"Well that was stupid wasn't it?" Vance said bluntly. He wasn't in the least fazed by the pathetic attempt at scaring him by setting the seat on fire. He frowned at the now charred seat and raised his eyebrows at Zephyros. "You set the seat on fire. This is quite flammable, that could have got out of control. You ought to be more careful, otherwise it might be that ridiculous sash of yours' that gets taken up in the flames." He noticed that Conrad had got into the carriage and seemed to be looking vaguely disapproving. Then he stopped noticing Conrad existed for a while. He wasn't adding anything, was he? It had been some time, and the conversation had passed jovially. They had both talked at length together, enjoying their company and whiling the time away. He didn't have anything better to do after all. Besides, it was fun and he was getting some interesting information out of her. He was vague about his own past for the most part, revealing that he was somewhere some ways up north that had seen a lot of destruction some years ago and he had to move away. That was about all he revealed. There was no need for her to know anything else about him. As far as he was concerned, she was entertainment until her friends arrived at which point she could be used as a hostage if necessary. "So Cal, why are you here on this island? I don't think you ever said." he asked, reclining against the rock behind him.
Who in the hell are these people? What is their problem? They seem to be acting in a somewhat unified group but some of them seem to be on the side of the guy that just murdered that woman and the others seem to be against him... Like the guy who was just talking about mood. Are these people crazy? And that girl... Who is that girl and why are they all listening to her? In any case, he didn't plan on continuing fighting. As far as he was concerned, it was now time to understand what happened exactly and decide what to do with the big guy in the cage. "Correction. I did see what happened. I'm here to figure out why it happened and then between us decide what to do wi-" Sherridan watched with dismay as the woman he was talking to was suddenly accosted by a tall man whom she acknowledged, before going eerily quiet as if in thought. He would have said something to answer that situation, however something else appeared that was arguably more pressing. From the sky flew down a man on a griffon. He had pink hair and was watching over the events. Sherridan frowned. Who was this man and what business did he have? More to the point, how did he find this group so easily. And then he started talking. He frowned at the mention of the Goddess. An agent of the Goddess, whatever is he doing here? She's not exactly a byword for goodness in these parts. And he seems to be arresting these people for searching for some kind of hero... He decided in that moment this man could quite frankly wait. "You, in the cage. I don't know you and I don't like what you've done. But I think we have a common dislike here. I'll let you out, if you agree to fight him." Sherridan offered, pointing his bow at the ground his eyes on the griffon rider. The man that was going after the man in the cage that mentioned something about a mood being shot was asking the girls about monster hunting now. It didn't take a genius to figure out what they meant. If this man worked for the Goddess then he was no friend of Sherridan's. She'd never done anything for them. Her laxity was insulting. Besides, what Goddess had business stopping people finding a hero? It sounded suspicious, as if she had something to hide. Something that the Goddess didn't want them to find to preserve her selfish reign. Thus, there was only one option. He had to make sure that hero was found. Somehow.
"Well excuse me, Sir I've never owned a proper shirt in my life perhaps you shouldn't berate people with standards. I can hardly blame you for it, after all you don't look like the sort that has ever experienced any sort of wealth, let alone a proper set of clothes. Alas, some elements of ignorance you simply can't do anything about. Maybe if you're actually good at your job you might just be able to afford some respectable clothes one day." This man, if he could in fact be called a man, was apparently one of the worst lowlifes that the world had produced. This sort of vagabond looked like the sort of man that begged on the streets doing silly little performances with that obscene little instrument he carried. Honestly, the sight of it made him laugh. What did it even do, make silly little tingling noises? "I'm amazed at you actually. You've got a little instrument there, and you haven't even got yourself something decent to wear. What is that thing anyway? What, haven't you saved enough little bits of money from whatever it is you do to buy a proper instrument? I'm surprised you don't deafen your audience or bore them to death with all the silly tapping you can do with it, not to mention the pathetic tingling. Use a respectable instrument like a lute at least if you're going to beg for people's money." It occurred to him at that very moment, that he was spectacular job of alienating himself. Whatever. I don't need any of them anyway. Just pathetic, silly little people. A lot of the other guild members are out, there's bound to be good people in them somewhere. Not all of this place can be so low.
