to learn what he signed himself up for. I plan on protecting him like anyone else. But you are the captain on this quest. If you don't want any unnecessary obstacles coming between us and completing our quest I would understand."

Sylph Key of Stars Vagabond Spectre

 

[Key of Stars]

Klein Eshwald
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Minma ​

"Don't fret. A simple task like that won't take up four hours of my time." Klein stopped tapping the table as he focused on the adventurer on the other side of the table. "I don't doubt that. Provided that the task is actually simple and doesn't turn out more complicated a matter than you anticipated. Matters this guild gets involved in are rarely as straightforward as they seem." Klein remarked, standing up from his seat and grabbing his cane.

"Could you do me a solid and show me to the training grounds here? If this place doesn't contain such, any place where I could do so would work fine. I want to get a little bit of training in before the quest. If you wish to not walk me there, simply pointing in the direction would do." "I can walk you there, I happen to be heading in the same direction as I need to conduct some research on the current state of Gaenet."

"What do you think? Should I allow it to come along on the quest? I want it to learn what he signed himself up for. I plan on protecting him like anyone else. But you are the captain on this quest. If you don't want any unnecessary obstacles coming between us and completing our quest I would understand." Klein studied the small dragon closely for a moment before responding. "Do you have a grasp on its strength and abilities? To be frank, I have little idea of what will be waiting for us when we arrive in Gaenet. The request for the guild to take care of this matter was made quite a while ago and ever since then there has been no communication with Gaenet." Klein sighed lightly, the information he had available for this quest was less than satisfactory but he would have to make do. "I'll leave the decision to take or not take it along up to you but be aware that this quest could be more dangerous than anticipated."

With that, Klein turned in the direction of the training field, gesturing for Lynx to follow him.

 

[Minma]

Minma Gate
Location: Guild Hall

"I don't doubt that. Provided that the task is actually simple and doesn't turn out more complicated a matter than you anticipated. Matters this guild gets involved in are rarely as straightforward as they seem." Minma slightly raised an eyebrow. He wasn't quite sure what he meant by that. He wasn't going to question his words either. It was obvious he knew what he was talking about. As Klein stood up from the table Minma's expression returned back to normal. A slight wave of happiness ran through his body. He was sure that Klein standing up meant he was going to walk him to the training grounds.

"I can walk you there, I happen to be heading in the same direction as I need to conduct some research on the current state of Gaenet." Minma adjusted his shirt and slowly put the dragon back on the floor. "Very well then. I would come with but I'm positive you'll relay the information to me so there's no need for me to cramp up the space."

"Do you have a grasp on its strength and abilities? To be frank, I have little idea of what will be waiting for us when we arrive in Gaenet. The request for the guild to take care of this matter was made quite a while ago and ever since then there has been no communication with Gaenet." Minma looked down at the dragon and starred at it for a few seconds before raising his head. "Well. Honestly I have nothing of note about it's strength or abilities. I've only just recently been paired with it. I'm sure after a few training sessions I'll have a grip of what it's capable of. Then again it's so young it's hard to measure."

"I'll leave the decision to take or not take it along up to you but be aware that this quest could be more dangerous than anticipated." Minma bent down and lifted the dragons head with his index finger. He stood up again using his hand to brush his fingers threw his hair. "I'll make the decision after this training session. I doubt I'd actually take him. But if he impresses me I will reconsider."

Seeing the gesture of Klein, Minma followed him. They now we're walking side to side. Minma let out a short and quick sigh before speaking. "Don't take what I'm about to say as ignorance. But I'm quite excited to go on this quest. I haven't had a mission here lately that tested my skills and it's got quite boring. I was honestly thinking about challenging the world government." Minma chuckled lightly. "Okay maybe not the world government."

Key of Stars

 

[Key of Stars]

Klein Eshwald
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Minma ​

"Very well then. I would come with but I'm positive you'll relay the information to me so there's no need for me to cramp up the space." Klein nodded. "I will share all my findings with you and the other member we're taking along." His expression turned somewhat solemn as he continued. "Although I doubt I'll find much of use, it looks like contact with Gaenet has completely stopped."

"Well. Honestly I have nothing of note about it's strength or abilities. I've only just recently been paired with it. I'm sure after a few training sessions I'll have a grip of what it's capable of. Then again it's so young it's hard to measure." Klein studied the dragon in detail once more. "It is quite the curious creature. Perhaps it'll turn out to be more useful of an asset than you imagined. I've seen quite a few creatures over the years but none quite like this."

"I'll make the decision after this training session. I doubt I'd actually take him. But if he impresses me I will reconsider." Klein tapped his chin in thought, a ghost of a smile visible on his lips. "The question is whether or not you'll have a choice, I am unsure if there is anyone capable of caring for it while we are away available."

"Don't take what I'm about to say as ignorance. But I'm quite excited to go on this quest. I haven't had a mission here lately that tested my skills and it's got quite boring. I was honestly thinking about challenging the world government." For the first time since meeting the other adventurer earlier today, Klein genuinely laughed out loud. "You've got a lot of guts, talking about challenging the world government to a member of a noble family." Klein said in between bursts of laughter. "Okay maybe not the world government." "No? I thought it to be quite a noble goal. The current government is corrupt enough to warrant a thorough cleansing." He remarked with a slightly sinister smile. "Of course you didn't hear that from Klein Eshwald the noble." He added with a serious expression.

For a little while they walked in relative silence, when they got to a door Klein stopped and turned to Lynx. "You might be wondering why I told you that." He said, slightly leaning on his cane. "My intuition tells me that your views might align with mine and even if they don't, you wouldn't tell the public about what you just learned. Of course, in the event that you do, all I would have to do is some clean up work. Who would the public believe? A well renowned noble or someone who decided to commit suicide right after accusing said noble?" Klein said, eyes briefly turning cold as he described what would happen if his views got leaked.

"I'm reasonably certain that won't be necessary though." Klein said with a slight smile, he pointed toward the end of the hall. "That's where you need to be, I'll go in here." He said pointing at the door they stopped at. "We'll meet back up in 4 hours in the main hall."

