[IC] Iquenos: In Nomine Domini

[mickilennial]

Location: Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis

---

Anníbas kept his eyes on the sky and the birds above, though he by no means was not paying attention to what the group around him were muttering underneath their breaths. Anníbas' greatest talent was misdirection, the ability to make people think he was such a clueless idiot who only had jokes in his arsenal. Even among those who knew him he had it down to such a level that nobody had an idea of who he really was and what was in his head. His upperclassmen in the academy knew it well and his instructors found it as frustrating as the clergymen who bossed him around did.

“Well, I think we are in a little pickle, blondie.” He responded as he heard the sound of the other inquisitors preparing to fire a second round on his command.

He let out a light breath, thinking on the situation.

There was no antimagic storm going on above them. They were in a trap that was engineered with timing, glyphs, and focus. Frenzying the birds was a smart move; whoever had been the cause of it. It kind of put them in an unwinnable situation. If he jumped off with the rest of the inquisitors to hunt the malefacurm responsible the barge would've turned into a graveyard and his primary duty was to protect Fasarus and the passengers at large. But if he stayed here in a game of attrition, eventually the inquisitors would run out of ammo. There were just that many demon birds. Anníbas wasn’t a fan of that outcome and as one of the only inquisitors to actually take charge of the situation he decided he needed to figure out a plan; even if that plan didn’t make any sense. And a group of capable adventurers willing to align with the inquisitors and passengers in a time of need? They were as good of a plan as any; or at least that’s how the black-haired man could figure it.

“The best thing we can hope for is some wild, crazy people to jump off the barge and go in the woods and break the focus of whoever is causing this mess. It isn't ideal, but I can't protect everyone on this barge forever through sheer will alone.” He moved his attention from the sky to the motley crew in front of him. He bared his teeth in a wild toothy grin. “So what do you say? Are you guys up for the challenge?”

[Matsuri]

C L A R A

---

THE EOLDYSSEUS, IFRISE FOREST — SOVEREIGNTY OF DRYADALIS

---

Gods, what an encounter that had been. Just the thought of those two suspicious blondes had Clara's stomach churning with anxiety. At least she knew now to avoid them like the plague for the rest of the journey. Which, seemed simple enough, seeing as the lady didn't want her company in the first place. Clara gathered herself and took a deep breath, calming her nerves.

Her calm wouldn't last for long as the frightening halt of the barge twisted her expression into one of shock and horror. Clara was hurled backwards, and her back met the wood flooring with a loud thud.

In a matter of moments, hell had broken loose. Clara was quick to get up before getting trampled by shrieking passengers, almost as panicked as they felt. Then she saw the window to her sides swarmed by literal crows, hammering at the glass and threatening to shatter it at any minute. Clara was one of the few not taking refuge under the seats; words could not describe her disbelief.

Clara was panicking too, yes, but she wouldn't let her composure waver that easily, even if she was surrounded by a flock of murderous birds. They had blocked all of her escape routes and were about to break through the windows, sure, but toppling over from fear would do nothing to improve her situation. Clara slowly crouched, and watched her sides.

As much as she detested those who called themselves an Inquisitor under the Status Eccelsiae name, she could only wonder where in Vitae the Inquisitors meant to protect the barge were hiding. It seemed her fellow travellers were thinking the same thing, praying for their arrival or for the chaos to suddenly dissipate. Their troubled faces weighed heavy in her heart, and Clara even tried her best to comfort some of the passengers around her, it was all she could do. She encouraged them that they would come out of this alive, that help was surely on the way. Deep down, Clara wasn't so sure.

Then, the gunshots came. Clara prayed that was the sound of action being taken against the flock of birds on the upper deck.

[Raijinslayer]

---

• The Eoldysseus - Top Deck, Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •

---

"Well excuuuuse me, Red." Lazulin muttered under his breath, though it was plenty loud enough for the dimunitive girl to hear as she walked off to assist Etoile. Part of Laz wonder why he even gave a shit about the inquistor-looking girl's well-being. Something about the way she carried herself, perhap, or maybe that she gave a damn about the people on deck in the first place. Whatever the case, he could figure out later once this avian menance had be-

The sound of footsteps behind him cut of his train of thought, a set pace of hurried steps, marching to a hidden beat. Trained soliders. Guards. Inquisitors If Etoile's uniform had ignite a slight warmth in his belly, the sight that befouled his eyes now brought forth a raging inferno into his limbs. His entire body seemed to shake for a moment as his hands clenched into tight fists, his eyes turning towards the ground. Slowly, he counted down from 10, keeping his breathing nice and ste-

BLAM!

The roar of gunfire shook him from his attempted mediation, and the voice that followed it made made attempting to slip back into it impossible. He sounded every bit like the kind of snobby, pretentious Inquisitors that Lazulin had grown to hate. With great difficulty, Lazulin stowed all of the hatred on his face away into a small place in his subconscious mind, putting up his usual facade as he walked up to the Inquisitor as the apparent leader asked for volunteers.