Everlue Mansion Since everyone's curiosity appeared to have been sated and no other burning questions were asked, it was time to get going. He clapped his hands together eagerly and looked at everyone, smiling. "Alrighty then lads. And lass." He spoke, glancing at their group. He didn't like the look that red coated guy was giving him overmuch, but he looked over that regardless. There were all sorts at Sapphire Eclipse. Some of them had to be of the bad sort. Maybe they'd change him eventually once he learned to chill out and that the guild was really, quite a relaxed place to be. He checked his mug habitually, swishing around to see if there was anything. Spotting a little bit in there, he picked it up and downed the last vestiges of the cold, bitter ale and then began to walk to the door. "We are good to gooo! Follow me!" Edric led them out of the hall to a large wooden carriage that the guild had for larger missions. Why so many of them were going on a heist mission he didn't know, but hey. What could possibly go wrong, they were all professionals right? He saddled up the horses to it and beckoned everyone inside. "Get in fellas. Ah'll be yer driver for the trip. Next stop, Everlue mansion!" Edric declared once everyone was inside and he was sitting in the driver's space. Whipping the horses into action, the carriage set off for the mansion. Vance listened to Edric's explanation with just a hint of boredom. There didn't seem to be anybody he liked and that strange person who said that quote about empty pockets (Which must have been stolen from somewhere because it was clearly far beyond his intellectual station to come up with) seemed like a thoroughly disreputable character. I see. I'm in a guild with vagabonds and all sorts of other people. Lower than me that's for sure. That Conrad barely even counts as a nobleman. Sure they're rich but he's not one in spirit. He's just like them. He strutted over to the carriage and sneered. "This looks as if it'll fall apart. What, do you expect us to travel in this?" Vance said disapprovingly, to himself mostly. If anyone agreed then perhaps they'd be decent folk. Of course, knowing all these people they'd probably just disagree or something. Foolish peasants. They knew nothing about anything worthwhile. He climbed inside anyway, making sure he was before anyone else and took the seat in the middle of one of the rows. They could all work around him it wasn't going to be the other way around. Besides, this was customary. Mission Information: You guys are in the carriage. Talk for a while.
"Weell, erm. He no, erm, that one said it just about fine there. it doesn't really matter why we're doing it. I don't know anythin' else aboot the book other than it's oor job ta get it. It belongs ta the guy 'cos his Dad wrote it for his son basically, but the fella who owns it never gave it to 'em. Apparently one of a kind books by famous blokes have some incredible value. Who knew?" Edric explained. Then, another detail appeared in his mind. "Ooh and by the way, the guy is called Duke Everlue. If you don't like the high classes then this is the job fer you." He clapped his hands together and looked around at everyone. A statue, a whole bunch of other blokes, a girl, somebody he couldn't tell anything about and two fairly wealthy looking people. Between the group of them, they were bound to succeed. And maybe they'd go for drinks after. But then the statue guy couldn't have a drink could he? Or at least, he wouldn't really enjoy it. He decided it was probably a bit insensitive to bring it up. "Okay sooo, any questions?" He asked. Meanwhile in the strange candy land/fairy place/I don't even know where... Alessia used Blitz
So, I noticed recently during the Twilight Thorn fight that Roxas and more precisely his Keyblade do some very, very interesting things. In that video look at times 1:10 and 3:55. So at 1:10, the Keyblade must be incredibly sharp (And heavy) because when it falls to the ground after being thrown it embeds itself in the ground with the key bit sticking face down. I can kinda get how this happens because the Key bit is probably sharp or at least, magical in some way. But what I don't get is the next bit. At 3:55 he sticks the Keyblade into the side of the platform. How? He sticks in the actual platform. The Keyblade isn't really that sharp at the tip, so how does it go through? Does anyone actually know? If so, please explain because I am very, very confused XD
Alessia gripped Thea's hand tightly as they fled, leaving the melted snow land behind. After a while, they slowed down coming into a nice, green space where a bit of snow fell, barely cold. They sky was a deep, beautiful blue. It looked like it went on forever to her. She smiled at the sight. It's so beautiful here. She almost forgot about the disaster of the Snow Fairies and Thea's flames in that peppermint scented wonderland they had wandered into. Almost. I hope nobody around here knows what happened otherwise we could be in deep, deep trouble. They found themselves on a stone path and began to follow it. She felt a little bit worried, going along the road after what happened. They were in a strange land, shrunk and vulnerable because of it. They didn't even know where this led. Well, the Nutcracker might but like he was any use. "Are you okay, Thea?" She asked. "We just went through a lot." It felt strange talking to her like this. She had to act as if everything was okay, when in reality things were very, very bad. They were potentially on the run. As they went deeper, they started to hear the voices. Who's Prince Eric? I wonder where he got to. He's clearly someone important. And are they... Candy people? What is happening right now? As she wondered this, the Mouse Army arrived. "How did they find us? Stay close to me Thea!" Alessia shouted, but they were separated in the chaos of trying to find a way to escape, only to be surrounded. At some point during the scramble, she found herself beside the Nutcracker. "Alright Nutcracker show me what you can do! There's a lot of them and we're going to need your help!" With that word of encouragement, she launched into an attack against the mice. Alessia used Bltiz on Mouse Army Member 2 (the 40 health mouse)
