"Hire someone who actually works for a living," she said, giving him an affectionate pat on the head before moving off to pick up some dishes. A shadowed passed over the window, Abby tense for a moment as a knock came on the door. Cautiously , she pulled open the door.

Standing there was a little man in a scarlet rune covered clock. "Evening m'am," He said, tipping his hat.

"Churk, Your awfully late or early," she said, looking out at the dark night.

"I know, but orders never stop," At that he held out a scroll and a heave bag that clinked as she took it.
"Only three new jobs today m'om, but they pay well," Letting out a sigh, he sat himself at the bar."A room and a meal would be highly appreciated,"





They were making progress. Despite the gnomes seeming to realize that the threat came from behind instead of just to the front, they were making progress. They, the most dysfunctional trio that Nox has every laid eyes on.

The girl with a mouth louder than anything. The strange-ass man who Nox never got the name of. And him, the one who didn't even try to kill those witches in the woods.

Slow progress, but they were still making it. Over the sounds of the gnomes, a different noise could be heard. That of other hunters, slowly making their way back as the trio made their way forward.

They might have made it all the way to their brethren, then Madeline fell. It was her shouting that drew his attention, rather than witnessing the event himself. Everything else she had said tonight was obnoxious, but the new tone in her voice lead her to be obnoxious and ...scared. She was hurt, the gnomes has slashed her across her stomach, not horribly deep, or there'd be organs, but deep enough to warrant attention.

"It's Nox," He said finally. "And I'm going to try to keep us all alive" Turning back to the gnomes, he killed one more before a single one drew his eye.

The gnome wasn't particularly remarkable, other than the fact that he was standing there, not attacking. In fact, if he could give an emotion to the gnome, it would have been...bored?

But what made the gnome most interesting is that when ever he did move, every gnome flinched. It wasn't horribly noticeably, that gnome moved his right arm and all other gnomes twitched theirs, never stopping and not noticing, but it was all too obvious when they all did it together.

He tried to make his way to the head gnome, but that was where the creatures where the thickest. Perhaps, just perhaps he might have made it to the center had he been alone, but he didn't want to separate from the other two, they would get all three of them killed.

The voices of the other hunters were louder now and he could see them through the trees. So he did the only thing he could.

"THE ONE IN THE MIDDLE, KILL THE LINCHPIN!

_{Interacting with: @Noxx @Deos Morran @13org @shagranoz @Rune_Alchemist @WeepingLiberty}


In truth Rose had beat Ceila here. But Rose often pretended to be late, when in fact, she was usually the first one on the scene. She heard Arden punishment as she ready herself to face her coven of witches.

"Rose ought to tie a bell around your ankle. It's creepy when you just pop up out of nowhere."

"I walked in...Maybe get better ears."

"Perhaps a bell would do you some good dear," Said Rose, walking into the room. Voice steady, stride confident. "A constant reminder to not fall asleep,"

She took her place next to Mirai and by default, Arden. "Most of us," she said, pointedly not looking at Ceila, "Have been working tirelessly to achieve our goal, and the day is almost done. I have one final job for all of us. There is a creature in the hall below that stalks what was once the personal chambers of supporting witches, only not leaders of their own clans because of the power that Bloodrose had. Freeing the halls of this creature will not only open up rooms for ourselves, but also lead us closer to the core of the castle. Nymphadora, you will lead this team. I apologies that I can only send Ceila and Arden with you, but I am confident that you'll be able to make them somewhat useful,"

"Miria, Jenny and I will be heading to one of the sealed doors. I don't expect it to open, but I need to know what type of magic will be needed to open it at a later date," Truthfully, she needed to know exactly what type of witch she'd need to recruit to get these doors open. There was an off chance that they three of them might be able to open the door, but she didn't know that for sure.

_{Concerning:@WeepingLiberty@shagranoz@Rune_Alchemist@Bishop@Dark Light}

---

Phoebe watched the group of Gnomes burn, their bodies turning to ash from the cleansing flame as they were powerless against Gods righteousness. She took a moment to collect herself. It wouldn't do much to the total number of them, they were popping out of the ground like weeds. Well, maybe if they had a whole squad of Inquisitors here they could do something about it but the rest of these hunters seemed completely ill equipped. Well then, the easiest way to end this was to find whoever was organizing this little attack of the gnomes.

She didn't get long to contemplate the question though. The other gnomes quickly recovered, and she had to quickly defend herself. Three knives left her body, impaling themselves in the Gnomes. One hit right on the mark, burying itself in the creatures eyes, temporarily blinding it, and the other two doing a good job of slowing three of them down. A small lull as they managed to get back to their feet from the injuries, and Phoebe became aware of someone using magic right out in the open. She didn't particularly have time to question it - it seemed as though they were not hostile for the moment so there were more pressing concerns. Phoebe would deal with that later after the immediate threat was over with.

And...were two of them...dancing? Phoebe was distracted by disbelief long enough for a gnome to get uncomfortably close. She barely avoided the creatures claws, sword impaling the creature in its chest. Gnome blood stained her armor and cloak, the vile substance not tarnishing her body thanks to her garments. They just kept coming, didn't they? There had to be something she could do. Something the rest of the hunters could do.

"THE ONE IN THE MIDDLE, KILL THE LINCHPIN!

Phoebe eyes moved towards the middle of the Gnome horde. She didn't have long to contemplate whether it would work or not, but whoever shouted seemed to at least have the right idea. She couldn't watch him for long, but there was definitely something different about the Gnome. Unfortunately, the horde of gnomes between them and it was the thickest. There was no way she was getting close enough to kill them directly, not safely at least. Good thing she didn't need too. With a little luck and help from the other hunters, this would be easy.