"Wild and Crazy, you say? Well, I think you've got one man willing to take that title." The smile on his scarred-face may have come easily, but it didn't make the sting of kow-towing to these glorified thugs burn any less as the words left his throat. "I'd rather try my hand at shutting this thing down then end up as bird feed when you all run out of bullets." He walked past the group of guards and inquisitors towards the edge of the barge, a hand keeping his cloak wound close to his body despite the best efforts of the winds grasping fingers.

"So, Mr. Boss Inquisitor, what direction do you think the damn thing is? Ain't going to do nobody no good if I get stuck walking in the wrong direction." Lazulin spoke without turning back to face the man, letting his face rest a bit from the fake smile, but still keeping up the cheery tone none the less.

That question has to be a trap to see if any of us know anything about magic. Anyone with even passing training in magic would likely be bale to feel their way to the focus by seeing how the magic in their body reacts to the environment, only to come back to face either chains or a firing squad. Depends on the Inquisitor in charge, and despite the cheery smile and demeanor, I doubt that this man is the merciful type.

[mickilennial]

Location: Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis

---

Pythia rolled her eyes in annoyance as the inquisitor spoke and the silver-haired boy responded to him.

“Whoever started the anti-magic field is probably in that direction.” Pythia pointed with her sheath. “The demon birds came from that way, so it is the only place that makes sense if you have any brain cells.”

“I agree.” The man chuckled in agreeance, though Pythia did not particularly care that he did.

Pythia didn’t care if the inquisitor or non-inquisitors agreed with her. It was a simple matter of facts. The demon birds were stirred along by someone and the anti-magic field was obviously something that happened to facilitate the avian attack to either kill everyone, kill someone specifically, or some other intent that involved the barge and the birds. It could’ve been a greater distraction or an attempt to put the barge behind schedule. There was a number of desired outcomes even without information at her disposal. Honestly, she was about to run off in the woods and deal with it before the idiot silver-haired boy told her to help the blonde woman. She didn’t need an inquisitor to spell it out for her.

“That is the direction the flock came from, so it makes sense that whoever is focusing on their magicks is sitting in that stretch of woods.”

Pythia rolled her eyes at the comment. Did he just like repeating her? Was he laying it on thick for a practical reason? She let out a muffled ‘Tch’ under her breath as her tongue clicked with one of her teeth in annoyance. She jumped upward, on the railing, pushing her thumb against her sword's guard. She had a feeling by the time they found the person responsible she was going to have to draw her sword in front of this group. It wasn't a favorable prospect, but it was better than being in front of inquisitors. Though the blonde wearing tattered inquisitor robes worried her. Was she one of them? or was she just a grave robber who snatched some clothes off a corpse so people would listen to them? The only other option was she used to be one of them, but Pythia just did not have the information she needed to make that kind of deduction.

It seemed like the red-haired girl was going to have to gamble on it, and it wasn't like she didn't have the confidence she could escape if they wanted to sell her off to the inquisitors after-the-fact.

“Well, I'm not going to sit still waiting to be bird food.” Pythia remarked.

“Yeah—”

And just like that the red-haired girl jumped from the ledge, preparing to hit the ground in a soft roll, ignoring the inquistor's reply to her comment. She wasn’t waiting for anybody. There wouldn’t be a debate. It was time to get to work. The anti-magic field would probably phase out once they were away from the barge and wandering through the woods and Pythia didn’t particularly like feeling unable to use magic. She felt defenseless, unable, and at the mercy of the inquisitors. It was times like this she wished that she used a gun instead of a sword; though such feelings were brought on by anxiety and not at all reminiscent of how she actually felt.

“—hey! Don’t just jump off by yourself!” She could hear him call out.

She sighed, if the others followed her that was their prerogative, not hers. She wasn't going to wait on anyone.

[AlteredTundra]

---

• The Eoldysseus - Top Deck, Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •
_{Collab with @Kal-El}

---

“Well we can’t fight them. So don’t try anything.” Pagonia smirked as his eyes met with his younger brother’s eyes, “This anti-magic field isn’t helping either.”

Zestasia bit his lip out of frustration. “I said fine, so I won’t,” he said, bluntly reminding Pagonia that he wasn’t going to do anything despite a physical reaction being visible in Zestasia’s wrinkled brow.

As Zestasia looked to Pagonia for guidance about their next course of action, just off in front of him a similar conversation was happening between Little Red and the Inquisitor about what they would do as well. He didn’t hear exactly what they said, but Zestaisa could read body language (he wasn’t as stupid as others thought he was), and based off of everything, even a simple-minded fool could see what was going to happen next. Zestasia was kicking himself over that he didn’t think of it first.

“Nevermind. We have our answer.” Zes returned his brother’s smirk with one of his own, preparing his body for a run.

“Whoa. That’s a bit extreme.” Pagonia’s voice was a bit strained by the idea and his eyes definitely gave a look of dissatisfaction, “As much as we need to lay low, jumping off into the forest doesn’t sound like the best idea.”

Despite saying that, it was visible on Pagonia’s face that he didn’t want to be here. Even if the Inquisitors did not have the best knowledge on Pagonia nor Zes, they still could figure out just what they were. The redhead girl might have been on to something but Pagonia did not take the idea too well. Unfortunately, Zes was quite rash ever since they were children, a fact Pagonia would have to deal with.

