Atkin had no idea who this "Uncle Marcellus" was, or why she had so much faith that he would know anything about this mutant business, but he must be some hot shit to know about stuff that neither Arya nor Rowland were aware of. After all, they were the current and previous ExtraOrdinary Wizard, and the latter had been traveling the world in his spare time. If he would have guessed anyone to know something about anything, it would be one of those two. What kind of person would be knowledgeable about a subject that was in the blind spot of those two?
More importantly, when were they going to go inside, he was freezing his ass off. Hell, he was even agreeing with Brother Grimm over there. It was already well below freezing and it sure as hell wasn't going to get any warmer tonight, especially with the snow starting to fall from overhead.
"Not to rush everyone, but yeah let's get inside already. Certainly wouldn't hurt Myrus to be healed out from the elements," Atkin chimed in as he shoved his hands into the crooks of his armpits in an attempt to keep them from freezing solid. The bit of fire from Arya also helped, but if the snow escalated into a full-on storm, he doubted if it'd be able to be maintained. Extraordinary Magyk or no, water had a funny way of putting out flames.
If the adults ended up dragging their feet for much longer with their insistence on staying out on the Lawn for no discernible reason, he'd just have to march back to the Tower himself. It's not like he wanted to just leave everyone, but at the same time, he didn't want to come down with a cold, or something worse like pneumonia just because nobody actually felt like moving from where they stood when they didn't have to. "My mission is to return her to the Palace. I'm not going to change my mind on that any time soon." The woman didn't need a gun pointed at her to grab Luna and head back to the Castle. That's what'd she'd been trying to get accomplished this entire time. Speaking of the princess. Oh. She was in rough shape. The poor lass. Although the vast majority of her feelings towards the girl was that of sympathy and pity, a part of her was a bit relieved she had fallen unconscious, if simply how easily that reduced the complexity of the situation. She didn't have to worry about trying to gain the princess' trust enough to come with her. Even though she wasn't one of the witches, she wouldn't blame Luna for being too scared or cautious to just take her word that she only wanted to get her back to the Palace.
The woman approached Luna's unconscious body and tried to pick her up. One of her hands was full with the club, and a human body wasn't exactly the easiest thing to handle, so in the process of getting her up, the princess' head slipped and hit the ground. Ouch. She just had to hope that either it was nothing, or that the Palace Physician would be able to handle one more issue. With her mark now in hand, the woman walked towards the armed woman.
But her work wasn't quite done. She didn't have a lot of time to dedicate towards this, but the Young Army woman. She couldn't just leave her to this wicked man. Not only did he hang around the witches who'd just kidnapped the princess, he was really skeezy going on about fictional debts and acting like he was a gentleman when he was just scum. Especially with that spell he was trying. It was so gross and rapey. So as she passed the two of them she pulled her club up and swung it down hard on the back of Rhys' head. It got him good. Not quite enough to knock him out, but he wasn't able to finish his spell, and it would give her an opening to escape. Hopefully.
Fleur ignored the fact she could feel Luna slipping away. It didn't matter in the end. If anything, they sent a message across: "Don't mess with the Port Witches."
Fleur looked at the hairpin in her hand. A tool with the power of time? The possibilities for this were, ironically, endless. She could do a whole lot with it, but it was a bittersweet moment that she obtained such a valuable tool only for her to lose Nera in the process. "The only death I would reverse is yours. Is that possible?" Fleur hoped, but she had a feeling it would not be so easy. Plus, she had no idea how to work the instrument anyway.
Constance entered the room and Fleur was aware that she may have looked a tad odd, standing in Mal's room not doing anything. Constance couldn't see Nera, so Fleur faced the woman. "We are victorious then. Let us wait until the dust settles outside before we gather our things and move."
Fleur clutched the item in her hand before turning her head to Nera's ghost. "You're right though. It is our time."
Myth the Muse
Location: The Winking Duck Tavern
Myth could tell the women were talking about her, but she couldn't give a rat's ass quite frankly. Hell, it meant people were talking about her. What more did a bard want than word of mouth passing along (though she wished it was in a language she could understand). Still aware she was in the man's lap still, she eyed the women as they moved quite quickly and grabbed the other woman's things. Was it Magyk perchance?
"Quite all right, handsome. Those two seem like they would be tons of fun to hang with. Never a dull moment, eh?" As they returned the woman's belongings, Myth decided the man had enough torture and stood up. "Speaking of fun, I believe I mentioned a song?" Myth strode up to the "stage" in the bar, and faced her captive audience. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. You are in for a real treat. I am Myth the Muse, eager to entertain the masses. I don't normally take requests, but perchance, does anyone have a song request? Or a topic maybe? I can wing it with the best of them."
Lyra let out a small sigh of relief as she smothered the last of the flames. Her blue-green gaze then did a quick survey of the damage. It seemed that a fair amount of her stuff had been burnt but fortunately not irreparably so. However, as her gaze landed on a particular item on her chest of drawers, she let out a small gasp. Myrus's book! The book she was supposed to take to Mavis Moll! She had forgotten all about it considering the choatic downhill chain of events that had unfolded this morning in rapid succession. She rushed over to it, praying that it wasn't too damaged. Having her stuff ruined was one thing, she could live with that, but the thought of someone else's stuff being damaged under her watch nearly made her sick. Her hands were about to grasp the book when Richard's slew of curses suddenly drew her attention.
Her head whipped to the side, and her eyes widened in alarm as she saw his hair catch on fire. "Oh my god!" she exclaimed. She quickly rushed over to him brandishing her fire smothering blanket like it was some kind of weapon. The book was already forgotten in the moment. Her focus right then was on saving Lord Laine from a fiery death. She was about to cover his head up with the blanket when his form suddenly shrunk out of view. Her brows furrowed in confusion as the blanket fell to the ground along with his coat jacket. She looked down in time to see a large king cobra slithering away with the coat jacket on its tail moments before the blanket would have inevitably smothered it whole. She arched a brow, glancing up at Asha with a questioning look in her eyes. Shapeshifter?
Her facial expression quickly softened though at the sight before her. The adorable cooing baby dragon held in the loving embrace of her mother. It melted her heart. An easy smile came to her features as she closed the remaining distance between them. She looked down at the baby with a gaze that was almost as adoring as that of the parents, almost. Her heart swelled with warmth and happiness knowing that she was able to reunite the family. It made whatever "troubles" it may have caused her well worth it. She let out a content sigh before her gaze slowly came up to look at Asha as she gushed over the infant. "She's not the only cute one around her," she stated boldly, her gaze locking with the woman's. She waited a moment to see Asha's reaction before biting her lip and turning her back to her. A smug smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she walked back over to her chest of drawers, picking the blanket up off the floor on her way.
Present Day - The Castle: December 21st, 12,507 - 3:00 PM
"Ya shouldn't be afraid to tell them off," the bartender advised Sylvi, passing her another drink - this time on the house. He had seen those silver haired twins in here before, though up until a few weeks ago, they were always accompanied by their brother. The man with them - he hadn't seen him before in his life. "Name's Jack," the bartender introduced himself, holding out a hand to Sylvi. "And those two are nothin' but trouble."
