Nomura clenched his hand once Chōhei released his iron grip on it, doing his best to hide his pain. Once again, the mask made it easy to do so. There was some wisdom in his opponent's words, wisdom that Nomura would both hope his enemies would dare not follow as well as something he'll continue to ignore! And despite that display he made earlier, Nomura was sure he still runs the risk of accidentally getting killed training with the Oni regardless. Still, he won the respect of who appears to be one of the strongest of the Oni. This much was enough of a trade-off for a couple of broken fingers. Nomura looked onto Mie as she walked over, a look of joy in his eyes as he eyed that healing salve in her hands.
"It seems so. They're a rough bunch, for sure, but at least the issue of their disdain for me seems to be somewhat abated." Nomura said as he made sure to heal his hand, applying the ointment rather hastily. "I'm happy to hear you arranged that I'll be dragged along to train at any moment's notice, by the by." Nomura stated, sarcastically but in good humor. "Well, thank you for seeing to that my wounds, or well, wound, was quickly attended, Lady Mie. And with a bow, Nomura was off.
He still had a good amount of time in the day, it seemed. Socializing with the Oni could wait for later, although Nomura would make a quick note to speak with Chōhei when the time does come. Between that and waiting for Donovan to be done with whatever it was he was doing, it seemed Nomura was free to do as he pleased. In this instance, he chose to once again walk to the shoreline. Instead of fishing, however, he had chosen to merely sit and ruminate on the day's proceedings.
As he watched the waves gently touch the shore, Nomura's mind once more wandered to the power within him. That slap he was able to perform, the energy he was able to gather within his body. If he wished to survive another training bout with the Oni, Nomura knew he had to master channeling that energy in some way. Through his body, his eyes, and even his voice, Nomura was able to strengthen himself through the use of that magic. If he was able to control and maintain that power within, there was no telling what he could accomplish.
For now, he needed to push his limits. Sitting in some form of lotus position, Nomura began to meditate to himself. As he did so, he allowed that magical energy to course through different parts of his body. It's as if he was flexing his limbs individually, empowering one before the other, letting the energy fade before drawing it out once more. He would test the limits of this power, gauging just how much he was able to strengthen his limbs to the fullest while attempting to push past those limits. Nomura continued to train not externally, but from within.
Perhaps the actual ambush might have been sloppy and better executed –though a good plan was always a simple plan—but Narkissa had achieved her intended goal with great success. Whoever was about to be ambushed wouldn’t be any longer, and although it had been slightly dicey with Lazhira herself, nobody had been injured.
Except for some of the hunters, that is. Seeing a couple of them swallowed up whole was going to give her nightmares in the future.
So when the targets of the hunters did appear, their ambush was nowhere close to complete, even if there was abject chaos reigning in the field. The people that appeared out of the obelisk did give the white-haired girl pause, though—she didn’t know the dwarf-like man that appeared, but she certainly recognized Leannah, and… was that Donovan? She hadn’t seen him since the first day, hadn’t she?
“You two head on. That’s Leannah and the others, and I’d like to see them come out intact and not inside a slime,” she frowned. “You take Lazhira and the deer… thing and head back, I’ll be with you shortly.”
Seeing who had shown up, Narkissa felt further obligated to intervene despite having pressed Misaki and Lazhira to withdraw, especially since the latter was still a prime target. So, she hurried the two girls along while keeping a rearguard as she lingered at the edges of the scene. There, she returned to slinging her spells at the hunters and particularly the slime, trying to confuse the scene even more so that Leannah and her party could make it out unscathed. If she caught any of their eyes, she would wave at them and gesture for them to escape in her direction.
“You…think the Hag is behind this whole thing?” Another would question. “We were told if we saw her to kill on sight, but Soyala told us to focus on recovering the orbs and since she’s the one in contact with the Illuminators’ Face…”
“...hey you don’t think with the seal weakened they wouldn’t need both to undo it?” The third remaining one would chime in. What followed was a heavy silence between the group as a concerning realization perhaps, started to fall into place. "Well if we don't know where it is, is, it shouldn't matter right? But then what about the second one?" Didn't seem like the hunters may have any more immediately relevant information unless they were pressed further or had anything else specific they'd want to ask.
"Oh...uh...we could show you two to that pit with the seal in it. That's where you're heading, isn't it?"
“...Necromancy.” Baba replied with a passionless voice. “The faithful of the goddess of death are given the ability and permission to use Necromancy to both punish sinners and use them to protect people.” The younger girl would shake her head. “Most people always found it…repulsive…they just wanted an excuse. The Apostles gave them that.” She’d take a few steps towards Nicholas.