“You are going to do it, aren’t you?” Pagonia asked reluctantly.

Zestasia snickered, giving Pagonia a wink before he followed the redhead’s suit. His legs ran so fast in front of each other that he didn’t even realize he had made the jump over the ledge and was falling down to the forest. When he saw he was approaching the actual forest he bounced off of the nearest branch and used the ones that followed to secure himself.

Pagonia could breathe a sigh that was audible as loud as Zes’s own steps. It only took a moment before he was following his brother to the edge of the train. This seemed like a dumb act but at the same time, it was the best option they had, well that was until Pagonia’s jump ended with him slamming into a tree branch with his left forearm, his formidable agility failing him this one time. His other arm used to grip a branch and pull himself to his own secure location. The only thing anyone around would hear is a loud “DAMN IT!”

[Matsuri]

C L A R A

---

THE EOLDYSSEUS, IFRISE FOREST — SOVEREIGNTY OF DRYADALIS

---

The consecutive gunshots soon came to a stop, and from the corner of her eye Clara could see there were a lot less birds by the windows than before. Some had even flown away, likely taking to the skies where the rest of them were gathered. Clara took back everything she said about how rickety this old hunk of metal was.

But there air still felt tense, and Clara struggled to gather her thoughts amidst the chaos. All she wanted wanted to do jump out and sprint away, and had her legs carried the power to outrun the entire flock, she would have done so a lot earlier. Instead, Clara was trapped inside, frantically pacing up and down its floorboards thinking of what to do. It was only when she stopped to breathe and looked out to the depths of Ifrise Forest that she realised something strange, even stranger than the sudden crow attack.

The strong abundance of magical energy Clara had felt before was almost gone.

Ifrise Forest was a land fertile with ether, she could tell from the rich amounts of energy she sensed when the barge entered the area. Yet Clara could hardly draw any into her body anymore, as if she had never been born with ability to do so. It felt wrong, unnatural, and Clara felt the urge to leave. But venturing outside alone, with ravenous birds at her tail? Clearly not the wisest choice.

A familiar streak of red caught her eye as it dropped in front of the window, and the appearance of the young girl she had seen earlier took shape. Clara heard a barely audible yell above where she stood, and assumed that no one else had taken the opportunity to walk into the mysterious forest just yet. But perhaps this was the start she needed to free herself from this pandemonium, a start to finding out the cause behind this strange phenomenon. Clara really didn't want to sit still and wait to become bird food, and clearly, neither did the little girl. Perhaps she had felt the same disturbance in the land's ether, too. Perhaps she was just like Clara.

Still, Clara had her suspicions. Then again, what regular person would even want to risk stepping outside after everything that had taken place? Looking around, she was sure no one inside was itching to find out whatever was causing this mess.

Clara was very, very tempted.

She walked towards an emptier part of the carriage and forced one of the barge doors open, placing one boot on the soil. Ifrise's ether was still there, and it was a relief to Clara knowing she could still sense it. But it had nowhere near as large of a presence as it had just moments ago, she hadn't a clue as to what this magical blockade was or where it was coming from. Clara couldn't let fear overcome her now, even with her magic gone and the Inquisitors in such close proximity. Screw her uncertainty and suspicions, she was going to die here if she didn't take the risk. Clara figured the Inquistors would be too busy defending the barge from the birds to be suspicious of one regular civilian walking into the forest anyway. Clara's pace quickened, intent on chasing after the young girl.

“Wait, you can't just run in there by yourse—”

Something flew over her head before she could finish, and Clara very nearly screamed thinking it was the sound of birds on the hunt for her flesh. With a sharp swivel of her head she saw the reckless blond boy from before accompanied by another man of similar features, hanging from a tree of all things. Clara didn't know what to make of this circus act, other than it was just silly to even think about right now. In another time she would have burst out laughing as any circus act would have made her, but this was a life-or-death situation, she had to take it seriously. Clara could only manage an awkward look of worry at the one who smashed his forearm into a tree branch, before speeding past to catch up to the young girl.

That would now make four people venturing into the depths of Ifrise Forest.

[Lemons]

Etoile

---

Well, it seemed like at least for now, Etoile was pretty safe in regards to the Inquisitors. They (quite reasonably) seemed much more worried about imminent death via demon bird than taking her into custody, and for that, she was thankful. She didn't have time to be prideful in the situation she was in, and knew it. Oh, it most assuredly rankled her, but that took a backseat to trying to make sure her leg was okay and she was ready to do something silly.

Hiding behind the Inquisitors, she pulled out a strip of clean linen from one of a series of pouches that lined her belt, looking at it for a moment, then back down to her leg, and finally to her nonfunctional arm. "This is going to be rather awkward," she muttered, before attempting to bandage the wound. By the time she'd finished (having had to use her teeth and a single hand, as well as twisting her foot awkwardly to press down the linen on the floor so she could wrap it tightly enough), she'd seen three different people jump off of the barge, and grit her teeth through its grip on the bandage. No matter the circumstances, she wasn't one to be left behind while other people did the work for her. And, as it turned out, the wound wasn't as bad as she'd thought. Though it was painful, it was definitely no artery. The bandage was helping immensely. As long as she didn't do anything too crazy, like, say, jumping off of a barge, it would probably be fine. Which, of course, was exactly what she was about to do.