"Стари човек Худсон поново долази на нас. Ако је Тате био овде, убио би га," Marya complained to Medea.
"Знам, понекад је досадан, мада можда не смета Татеу да га убије," Medea responded, nodding her head in agreement.
Marya then eyed Myth as she took the makeshift stage, a wicked idea forming in her mind. She already pegged her as someone from the Land of Long Nights and as much as she supported her adoptive father's quest to find love, she couldn't help the words that spilled from her mouth. They had a soft accent to them that most would've only heard had they met someone from the Eastern SnowPlains before. "Sing about the Four," Marya requested. "If you know about them."
"Ooh, good choice," Medea responded with a smile. Bruce did a small double take at the twins, after all, he was pretty sure they knew that entire story by heart.
"Uh, no, not really... They sometimes drive me crazy to be honest..." Bruce muttered, before being slightly glad that Myth had gotten off his lap, and headed over to perform something.
Arya Rincewind & Myrus Silvers
Location: The Palace Lawns
Even with the bluebelle flames, Arya couldn't quite shake the chill from the extremely cold temperatures. It felt as if it was penetrating her bones and she drew her cloak more tightly around her, but it didn't seem to help at all. Her lips were blue and her breathing had become incredibly slow. Her Magyk faltered and Myrus fell, only for Rowland to intervene and take over, stabilizing the levitation Charm Arya had cast.
"Let us get inside Now," Rowland urged, a certain sternness to his voice. It wasn't often that he was strict, but people were already falling ill and the weather wasn't becoming any better. He knew that it wouldn't be long until sunset and on the longest night of the year, witches became even more bolder. Beyond what had already happened, he expected that they would be busy all night in defense of the Castle - especially if the Witch Mothers decided to expand the size of their Coven, stealing little girls from their beds.
Arya nodded, feeling incredibly exhausted as the small group went inside of the Palace. They ended up in the Long Walk, which was fortunate, as the Throne Room may or may not still have Princess Snaera's body on the ground. Jadis and Puck had claimed that they would handle things - but did either of them still have any credibility left, at this point?
The ExtraOrdinary Wizard's eyes flickered towards the gigantic metal gauntlet that was on display, noticing the way that Emperor Taj appeared to have a keen interest in it as well. She made a mental note to make inquiries as to where it had come from exactly. Sadly, the best sources of information would be the ghosts of the Palace - or yet another line of questioning for Marcellus. "H-how is the Prince?" Arya stammered, looking at Becky.
Becky didn't move her attention away from Myrus, pulling various potions and mixtures from her belt and placing them on Myrus' tongue, yet there was no response. "Not well, I am afraid," Becky admitted. "And to think, for this to happen on the day of poor Valda's coronation and sweet Luna's kidnapping...It really is a cursed day," Becky muttered.
"Can you save him?" Emperor Taj asked simply.
Becky looked up at him. "I can try. That is all I can promise."
Not too far away, in Lyra's room, baby Zekarra continued to gurgle happily. Every so often, the baby would send another line of flames at Richard. And fortunately, the product of her flame had not singed Myrus' book for Miss Mavis Moll too terribly. It was still legible, and if Lyra were to examine it closely, she would notice that the writing seemed to have doubled - as if the heat of the flames had revealed secrets hidden within the text.
"Oh?" Asha asked Lyra, feigning innocence. She smiled at the baby dragon, only for her eyes to widen as the baby tried to grab at her necklace. She jumped backwards, only for Puck to laugh at her and smirk.
"Afraid of a baby, Asha?" Puck teased.
Asha's lips thinned. "Not of the baby."
The Port: Port Witch Coven House
Luna was still out cold. The bump on her head hadn't made things worse, but it hadn't exactly made her condition any better. It was probably the most injured and feeble she had ever been before in her life, given the privileged family that she came from. To say that Luna had been sheltered was an understatement. Amarantha was faring a bit better - the stranger's assault on Rhys had broken his concentration, to the extent that his spells ended and Amarantha would finally be free!
"That's a little rapey, not gonna lie. Fella should know what Davey Jones does to pricks like him," Harlianne commented, not lowering her weapons as she glanced at Rhys. She turned her guns on him and fired off two shots - one for each gun - and managed to land one bullet in his thigh. He was lucky they were not Named bullets and she hadn't been trying to kill him - just to incapacitate him for a little while. She then motioned for the others to follow her and set off at a brisk pace for the Port Barge. There were only two people on duty and at the sight of a crazy ginger with a gun heading towards them, with the unconscious princess carried by another woman behind her, they took off at a run.
"M'boat now," Harlianne said with a shrug. It was already set to sail so get in the barge and get going!
Back inside the house, Nera's ghost couldn't help but smile at Fleur. However, the smile was tinged with sadness. "It took me many years to gain control of it, my dear...Perhaps you have the gift for it - or perhaps you will rip a hole in time...No one can know until you try. Feel it - it is an extension of the soul." Nera then put a ghostly hand on Fleur's, nodding at her. It was pretty much the standard advice they would give to any Port Witch attempting a new area of Magyk. Through trial and error, it ultimately would come down to finding the right feeling and then channeling it - usually somehow between rage and serenity.
"What do you want me to do?" Constance asked Fleur. "That little bitch, Valda, is Queen and the ranking Witch Mother of the Wendrons now...All of our kids and a few witches are at the safe house in the Badlands."
Luna was helpless as her unconscious body was lifted up by the stranger, aside from her shivering in the woman's arms she didn't even move or even make a sound when her head was hit against the floor. Luna continued to dream peacefully, she imagined herself playing out in the palace grounds as she was younger. She did enjoy exploring the grounds while also riding one of the horses that she always enjoyed taking out. Every time when winter did come Luna was always by the fire curled up in a warm blanket while reading a few books that were brought to her, while also doing her own studies. One thing that Luna did really hate was the cold weather, she would never even step outside of the Castle if it got to cold.
And during the spring and summer days she would always go out on the balcony near her room and look up at the stars, always finding it peaceful out there. Luna rarely ever left the Castle unless she absolutely needed to, usually whatever she needed to do in the Wizards Tower and then she would return home. And continue with her school work from her tutors, knowing that one day she would end up taking the throne. That was until Valda ended up showing up, she knew that they had a sister and then her mother the queen dying Luna was forced to step back. Luna of course did hold resentment for her, but she was always there to help her out when she did need it as well.
Cuyler watched the floating Myrus drop and then be picked back up again by Magyk before he even hit the ground. The party began to make their way inside and Cuyler looked to Thia, who remained watching Myrus. ”Go back to the Hefring Thia, you’ll be warm there,” he instructed her. There were stables located behind the Hefring where she could lie amongst the animals in the hay. When night fell he wouldn’t worry so much about her as she often did her own thing in her wolf form. Cuyler walked away but Thia lingered until her companion disappeared inside and then she took off. Cuyler hurried to catch up with the group and he walked along behind Arya who was now speaking to the physician. He heard her stutter and shiver as she spoke. Now that they were inside, Cuyler was a bit warmer so he removed the top most layer of furs and secured them around Ayra’s shoulders. She most likely needed to change out of the clothes and sit by the fire awhile to help her warm up fully but Cuyler hoped that this would do the trick for now.
