Enzius looked over and nearly fell off the fence. He was looking at could very well be a demon himself. After quickly recovering from his shock, he replied to the....creature. "So, oppress them into obeying." Enzius wasn't sure how he felt about that. He couldn't help but recall an old Snow Elf legend, The tale of King Oroyzo. Long Ago, the Frozen Plains was a land of Cherry Blossoms, Lush green mountains and warm beaches. The elves of the land back then were tan and happy, fruit and vegetables growing plentiful and the animals peacefully living in the countryside. Ruling over all this was the gentle King Oroz. For many happy years, he had ruled over this land and her people. But one day, the gentle king died under mysterious circumstances. However gentle, Oroz was getting up in the years, so most chalked it up to natural causes. Soon after, his son, Oroyzo, took the the throne. King Oroyzo was much crueler than his father, enslaving his people and the stealing citizens from neighboring kingdoms to construct giant monuments and statues of himself. Those who escaped slavery were hunted down and forced to join the military or executed. This tyrannical reign happened for 8 long years and King Oroyzo being a devious and deceitful being, was able to keep any of the other kingdoms from discovering his actions.

But one day, an elf emerged with the power of Ice. He fought his way to the Capital City and challenged Oroyzo to a duel of power. The two battled with Ice and Fire in a 3 day long ordeal that destroyed half of the capital city. Eventually, they ended up back in the palace. Knowing he would die from exhaustion before he defeated the king, the elf used the last bit of his power to unleash to largest blizzard the world has ever seen, killing himself and the king in the process. While the elf knew it would bring hard living for his kinsmen, he had faith they would adapt and survive.

To this day, it is argued whether this legend has any fact by Snow Elf scholars. Indeed, there are rumors of statues of King Oroyzo deep in the wilderness and speculation onto some of the ancient writing in the palace of Frostbite, the Frozen Plains largest city. Regardless of whether it happened or not, Enzius always loved the story and admired the elf's sacrifice so an evil could be destroyed. "It just seems that if you force creatures into obedience, they will eventually rise up." Enzius finished, watching the demons pull the carousel around.

A nervous look crossed the guardsman's face once Ovak spoke, concern evident. "Sir..." He started, but before he knew it, something was... given to him. A sort of coin, by the looks. Along with a short bi of instruction. "When this is dealt with, Sir." He said, turning towards the woman when she started... Well, telling them of her complaints. She just had to say it in an insulting manner, however. His expression hardened as he stared at her, leaning slightly over the woman. Yes, that event. He'd read the reports, and the woman responsible was indeed a reckless fool, if it was to be believed. However, simply acquiescing to her was a mistake.

"It is common knowledge that Djarken lands are plagued by banditry. Would it really be so difficult to believe that some local bandits had killed the prior guards and were impersonating them? Regardless, it was discovered that said guards had been enthralled by local bandits with a vampire among them anyway, and our team ended that threat for you easily. as for their bodies, they probably disintegrated thanks to their status as ghouls once engaged. As for the prior collateral damage... the woman responsible is a reckless fool, and shall be punished accordingly. Additionally, we will rebuild the bridge ourselves. However, that is our responsibility, not Djarkel's. You hold no power here, and I will not sit idly by while you insult our organization." He narrowed his eye, brushing away some servant that was bothering him. "Now, either you direct your grievances to either Lucilia or the headmaster, or I toss you out myself. Understand?"

Keri Wolf

Keri chucked as she watched people flew out of Satori's way. This was a sight she had missed from their childhood. Pride filled as her while the enchanting scene played out before her. Yet as soon as Satori stopped moving a sense of regret replaced her sudden pride. It had been years since they had any sort of contact. One of the most darkened events in her life was saying goodbye to Satori as she walked away from their hometown. On that day they had promised to keep in contact with each other. In reality it was nothing more then an empty promise after the slaughter.

Keri suddenly felt a calming presence inside her mind. At first she was alarmed. As she glanced up to her most dearest friend her alarmed feeling slowly drifted away. Keri in return intently stared as Satori's faced changed expressions. Her face became paler as her worst fear became true. Every villager would warn their children never to go out at night for there were things outside which craved human blood.Now remember my children never go outside in the dark for vampires live there.A lore which was told in vein in her case.

Her mind snapped back to the present as Satori embraced her in a strong hug. She turned her head in a tilted manner as her old friend looked at her. Keri noted that there were some changes in Satori. She was pale, just as the girl next to her. A sigh was exhaled as realization hit. No longer human, just undead as long as she consumes a living person's blood. Thankfully her love for animals seemed to have stayed. Keri intently focused as her old friend talked to her student. It was good to watch her be able to interact with others now. As her eyes followed Satori mounting the bear once more and patting behind for Keri to sit, frustration started to boil inside her.

"Satori why don't you stop all this nonsense. I'm not in the mood to be alone with you right now. Ssarak if you want you can stay. This goes for you too Colette. You could have just asked me. Have I not been nothing but honest with you for years? Yes, I never kept my promise. Before you ask yes I'm still aiming to put my family's killer in the ground. Anything else?"She stated in a sudden agitation.

Lyn

Lyn felt worry grip her heart when the Wood Elf looked down. Her eyes shifted from Lyn’s outreached hand to the snow elf, her lips locked in a scowl, then casually looked away. She turned her nose up at them both while she returned to watch for signs the line was diminishing, her foot tapping the whole time. When it had started to move, her eyes widened at the sight of the demons replacing the horse and seemed to think better of it before walking off elsewhere. It was obvious the Wood Elf hadn’t want anything to do with the child or the newcomer-or the carousel now- causing Lyn to lower her hand. Her face fell into disappointment though she tried, miserably, to hide it.

She bit her lip, wondering if she had done something wrong.

Any more thoughts were casted away when Meirin gripped Lyn’s small hand. The child looked up and smiled, her fingers reflexively tightened and her feet started to move, following close behind. The crowd seemed to have thinned since her uncle summoned the demons as many others started to shift uncomfortable from the attraction. This gave Lyn a good look at it and fear edged into surface. Not because she didn’t trust Tyrael’s demons, but rather she spotted children, alone, getting off quickly. The idea of riding by herself wasn’t a comforting one in her mind.Her body immediately pushed against the red haired woman, fearful the woman would up leaving her behind and vanish if she released her hold.

