It was the stone then, not the carvings, that caused that strange, electric sensation. Isidore pocketed the shard as he strode towards the mountainside building. He had briefly entertained the idea of breaking off a couple more shards from the black slabs, but held off from it. They appeared to have been untouched for a good while, after all. There would be opportunity to backtrack at a later time and collect more of them if need be.
And indeed, greater sights caught his attention. The warden of the prison finally revealed itself, yet another fantastical creation in a world that had already defied his understanding of reality three times over. Rather than the hilariously obese wardens that his men often mocked over beer and cigarettes, this was a monster that could cow even the most hardened individual. A giant of stone, whose footfalls caused the earth to quake. Though Isidore had always been of the belief that a sufficiently powerful gun would suffice as a brutal but efficient end to any man-made problem, the gun he’d need for this situation…most likely wouldn’t exist back in his old world either.
Not one that he could hold in his two hands, at least.
The colossus ran a different direction, however, and as its form disappeared behind the building, the dark haired youth spotted three others. Two normal human beings, a petite Asian and a baby-faced Caucasian, as well as another individual with strange ears. He wasn’t so out of touch with modern trends that he couldn’t recognize a furry when he saw one, but still, it was beginning to become somewhat uncanny now, how many incredibly beautiful women existed. Isidore couldn’t help but let a small smile surface. Before he got ahead of himself, however, he slipped back around the corner, avoiding detection. They were certainly more well-armed than his own group; until Augusta could confirm their capabilities with her blessed eyes, he had no intention of initiating communication.
And she seemed to require his presence regardless, judging by the tone of her voice.
Striding over to the woman, he placed a firm hand on her shoulder, prepared to steady her or push her aside at any sign of something truly dangerous manifesting from the black slab. “There’s three others around the corner. A girl, a boy, and a fox-eared woman,” he said. “They are armed with two swords to our one. A stone golem ran off to the side as well, in the opposite direction that we walked in. Nick, guard our back and give a sign if they’re approaching. Augusta, if something useful is gleaned from this, don’t share this knowledge so readily. It's leverage.”
A great stone warrior... Needless to say, there was no practical way to challenge such a creature in battle for the moment. Perhaps another time... But at the same time, it was seemingly paying little attention to Nobunaga or those who stood at her sides.
Excellent. Even more perfect was the moment at which a cloaked figure burst from the tower and completely distracted the giant. At the moment, lingering here had become quite foolish. Nobunaga was no coward, but she was aware they simply did not possess the tools to fight a gigantic living statue at the moment. Rather, she would instead pursue the more lucrative path of attempting to leave as quickly as possible. There was no value in stupidity.
Those large stones, too... the giant had avoided them.
"... We should take this opportunity to leave unopposed," announce Nobunaga, confidently striding forward, "Take care to avoid the black stone slabs. The giant surely chose not to step on them for a reason, and until we know why it is far safer not to test it."
Well...at least Malphas was being more cooperative this time around, Donovan had completed those stairs, and the person upstairs had finally spoken! That much was a relief at the very least, and she'd even nodded along at the thoughts of her compatriots before turning her head towards the latest arrival among their 'bunch'. Albeit the new girl seemed nervous, which was to be expected given the sheer lunacy of this situation. Literally.
"Name's Leannah! Got pulled here by the goddess, just like everyone else it seems-"
The catgirl suddenly froze in place, like a deer in the headlights, as her ears flicked in the direction of the left wall. Scratching noise, and the ground shifting as something that had been making the ground shake approached. Was it the Guardian? No idea. But whether it was or not, it could draw attention to them as well.
"Ok people, look alive! Planning time's up! Something is closing in on us, so let's get armed, be ready, and get moving!"
She called out aloud for the others to hear, though she wasn't trying to project her voice to everything outside those walls either. A light panic crossed her face as she spoke, though soon after a certain resolve seemed to cross her face as she whipped out her spear and looked towards the doorway.
Still leaning on Nobunaga's shoulder for support, Misaki slowly continued onward with the others to leave the area. Of course, the first thing that caught her attention was the massive stone colossus that seemed more fitting in a video game or anime than it did any sort of reality. The sight alone had left her without breath, and it was only after a brief pause that it seemed to click that this was the sort of 'guardian' that had been referred to by that goddess in the first place.
Of course, actually fighting it was tantamount to suicide, and it seemed that the other two were well aware of that fact as well. Running away was the only prudent option, but with her still trying to get a hold of her senses and the giant on the apparent hunt for them...
Well, it was obvious that a swift course of action was necessary. Nobunaga's own assertion to keep moving, however reasonable, did not sit well with Misaki, though. Until she recovered, their slowed speed would make them prime targets to be swatted into the ground should they be sighted, and given how open the area was...
Honestly, it didn't hurt to suggest otherwise; their time, however short, seemed to afford them at least a moment to weigh their options.
"...That may be so, but that area being untouched could also provide us with some time to regroup. If there is something more fearsome deeper within, we could just as well hang around the outskirts of that formation, could we not?"
She would go along with whatever the others decided upon, of course, but even a little time to reassess the situation could help everyone present... Or, well, so she hoped.