"It doesn't matter who you were before your death. It is perhaps more important that you truly desire to change. Which, being that you're here, I assume is the case." Caliborn said, greeting the strange golem. I can't say I've seen much like this before. I've heard of it, although not seen it. It's fascinating though. I'll have to find out a bit more because this is just too different to simply overlook. A Warlord that casually talks about destroying villages. Frankly I've never heard of a Malkira the cursed, but I don't think he should mention his past all that much. Some people would take affront to the murders and burning of towns and some... Well they'd just want to fight him for fun. I remember the first day. Gaius will probably think it would be an interesting thing to do, challenging an old warlord. "It would be prudent not to mention your past here. Particularly the burning villages. Just a bit of advice." At that moment, he heard someone shouting. There was only one person that could be- Edric. "Hey, all of ya! Get o'er here if yer new! I'm takin' you all on a job!" Caliborn smiled. Subtle as ever, Edric. Edric continued calling everyone over until all the new people were gathered around him. He sat down and finished off his mug of Ale in the meantime. He tapped his foot on the ground impatiently. Come on, we need ta get goin' soon. Need to be back before the others return. It looks like we've got enough new folks to make this mission work out. I mean, how hard can it be ta steal a book? Edric waited, watching everyone that appeared. The weirdest one was the statue man that was talking to Caliborn. I'll ask later. It's probably easier. Eventually however, they all appeared before him and he slammed his tankard on to the table and got to his feet energetically. "So, I'd like ta welcome you all to the guild. It's a pleasure ta have ya all aboard. Soo, I'm takin' ya on yer first mission." Edric began. "So, oor mission is quite simple. We've got ta steal a book. Don't know if you have read a lot of those, I've read a couple in my lifetime but not too many. Anyway, this book is called Daybreak and it's very special. One of a kind. Oor client is a man who wants us to steal the book that his father wrote off the man that has it. He refused to return it to its rightful owner so folks, it's up ta us to do it. Are ya ready?" Vance threw the doors of the Guild Hall open and strode in, his eyes examining the room. This is the local guild? I'll give them credit the exterior is grand, but their interior could do with a bit of work. For people with such a grand taste for places they could really improve their decor. I must confess disappointment. Here I thought I was entering a guild worthy of my presence. A curse upon my family for throwing me into this place. What is that moving statue doing here? What the hell is that woman wearing does that look like acceptable dress? Whatever is that machinery she's wearing? He walked forwards and saw someone with white hair standing in front of him. The posture and the hair told him exactly who it was. He snorted with contempt. Yes I see. I have come to the wrong place. Sadly, everywhere else is just as pathetic. I'll talk to the Guildmaster at the earliest opportunity and hopefully get her to listen to me and change things around here because it most certainly could do with a slight touching up. "Hmph, Conrad I might have known I'd find you here. You fit right in with some of these people. Out of my way I have a job to claim." He deliberately push past Conrad and approached Edric, frowning. This is what is leading us on this mission? And they expect us to steal a book? How pathetic this is barely a job!
"I might not know this castle very well either, but I'm coming with you two." Kari said, standing with them at the doorway. "If you're starting something then you'll need all the followers you can get." Besides if you've got her following you around I'm pretty sure you can manage having me too. I want in on this and there's nothing either of them are doing about it. It's stupid to turn down friends and besides, this is what I've wanted for a long time. A chance to really, really fight back. Let's see them oppress us now! This guy, I don't know who he is, but I think he might be the real thing. He's got something to him. I think he can fight. He's willing to fight he showed that. If he starts this thing then... I can be at the hand of the revolution. I might get to bury my axe in a few nobles' heads, maybe if I'm lucky, the King's. I'll take a noble or even a prince though. That could be good. And then yes... We could start our own Kingdom that's far and perfect. No need for oppressing people like they did. She followed Vex onwards after Elridge. They had a job to do. Rescue an innocent man and hopefully start a revolution to change the world forever. "The second probability is the unison of the lower classes, now without their shackles and the people meant to be watching them busy pointing swords at one another and crying “Traitor!” I can only see a suitably organised series of Rebels being able to take control of a great deal of land and perhaps form their own government that while works in their typical system of peasant values, fails to function properly in the real world of higher end politics and posturing." "Very well Master Tallesin. I trust you shall inform me when you have discovered what it is you are searching for?" Osric replied. He was intrigued he had to admit. There was more to this bard than the man was willing to admit and that more than anything, fascinated him. He liked a good mystery and this was shaping up to be a good one indeed. A most excellent puzzle... One he looked forward to discovering the answer to.