When they walked up the wooden steps she heard Meirin speak which made her fear dissolve a bit. Her mouth opened to speak softly through she still could only manage sounds. “Tee-thh-hh…”

She gave up after a moment of two of trying. Giving Meirin a sheepish, defeated look, she spoke through the rune. ’Thank you. And I tried to say it, but... ‘

A little sigh came from her as she looked at the horse, and climbed up. When finally seated, she held onto the pole sticking out of the beast’s back while she waited. The moment it started she would squeal in surprise, her body shifted with the movement, and then start to giggle at the sensation. It would last a bit before the staff began to shout for the riders to get off. Through she enjoyed it, Lyn knew there was still the petting zoo to experience and her curiosity was peaked by Meirin’s description.

Mar

Mar’s eyebrow arched in confusion as she spotted the girl standing outside her den, holding a tray. It was filled with sugared fruits, a salad, bread, cheese and not a single trace of meat on it. It was obvious a mistake. The was easily to recognize with the crown upon her head, the jewels glinting and shimmering in the twilight red. She had seen Summer, as she learned her name from Lyn, was among one of her daughter’s playmates.

”With the opening feast being underway, it's expected. Mar said, her eyes fixed in uncertainty one the platter.

Slowly the Naga’s hand pushed the door open and she slithered back. Her figure slithered back enough to allow the human in. The den entrance lead to a stairwell that lowered the smoothed out dirt floor, making anyone above six foot have to slouch downward to crawl through and reach to larger main room. There was the normal settings from a desk and chair to their bed, clearly left unmade during their morning romp. Beside the bed was a table, small and very elegantly carved from the college, which Mar pointed to.

”Put it there,”Mar stated the. Recalled something Athalus said and added with a slight struggle,”...please.”

After a few moments, the Naga twisted upon her snake like tail and commented. ”I don't think that's my order. Mainly as there's no raw or cooked meat whatsoever. However taking it back is pointless and I'm sure you've not eaten.”

Mar inhaled and continued. “You are one of my daughter’s playmates, Summer?”

Tyrael Marchosias

Sighing, Tyrael wasn't really in the mood to debate the morality of enslaving demons. But Tyrael was in a good mood, so perhaps he could actually explain what he meant to the snow elf. As Lyn and Meirin got themselves settled down, Tyrael decided to give a little lecture. "Demons will betray you. That is an inevitable. A deal, a promise, is just a ruse to make them trustworthy. What you need when dealing with demons is certainty. The ability to make the demon know that when betrays you, that you will bring it great suffering. Thus it should postpone its betrayal for as long as possible." Soon, after people started to gather their courage to take part of the carousel ride, it was time to get the ride started. Tyrael commanded his demons to move, and they did so with no arguments.

"The basic concept is mutually ensured destruction. Never assumed that a demon, whether it is an imp or an archdemon, is not capable of bringing your end. If you wish to control weaker demons, ensure a fate worse than death if they defy you. For stronger demons, promise ruin if they refuse you. If you cannot back up these claims, then your fate is your own fault. Of course, you can always try to make deals with demons for their power... But if you lack the power to enforce those deals, do not expect the demon to uphold their side of the bargain. Pray that when you deal with demons, they have the intelligence of fools or animals. At least they can be coerced by violence. Cunning demons will burden that abuse until they find your weakness. Powerful ones will earn your trust." That was Tyrael's philosophy towards demon ownership. Hardly a friendly relationship, but after many attempts at "Diplomacy", Tyrael simply found it easier to use the same pain and suffering he's gone through against the very creatures who inflict it on him. It was the reason for his success, and will likely be the reason for his eventual downfall.

Ten minutes passed, and the ride was over. Lyn seemed quite pleased at the carousel, which pleased Tyrael. He immediately dismissed his demons and they returned to the Inferno whence they came. The Fallen Orc tipped the carousel workers with an actual bag of coin before going to retrieve Lyn. "Did you have fun, Lyn?" As if he wasn't a towering hulking demon, Tyrael lifted Lyn off the ground and allowed her to rest on his shoulders once more, standing above all. It was only then did Tyrael also notice Satori, but figured she had her own reasons to be at the carnival. "Where do you want to go to next?"

Satori

Satori had hoped to distract Keri from her harsh memories and bring her somewhere where she could express her feelings without making a scene. But it seemed that her feelings for revenge were far greater then any other emotions she could have been feeling. Satori didn't need to use magic to know that Keri was angry. She didn't want her friend to be angry, but at the same time Satori cannot back down. She had to confront her friend and be level with her. So Satori dismounted once more, turning towards the bear and telling him to return to the dinning hall. The bear grunted and walked away as Satori walked back towards Keri.

"I understand Keri. I'll speak plainly: you're becoming a vampire. But you're still turning. You've been hurt badly, and I want to help you. Please... Let's go and make sure you're alright. Then we can talk about finding who did this to you."

Keri wished that she could take back the words at once after they snaked out of her mouth. It wasn't really out of anger which caused her to act that way, well not entirely anyway. Yes it was indeed becoming an uncontrollable amount. Keri knew her attempts of keeping it under control were proving difficult. Thankfully she would be able to unleash that fury to the one that had cause this grief in the first place.

She closely watched Satori as her old friend turned her attention back towards the bear. Keri eyes shifted towards Ssarak, as if she was about to ask something. The bear towards Satori's direction causing Keri's eyes to shift back. She intently focused on the cobblestone as her friend's footsteps drew closer. As Satori stopped in front of her once more causing her to look into her friend's face again.

As Satori laid out that she was starting to become a vampire, Keri lifted her bitten hand. A filthy piece cloth laid somewhat loosely upon the wound. She carefully started to examine her arm only now to notice filth on unnoticed claw marks. Her face paled as fear replaced the tightly held hope. She felt her knees lock in place then turned to jello. Air seemed in Keri's mind thinner forcing her to take shallower breaths.

" What do you mean by turning into a vampire. That's impossible Satori." Keri whispered, begging almost, as gravity forced her to fall hard on her knees.

Leith was slightly surprised when Annabeth grabbed him by the hand and started to pull him along in her search for Khan. She didn't seem to have any misgivings about the gauntlet. It was nice that she didn't. Not many people can ignore the gauntlet.

'And It'd make it so easy to crush her hand. All you'd need to do is grab her hand and squeeze.'