"You heard him hunters! The one in the middle!" She shouted, just to make sure that the rest had heard. She reached into her cloak, two firebombs in her hands. The first, was quickly tossed in a haphazard seeming fashion towards the front of the group. The second was lobbed over the horde - and with any luck, it'd fall right on the middle ones head.

@WeepingLiberty@Deos Morran@13org@Ellion@shagranoz @hunter people fighting Gnomes

---

It all had started two days ago. I was relaxing, sunk deeply into both my armchair and the novel I was reading. It wasn't a particularly good one, but sufficient enough to keep me distracted from what was going on. At first I didn't realize the small shadows moving across the grass fields in front of my house which could be seen through the small window ahead of me. I didn't hear the scratching sound starting to emanate from the other side of the wall.

Then one of these pesky creatures made the mistake to fiddle with the pile of firewood next to it. I always knew it was a precariously stacked up thing, but I'd never have imagined that its collapse would save my life by alerting me - while likely burying the perpetrator beneath itself.

A smirk whizzed across Jared's face. Moisture had condensed on the black hood protecting his head and face from the wind chill, running down in large droplets as it wasn't able to penetrate the material.

I've never seen these things before. Ugly... critters... not even reaching up to my knees, but still eager to bite. I don't know what triggered their rage. Are they new here ? Or are they distrubed by the new presences in the area ? Who knows...

By now, I don't wanna know what happened to my home. I hope it's been completely destroyed and not turned into an infested toehold for these things.

Jared shook his head. Why was he thinking about himself, why painfully repeating in mind what he had experienced in real life ? Maybe the cold had started to drive him dizzy or even mad. Maybe it was the fact that he has been fleeing for two days with hardly eating or drinking anything.

He could see lights in the distance, smell the smoke of burning firewood. Seren's Folley was near and this was a good thing - the horse beneath him seemed to be rather close to collapsing. Who could blame it for this when there had been so little rest while the man riding it was almost scratching the ground with his feet ?

He had been looking forward to just slump onto the very first seat encountered behind the tavern's door. Rumors had it that the Witches' Paradise was a warm place worth the money, but more importantly it also provided rooms which could be rented. Effectively being homeless he'd need such a thing.

Yet Jared's expectations were to meet bitter disappointment. The dark crowd covering the ground, seen from the distance, appeared like a wicked carpet with it's individual knots moving relative to each other while the piece as a whole was traversing on the mud. The sound of fierce fighting could be heard, blood could be smelled - and given what happened Jared was all to eager to join the mess.

The man dismounted in a safe distance and started to run. There was no grinding sound of a sharp blade being pulled out of its sheath. The two black staffs detached from the leather straps holding them onto Jared's back without noise. He had never been subjected to anything close to a special hunter's combat guide, but he had seen his father fighting with these things. If something looked as if it could have a neck, it was worth trying to break it!

The first gnome noticed his steps and deviated from his original course to intercept. Seconds later he was immobilized, the nerves connecting his imbecile thoughts to his muscles crushed beyong repair. And so was the gnome's ribcage once Jared had stepped onto it. There was no time however to enjoy this first kill. He wasn't the one sadistic enough to enjoy killing anyway. It was an ordinary man's anger, even if the man himself made things look like ants when they were looking like mice otherwise.

Jared knew nothing about any of the participants in this fight and he expected this to be mutual, but there wasn't even enough time for him left to be astonished about how effective some of those participants were slaying these pesky creatures. He had come too late to hear the order, so he stayed close to the border of the crowd where the risk of being encircled and gnomes starting to climb onto his back was the lowest. Thank god these staffs were so long: It made targeting their heads much easier if one hadn't to bend down in order to do it.

He focused on another gnome that seemed to be blinded by irrational instinct even more than the first one. Moon hit his head first and while it was hurtling towards the other side, Sun came in second. The momentum made the already cracked skull literally explode - thank god that even Jared's face was almost completely covered in parts of his armor. The reddish, dripping debris ejected from the gnome's head was nothing but disgusting. It followed the flow of gravity down Jared's shoulders, arms, breast and hood not leaving behind much of a noticeable stain. Well at least not in the physical sense. Jared himself was quite close to puking...

@Ellion @Deos Morran @13org @shagranoz @Rune_Alchemist @WeepingLiberty
[@Every hunter near Seren's Folly]

Now, the gnomes were utterly and truly dead. As the corpses burned, Kalisel turned to the rest of her new comrades. "Good fight, everyone. Don't forget to grab the heads for the bounty; hunting doesn't pay well enough so as it is. I'll see you back at the Witch's Paradise." And with that, the angel picked up a couple of severed craniums and headed back to town. It had been a productive day, even if there were a couple of cuts on her legs.

Bishop was connected with all that was going on around him and yet it was almost as if none of it concerned him. Weapons were flying all over the place, and every so often he would have to move to avoid being hit, but for the most part he allowed his underlings to do the fighting for him. The stench of blood filled the air as hunter after hunter fell, though he had to commend each one that struck down a few of his own before succumbing to defeat. Everything was going according to plan until one very annoying, overly observant voice broke through the noise of battle.

"THE ONE IN THE MIDDLE, KILL THE LINCHPIN!"

His voice rang loud and true across the battlefield, Bishop turning around in an attempt to locate the source of the irritating sound. Before he could, however, more fire came raining down from above targetting the front of his group. "How bothersome." He growled watching as another bomb was launched over the burning carcasses of his allies, this one directed at him. Raising his head, Bishop let out a terrible screech that echoed about the space like a banshee's call. His forces scattered, only those immediately near him burning in the blaze with his body. It was a pity in his eyes, after all, he had just gotten used to the feel of that particular body. Now he had to abandon it for the newly created one off near the snarling beast. It wasn't ideal, but it would do for the moment. The poor hunter's body writhed in pain as Bishop fought him for control, winning it rather easily after the gnome blood had run its course.