"I don't know! Where did we come from Lan'?" Jin answered cheerfully. That is awesome. The Dragon, it can talk! A talking Dragon that's so, so cool. Like seriously I am talking to a Dragon right now there are no words to express how excited I- "Jin please keep it down in there I can hear you. It's painful sometimes." Lan'do said none too gently. He felt a bit put out. Sorry Lan. "I didn't want to hurt your feelings you know that?" And we're from Manil." I know man, I know. Nothing gets between a man and his shark! He patted Lan's head before refocusing on the talking Dragon. It seemed like a pretty cool Dragon. He wasn't overly concerned about it trying to eat him. They were just here to hunt n' stuff, nothing illegal. Pretty sure them pooching or poaching or whatever it was laws weren't a thing. Some places had those and it sounded awful. How were they going to eat if they couldn't hunt because some guy wanted to keep all the tasty deer to themselves? Pooching laws were awful. So stupid. Anyway yes, the Dragon. "Yeah please don't eat me that would suck. We're from Manil it's sort of that way." He pointed in the vague direction they had come from. He knew that much. He sort of knew vaguely where it was but the detail... That sorted itself out. And by that he meant Lan sorted it out. What will I ever do without you buddy? "I wouldn't be surprised that you haven't seen me and Jin' around. I'm new in these parts comparatively and we tend to keep to ourselves. We hunt a lot as you can see. It's how we make our living. Our Jin'rael here didn't really fit in with people. If you heard of him it was probably because of something stupid he did while drunk. I don't let him drink as much now, but he tends to keep away from the rest of Elf society. He had a bit of a bad experience and as such, I don't know much about this place either and he knows about as much as I do. He just knows where home, the tavern, the shops and the hunting grounds are and the rest sort of goes over his head. I'm the smarter of the two of us if you hadn't figured it out already." Lan explained. Jin rubbed Lan's head as he explained that Jin wasn't the cleverest of the two. It was true and he was okay with that. After all, he didn't need to be smart. It didn't matter who was cleverer, just that so long as he had his Shark then the two of them would be just fine forever! Or however long they lived. Maybe forever? Sure felt like forever. Or maybe that was just the way it felt? Whatever.
The Great Forest, his home. A place of peace and harmony, a place of delicate balance where life competed in a perfect equilibrium. There was a certain balance to nature, and a certain beauty within that seeing how the scales between the balance of life were tipped. Even the smallest change, was noticeable, if you knew the signs. Perhaps more of a certain plant was alive than normal, or perhaps there were less scratch marks on the trees. That was how you could see by just subtle signs that there was an upset in that balance that something, somehow, had tipped those scales that kept the forest alive in its endless cycle of life and death. It wasn't only that of course. There was far, far more you could tell. Sherridan had lived in this forest for many years, ever since he had discovered his love for the forest and finally moved away from his homeland. He had learned how to read the forest and the things within it. And something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong indeed. Animals were the best sign. The sound of squawking birds and their alarm, which was inevitably heard by a deer which fled and told its other friends over and over again until the news spread around of what was amiss. It was this that made him so effective in this place. This free network of living things that over time he had come to understand. They knew him now, he had lived among them for long enough. Sherridan was a familiar figure in his cloak with all his traps set up. He too was part of that special equilibrium. Nature adapted and thus he became one with the land. He saw birds fly often and sat atop the trees listening to their song. He saw deer prancing and chased after them not only for food, but the kindred spirit of the run. Of course the best were the Wolves. To run alongside the pack, to hear their howls and add his own calls in chorus with them as they stalked their prey. He put aside the bow when he was with them and took up his daggers. It was far more sporting that way and as he came to learn about them, he knew they accepted him. Sometimes they would trade gifts, him giving meat in return for some meat back or if they could find it, some strange man made object. Sometimes he found bits of his camp that had gone missing earlier in the day unfortunately, but at least he got them back eventually. As he thought of these things, high up in his tree amidst the branches he heard it. The familiar alarmed squawks. His ears pricked up and he climbed to the very top to try and get a view of where they were. Sherridan chose high trees for that reason and his head poked through the leaves. looking in every direction. He spotted the location quickly. Pigeons were very loud and not terribly fast so he was able to pinpoint where they had come from. Memorising the direction, he climbed down, dropping from branch to branch and shimmying down the trunk of the tree to the forest floor, at which point he started to run. He raced through the forest throwing up piles of fallen leaves and leaping deftly over roots and fallen trees, dense bushes and little dens. He wondered what it could possibly be. There was a chance that it was just that one of them had been attacked, but it didn't seem like it. It didn't sound like the other alarm cries they had for their own being attacked. He hurried on regardless. Then the shouting came into earshot. "People?" He asked himself. That added a whole new level of danger to this. He took out one of his Null Zones and activated it, projecting its field of anti magic around him. His Light shot wouldn't work here, but with a bit of luck he wouldn't need it. He prepared a Containment Trap then, in order to hold whoever it was in position while he decided what to do. Finally, he unslung his bow and held it ready. He started to be able to make out figures in the trees. His eyes opened wide at the sight. Two people were fighting. A man and a woman... The man beat her driving his hand through her chest? Magic! There were others there too. He could see another man trying to intimidate a younger girl. This will go on no longer. Sherridan drew in range of the events, seeing one man standing up to the murderer. He threw the Containment Trap, it activating perfectly trapping Dane but leaving Lucien out. As he threw he nocked and arrow and pointed an arrow at the now trapped Dane. It occurred to him at this moment that his Null Zone may work against him. Against this man who used magic like that for evil.. Light may have been useful. Even still... This would have to do for now. "This ends here! Everyone stand down, Ranger's orders!" Sherridan ordered. He motioned for Dane to put his weapon down. "You, back away from that girl. Everyone stay back from him in the trap. He's already killed one of you, he'll likely try and kill more." He stared Dane in the eye with a look of contempt. He didn't know why this had happened, but he would find out in due course and when he could, he'd kill this son of a ***** he had trapped.