Leith stiffened when the words were spoken into his mind. He was told that if he kept the gauntlet after it fused to his hand, at some time it would start talking to him. The same went for any of the Daemon Artes. The gauntlet had started talking to him during his mission in his fight against his doppleganger. After the fight, it had remained silent, but now it seemed that it had started talking again. Leith frowned. This wasn't a good sign.

With a start, he realized that had stopped walking, and in essence, stopped himself from being pulled along by Annabeth. He had to think quickly as to a reason why he had stopped. Then it occurred to him.

”Sorry. I just remembered where Khan might be. I saw him and Uicle having what looked like an argument in the Dining Hall. They both left and were heading in the same direction. They might be in either one of their offices."

Mar's anxiety tossed and rolled within her middle. With the passing time, her insides were slowly blacken by worry. The sensation filled her core as it spread inch by inch, her control barely enough to prevent it from seeping to the surface in the form of gestures and twitches. With each pang of worry, her eyes renewed her search for any danger signs causing her awareness of her anxiety to grow. Her heart pounded within her ears, threatening to drown her hearing's usefulness, and feed the dark dread in her heart before she squeezed down upon it.

She inhaled then exhaled, letting out the stress with the breath. Now wasn't the time to get worked over, her mind returning to the task at hand. From the corner of her eyes, movement caught her attention and her head whipped over to study the source: Althalus. She had caught him gazing upon her with a smirk crossing his handsome lips as his chin rested on his palm, golden eyes like their daughter's absorbing her image no doubt.

After a few moments Mar's eyebrow arched in demand at what he was staring at. Her eyes hardened and jawline tensed, her annoyance at him obviously ignoring the situation's importance causing her to sigh then speak. “What are you looking at Althalus? Shouldn't you be more concerned about wounding a few rabbits instead of staring at me?”

Some of the other students were in the woods, flushing out the prey animals to where Athalus and herself was and this gave them the responsibility to filter out which would be best suited for Lyn. Several smaller mammals, namely fleet footed rabbits, squirrels, birds, and smaller mammals darted past to the meadow beyond the pair. Their small figures quickly vanished into the overgrowth and into her daughter's direction where Lyn could hunt them for the afternoon meal. Most the animals would be too fast until either Althalus or herself wounded them, but their main objective was prevent any mammal too large for Lyn from entering the protective area.

Though she had made a valid point and was waiting for an answer, she knew exactly what he was eyeing up.

His sight roaming her current outfit, lingering on one of his tunic she was wearing. The waistline trimmed higher on her waist and sleeves cut shorter, her neckline folded into a v which revealed the curve of her breasts to the unimaginative eye. She held the mostly masculine frame in her torso thanks to the original shape of his shirt but she knew, in his opinion, it was much more flirting on her than him. The last accessory was on her waist where a belt filled by numerous pockets hugged her middle. There was mainly a basic first aid kit, created by Sam, the college healer, in preparation for her daughter's first hunt. Each balm, ointment, salve, and herb she was fully informed of its purpose and wound it treated. In addition there was bandages and stitches for more serious injuries, a matter that made Mar's spine shiver in concern. The notion of her daughter getting hurt both worried and angered her causing her tail to twitch in irritation, her mind considering such a thing was possible was enough to stress her.

Her mind, while waiting on Althalus' reply, wondered to the plan for Lyn's first hunt. Althalus had been generous enough to ask for assistance from selected students who would flush out suitable prey and chase away the more dangerous types. This way, her daughter was still required to hunt the prey but minimized the risk she had to take. If it wasn't for Mar's own experiences with the wildlife, the Naga would've preferred to have done this task alone. However, pride took backseat to her daughter's safety in the end.

Usually this was an important milestone in a Naga's life and done solely by the mother. Her job was to wound and chase suitable prey, allowing her children to experience a slower version of the hunt and thrill of killing their own food. As time went on, their hunting talents would improve enough that a mother's instinct would believe them ready to be left on their own. In the back of Mar's mind there was a fear the time when Lyn no longer needed her was drawing to a close, a fact she wondered if she would be able to officially let go. Would she want to? That was the primary question that shadowed her very mind and seemed to violate her traditional sense as well as her Naga pride.

Any further discussion was prevented when something stepped on branch and made a loud crack to her left.

Immediately her head whipped about to spot a large, moose like deer gracefully edging into view. Its spindling and thick legs navigated the pale tree trunks as their outspread leafless limbs briefly scratched the night colored flank causing it to shudder at the touch. The beast snorted creating mist to flutter from its flaring nostrils. Its antlers, wide and spreading from either side of the male's head, were curved upward and looked able to rip flesh into ribbons at a little application of pressure. If that wasn't dangerous enough, there was also its size. The animal reached about double the size of any war horse Mar had seen on the feast's opening day, either of Djarkel or Eania breed, and about as monstrous in appearance. Both features would easily damage Lyn if she tried to hunt it and filled Mar's mind with fear for her daughter's life.

Impulsively, Mar's fangs flashed, her voice letting out a warning hiss. Her fingers wrapped about the cannibal's femur bone, a souvenir from her last mission, as the her joints whitened from the stress. Mar's venomous eyes narrowed on the target and darkened. “Althalus, we have unwanted company...”



Meanwhile, within the meadow not far from the others, stood Lyn within the gray grasses of a meadow. Her figure had changed over the few months since spring and no longer was she the thin, fragile looking child of six years. Now there was the slight hints where maturity was blooming into the young girl's image, her chest developing subtle mounds on her chest to her widening hips, and visibly showed she had started to edge into fourteen. Her hair, golden brown like her mother's, reached her shoulder blades and was roped up into a braid in order to keep it out of her sight. Thin limbs had thicken a bit into developing muscles thanks to training between Alaira, her mother, and even her father. Sadly, Lyn suspected her father was often holding back on some of it which annoyed her inside.

Nervousness spread through her causing her hand to pick at her chosen outfit lightly. Her top consisted of a white, sleeveless and embroidered tunic with a low cut about the waist. It was a top her father hadn't been enthusiastic to see her wearing in public, giving into letting her only when her mother had pointed out it was more mobile than her father's standby. In addition to the unusual tunic, her wrists had braces where two daggers were strapped on the underside and able to be withdrawn to be thrown. On her waist was a belt filled by a small first aid kit and several small daggers like the ones in her bracers. Her legs were covered by skin tight deer buck breeches and tucked into her hide boots, thick cords tied about the calves. About her neck was the Rune Leith had given her for a gift, though she hadn't slouched in her efforts to speak. Her vocabulary had increased bit by bit but she stuttered often.