No matter what Narkissa would have tried, the nature of the situation and the fact that she had dodged the voices earlier meant that any manner of greeting after that would be some degree of awkward. Compounding the fact was that immediately after popping out, she was stunned by the ethereal workers that were building a makeshift staircase up towards her. If it weren’t for the strangely reassuring Scottish voice from the closest to her, she would have had even heavier doubts about the group.
“Scottish? Now that’s a sight for sore eyes,” she muttered, before returning a greeting in a standard British accent. “Narkissa. You’ll have to forgive my behavior… I just woke up to this, and I’m… still taking it all in. Speaking of which, what is that?” She pointed at the disappearing specters, and the now completed makeshift staircase.
Although she still remained suspicious of them, now that the stairs were completed, there was actually some room to maneuver. She stepped down towards the group, magic tome in hand—already she had learned quite a bit in the first few pages.
She still had many questions for the others –where did they come from and who they were, for example—but the strange cat-eared girl answered the first question straightforwardly without any prompting. “I see… and that fellow?” she thumbed with her free hand towards Malphas, the only person that had ignored her thus far.
Further questioning was stopped by Leannah’s exclamation. “Something dangerous? I don’t have a weapon…” Now that she was downstairs, it was clear that she was the only person that remained unarmed, despite the shoddy quality of the others’ armaments. Realizing this, she didn’t wait for a response and began to look around for the closest weapon—but at the same time, idly went through the motions for a spell, curious if she could do so.
Alice would notice the creature. It didn't seem to notice her at the current period and hasty movements would alarm it but she would have enough curiosity in her to check it out. HOWEVER! The first thing that came to mind was to get this steadily warming book off her back. Because not only did it feel uncomfortable, She had the strangest idea in her mind that the book may actually explode on her. And as such self preservation instinct would kick in.
Upon opening the book, it seemed for the most part unchanged. A quick look at that cryptic poem showed it was the same. However, upon turning the page she would notice something there that hadn't been there before. A single, simple word she could make out.
"Hello"
"H-hello" The Fae said audibly back to it
The word however, quickly faded, and the magical energy within its pages seemed to diminish greatly.
The quick diminishment of magical energy within it had caused her some alarm. The book had shown some sort of thinking, it was mayhaps her only possible guide in this godforsaken place filled with people she could not trust... Thus the Fae perhaps out of instinct or perhaps calling upon her the knowledge given to her by that disgraceful entity that called itself a goddess. Would begin to pour as much magical energy as she could into the book. To try to give it back the energy to write more.
Malphas sighed once more, annoyed that they continued to try and rush things. Looking back down at his bow, Malphas figured that such a weapon wouldn't do if their little motley crew kept continuing on so quickly. Shouldering his bow, Malphas resigned to finding something else he could use in the short term.
Before he began his own search, he noticed he was addressed by the newcomer, his attention drawn more towards what she was holding. Some sort of book? He wasn't too in the mood at the moment to really probe the girl on who she is or what ability she may have. Perhaps something to do with reading? Still, it may be in Malphas's interest to get on at least one person's good side within this group. It was also convenient that she didn't have a means to defend herself properly either. Putting on his best salesman's smile, Malphas made his way towards the pile of weapons as well.
"You were asking about me earlier, yes?" Malphas uttered to Narkissa as he looked for another weapon, or potentially something that could be used as arrows. Ideally, he desired something small and easy to carry on his person, like some sort of knife. Worst case scenario, he'd have to try his hand at magic again, which does remind him...
"You can call me Malphas. Sorry for not introducing myself moments earlier. I can see you're quite the reader?"
Donovan frowned as he realized there wasn't anything in the walls. He'd hoped there would be some form of hidden compartment that he and the others could glean information from-- but alas there was nothing. Turning to the others; about to recommend checking the third floor before a swift departure, a silver glint among the salvaged timber caught Donovan's eye. Approaching what remained of the pile of wood, he knelt down and took the object into his hand, eyeing it curiously.
Item Recieved: A Serpent-Star Emblem It was a badge of some sort, that much was certain, likely for identification like police officers had in his old world. Its silver color had held up well to the time. Shaped like a shield, upon one side of its face was engraved a star shaped pattern. Under it, was a swirling pattern that coiled upwards around the star in a somewhat protective manner almost with its mouth reaching upwards, fangs bared. A serpent of some sort? Perhaps it was junk. Perhaps it would be useful in some manner later.
"Hmmmm... I wonder what this means...." Donovan mused to himself as he eyed it. Unfortunately, he didn't have time to investigate further, as Leannah informed the group that the guardian was headed their direction. "Aye'd say weh best get ah move on. Aye ain't keen on meetin' whatever's on patrol." he announced bluntly as he tucked the badge into the inner breast pocket of his coat. Crouching low, and slowly approaching the door, Don cautiously peered outside, scanning to see if the coast was clear.