Name: Vance Dorian Gender: Male Age (Min of 14): 23 Description: This bloke Personality: Arrogant, Sarcastic, Mostly Indifferent and Uncaring. Focuses on results above morality. Weapons: Mage's Staff Armor: N/A AS: Blitz, Aero, Thunder, Cure Strengths: Magic, not caring whatsoever. Weaknesses/Fears: Attacks better than he defends. Awful at teamwork with non-results focused people. History: Vance is the son of the fairly rich Dorian family. This has led him to have quite the entitled attitude and is quite disdainful attitude towards people not as wealthy as him or lacking in status. However, his family aren't too fond of magic and when he discovered he had it (Namely during a deal being made with another house and accidentally Thundering the other guy into unconsciousness), he was promptly exiled from his house until he learned to control it, or lost it entirely. Since losing magic isn't really an option, he came to the conclusion that he had to do something with it and thus he went to the nearest guild. Unfortunately for him, he wound up at Sapphire Eclipse. Why unfortunately? Because Sapphire Eclipse actually cares about people and probably aren't fond of his results focused attitude. Other: I know he sort of looks like one but he is not in fact a vampire. It's so hard to find a well dressed dude that isn't a vampire XD Character Build Chosen: Magic Character Build Weakness: Defense Level up point into Wendy Left with 30 gold after purchasing: 2 X Magic Armlet: Slightly raises max MP and Magic. (+1, +2) 155/50 for 310 1 X Silver Ring: Increases Magic and slightly increases maximum AS (+1, +1) 160/50 Jewels Stat bonuses: 2 MP 5 Magic 1 AS Signing up for the mission
Alessia watched and listened and Thea cried beneath her. She suddenly didn't feel that good about shouting at Thea. Something seemed to be hurting her. She was moaning about some sort of pain. Oh no... What have I... What if she really couldn't control it? She's so young... And things were really hot in the guild hall... Maybe she can't control her magic. She needs to learn not control it not be even more damaged by people yelling at her. She knelt down and tried to cradle Thea. Oh no, I screwed up. I screwed up badly. I don't need to make any of that worse. "No, no shush." She said, trying to be comforting. I should have thought before I acted! Stupid me! This was all an accident! A disaster but... How could I accuse her of being Ezekiel's pawn? She left all that behind but not by her choice, and yet... But why would she beg us not to hate her? Damn it all! What do I do? I've never been in this situation before! What's wrong with her magic, and how to fix it and I just, don't... Understand... What to do? Is this all an act is this truth I can't understand it. I can't figure it. I guess I just... Try to stop her crying. Alessia pulled Thea closer in an attempt to try and calm her down. "Don't worry, everything is going to be fine, okay? Everything is going to be alright." Just then, she heard the Nutcracker saying they needed to leave. She looked up for a proper view of had happened. Oh my... I didn't realise... What have we done? She looked down at Thea. She frowned at the girl for a moment, but tried again to be more comforting. "Okay come on, we've got to move." Alessia said, pulling Thea to her feet. She grabbed her hand. I've got to try and keep this together, things are bad enough. We can't let her lose control again. As much as I hate what you did to Skadi... It might have been an accident after all and right now, we don't need another one. "Just hold my hand and run with me. Everything will be okay. Try not to use any magic for a while and just, follow me."