Movement out of her peripheral vision interrupted her thoughts caused Lyn's hand to jerk up to her bracer. Her finger tips brushed the handle of a hidden dagger, the hard iron cold against her warm touch. Her aim was as sharp as her blade thanks to all the practice between classes. In addition, she could easily tap into her Herbamancy since she had been working with Lucilia (with supervision) over improving her skills in that area. Sadly, it was still at the novice level but finding her prey would be easy. She hadn’t managed to spot any wounded ones, at least for now. It was what she was waiting for was more animals to flood into her little area, her eyes flickering between each moving shape trying to spot that hint of red.

“C-c-come on,” She muttered softly to herself.

Alaira stood out in the fields alongside Lyn, eyeing the forests and hills for any sort of predator. The past few months had been... pretty easy on her, all things considered. She had steadily managed to beat back a fair bit of her depression, though she had been chewed out by the headmaster over certain complications, and had nearly smacked a guard when she learned that he basically made sure her sentence was worsened... if not on purpose. Part of it may have been Lyn. She'd been worried that Lyn was distancing herself from her, but after a few days she'd found that she was just stressed out and worried, thanks to that Rune she'd been given. She'd have to thank Leith for that personally at some point.

She had been doing most of Lyn's combat training herself, Athalus mostly teaching her certain tricks of his trade and Mar imparting her own experience and wisdom. Though it was by Alaira's hand that she'd learn how to survive a straight up fight, and even prosper. She had been specializing mostly in lessons with heavier weapons now that she was physically older, to build strength first. Apart from that, she'd learn to account for the heavier weight and more ponderous nature of the things, rather than relying on simpler, quicker weapons. She'd hoped that would make her more skilled as well. Today, however, she'd urged the girl to go with a lighter set of weaponry anyway: warhammers and such weren't great for hunting. She would have had her take a bow, but she hadn't been able to teach her archery yet.

She had initially been against this whole thing: She believed that it would be a bit too... easy. weeding out all the predators to let her have at the prey with impunity? HER master just tossed her outside with a stick and told her to come back with a boar... Not that she would do that to Lyn. However, Athalus was insistent... So, she thought of this more as a vacation than a learning experience. She could fight some bigger monsters, as well as spend time with Lyn. A win-win, as far as she was concerned.

She looked down to Lyn (far less than she used to have to), noting her nervousness. She pat her on the shoulder, smiling warmly. "There's nothing to worry about, Lyn." She said quietly, her tone far more gentle than it usually was. "Just remember everything we've taught ya, and you'll have a nice meal or two and maybe a rug." She said, her usual prideful smirk crossing her face as she rested the greatsword she'd brought on her shoulder. She had a shortbow as well, along with a quiver at her her hip with about fifteen arrows. As far as armor was concerned, leather was all she really needed.

Annabeth Gulch

Galloping through the forest, Annabeth and Samson were on the look out for predators. In Annabeth's hand was a long boar spear, meant to allow her to prod or impale her prey as she rode by them. She actually hasn't hurt anything with the weapon however, as her mere presence was usually enough to scare off smaller creatures. She also carried her bow and arrows in a specialized horse-quiver, allowing Annabeth to quickly grab and draw her arrows with ease. And while she was here to help Lyn hunt, Annabeth still came with her light leather armor, buckler, and longsword. The college was a relatively safe area, beasts aside, but it was also a place where strange happenings occur far too often. While she's only heard rumors, apparently it wasn't usual for a necromancer's experiment with their first undead turn into a small zombie horde. Or for demons to have crept in from the north, looking to swipe some students from the college. And while Annabeth was certain that Lyn's hunt will go without a hitch, luck always favored the prepared.

As for why Annabeth was here, she had been asked by Athalus to help Lyn with her first hunt. Adoring the child herself, Annabeth was willing to make time to come out. She was doing fairly well for herself in her classes and had already reached Intermediate level with Psychomancy. Annabeth herself was specializing in doppelgangers, using it to maximize her efficiency in classes and work. She's gotten to the point where she could make a doppelganger last for a whole hour, just long enough to stand in for her during one of Satori's classes (Assuming that they aren't also going to do any spell practices that hour). Annabeth has also been able to use telepathy for basic communication, even able to commune with animals and the rare few demons she comes across.

She's been especially using it to train Samson; as Annabeth didn't have her own horse, she's grown fond of the draft horse. While it was no war horse, Samson was strong and durable, capable of carrying Annabeth far and fairly fast. What he lacked in agility he made up for in endurance, which was helpful for these hunts. While rabbits and foxes may be able to outrun Samson, they simply didn't have the energy to keep going, while he was barely winded. Annabeth encouraged him with kind words, both vocal and mental, as well as the occasional treat. Samson wasn't the most intelligent horse (Most animals aren't), but he understood Annabeth well enough. Since then, Annabeth has trained Samson well, to the point where Samson will come to Annabeth with a specific whistle and is willing to run various obstacles for her.

Pathokinesis is one of the only spells Annabeth has some hard time working with. She understood how emotions played into a Psychomancer's ability to cast and use spells, but as it turns out it was hard to just have one emotion working at the time. Whenever she would try to feel angry, a certain amount of ecstasy forms, creating happiness. Fear often turned into Anticipation, which messed up how Annabeth creates her willpower and how other pathokinesis spells effects her (Typically they do, even past her wards). The only Pathokinesis spell she's been able to use correctly regularly is the basic calming one, typically on animals or herself. Especially useful for the hunt as it allows her to get close to animals and wound them, though she only saved it for the likes of deer and such. Smaller creatures, like weasels or racoon, Annabeth felt it wasn't necessary to waste magic on.

From what Annabeth learned from Satori (Who keeps track of wild animal movements through the college), it was deer season. And with deer came the wolves, as well as some other animalistic monsters. Annabeth had ran into a few wolf packs before, using cheap magic tricks to dazzle and scare them off. It was quite easy and hardly taxing for her to make everything appear to be on fire, and if she had a burning stick she can even mix the smell of smoke in order to trick the wolves into there really was a forest fire. And thanks to Samson Annabeth can chase these animals off far and wide, returning to Lyn's hunting grounds quickly.