 

[Minma]

Minma Gate
Location: Guild Hall

"I will share all my findings with you and the other member we're taking along. Although I doubt I'll find much of use, it looks like contact with Gaenet has completely stopped." An expression of sorrowful came upon Minma's face. The number one key to assure we would be victorious was limited, to none. Knowledge was everything, and they were struggling to obtain that. It wouldn't be so serious if it wasn't such a high risk adventure. With that being said Minma believed in his skills. He has been in numerous hardships before.

"The question is whether or not you'll have a choice, I am unsure if there is anyone capable of caring for it while we are away available." His hand lifted and rubbed his left temple. He hadn't thought about that. He wasn't going to burden anyone with taking care of his creature while he was out. So it was set. The dragon was coming with him on the quest. Now Minma had to assure the safety of another. It wouldn't be the first time he fought alongside with a animal.

You've got a lot of guts, talking about challenging the world government to a member of a noble family." For a second Minma's fight or flight instincts kicked in. He began to reach for his sword on his back. He had just threatened the world government infront of a noble. Of course he wasn't aware of that until now. But to his surprise Klein began to laugh. Minma's hand slowly lowered from his back. "No? I thought it to be quite a noble goal. The current government is corrupt enough to warrant a thorough cleansing. Of course you didn't hear that from Klein Eshwald the noble." A smile crept upon his face. He hadn't found someone brave enough to speak against the government like him. Especially not a noble. He could tell he was serious about the last part. Minma wasn't going to say anything.

They walked in silence for a few minutes before coming to a stop. "You might be wondering why I told you that." Minma actually had been wondering. Why would a noble speak illy about the one thing they're swore to protect? "My intuition tells me that your views might align with mine and even if they don't, you wouldn't tell the public about what you just learned. Of course, in the event that you do, all I would have to do is some clean up work. Who would the public believe? A well renowned noble or someone who decided to commit suicide right after accusing said noble?" There was a cold stare in the eyes of Klein. "I'm reasonably certain that won't be necessary though." Minma let out a chuckle. "You'd find out taking me out is more than just some clean up work. But I assure you, your word is safe with me. Our views are the same and with that so is our goal."

"That's where you need to be, I'll go in here." Minma's head turned as Klein pointed to a door. "We'll meet back up in 4 hours in the main hall." A slight nod of the head came from Minma. "I appreciate you bringing me here. If it's four hours I got, I'll train for three and half." He looked Klein in the eyes one last time before turning and walking towards the door. He pulled the handle towards him and a small creek sounded. His small dragon pounced ahead of him. Minma shortly followed. Minma walked to a hanging punching bag. He pulled two leather gloves out his pocket and slipped them on. He took a deep breath before repeatedly punching the bad. He would move left to right mimicking him dodging punches. He'd duck and spin. Every now and then he would use his legs to kick. He did this for a while before stopping.

He wiped the sweat of his forehead before drawing his sword. He swung it all kinds of directions, mimicking a fight. He would sometimes throw the sword in the air and throw punches before catching the sword and swinging it once again. He continued to work, doing workouts, some with weights and some without. He was so caught up in training he forgot to work with the dragon. To his surprise it seemed to be training himself. He was running up walls and gliding, chomping at the air, and attempting to blow fire. A little cloud of fire escaped his mouth but it was little to nothing.

Key of Stars

 

[Sylph]

Ymir
Location: Icewall Mountain
Mentions: Key of Stars Funnier President -ferret-

Spoiler: Icewall Mountain

"Yea that sounds like a solid plan. I'll go see if Mazus-"

No sooner had Leo mentioned it than a chipper voice called up to them from down the slope. "I'm here!"

Ymir blinked, watching Mazus bound towards them through the layers of snow. Though their body was larger it didn't seem to slow them down any. The heavy, quilted cloth and wide-brimmed hat seemed to have them well-equipped for the climate. The colds didn't bother Ymir, who had grown up in the mountains herself, she had worried the newer members might find some difficulty with it.

As Leo talked to Mazus Ymir was only half listening. The outpost sat on the edge of a ravine, part of the natural border that divided human lands from the wilds of the north. The gaping wound in the earth stopped most from crossing it--a good thing in most cases, for what laid on the other side was not a mild threat--but right now it was somewhat of an issue. "Anyway, now that we are all here, let's go and take care of this Loraie the whatever." She saw one of the colourless forms gesture at her. "Lead the way."

It took her a moment to realise she'd been addressed.

"...mhm?" Ymir stirred as a frigid wind howled from the depths. She had to shield her face from the icy flecks, finally realising the others were waiting on a response. "Right, uh... one problem." In her mind's eye she could see the opening in the rock, hidden though it was by a jagged overhang. "I can reach it easily enough, but the entrance to the caves are hidden down there..."

Straight across a deadly drop into the ravine's depths. The people at the outpost had created bridges across, perilous though they were, but they would still need to reach the entrance once they were at the other side. Ymir knew Zeno could manage fast travel with lightning. The two newer members weren't quite so lucky...

"Leo... Mazus, don't suppose either of you can scale cliffs?" Her eyes returned to normal as she turned to face them. Her equipment was made for people with air affinities, but in Leo's case they could still take some getting used to. "There's strong enough winds that you could use the spare gliders I have, but it might not be the safest option."

 

[Key of Stars]

Klein Eshwald
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Minma SilverbackActual ​

"You'd find out taking me out is more than just some clean up work. But I assure you, your word is safe with me. Our views are the same and with that so is our goal." Klein stopped in the doorway momentarily. "I would hope taking you out is more than simple clean up work, that way, perhaps in the future, we might be able to make that goal a reality."

"I appreciate you bringing me here. If it's four hours I got, I'll train for three and half." Klein nodded. "Always good to keep your senses sharp, have a pleasant training." He said, making a final polite bow before he closed the door behind him.

Klein sat down at the desk in the small room he had just entered, a serious look on his face. Perhaps I said too much. He absent-mindedly tapped the edge of the desk and slightly shook his head. Maybe so, but at least this will prove to make matters far more interesting than I anticipated. Klein couldn't stop a small burst of laughter from escaping his lips. It's good that no one else was around, I would prefer to not be the cause of an innocent person's suicide.