For Nobu, Misaki, and Novak, the situation remained roughly the same. The only difference was that the stone giant seemed to see something, before immediately going towards it, though they were too far away to see what exactly it had seen. All seemed for them, calm for the moment and left them with the moment to collect themselves or perhaps they should take this opportunity to attempt leaving, if possible. Thankfully, those birds from earlier seemed to have mostly vacated the area as well, though a few could be seen roosting on some buildings further away, and on the cliffs near them.
As more energy flowed out of Augusta and into the stone, light slowly continued to fill the carvings. Perhaps if she had tried, she could have attempted controlling this energy in some manner. It seemed possible, since she could feel it. In fact she’d almost imagine she could see it. A slow, swirling blue-colored energy meandering its way from her arm into the stone as it was pulled in by it.
Yet, soon the flow slowed. As mana presumably filled the stone like an empty cup, the edges of Augusta’s vision would slowly fill with a dark blue. Soon she would become by a sensation like she was almost floating, her body becoming weightless. For her, the change was entirely subtle. Blinking and the world she was in suddenly was suffused with the color blue.
Soon, however, the stone was entirely lit up, and Augusta would feel something…’connect’, in a sense. Instead of filling the Mana, it seemed as though it was going somewhere else.
And then something else seemed to ‘grab’ it.
Another pull, but this time it wasn’t just her ‘Mana’. It was a physical sensation of her body being tugged! Something was trying to pull not just her magic ability, but her in her entirety now! Isidore would start to feel it too. He could see Augusta’s body slowly turning blue, the same color of the light filling the stone as he started to lose his grip on her.
A sense of dread starts washing over Nick, a small feeling of anxiousness. Whatever was happening could possibly have some effect on his and even Augusta’s life it seemed.
Maybe Augusta should try severing the connection...or maybe even attempt pulling back on whatever was pulling on her.
Narkissa descended the stairs, wary of the others below. A sensible thing to do in such an unfamiliar scenario. As she greeted the others and introduced herself, she reached for the nearest weapon.
Item Received: Ancient Waraxe An ancient axe made to be used with a single hand, somehow still finely maintained. It has been stripped of all identifying markers making its origin hard to discern. Still, it feels like a serviceable weapon and there’s an odd energy running through it though you can’t currently place it. Its handle is made of fine wood, and its blade made of fine steel, curving down to almost half the length of the handle. On the reverse side, the steel has formed into a small, but deadly looking pick likely for piercing armor.
As she went through the motions of a spell, Narkissa focused inwards. It was definitely there. Some sort of...power, otherworldly feeling in nature. It almost felt like it was circulating through her body, same as blood might carry air through her veins. If she wanted, it seemed like all she’d need to do is somehow exert the force outwards in order to do something with it.
Malphas would search for another weapon. Unfortunately no arrows could be seen, but a dagger he would indeed find.
Item Recieved: Ancient Dagger A simple, effective looking dagger. Roughly 12 inches in length, It doesn’t seem to have any special properties. A small pattern is engraved into its hilt, and it seems to have some odd energy to it the same as the bow you carry.
Donovan’s search proved somewhat fruitful. The item didn’t seem immediately useful, but who could say? He stuffed the emblem in his pocket for later. Who knew. Perhaps at some point it’d save his life. So taking Leannaha’s advice, he approached the door, its creaky hinges easily allowing passage. In the distance, across a small field of stone ruins and snow, Donovan’s eyes would see the same massive stone giant Nobu and the others had seen. It towered above them, its stone cut body lightly frosted. Notably, it was carved from different stone than the black stone the building and monuments that littered the ground.
It didn’t seem to see them thankfully. It was standing behind a tower, and seemed to be currently inspecting it. It’s short, stunted head barely visible between its massive stone shoulders as it scanned the roofs of the buildings.
Leannah would then hear the same scratching noises, this time clawing their way up to the roof. They stopped towards the front of the building. Then the sound of metal scraping against something. The sound of something being pulled...and then the twang of a bowstring snapping back into place. Then the sound of footsteps, quickly running towards the back of the building before vanishing, either jumping off and running in some other direction, or managing to disappear through some other means.
In the same instance, Donovan would hear and see it clearly. An arrow loosed from the roof of the building - impacting the guardian right in the shoulder. Immediately, the guardian’s gaze turned towards the building - eyes momentarily locking with Donovan.
It opened its mouth, the blue light turning a bright red as a horrific, distorted almost robotic sounding shriek came from it as it slowly trudged around the tower, slowly starting to pick up the pace as it made a beeline for Donovan and the building.
Had...someone just gotten the guardian to target them? They only had a handful of seconds before it was upon them.
Forcing more energy into the book seemed fairly straight forward. It took a few moments for her to get to ‘feel’ the energy, but as the Goddess had said performing magical feats seemed to come almost second nature to her. Like pouring water into a cup, directing this energy into the book was easy enough.
Eventually she’d get what she wanted - more writing starting appearing on the bages of the journal. The ink somehow writing itself in a language she could understand.
“...thank you.”
A line break.
“But who are...you? You feel unfamiliar...and...apologies if I seem….tired...can’t wake up…
Odd. It seemed almost as if it was losing energy faster the more she put in it. The sound of the ground rumbling and a distorted, robotic shriek would interrupt her thought processes. A quick glance would reveal the same massive stone giant heading towards the building across the field, not her, as well as seeing Donovan.