The cold logician in Etoile appeared to be asleep. She felt a little bit like she had a fever, actually. Flexing her leg and hoping it would take her through the jump, she walked over to the edge, testing the limb at the same time. It's amazing the difference a couple minutes and a bandage makes, she reflected. Then, with a little hop, she cleared the railing, flipping about it and ending in a cat hang against the side of the barge. Looking down at the twenty or so feet beneath her, she scouted for the best, most even place to land. Eventually deciding on one (pressed for time as she was), she took a deep breath and released her grip.

The wind rushing by her ears gave her a few seconds to appreciate just how high up she was before she thumped into the ground, absorbing the impact with her strong legs, falling into a deep crouch. She winced slightly. On one hand, it might've been a better idea to roll. On the other, she looked down at the barge track, covered as it was with rocks of varying levels of jagged and unpleasant, that's not something I want to try rolling on without an arm. Out in the depths of the forest, she could just barely see the torch-red hair of the oddly familiar girl, and above him he could see the gold-haired kid and the sliver-haired adult whose permanent job seemed to be keeping the kid in line. She rolled her eyes at the kid's tree-hopping theatrics (and at the fact that the older one didn't seem quite as acrobatic, given the shout) and began to pat herself down, making sure everything was still in place. Sword, mantle, belt, pouches, backpack, she ran through all of her essentials before setting off at a reasonable pace after the red-haired girl. Though it turned out that she wasn't the only one out there, as Etoile ran into the older-looking Thlecian woman that had initially spoken to her in the Eoldysseus, glaring slightly at her.

"Hello there, nice day, isn't it," she said dryly.

As she continued walking, her metal arm clanking uselessly by her side, her eyes narrowed. Whoever had started this whole mess was...irksome. Yes, that was a good work. She pulled her sabre from the sheath, using it to lop an irksome branch out of her way. While she wasn't particularly skilled with left-handed swordsmanship, she was good enough to be a threat. And that's what she wanted to be to whoever decided that demon birds was a good idea. Her leg twinged unpleasantly, and she winced, looking down midstride. Blood was starting to show on the outer layer of the bandage. She put the sword away, pressing a hand to it and closing her eyes, breathing deeply. Whatever was going to happen, it needed to happen quickly.

[mickilennial]

---

“They aren’t bleeding enough.” The cloaked ‘maleficarum’ uttered underneath her breath. “None of them are. That needs to be changed, don't you think?”

The cloaked person remained on their tree branch, giggling in delight as her hands shuffled in her pockets, retrieving a handful of bird seed. As she prepared to toss it down on the forest floor a sparkle of abhorred purple, red, and black energy surged from her fingertips in an instant. The seeds grew in size by her magical touch; their nature infused with hers. It was only after that where she tossed them on the ground for her “pets”.

As she did so, a few stray birds came down from where they were perched, devouring the magically infused bird seeds. These three birds would scream in unison, a demonic-like caw screeching across the forest and beyond; it was an animous, terrible sound and those who could hear it would feel a chill run down their bones. The woman licked her lips as the screams left the birds, their avian bones beginning to change, the sound of popping and cracking of their nimble bones and flesh occurring until they were… bigger and almost deformed looking. She personally found it a welcome change from their old bodies.

“It’ll take more than a few bullets to take you down, won’t it?”

For any magi experienced in malum magicks, this would be clear as day. The birds had been twisted by not only an abhorred curse of madness but also a surge of powerful dark energy that intended to corrupt them into creatures beyond what they once were. To shape them into something new. Normally it took a powerful conduit for such magical experiments, but such was the benefit of seeds bathed in the blood of other creatures. The woman was no ordinary enemy of the inquisitors, though what she was remained to be seen. All she knew was that as long as she stood on her branch the inquisitors would have no magic and she would have the birds. Eventually, her pets would feast upon their bones; it was just a matter of when.

As the birds took flight in their new forms, she couldn't wait to hear the inquisitors worries as the larger ‘demon birds’ joined with the rest of the flock.

[mickilennial]

Location: Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis

---

“What in the name of Sol?” Anníbas uttered as he found himself not only distracted by the red-haired girl who jumped off the barge because of her own whims, but as a loud demonic screeching echoed from the deepest corners of the woods. Even with the cawing of the flock above him he could hear it. It was even worse when he saw a slew of birds who were thrice the size of the others that he got truly worried.

“Steady! Take aim! Fire!” He shouted over anyone that may have been trying to talk to him.