After mentally scolding himself for his careless behaviour Klein raised his hand, thin almost invisible string extending from his fingertips, the strings wrapped around a file on a shelf to the side of the room and Klein promptly pulled it towards him. Observing the file before him, Klein flipped it open. Now let's see here.

Roughly three and a half hours later Klein walked out from the small room with a grave expression on his face. He walked towards the guild hall at a brisk pace, pleasantly surprised to find Themisto and Lynx already there.

He politely bowed to the two of them before speaking up. "I'll be as straight forward as I can be. All contact with Gaenet stopped about a week ago. There is a high chance that something is stopping the townspeople there from contacting us, or," Klein sighed as he continued. "Gaenet may no longer have anyone left alive to contact us."

Leonidas Hood
Location: Icewall Mountain
Mentions: -ferret- Sylph Funnier President ​

"Right, uh... one problem." Leonidas turned to Ymir. "Hmm? What would that be?" "I can reach it easily enough, but the entrance to the caves are hidden down there..." Leonidas stared at Ymir for a moment before looking over the edge of the ravine, he repeated this a few more times before finally letting out a deep sigh.

"Today is just not my day, is it?" Leonidas started. "I finally manage to get my hand on some breakfast and now you're telling me we need to get down there?! Just the thought of jumping down there makes me almost lose my breakfast again."

"That seems quite dangerous, I might not be your guy, cuz if I jump down there I'll definitely die!" Leonidas recited, the last part coming out as more of a shout than an actual line of poetry.

"Leo... Mazus, don't suppose either of you can scale cliffs?" Leonidas turned to face Ymir again. "Well I can't say I've ever tried but this does not look like a suitable beginners course to dip my toes into the wonderful world of falling off cliffs." "There's strong enough winds that you could use the spare gliders I have, but it might not be the safest option."

"Wait, gliders?" Leonidas asked, thoughts momentarily grinding to a halt. "I'll take a glider, how hard can it be to control?" He said, a lot more calm now. He gestured to the ravine as he continued. "I sorta expected you to tell me to just, you know, jump. Cushion my fall with air magic and whatnot."

 

[Sylph]

Tyron Avattica
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Vol Uasal Zufaix​

Despite his earlier bravado Tyron stuck closer the group the further they got into the forsaken region. The smoky sky of the outskirts faded completely, replaced by a dusk-like canopy of shifting wisps. The light that filtered through was bruised and pale.

"'s not right," he muttered under his breath. His footsteps had faded to nothing as they got further in, and the horrid sensation of eyes upon him put his composure on a knife's edge. He jutted his chin out as he caught up to the other three, slowing to a measured walk.

"The scouts are likely being held near the centre of the fort," the witch was saying. She had finally conceived the idea of a covert operation it seemed. Her voice was low and uncharacteristically serious, finally off that high-horse broom of hers. "They're more a precious resource than prisoners and thus worth protecting."

"They may want information out of them," Tyron said. Assuming the fort had a leader--he suspected they did, given the pack of shambling corpses managed to build something of worth--they'd have half the brain needed to realise scouts were invaluable. Killing one was madness in a world where information won wars.

"Zion, you have the light affinity, right? I believe I heard that at some stage. What is the extent of your spells? Tyron you too, tell me what you can do."

A light affinity? Tyron shot Zion a look. That was the last thing he expected a dark-garbed, iron-masked mercenary to have. Normally those types liked to parade it around in platinum armour and make declarations of honour. Not to mention the telepathy...

"Why don't you tell us about yours first?" he shot back at the witch. Though he was curious about Zion, he needed to if she could actually do anything. His eyes narrowed, tacking on at the end. "The abbreviated version." Someone from the arcane house would talk an ear off about magic given half the chance.

Meanwhile, the stumbling figures around the fort continued their patrol. Not all were human. Lumbering creatures, four-legged hounds, skeletons that were just barely hanging together. The ones in better conditions were equipped with crude weapons. Others, whose bodies seemed on the verge of collapse, hauled stone up the slopes and past the gates with distant groans.

"I use soundwaves to attack," Tyron would admit eventually. "They get weaker with distance, but up close they can shatter stone." Of course the most effective way to use them was with physical attacks. Transfer the energy directly and it lost none of its potency. "It can also be used to reduce unnecessary noise, if needed."

 

[Minma]

Minma Gate
Location: Guild Hall

Minma walked over to the kitchen and politely asked for water. Once he got it he gulped it up pretty quick. He placed the cup back onto the bar and said his thanks to the server. He meet back up with Themisto. There he found Klein returning from his research. He meet Klein's bow with one of his own. He listened intently as he began to spoke. I'll be as straight forward as I can be. All contact with Gaenet stopped about a week ago. There is a high chance that something is stopping the townspeople there from contacting us, or, Gaenet may no longer have anyone left alive to contact us."

Minma didn't say anything for a few seconds. He slightly sighed before beginning to speak. "I'm aware we have about twenty five minutes before we're supposed to head out but I think we should get going right now. Whatever's going on in Gaenet isn't right. Places don't just lose contact with one of thier strongest allies. But of course you two don't need me to tell y'all that."

Minma raised his arm and covered his mouth with the inside of his arm as he coughed. "Excuse me." His dragon seemed to be tired from all the training so Minma lifted him and placed him on his shoulders where it could rest. He rubbed it's head with his index finger. "You best get your rest in while you can. Once we get there, there isn't any telling what awaits us."

Key of Stars SilverbackActual

 

[Vol]

WOE, UNDEAD BE UPON YE
Location: Abandoned Stone Fortress, The Cursed Region
Interactions: Tyron Avattica Sylph / Eiru Eagna Uasal
Honourable mentions: Kira Voland Zufaix
Quest: Rescue Mission
Reward: 2000 Coins​

"The scouts are likely being held near the centre of the fort. They're more a precious resource than prisoners and thus worth protecting.

"They may want information out of them,"

Zion had gently placed a gloved hand on the bark of a tree as he observed the outskits of the undead fortress. He had hoped for anything familiar to strike him, just like those flashes from back in the meeting with Angora Guile. Though such memories eluded him; only caution and survival instincts were all-time high during the trek. There was no time to ponder, unfortunately.