After chasing off another pack of wolves Annabeth returned to the hunting grounds. She could see that Alaria was with Lyn, so Annabeth didn't worry about Lyn being in any trouble. Some of the other helpers should be corralling some prey to Lyn, so Annabeth wondered if she should stay or help them. They were assigned partners and Annabeth chose Alaira, simply because the Eania girl knew not many people wanted to work with the temperamental elf. Her fury was well known in the college, and even Annabeth tread lightly around her. Every Psychomancer was also aware of Alaira's particular sensitivity towards Psychomancy magic, often learning it first hand as they made Alaira go into a catatonic state, shortly followed by fleeing from her blind rage. "I think Alaira is the most dangerous animal here." Mused to herself as she and Samson trotted towards the two.

"Chased off some wolves. How's the hunt so far?"

Tyrael Marchosias

Tyrael waited in the lower levels of the college, right next to a great stone gate. The entrance to the Catacombs, and the only path from that college that leads into the Ravine. The Ravine of Demons were a dangerous place, one that even challenges Tyrael from time-to-time. While he has lived much of his life in that hellish place, he was far from a master of that domain. No one truly masters the Ravine of Demon, merely survives it's tests. A location in the physical realm where the veil was weakest, where even demons can spawn in and wreck havoc. The beasts in the Ravine were unlike any creature on the surface; blood-thirsty monsters who hunt not for survival, but for violence. Even the most benign creatures in the ravine were a threat to their enemies, and wanted nothing to do with anyone. The Ravine was a literally Hell in Tiien, and any life condemned to it was almost guaranteed to be a short one.

But for all it's troubles, there is bounties in the Ravine. Rare and powerful materials for magical rituals or equipment. Lost artifacts of the world long ago. For Demonomancers, a chance to meet powerful demons and contract them for their services. Or for warriors, a place to truly test their abilities against monsters mutated by evil and honed by constant warfare. As for why Tyrael was here, he was given a task by the college itself. He needed to collect rare materials to create medicine for Ovak; his health has suddenly come to a sharp decline, with Lucilia, Lidda, and Sam doing everything they can to make him better again. Only the teachers of the college knew this; while Ovak's waning health was never truly a secret, the fact that it's suddenly got much worse was kept behind closed doors. Even Tyrael was concerned, knowing that someone like the Archmage cannot simply "die" by mortal means (As far as Tyrael knows). Surely there is something much worse happening to Ovak, something that would require these rare and powerful regents.

Regardless of the reasons Tyrael was going to get them anyways. And because of the importance of this mission, Tyrael was actually willing to ask for help out of his own initiative. Though not the most social teacher, word eventually got around to the college that Tyrael was in need of some willing students to enter the Ravine of Demons with him. He made not efforts to claim that it was going to be safe; he expects danger and death, and possibly his own. However he was going to reward those who came along handsomely, offering quite a bit of wealth and even better, a personal favor from the Fallen Orc himself.

And so Tyrael waited. He had a large backpack near his feet, containing a weeks' worth of supplies for himself. It also had tools to navigate the Ravine, such as a magic compass known as the Wayfinder, a lot of rope made of steel wires, glowing soapstones, and if all else fails, a shovel/pickaxe work tool to dig himself out of the Ravine. He has done it before. He also carried a few weapons; a great bow who's arrows could pierce bedrock, a large chopping knife to cut through brushes and foes alike, and what appeared to be a giant Dragon's Tooth. Literally, it was just the tooth, not even shaped or carved into a weapon. It was still sharp enough to pierce the hide of a dragon itself, and if there's space it also functions as a heavy and nearly indestructible club. If Tyrael needed anything else he could always reach into the Inferno, but he took these weapons to have on hand.

Yawning, Tyrael honestly didn't want to do this today. Today was Lyn's first hunt, and he really wanted to be there for her. While it may be overkill to have someone like Tyrael overseeing her first hunt, he still wanted to see the little girl mature into a fine, strong woman. Which may happen sooner then Tyrael would have liked. It's hasn't even been three years, and already Lyn had the body of a young adult. Many feared that her accelerated growth will result in a shorten lifespan, much like an orcs. They did not think that she would even live to ten years old before she would accelerate to age where she would suffer health complications associated with the elderly.

But Tyrael didn't care for such thoughts. Being an orc himself, he always knew that his kind died young. If not from time, then from their actions. Tyrael only escaped due to sacrificing his soul for immortality. And that wasn't an option he was ever going to let Lyn have. No, instead of thinking about Lyn's inevitable death, Tyrael sought to enjoy every moment she was alive. One moment in particular brought a small, but happy smile to his face. It was last night in fact, where Tyrael had the pleasure of spending the day with Lyn, even getting to tuck her into bed so she can rest for her big day.

Ssarak Dyreackthanose

---

In the months following the year’s opening feast, Ssarak’s life experienced many changes, though this time, most were actually for the better. His training had brought him well into the intermediate stages of psychomancy. In addition to the normal classes, he had continued seeing Satori for private lessons to further increase his mastery of his blood. His wards had improved, his telepathy was more refined, and he had improved in the illusory tricks that could help protect him so he could work on breaking through enemy wards. The concepts of emotions and how they affected the mind were more familiar to him, which had been particularly useful in giving advice to Mar over her own struggles with emotion. He had progressed well in all of the abilities one would expect from an intermediate psychomancer, but one area in particular in which his private lessons had helped him improve was in his focused concentration. It was difficult for him to say why exactly, but the particular type of training for that aspect of his blood seemed to come more naturally to him. The concept of focusing all of his effort onto one, or a small number of tasks, of pushing himself to and beyond his limits, was something he had done for years in his physical training. To transfer those concepts to mental training was not as difficult as he had feared. In focused concentration, his abilities could be considered to be at expert level.