Dale turned to look at Ander, his arms folded and his face impassive. What is this guy even thinking...? What was his point? Did the guy even have a point to make? I'm not really sure. He claimed to know a lot about magic but... I'm not sure I believe him. Somebody who knows that much about magic surely wouldn't say anything that royally stupid. "Ander, I'm going to be honest with you here. That is about the most stupid thing I've heard come out of your mouth all mission." Dale said bluntly. "Yes, I know Ice Make magic. This is very true. But why that suddenly makes me the expert in lost and rare magic I don't know? You say you know a lot about magic but I'm going to be honest, it doesn't seem like you really understand it. And frankly, you're not even a Normal or even S-Class Member. It's not exactly shocking that you don't know all that much. If anyone in this guild knows, it's going to be Evanora but I'd be willing to be one or two of the S-Classes know what that is. Now, I'm not S-Class. So why would I know? However you are right about this- It's likely that only one amongst them know it. If that is their leader, like I suggested, they're probably the biggest we have and should try and remove them from the fight as soon as possible. The sooner they're out of the equation, the better." I have no idea what the hell he was thinking. They had sat there talking for some time, drifting casually from one topic to another. From the guild, to her magics and talking a bit about Boreal himself although he was almost as sparse with the details as Calxiyn was. All he told her is that his father wasn't around much but that when he was there, he taught him the magic he used today. He didn't seem entirely comfortable about it. Occasionally, when Cal mentioned his name during the conversation he would flinch at the mention of Dale, as if the name was a curse. He didn't seem to react well to it being brought up, that much was apparent. If she was particularly observant, she might have noticed the way he clenched his fist and changed the subject with the same enthusiasm as he had spoken with the rest of the time. "So Cal, other than the Guild what do you want to do with yourself? There's got to be another plan in mind, surely?" He asked.
She took a couple more snowballs as the fight went on, but continued throwing ones of her own. The snow fairies will love this! Snowball fights are so fun! She smiled as they played. She watched everyone, keeping her eye out for more snow. She was about to return fire at Sara when she saw the flames. They were bright and she could feel the heat. Alessia could only watch as they spread towards her. What is Thea doing? Alessia cloaked herself in her protective barrier, rendering her immune to the flames and charged at Thea. Are you trying to incinerate everyone you crazy girl! You were with Ezekiel! We tried to accept you and this is what you do to us? How could you? How could you? We wanted you to be one of us, but I guess you're just the same! By the time she arrived, the flames were gone and Thea was curled up in a ball on the ground crying, but that didn't help much. She saw Skadi lying there, burned. She had heard so many screams. "What have you done?" Alessia shouted, looking down at Thea. "What do you think you were doing? We just wanted to be your friends! And then you do this to us? Why would you do this? We've tried to be nothing but kind to you! I felt bad for earlier, I wanted you to be able to be part of this guild, but I guess you're still just Ezekiel's pawn! Well come on, tell us! WHY? WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO US?" Thea was very lucky she was so young. She only barely contained the anger and sadness. She pointed furiously. "LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO SKADI!" Alessia screamed. "LOOK AT HER!" "Good call. If we're going up against a group... We'll need to focus them down one by one I think. There's no telling how strong the group is, so we need to be careful I think and take each wizard down as a group. That should in theory reduce the number advantage right? And they're no match for the damage we can deal as one." Dale speculated as they walked. He began to consider the possibilities. He couldn't really think of any sort of magic that they could be using based on what he had seen so far. In truth, he didn't even recognise what might have caused that beam of light. That meant they were dealing with a very, very obscure type of magic. "Be warned. We might be dealing with a lost, or at least rare type of magic here. I've never seen a type of magic that could create such a kind of light in the sky, let alone turn the moon purple. I would say that we should target their leader first if we can. If anyone is going to know this strange magic, it's likely to be him."
She was dancing around quite happily, enjoying herself when suddenly a white powdery ball flew by her head very, very quickly and it was most certainly not by accident. She lost her balance and flapped her arms madly and wobbled about on the spot to get it back. She had a stroke of luck and managed to retain her balance. Then she looked round to see who threw it, where she saw Jack. She was about to march over there and ask what exactly he thought he was doing, when she saw him collapse a snowman. Seriously, what's with this guy? She marched over, but before she could demand anything he was off again now talking to Silvia. She huffed. "Men!" She exclaimed. Shaking her head, she tried to pick up her dancing again, but couldn't because immediately as she tried she was smacked solid in the face by an icy cold ball of snow. She spat out the bit that landed in her mouth and started to lick her teeth in an attempt to make them less cold as she shook the rest off her face. Sara! "Oh that is it!" She picked up a large bundle of snow and raced over to Sara and threw it at her before diving to the side and scooping up another load of ammunition, ready to throw.