Pale eyes locked onto the wolf, an inhuman screech escaping his lungs in triumph. The nearby gnomes gathered to create another flesh barrier around him but things had definitely changed. He had been content before, allowing his underlings the free reign to do as they pleased as it had little to do with him. But now... Now the hunters had made it personal, and he wasn't about to let that slide. "The girl who tosses flames... She thinks to underestimate us. I want her dead." He hissed, the once human body quickly changing before the hunter's eyes. Very soon it would look like every other monster on the battlefield however he still needed a bit more time.

---

A lone figure traveled through the darkness of the forest, draped in shadows and misery. His old boots felt the familiar sloshing of mud beneath them, the uneven ground threatening to suck him into the earth if he took one misstep. The man's unassuming form shivered every time the breeze brought the freezing bite of winter to his soaked body. The cold rain had not been kind to the traveler. Long had he wandered beneath the pouring clouds, his only companion the water damping his cloak, the road beneath his feet and the kitten hiding away from the storm within his backpack. The unpleasant conditions were sadly not a first for the wanderer. He was absolutely terrible at riding saddled horses, and couldn't afford his own carriage. Despite the horrible ache in his legs and the creaking in his knees, the man was better off just walking everywhere. He took hold of the drenched piece of cloth hanging around his body and adjusted it. It was meant to keep the rain off of him. But after so much exposure, the cloak did little more than make the cold even worse. A sigh escaped his parched lips, his breath visible on the night's air. Athens Henway adjusted the pair of spectacles upon his nose for the thousandth time in the last hour. He was sure he'd broken the damn things when he fell a few miles back. He could only pray to God that the journey would be worth it. Seren's Folly, his chosen destination, sat beneath what was said to be the largest gathered coven of witches since the days of old. It was his best bet at fulfilling the desires of his masters. The church sought the absolute destruction of witchcraft in its entirety. Yet, the hunters they hired and the inquisitors they so diligently raised up were not equipped to fight against the devil's tides. What they needed was information. Knowledge was power. If they meant to destroy magic, they needed to know it's every capability, it's every strength and it's every weakness. A number of techniques had been learned over the years; crosses, silver and gold were all effective enough weapons against the demons in human skin. However, it was not enough. Humanity needed to know everything- Everything they could to win this fight.

The silence of the forest was violently torn away by the ringing cacophony of combat. A choir of inhuman screeches echoed through the sparse trees, reaching the ears of the doctor and sending a chill down his spine. That wasn't the howl of werewolves. Nor did it sound like mere wild dogs. Athens couldn't quite place it from that distance. Without even considering the consequences, Henway stepped off the beaten path and into the wilds. He began to move in earnest, an orchestra of crossed blades joining the choir in their lethal scream. The doctor would've broke out in a full sprint, if it were not for the tiny creature hidden away in his pack. He moved as quickly and carefully as he could; his curiosity was piqued by the simplest of sounds. If a pin dropped, he simply had to turn his head to look for it. If someone spoke, he was inclined to listen. A full on battle wrested his entire attention, demanding he investigate no matter the personal cost. It was a wonder the man yet lived; and was still relatively healthy, despite his complete lack of common sense when it came to the unknown. Maybe it was the divine protection of his Lord. Or perhaps some dark spirit still had plans for the medicine man's soul. Whatever the case, someone, somewhere, must want Athens alive.

He reached his destination in no time. Henway's eyes went as wide as diamonds at the great sight that enveloped his entire vision. The bodies of small, grey skinned creatures littered the ground. Many more of the horrendous things were engaging in battle against the queerest retinue of hunters the doctor had ever laid his eyes on. Two of them were dancing. Not that they were fighting in an agile, swift and graceful fashion- they were literally performing a waltz of death in the center of the conflict, slaying the monsters while enjoying a nice night out under the light of the moon. The pair was absolutely bizarre. A man in a strange mask and outlandish clothes, arm in arm with a woman carrying an actual scythe. They weren't even the strangest thing his gaze fell upon. There was another man who appeared to be on fire, but at the same time...not. He saw all the signs except actual flames. How completely baffling. He had another man caring for him, thankfully- the doctor would see to him once he was done getting over the shock of the greatest sight that laid bare before his young eyes.

Floating cards and dice. There was no other way to describe it. There were dice flying around the battlefield, and cards floating in the air. Magic. It had to be magic. He could practically smell it on the air, over the odor of dead corpses and ash. Doctor Henway stepped into the clearing with his jaw nearly on the ground. Finding the source of the display wasn't difficult. The conductor of that magnificent orchestra was the oddest sight of them all. A woman with a lizard's tail and...he couldn't quite tell with the hat in the way...but were those dragonic ears?! "You!" Athens nearly screamed. He dashed past the child selling the miracles of medical science (intent on testing her product later) and made his way to the very obvious witch. "You- you- you..." The man repeated over and over. He reached behind his back, his hand brushing a rather large knife when he...pulled out a book and a pen from his pack. He opened it up as swiftly as he could to a blank page and instantly began scribbling down every note he could make of the strange entity. "How are you doing that and what's with the tail and the ears are those natural or some sort of enchantment were you born with any of it when did you learn to do magic have you ever had a negative reaction to holy water are you perhaps possessed?!" The man spoke a mile a minute. He didn't get her a second to answer any of his questions, the largest smile crossing his face. He paused only to shove his glasses back up his face. "This is fantastic! I've been here less than two minutes and I've already encountered a witch. Oh, bless the Lord for his great divination. You simply mu-"

Wait a second.