The flurry of gunfire upon one of the larger birds was successful, but the blue-eyed inquisitor knew now that they were on a time limit. If whoever in the woods could enlargen and twist the local wildlife it wasn’t a matter of outlasting the birds. The motley crew in-front of him needed to go and go quickly. Anníbas gritted his teeth as he focused on the task in front of him. If he survived this particular mission he was going to make sure headquarters knew just how annoying it was that this kind of situation hadn’t been scouted around to begin with.

If.

[AlteredTundra]

---

• Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •

---

So, there was a mix of good and bad news concerning Zestasia’s landing from the barge to the forest ground. On the upside, he didn’t break any bones or fracture any major ligaments that would otherwise make him a burden to those around him. He also didn’t harm anyone else on his way down, so that was a plus. But, as it always seems to be the case with Zestasia, there was a bit of bad news. You know how the Ifrise Forest was a sacred ground for those who dwelled within it, like the animals and weird forest people? Well, Zestasia wasn’t exactly sure, but on his way down, he without a doubt punched and kicked through several branches. And he was almost positive that they wouldn’t be able to grow back.

Oops. But hey, at least he wasn’t harmed. That’s what was most important. Yep! Yep! Yep!

All of that aside, Zestasia was able to take in the sights of the forest. This was actually the first time he was this close to the ground level of the Ifrise Forest. He always stuck to the countryside and city limits throughout Vitae. Plus, unlike his worldly brother, Pagonia, Zestasia wasn’t what some would call an ‘outdoors kind of guy’. Nope, he was the sort of guy who’d rather sneak into taverns and pubs and cause a little mischief within the comfort of the various towns, villages, and city-states that this world they all live in has to offer. It shouldn’t come as a shock when Zestasia didn’t particularly feel at home in this forest.

“Just let me say that being here in this forest isn’t my strength, so you wonderful people will have to be my guide--”

Cut off mid-sentence by the devilish screeching of those god-forsaken birds, Zestasia jumped, looking all around him for the source. It was only a single moment later that a portion directly in front of them that put all of those questions that had formed in Zestasia’s mind to rest. And it was with the sight of a grim light show that Zestasia started to experience something he hadn’t felt in a long time: the genuine, gut-wrenching feeling of fear absolute.

Zestasia, for a moment, had the thought of retreating. Like, who needed magic, anyway? Life was too complicated with it, right? Plus, Zestasia could get used to the forest life. Being a nomad, living off the land? What’s not to love? But then Zestasia came back to Planet Vitae. He knew that wasn’t exactly the choice he needed to do. Yes, he was afraid. And yes everything about this and everything in him was telling the blond teen to pack his shit up and go. Though, let’s face it! Zestasia wasn’t one to listen to that voice in his head.

“Last one there has to admit they like me!”

Zestaisa was mostly joking, shooting Etoile and Little Red a wink. Then he took it upon himself to be the first to run in the direction where the screeching madness was doubtless at..

Deep down, he knew he was going to regret this.

[Matsuri]

C L A R A

---

IFRISE FOREST — SOVEREIGNTY OF DRYADALIS

---

From behind, Clara could hear the faint clinking of metal.

"Hello there, nice day, isn't it."

Clara tensed, realising it was the blonde woman she had spoken to earlier. Her face had become more beaten and dirty since the first time she had seen her, and the unsettling glare in the woman's eyes told enough about her current condition. If Clara could recall, the woman had left for the top deck just minutes before the birds attacked. She would have offered words of sympathy in that moment, but her previous suspicions forced her mouth shut.

An ominous screech rang from within the darkness of Ifrise Forest, and Clara felt every single bone in her body shiver. Her heart pounded against her ribcage as a massive shadow flew overhead, she was too afraid to gaze up at whatever had just passed over group. It was at this point that Clara knew she had ventured way too far to turn back now. Whatever lay ahead had to be dealt with if she wanted to escape.

With an actual group forming it seemed Clara's survival chances were looking a little better. But with her absence of magic and the people this current group consisted of — a girl who looked to be barely in her mid teens, two careless boys who could jump through trees better than they could think rationally, and a mysterious swordswoman that, though looking as if she had actual combat experience, had her fighting chances incapacitated from her injuries — she could only worry. The gunshots that resounded in the distance did little to calm her concerns. Clara could only mutter a small prayer to the Gods to ease them.

Then the reckless blond boy from earlier decided to sprint ahead of the group, shouting the most foolish thing he could have come possibly up with. Clara gasped as she saw his fair hair fade into the shadows, into the direction that wretched, bone chilling shriek had come from. She shot a panicked look at the swordswoman as if she could somehow stop the boy from running into certain death, until she realised the woman's leg was starting to bleed through hastily improvised bandages.

Clara felt her heart swell up in that second of panic, something she hadn't felt in years. In front of her very eyes, a child had made themselves vulnerable to a danger beyond their control, exposed to a force they alone couldn't possibly fight against.

It all felt dangerously familiar to Clara.

Her steps quickened, zipping past the blonde swordswoman. For a moment, Clara pushed her fear aside, only a single unrelated intention in mind. Without a word, she took off into a terrifying sprint towards the imminent danger she had once thought of retreating from. She could hear the wind rush past her ears as she gained more speed, swiftly closing the distance between herself and the young boy. It wouldn't take long for him to come into her sight again. Reaching her arm out, Clara grabbed the him by his collar and tugged him back with great strength.