Amarantha
Location: Outside the Port Witch Coven ---> The Barge
Finally the man laying on top of her got to his feet but he picked Amarantha up along with him. With her still frozen from his earlier spell, she could not feel the broken bones shift as he picked her up but she could see when they started to walk and could hear clearly the new spell he began to recite as he walked. Amarantha watched him curiously as he spoke. Odd fellow this one was. She knew he would torture her, play with her until his heart's content and then some, so why make sure she was kept warm and safe? If the roles were reversed Amarantha would simply hogtie him and knock him out to keep him from saying anything. Before Amarantha could voice her opinion on the man, a giant club came down onto his head. He stopped speaking and Amarantha could feel the tingling sensation lift from her body as the spell he used to freeze her was lifted as well. Rhys dropped her from the impact and she hit the frozen ground, hard. She yelped but didn’t lay there for long and she crawled, using her good arm to pull herself to Boy 512. A pair of shots rang out behind her but she didn’t check to see if they made their mark. She slapped the poor boy across his face and he jolted awake but didn’t do much else as the spell was still working its way out of his system. ”Up, get up,” Amarantha said, poking and prodding him. Still Boy 512 did not have much motivation to move. The woman looked up to watch the rest of the party leave, the crazy pirate leading the way while the stranger from the room upstairs carried Luna off. Clearly she was headed to the Castle as well but Amarantha didn’t trust her. She needed to get on that barge, she needed to deliver Princess Luna herself. Looking around Amarantha spotted the knife she dropped earlier and seized it in her good hand. She pressed the blade to the Boy’s throat, drawing a small amount of blood. ”Get up and I’ll reconsider letting you keep limbs.” Painfully slow, Boy 512 managed to get to his feet. It took him a moment to become stable but once he was he faithfully picked up Amarantha, hoisting her onto her good leg. She tucked her bad arm into her side so Boy 512 could help her move. He was a tiny thing and wouldn’t be able to carry her but he managed to help her limp along. With the cold snapping away at them, Amarantha’s broken limbs and the spell still working out of Boy 512, it took them a good long time to make it to the barge. Amarantha looked up as two men came running past them. She spotted the pirate, the one who gratefully shot the Wizard, commandeer the barge. She urged the boy beside her to move faster. It was awkward and too slow in Amarantha’s mind but they eventually made it to the barge before it left the Port.
The large king cobra gave a annoyed hiss, as his child spat fire at him. While Richard was not unused to the antics of the young, this was getting particularly annoying for all that she was adorable. There was a fine line between cute, and deadly. Something Richard had learned to appreciate in the youth of his life. When snowstorms or wild animals were a danger, and you also had a little one to watch out for life became interesting. Especially when one's little sister had always appeared so much older than a mere five years of age. Those large brown eyes drinking up the scenes of nature and not flinching away. He had done the same but with war and gunfire. Shaking his scaled nose as he focused on the little adorable, scaly ball of flaming pain.
Coiling about his lover and 'wife's' feet the cobra-Adder reared up to be just above eye level with his errant child. Giving a warning hiss as a bolt was shot at him, the snake flared out his colorful hood. Giving a irritated hiss, the man stood before the girl. One hand gently holding his dragonette's mouth shut. "Enough of that." The man said firmly. For all he was going to be very lenient with his offspring. He drew the line at being on fire. "I am not fire proof and your mother is." Giving a deeper growl the man shook the small mouth firmly- though being gentle as she had just hatched. Making sure to keep eye contact with the little Zekarra, before releasing her to tickle the girl under her chin like a cat. The man was still well prepared to dodge aside another bout of flames. Casting a look towards the two woman, without fully taking his eyes from the youngster, he managed a woeful look. "I don't suppose either of you can fix this?" He gestured to the horribly singed hair.
Rhys swore viciously as his concentration broke. A club hammering him in the head and causing his spell to falter as her fall to the street. The woman falling from his arms, as his hand flashed up to check his wound. His other hand moving to shove the ground beneath him lest he fall upon the woman he had tried to snatch away. It was no more than another second before there was twin blast and his thigh was on fire as a bullet pierced his hip. Rage burrowed in Rhys. Rage of the likes he had not felt since Arya Rincewind was chosen. Rage that echoed back to him killing his Mentor, not that anyone cried over that. The snarl upon his face was a thing of pain and hatred shone in his green eyes. So, luck had abandoned him?! He marked the faces about him. The Princess Luna, the woman he had meant to take to his home to twist to his own means and her little boy-toy. The gun wielding woman who had shot him, and he was most certainly not going to forget the woman who clubbed him.
Oh, revenge would come. Even if he had to dig two graves, he'd fit them all in one before he buried himself in the other. Turning on his back he swore at his bad luck. Pulling himself to his feet, Rhys slammed his fist against the building. "Fleur. Damn you, wytch!" He cursed, his temper peaking dangerously. Where had she been?! Off playing with Wendyllon Wytches is what! But it was a quick thing, he did not need to make an enemy of the woman. Not yet anyways. Calling up to the window he had fallen from, he hoped she was there. "Woman. That invitation to dinner is still open." Staggering away from the building he moved towards his home. Muttering a spell to conceal the wound on his thigh. "Conceal the blood. Cause the blood to stop the flood." He gritted out the spell as he walked. With this mood and temper riding him, he would be making curses this night. Curses enough that the entire city would burn if they went wrong.
If he wasn't going to insist that they all go indoors because of the weather before, when Arya suddenly wasn't able to maintain her Spell, he would have. He had half a mind to physically push his teacher into the Palace, but Rowland saved him the trouble by pulling rank. Good thing too, because knowing how the rest of the day had been going, he probably would have ended up bungling getting Arya somewhere out of the elements.
Walking inside behind Arya, he couldn't help but brood/marvel over just how awful this one day had been. It seemed like literally every single aspect of Castle life had taken a marked turn for the worse, and there was nothing he'd been able to do the entire time but stand back, watch and make them even worse. All he could do was hope that the Physik would be able to help Myrus and that the bloody Young Army of all people would successfully return Princess Luna. As he stood by the fire shivering his balls off, he saw Cuyler place his smelly furs on Arya in a move he probably thought was smooth. But Atkin was so bummed out he couldn't even bring himself to glare at the guy. At least tomorrow couldn't be this bad, right?
Right? The woman flinched at the sudden gunfire, the loud noise momentarily setting off the body's WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT reaction, only for her to figure out rather quickly that neither she nor the princess had taken a bullet, so there was no need for immediate alarm. In fact, from the looks of things, she decided to join in on harming that dark wizard, which was fine by her. But more importantly, she needed to get back to the Castle as soon as possible.
She wasn't going to argue over the moral justification of just taking a boat because everyone there ran off scared, the woman merely boarded the vessel. She didn't know the first thing about sailing a boat, so she'd just leave it to the one who looked like she did. Instead, she opted to find some place that seemed relatively blocked off from the wind and held the princess tightly to herself. The poor lass was hanging in there, but she wanted to keep her conditioning from worsening any further. She wasn't a doctor, but sharing body heat seemed like the best route to go from here. She didn't think to bring anything like a heavy cloak, so it was the best she could do until they could get to the Castle.