There was a battle going on.

'You are a doctor, sir! Research comes after the danger has passed. Focus on what is important, Athens.' He mentally chided himself before slamming the book closed. The wanderer took the pack from his shoulders and placed it on the ground before the witch. From the bag he removed a smaller satchel- this one marked with a red cross- and a tiny, black furred creature. He considered entrusting the safety of his favorite little animal to the child doctor, but...something was off about his fellow tiny physician. Not that she was a child, though that raised a few red flags. It was her attempts to sale wares during a gnome attack. She must be insane.Or an alchemist. Like there's a difference."This is Lily. Guard her with your life or I come back for yours." Henway kept a straight, serious expression as he placed the animal on the ground next to the total stranger's feet. "That was a joke." With that out of the way, Athens returned the pack to its rightful place upon his back and stepped forward toward the field of battle. Combat was by far his...least natural element. He'd rather be anywhere but in the center of a fight. However, he knew his expertise could be used here. He recognized the little devils now. They were gnomes. He retrieved his bestiary once more and flipped to one of the first pages. Strong in numbers. Physically weak. Open wounds can be used to possess a victim. Athens' eyes flickered toward the human man that was starting the transformation process. "These creatures are gnomes! Their pack leader controls them, but it is able to take possession of humans- but only if they were recently wounded by a gnome! Do not allow the little gremlins to harm you or else there's no cornering the bastard! I might be able to help that man, but I need to get close." The doctor begged the Lord that the hunters would listen to him. He might look like a madman, but he knew enough about these beasts to help destroy them. Afterwards, he could attend to the man who must have been injured in a fire bomb accident.

---

Hunters at Seren's Folly, and the two Witch nerds
@Ellion @Deos Morran @13org @shagranoz @Rune_Alchemist @WeepingLiberty @Fetzen @Noxx @Bright_Ops

Emmerich Jaeger

"I suppose it is only fair that you should know my name after sharing your own, but that doesn't make us friends... Understand? It's Avalon, Avalon Shire."

"Mein fraulein..." he said, while his rapier slashed another gnome, spilling some of his blood on her face
"Vee are already more zan zat, and you know it." he said, gently wiping the blood of her face.

"Its hard to find someone who you can fight like zis, trust bos your mind and body, trust on zeir abilities, open yourself to zem." he continued, as he held her closer to him.
"In such a short time, vee not only know how each ozer sinks, but how vee vill move or act."As he continued talking, the dance started to get even more complex, with graceful circular movements as Emmerich held Avalon closer to him, without taking his eyes off her, his presence was intoxicating, she could feel his eyes on hers, behind the mask

"Zee bond zat connect us vas forged by zee fire of zee fight, and not by words alone. You, mein liebling, is zee only hunter here who I vould trust bos my life and body. Mein schatz, you are zee only one here zat I vould blindly trust."

"So, no... Vee are not friends. If friends did vat vee are doink right now, zey vould be dead by zeir own hands." He said, as with a flicker of his hands, his blade coiled around them, enveloping them in a deadly spiral, deflecting the incoming blows the nearby gnomes threw at them.
"Avalon, mein perle..." he said, grabbing her waist and spinning her around, her scythe slicing the nearby gnomes.
"Mein vonderful schatz." he said as he finished their dance, just as the great wolf started barking to a wounded hunter

"Leo?" She called for it

"Zis night vas by far zee most enjoyable night I had in my entire night." he said, as he slowly and gently let go of her hands, walking away.

"THE ONE IN THE MIDDLE, KILL THE LINCHPIN!"

"If you decide to meet me again, don't be konfused or alarmed. I promise I vill tell you mein sekrets."

"You heard him hunters! The one in the middle!"

"For now, farevell, beautiful Avalon." Emmerich said with a performance bow, formally finishing his dance, jumping back as a firebomb exploded near him, making him disappear in the middle of the fire.

As the bomb exploded, Emmerich was caught by surprise as he fell in the middle of the fire.
Quickly twisting his body to get out of the flames, he said as he landed on the ground, his right hand burning
"Ach... Zat vas unfortunate..." he mumbled to himself, quickly putting the fire out

Turning his face to look where the other hunters pointed, he saw nothing, just a bunch of gnomes on fire.
"Vere is..." he was saying when he got interrupted by a loud screech. Avalon's wolf started to bark and snarl furiously.
Emmerich looked to the wounded hunter just in time to hear it saying, changing to a creature in front of his eyes

"The girl who tosses flames... She thinks to underestimate us. I want her dead."

Emmerich grabbed his crossbow, using both hands to aim it, wielding the rapier under it. He was a good distance away from the hunter that was transforming itself on a creature. This one wasn't just a common gnome. Apparently this one could change bodies to the ones who were wounded.

Letting out a powerful shot, he aimed to the creature's head, trying to kill it before the transformation was complete.
The unique, golden bolt flew through the battlefield, whistling in the creature's direction.

---

Shai

"Take it away... Get rid of the magic..." Shai watched quietly as the hunter said, in pain after it got behind the barrier. It took a while, as he apparently was in a lot of pain.

"Take it away? But the other hunters will not move as fast and light as they are moving right now, and the battlefield would get much darker and..."

"I suggest you let the magic drop." the other hunter said, the one who said it would defend her, with a very frightening stare after shooting a nearby gnome.