By now a few alarm bells in his head might be going off.
“The maids marked me for death. Even if I run to the furthest lands, they will pursue.” A smile, would form on her lips, slowly turning into a wide, toothy almost excited grin. “So if I’m going to die…I’m going to take as many of them as I can with me, simple, right? They deserve it, just as I do. As for you…” A pale hand would reach out and grab Nicholas by the chin. “I could. Do you want me to?”
Yeah, maybe he should be careful about his words now.
“...You’ve not done anything to insult me. Yet. So you can stay. Until you do. Are you planning to?” She’d release him taking a seat and starting to eat. Well, she didn’t seem like she was going to harm him, but he was getting the sinking feeling the longer he’d stay, the more in danger he’d be if he let his words run completely unchecked.
Send Feet Pics @Cu Chulainn Breathe in. Breathe out. The waves lapped upon the shore, then receded, rhythmic as Nomura’s breathing would slowly become as he meditated upon the shore. He could already direct his mana into a specific part of the body, that was fairly easy to do now and honestly not too taxing as long as he didn’t continuously do it.
Strengthening everything at once though, did seem to put some strain on him.
First his arm again. It was hard to tell how much of an effect it was having as he wasn’t actively applying the force when he was strengthening it, but there was definitely some change. A bit like a coiled spring - tension forming in his muscles perhaps.
Next his legs. As the energy shifted, leaving his arm it’d feel a bit like being drained of energy. Fatigued, a bit. His legs would feel much the same as his arm did. Moving it back to his arm, the fatigue would vanish entirely as it’d resettle into its resting place. It seemed he could roughly keep the strengthening up for about a minute if he focused on one limb, and only thirty seconds if it was two, while enhancing more at a single time seemed completely out of reach for now.
Perhaps, he’d need a way not to just push or test his limits - but find a way to actively break them.
The gentle waves upon the shoreline was broken by the sound of something splashing in the water, though if he looked he’d see nothing immediately unusual.
Skill Evolved: Muscle Reinforcement (lesser) -> Muscle Reinforcement A skill denoting ones ability to reinforce their muscles via magical means, making them temporarily tougher and stronger. Can be used on multiple parts of the body, though as one may expect doing more than one limb at a time causes greater drain on mana reserves. There is an upper limit that exists, dependent on the physical ability of the user.
“Oh? Most warriors don’t care for the process,” The half elf dwarf would say, a tinge of curiosity in his voice. “Well, I’m not one to turn away a lad who wants to learn.” He’d say with a hearty grin. “Alright, Isidore. Asvar. Lets show ya the forge, then. Rael, bring out some of the iron and a suit for Isidore here.”
With a wordless signal of affirmation, Rael would head into the back store room. The Blacksmith, would lead Isidore into the forge, a noticeable shift in temperature from the burning furnace where arms and armor were made. The room itself had all the trappings a blacksmith might need - a large forge where ore was blasted with heat to make them malleable. Anvil, to hammer said ore into shape. A grind stone on which to sharpen the blade to a fine point. Table and materials to make repairs to armor and weapons.
“I’ll assume ye don’t have any knowledge whatsoever, eh Isidore? So we’ll start from the basics.” He’d say, grabbing a nugget of raw Rubell ore in one hand and Iron in another. “The ore itself. Each is different. Each has different strengths and weaknesses. Rubell ore that’s common here in Gloomhollow, soft. Easily worked, but is good at conducting magic. Iron is harder. Needs a firmer hammer and more heat, but sharper and harder than Rubell ore. Knowing what you’re working with, and what you want to create with it is important.”
He’d let Isidore have both of them. The Iron was hard, rough…and well, exactly as he’d expect of Iron. The Rubell, was similar to the previous time he had felt the blade. Sharp, but soft. He could likely break it with his bare hands if he had enough force on it.
“You can add other metals and things to strengthen it. Normally Rubell blades are made with a bit of iron, to make them not so brittle.” He’d move over to the forge, grabbing a hammer as Raelzeth would appear with a box of a few pieces of iron ore and an apron for Isidore to wear. “Put it on lad. Best way to learn is to do. The forging process is simple enough. Once the metal is heated, start by shapin’ the metal into a shape that best fits the tool or weapon you want to make, making sure it stays up to temperature while you hit it.”
A hammer, tongs, and a variety of other tools were laid out near the anvil. Asvar would hand the hammer to Isidore.