Augusta was somewhat amazed by the filling blue lights. "Ooooh! Interesting!" There was a wide smirk on her face. "I wonder what--" Her smirk broke as she felt something... More. A tugging. More on her than whatever it was in her. Magic, she supposed. There was a feeling of floatiness in her as she looked down and noticed she was a bit... discolored. "What the..." The look on her face expressioned a slight amount of confusion.
She wasn't sure what this rock would do. Maybe it would teleport her? Absorb her into some vague magical stream? "Hah! This rock is trying to challenge me, huh?" She just got reincarnated, it would seem, so she couldn't possibly disappear now! "Well, that's fine! I won't lose to some rock!" She exclaimed, looking to both Nick and Isidore. "Just you watch me, I think I get how this thing works. It's magical right?" She gritted her teeth and focused on the slab. She closed her eyes focused on how everything felt. There was some sort of magical pull on her? It seemed the most appropriate way to say it. She wasn't exactly a believer of magic before hand but it was hard to ignore what was happening in front of her.
From the beginning of touching it to now, Augusta was trying to get a feel for the energy. Now, she thought she had a feel for it. Instead of just letting the stone take her energy, she resisted and pulled the energy back into herself. Perhaps she could pull out whatever was trying to pull her in! "Watch me!" She told the stone, more than her companions.
This was certainly out of Isidore’s realm of expertise.
As the black slab filled with ever-increasing light, he watched with restrained curiosity, hand firmly on Augusta’s shoulder. The woman herself was excited, while in the distance, the footfalls of the titan grew further and further away. It hadn’t spotted them, and the trio that he had seen in that other building hadn’t made their way over here either. Good news all around. He too began to feel the energy flowing, an electric tingling that shot through his veins. Continuous and exhilarating, a tension that caused the hairs on the back of his arm to stand on end.
His beautiful companion’s efforts and courage, however, were not awarded so readily.
Though fainter, Isidore felt a strange tugging sensation at the same time that Augusta’s expressions warped from confidence to confusion. Her body began to change, the shoulder on which he held her feeling strangely without substance. It was almost uncanny, and he reflexively wanted to hold on even tighter, concerned that he may lose her altogether to this strange phenomenon. But the Goddess had proven to be selective in those who she plucked out from a deathly respite, and rather than tear herself away from this, Augusta doubled down on her own efforts. Through her skin, Isidore could feel her energies tense up, gathering and tensing in response to whatever had awakened within the black stone. If she would commit to this, then what cowardice would possess him to not do the same?
He thrust his sword into the ground, before placing his other hand onto her shoulder as well. Unwilling to close his eyes, especially when a terrible, mechanical roar resounded in the direction the titan went in, the dark-haired youth instead focused on what physical sensations he could still feel from the translucent elf. The suppleness of her skin, the warmth of her blood, the pulse of her heart, the electric energy that suffused within. He felt it all, and through that, felt her pull. Two opposing forces, two opposing wills, each forcing the other into a different realm.
“I’m watching,” Isidore murmured into her ear.
The Lady of the Moonlit Waters knew his past. Knew the difficulties. The blood spilled. The lives ruined. It wasn’t just sin that he was burdened with. It was responsibility, the weight of trust. The trust of bastard politicians and police, who left his men unbothered so long as he enforced his own creed. The trust of truants and delinquents, who stayed on the straight and narrow because he promised them honest work that could support their families, so long as they kept their oaths. The trust of dealers and thugs, who risked their lives, their bodies for his operations, because he would save them, avenge them, shelter them. He was a monolith then, the weight of thousands upon his shoulders, and he was a monolith now, the life of one in his hands.
Drawing in a deep breath, Isidore furrowed his brows as he began to visualize his own energies, vespers of breath that seeped into Augusta’s own. Link by link by link, he focused on the imagery of chains, connecting his light to her own, leashing them both onto good, honest, tangible earth. To pull was her challenge, but to anchor was his own.
As Donovan scanned the surrounding area for threats, he noticed the guardian immediately. The thing was fucking MASSIVE!!! Gently taking the handle of the door, he prepared to hold it shut and wait out the Guardian's patrol route until the coast was clear. The large man's blood ran cold as a distinct thwip reached his ears, he was frozen in fear, his eyes watching in horror as an arrow struck the massive stone monstrosity in the shoulder. Before he could even fully register what had just happen, his eyes locked with the towering stone figure as it let out a terrifying shriek.
Donovan damn well knew he couldn't just hide from this damn thing in the building. It would just tear the place apart, and put the others in danger. The man gulped as he made terms with what he needed to do. The guardian had only seen him, and didn't know about the others just yet...
He would need to buy the others some time if they were going to make it out in one piece.
There was only one place he had a shot at reaching before the guardian was going to be upon him; a path that seemed to rest on a cliffside. Without a word of warning Don broke into a dead sprint for the cliffside, slamming the door shut behind him as adrenaline surged through his veins. "COME N' GET MEH YAH UGLEH BASTARD!!!" Don bellowed as he sprinted with all his might across the snow covered ground.