"My thoughts exactly." Dale agreed. They had all come to exactly the same conclusion that he had. Therity wasn't entirely wrong, however they had to move quickly for Cal's sake. This mission had the potential to make them or break them and a screw up by losing a guild member would certainly do the latter. At least, it would him. He couldn't afford to lose another guild member. He quickly overtook Therity, asserting his position as leader of the group and leading them towards the mountain. This time, no ice sculptures. We need to be on our guard. As far as I'm concerned this territory is as dangerous as you can get. Whatever it is, it's certainly dangerous. I don't believe it's anything of a creature's nature. No, this is an attempt by sentient beings, possibly outsiders or maybe even another tribe. This island is fairly isolated and it wouldn't surprise me if there was another, perhaps feral tribe out there in the wilderness. It wouldn't surprise me if that's why Moka's men couldn't reach. They'd probably have tried to seal it off. It would make sense, especially since they're doing something there. The only question in my mind is what, and to what purpose. Either way we're dealing with Wizards here and powerful ones. "I'm willing to bet that we're not fighting any sort of creature. I think our enemy is going to be some sort of wizard. I know not of any beast that could cause an effect like this. The only question is, whether we're dealing with outsiders, another tribe or defectors from Moka's clan. None of these would surprise me. However Charlotte raises a good point. I'm not sure what we'll find out in the wilderness here. So far the indigenous life hasn't seemed at all bred to hunting us, or the villagers. But that's all we've seen and now we're deeper in. Be very, very careful." Alessia frowned at the fairy that had flown straight into her. She almost swatted it away, but by the time she did it had flown off and started dinging at the Nutcracker, for lack of any other way of expressing it. It sounded just like a series of tingling bells and whistles. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before. Meanwhile the Nutcracker dealt with that, she looked around the snow coated ground they had arrived at. It was beautiful here, that was for sure. Thea was building a snowman and talking to Sara. Everything looked relatively peaceful. And then Clara said something about dancing. I've never danced before. What am I supposed to do here...? Um, well. I guess I need to dance don't I? I wish I'd actually done something instead of just standing here obliquely because my RPer was away. I've missed out on some fun things. Tentatively, Alessia started to dance. She wasn't really sure how to do it, she just did. It started with just a couple of poorly balanced steps to start. She looked around at everyone awkwardly. Some people were clearly having some difficulty. Thea wasn't. She was fearlessly throwing herself into it. She looked like she was having fun, kicking up a bit of snow and giggling as she went. Well, if she can have fun with it, so can I! She began to step more confidently, in time to a rhythm she'd built up in her head. With each step she grew bolder and even added a little twirl into her dance. She smiled a little as she tried. "Wow, this is actually fun." She said to herself, spinning again.
"Jorso you never told me that the Goddess was so young." Lelinde commented. Jorso looked around at her with his arms folded. He shook his head. "Do you ever shut up?" Jorso asked disapprovingly. She laughed, her voice musical. He hated to admit he actually liked the sound of her voice. It came with her species. Everybody thought Lelinde was beautiful and that her voice was so beautiful and everything. Little did they understand how obtuse and frustrating she could be. He looked around at everyone in the room. They were a varied assortment of people, but who caught his eye was the girl in the wheelchair and the tiny man wearing green that accompanied her. An odd partnership, to say the least. "It appears our Goddess is blind too." The succubus observed. He sighed again, deciding not to actually acknowledge her at this point. His partner was right however. The Goddess did appear to be blind, the way she was trying to make her way across the room. Jorso moved out of the way, accidentally pushing against someone in the process. Not that it mattered of course- The Goddess took priority. As the Goddess opened the secret door at the side of the room, he considered a problem. How were they all going to fit down the passage, particularly the crippled girl in the wheelchair. They were going to need to go in some sort of formation. The problem was, she wasn't exactly convenient wherever they put her. At the front she blocked their way through, at the back she could be attacked far more easily and in the middle she got in everyone's way. Great. At least the Goddess can walk even though she's blind. That's more than that girl can say. What's the best way of handling this? The middle. Divide the group mostly in front with a few at the back. "Most of us should go through first." Jorso said. "Then the girl in the wheelchair and then the last couple of people to protect her back." Jorso followed immediately behind the Goddess. "If trouble comes, stand behind me." He said. Lelinde "oohed". "My my Jorso, you're being rather authoritative aren't you?" She teased. He sighed for the umpteenth time that day. Jin looked at the soaked Travis with something approaching happiness. He didn't drown! Turns out, people could in fact swim. He wondered when the Dragon would come down to see how its friend was doing. "Um, we're... We're... Um, Lan? What were we doing again?" Jin asked. He really had forgotten. It was hard to remember all of these things. There was too much to remember in life sometimes. The Shark made a groaning noise, as if it was thoroughly frustrated with Jin'rael. "We're hunting Jin." Lan'do reminded him. "We're out on a hunting trip and coming to the nearest town to sell what we've caught." "Oh, yeah right. That's right thanks Lan." Jin said. "So we're hunting. And we've got deers and other stuff. We've made them into meat and skins and stuff already, just need to sell it all off now. Look at Lan, it's all on his back." Jin pointed at the pack on the Shark's back. There were numerous bits of meat finely cut and various pelts and skins on a large leather backpack and tied to it. It looked rather heavy. "I'm Jin'rael Kan'do, hunter and apparently the town, no wait, country idiot. So who're you? What do you do for a job?" He gave Travis a jovial wave. "You're never going to make any friends like this. You're not talking like a normal elf at all." Lan sighed.