“Don’t have to tell me twice lass! I didn’t sign up to get eaten by some sorta slime!” Eirhild would yell back, as she’d hop off the cart. A certain little fox would use this time to flee the scene, heading back into the direction of Mie’s camp.
Donovan would surge forward, divine speed carrying him to his target. He’d leap into the air, intent to smash the creature with a heavy blow to its supposed head. The hunters were still too disorganized to respond properly, the creature though - was already recovered from the blow Soyala herself had just dealt.
Slimy tendrils would latch onto his leg, a hardened bone weapon impaling his shoulder. Pain rippled through the point of impact as it would pull the blade upwards in an attempt to sever Donovan’s arm from the rest of his body.
Leannah’s timely intervention, may be the only reason that it wasn’t. The blast of fire would slam into the ground behind the beast, causing it to recoil forwards - right into Donovans hammer. The sound of glass shattering. A myriad of colors as the creature's head seemed to fracture into multiple fragments. The creature would toss Donovan aside with a pained shriek, he’d land on the ground, a large gash in his right shoulder and bleeding profusely.
It’d lash out at everything in fury, its body starting to lose cohesion as slimy, oily liquid dripped onto the ground along with a number of bones and the weapons it had taken into itself.
“Kkkkrr…gggrrrrk-” Pained, furious gurgles as its body began shrinking. “Mmrttthher…hlllk-hhhrrrst….” Whatever it was communicating was difficult to tell, but though the blow it had been dealt was fairly staggering, it wasn’t completely losing its cohesion just yet - no, instead it would lash out for more of the hunters, grabbing them by their ankles and bodies, pulling them into itself more. Consuming, assimilating as its body would stabilize.
Of course, the water bolts being slung towards the creature would have done more damage - had it not used the bones from the hunters it had recently consumed to create more armor for itself, the bolts of water not able to penetrate it, it appeared. As the chaos settled, the remaining hunters were few in number. The slime’s body bubbled and rippled, morphing and shifting into a larger form as the bodies it had consumed were serving to further its own growth now.
From one side of its lower body, two large slimy hands would form, tipped with bony claws and covered in painful looking spines. Armor made of more bone would form upon its upper body. No doubt getting near this thing was going to be tougher.
Soyala herself, would take this time to bolt from the scene, deeming the ambush lost and the goal at the moment, not mattering as much as making a swift exit. Narkissa would at least be able to note she was fleeing back towards the forest. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to follow her? She was still far enough away from the slime she could flee, but at the same time the thing looked like it wasn’t going to be going down as easily as the others.
Misaki @PKMNB0Y “Right.” Lazhira would exhale, still seeming a bit on edge from the situation. “Be safe, Narkissa.” Lazhira would start making her way back towards the village. It’d probably be safe enough there for now, back at her house. The deer would follow, prancing along beside Misaki seeming awfully pleased that it was able to help in the situation.
“Jeez, i’m not cut out for playing hero, am I?” Lazhira would say, trying to lighten the mood just a bit as they’d walk. “You and Narkissa are really good at this sort of thing, aren’t you? Well…I suppose you didn’t really do much…sorry rambling because I’m nervous.” She’d chuckle sheepishly.
A few moments would pass where Misaki could reply if she wanted.
“Whew…I’m tired after that. Hey…Misaki? Can I use your tail as a pillow to nap on once we get back?” She’d innocently ask, seeming as though she still wanted to get a chance to since she hadn’t really since they’d arrive.
With the sounds of battle growing fainter as they left, Misaki took a deep breath, content for the moment with how things had been panning out once they had left. Of course, it wasn't like she had done much of anything, but...
Well, she had brought the deer to help, at least?
As Narkissa stated her intention to remain behind, Misaki simply gave a nod in return and continued back towards the village, Lazirha at her side. It wasn't like she could stay behind, given her capabilities, and putting her or the deer at risk of further harm because she wanted to try and help more was courting death.
Silent as she was, though, Lazirha's comment pulled Misaki out of her thoughts about who to flag down when back in town and left her instead with a bit of a melancholic look.
"Ah... Yeah. I think I mentioned before that I didn't really fight in the first place. Good thing you were here, huh?" she responded, patting the deer prancing at her side on the head before sighing. "Much as I hate to admit it, that part's gotta change... But, well, that aside, even if it wasn't exactly according to plan, you did help ruin that ambush, so if anything you can say you did more that I did, at least?"