She didn't wait to catch her breath, nor did she have time to regret what she had done. Clara locked eyes with the boy as her hands gripped his shoulders like a pair of vices.

""You idiot! Are you out of your mind, boy?”" she hissed.

[AlteredTundra]

---

• The Eoldysseus - Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •

---

When he felt the wind rush past his face, his golden hair flew to the back of his head due to how fast the blond teen had been running. He zipped past the trees, swung from branches to gain some height, flipping backwards as he flew through the air. Once he landed on his feet, Zestasia kept running forward, aiming to get to the source of everything that’s been happening to the area.

As he managed to get about halfway to the finish line - potentially even closer - Zestasia stopped in his tracks, skidding about three paces. He decided to look back. He didn’t know why but something told him that this really was a bad idea. The others weren’t following him like he thought (and hoped) they would. Perhaps they were being the smart ones. “Maybe I should head ba--”

He was interrupted by someone suddenly tugging at the collar of his jacket, whipping him back with such an alarming force that it had literally knocked the wind out of his body, forcing the teen to lose a breath or two. It was, as soon as he was able to catch his breath, he was able to see who the person was that had jerked him back so suddenly.

“You..” Zestasia said, coughing. He couldn’t remember her name, or if she even said who she was, but one thing that was clear to young Zestasia was that she was P-I-S-S-E-D. And that made Zestasia nervously gulp, afraid to say anything. He had never seen such a look on someone’s face before.

“I, uh..”

Get it together. Say something and it’ll be all fine.

“I’m not a boy. I’m practically a man!” Zestasia hissed back. He might’ve put on a good showing that he wasn’t afraid that it was taking everything he had not to collapse right then and there.

[mickilennial]

Location: Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis

---

“What you are is stupid.” Pythia uttered from behind the two magi, her brows still narrowed as she looked forward, the tense magical aura resonating through the woods growing stronger as they moved furthur away from the barge.

Pythia looked down to the sheathed sword in her hands, the energy within finally once again in her grasp. It was evident that they were far enough away from the edges of the anti-magic field. Any one of them could feel their connection with magic returning to them, as if their bones were thawing from an unbearable numbness. The red-haired girl was thankful for this, but she had no intention of approaching whatever threat lingered in the woods haphazardly like the man before her had until one of the other magi grabbed him by the shoulders and called him what he rightly was.

“What were you going to do when you were face to face with the barge's attackers? What if there's more than one of them? Why the hell has the goddess kept your moron self alive? Because it certainly isn't from your own capacity to think.” She sighed, moving her eyes toward the forest paths before them.

[Raijinslayer]

Lazulin Mulciber

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• The Eoldysseus - Top Deck, Ifrise Forest-> Ifrise Forest Proper, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •

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"The only otherworldly force looking out for Blondie over here is called dumb luck, Red. Perhaps with an emphasis on the 'dumb part of that equation, but at least he seems like he grows on ya." Laz came up behind the group, having taken his time following them in order to watch the new threat that had descended upon the Inquisitors. Part of him said it was purely to gauge how much of a threat they would be, as the stench of Malum was plain to see in their twisted forms. Another part of him almost believed that, if it wasn't for the ghost of a smile that danced upon his face as he saw one of the bastards go down as one of the raptors went for his throat. His gurgling death wail and the cries of his comrades served as Laz's cue to leave before the dark smile on his face grew into a full-on grin.

Honestly, he was surprised to have been able to catch up with the rest of the group but didn't give it too much thought, instead choosing to take a deep breath as he felt the magic crackling through his veins again. Bringing a hand up in front of him, he smiled once more as he let the ether flow and bring forth wisps of necrotic energy curling around his fingers. After this brief display, he cut off the magic, turning around to face the group.

"Childhood fairytales aside, let's get moving, yeah? I don't care how many of those inquisitors end up bird chow, but if we all keep dragging our feet like this, then it's only a matter of time till they move on to the civilians." On that note, he set forth deeper into the woods at a brisk pace, eyes glimmering beneath his silver locks as familiar urges started to surface within him, stirred by his interaction with the Inquisitors. "And do try to be careful. We're facing a Maleficarium if that last batch of devil birds were any indication, and that means they likely have a whole host of nasty tricks in store for us if we let our guards down and charge in like idiots. So, in essence, move quickly yet also carefully, and try not to end up a quivering pile of decayed rot on the ground if you can help it. The smell is quite atrocious."

A moment's pause.

"Anything you want to add onto that, Red? You seem like the type who always have something to say."

[mickilennial]

Location: Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis

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“Well, ideally, we don't race to our deaths like some people.” Pythia remarked as she moved her eyes to meet the silver-haired boy's own.