Lyra looked back over her shoulder at Richard's comment. A soft chuckle escaped her lips as her gaze took in the man's singed hair. However, she quickly clamped her mouth shut, lips thinning as she realized a moment too late that her laughter could be taken the wrong way. After all, she did not wish to offend the man. "I am afraid that I do not. However, I do not doubt that Asha the Magykal likely has a few tricks up her sleeve," she replied apologetically, before graciously gesturing to Asha. She gave the woman a lopsided smile before facing forward once more before the hint of a blush threatened to reappear. Bold one minute and shy the next, it was kind of her style, at least when it came to flirting that is. She just wasn't use to such things, having always put others before herself, so this was sort of new territory for her. Admittedly though, she actually liked it, this newfound part of herself that she was tentatively exploring. She vaguely wondered if anything would become of this, this--she honestly didn't know what to call it. Feelings? Attraction? Desire? Whatever it was, she pushed it out of her mind for the time being. She would hopefully ponder the deeper meaning of it some other time.
She tossed the lightly charred blanket onto her bed before stepping over to her chest of drawers. She closed her eyes for a moment and silently prayed to the gods that Myrus's book wasn't in horrid shape. She took a deep breath before opening her eyes and looking down at the book. Well, the cover didn't look too bad, which was some relief. However, she figured that that wasn't the most integral part. The cover could be salvaged, but written words could not. She cautiously opened the book and flipped through the pages. She let out a sigh of relief at seeing that it wasn't illegible. "Thank the gods," she murmured. A soft smile came to her features as her fingers skimmed over the pages in an almost reverent like manner. However, her brows soon furrowed slightly and her eyes squinted a bit as she noticed something odd. "Asha, come look at this," she called the other woman once, glancing over at her before looking back down at the strange writing that had suddenly appeared.
Thalia loved the little girl in her arms, and she laughed slightly at everything she was doing, especially when it came to her shooting flames at Richard. She never had to worry about such things, and the fact that the little girl seemed to think it was funny too only made things better in her mind. Zekarra was such a cute little girl, and she definitely didn't shy away from the fact that she was a dragon, and a human.
"Oh lighten up a little bit Richard, she is just a baby after all. And clearly she takes after her mother and finds you at least slightly annoying, isn't that right darling... Baby dragons are different than human or mutant children Richard, she gets her abilities right away, as opposed to when they reach adolescence since that would be a long time down the road you know," Thalia said, still looking at Zekarra, smiling, "And no darling, we don't touch things that aren't ours," she added when the child went for Asha's necklace.
"I trust my brother to your care then..." Valda said, glad that someone seemed to know what she was doing for the time being. There wasn't much she could do, at least right now, but she was concerned with how long it was taking them to return with Luna, so she decided to take things into her own hands. "Look, I know things have been a little hectic, but I'm going to go see about getting my sister back. There is no way I'm letting them turn her into a witch," Valda said, before she used her magic, and teleported to where Luna and Harlianne were.
"Luna!" Valda said, rushing over to her. She knew that there wasn't a second to lose, so she didn't pay any attention to Harlianne as she started working her magic. She knew that there wasn't much time before Luna would fall to the Port Witch Coven, the CradleSnatching being irreversible, so she just had to pull this off. It was really the first time she'd ever been able to use her Queenling magic, but at least it was for a good thing. Somehow, in someway, Valda managed to reverse the CradleSnatching right before the time limit was up. "Luna? Are you okay?" she asked her, hoping her sister would regain consciousness soon.
"Might I ask the two of you, if I may... Why you wish to hear about the Myth of Four? That story is not really native to this part of the world... I am curious as to how you two know about it..." Sylvi said, looking over at the twins, giving them a kind smile. Despite the fact that the twins had gone through her things, she couldn't help but be curious about them, they were certainly an interesting pair, that was for sure, and she did want to know more about them.
The Myth of Four was the sort of stories she grew up with back home, and she doubted a bunch of people in this part of the world would even want to hear about it. Though growing up, she did love those stories, actually, when she chose a name for herself as a bard, she had chosen a name that she had found in one of the old stories. Growing up though, her favorite had always been the Myth of Four, especially since there was so many mysterious things about them, she could never keep up with it all.
Myth took out her lute and strummed it. She knew the song and she knew it well. Why she was asked to sing it didn't matter to her. She would be able to captivate the audience easily with her voice anyway. "You ask, I answer. The Song of the Four, sang by yours truly. Sit back and enjoy." She started the melody easily enough, allowing the notes to enter the audience's ears. The song itself was a beautiful story told from her homeland. It often was used in children's tales, but inspiration was often founded.
"Now come gather 'round, children and more to hear the tale of those of the Four. Their story is told from years that have past to now when we sing of when we knew of hem last. First there was Halley, the oldest of their lot, chaos she weaved, to whom it mattered not. Bruce came next, the only man of them all, the stars and the cosmos all heard his call. Astrid came next, animals she adored, she could move in a blink and could not be moored. Nova the youngest, the last of the Four, she kept them all living forever and more."
Myth continued the story, telling of their actions and the lives they lived. She couldn't help but smile as she loved the story and used it often as an inspiration for her own adventures. Once she was done, she paraded the last of the chords out before she stopped, taking a moment and bowing. "Thank you, thank you. You've been wonderful." With or withotu applause, Myth knew she killed it. Figuratively speaking, of course.
Fleur fiddled with the hairpin in her hands, feeling the power. If Nera spoke true (and why wouldn't she?) Fleur had a powerful tool in her hands. One she would have to practice and master. She glanced back at he ghost of Nera, realizing that if she were to move o another locaion, she would have to leave Nera behind. That pained her, but she also had to do what was best for those in her flock. She took the pin and placed it in her own hair. Turning back to face Constance, she spoke, "Queen Valda will get her comeuppance, of that I can assure you. I may have lost Luna, but I do not plan on backing down. I will send them a reminder to not try this again. For now, we move the children. And have some of the experienced witches start placing protective runes and charms around the perimeter. The last we need is a surprise."
With that, Fleur left Constance to deal with that. She needed to stay behind for something important. Fleur motioned her hands and closed her eyes. She pictured the castle as she saw it when she arrived for the Coronation. She could see the outlay of it and noted the target. If they wanted to target her and her home, then fine. But they had to know that actions had consequences. That was the basics of Magyk wasn't it? She summoned her power, sending forth her energy to the castle. Soon, it would take hold. For now, she faced Nera's ghost and offered her a subtle nod. Hopefully, Nera knew she had to go. But she would be back.
So what did Fleur do? Well, a large fireball appeared in the sky and began hurtling towards the castle. It was coming in fast and hot (ha!). The target was not anyone in particular. She only wanted to send a message. The Hole in the Wall Tavern was in its path. The tavern was not home to anyone except the ghosts of the departed, however luck was not in favor of a small boy who had hidden there, away from his abusive father. It was a solace and safe haven for him. That is, until the fireball hit, engulfing the tavern in flames, and the boy was nothing but ash.