There was a moment of silence before Lazirha chimed in again, and given the situation...
Well, honestly, letting Lazirha rest would probably be best, given everything that had transpired today.
"I... Suppose that would be fine, but we should worry about getting some people who can handle the situation in the forest over there before thinking about getting any sort of rest," the foxgirl said simply as the village drew into view.
Hopefully it wasn't too late to find people who could help resolve the incident at hand...
“...Necromancy. The faithful of the goddess of death are given the ability and permission to use Necromancy to both punish sinners and use them to protect people.”
Ah, necromancy. Nick should've figured, it was pretty obvious. Baba and her folks appear to be using it for good, but he understood that using someone's dead relatives might not sit well for that certain someone. Still, it was quite the overreaction for the village to hunt them down just for that. Then again, the desecration of graves is also quite the offense. This was quite the dilemma Nick found himself in.
Nick noticed that Baba had approached him, and his heart started beating faster. He did not need his spidey-senses to know that he was in danger.
Staying quiet and trying his best not to look too intimidated, Nick listened to Baba explain that the 'maids' had her marked for death and would just pursue should she flee. And so, Baba decided to simply make her stand here and inflict as much damage as she could before going down. Grabbing his chin, she also mentioned that she could very much destroy Nick right here, right now.
Despite the cool temperatures, sweat began forming in Nick's forehead. He was in danger again, but at least the view's prettier than the previous times.
Perhaps he should be careful with what he says from now on, preferably avoiding the topics of Baba's mercy. Hold on a second, if Baba was powerful enough to obliterate him? Why did she run away from the undead hounds? And why was she hesitant to let him inside her cabin? Shouldn't she be absolutely confident in confronting him? It wasn't adding up for Nick when he thought about it.
“...You’ve not done anything to insult me. Yet. So you can stay. Until you do. Are you planning to?”
Well regardless, he was not gonna risk it. His spidey-senses also told him 'No' too. After Baba released him and took a seat at the table to enjoy her stew, Nick rubbed his chin nervously before joining her. "Err, hopefully not. Not that kinda guy to do that stuff anyway, even to my enemies." Although, Nick didn't have any personal enemies back in Earth so who could really say?
"So, uhh, you've been marked for death..." Nick gulped. He was probably overstaying his welcome, but it seemed so rude to simply leave. Especially when the goal was left unfinished. "How does that work? Are the 'maids' like, hitmen or something? Is it possible to unmark you? Pay off your bounty or something?" It would be so easy to just leave Baba for dead, maybe even tell Elisette or that duo back in Liven where she was so this whole ordeal could be resolved once and for all. But that just seemed... heartless, considering everything.
Oh yeah, there was still Elisette who was also looking for her. Well, she seemed like a good girl so Nick figure it'd be easy to just convince her the job's done once the zombies leave the village permanently.
She'd given him an ample opportunity to save his own life, and yet he still wasted it with gusto. The headless corpse staining the snow crimson, however, seemed to spur the other hunters to cooperate rather then resist.
Good. Fear was an excellent tool just as diplomacy was, even if it was still unpredictable. As Nobunaga listened to the hunters speak, she flicked the blood from her katana and sheathed it on her hip, quietly. So there were two forms associated with the so-called God of Knowledge, and one of them could have gone rogue? While she hardly desired to aid the foolish deity, getting to the bottom of this was quite clearly beneficial to the town itself. It would serve her goal of ensuring that the God of Knowledge was no longer worshipped here, and that learning would be achieved through other means.
"I believe we must investigate this place," she commented, simply, "But know this: If you seek in any way to betray us, you forfeit this second chance. You will not see another sunrise."
The petite girl paused for a moment.
"On the other hand, if your willingness to be of assistance bears out, I am certain the village chief will hear of it."
It was hardly subtle, but sometimes subtleness was unnecessary. Death to traitors, rewards to those who lament their ways and rejoin the fold.
They were supposed to kill her on sight? This was a development that Novak didn't anticipate. He didn't realize before that the Hag was the enemy of the hunters. But if she and the old man were both voices of the Illuminator, why would they be opposed?
More importantly, Soyala came up again. He already knew that she was their leader, and the one that believed that Lazhira was eroding the seal. Now it was mentioned that she was the one who was in regular communication with the Illuminator, and she used this influence to direct them away from worrying about their directive to kill the Hag, and rather to recover the orbs- the very orbs that the Hag seemed to interested in retrieving.
Novak's eyes widened at the realization.