'As do I. So here's to hoping they live or this was all for naught.' The undead adventurer thought to himself as he let his hand fall away from the tree, ignoring the way the wood flaked and crumbled from his touch.

Eiru's query had managed to take his concentration off the shambling corpses and falling slabs of rotten meat; his mask moving a fraction towards her direction. Odd. He never mentioned to her about his magic at all, but he brushed it off as her being studious. There were other ways to learn of a guildmember's abilities, Azalea must keep records of such things somewhere.

While he mused on how to formulate his answer, the prince in red answered coolly to his surprise. Glad to hear that this bunch could really rein it in when they need to, for their sakes. 'Soundwaves? So that jest about blocking out missus Eiru's voice earlier...was no jest after all. Here I thought he was of the fire arcana.'

Zion returned to his observation ahead, noting how some of the undead were pulling stone with actual rope and sleds; crude construction machines. But they knew how to use it, so that definitely was interesting...perhaps they were capable of reason as well? He hoped so. As for what they were going to do with the slabs of rock, were they to rebuild the abandoned outpost? Or a gateway of some kin that was hidden deep inside the fortress?

He did enjoy a mystery, especially if it could distract him from his own.

'I summon light. Then use it to create, hm, moulds of weapons of my choosing. This is just the fast explanation, it's better to see it in action.' The battlemage finally answered Eiru. He paused for a moment, seemingly unhappy with how curt his answer was, then raised his index finger in a 'hold-on-a-second' gesture.

He tightened one hand into a tight fist before a gentle flash of electric blue slithered past the spaces of his fingers. He opened his palm and within it were three nails; nails used to be simply hammered in. However the nails were outlined in strange translucent white and empty; as if one was looking through glass. Suddenly a tiny explosion occurred within the moulds and out of this little vortex came fast moving electric blue coloured light, bouncing against and within the confines of its mould.

After he believed they had ample time to look at the small example, his palm flexed a little and the blue energy within the nails pulsed. It moved painfully fast that it seemed to blur into one solid colour and he clasped his other hand over it so the flash it emitted upon exploding won't give away their position.

'I'm not sure if that really helped.' Zion's mental words trickled sheepishly into Eiru's mindspace, as he resumed his stoic composure as a watcher of the undead fortress.

 

[Sylph]

Azalea Gibraltar
Location: Guild Hall
Mentions: Vagabond Spectre Vol​

"What... exactly, is this threat?" Azalea had asked Elias after his attempt to explain the commotion. Things had quieted down when Themisto stepped out of the kitchen and Klein and Lynx had left for elsewhere. The hall seemed much less crowded.

"Actually," Azalea amended, thinking on it a little further, "Never mind." He still seemed shaken from the encounter, clutching his cooking knife white-knuckled like a sword. She wasn't sure if she'd get a straight answer. "I will have a look for myself." It wasn't unusual to have plants fight back in the garden, but one would assume the ingredients for cooking came very-much dead. There should be no avenue for... whatever was going on.

She paused only once as she moved past Elias to the kitchen, mentioning out of concern. "...you should sit down. Collect your thoughts." It seemed he had a great deal to process. Making her way to the doors she braced herself internally, pausing at the thresh-hold with a hand against the door. She recalled he was doing a seafood dish, but while there was absolutely no way a fish could've got the jump on him...

Elias if you're making me deal with a squid, I swear...

She pushed the doors open, stepping onto a scene that looked more like a battlefield than a kitchen. Several heads turned her way, and more than a few of the staff stiffened, though she had no inkling of why. She ignored them in favour of raising a brow at the half-elf Sherly, who all but sat on top of a pot with several furious sounds coming from beneath.

"Explain."

"Uh, Azalea- hi! Um, well-" like Elias they appeared to stumble over their words, faltering and shifting around in favour of giving her a straight answer. Azalea was beginning to question whether she needed a change in demeanour, or whether this threat was really so terrifying as to leave them speechless.

"I need an answer, Sherly."

They balked, taking a breath before blurting out- "Itwasacrab!"

...crab? Azalea blinked, then sighed. Stepping over to where they had the creature contained under the pot, she crouched to listen to the furious bangs and bursts of hissing echoed around inside. It certainly didn't sound happy. "...lift up the lid," Azalea said eventually.

"Uh-!" Sherly balked at the order. "I don't think that's..."

"Just do it." she sighed. There wasn't much point in explaining. She watched as they carefully tilted up a corner--

Almost immediately the creature burst forth, throwing off the cover as it barrelled straight for Azalea and struck low. It certainly resembled a crab, the clerk mused as she examined it. Eight legs and two beady eyes. A wide shell covering its back. The biggest issue was the pincer that had somehow morphed into a knife, resembling the one discarded on the ground. It was currently embedded in the lower part of her calf, though it didn't seem to bother Azalea as she leaned down to grab the edges of the shell. It hissed and tried furiously to dislodge its the morphed appendage, then to attack her after she'd pulled it loose. You had to stab my favourite pair of boots.

Like most shelled creatures, it couldn't do much once she'd gotten a grip on edges of its shell. She held it in front of her, unimpressed at its continued hostilities. Faintly glowing lesions ran through the cracks in its exterior, but it was hard to tell if the aggression was unusual, given she hadn't dealt much with... seafood.

But I know who has. Turning for the door she left the kitchen staff to clean up. She wasn't an expert on creatures, but she was pretty sure they didn't usually look infested with magic, and if there was anyone who did have a clue it would be the old vagabond who lived out back.

"Elias," Azalea said, after she'd returned to the guild hall. She held the furious crustacean aloft by its shell, seeming vaguely annoyed as it swung its sword-arm and spat out furious clicks and hisses. Its beady eyes seemed to narrow at the cook. "Where's Faygo? I'd like him to have a look at this."

 

[Vol]

DISH OF THE WEEK

Location: Main Bestiary -> Waystone Guild Hall, Outskirts of Lantana City
Interactions: Azalea Gibraltar Sylph / Elias Allard Vagabond Spectre ​

"Ssss.....sss....ssssssssssssssssssssssssssss."