In his personal life, Ssarak spent as much as he could of what free time he had with Meirin. Although, considering how busy his days tended to be, that amount of time was only just at an acceptable level for him. Much of that time was during his daily exercised, which Meirin had continued to join in. Otherwise, he simply took the time to be with her when they were both available. One of the negative effects of his full schedule, however, was that he had few opportunities for earning coin. His basic needs were taken care of, but he could do little else beyond simply maintaining his present lifestyle. However, during his last mission, he had discovered a strange sword with runic markings. Upon bringing the blade to Val, she informed him that they were slots where runes could be placed, all three of which were empty. Since the sword had no other importance, he had been able to keep it, and have the runes applied. Given that he did not have the coin to otherwise upgrade his equipment, he decided to select runes that would maximize the blade’s versatility. The first two were easy for him to decide upon; they were runes which allowed him the ability to manipulate the mass of the blade, and to change its form, much like with shapeshifting in vitamancy. With that, his blade could adapt to have the properties of any melee weapon he could use, or even properties not found in standard weapons. The third, and most recent rune applied was a rune of demon bane. It had been a more difficult choice, but considering that he had accepted a mission delving into the Ravine of Demons, and the greatest enemy of the College, Kudd, had an army of demons, it seemed as if it would be a good choice. Since he now had his sword, he had been able to sell both his poleaxe, and even his dagger, to allow for the purchase of a simple metal shield. Although, it left him with little left over.

Currently, the mission upon which Ssarak was about to embark was not one he necessarily wanted to be on, but one that he felt that he needed to be on. He would have much preferred to join Meirin on Lyn’s hunt, both to help Lyn, and to spend more time with Mei. But, the importance of what they would be doing on this mission had drawn him to it. Not to mention, the wealth Tyrael was offering would give him the gold to perhaps do something he had been wanting to do for a while now. It would be dangerous, but he was as prepared as he could be.

Ssarak stood at the ready, nearby to Tyrael. He was in his armor, helmet included, with his sword sheathed at his side with a lightened weight and his shield on his back. It was not the place he would carry the shield if he wanted to use it quickly, but he did not tend to use the shield unless a great deal of protection was needed, since his armor served much the same purpose. Having both hands free allowed him more options in how he could use his blade. He had with him bags with the basic supplies the College had given him, along with items he already had, such as water containers and the blanket off of his bed.

Enzius Zarbath, Lyn's Hunt

Enzius sat in the meadow, legs crossed and eyes closed. He listened with mild interest to Mar's and Althalus's banter. He had to admit he didn't fully trust Althalus, he found the magic of Noxomancy unnatural and dangerous. The ability to control disease is like playing with the most volatile fire in Enzius's eyes. He was nice enough, Enzius supposed, but things aren't always as it seemed. Mar was a lot like Enzius in the whole, not so great at making friends. But she seemed like a good person who cared for her family, a valuable attribute in the clan. His ears twitched as he heard branches snapping with the force of some creature. His eyes opened as he saw an incredibly large creature. It was beautiful. He assumed Mar wanted him to handle it. He was on his feet, sprinting towards the creature at a high speed. Even though Lyn was growing at an incredible rate, there was no way she could take on this creature. Enzius unsheathed his sword and leaped up into the air. His agile form enabled him to leap up to 7 feet in the air from the ground. He vaulted off the tree slightly in front of the creature. Enzius swung his sword towards the beefiest part of it's right leg. A spurt of blood followed the attack. The animal made a pained sound and turned around, digging it's hooves into the dirt. The Snow Elf rolled away as the creature took off in the opposite direction. He landed neatly on his feet and watched the beast flee, away from Lyn. He sheathed his sword and walked to the middle of the meadow, sitting down again.

"Yes, yes, grab the skiffs. We will need them, I will anyways." Baulder said as he finished placing his bedding in the pack he had been given by Tyrael for the expedition. Really his bedding was just what sheets he had on his bed folded up and put in the bag with the other items he had been given. Until Tyrael had actually told him that he would need to bring things into the Ravine Baulder was ready to go with just the demon's bane weapons he had been given after completing the lobster hunt with him. It was then descibed to him in such a way that he remembered the long trek here. Though there would be less water on the way, he wondered if there would be as much food though. John had started tasting more salty and vile as of late. Though he had also changed in more than that respect.

"Gggg-yeeee-gs, grab ssss-kiff. Fill g-yesss." John Cena managed to spit out with his very crude common. John had acquired a scarily similar likeness to Baulder himself. Though he was still mostly red skinned, his feet weren't quite like his own yet, and his hair was still an odd shade of blue he had become very much like him. When E'nasha had informed him that there was only one of him Baulder became depressed whenever he contemplated the idea. This showed in his emotional interactions with John Cena, while mutilating the demon with a new found fervor he learned something in his studies with Tyrael. Imps, like John, could be molded by their summoners through time. Baulder then concluded that he could be him. If another one of him didn't just exist he could make one. While initially there was not much progress in this area after about a month the demon began changing. While before he had tried to sculpt the demon into himself, which got him more than a few wounds, he took a different approach. He kept focusing on what he wanted to the demon to do and telling it. While he never fully gave up the physical rearrangement it did fall out of practice for the most part. Teaching the demon common was one of the more interesting things however.

When he wasn't doing odd jobs for Tyrael he was reading up on how to teach a demon language. He found the best thing became to get John to mimic himself. While he wasn't sure entirely if he knew what any of the words he was saying actually meant Baulder was confident that if he kept using them he would get it eventually. But at the same time Baulder had to stop eating the demon for the most part as not only was his meat very salty his blood would actually dry out Baulder's mouth now. While Baulder was annoyed by this he guessed Khan did warn him. This had been where most of time had been spent in the last couple of months, so he did not have a terrible amount of gold but it was enough to go down to Underhaven every so often for a fresh uncooked lamb. "Yes fill the water on the way down." Baulder then turned back to the demon who was playing around with the muscles in his face. Baulder got a quick laugh out of this before saying. We will see you in the Inferno again, soon." Continuing to play with his Baulder sent the demon back to his home and turned back to his bag and picked it up and put it over his shoulders. He put his two blades at his sides in the sheaths that they came with and slid the extra demon bane knife he had been given into a sheath that was tied onto his back pack.

While on his way down to the catacombs Baulder had filled up his multiple water skiffs that he had brought with him on that trek so long ago from the college water source. He even grabbed a chunk of bread to eat on the way down. He was excited to head back into the fiery hellscape again. Now that he knew what he would be looking at he hoped Tyrael would show him the fire demon again. For some reason he had not forgot her, it was something that had been in the back of his mind for all this time. Though he just hoped his clothing did not set on fire if he met the demon again. His clothing was all made of mostly cloth but he had managed to acquire some leather bracers from a caravan that had passed through last month. He also had some leather he could wrap his feet in if the terrain became particularly bad.