Present Day - The Castle: December 21st, 12,507 - 3:15 PM
There was a huge round of applause for Myth's singing. Her voice truly was a gift, but of course it helped that most of the patrons were heavily intoxicated and more prone to showing their emotional response to the performance. Marya couldn't help but shoot a smirking glance over at her adoptive father, wondering how Bruce would react to the pretty bard singing about the Myth of Four. It was the entire reason she had requested it, after all. Marya's gaze then shifted over to Sylvi.
"I'm not native to this part of the world either," Marya replied with a shrug. "Да јој кажемо? Или нека то сама схвати?"
"Оох, потпуно би требали, било би забавније видети да ли она верује или не." Medea responded with a giggle. Bruce just looked at Myth, but he didn't say anything. To him, it was still a little weird to hear the Myth of Four out loud, though she didn't do that bad of a job telling it.
Marya nodded, snickering along with her twin sister before she turned to face Sylvi. "The Myth of Four isn't a myth at all. It's real," she bragged. She then nodded over at Bruce. "Your so called Master of the Cosmos? He's our dad - technically speaking."
"Marya, Medea, don't go telling stories like that alright?" Bruce said, turning to look at them.
"What? It's true," Marya protested with an eye roll. "Go on, go impress Myth the Muse by holding a star in your hand. Tell her she's your Moon Lily or whatever disgusting pet name your father gave your mother. Just live a little already!"
"Really you two? I can't do that, and you know it," Bruce said, though he was more of meaning he couldn't do it here, in a crowd of people. He wasn't even too sure if anyone around them wouldn't freak out.
Arya Rincewind
Location: The Palace - the Long Walk Personality Traits: Brave * Stubborn * Intelligent * Impatient * Curious * Lonely
Becky guided Myrus away from the others, retreating to the Prince's room where he could be treated better. It would allow him to receive some privacy, and although Becky made no mention of it, he seemed to be already regaining a bit of color in his face. His vitals were far from ideal but they had stopped in their decline and were slowly beginning to return to normal levels. It was a good an indication as any that the House of Silvers would not lose a member on this day - at least, not to death.
Back in the Long Walk, Arya could not help but blush slightly as Cuyler placed his furs around her. The chill still felt as if it were in her bones, but an instantaneous fix was unlikely and the fur would help in time. Of course, getting out of the elements was going to do wonders for her as well. Not that Arya would have ever admitted that she needed to leave the cold, that it had been too much for her to handle - once she set her mind to something, that was that and it was final.
"My Queen, if you would allow me to..." Arya began, only to be cut off as Valda vanished, transporting herself to the Port, "...I could assist you." Arya sighed, staring at the spot where Valda had been. She could understand Valda's impatience, but it was her duty as ExtraOrdinary Wizard to assist the Queen, especially in matters of Magyk. Her eyes caught flames through one of the windows of the Palace and she peered out in greater detail, Sensing the distant but chaotic Magyk occurring on the Castle Walls.
"It would appear the witch covens have declared a victor," Rowland mused, catching the same disturbance that Arya had seen. "The question is - which one?"
Arya shook her head. "No, the matter to consider is whether that was the first blow in a war against the Castle...It matters little if the Wendrons or the Port Witches triumphed. A witch is a witch..."
Down in the Servants Quarters, Lyra's bedroom continued to be quite the social event destination. Holding Zekarra's mouth shut evidently was not want the baby wanted and no matter what Richard did afterwards, the baby just wasn't having it. The baby stared at Richard, before screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Just Asha will do...And in a moment, I can tend to your wounded ego," Asha told Richard, a bit amused at the fit the baby dragon was throwing. She was a bit relieved the baby wasn't going for her necklace anymore, as she doubted Zekarra would be able to handle the power it was emitting. She then walked over to Lyra and peered at the pages, seeing the writing in a language neither of them understood. "What tongue is this?" Asha murmured.
"Allow me," Puck said, waltzing over to the book and ready to obnoxiously translate - but he hadn't seen that language before either and he walked away again with awkward embarrassment. So much for swagger.
The Port: Port Witch Coven House
Rhys would have quite the long walk home, given that the distance between the Port and the Castle is a fifteen minute trip by barge. To walk, it'll be at least an hour. On the bright side of things, his spell is successful and his wound closes up, no longer bleeding. No one bothers him or stops him on his walk, with most people going to their homes in the Port or sharing rumors about what was going to happen at the Castle. Some were calling it the end of the era, with the cursed child on the throne.
On the barge, Harlianne had gotten them halfway to the Castle when Valda appeared and performed the Reverse. "Ya one of 'em Magyk lads?" Harlianne asked her, not realizing that she was the Queen of the Castle. She figured that the circlet was some sort of Magykal artifact and Valda's hair hardly suggested Queen. Harlianne then glanced over at Luna, noticing that the princess seemed to be waking up. "So....how much coin am I gettin', lass?"
Back inside the Port Witch Coven House, Constance nodded. "The twins around here somewhere? It'll be a quicker trip," Constance added. "You know what, I can find those little buggers," she offered, knowing that Fleur might wish to have a moment to say goodbye, and she left the room. One way or another, she'd get herself to the Badlands. Her Magyk was feeling a bit drained after the encounter, but she could Transport herself there if she needed to.
"Go, Witch Mother," Nera urged, her form starting to fade slightly. "...I do have one request. If you are to bury me, use my true name....Esren Melinda Carlan..." Fleur would then feel a soft chill come over her, before Nera no longer Appeared to her.
Location: Port Witch Coven House Personality Traits: Loyal * Spoiled * Articulate * Arrogant * Brilliant * Dependent Skills: N/A
Luna's eyes slowly opened up once more as she felt the slight sway of the barge moving across the water, and the cold air nipping at her skin. Her vision still very blurry and her head was feeling like it was going to explode, but she could hear the familiar voice of her sister as her vision started to clear more. And the Reverse was being performed Luna's attention now fully on Valda and gave her a weak smile. "I'm glad you came.." Luna said weakly as she turned her head ever so slightly seeing Amarantha and the Young Army boy holding her up, and the mysterious woman who was there. Luna still wasn't sure at all what to think of her at the moment, or how she knew that she was there in the first place.
Luna's attention then turned towards Harlianne asking if she was still getting paid, and Luna did make that promise but they weren't technically at the Castle just yet either. "I'll pay you personally once we are at the Castle.." Luna finally said towards her, she didn't want to back off on a promise, and the woman did scare her quiet a bit as well. Luna was glad that Valda had come to her as well, she was still very terrified of what the Port Witches would end up making her do if the Reverse didn't happen.
"Ah good you are awake again, sleep well?" The voice said, Luna then paused as she looked around, and closed her eyes tightly she was hoping that it would have gone. But it came back to haunt her which Luna was scared of, she shivered slightly as Luna felt another cold breeze go past her. Luna decided to remain quiet for now, she wasn't going to answer the voice at all or give a response to it and made a note to see the Physic later.