A yellow eye pried open to the sound that seemed like a fuse being lit. The half-elf slowly raised his head from the reception desk and unfortunately ruffled the papers he had been resting on. He stared half-lidded at the documents, then gently shoved them to the side and packed them into one folder. He'll sort it out later, the clients were more important.

Though Effy wasn't exactly a client and she wasn't as well-behaved as the ones that were.

For a moment Faygo wondered why he couldn't move his feet -- he assumed it had fallen asleep like he had earlier. Nope.

"Eyup. I'm up, girl. Feel like releasin' me now so I can get to actual work?" Faygo looked down at the Rattlebun that had wrapped it's flexible body around his chair and, consequently, legs. A pair of striking violet eyes stared back at up him, before opening her mouth to reveal rows of sharp teeth and a forked tongue. "You're getting better at smiling, Effy, good for you." He couldn't help but let his signature easy-to-come crooked smile to plaster itself on his lips. He gave her a light flick on the snout.

Effy snarled playfully before nipping at said finger then uncoiled herself. Faygo eased himself out of the chair before stretching, one arm high up in the air and the other craning over his back. Mid-yawn he waved at a passing beastowner who had retrieved their creature from his care, and set the "return" card on the desk.

Work. Right. Feeding time. Speaking of feeding, he should go speak with Azalea about this month's foodstock for the Beastiary. He glanced to the side, a metaphorical sweatdrop forming on his brown skin. He hoped this time the stocklist would be acceptable; it's not his fault he wanted more than the beasts should have. Treats were always good and he was known to offer training sessions for a low price -- he just enjoyed it that much. To Azalea's dismay, he wasn't making much profit that way.

"Ssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss,,,,snrk,,ss."
"I hear you, I'll treat you on the way to Waystone, a'right?"
"snrk. rrrrssssssss."
"Ey? Wow, that's dis-gust-ing, Effy. Of course you'll like that; Waystone doesn't have silversmelt but I'm sure Lantana would."
_______________________________________________________

Fast-travel to Waystone moment
__________________________________________________________

Faygo whistled lowly once he took a step into the Guild Hall. Fortunately he was given some berth due to the Rattlebun that accompanied him so he wasn't just swept inside by the guildmembers and visitors coming in-and-out of the grand entrance. He pressed his hat onto his head as he chewed thoughtfully on a long thin piece of leaf; birchgum. Tasty and makes your breath smell like birchtrees, also good for keeping your mouth busy.

Atleast Waystone was as busy as ever.

The half-elf wandered further into the first floor, eyes characteristically half-lidded but carefully scanning for the forest incarnate.
"Well ain't that a sight--" Faygo plucked the leaf from his mouth as he squinted at the sight of Azalea holding a knife-wielding crustacean. A man with dark hair and the palest skin was standing by her, looking as flustered as the weaponised crab.

"Is that a new special you're cooking up, Elias? Looks like it'll be a killer one." Faygo couldn't help but remark as he strode towards the two, leaf back into the side of his mouth.

Effy, on the other hand, had slid up to Azalea, forked tongue flicking in the air and recognising her taste of wood, flowers and a touch of magic. Then she eyed Elias, the man whose presence tasted like all sorts of foods that she never tried...
A click of Faygo's tongue got her attention, and her big rabbit-like scaled ears folded back before retreating back to his side. It wasn't like she was going to attack the chef, but the half-elf knew when she was about to pounce.

 

[Key of Stars]

Klein Eshwald
Location: Guild Hall > Gaenet
Mentions: Minma SilverbackActual ​

"I concur, however, as you and your little reptile need to rest, I advise to wait. If you get hurt or incapacitated, I can, of course, move you to a safe place, but that would make me ill. And, uh... you could use your little friend here as a scout, to flying over and detect enemies" Klein shook his head. “No. I trust Lynx has had the foresight to make sure he didn’t train to the point where he can’t move. The faster we leave the better.”

Klein took out the mask he usually wore on missions, putting it over half his face. “I trust you’ll be able to figure out how the waystone works yourselves.” He said, taking out his own and disappearing in a flash of light.

As soon as Klein’s feet touched the ground he became overly aware of the familiar strong smell of smoke and blood entering his nostrils. As Lynx and Themisto appeared behind him he quickly surveyed his surroundings. The situation was worse than Klein had expected, at least half of the buildings within his view had already burned down and half of what was left was currently on fire, various corpses lay on the street they had arrived on, some looking mangled to the extent that even Klein, who had gotten used to similar scenes over the years, almost felt like puking.

As Klein was about to turn to Themisto and Lynx a shout caught his attention. “Die foul creature!” Klein whipped around and instinctively activated his magic, wrapping strings around the arrow currently flying towards his group and yanking it to the side. Behind him, both of his teammates reached for their weapons. “Don’t kill him, I want to use him to obtain information!” Klein shouted when both of them jumped at their unknown attacker.

Moments later, Klein was crouched in front of what seemed like a normal commoner at first glance. He had bound the man’s arms and legs tightly using string. “Name and occupation.” Klein stated, eyes cold as he held the pointed end of his cane to the man’s chest.

The man scoffed in response and spit at Klein. “Like I would tell a demon like yourself. Now get your claws away from me, kill me already for all I care.”

Klein’s eye twitched as he wiped away the spit from his mask with his gloved hand. “If you’re not going to say anything useful then be quiet for a while.” He said, binding the man’s mouth using string. Now then, there has to be a reason he keeps calling us demons and foul creatures. Klein observed the man before him carefully once more until his gaze stopped at the man’s eyes, defiant as they currently were they also seemed slightly hazy and unfocused.

Klein snapped his fingers, removing the strings binding the man’s mouth for a moment. “Confirm for me again, what did you say this was?” He asked, slowly waving his hand in front of the man’s eyes. “Get your claw out of my face.” The man hissed, making an attempt to bite at Klein’s hand. “Right.” Klein nodded, promptly binding the man’s mouth again. He turned to Lynx and Themisto. “I need you two to protect me while I confirm something. Don’t kill anyone who looks like a human for now.”