"I..." Shai started to say, obviously shaken
"I'm sorry... I was only trying to help..." she said, the orb floating back near her, as the battlefield got darker, and the hunters felt their movements getting slower and heavier again, without the magic.
But the darkness only lasted for a few seconds...
A bright light made Shai look to the battlefield again. Firebombs started to explode left and right, hunters were getting hurt and a terrible, terrible screech made Shai cover her ears and kneel down in pain.
Raising her head again, she watched, shocked as a wounded hunter started to turn into one of those terrible creatures.
"Blood" a card floated in front of her.
"I'm sorry, but I cannot put down the barrier. At least I need to protect the town. And after all, the barrier doesn't emit magic as the orb was..." she said, putting up the barrier again

"HUNTERS! Don't let their blood get inside you! There is something tainted with it!" she yelled, pointing to the wounded hunter that was slowly turning into a creature itself.

"Let me see here, his problem is too much magic inside of him, isn't it? I can take it out from him, but it will take a while and I will need to touch him." she said, her hand getting near his skin when...

"You!" a scream made her jump back, alarmed.
The owner of the voice was a very peculiar man, who apparently was somewhat oblivious to how serious the situation was right now.
Quickly approaching her, the man said again:
"You- you- you..."

Scared, Shai walked back as the man approached her, putting his hands on his back, he was ready to draw his weapon, or at least that was what Shai thought, as he got a pen and a book from his backpack and started writing down, looking at her with his eyes shining.

"How are you doing that and what's with the tail and the ears are those natural or some sort of enchantment were you born with any of it when did you learn to do magic have you ever had a negative reaction to holy water are you perhaps possessed?!"

Shai breathed easier after seeing that the man was some kind of doctor and wasn't going to attack her, but was curious about her.
"I'm using gravit- Umm... yes they are natur- I... yes I was bor- I always knew ho- No, no I never-" she tried to answer the many, many questions the man made as he continued talking, not letting her even finish.

"This is fantastic! I've been here less than two minutes and I've already encountered a witch. Oh, bless the Lord for his great divination. You simply mu-"

"Actually I'm not exactly a witch... I-" Shai tried to answer, but the man was obviously too excited and had many questions.

Although the man's curiosity made Shai a little happy, he also scared her a bit as his endless curiosity remembered her from the other humans... the one which created her and made experiments on her. Carefully watching and analyzing if she could trust or not the man, she kept looking at him, confused with his endless questions... and apparently no need to breathe between words.
Shai chuckled as the overly excited man put his bag on the ground near her, taking out a small furred animal from his satchel

"This is Lily. Guard her with your life or I come back for yours."
He said, entrusting the little animal to the merchant girl
"That was a joke."

Meanwhile, Shai considered to look inside the bag the man put down in front of her, inclining her head, but refrained to do so as it would be extremely rude.

Getting his bag again, he opened his book, read a few pages and proceeded to yell to the other hunters
"These creatures are gnomes! Their pack leader controls them, but it is able to take possession of humans- but only if they were recently wounded by a gnome! Do not allow the little gremlins to harm you or else there's no cornering the bastard! I might be able to help that man, but I need to get close."

"Oh! So that's what they are!" Shai exclaimed, holding the "Blood" card that was drawn from her tarot deck.

"Please protect me for a second. I will have to take down the barrier. Do you think you can stop the creatures who try to get to the town?" she asked the man who said that would protect her

"Mr doctor, I think I can help you with that." Shai said to him as the cards from the barrier formed a corridor between the doctor and the transforming hunter.

"The barrier will protect you, and the dices will strike down any gnome who tries to get near you." she said to him as two of the seven dices started to float around him, in an erratic pattern, spinning rapidly.

But what Shai didn't know, is that two bolts were rapidly coming to the transforming hunter from the other side of the battlefield, directly in front of the corridor.

If the transforming hunter dodged the bolts, it would come directly to Shai or to the doctor, and if they hit the hunter, it would probably mean its death. It could be avoided, if Shai was paying attention to her cards, which started to spin and show "Arrow", but sadly, Shai was concentrated on other things.
Being a seer is a great power, and as every power, it comes with equally big responsabilities. Fate slipped from Shai's hands. What will be the consequence for her mistake?

@Bishop

Hyestia was in her fully transformed state at this point with her tail coiling around her leg only to uncoil itself repeatedly to keep itself busy, almost like it had a mind of its own. Meanwhile, Hissy herself began to circle the jester, she couldn’t put her finger on it, but she could swear she had met this creature before. He didn’t smell like a human or a witch, in fact, he gave off the same scent her old serpent shed skin smelled before she took over the body of this human girl like a demon or at the very least a spirit.

Keeping her distance, she strutted around him using her head detection to keep a good lock on his location it wasn’t until he started to speak that she realized who she was dealing with and her caution was well warranted. She stopped right in front of him when he slurped up another one of her snakes being disconnected from another one of her little ones, she could always replace them but this was just unneeded. That stance, the way he spoke to her in a formal but an uncaring manner, it’s amazing she didn’t realize it sooner.

“Lazarus” she spoke out scowling her eyes, “It’s been eons since you’ve come to my forest and for the exact same reason you came the first time” she explained walking closer.

“Why exactly are you here again, like it told you when I trained the Hydra I don’t like angles, demons or otherwise eating my children; so, could you kindly eat what you’ve collected and take no more little ones,” she asked holding her ground.