Cuyler stayed close to Ayra after placing his furs on her shoulders. He felt the cold radiating off of her and though he normally would have, he feared placing his arms around her would cross some invisible barrier. The blush that Ayra produced however, did not go unnoticed. She was positively blue so the dramatic change in colour was clearly visible to him. He smirked to himself and glanced away. The Queen spoke and Ayra spoke up but before she could offer her assistance the Queen had vanished. Cuyler squeezed his hands into fists, accidently bumping his arm against Ayra’s in doing so. Magyk would always be hard for Cuyler to be comfortable around and it would cause him to be on edge all winter since he would be stuck here until the thaw. The added irritation came from Valda simply disappearing before Ayra could come with her. This was not the time for rash action; although, a small part of him was grateful for her sudden departure without the ExtraOrdinary wizard. The wave of anger and fear was short lived when Rowland spoke up. Cuyler’s gaze shifted to the window and he moved forward, standing behind Ayra still as he looked out and saw the orange glow against the white background. A victory? Hardly, yes this was a warning of some kind and Cuyler didn’t think it would come from the Wendron Witches but then again, they had yet to return with the Princess. ”Do we have anyway of keeping track of the Queen?” Cuyler worried she would get caught in the crosshairs and although she was raised to be a witch, Cuyler wasn’t wholly confident in her abilities. Normally Cuyler would just go out and discover for himself what had happened, what was burning and where the Queen had gone. He had no use for Magyk and what it provided. Cuyler had learned to do most things on his own and he had a unique tracking ability that aided him in all areas of life. Cuyler was sure he would be able to find Valda quickly but Cuyler’s main concern wasn’t with the Queen. It was within the Castle walls so he was wasn’t going to leave. No, Magyk would have to aid them all now.
Amarantha had been leaning on Boy 512 heavily when Queen Valda appeared out of nowhere. Her good leg was growing weaker with the effort of trying to support her own weight and the biting cold coming off the water was not helping. As it was Boy 512’s teeth were chattering and Amarantha was about to smack them out of his mouth for how it annoyed her. It wasn’t the poor boy’s fault and Amarantha could hardly blame him for the cold was affecting her just as much. No, what was fueling Amarantha’s annoyance was the fact that she needed someone to keep her from falling over. When the Queen had appeared, she immediately pushed herself away from the boy to stand on her own but the weakness in her good leg wouldn’t hold her and it gave out, sending her to the deck of the barge. Squeezing her eyes shut so as not to cry out from the pain, she remained hunched over for a time, breathing deeply before she sat herself down. ”My Queen, I do not believe any Wendon Witches survived our encounter. Jadis did not make her presence known after I was thrown from the window. The Port witches proved, difficult and prolonged my return of your sister unharmed.” Amarantha bowed her head to the young Queen in submission. This was yet another difficult thing for Amarantha, to admit defeat and accept that she had needed help; however, her loyalties remained to the Young Army and whoever sat on the throne so the blow was lessened for Amarantha as she completed her mission in returning Princess Luna to her sister. Her mission completed Amarantha shuffled to the edge of the barge, away from the inner warmth and embraced the cold as she retreated into herself. It was a bitter-sweet moment. Things did not go the way the planned, the nearly never did but she had hardly expected to be this screwed over. What was going to happen to her when she returned to the Castle and Puck saw her like this? The thought hardened Amarantha’s outward appearance as the fear took her over inside.
Valda did the thing he would have done in her situation, and he couldn't begrudge that at all. If Gordy had been kidnapped by some loony witches and he knew how to Transport like, he would have zapped off to go find him as well. Hell, he probably would have done so well before she had. Sure, someone could bring up the inherent danger of potentially teleporting directly into a battle or in the middle of a witch den, but he wouldn't have particularly cared.
"Y'know the Queen's a witch too," Atkin interjected at Arya's assertion that a witch is a witch. "If I were a Wendron Witch and I'd just taken out the Port Witches, last thing I'd want to do is attack the Castle like that. Far as I'd be concerned, my coven already owns the place. It's like when your mate gets a new place. You don't start trashing the place immediately after he moves in. Nah, it's gotta be the port witches. It's showin' off power and dominance. 'We're the big lads in town now, so you better do what we say.'"
It was something he'd seen once or twice before. One gang takes out another and then they make a big show about it. Same deal. At least he hoped so. Even the witches wouldn't be stupid enough to seriously try taking over the Castle now by force, would they? The Young Army's crawling the streets, Wizard Tower has all it's magical wards up, the Guards are on high alert and the Port Witches had just had a big slap fight with the Wendron Witches, this would be the worst possible time to try an invasion. But what did he know? The woman's eyes widened when Valda suddenly appeared before her but made no move to stop her from doing whatever it was. Magyk was something she only knew enough about to work with or around it as required. The Reverse was far beyond her depth, but it seemed to do the princess quite well, for she woke up for the first time in a worryingly long amount of time.
"My queen, would you like to take the princess back to the Palace?" She didn't let go of Luna, for she wasn't sure if she was strong enough to stand on her own once more. But if the queen was able to Transport herself and her sister back to the Castle, all would be fine for the woman. But if not, then things got even trickier, having to escort not one, but two members of the Royal Family back to the Palace without any further harm coming to either.
"Jadis is the Wendron Mother, right? If so," the woman looked away from everyone else, at the ground as the images of Jadis' gruesome death flashed in her mind. "She's... no longer of this world." Her gaze returned to Valda. "I saw her die. I don't know what Magyk caused her demise, but she... dissolved from within into nothing. I don't know how to describe it." She hoped Valda wouldn't take the news too badly. She'd had quite a rough day as well, this news would only make it worse.
Lyra's head turned sharply when she heard the baby start to scream, a frown pulling down at her features. She didn't like seeing the infant upset, or anyone for that matter. As such, she was half-tempted to go over to the new parents and offer them her help, not that she was anymore skilled with newborns than they were. A grimace soon crossed her features as the image of her long, beautiful locks being burnt off and leaving her essentially bald flashed through her head. Yeah, maybe she would let the fireproof dragon mother handle that--situation. After all, she would be lucky to leave the baby's fiery temper tantrum with her life, let alone with her dignity intact. She just hoped that the baby didn't burn down the entire building.
She shook her head lightly, pulling herself out of her thoughts and turning her attention to Asha. She gave the woman a small smile before angling the book towards her. "I am unsure. The main text is most assuredly the Old Tongue of my people, but this smaller text--" she began, before being obnoxiously interrupted by Puck. She glanced back at him, arching a pale brow expectantly. However, it quickly became clear that he didn't know what language it was either. As he walked off in seeming embarrassment, her gaze, which was now lit with amusement, slowly came back up to meet Asha's. She suddenly couldn't help but feel more self-conscious than before as she realized how close they were standing to one another. She quickly looked back down at the book, distracting herself with the strange text.
Her eyes squinted slightly as she spotted something she hadn't noticed before. In the corner of the book, written in small letters, were the initials G.M.M.S. She ran her fingertips over the letters, her brows furrowing slightly, before her gaze went back over to her chest of drawers. "The text isn't the only oddity. Here take this," she stated, handing the book over to Asha. She walked over to her jewelry box and opened the top of it. She let out a small sigh of relief to see that the small portrait was still intact. "This small portrait was tucked in between the pages. What do you make of it?" she questioned as she walked back over to Asha with the slip of paper in hand.