The familiar feeling of his actions turning sluggish accompanied by new scenes, sounds and feelings flowing into his mind washed over Klein as he controlled a nearby crow. Klein surveyed Gaenet from the air, finding the rather large town in absolute chaos, only a few houses still unscathed. After confirming that the rest of the town was in no better shape than the part where they had arrived he cast the crow’s eyes over to the forest.

Klein cut the connection with his marionette roughly a minute later, thoughts racing. Gaelyn Fortress. A castle that fell more than 400 years ago. Only the ruins should be left. Why is a castle from the past here in the present? Klein thought back to the information he had obtained from his research about Gaenet until his breathing hitched momentarily. That’s it. “Lord Glaeder. Final ruler of Gaelyn Fortress. Called the demon lord. Eventually killed by his own people. Expert at manipulating emotions and illusions.” Klein mumbled, expression grave.

 

[Uasal]

Eiru Eagna
Gold Rank Support
Location: Inner forest ​

Eiru wasn't surprised when the prince asked her to reveal her own abilities first when asked about his own but what did take her a little off guard was the fact that despite her not answering yet he had moved to do so all on his own. Honestly, Eiru had expected the need to pry the information from the prince but as fortune would have it, he seemed to at least have some brains to match his hot temper. Sound magic. An interesting attribute with many practical uses. Many powerful practical uses. Perfect. With sound magic on their side, things were finally starting to look a bit better. Now if Zion was an offensive light spell wielder then saving the hostages would be far more plausible than previously assumed.

Eiru was deep in thought on the subject when Zion moved to give a display of his magic. Light magic infused into summoning magic. Remarkable. Nothing new as far as holy orders went but creative none the less. More importantly extremely effective against the majority of the undead class. As the light faded and Zion retired to watching the outpost Eiru moved to crack her knuckles and neck in an almost comical manner before turning to also view the outpost. "Keeping it simple my magic is very much like enchanting. The difference is I enchant spells, not items. I can take whatever spells you two cast and modify them in many different ways. Multiplying the power would be an example."

Turning to the prince with a grin Eiru raised a hand in his direction and her aura began to flare ever so slightly "Sound magic has many uses, I can take what would normally smash a rock and have it pierce a hole through solid iron or even steel. Right now however I'd rather we all communicate telepathically so I want you to focus your magic around Zion and make it so that all sounds he himself makes are muffled. Speech, steps, breath. All of it. Trust me, just focus on casting the spell. Cast it on Zion alone, don't worry about anyone else. If you can't perfectly muffle it all push it as far as you can..."

Sylph Vol Zufaix

 

[Sylph]

Ymir
Location: Icewall Ridge
Mentions: Key of Stars Funnier President -ferret-​

"Wait, gliders?" The shift in Leo's stance was noticeable. He stop eyeing her with thinly veiled fear and she finally let her own shoulders slump in relief. His state of mind was... infectious, more so than most. He could pull a party together or scatter it just as easily. Ymir found such intangible abilities the most terrifying of all. "I'll take a glider, how hard can it be to control?"

As optimistic as ever. She stepped over to the edge of the ravine with a sigh, watching as clumps of snow broke away and were dashed to nothing against the sheer rockface. It was a relief Leo boasted such confidence. A deep howl rose from the depths, tangling the mess of white hair pulled from her face. It would be just as easy for him to have them cower before the task, pack up and go home without a second thought.

"I sorta expected you to tell me to just, you know, jump. Cushion my fall with air magic and whatnot."

Her snort was carried away by the wind. You certainly do have a reckless opinion of me.

It wasn't altogether unearned. Ymir's gaze trailed up the glacial mass of rock and ice, a grin playing around her lips. She was blind to Leo's vague gestures as he worked on calming himself, preoccupied instead by the tops of the opposing rockface that blocked out the skies--the impenetrable wall between two lands. Her eyes flickered with exhilaration--more the pity they were there for what was inside, not beyond.

"You can if you want," she said eventually. The two may yet have to cushion their falls, for the winds could be fickle. "I wouldn't recommend it though. You'll waste more energy doing it that way."

A crackle of electricity announced Zeno's departure from the group, perhaps tired of their dallying. Ymir blinked, glancing to the two boot imprints left in the snow, but not appearing overly bothered. Much like his element the assassin wasn't much for wasting time. She rubbed the back of her head, sighing roughly as she turned to the other two.

"Well, we need to get moving." She pulled several of the attachment-laden staffs from her bag, throwing two into the heavy snow, one larger than the other. She kept the usual for herself, taking comfort in its familiar weight. "Mazus, the larger one is for you. I use it for long distances, but it'll support more weight on the short term. The winds here might make for a rougher landing, so be careful."

Pulling her goggles down and the cloth around her neck up, she briefly showed them how to undo the clasps that would let the wings spring open. At their most basic, all one needed to do was hang on and pray. "I'll go first and show you where to aim for, but once I'm down I'll be sure to adjust the drafts as well. As long as you don't let go you should be fine. I'll guide you down."

It would be a long, long way to fall after all. Ymir didn't seem bothered by the fact, adjusting one of the attachments as her glider snapped open. If there were no questions then they could depart across the ravine. Ymir would join Zeno under the sheltered overhang first, pulling herself to a stop in a flurry of snow and bluster as the wings of her staff snapped shut. The other two would follow next, if they decided to come at all.

 

[Sylph]

Tyron Avattica
Location: Undead Outpost
Mentions: Vol Uasal​

"Focus your magic around Zion and make it so that all sounds he himself makes are muffled..."

"I can nullify and amplify sounds of the things attached to me," Tyron said, jutting a finger towards Zion who'd just quashed the brief display of their magic. "He can put those nails in his coffin for all I care." Still strange to think of the black-garbed mercenary as a light user. Tyron turned on heel, perhaps intending to examine the perimeter for any ways in--

"Right now however I'd rather we all communicate telepathically..."

His cape trailed to a stop as he properly considered those words. Telepathy? They had one light user, one support role, and himself that he knew of. Where exactly did telepathy come from in that skillset? The ferrets?

"You-" Tyron said, speaking slowly to Zion, his back still turned. "If your magic is light based, how exactly are you using telepathy?" It wasn't a technique just anyone could pick up, or gods knew half the kingdom would use it. It was, however, an ability inherent to certain species throughout the land--none of which were human. Tyron wasn't inclined to ignore his gut feeling much longer. He'd been unsettled by them since they first met. Just what are you hiding behind that mask?