This Soyala...she's working for the Hag. She's manipulating the hunters for the Hag instead of the Old Man. Or...what if she is the Hag?
"Curious...the hag revealed to myself, Lazhira, and Narkissa that she is looking for the orb. If you ask either of them, they can confirm this." Novak spoke. "And it is she, who who claims to speak for the Illuminator, or at least his Old Man aspect, told you to not worry about the hag and focus on the orbs? She is the one who has directed you to target Lazhira as the possible culprit behind breaking the seal, correct? When I get the chance, I think it'd be...illuminating to speak to Soyala myself."
"But first," Novak resumed, "I would be grateful if you would show us the seal. Like I said, we too wish to see it preserved. And...I'm sorry for your friend," he said, looking at the headless corpse. "My companion did what she had to do to protect me, and I am very grateful, but I was hoping it would not end like...this."
After a long moment of training, Nomura laid down on the sandy shore, allowing his muscles to relax. This surely was something to make a habit of in the future. Not only was he able to understand his current limits, but he was able to discover more about himself and his nature, namely that he needed to find ways to break his limiters. More importantly, it served as a nice and soothing massage after a day of training! The brief tangs of soreness would be alleviated with the application of medicine onto his limbs, using what was left of that salve he was given.
After a moment of respite, Nomura stood up and yawned, stretching as he watched the sun dazzle over the horizon. Turning back to Mie's camp, he noticed a peculiar fox scurry its way back home. Having a feeling of who this fox may be, Nomura surged into the air as he enhanced his legs once more with speed and conjured his wings. Like a swooping hawk, Nomura would appear before Ayumi rather suddenly, the sun glistening off his majestic form.
"Hello, little fox... Seems you've been quite busy, no?" Nomura cocked his head curiously. "Does this mean you have what we need? Ah, and what of Donovan? He didn't pass, did he?" Grilling the fox with further questions, Nomura wished to get right on the bottom of what had just transpired!
The slime was eating up hunters and changing and gurgling something aloud, and for a second the Bastelian almost imagined the thing even gurgled out the word 'mother' or something. Not to mention that she saw a female someone bolt away from the scene whilst the others got nabbed up, which made her suspicious and brought only one word to mind. Soyala. Whatever the Hunters had been doing on this side of the portal, however the Slime ended up appearing here, however Lazhira of all people had been around this spot, she didn't trust anyone outside of the inquisitive girl and the allies she herself was currently working with. That much Leannah knew for a surety.
Time for the big guns then.
Leannah darted around the left side of the beast (it's left, not her left) and kept out of its reach. At the same time she prepared her one real offensive spell once more. Yet this time she did not hold back so much. She let power flow into it, just as much as she had put into it back in the Illuminator's divine realm...and much more. Enough juice to hopefully turn this giant enemy slime into boiling remnants sitting on the ground. It wasn't a closed, contained area she was tossing this into, but Leannah all the same hoped she wouldn't make this worse than it already was.
Then, when she had the lineup to blow the beast clear off the cliff but not in the direction of her allies or the carts (in the hopefully worst case scenario), the Bastelian threw the attack with all of her might at the slime to where it would land dead in front of it. Immediately after, she nearly threw her own body down onto the ground as she moved to duck and roll away and lie on the ground as quickly as she could. Her right side, already burnt, would be facing the potential heat wave and fire of the blast at most.
Yet as she made her move to dive away she didn't stay silent either.
"GET FLAT ON THE GROUND, NOW!!!"
She hoped this worked. She really, really hoped this worked.
“Alright, alright, we get it.” One would defensively shout. “No funny business!”
“A good hunter knows when not to take on something stronger than them.” Another would say with a shake of his head. “We’ll give him a burial later…” A silence fell as Novak’s words would at least start making them think about the implications of what he was saying. If that was true, then…they were being taken for fools, weren’t they?
“...r-right its uh, over here.” The third would start walking. The torchlight was enough to keep the fog at bay, though the hunters bearing emblems from the illuminator seemed to protect them. Finding their way through it was easy enough thanks to them, too - though as they came upon it one would nearly stumble over the edge of the sinkhole.
“Here. Its there…probably. Don’t have any idea what else this would be.”
Where the temple had been previously, was now a wide, deep hole, the edges of which were rocky and uneven. The only way in seemed to be a jagged slope that was in the direction of the hunters old hideout, it seemed. Probably had been revealed and destroyed when the Kyrnith had ripped the place to shreds.
And what lay at the bottom?