"There's nothing else I want to ask you my lord. With your permission, I shall withdraw." Kyle turned around and began to walk out the door, He was smiling. I've done it. I've been accepted. There's no secrets of mine between he and I and that means I'm safe. My family is safe. I'm all clear. And in a far better position than I ever thought I'd be in. I'd best make the most of this. First things first, the dining hall. Maybe there'll be some people in there that I can get to know a bit. That would be nice. He took one last look around at his employer before he left the room. Placing his hand on the doorway, he spoke a final time. "Again, thank you. You've done so much for me and my family. If there's anything I can do to repay the debt I owe you, tell me." With that, he walked down the stairs of the tower carefully, trying not to fall down and break his neck on his first day at the job. He was in a good position and dying would certainly ruin everything he had managed to accomplish. Kyle entered the dining hall. There were a few of Lord Bertram's various servants and soldiers in here, off duty and probably hungry. He sat down with them and introduced himself as he ate, trying to establish himself within the House walls. They seemed friendly enough and they didn't get on too badly. Once Kyle had finished his food, he got up and found someone to lead him to his room. He took two steps into the room, made a beeline for the bed and was sleep within moments of hitting the covers, the day's excitement finally having caught up with him. "Damn it why did we let him go?" Kari exclaimed as Precious was simply allowed to just walk out with someone claiming to be the resistance leader. She scowled, watching the door he had left from and looked at the two fighters in the room. Who the hell are these two anyway? Why were they having a fight with that creep? She strode over to the pair and put her axe on her back and her left hand on her hip. "What's the deal with you two then? Any particular reason you're scrapping with one of his majesty's royal dickheads or do you just like fighting people?" She made herself appear as tough as possible to the two of them. Sure she was young but she was as good as they were despite her age. That said, the hooded girl didn't look any older than her. If anything, maybe a bit younger. What was she doing then, trying to impress the blond guy? Maybe. She wasn't going to have him assume he was less than her just because of her age. Besides, she might well be older than the other girl. She could handle herself. She'd killed men before. Bastards like that guy they were just fighting. What was his problem anyway? "I have no doubt that in such an instance, my father Eric Lelande will not fail to take part in such a conflict and try to take his own control over the realm using his political connections and perhaps more importantly, our sizeable army available to the house. Considering this will be the attitude of many a noble house I would not be at all surprised to observe this tear apart our infrastructure and cause an almost total recreation and refurbishment of our present holdings by method of rebuilding that which was burned down during the systemic infighting that invariably occurs, much to the lamentation of all parties involved." "Most excellent. I shall look forward to seeing what you and I may achieve together." Osric smiled. This was power. Swearing someone to your service, the ability to command that much authority. That was what he lived for. Control. Control in all matters, that was of the utmost importance. Now he had control of another pawn. It was time to see what this pawn could do of course. There was a chance his magic might have it's own uses, not to mention any other talents he may have neglected to mention. "Now then, master bard, you are a man of skills. You have your music, which is most excellent. I'm more interested to hear about your magic. What can you do with it exactly, and have you any other skills? Perhaps you are skilled with a weapon of some variety? I would be most interested to hear. And perhaps you can tell me what it is you seek. House Lelande is powerful and we have connections in all corners of the land- Perhaps we may be able to offer you some assistance in this search of yours. I believe in paying back services rendered you see."
Dale listened to them talking. They all seemed keen to get outside and find Cal... Which would be troublesome that was for sure however it made sense. They didn't actually know where she was. Therefore, they needed to find her before something bad happened. Anything could happen to her- Anything. Especially since she had flown off in the direction of the mountain and the light, she could be in danger. Besides, the villagers wouldn't be too much of a problem to deal with. They could get past them with minimal difficulty. Dale sighed. It looked like he was being pulled into this venture regardless of whether he wanted to or not. Unfortunately, they were making sense and he had a feeling that he may have difficulty stopping them if he tried. At least, peacefully. S-Class mission Dale. I need to work with them. "Then I suppose we shall try and find her." Dale decided. He stood up and opened the tent flap. "This mission is too potentially dangerous to leave a teammate lying around somewhere injured. Besides, she might be at risk of getting hit by this curse they speak of, so we'd better find her quickly just in case." "It's fine Jack. I doubt it made any difference. No matter what, we'd have been here." Alessia said. She then turned away. She almost interfered with the conflict to try and get Mizuki to calm down. However, not only did an owl do that but also Thea. The woman looked... Strange. She didn't know what look she had on her face, but it was something nearing confusion she thought. Since that was being dealt with, she began to pay more attention to the Nutcracker and their task to find... Some sort of Sugar Plum Princess...? She didn't know what a Sugar Plum was, let alone why it would have a Princess but it certainly didn't sound like any sort of person she'd ever heard of. It sounded like some strange sort of food to her. "I'm Alessia. Do you have a name, Nutcracker?" She asked. Then she remembered something. Oh goodness I dropped him! "And I am so sorry I dropped you earlier. I hope your arm is okay."