 

[Vol]

WOE, UNDEAD BE UPON YE
Location: Abandoned Stone Fortress, The Cursed Region
Interactions: Tyron Avattica Sylph / Eiru Eagna Uasal
Honourable mentions:
Quest: Rescue Mission
Reward: 2000 Coins​

Zion wondered as to why the enchantress was issuing the buffs onto him. The trapped soul figured himself to not in the stealth category, as evident as to how he often he had strode up to...alarmed spellcasters. Certainly sound cancellation magic would aid him in this but he doubted it would compensate entirely for his lack of assassin's finesse.

He would've thoughtspoke this to Eiru to grasp for a reason he would agree with, but Tyron had already shut down her command. Atleast he stayed in character despite the ominous circumstances. Even if the prince in red's sound magic was bound solely to himself, the witch's expertise may be able to work around that. If the tales of her prowess he had gleaned from murmurs of conversations and brief mentions on paper were true. 'We hardly know what the other is capable of.' Zion mused to himself. This was why he found it much easier to do things solo, apart from other...complications.

However, the undead battlemage truly found Tyron's insult amusing, for obvious reasons only Zion (and three others in the guild) knew. Too bad he couldn't spare a clicking sound representing a chuckle, for the red noble's curiousity was teetering to the edge of what he found...unwelcoming.

"If your magic is light based, how exactly are you using telepathy?"

A steel mask met the lordling's gaze coolly. The hood overshadowing half of the visage in almost a foreboding fashion; a sense of the dread and alienating despair that the undead post oozed. 'I just can, I suppose. If you aren't comfortable with thoughtspeak, discuss another method with the witch.' Zion answered curtly, as he faced the horizon of shambling corpses and broken tower once more.

He did not owe the Avattica noble a proper explanation, it was already uncomfortable enough that the enchantress had heard wind of his situation without his control. He did not trust Tyron especially with his blatant disgust with the undead. Zion won't let him die, as promised, but if this would cause issue with their teamwork, then it will be on the fault of the noble.

A scuttling from below them caused Zion to snap his attention towards the ferrets. They were on the move, tired of weaving in between all their feets as they discussed. However they did not rush forward to the encampment, instead, they circled around some shrubbery that seemed to be purposely placed against something -- an opening...a tunnel?

 

[Uasal]

Eiru Eagna
Gold Rank Support
Location: Inner forest ​

When Tyron refused to channel his magic what so ever Eiru moved to conceal her aura, pouting and huffing as she did so. Why were Nobles all so pig-headed and hard to work with! Could he not even have tried to cooperate! Was cooperation outside of a mindless and blood-soaked military command beyond the red-cloaked human. Did he have to make everything an argument! Eiru fully understood she wasn't the easiest person to cooperate with either but compared to Tyron she was practically a saint! That was saying something! Instead of continuing to argue her plan with the 'supreme leader of the red hooded recalcitrant knights' Eiru instead moved to pet the ferrets scuttling around her feet. At least petting the ferrets would calm her nerves a bit.

When Tyron moved to instead question Zion on his telepathic abilities, Eiru could help but stifle a soft chuckle. Telepathy was indeed a rare school of magic, normally aligned with racial ability over study but what the prince failed to really understand was the fact that Zion was a member of the guild and as such he had every right to keep his source of magic private. Zion wasn't a part of the military and there was no telling if he was even a citizen of the kingdom before joining the guild. He owed the prince no explanation. If he wanted answers he'd have to ask at the guild and well... Getting anything out of Pri was near impossible. In fact, the thought of the prince trying to pry such information from the guild master is what made Eiru stifle her chuckle.

But Eiru's silently thought out drama soon came to an end when the ferrets she had been meeting scampered off towards a hidden entrance beneath a bush. Perhaps the group could finally get a move on. "Zion, can you take point. I'll follow behind and support you. The prince cannot listen to orders so I suppose we just have to babysit him as we progress through the quest"

Vol Sylph

 

[Key of Stars]

Leonidas Hood
Location: Icewall Ridge
Mentions: Sylph Funnier President -ferret- ​

"You can if you want," Leonidas shook his head. "I'll have to pass, thank you." "I wouldn't recommend it though. You'll waste more energy doing it that way." Leonidas looked over the edge of the ravine once more before mumbling. "Wasting energy is not exactly the thing I'm worried about. It's hard to waste energy when you're dead."

"Well, we need to get moving." Leonidas gave her a mock salute. "Roger, lead the way."

"I'll go first and show you where to aim for, but once I'm down I'll be sure to adjust the drafts as well. As long as you don't let go you should be fine. I'll guide you down." Leonidas only half listened as Ymir explained, after all, how hard could it possibly be to hold on to a glider and glide into a small cave at the other side of a ravine so deep he had trouble seeing the bottom?

Moments later Leonidas stood at the edge of the ravine, twirling the glider in his hand. Ymir had certainly made it look easy, gliding over to the other side without a single hiccup. After looking over the edge a final time, Leonidas sighed, tapped his chest in a completely random order that certainly wouldn't earn him the favour of any known god and jumped.

For the most part, his gliding hadn't even gone that badly. In fact, for a moment while he was in the air, he had actually been enjoying himself quite a bit. When it came to landing though, Leonidas discovered that he had not the slightest clue how to do it. He had tried to make something up on the fly and tried to cushion his fall with air magic but this just lead to the glider flipping around and him propelling himself into the ground at an even faster speed. He pushed himself out of the snow with a groan, a mix of emotions visible on his face. "I'd give that whole experience a 6/10. 10/10 for the flying part, 1/10 for the landing."

He pushed himself to his feet. "Overall though, that could have gone worse. My most charming feature seems to have survived just fine." He said with a grin, patting his face with his hand.

 

[Minma]

Minma Gate
Location: Gaenet outskirts


“No. I trust Lynx has had the foresight to make sure he didn’t train to the point where he can’t move. The faster we leave the better.” Minma nodded his head while he spoke. "Indeed." “I trust you’ll be able to figure out how the waystone works yourselves.” Minma pulled his out and watched as Klein disappeared with a flash of light. He gave a final look to Themisto and took a deep breath. "This should be fun." He clutched his waystone and concentrated before using it.