He didn't know if he'd make it, but he'd damned before he didnt try his hardest. He dug deeper into himself, calling on whatever mystic might the goddess had given unto him, and trying to force it through every fiber of his being as he ran.
Novak considered the observations and suggestions of his companions. As they had pointed out, the stone giant seemed to be avoiding the strange black stones. The swordswoman was intent on leaving while the guardian was distracted, and wanted to avoid the black stones on the way out. Novak thought it was a sound plan, so long as the giant didn't turn its attention to them.
If it noticed us we wouldn't have much time before it caught up with us, he thought. Despite the giant's immense, ground-shaking weight, it was deceptively swift on its feet, and there was no way they would be able to outrun it if they caught its attention. Fortunately, the giant seemed to have become distracted by something else and had headed even further away. If there was any time to get out of here, it was now.
The fox-girl, however, suggested the slabs, or at least the outskirts, could provide a safe haven from the colossus. It was a possibility, but not one that Novak wanted to test. Simply staying out of range of that guardian's blade meant they'd have to draw closer to the slabs, and it seemed like a risky gamble. On the other hand, in a worst case scenario- in other words, if it caught up to them- Novak would rather take his chances with the unknown than with that terrible giant.
"I agree with the swordswoman," he spoke up, again reminded that he didn't know their names, "We need to get out of here now while that thing is distracted and far away. As for the stones, they could be a safe spot, but I'd rather not risk it until we're out of other options."
Truth be told, they didn't have a lot of viable options to begin with, so if that giant decided to fixate on them before they made it to the exit, they could very well be cast into that scenario.
"I'm ready to make a break for it if you two are."
Augusta continued to interact with the strange black stone slab, eliciting a minute but significant response in the form of the blue glow. Nick and Isidore watched with bated breaths but as soon as the slab was lit up, wonder turned to horror as Augusta was now being pulled by the mysterious stone slab.
That anxious feeling returned. The stone WAS dangerous, after all! Where was this power earlier, Nick questioned. It would have been really useful when no one was in danger, not when the danger was already obvious!
"Watch me!"
Augusta was not one to let herself be taken. She resisted with all her might, and Isidore held her shoulders to help her stand her ground. It appeared they were not doing much but Nick could tell something was happening that he just could not see. Man, he was missing all the good stuff. All he had to show for was that he could sense something was wrong. One that activated late, no less.
Still, he was not one to stand around idle. Nick got to Augusta and grabbed her hips before pulling as hard as he could. "Don't worry, Augusta! We've got you!" Nick did not pride himself with physical strength but he had to do something rather than stand around looking pretty.
The Energy fading from the book gave her concern, especially given the book seeemed to be in a state of damage? Well. Bothersome. The Fae would breath in and push more of her magic into the book even with the noticable leak, She still had so many questions to ask. This book was her best bet for her answers. "I'm Alice...I think I am a fairy but im not from here." She'd say hurriedly as she'd hear the noise of a great thing in motion.
She would look up for a moment to see the great behemoth, ah... it was heading towards her. She would scrum back up the roof, hiding away from the encroaching battle. As she would open the book again. "Do you know who the golem is. Or do you know how I can fix you" She'd say with hurried breath hiding herself. Hopefully those other idiots could defeat that thing.. Then she could potentially make an ally with the downed golem.
...Screaming and running Scottish Man? Check. Sounds related to the generally understood gist of "some asshole just blew our location wide open"? Yes. Dealing with Malphas and Narkissa here with her at the same time as things went to hell and the grinding stone giant screamed in a robotic-like shriek that drilled into her ears? Priceless.
"...SOME ASSHOLE FIRED A BOW FROM THE ROOF AND RAN OFF! IDIOT DREW THE DAMN THING'S ATTENTION!"
She could shout at this point, it was of no consequence when death was grinding and barreling closer to them in a heartbeat. There wasn't time to plan. There wasn't time to do anything else but act at this point. At least that was what her mind told her. Even if her breathing began to slow after her brief burst of loud frustration, the catgirl found herself falling back right into her martial arts instincts before anything else...like a re-calibrating kick to the head.
"Dammit. Ok, Malphas, Narkissa, we need to move! Donovan's trying to get the thing's attention! Come on, let's get going!"
With that, the catgirl motioned for the others to follow her...grabbing up her spear in hand and blitzing for the exit. If she was as fit as this, then maybe all of them were. Probably. Hopefully. All she knew was that they needed to move, some asshole had blown their cover, and Donovan was playing the stupid sacrifice. She had to solve that last and first thing before all else, at least in her own mind, though right now the time to move had come. They couldn't dally about anymore.
If she saw something good or useful on the way out she'd grab it up, but other than that she was going to keep moving at top speed.
“I was,” replied Narkissa, poking around at the weapon pile. Her reply came noncommittally; after all, this was the person that she had witnessed assaulting the man who she knew now was Donovan, and there was also the fact that he had only waited until now to introduce himself. Despite his apology, first impressions really were everything, and she internally looked at the androgynous man with a healthy dose of skepticism.