@Ellion @Deos Morran @13org @shagranoz @Rune_Alchemist @WeepingLiberty
[@Every hunter near Seren's Folly]

Great, some doctor nearly knocked her over causing her to misuse her wind magic to slice a gnome down the middle, she would have to work in some form of telekinesis angle with the potion later. Looking over into the bubble of protection she observed the doctor talk to the witch, maybe he was looking for an assistant or studying witches, whatever the case maybe it didn’t involve her in the slightest. She continued to ‘demonstrate’ her fake potion to make a few more coins, having an actual doctor around made it a bit more believable, she could make real healing potions, but that would have taken entirely too long and the cost to ingredient ratio wouldn’t have looked nearly as good. As she sold the last potion she considered leaving at that very second, however the doctor rushed over to her with some creature in his hand, this caused Mimi the black cat who lived in Samantha’s hair to spring to life to inspect the creature though she stopped her as black cats in public is a classic witch's pet.

“Eh heh, no thanks,” she said backing away in suspicion, thankfully he was joking an went off to fight in the battle or at least give real aid. Looking outward to the battle she could feel the wind change as two bolt started to fly towards some strange hunter who seemed to loosing his everlasting mind.

She quickly assessed the situation and realized if that hunter dodged the doctor and the goody good witch would be struck, likely fatal. Samantha grinned and without putting much effort into it, she changed the direction of the wind just enough to cause the bolts to strike a none fatal area no matter who they hit, it would probably hurt to high hell but they’d still be alive.

Currently: In Seren's Folly (Outside)

Interacting:@Noxx@Deos Morran@13org@shagranoz@Superboy
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Seeing the look of fear on the girl's face, Draco actually felt a twinge of guilt for being so harsh with his 'request'... but the man he had helped raise as his own son was suffering and the whole magic thing needed to stop, at least for the time being. Thankfully the girl was quick to comply with what was asked of her.

Of course, that was when things had to start getting strange again; A doctor of all things came up to the girl and started asking her a barrage of questions, his desire to uncover information overriding the fact that there was currently a battle going on and he was actively distracting one of the people involved. A quick glance around at the field of battle to see what was going on before he attempted to step in to give the girl some breathing room proved fortunate as he witnessed the two arrows heading towards a hunter that had been either a bit to slow or a bit to unlucky and ended up getting infected... and the path side arrows were likely to take if they missed.

His mind racing at speeds that only someone truly experienced with practical trigonometry and instinct, Draco's gun was in his hand faster then most people could blink as he lined up a shot with the infected hunter's leg before pulling the trigger. In theory, taking out said leg would drop him out of the way of the arrows; If he was lucky then the infection hadn't reached his legs and all he would suffer is a gunshot wound and possibly a broken leg... if he was unlucky then he was infected enough to be a supernatural creature and the bullet was going to cause... complications as it passed through, but the poor bugger would still be alive if treated properly.

Dropping the gun, Draco turned around in order to charge and tackle the dragon girl out of harms as he shouted to the doctor " Get down!"

Within the moonlit forest, a figure of jarring fuchsia walked along a faded dirt path under the canopy of the darkened woods. The rustling of paper echoed above the natural noise of the trees, a heavy sigh ejecting itself from the vivid anomaly as she gazed upon the depiction of the forest she was currently traversing within. The map El had brought with her has been completely useless so far in her travel, having only bought it to cut the time it takes to get from Point A to Point B. Honestly, who in their right mind would make the "regular" trail go around the woods, instead of through it? Didn't they think of how pretty everything looked under the moonlight? Of course, the witch completely forgot that said woods was home to a great number of hunters, all of whom were very willing to lynch anyone who even so much as breathed like a witch, as well as beasts such as wolves, bears, and the like.

As the traveler passed a tree that seemed somewhat familiar to her, the second time in a row, in fact, the black locket around her neck twitched, the ornament quickly detaching itself from her person and changing shape even as it fell to the ground. The inky dark shape molded itself into the humanoid form of the witch's familiar, Caliope, her forged orange orbs gazing upwards at their undeniable master, even as said master barely noticed the change of weight and lack of jewelry. It was only when the small construct had crawled onto her back that El finally gave her familiar attention. "Ah, maid? Is there something wrong?" In response, Caliope moved herself to her master's shoulder, blue flame flickering and illuminating the map as the small figure tried to make sense of the directive parchment. "Oh, you wanted to help me? Thank you," El smiled happily at her companion, but it was only a few moments before the blue flame sprouting from the short figure's head shot upwards, Caliope letting out an unintelligible screech of dismay before running down her master's arm. Surprisingly, despite her size, El barely felt any weight on her limb even as her maid stood on her hand. With barely any sympathy, the familiar slapped her master's hand, hard, making the witch release her hold on one side of the map. "Ow! What are you... doing...?" El's indignant cry petered out into confusion as her familiar leaped onto her other hand, rotating the map before turning back to her with an intent gaze, gesturing to the corrected hold of the parchment. It wasn't long before the witch understood, and she nearly dropped both her map and the familiar in embarrassment.

El had been reading the map sideways the whole time.

"Ummm... whoops?" If it wasn't for the fact that Caliope was very much used to her master's flighty mannerisms, she might have facepalmed with both of her gauntlets. Murmuring daintily with a forgiving tone, the familiar returned to her place on her master's shoulder, taking a seat instead of transforming back into a locket as El tried to understand where exactly where she had accidentally taken them both to. Caliope, while usually in her locket form for safety reasons in public, was quite happy with staying in her natural form while the two were alone. Unless there was a reason for her to disguise herself in order to protect her master, the construct preferred to be able to interact with her creator as much as possible, and doing so was easier accessible in her default state.