The situation Pythia found herself in was not ideal. Not only had she been close to ousted on the barge, she had to think of a plan on the spot without any sort of information on her 'target'. Fortunately, she had been considering her options since long before she had jumped off the side of the barge and rushed out of the anti-magic field. Though she didn't feel any better about the idiot inquisitor volunteering them for what could have been very much a suicide mission. The alternative to rushing into the forest was to start walking to her destination and abandon everything with little care for what happened to anyone else. It was an alternative that bothered her considering the fact that, much like the silver-haired boy, she wasn't too keen on sacrificing the passengers on the barge for her own liberty. So, really, her only options was to help coordinate the motley crew of fools and barely competent maleficarum to the best of her ability.

Suffice to say, she wasn't thrilled about it.

“We need to figure out a plan of approach, even with the lack of information we have. But we can't coordinate without knowing what everyone here can do in a fight. I'm not going to play cute like the inquisitor on top of the barge – we're all criminals, so there's no need for keeping secrets about our abilities. I'll start. I was born under the sign of fulgur, though my abilities require and rely on the foci in my hands.”

Her hand gripped the sheath of her sword even tighter as she glanced around herself to see the group she was stuck with.

[AlteredTundra]

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• The Eoldysseus - Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •

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As Zestasia waited for the tall, dark-haired woman to say something back to him, he heard a couple more voices come from behind him. As soon as he heard this voice, he knew who it was, but he had to turn around to confirm it. Sure enough, he saw that red hair of the short, little swordswoman who, as Zestasia recalled, didn't like him too much. He couldn't remember if she had actually said it to his face, but that was the vibe he remember getting from her. And much like the one before her, she also had a word or two about his "stupidity", though she didn't seem to be as careful with what she said. If Zestasia was being honest with himself, he much preferred the worried, yet furious, tone the woman behind him had.

"I was just going to see--" As Zestasia went to respond to the red-haired girl, he was inturrupted by that guy with the silver hair. As it would seem, he wasnt necessarily criticizing Zestasia for what he was doing, but, as he soon found out, there was no sign of support. It wasn't like he expected any, but it was disheartening to know that nobody was going to come to his defense. His only hope was that Pagonia would, if he would hurry his up, that is.

He half-prepared himself to head back. He knew, just moments before the essential big sister type stopped him, it was a bad idea. He didn't always know when the right time was to admit he was wrong. He new it was now, however, so that's why he started to walk past the group, though something unexpected happened. Well, more accurately, something unexpected was said.

"Wait what?" Zestasia thought he heard wrong, but then he heard the redhead state her abilities. "It's really happening, huh? Fine, then I guess I should state my thing, huh?" Zestasia cleared his throat. "As if it wasn't completely obvious, I'm what you would call an Ignis Magi. It took me studying under Ignis Magi, Anatoli Solis, to know that I possessed an affinity to fire, though if we really want to get down to the finer details, I have more in common with the sun than actual fire. I use a special art of Ignis magic known as Sol Vibrante. It's a versatile one that allows me to draw in power from the sun and use it in a number of ways. I can absorb it and store it for later use. I can shoot powerful sun-based beams and streams at people. In rare instances, I can create a supernova-like thing, though that's my last resort. Additionally, I can use it to empower my fighting capabilities, though it's nowhere as powerful as my more general uses." Zestasia explained his magical capabilities, "I will say this. I am weaker in darkness and in the moonlight."

[Matsuri]

C L A R A

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IFRISE FOREST — SOVEREIGNTY OF DRYADALIS

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Clara ignored the boy's retort and false courage and kept her worried eyes fixated on him. She hadn't felt this way in a long time.

But a realisation snapped her back to reality, and she quickly pulled herself away. Clara had panicked, in that moment she had let her emotions overwhelm her. She cursed herself for making such a careless mistake.

Steady yourself, Clara. Don't let it happen again.

In that same moment, Clara felt a surge of energy pass through her body, as if a part of her soul had been restored. There it was, the ether from the forest soil circulating below in great abundance. She allowed her own ether to flow throughout her body, from the ends of her toes to the tips of her fingers.

The group soon caught up, and Clara realised the presence of a person she hadn't encountered before. He was a young silver haired man with an unsettling glint in his eyes, which Clara was quick to avoid looking at. It shocked her to see his overt display of his powers, and his knowledge of what was likely going in ahead garnered her suspicions. Perhaps he wasn't as overly cautious as she was when it came to using magic, but something about the man's smile and demeanour made her want to keep her distance.

When the young red head spoke, Clara frowned. The word 'criminal' wasn't the most appealing title to her, but as sinister as it sounded it wasn't necessarily false; in essence she was just a homeless runaway, a deceptive thief who stole to survive. But she was at least grateful that she had found herself with people who were just like her. Clara never thought she would ever find herself amongst a gathering of magi in her lifetime, even in such unusual circumstances. From what had just been said, the reserved young girl was a fulgur magi, and the talkative blond boy an ignis one.

Clara was still hesitant. Despite her company, just the thought of letting her crystal surface made her nervous, it had been so long since the last time she had. But if she was going to live to see another day, she was going to have to cooperate.

"Well, life story aside, I was born under the sign of terra," she said in a low, but audible voice. "I can make this red crystal that can cover my skin and any solid object. Like this, see?"