When he came apon the gathered students and Tyrael outside the stone gate he quickly made a beeline for his teacher. "Master Tyrael, I have a particular question. If John Cena is killed and eaten while in the Inferno how long do I have to wait for him again? To reform I mean, I haven't gotten to do much reading about the inside of the Inferno yet."

Keri Wolf Lyn's hunt

Keri had decided to stay a vampire after the feast. This had so far proven to be a good choice except for Lucilla's hard training and Satori's paranoia. She had decided to keep her vampirism as a reminder for what had happened, mainly wanting to use this new power towards her ultimate goal. However this had caused her friend to be on constant watch. Thankfully this hunt had provided a new learning experience away from Satori's watching gaze. As much worry as her friend had displayed she decided to get a rune that allowed to call Satori when needed.

Keri moved her thoughts towards the mission ahead of her. The sleeveless shirt she wore was a faded green. She wore a her usual brown tight pants. Keri walked towards her wardrobe searching for her most prized possession. A sigh of relief passed her lips as the necklace come into view. She grabbed the necklace as she once again studied the new rune on it. Keri reminded herself to keep moving as she placed the necklace in it's rightful place. She glanced at her doorway to see if her practice bow was next to her new sword hoister. A gift from Val when Keri started working down at the forge. She grabbed her mother’s old sword, placing it inside it's new holder. She place the quiver of arrows as well as the sword on her back. The last things Keri had grabbed was the recently bought Phylactery and bag of candies before receiving any other required supplies before setting out.

---

The branch shifted underneath Keri’s feet as she moved away from the trunk. Her eyes intently focused around her for any form of movement. She allowed herself a peek towards Lyn only to see the teddy bear move in her line of sight. She stepped back in surprise only to cause herself to fall backwards. Keri unsuccessful tried to land on her feet. In the end she had landed on her back in front of E’nasha.

” Damn bear! Why did Lyn have to bring the thing anyways. Are you alright E’nasha?”She said while groaning in pain.

Colette sighed as she looked at her room. She was holding her small dagger with her. She was wearing the same dress from the feasts since she had no other clothes to wear and she hasn't had the time to make more. She packed some of the blood candies that recently finished last night into a small bag.

"Hmm I hope Mr. Tyrael doesn't mind that I am going with him" she said before leaving Hyllos following close after her. She bi her lip as he walked towards the catacombs. She knew what it was like to be in the catacombs since she went in there to train with Hyllos, and she knew that it would be a very difficult mission. She got closer to the catacomb entrance and saw Tyrael waiting there obviously thinking to himself.She walked slowly until she was standing in front of him waiting for him to acknowledged her. While she was waiting she looked at the stone hate that was entrance of where they were going into, her mind going back her first time here. She looked at Hyllos who was flying around and remembered the creatures that were wondering around the dark place. She sighed and shook her head and looked down at her dagger gripping the handle of it in a tight grip

E'nasha Williams Lyn's Hunt

Time moved on after the feast, and over two months E'nasha had gotten into a routine. Mostly she studied, and spent as much time as possible practicing using her mageblood. Unfortunately that meant she wasn't spending any time being social, which caused El'kan to sign her up to go on a mission, to force her to at least talk to someone who wasn't him.

Now she was standing in the middle of a forest, where she was apparently just supposed to help a hunt by scaring small animals to the huntress, and keep the bigger, more dangerous creatures away. She jumped back as her assigned partner, Keri, fell to the ground in front of her. She smiled and let out a small breath of laughter as she offered her hand to help Keri off the ground.

"Me? I'm fine. You're the one who just fell out of a tree." Sir flew down from his perch to land on E'nasha's shoulder as she spoke, and she pat the Raven on the head with her unoccupied hand. "I'm starting to see a lot less animals in this area. Maybe we should go deeper into the forest?"

Keri Wolf Lyn's Hunt

Keri gladly grabbed onto E’nasha’s hand with her right. A tear fell down her cheek as her family crest filled her eyes. It was a subject that Keri deem forbidden. Her friend had been trying to hear about the attack for a while now, just to be turned to a new topic instead. A quivering sigh passed her lips as she listened to wings flapping. Keri hoisted herself up to her feet without using her full strength.

Keri walked up toward the tree’s roots where her bow and quiver lay. She reached into the quiver pulling out her bag of blood candies. Keri grabbed a piece out and held it inside her other hand. Closing her other hand she grabbed the bow off the ground. Shifting it to rest on her right shoulder as she gathered the bag and quiver.

Keri walked back towards E’nasha. Once she stopped back in front of her partner she popped the item inside her mouth. Her red eyes point towards a northern direction. She started to walk first, taking the lead. After a while Keri stopped allowing E’nasha to rest. She leaned against a tree as she tried to think of how to start telling the human her history. Finally after a second or two she cleared her throat.

” Have you ever focused only on one feeling? To the point to where you're lost in it?”She said as her eyes filled with hatred.

Leith was sitting on the ground in the forest pretty far away from the meadow that Lyn was currently in, examining the first aid kit he was given for the mission. All of it was laid out neatly in front of him. It had something for quite a few minor injuries, even a couple more major ones. He frowned once he saw the sutures. He had some skill with them, but that was before he had a gauntlet fused to his hand. He still didn't have the finesse to control such small items with as much ease he had before. With a sigh, he started putting everything back into the first aid kit.

Once everything was put away, Leith stood up and stretched. The day was nice and there was plenty of moisture in the air. It was strange how easy it was that he could sense and control water he couldn't see. It was almost as if he had experience doing it. One thing he discovered that he could sense were heartbeats. He reached his hand out in front of him and a ball of water was pulled from the air and hovered above his hand. Chuckling, he dropped the ball of water and looked around for some animals that he could send in Lyn's direction.

A rustling noise coming from a nearby bush caught Leith's attention. He focused on the area of the bush and sensed a very fast-moving, rhythmic liquid, most likely blood. There was an animal there, and from the speed of heartbeat, a smaller one. He focused on the moisture in the air to a point opposite of the meadow and forced it to rattle around the bush. After he had done that, a brown rabbit came bolting out of the bush. It was not going in the direction of the meadow, though. It was running parallel to the meadow, and in the direction of Summer, a girl in his group that he had not met before. He still had to work on direction when not seeing water.