At the bottom of the pit, the floor was smooth carved stone as if someone had taken some form of sandpaper or other tool and cut the entire floor to be smooth, shiny granite or some similar stone. The only blemishes were indentations that seemed to mimic the phases of the moon, starting with what seemed to be a new moon at six o'clock and a full moon at twelve.
In the middle of the dias a stone altar sat. Carved from a blue-tinted stone, a light fog seemed to slowly waft from it, slowly coming from under it. The altar itself seemed to depict a broken moon, two halves held on either side of it by some sort of twisting, spiraling stone. Extending from the bottom of the altar to the engravings of the moon phases, were smooth ridges and carvings seeming to extend to each of them with the one depicting the full moon having eleven gathering in it.
“I don’t like lookin’ at it. Gives me the creeps.” One of the hunters said.
“Its where that fog is coming from, see?”
“That uh, old temple. We were told the Illuminator put it there to sort of…block it? If you say you met the Hag there…she might have been trying to do something to it.”
“...no.” The wolf girl replied with a dismissive, slightly annoyed seeming huff. “Its one of the laws from the Goddess. The Goddess has no power out of the underworld, so her Maids are the ones she sends after those who break her laws.” She’d look out the only window in the cabin. “...if it were any other law, maybe…but I broke that which should not be broken. ‘Do not use the dead to harm the living’. ” That was all she was going to say on the matter, it seemed. She’d get up from the table, half eaten bowl left behind.
“...I’m going out. You stay here.” She’d say, not elaborating on what she was doing. It was getting pretty late. The sun starting to dip over the horizon, painting the wintry dead forest in colors of twilight, the snowy ground being cast in long shadows from the leafless trees. “If I don’t return…well, then the maids probably got me…” There was a very good chance she wanted to be left alone, and there was no telling what would be out there at night and she could probably handle herself.
“...someone has a flair for an entrance.” The fox would snicker, fairly unimpressed with Nomura’s entrance. The display of acrobatics looked less graceful and more like a drunk pelican, but perhaps with a little practice he’d look like the elegant peacock he was desiring to be. “To answer your question though, no he still has it.” She’d huff, tail swishing back and forth in the snow. “Wasn’t much of an opportunity to pilfer it without being seen…”
She’d glance over her shoulder back towards the cliffs and obelisk.
“That place was spooky. Felt like I’d stepped into some sorta…divine realm or something. Like some god was staring right at me.” She’d shake her head, pawing at it with a paw, before she’d end up sniffing the air and turning her attention from the fight that was happening towards Malphas. She’d walk around him, sniffing around him before pouncing on one of his feet.
“You smell like fish. You smell like rare fish. Lemme have it and I might be inclined to help with the slime since I can probably snatch the thing during then.”
“O-oh, the most excited? Hmm…I think its uhm, whenever I’m training with Sorcha.” The elf replied with a bright smile. “O-or maybe when I’m with Uncle…he’s always so busy but he’s the best.” Before she could really respond further, however, the door to the bath would open and a rather perhaps, expected guest would enter. The queen, Tall and lithe with an almost otherworldly appearance and grace would seemingly glide into the changing room, get undressed, and then be at the foot of the bath within the seeming span of barely a minute.
“A-ah! Q-queen Vasserasa!” Leuca, for one, seemed like she hadn’t expected her.
“Your Majesty.” Augusta said, not letting the surprise show on her face. “What an unexpected, if pleasant, surprise to see the Queen in her own bath.” She watched the Queen as she rather rapidly made it to the bath in hardly any time at all, observing the otherworldly beauty that was to be her mother-in-law in the future. “Looking to relax in the waters?” The woman asked with a smile.
“Hmm, just a it.” The queen responded with a sigh, her tall frame just barely sinking into the water up to her shoulders even at the deepest part of the bath. “I also wished to speak to you about our mutual patron.” She’d say with a soft giggle, leaning back in the water. “And this is likely the best place to not be…overheard.”
“Yes… It probably is.” Augusta said with a nod before looking over to Leuca, her thought showing on her face. “I suppose it’d be fine for Leuca to listen in?” She asked, ruffling the girl’s hair and then looking toward the monarch.
“Is there some reason you have to not trust the little one?” The queen replied. “Or do you believe she’ll tell what we speak of to the Storm Bearer? It is fine to be suspicious of others, but if you afford no trust then you will have none.”
“...Uhm, I can keep secrets! Promise!” Leuca responded eagerly.
“See? Nothing to worry about. The child does not lie and any discussion we have here will have no negative consequences on whatever plans you may have.”