He appeared almost simultaneously with Themisto. A familiar smell filled his nostrils. The iron like smell of blood. His feet was placed firm on the ground as he began surveying the area along with Klein. Burning buildings were in the distance. The smoke filled the air creating thick grey clouds. Corpse were placed on the road, there eyes were showed no sign of life. Minma's face turned from happy to go on the quest to a face of seriousness. His dragon was now by his side at his feet looking around. Then, out of nowhere Minma picked up on someone coming towards him.

As he turned around he was meet with a man yelling at them and it seemed to Minma he was on the attack. In an instance Minma pulled his sword from his back and stepped forth to the stranger. “Don’t kill him, I want to use him to obtain information!” As soon as heard Klein speak his pulled his sword back. As Klein crouched in front of the man Minma threw his sword onto his shoulder. Klein asked the man a question and was meet with spit. Good thing he where's the mask. Minma eyed the man with a cold stare. “Like I would tell a demon like yourself. Now get your claws away from me, kill me already for all I care.” Minma grinned. He moved his sword off his shoulder and started to move it to the guys neck. He stopped himself when Klein spoke again.

He put the sword back on his back a look at aggravation on his face. If Klein hadn't have intervened with his voice, Minma was going to give the man a taste of what happens when you disrespect him, or his team, although he wouldn't be able to redeem himself since he would be dead. Klein attempted to gather information from the guy but was meet with resistance. An order came from Klein to protect him and Minma bowed in confirmation. He walked infront of Klein and took post. His eyes scanned the area over and over for potential threats. It seemed to Minma that Klein entered some other state of mind.

"Lord Glaeder. Final ruler of Gaelyn Fortress. Called the demon lord. Eventually killed by his own people. Expert at manipulating emotions and illusions.” Minma turned around with a look of confusion on his face. Where had this information come from? Minma cleared his throat before speaking. "Sorry, but I'm not sure how a dead person is much use to this current situation." Minma then walked over to the captive Klein had tied up. He reached down and grabbed the man by the shirt and with one arm, lifted him up into the air. His attention turned to Klein. "Give me the word and I'll make him talk. I specialize in torture techniques and if that doesn't work and he's no use to us.."
A brief pause came. "Well, then he want be use to anyone else ever again."

Mentions: SilverbackActual Key of Stars

 

[Sylph]

Tyron Avattica
Location: Solmar Outskirts --> Catacombs
Mentions: Vol Uasal​

'I just can, I suppose. If you aren't comfortable with thoughtspeak, discuss another method with the witch.'

He wasn't getting answers it seemed. Tyron shook his head, glancing over to the ferrets as he vowed to follow up on it later. "Use it, for now. Better than alerting the enemies with unecessary talk."

Tyron stared down at the hole in disgust. It looked less like a deliberate entrance and more like it had caved into something beneath. Dark and dank and foreboding. There’s absolutely no way—

"Zion, can you take point. I'll follow behind and support you. The prince cannot listen to orders so I suppose we just have to babysit him as we progress through the quest."

He spared the witch a disparaging glance as the ferrets sniffed around the sightless wound. They chittered low and nervously, but nonetheless poked their heads over the side, stretching as far as they dared until the dirt started to crumble beneath one’s paws and its companion yanked it back.

“Absolutely not,” Tyron said. He only had to look at the others to see they were already considering it, but there were so many things that could go wrong. Cave ins, dead ends, asphyxiation, ambushes—for all they knew it could be a bottomless hole to nowhere or a trap laid by the enemies. He’d rather face their opponents on open ground where he had avenue to move and a reasonable chance of anticipating attacks, not squashed together under a morgue’s worth of rock and dirt that could collapse at any time—

And then he was the only one left on the surface.

Tyron continued to stare after Zion and the witch went down. He adamantly, absolutely, beyond all reason would not climb down some dirty, stinky, godforsaken hole in the name of Avattica. He’d rather face the slavering hordes by himself then get whatever foul well-water was down there on his coat. The other two could, but he would not. They’d have better luck using the witch’s head as a battering ram to knock down the front gates--

Which were, he realised, quite tall and foreboding. Decrepit guards overlooked the shambling mass of corpses, who would probably be happy to drop their heavy loads in favour of carving out fresh meat. Tyron was confident in his abilities, but… his hand hesitated over the hilt of his sword, mouth turned down into a scowl.

Eventually the scuffle of dirt could be heard by those beneath, followed a shower of grit and curses and a body landing on something that clattered across stone. If Tyron was going to complain it was cut short by the realisation he’d fallen on a bone pile, laying amongst crumbled rock and powdered skeleton, and what was probably half a skull—

He scrambled to his feet, beating furiously at his arms and cloak. “What the hells kind of-!”

Tyron’s hiss cut off. What light they had illuminated the small area they were in. Piles of bones, some draped in remnants of armour, lay across the ground and against the walls. Above them, inscriptions were carved into stone at regular intervals where the surface was smooth. Some of the graves had broken open where walls had collapsed, revealing the macabre contents.

Tyron fell silent, scowling. Dust crumbled beneath his glove when he reached for one of the blank slates lining the tunnel.

[ xxxx xxx xxxxxx, xxxx - xxxx, Merchant House ]

“…idiots of Solmar,” he muttered, tone thick with distaste. It seemed the mining operation had found another use for the quarries during the conflict with the western wastelanders. Catacombs that had become a resting place for the living upon their collapse. Turning to the others he raised his chin. "Do you two seriously think this will lead anywhere? What makes you think we won't end up like them?"

He jabbed a finger towards one of the decayed skeletons, several gashes in the armour that remained. He had a growing sense of foreboding with the whole operation. Much of the bodies had not been recovered from the final conflict, their spirits never laid to rest. As if to echo his thoughts, a scratchy groan started up further down the hall, accompanied by shuffling and the scraping of metal that grew in number and prevalence.

Closer by, one of the corpses began to twitch. Tyron's grip fell to his sword around the same time that a bony hand wrapped around Eiru's ankle.