”Hey! There's a rabbit headed your way, try to push it towards the meadow!" He shouted in Summer's direction.

---

Darius had been among the first to arrive at the gates to the catacombs. He leaned against one of the walls as he waited for the others to arrive at the gates. The two that arrived after him made him scoff. A man that had a look of madness about him and hardly any armor, and a girl that looked like she wasn't out of her teens yet. He turned back to the stick he was whittling to a point and shook his head. He didn't count on them lasting long in the catacombs. As he waited, he thought about his progress in learning how to control his Aeromancy

He was finally able to control the wind without having to get angry. His anger still had control over his power, though. Whenever he'd get extremely angry he'd create small motes of air that would pop around him and make wind currents that flew around him. His ability to gain power and speed had also gotten better, and he can now do it for a longer period of time.

When Darius was done whittling his stick he dropped it and started pacing along the wall. He was starting to get tired of waiting.

Tyrael Marcrosias

Slowly, everyone began to gather. First was Darius, then Ssarak, and soon Tyrael had a small party of students gathered. He knew a few more would arrive soon, but he wasn't going to wait for them. They can catch up or go home. Grabbing his things Tyrael was about to open the doors when Baulder asked a question. Not a very important questions to Tyrael anyways, but he might as well educate the weirdo. "Not long. Once digested and secreted, your imp will resurrect and can be summoned. But that is irrelevant. We are not going to the Inferno. You will all die if that was the case." Tyrael said quite plainly. While he can use his magic to protect them from the Inferno's inherently hostile nature, there would be much bigger problems at hand if for some reason everyone was forcefully transported into the Inferno.

After answering Baulder's question Tyrael went to get the door open. The iron gate was barred closed with heavy iron-and-wood logs, which Tyrael moved without much trouble. Opening the catacomb doors the first thing that would hit everyone was the stale smell of preservatives and the faint smell of death. As the name implies, the catacombs housed much of the college's dead, be it students, teachers, or strangers who chose to be buried here rather than home or wherever. Despite their connection with death, the catacombs are generally a peaceful place, aside from the vermin and occasional walking undead. Students are allowed to use certain corpses for their magical experimentation, but only after approval of the teachers, typically Uicle since he is the Necromancy Professor. Tyrael himself has very little to do in the catacombs and rarely goes this way, but today was different. The catacombs not only housed the college's dead, but it was the only location on the college grounds were Tyrael could reliable access the Ravine. While there were plenty of locations scattered throughout the Twilight Hold, their entrances had a tendency to seal or otherwise be inaccessible. It didn't help that ever since the demon attack, Tyrael had also sealed any known entrances to prevent more demonic invasions. And to make sure Mar doesn't run away.

Although Tyrael himself has no need for it, he lit a torch for illumination. But it did not glow red like most fires, but some sort of sickly green color. Fairy Fire: as bright as a normal flame, but produces no heat, uses no air, and creates no smoke. It can even be put inside a sealed container and the flame won't go out. Handy when one needs light but doesn't want to risk burning something. The fact that they were cheap and easy to make made Fairy Fire the most common means of illumination in the college. Once Tyrael had his torch out he walked into the catacombs, informing the students of what they were here to do.

"First we go through the catacombs to reach the Ravine. There are zombies here. Weak, but sneaky. And vermin crawling about. Rats, bats, lizards. They are all diseased. Do not get bit. When we reach the Ravine Entrance, I will tell you what we need to find."

The fact that Tyrael, Overlord of the Inferno, Professor of Demonomancy, The Forge Master, needed the student's help with hunting monsters should imply just how tough some of these creatures are. But he didn't really elaborate beyond that. He'd tell them more once they actually got to the Ravine, since the catacombs will make sure to weed out any of the weaker-willed students.

Little did Tyrael know, however, was that there was more then vermin and skeletons in the catacombs. As the party traveled down further into the catacombs, Tyrael came across a disturbing sight. "Ah shite..." Quickening his pace Tyrael came across the corpse of some strange animal. It's body was torn apart, with limbs scattered about. But as Tyrael looked at the body, he realized that it was not claws and fangs that ripped the creature apart, but blades and probably tentacles. Crushed bones at the torn off limbs implied that the creature was able to wrap their tendril around the area and tear it off. The cuts on the body were too clean to be claws or teeth, and likely were a manufactured or at least carved blade of stone or bone. The blood was still wet, which meant the monster was recently killed. The fact that this creature belonged in the Ravine, instead of the catacomb, worried him.

"Change of plans. This is a ridge hound. A common pest in the Ravine. If they are here, then the entrance to the Ravine is open. Kill all the ridge hounds. They are weak, but there are many, and they breed rapidly. Destroy their eggs, leave no survivors. We will split into two teams. Ssarak you will come with me. We will head to the Ravine entrance and see what has happened. The rest of you, stay together and kill everything you come across. If other students arrive, tell them to help you eradicate the Ridge Hounds."

Not one to waste, Tyrael took out his big knife and carved out some parts from the Ridge Hounds. He took the Sulkus Gland, which he'll need in the event that there is poison at work. He also, with great care and focus, removed a thin black vein from the Ridge Hound's skull. He carefully closed the ends and put the vein into a small bag. Then he crushed the skull under his foot before taking out his great bow and moving onward.

Lira was silently wandering the open field, enjoying the grass under her toes. She had been walking for a while and had gotten use to the gentle or rapid changes depending on the terrain. She was so used to it she hadn't notice the change of hollow ground under her feet till it broke away. She screamed out as she plummeted into the unknown.When the echoed noise of the collapsed tunnel subsided did she uncurl from her ball. She inspected herself for broken bones finding only bruises on top of already sore muscles. She carefully stood back on her feet listening around hearing the whistle of the wind as it blew over the hole she had fallen into.
"Well I won't be climbing out of here any time soon" She muttered sniffed the air catching a faint coppery sent.
"Blood? Is some one hurt? Or maybe there's a copper vine down here, where ever here is exactly" She mutter placing her hand on the wall as she began to walk away from the sent and away from the hole, though soon found out that it wasn't a good idea as she felt bones of a long since dead corps.
"Okay that's just gross" She said making a ew face and wandered a bit blindly using her ears to find her way around though still manage to walk into a few walls.