The woman was a small bit perplexed as she hadn’t really said anything to want to push her cousin to be out. Sometimes, the less you know, the better. “It’s not as if I told her to leave.” Augusta said with a sigh. “And I wonder what plans I even really have at this point.” She relaxed a bit in the water, looking over the Queen once more. “So, what do we have to discuss?” Her eyes betrayed her interest in the topic of the goddess and the otherworldly queen in general.
“Oh you know, the thing we share. That power of yours and mine, while ultimately different are something of the same thing.” She’d respond. “I was blessed with foresight, like all the queens of my bloodline are. I see future stories that I can not possibly comprehend or take part in. You, are blessed with the ability to see all that a person has been. The story of their life, if you will. Yet such a power is unrefined. I’m certain you realized that after attempting to see what secrets our human friend held.”
“And what a monstrous human she seems to be.” Augusta mentioned, remembering the headache that she had from when she tried to read it. “Of course, I don’t know if that beats the woman that just told me not to try it.” Augusta teased a small bit. “But yes, it is unrefined as you put it, I suppose. It’s not like I’ve had it for all my life or anything of the sort. Well, perhaps I have in one sense…”
“Curious. Powers like ours are often given at birth.” The queen replied with a chuckle. “You are implying that it wasn’t.” She’d give Augusta a small smile. “But I suppose that is neither here nor there. I merely cautioned you, as well as a little bit of mischief on my part. As for what I wish to speak of…I hope to help you perhaps refine it. It will be an asset to you, in the future if you wish to follow the path you have set out for yourself.”
Augusta couldn’t help but return the smile. She felt there was at least a good rapport between the two of them. “Normally, I’d ask what was in it for you… But I believe we’re both far past that point by now. I could almost say that my Mother-in-Law is more a mother to me than my own was.” The woman chuckled a small bit, thinking of her mother. Wondering what exactly her parents were doing or, perhaps, if they cared much that she was gone. It was hard to say. “But, if you would help me ‘refine it’ then I wouldn’t say no. I’ve not fully realized my ‘path’ but it would indeed be an asset.”
“You have not? Yet you are here, intending to take the throne from me.” She’d respond with a airy chuckle. “Perhaps you have and yet you have not realized it yet. Regardless,” The queen would reach a hand out, lightly poking Augusta on the forehead. “Let us converse.” Leuca was sitting opposite the queen, now, seeming a bit confused as to what was being said, but didn’t feel comfortable interrupting the Queen.
“Now then, you may be aware but what you hold is not actually the Goddess’ eye. It is more of a…replica that imparts you part of her own divine authority. That is, to see the entire life and disposition, faults, triumphs, vices, virtues, all of a single person, animal, or anything with some semblance of a consciousness. Do you understand?”
The Queen’s little boop on her forehead pushed her head back a very small bit before she listened intently to the Queen’s words. Her explanation. Then she asked the question of whether it was understood or not. “Yes. Divine Authority. The ability to see the everything of something with a semblance of consciousness. Not, say, a rock or sword. But, not enough authority to see much of something…” She struggled to find the correct words after this. “Something, powerful, perhaps? Or, perhaps, something with a higher blessing?” She asked, thinking back a small bit. “I’ve seen much but I’ve been clouded about a few such people. You, I assume. Sorcha and Rullphana. Not to mention Octavia’s clan name?” She questioned, thinking back on her pup’s information.
“That is it, in part.” The queen replied with a nod. “But, only in part. You have, up until now merely been…attempting to brute force such things. Like looking at a moon with an intensely powerful lens and expecting to see what lies under. A stronger lens would not aid in such a task. You would need something to peel back the layers of the moon. Something that allows you to see what lays within.” She’d sigh. “Although, I will admit. The Storm Bearer is likely to be one you will never be able to read unless she allows. She is an existence near that of a Divinity herself.”
The queen would start washing her hair, long, slender fingers gliding through her white locks with ease as she’d begin bathing and talking.
“I know not much about demons, but if you could not read the pups ‘clan’ name then…well, that is a curiosity you may wish to speak with Rullphana about. I’m surprised she has not already told you, though I suppose you did not ask.” She’d give Augusta a cheeky wink and a soft laugh. “If you wish to experiment, then you may use me if you wish. I should be able to guide you more easily then others.”
Augusta smirked a small bit. “Guide me in experimentation? How forward, Your Majesty.” She giggled a small bit at her joke. “Pardon, you meant with my replica eye.” She cleared her throat. “Yes, if you would allow me, it would be a wonderful chance.” Her eyes showed a small amount of worry.