After a few minutes of walking aimlessly, El was about to give up on trying to map her way out of the forest until the treeline finally broke, revealing a manor- no, a castle- standing within a ruin, withered by the hands of time. Both witch and familiar were in awe as they entered the castle grounds, a giddy smile stretching across the woman's face as she skipped around a gravestone. A ruin site in the middle of the woods, after being lost for what was probably hours? Either she was very lucky, or Coincidence finally got over its anger after her attempt of trying to drug it with an <Aging Tincture>. In any case, the witch noticed that there were lights on inside the castle, meaning that there were people living inside... or a lightning storm took residence inside the building. Forgetting that the probability of the second situation being slim to none, El walked up to the doors of the castle, Caliope sitting respectfully on her shoulder as a fist rapped on the dust-covered entrance.

"Hello, anyone home?"

@Ellion @WeepingLiberty @shagranoz @Rune_Alchemist @Bishop @Dark Light [@Bloodrose Castle]

_{Concerning:@WeepingLiberty@shagranoz@Rune_Alchemist@Bishop@Dark Light@Xiro Zean}

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(@ Bloodrose castle )

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Arden was in deep contemplation of what the recent announcement meant to him. He took the opportunity to gather the names of the other witches.
Nymphadora and Celia, they were the two witches he would have to accompany. He caught Celia gazing in his direction and quickly averted his eyes to the floor. She seemed kind, or at least soft enough not to trouble him too much but as for the other witch, Nymphadora, well Arden couldn't quite place her.

Just then a rapping of the door cut through his thoughts and instinctively he slipped skilfully without notice from Rose and Miria's side towards the source of the sound.
Now he could stand like a man, now he was a representation of Miria's belongings. Arden straightened his back, rolled his shoulders back and lifted his chin. With a gentlemanly grace he gripped the large brass handle and put some force behind his pull as the large old wooden door crept open.
The the hinges creaked as the door passed over the floor swirling around a gentle breeze that lifted and caught some ancient long-sitting dust in stray beams of moonlight.

Arden looked to the woman on the other side of the door, and greeted her with a simple nod. All the while he blocked the passage behind him and remained still and silent, patiently staring at her and the creature on her shoulder expectantly.

@WeepingLiberty@Dark Light@Ellion@Xiro Zean

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Of course Rose was here, and of course she'd advocate getting a bell. Also that apparently they were going to have to get to work. Celia shifted her gaze from Arden to Rose, giving the more experienced witch her usual stare. The rather poorly hidden comment about her work ethic didn't bother Celia too much. It was true, after all, that she wasn't one to work so it was silly to get worked up over it. It still didn't mean she didn't feel somewhat annoyed, but it wasn't worth the trouble to try and refute.

More importantly, she was being sent to kill something. Celia tilted her head quizzically. She was hungry, and had a fairly important question she wanted to ask. But then, it was better to seek forgiveness than ask permission, no? So instead she remained silent. She shouldn't eat too much otherwise the spirit might get a bit more restless, but it was getting a bit unbearable at this point...maybe she could take a bite or two during the fight if she was careful. Just something to satiate the creature.

A soft rapping at the door caught her ears. Celia sighed, standing in her usual somewhat tired manner as she got to her feet. Well, might as well go ahead and get standing and wait for the others to get going so she could conveniently be at the back of their little party and let them do most of the work. Maybe they could kill it and she could just sit there and look pretty.

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@Bright_Ops@Noxx@Deos Morran@13org@shagranoz@Superboy@Fetzen

Fire was doing wonders as ever. The creatures, gnomes, were weak against gods cleansing flame as any other. Unfortunately, it seemed through devilish trickery that they were able to somehow persist after death, and possess those who had been afflicted with some form of injury. Fine, then. She'd just have to burn them again and again, if she had too. Granted, she didn't have enough firebombs for that, unless she could get all of them clustered together and take them out with her last three.

"The girl who tosses flames... She thinks to underestimate us. I want her dead."

Ha. She was perhaps a bit too eager for burning these despicable creatures, but one might at least take a bit enjoyment as long as they didn't get carried away. A bolt whizzed across the battlefield, coming right for the possessed hunter. Good, a good perfect distraction. Even if he was somehow able to dodge the bolts she wasn't going to pass up the opportunity.

"Ha...look at you, poor sod. Possessed by a creature that can barely be called a demon." As far as Phoebe cared, he was now just another target to be slain. A creature to be hunted. Helping him was completely out of the question. Once one was tainted by magical forces of any kind, there was no redemption other than what the lord could give. Another firebomb left her hands, being tossed right towards the possessed hunter.

@13org@Bright_Ops@Superboy

As Lusius made it to the little triage station and started to recieve some attention he stopped getting worse. Mostly due in part of the magic emitting sun going away. That meant that the Burning Man wasn't stealing more magic from which to fuel himself off of, but that didn't mean that the magic he already stole wasn't still in him. He was still restless and that meant he was fighting to get out, which in turn meant Lusius was knelt down, clutching his head trying to steady himself enough to fight back properly.

For Draco pouring water over him, it really did nothing to help Lusius fight back the fires, but it would cool his burning skin a bit to make him easier to handle for later. At least until it evaporated and he started to burn again. As for his clothes they would unfortunately be soaked and hold onto that water for a lot longer than his exposed flesh.

When the doctor came running up Lusius paid him no mind, not that he wanted to ignore him, just that he'd much rather deal with his own problems before he tried to make new friends. What did bother him somewhat though was when he distracted Shai from fulfilling her promise to remove teh magic from him. He needed it to be gone so he could fight back and for it to go away naturally would take a substantially larger amount of time. If only he could expel the magic in a quick rush that wouldn't lead to him transforming into the Burning Man. But no matter what, it was an either or deal. Either he was Lusius Mathand, or he was the Burning Man which means he either had to get help, or he'd have to suffer until enough magic faded that he could function properly.