“I suppose so,” she continued, with a light wiggle of her book. Considering that it appeared that they had all just woken up, Narkissa found it an odd thing to point out, even if she was carrying a book. Looking through the weapon pile, she would have preferred a sword. Despite being a professor and archeologist of good reputation in her past life, she had also found some joy in the questionable hobby of historical reenactment—and had found some preference for swords in the course of that. Unfortunately, there weren’t any particularly suitable swords she found in the pile, and she was left with an old war axe. To her, it really wasn’t an ideal weapon, but it looked the sturdiest.
And it was good that she chose the sturdiest. Before she could respond to Malphas any further, trouble appeared outside, precluding anymore polite conversation or practice of magic.
Of all the things she had expected, a giant stone golem was not one of them. But considering what the goddess had said, it was likely that this was the guardian that she had spoke of.
She had words for Donovan on his mad rush, but it really did buy the rest of them some time. “Don’t need to say it,” she spoke back to Leannah, before immediately making good on her words. Narkissa had not expected to be given a new life, and she didn't intend to needlessly squander it. Dashing outside, she made it her priority to run in the direction opposite of where the golem was headed.
Hearing that harrowing roar alongside everyone else running for their lives caused Malphas to pause, briefly. A thing that massive going after them? He wondered how his allies even expected him to help against this "Guardian" without anything like arrows or even a decently sized weapon. Still, Malphas didn't dwell on that question too much as he finally made his move.
Seeing that Donovan decided to provide a well-enough distraction for their escape, it meant that Malphas didn't have to resort to that to make their clean escape. As he ran outside with the others, he slipped his dagger into a sleeve in order to conceal it for now. All that was left for now was to run with the rest of this little ensemble. Malphas made sure to keep note of where the Guardian's attention is currently held as they made their way out, just in case he'll have to do something more drastic to keep himself alive.
While each offered a plan and a course of action, they remained relatively safe. The giant’s roar could be heard, but it was distant even if it was concerning. Had it found prey elsewhere? Well, it didn't matter much to them. While the massive creature was distracted, the three of them booked it for the gatehouse. Snow crunched under their feet as they made a dash for what was hopefully the exit.
Thankfully, it seemed like that assumption was correct.
Upon reaching the gatehouse, an archway connecting the two towers could visibly be seen in almost pristine condition. Beyond it, it led to a narrow path cut into the cliff. They perhaps could have taken more time to inspect it, they’d make out various runes carved into the sides of the archway, slowly lighting up and shimmering as they passed.
To them, nothing much changed. They ran into the passage, it narrow enough to require them to move mostly single file, Nobu at the front, Misaki in the center, and Novak bringing up the rear. Yet, something was off, and Nobu and Misaki could both tell through their experience and the others more animal senses. Almost as something...moved. Not them, nor the ground, almost as if the world itself somehow changed.
The smell of the sea, a gentle crashing of waves against the shore. The shrill call of a few birds, similar to the ones they had confronted previously. The rock walls of the narrow path disappeared entirely, and a cold wind and blinding sunlight greeting them as they suddenly found themselves standing atop a snowy outcrop, the sea crashing against a wall below them.
There was no sign of any guardian, ancient buildings, or...anything from that place, really. If they looked back they would see a ruined archway laying in pieces upon the ground, and a large, black obelisk rising into the sky, seemingly coming up from the ocean itself rather than being built upon the cliff. Several intricate carvings could be seen, far more intricate than what were in the others. They were difficult to make out here, but one more prominent one was definitely of a large, crescent moon situated near the top.
More of those black stones littered the ground, along with various structures made of stone.
It seemed as though they had successfully made it out of that area, but...where were they? And where had they been? The land before them was covered mostly in snow, any greenery lightly touched with it. To the south across a large bay were two impossibly large mountains, seemingly threatening to pierce the heavens itself. It seemed like they could reach it relatively soon if they followed the beach alongside it. To the north, the beach stretched onwards, and further inland they could make out nothing but a snowy plains and a forest immediately beyond.
One of Misaki's ears would pick up the sound of something moving to her right.
A quick look would reveal someone hesitantly poking their head out from behind one of those black stones. Upon realizing they had been noticed, they hesitantly stepped out. It was a young girl, probably only a teenager by earths standards. It was difficult to tell much from how far away they were, but a mix of both curiosity and mild concern was clearly visible on her face. She seemed oddly lightly dressed, given the conditions.
And so, they were the first to exit the area the goddess had thrust them into, now then, what exactly would they do here? The world, as they say, was theirs for the taking. They just had to decide where they were going.
Instead of letting this thing pull her in, Augusta steeled herself, deciding to pull back on whatever force was pulling her. By herself, this might have been something of a herculean feat. Whatever it was doing the pulling was incomprehensibly stronger compared to Agusuta. Every tug she could almost feel herself slipping further and further.
Yet, she was not alone here.
Isidore provided an anchor. Thrusting his sword into the ground, he wove his own spell. A faint outline of chains, wispy and ethereal could be seen could be seen connecting them between the cold air. Augusta would feel it, too, Isidore’s own energy connecting with her own. He would feel the pull, too, much stronger now, yet they suddenly whatever was pulling seemed to panic slightly. They had reached a standstill. Neither side being able to fully pull on the other. When Nicholas decided to join, it seemed that was all the little push Augusta needed.
