[center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjcyLjEyMjI3OC5RV0o1YzNOaGJDQkdiM0puWlEuMA/angel-bandit-demo.regular.webp[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/RkooaiF.jpeg[/img][/center] [hr][hr] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjk2LjE2MDA4Yi5RMmhoY0hSbGNpQXlPaUJYYUdWeVpTQkVaV0YwYUNCRWFXVmsuMA/italianno.regular.webp[/img] [hr] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjY2LjhiMDA4Yi5WR2hsSUVaaGJHdy4w/italianno.regular.webp[/img] [h3][center][url=https://youtu.be/xZhvK0lZFxo]♫[/url][/center][/h3] [color=757163]Juulet glared at the obscured monstrosity choking her with a hand buried in layers of copper and black wrapping, showing very little of what was inside. From the little bit of breathing she could muster it was determined that it reeked of something that had been spoiled for a long time. A dry and mouldy stench. The Yasoi wanted out so badly. Instead of physically resisting, she glared at the thing as if she could kill with a simple look. In a second, hellfire would take all near her. This headless would return to nothing just as all who stand before the one true Goddess. Nothing happened, not even a spark. Mortality made clear in a single flash. She started to fade. But the monster’s grip faltered as it fell. Tremors below took the stone they had been relying on to cross the chasm, and so too was the anomalous being. And so too was the Mad Avatar. It took about half a second for her to realize what was going on. By then, Juulet had fallen a few meters already, no way to get back up. A terminal scenario for any without any substantial magic. An inevitable end. [color=8B008B][i]Fuck this.[/i][/color] She could not accept that. Not her death, no it wasn’t about her mortality. She could not accept the notion that she was anything but unexceptional. [color=8B008B][i]I am Juulet’oli’mustii’zan![/i][/color] The paltry amount of energy she had failed to make any noticeable use of finally beared fruit. Her eyes darted all over to find where to direct it. She had precious little time - time, even that betrayed her in her moment of need. [color=8B008B][i]And I won’t die in some hole![/i][/color] There it was! A small opening along the cliffside. The air vent to this master plan to kill her. Overdrawing to the point of causing a small nosebleed, she had managed to warp at the very edge of her limited range - just barely - into a large, pipe-shaped opening. An entrance to a sewer, once connected to the industrial district and now severed by whatever caused the fissure so long ago. [color=8B008B]“Fuck!”[/color] Juulet had fallen on her back, the landing softened by a practiced use of the spatial school. It didn’t make the landing less sore, but she was alive. [color=8B008B]“Fuuuuuuck!”[/color] she held her head with both hands. [color=8B008B]“I almost fucking died. In a HOLE!”[/color] the close call of falling from one edge brought her to the edge of another: her mind. She had NO control of the situation and she utterly hated it. She hated ALL of this. [color=8B008B]“Fucking crutch is gone too, jamboi poca shit fuck FUCK!”[/color] At least she still had a spear and the old faithful arcane school for lighting. The only way through was the lost toilet of the lost city. [color=8B008B][i]Fun …[/i][/color] The bridge crumbled down to nothing. Juulet watched every piece fall, morbidly curious to see if any of those that let her fall would fall in turn. Curious, or maybe concerned? [hr] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjY2LjlmOTM5My5WR2hsSUVadlp3LjA/italianno.regular.webp[/img] [h3][center][url=https://youtu.be/nCt4aLirnrk]♫[/url][/center][/h3] Amidst the immense pain Yvain felt on his shoulder, he also sensed the familiar vibration running through his sword of a successful impalement. Whatever this imagery of Yuliya was, it had been hit. The bite stagnated, there was no sucking or grinding of the wound. In fact, the jaw eventually relented. A bloody mouth ascended, with difficulty, to whisper something to Perrenchman’s ear. The reek of metal had never been stronger and the release of pressure on the gash added to the pain he was convinced was real. [color=pink]“You will always-”[/color] The stench was mixed with what was undoubtedly his friend’s odour. There was a distinct lack of a rasp from the pain she should be feeling and the excessive fluids in her mouth. She had never been clearer. [color=pink]“fall short.”[/color] The weight of the body felt like ten tons of bricks, forcing the magically disabled nobleman to fall back on his rear. As he did so, he crossed the border of the fog. A plume of the stuff escaped along with him, surrounding him with a mist-like effect that stuck close to the ground as he gathered himself. He was on a rooftop. Not too high up, maybe three floors of a residential building, and could overlook the district itself. His blade was still in his hand, clean of any blood as was he. Yuliya was gone and along with his wound. All of it had just vanished once he had gone out of the fog. Except for the lingering, dull pain in his shoulder. The roof overlooked the residential district. It all looked the same, really. More old. More dust. More darkness. Except … Yuliya, along with Seviin and Xiuyang. There was a ring of flames closing in on the latter and a luminescent entity right up the Vossoriyan’s face. A lightshow impossible to miss, just like the lingering pain on his shoulder. [hr] [img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjY2LjkyMDIwNC5WR2hsSUVabFlYSS4w/italianno.regular.webp[/img] [h3][center][url=https://youtu.be/LhmRNtF5s5o]♫[/url][/center][/h3] Xiuyang ran, the other two were not so immediate in their reactions. The resemblance to the blonde human among them was quickly noticed. If it could take on Yuliya’s reflection then surely it knew of their presence. Or was it all a trick of the eye? The how of it would matter little when, the moment this ghostly apparition’s luminescence had shifted from bright white to dimming into a deep black with the exception of its eyes and forearms shining a vivid crimson. A massive concentration of energy formed between the runner and those that did not react as quickly. In an instant, a tall wall of intense flames separated the group. Soundless still, the crimson ghost walked closer to the duo. At a certain distance, it zipped through distances at an inhuman rate without a shred of temporal magic to be sniffed out by those versed in it. In just a second, it was right up on Yuliya, raising its hand as if it was about to reach for her face. Its features were on point, a perfect replica of the Vossriyan princess. Right down to even its mannerism. It radiated heat, but there was no smell, sound or even a disturbance in the air as it existed right before the sanguinaire. There was more than heat to be sensed, all around them they could feel big accumulations of energy akin to what formed the walls of flame. Xiuyang found herself surrounded by hyper-intense flames. And they were closing in like a lasso. They were high, too. The head they radiated suggested even jumping over would ignite most things from the sheer heat. Seviin was the odd one out. The manifestation had not given her any grief nor did the thing’s attention deviate from Yuliya.[/color] [hider=Action Opportunities] The Fissured District group has been separated with Juulet falling into the chasm. Kaureerah and Leon, assuming they’ve made it to the other side, can continue along the path. They will be very close to the Fountain District. I’ve avoided writing more following this to give the characters time to discuss what had just happened and decide how they walk the last mile. Those of the Residential District are confronted by a ghost. Xiuyang is about to get consumed by a massive ring of fire while the ghost itself is aiming for a grab on Yuliya. Seviin is the only one that currently doesn’t seem to have its enmity. The goal is to survive of course, but it could be useful to figure out what these ‘ghosts’ are about. Ghosts don’t exist in Sipenta, right? Yvain has made it out of the Fog and is overseeing the above. He can choose to intervene, watch, or take another path. With the former being the most likely, he will have to take a little bit of time to get downstairs, but it won’t take him too long (enough time for the three girls to do something about their immediate pickle first). Pluurii’s whereabouts are a mystery for now.[/hider]