Slowly raising her left arm for observation, a bright scarlet crystal covered Clara's hand. After a few seconds of turning her hand the crystal shrank back into nothing, disappearing from the surface of her skin.

"It's very, uh… hard," Clara added, unsure what other obscure details she could give like the boy before her had. "I guess if there's one thing my crystal can do, it's to not break. Unless your magic is that strong, you could probably swing a sword at this stuff and it wouldn't leave a scratch."

[Lemons]

Etoile

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Without a reply—barring the full-body tensing that Etoile had become so familiar with in her own life—the taller woman took off after the stupid blonde jackass. For once, Etoile could agree with someone; she had no idea what the kid was doing, going off on his own like that in a forest with a known murderer who was capable of controlling the wildlife. She was tempted to ask what he was thinking, but then realized: In all likelihood, he isn't thinking at all..

She wasn't quite as fast as she might've been with an uninjured leg and functional arm, but she could keep up passably, at least. It took her some time to catch up, and by the time she reached the other woman, a small grouping had formed, composed of the woman, the kid, the redhead—Arghh, who IS that?—and other man who she hadn't seen before. As she watched and listened to what she assumed the ending part of his speech, she felt a chill run down her spine. She hadn't seen a malum in quite a while, and she always forgot how uncomfortable they made her.

Despite that, as soon as she approached them proper, she felt a weight in her chest that she hadn't realized was there disappear, and more importantly, a sudden jolt of pain as the magitech arm reconnected with her nerves, regaining functionality. She sighed out a heavy breath of relief as she joined the group. From what she could gather, they were having a little strategy meeting, going over their capabilities. Another rush of relief, this one internal. Finally, a beat she could really dance to. She might've been out of practice, but she hoped not too much.

That said, she didn't want to advertise her past too much, unlike the blonde. So the first thing she said upon rejoining the group, flexing her arm to make sure it was working properly, was a short little bit-out couple sentences.

"Classically trained ventus, specifically scholaris, with a study focus on force projection, be it precise or general, and object manifestation. Adequate at swordplay, but not surpassing at it."

Then she abruptly shut her mouth, starting to think about their composition. Crystal-based terra, sun-based ignis, sword-based fulgur. I don't know enough about the malum to guess his specialization. Sword-based fulgur isn't going to be particularly useful outside of direct combat applications, so we know that. It might be wise to start building a strategy around that. She said the crystal could coat skin and solid objects, but she didn't mention projecting it into projectiles, so it mightn't be too useful for direct offense; perhaps more of a combat support application in general. The crystal would be useful for frontline protection if it can be used to make sufficient amounts of armor, though I don't know the extent of its capabilities. Solaris pallio seems versatile, so he could fulfill multiple combat roles, but as with the terra, I don't know enough about it to adequately gauge him. Also, she thought sourly, I don't know how much I would trust him in a fight.

Her mind continued chugging through the possibilities, and she turned to the terra woman to ask about the limitations on her crystals before suddenly realizing something: If we don't have anything to call each other in combat, things could go very wrong very quickly through lack of communication.

"This is all well and good, but if we're going into combat, we should know what to call each other." She took care not to sound too imperious; she already looked like an Inquisitor, there was no need to act like one as well. She dipped into a traditional Iquenos bow. "Etoile."

[mickilennial]

Location: Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis

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Pythia wasn't thrilled about the blonde woman's suggestion to share their names with one another. It would be foolish to admit your name, especially once they were out of the woods and everyone could start thinking with their own selfish intentions in mind. There was a line between trusting them with the admittance they were all maleficarum and explaining who they were. But maybe it was a byproduct of her own paranoia given her particular state of birth. Not that anybody around her had heard her name, inquisitor or otherwise. When her mother gave birth to her it was in an isolated conclave. The inquisitors only knew that she was a princess of Iquenos and bore the sword of Judas in recognition of that fact.

She sighed heavily as she begrudingly realized she would have to give them her name, though she did regret not coming up with an assumed idenity sooner. Her trueborn name would have to do. She'd rather not be called "Little Red" for the rest of their venture.

“Pythia.”

[AlteredTundra]

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• The Eoldysseus - Ifrise Forest, Sovereignty of Dryadalis •

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Names? Now that was something Zestasia had no problem sharing. It made sense, too. If they were going to fight alongside each other, or at least plan for certain battles that required them to rely the person beside them, it would make a lot of sense to be on a first-name basis. Zestasia definitely wasn't against the idea. He thought about how he should state his name. Was he just going to casually state his first name? Or should he build towards it? Say a few things about himself and let them venture a guess just as to what his name could be? He could certainly do all of those things, but was that too much work? At this point, they weren't inclined to have the patience with him. If Pagonia was here, he could sweet-talk them while the younger Calore brother hoped and prayed they would come around to forgiving him for the error of judgment he showed today.

Shrugging, Zestasia opted for the road with least resistance. "You can call me Zestasia, but if that's too long, Zes would work just as well." He offered them a smile. He recalled his master, Anatoli, said smiles light up a room and let people know you mean them no harm. It also was a nice way to show off his pearly whites. One-hundred-percent all Zestasia Calore! No false teeth present.