The translucent blue tone of her body began returning to normal, fair skin color. She was slowly, ever so slowly, dragging whatever it was through the connection she had to it. For a few moments, it didn’t even seem to resist and let itself be dragged until there was an audible crack. Augusta, Isidore, and Nick would find themselves having nothing pulling back on them, the sudden lack of opposing force sending them to stumbling backwards. Had the connection been severed by the other side?
The ground under the stone rumbled lightly, and the first thing they’d see was the snow suddenly melting, turning into steam as the ground underneath began to crack and split. A vicious, black, sludge bubbled up from the ground from it, slowly forming a small pool at its base. Not seconds later would it start crawling its way up the stone, almost as though it were alive in some manner. Up and up they crawled, making an almost vein like pattern on the surface of it, the sludge pulsing and undulating with life as all of the different veins reached the top of the stone. Not stopping its growth, it continued growing upwards, a small stem growing upwards resembling that of a flower. A few new growths would branch off, almost resembling leaf like patterns. Soon the growth stopped, a single sphere of the black substance sitting atop it like a heavy crown. It kept growing and growing, larger and larger until it was almost almost the comical size of a small animal and could no longer support its own weight.
And then -
It opened.
The sphere, or perhaps, flower bulb split. Its petals opening and revealing an oddly beautiful black flower and dropping something from its confines onto the ground with a heavy thud.
Upon the ground in front of them, was a puppy. At least, it looked like a dog. Its fur was thick, black and surprisingly extremely soft. Its eyes, an angry red and its mouth seemingly too long for its muzzle, with jagged sharp teeth. It rolled around in the snow for a second before standing on four legs covered in a small bark like substance and shaking off the snow from its body. It looked to the three gathered people, barked happily before running in a circle and wagging its tail, jumping back in the direction of the building they came from before turning to face them once again.
It seemed friendly.
The flower that spawned it, purpose completed, withered and dried up. The petals dried up and floated away in the breeze, leaving only a few melancholic ones remaining.
Name: N/A Race: Demon Hound pup Physical Attributes: Similar to you. Magic Attributes: N/A Weakness: Like all demons, they are weak to divine related miracles that seek to purify corruption. It is inherently bound to obey those who made it unless released from its service. Is weak to magical effects, especially fire and ice. Abilities: Black Blooded This hound comes from the --------- clan. Its blood is toxic and extremely caustic, causes severe burns and can even cause humans to mutate. Pack Mentality As a demonic beast, this particular one works best in a pack. When around other members of its pack, it will gain sharp boosts to its intelligence and physical boosts. Physical Regeneration Demons of the --------- clan are notoriously difficult to kill and blessed with massive physical boons. The least of which, is incredible regenerative properties even being able to remake severed limbs in the midst of battle. A Demonic Beast from the --------- clan. Dangerous and intelligent, it is a beast that will relentlessly pursue its prey and sadistically end them. Loyal and steadfast, it’s a beast you can trust should you command it. You do not. As a beast-type creature, its physical senses are heightened. While smarter than your average animal, it can still only follow basic commands from those who control it.
It seems like it wants you to follow it. As adorable as it is, I would recommend ending it.
The thundering footsteps of the guardian could be felt getting closer. They were closing in on this location! Was it chasing something, or had it noticed them? Nick was getting a bad feeling, but it wasn’t from the dog. It was definitely coming from something else, presumably the golem now that the stone had finished whatever it was doing.
Donovan bolted from the building, slamming the door behind him. A noble sacrifice, this early in his new life? Certainly a tale for the books. The former construction worker put his entire being into running, his physical body straining against its already heightened natural limits. He could feel the warden shake the very ground with every one of its massive steps. While it wasn’t fast, its own weight slowing it down massively, its gait was long and each movement covered as much ground as Donovan did in all of his steps.
Recalling whatever the goddess said of his mystical abilities, he focused inwards. He could feel it, something in his chest. Focusing it inwards, he directed that energy towards his legs - the effect wasn’t much. This was his first time doing something like this, after all, but he could definitely feel a small difference - he was slowly, just ever so slowly, outpacing this giant but he could feel the toll it was taking on him, too. He couldn’t keep this up for long as untrained as he was.
He could see it in front of him, a path beside the cliffs that led west. The giant would never be able to fit in there, and the giant seemed to sense Donovan’s goal. It growled, a terrible mechanical sound as it pursued - yet, however, suddenly stopped, the only indication Donovan would have of this would be the sudden lack of the titan’s heavy footfalls.
If he looked back, he’d see its head turned towards the east - in the direction the others presumably had gone.
It then completely forgot his existence, turned, and started walking back towards them.
The others, conflicted about the man's sacrificial resolve, quickly left the building. Perhaps there had been more secrets there to discover, but for now they likely chose the safest option. Leave while their watcher was distracted. They left the building, one by one entering into the cold open air, the only one remaining unbothered would be Leannah, her blessing keeping her warm and cozy despite the temperature.