Richard gave a prolonged and forlorn sigh at the antics of Thalia. "We also do not light our fathers on fire, mon cher." He noted with humor in his voice as he lowered his head to kiss the small Zekarra on the head. Giving her mother dragoness a reproving look while doing so and managing to make it look cheeky. "Forgive me dearest wifey, but I am not fire proof and you don't need me worrying about burns when I am here to be your everlasting servant."
Giving a peck to the mother of his child's hand, he wrapped his arms about Thalia's shoulders protectively and not to small in a way possessive. Doubting the small Zekarra wanted anything to do with him as of current. It wounded the man slightly, but he shoved it aside. She was a baby and hardly knew he wasn't fireproof. Was he resistant? Yes, but not foolhardy. As the others uncovered a tome of strange writing, Richard thought it might be wise to look himself though he could not resist a parting jab. "You all offer to look, instead of asking the Dragon Lady of the room who probably knows more? My apologies for my wit dear ladies. It's my truest failing." His head laid on Thalia's shoulder as he gave a grin at the current company and his young daughter. "It reads... 'Now this is a story all about how my life got flipped turned upside down...'" His voice remaining serious and courteous as he raised a brow. "Shall I continue?"
Rhys Asher
Location: The Castle walking to his home
Pain was nothing new. It happened at times and it was never convenient but he would deal with it. The spell thankfully closed the wound in his leg. The walk home was not what he would call pleasant but he needed the time. Barges would be faster, yet he could feel the icy rage stir within him. Damn the ExtraOrdinary Wizards for allowing the Witches into the castle not to mention the Young Army! Thought that thought led him to a cool and calculated notion. The Young Army was known for stealing and enslaving children namely of political enemies and orphans. But truth was never a clear thing and people were very loud about their young.
Listening to the whispers, Rhys only grew more elated inside. Rumors were spreading about what was happening at the castle and the rogue wizard was in glee to hear about the supposed 'cursed child' on the throne. With the suspicious death of the Queen, the Witches' little war in the Port Coven's Quarters, he suspected there would not be much good will towards either side. Battles were messy things and often people on the side could get hurt. Property would be damaged. The Young Army was in the Castle as well. A cruel smile sprung to Rhys's lips. He could work with this. Young children disappearing the supposedly fill the Young Army's greedy ranks. Perhaps, turning up a time later dullard and broken. Waifs and orphans would not do for that. He would need prominent children. Those from respectable families. A complication. One that would not do as of ye. Setting aside the idea of action, Rhys focused on the idea of words. The far more powerful and hard to prove weapon. A dagger that was invisible, and as useful as fear.
Many people here were frightened. Terrified even. He would use that terror. Lure the Young Army woman out again and into his clutches. Women often responded well to kindness so he would continue that trend. Continuing on his way he feigned a cough which in truth was a grimace of pain. Words of magyck leaving his lips as he drew out a shiny coin and peered into the reflective surface. [color=Gold]"Woman of the Young Army with eyes of ice blue. Hair of Auburn, curls of light. I Watch and Listen to you." Careful to keep the coin in front of him lest he would not look where he was going the man, peered against the surface. Hoping to see some glimmer of a name.
Myth took in the applause like she needed it to thrive. It was so good to hear it, even if the patrons were drunk out of their minds. It made her job easier, as far as she could tell and it often landed her with a warm bed and food for the night. Tonight was a bit different though. She wasn't sure why the twins would recommend she sing a song from her own homeland, but she was thankful she knew the words to it. She hopped off the makeshift stage, waving to her adoring public before she returned to Bruce.
Instead of sitting on the man's lap again, she decided to take a seat near him. "So did you like my song? I've sung that countless times before, being from that area and all, but I never tire of it. I love the story. It's inspirational. Kind of part of the reason why I do what I do."
"So Bruce, I never asked about you. What brings you around these parts?"
Fleur La Mallificum
Location: Port Witch Coven
Fleur nodded at Constance as the woman prepared to depart. Thankful she wasn't to be asked any more questions, Fleur turned to face Nera, hearing the girl's last remaining words before she dissapeared. She glanced at the corpse of her lost love and she picked her up. She would not use Magyk to do the deed. Nera deserved her full attention. She would also not bother to bury here nearby. The Port, while their home now, was never truly a place she longed to stay. Nera deserved better.
"I will take care of this, love. Believe you me. Our enemies will pay dearly for taking you away. And once I find the power in this pin, I will use it to the full extent. This is not goodbye, this is merely see you soon." With that, Fleur took one last look around the room before she followed Constance out to be Transported to their new home away from home.
Thalia rolled her eyes at Richard, "Well Richard, I think I did mention to you NOT to call me wifey. It gets really annoying, really quickly. Also, it's not her fault, after all, most dragons have parents who are dragons, not mutants, like you are, or dragons who used to be human like me, so she's just doing what's natural to her, even if you aren't fireproof." What she said was true, most dragons didn't have to worry about setting other dragons on fire when they were babies, so she didn't know better.
When she heard the others going over to the book, she just rolled her eyes. "Let me have a look at that would you?" she said, before she moved over, adjusting Zekarra in her arms so she couldn't breathe fire on the book, and she examined it. The instant she saw the words, her eyes grew wide, and she was wondering where the hell they had gotten that book. "Where the hell did this come from? You have no idea what's in it do you? Well Richard, an old friend of ours from several millennia in the past was the original writer of this, and it was one of her children or descendants that translated it into this language... This book and the information in it is not something to mess around with..."
Queen Valda
Location: The Palace - Lawn
Valda let out a sigh of relief when she saw Luna wake up. She was glad to see her sister regaining consciousness, she kind of zeroed in on her, ignoring everyone else for the time being. The Port Witches had almost gotten her, and if she had shown up a second later, then she would have been too late to reverse the CradleSnatching. "I'm glad you are okay Luna... If I had been a moment later getting here, I would have been too late to help you..." she said softly, giving her sister a smile.
Now she turned towards the others, listening to them now. Amarantha's words about the Wendron Witches was not something she had wanted to hear, since it sounded like that meant the Port Witches had won the battle. The fact that her entire coven had just gone off in a fight, and had just died, made things a little more difficult for her. When she thought about it, it was also weird, since technically she was the last Wendron Witch if every other one had died. "It's alright... Don't worry about it..." she said to Amarantha.
Sylvi the Bard
Location: The Ramblings - Winking Duck Tavern
Sylvi let out a small laugh hearing the twins' words. They were trying to tell her that the Myth of Four was actually real, and that one of them was sitting by her at the bar? That sort of talk was definitely kind of crazy, though there was one thing she noticed. The fact that the Master of the Cosmos in the story was named Bruce, and that was the same name as the man next to her. There was also the fact that he looked nothing really like the twins, so she figured the girls were probably adopted or something.
"You know? I kind of find that hard to believe, I mean, it is after all just a story, a myth about 4 powerful gods... I don't think it would make sense for them to be here anyway, I mean, why would they bother coming here of all places when they could be just about anywhere else in the universe? It doesn't make much sense to me," she said, looking at the twins. She wasn't sure whether or not she believed them, but she did know one thing, if for some weird reason these two were telling the truth? Then something bad might happen if what the myth said was true.