_{@Bright_Ops@Noxx@Deos Morran@13org@shagranoz@Superboy@Rune_Alchemist}

A second order came, being yelled across and superposed by the carnage in front of him. Jared had no idea if the information contained in it was anywhere near the truth, but in any case the worst thing that could happen is that one gnome would be slain prior to some others.

But: How to get there ? The problem weren't the remaining... eight ?... gnomes or whatever they were surrouding the key figure in the center, but the fact that they had become engulfed by flames once again. Jared knew that large parts of his body were clad in strange metal, he had also learned enough about the properties of his father's armor to expect that it wouldn't incinerate like a woolen cloth drenched in oil, but still: Going in there ? That was no option. The one throwing these fiery devices probably wasn't aware that, while causing a lot of effect himself, he also forced others to disengage and not longer to contribute to the combined effort.

The not-yet-hunter didn't see any other option but to stand back and wait until the worst of the fire had burned out. The stench of burned flesh was one of the worst one could experience, and so far Jared had only experienced it when being too impatient with his cookery - and then only in the most extreme cases. He tried to concentrate on the smell of his face mask, to imagine that the combination of black fabric and leather would act as some sort of filter to keep out the smoke. Of course it was a somewhat unrealistic thought.

Then it was time. Only small flames were left and he'd be able to run over them quickly. Jared focused on the creature that previously had been called the 'linch pin' and charged forward. He ignored the gnomes around it (as far as one could assume them to be still alive) and tried one of tricks he had learned in his youth: Jump and put one's boot forward, targeting the victim's throat with the sole's edge.

Unfortunately though Jared partially bodged it, hitting the target area not with the heel but with a more forward part of the foot instead. The major part of his immense weight hit the mud and not the flesh, yet the remainder was sufficient to... let's say yank the linch pin's head out of proper alignment... and catapulting the still living creature out of the crowd. And so did Jared with himself, evacuating the area before the remaining gnomes or the transforming human could grab a hold of him or another flame bomb would detonate and incinerate him.

Check that. The gnomes were still alive after all, if greatly diminished in numbers. Kalisel dropped her trophies and spun around, just in time to see Jared fling the ringleader out to who knew where. "Nice shot!" she called, drawing Forgiveness once again. The silvered steel flickered in the light as she parried several blows before delivering a bone-crushing blow to her victim's shoulder. She stepped back to catch her breath for a few seconds, feeling a touch of joy as she did so.

"So, we're to open that bloody door. Or at least try to. Beautiful, simply beautiful." Jenny's knowledge of magic did not include disenchantments, unfortunately. Still, she did have a few tricks up her sleeves. Pulling a small vial of fairy dust, the redhead let out an audible sigh. "Shall we, ladies?"

Despite her earlier beliefs, and to her disappointment, the door was not answered by the wild howls of a ranging storm, but rather a young man with the strangest hair color she'd seen on a male younger than herself. Not that El could say anything about strange hair colors, considering her own faded fuchsia locks, but it startled her nonetheless. In response to his respectful nod, the witch returned by flashing a brief smile, opening her mouth to greet the man... before closing it just as quickly. It wasn't right for her to steal his thunder, speaking before he had the chance to greet his visitor, so she chose to wait until he spoke first, as was respectful of a lady such as herself.

...

...

...Was he a mute?

Noticing the silence had passed from gracious to unnerving, Caliope took it upon herself to pull her master's ear, causing the woman to let out an undignified yelp before she finally understood the situation. "Oh! Excuse me, it is nice to meet you, sir," El greeted the white-haired male, rubbing her abused ear and shooting the smug familiar on her shoulder a rueful look as she did so. Just as she did, however, a few women contemptuously took the man's place, the original greeter leaving with another that shared the hue of his hair. Siblings, perhaps? "Thank you Arden, such a well trained little monkey," A woman with blood-red orbs remarked, taking the man's place as she turned her attention to the witch of fuchsia, who stood confused at the entrance of the castle. "Hurry up then, we haven't got all night," she continued, seemingly annoyed by El's arrival. Caliope, who still sat on her master's shoulder, mumbled incomprehensibly in a tone that could be taken as vexing. El, if she could understand her constant companion, would've agreed.

This woman didn't seem very fun to be around.

The other, who wore a strange mask over her face, was a better greeter by comparison. Maybe the red-eyed one could learn from the same school that this one did, she could really use some more lessons in "etiquette" "Now, now Mirai, this girl is our guest, let's show her how hospitable we can be," the masked woman admonished the mean lady, who was named as Mirai. As the obscured visage of the other woman turned away, El started to wonder about the disguise. Was it hiding a scar? Or maybe the woman was actually a chipmunk in disguise? It would certainly explain the kindness she seemed to exhibit. Or maybe...

"And, who do we have the honor of meeting on this fine winter night?"

Being brought out of her thoughts by the woman's voice, El quickly shook off her current musings. "My name is Elaine, but you can call me El," she started, deigning to curtsey meekly towards the masked woman as a sign of respect. Internally, she thanked her maid for teaching her the proper way to enter a strangers home, else she may have been disrespectful to a pleasant figure such as the one before her. "May I enter your home? I... got lost in the woods, and I'm not quite sure where I am at the moment." As she said this, the fuchsia witch reached into saddle bag, pulling out a flask of liquid that shined a lovely red color. "I don't have much in coin, but I may be able to part with a few of my concoctions. This in particular is a mixture capable of mending superficial wounds within moments."

@WeepingLiberty@Ellion@Rune_Alchemist@Dark Light@shagranoz