Once outside, they would meet the same sight Donovan did. A large snow covered field, littered with stone slabs, the ground recently disturbed by the steps of their guardian. Across the field they could see a tower and buildings, and beyond that a cliff where a wall was.
That only left them to decide where to go now, while the Guardian was distracted. North was out of the question, unless they wanted to play hero and see Donovan’s resolve go to waste. That left only the path right in front of them - they could see a few doors along the building, and the path around to the west seemed safe enough, and it seemed Narkissa made the decision for herself.
The brit would take the chance, running west as south was nothing but an open field with more of those monuments. Soon, she’d reach the courtyard where the giant had been watching the tower, close to the center of the complex. If everyone had followed, they would see the gatehouse as well. Perhaps that was their ticket out of here? Ahead of her, Narkissa could see three more disappear beyond the gatehouse, a small shimmer of light seeming to indicate them passing. Was that their ticket out of here? Fate would not be so fortunate.
As soon as the others had passed, Donovan’s distraction would fall somewhat short. Their exit caused them to draw the attention of the Guardian to the gatehouse. With a growl, it turned their attention back towards them. They had time before the guardian made its way to them. With a little luck, perhaps they could make it to the gatehouse before it caught up to them, but as its steps thundered closer, perhaps they should scatter before it could crush any of them.
Donovan dashed by some distance in front of Alice, surprisingly swift of step. Perhaps he was using some supernatural means of enhancing his speed? Regardless, the giants steps thundered after him, but it was not important to Alice. Neither would see her, tucked away in her corner. Still, she elected to perch on the roof to hopefully prevent herself from being spotted.
“Golem…?” The words slowly formed on the page as though the book was thinking, if it were even capable of it. “...I recall...a lab...shadow elf and...a cloaked figure. So many prototypes...I’m sorry, I can not recall.” The words trailed off, as the book likely considered Alice’s second question.
“Broken? Am I...broken? I can’t say. I can’t tell anything from here. I am sleepy and lethargic, but...broken?...ah...hold on...” The pages in the book suddenly, quickly turned, stopping only when the center pages had been reached. The pages shimmered briefly, slowly losing their paper like appearance and quality as it was soon replaced by a dark gold colored, almost metallic looking shiny finish.
Lines ran down the page, a slightly brighter color. Some of the lines ended in little circles. Others ran off the page, presumably being continued on the back side of the page. Some of the circles were black, almost as though they had been burnt. Some had been seemingly torn out or somehow removed, leaving nothing but a jagged hole.
One of the pages returned to its normal coloration, more writing appearing on it.
“Hm...it seems I am damaged. That may...explain a number of things, but I don’t know how to fix it.”
A line break.
“...a fairy. Curious. And not from...here?...where is even here?”
If Alice cared to look, out of the corner of her eye she could still see that same cloaked figure near the building the others had just vacated. The person wearing the skull mask curiously seemed to watch them leave, before scurrying inside the building through a window.
Augusta had not been very aware of her shifting skin tone. Though it did catch her slightly off guard when Isidore and Nick grabbed hold of her to assist. She had this on her own! But, well... Perhaps it was for the best. Not that she'd admit it. And then then stone stopped resisting her and if there was anything one must know about physics is that there must be an equal and opposite reaction... So the three tumbled backwards! Augusta, luckily, was the one on top of the other two in this awkward pile. She felt her head smack right into someone's chest, though she wasn't sure who. As she reeled from the blow, she noticed something interesting. The snow was melting!? What in the hell was that about? She roughly pushed off the two guys of the group as she quickly stood.
What? How odd! First, melting snow and now some sort of black sludge!? This was becoming more and more interesting! She took a step back, accidentally stepping on someone's foot as the stuff gained more of a form over time until eventually it became... A flower bulb or something of the sort? And now there's something on the ground?! Augusta was too intrigued with the puppy looking thing that plopped on the ground that she had a hard time noticing the black flowers that the bulb turned into. "W-what the heck is that!?" She questioned aloud.
Of course! She had an eye that could discern what living creatures were! She looked at it and the information screen popped up for her! "Let's see... Demon Hound Pup... Physical Attributes... Similar to you?" She questioned that bit as she looked at the pup again. Were demons that strong even in what appeared to be a child state? She gulped and continued though in a markedly smaller voice. "Black Blood... Pack Mentality... Physical Regeneration..." How strong. If only this thing were hers to command she'd feel safer. Then she got to the last part. "It wants us to follow it?" She figured adding the goddess' commentary would be a waste of breath, right?
Then she felt the rumble on the ground of that... Large... Whatever it was suppose to be! Perhaps it was coming to pick them off since they tampered with the stone?! Hmm... Perhaps they should follow the mutt, for now at least. It would be a small bit dangerous to just sit here. "With that probably colossal thing out here, perhaps we should follow the dog inside? Just to make sure we don't get crushed under foot?" Her eyes darted to the dog thing. "Besides, Octavia there is much too adorable to mean anything bad. Doesn't she seem friendly?" It appears that, despite a lack of information on the subject, Augusta had already made her decision up.
Alice Sicilly : Its alive?!