Present Day - The Castle: December 21st, 12,507 - 3:30 PM
The Winking Duck Tavern
Marya raised an eyebrow, before she just laughed at Myth's assertions. She knew the concept of incredible power was hard to handle, but she hadn't expected that a bard of all people would deny it outright. "Doesn't your people believe they'll return in times of great crisis?" Marya taunted. "Maybe the mystery of the missing Crown Princess was enough to get him to come down here and sort things out." She snickered again slightly, her blue eyes darting over towards her twin sister for a moment, before returning to look at Sylvi.
Medea just snickered slightly in response, and Bruce turned to look away from Myth for a moment to look at the twins. "What did I tell you two about being nice to others?" he said, raising an eyebrow at them. He shook his head before addressing Myth. "The song was great," he said with a smile, before hearing the other part of her question. "Well... Looking for one of my sisters, and making sure these two stay out of trouble."
Getting an idea, Marya looked away from Sylvi and turned to face Myth. "He likes you - a lot. I've never seen him like a girl, boy, or anything else before - so this is a big deal. And hey, if you marry him, you might end up ruling over either Asgard or a textbook," Marya said, smirking at Bruce as if to say your move, nerd.
"I told you not to be telling stories or lies Marya..." Bruce said with an eye roll, having to bite back his tongue saying that technically his sister would rule Asgard before him.
"О, заборавио сам, причање лажи је више од твоје мајке," Marya retorted with a laugh. She then turned back to looking at Sylvi, shaking her head. "He's so lame."
He let out another sigh, "Look Marya... You can't just say things randomly because you feel like it... It could cause major problems..."
Palace Landing Dock
Harlianne wasn't quite satisfied with Luna's answer, but she didn't stop the barge. The kid did look pretty pitiful and it tugged at the small bit of heroism left in her cold, black heart. Sirena would have insisted on helping Luna without a thought - Harlianne scowled slightly, remembering how Sirena's tendencies to pick up wounded birds ended up working out. It had gotten her killed in the end.
"Lass, drink this," Harlianne called to Amarantha, tossing her a flask. It was curiously warm to the touch, as if it had been kept out under the sun for hours - rather than being stuck in the freezing cold on board a ship. "Me mate, Asha, she gave it to me - says it's 'posed to speed up healin' wounds and such...Don't waste it by drinkin' all of it though or I'll give ya a new wound to heal."
Road out of the Port
Now, as Rhys continues to walk, he'll make it to the point marked as the Deepen Ditch without very many issues. This is where his journey becomes a little bit more complicated. All of the people walking from the Castle he met? He becomes more obvious as to how they got there. The boatyard had capitalized on all of the fleeing people, offering one way ferry service that would take Port citizens away from the Castle as quickly as possible.
Of course, there are rumors of a so called Smugglers' Bolt that would certainly come in handy, cutting his travel time down from hours to just a single hour. As for his Magyk, his luck has taken a change for the better. He would be able to see Amarantha in the reflection of the coin and in the background, he could make out the Palace Landing Stage.
Palace Servants Quarters - Lyra's Bedroom
Asha studied the picture that Lyra had handed it. "Remarkable - this cannot have been a painting or a sketch," she whispered. No, it was far too detailed - and odd. The grey ground and the towering buildings, the strange outfits and outlandish colors. However, a blue gem in the image caught her eye. It was something that she recognized and Asha paled in realization.
Baby Zekarra laughed eagerly at Richard's jokes, clapping her hands together, before there was another Achoo! and a fireball came out of her mouth. But instead of hitting father dearest, it crashed into Puck and the smaller gentlemen screamed, dropping to the ground and rolling to put out the flames. "Get your baby under control, woman!" Puck spat.
Asha laughed slightly, before she showed the miniature portrait to Thalia. "Does it speak of these?" Asha asked, pointing at her necklace for a moment before her gaze dropped back down to the strange images. She couldn't make heads or tails of them.
Arya Rincewind
Location: The Palace - the Long Walk
Arya couldn't help but be hyper aware as Cuyler's arm bumped into hers, as if the simple gesture had been a powerful Magyk that heightened all of her senses. As much as she knew that her mind needed to be on work - thankfully the Young Army was already enforcing a curfew, as otherwise, she'd need to implement one due to that blast - but instead, she did a rough estimate of the distance between her and Cuyler.
And then in a quiet gesture, placed one of her gloved hands on his. She typically wore gloves, due to extensive scarring on her hand due to a Magykal accident in her apprenticeship. Rowland had been sympathetic, but it had taught her a lesson and as he put it - it built character. "Yes, I should be able to perform a Charm that can do the trick," Arya agreed.
Rowland nodded in agreement with Atkin - he felt similarly about the situation. It was a mistake to just write off all witches as being the same. "For the Port Witches to have made such a grandiose statement...the Wendron Witches must have fallen," Rowland explained. With Valda off to save her sister and Luna still unaccounted for, there would be no eligible heirs for the throne if they were not careful. And Rowland sincerely doubted that Myrus would produce an heir any time soon, due to his age and his condition.
"Atkin, would you mind sending a message rat to the Port Authority, requesting a status check on the Port Witch Coven home?" Arya requested, mentally preparing a spell to determine Valda's location. "There should be a bell on the wall behind you - ring it and a rat should be summoned here directly. Palace line, so it's prioritized in times of crisis - and times of peace as well, really..."
Arya then took a breath and focused, only to open her eyes with surprise. "They're here - outside, at the landing."
The Badlands: Port Witch Coven Safe House/Antonije's Observatory
*The Port Witch Coven is where it says Simon's observatory, up in the slate quarries*
Fleur, Witch Mother
Constance, Adult Witch
Bernice, Adult Witch
Three unnamed adult witches
Marya Magnisky, Young Witch - missing
Medea Magnisky, Young Witch - missing
Ten unnamed young witches between the ages of 4 and 17
Two unnamed young warlocks between the ages of 4 and 17
italics indicates only the GM can control this NPC
Located north of the Castle, the Badlands earned its name primarily on account of the Land Wurms that call it home. A gigantic draconic type species, Land Wurms enjoy the harsh conditions provided by the mountains and the slate quarries, creating elaborate tunnel systems for travel and shelter. Very few call the Badlands home, though the occasional necromancer has been known to set up shop here. In fact, it was here in the Badlands that Nera learned her trade when she was a budding novice witch in search of Magyk and filled with anger.
The Port Witch Coven's safe house is actually an old observatory - who built it and why it's there are not really known. The structure is sound and secure, reinforced with various Charms and spells as to be able to keep the Coven safe for up to six months. Food and other items have been stolen from the nearby Farmlands, but with Magyk on their side, it isn't really a hard feat to accomplish at all. The real issue would be moving the entire Coven again. The children are too young to be able to effectively Transport themselves and there's no sign that the twins have returned yet.
"That damn Antonije is out," Constance informed Fleur once she arrived. "Horse isn't in the stable. But from what I can tell, he'll be back in a few days - hopefully he brings the brats with him." Her gaze then softened slightly, looking at Fleur. "It's almost dark. Land Wurms, the nasty things, they'll be coming out soon...We can bury her at first light."