“Well, then by all means feel free to start.” The Queen replied with a quiet laugh, though the Innuendo went right over Leuca’s head as the women talked. All that remained to be seen was how exactly Augusta would go about this experimentation. She had yet to even attempt to alter the abilities output or otherwise…but surely there was a way, wasn’t there?
Augusta had just let the eye do as it would. She hadn't really considered doing anything else, but her lesson with Rulphana had taught her some things, such as the flow of Mana in her body. Perhaps she could boost the strength of the eye by sustaining it with extra Mana, though she wondered if that would help. Well, for now, she closed her eyes and opened them, focusing on the queen rather intently while directing a flow of Mana to her eye.
Augusta would channel more mana into the eye. A small bit of pressure would start to form. The queen didn’t verbally reply, rather, she’d use whatever method before she used to speak with Augusta.
“Raw power only gets so far. This magic affects others, and thus, you should use it on others.” came the simple reply as the Queen relaxed in the waters. “The Goddess’ gifts are typically for those who prefer creativity and quick-thinking solutions.”
“Uhm…if you’re trying something with magic…maybe I can help?” Leuca chimed in quietly. “Rullphana said its…sort of all about how you direct and shape it. So…uhm…”
Their points were fair, but… Augusta wondered exactly how one shaped and directed a goddess’ eye. She kept her mana channeling and closed her other eye and let her eyelid on the replica lower. She took one deep breath and tried to imagine her vision were a crossbow bolt, attempting to pierce the armor of what she assumed to be the Goddess’s Blessing the Queen had. Then, she focused the eye’s power as best she could and attempted to actually route the mana into such a design, aimed at breaking through the Queen’s defenses.
An arrow, blue and ethereal, looking as though it was made more of space rather than anything of substance. As well, it didn’t seem like Leuca saw it at all. The queen would merely keep a composed expression, quietly washing herself as the arrow would hit…and then nothing.
“Hm, not a bad start. If one was actively attempting to hinder your looking, it would likely have a good effect.” The queen replied. “However…Augusta, dear, you should realize this is not a matter of defense, but rather…simple skill, if I were to put simply. I have no defenses up and am not actively attempting to hinder you. Do it that way again, if you wish…but you need more. Like peeling a fruit.”
“Armor is a matter of defense even when it doesn’t actively do anything.” Augusta commented, grabbing at her temple while studying the Queen’s status. As the monarch said, it didn’t really do anything. She swiped her hand at it, like she were smacking a CRT TV trying to make it work. Her hand there already, she wondered if the menu could even do anything but display. She touched at some of the parts of it that gave her missing content. Perhaps it would do something. She was skeptical of that at the least. Would focusing on it prove fruitful.
And thus, the Queens ‘profile’ would pop up as Augusta requested. She had never really looked at it before, had she? It was definitely some sort of status screen from the looks of it, like what one may find in an old RPG or one of those anime shows that had become popular over the last few years.
Name: Vasserassa Race: Elf (Urutha) Physical Attributes: Weaker than you Magic Attributes: Stronger than you Weakness: - Abilities: - Special attributes: This creature while not actively hindering you, is harder to read.
It seemed unlike their meeting in the throne room, the Queen was being truthful at least - she was not actively tampering with it herself this time. Maybe if the queen could, she could in some manner? Touching it though, seemed…ineffective. Her hands simply going through the menu. It didn’t seem like something she could touch. Nothing physical, like that arrow she had done earlier.
The ‘screen’ itself was of a blue and silver coloration. There didn’t seem ot be anything missing on first investigation, but maybe she could use magic to manipulate it.
At the bottom of the screen was a note.
“Quite the pretty thing, isn’t she? Heheh, maybe you should be more forceful in your affections~”
She hadn’t heard something from the goddess in awhile, but of course she would chime in now of all times.
“Goddess, you’re quite something else…” Augusta said aloud. Maybe she should keep that in mind though… Still, it did look like an old RPG… Maybe she could use her mana to make the window function like a menu from those? Using her mind as the controller, she tried to create a cursor, or light up sections of the window like she were trying to select options. “Vasserassa.” She said, wanting to see her hopeful cursor show up there as she tried to make it do so.
“What do you mean something else? Fine fine, I’ll not say anything more. In fact I’ll help you since you want to rely on me so much~” The note at the bottom would change itself to say. “Do be warned though…I will ask for a favor if you keep it up and I can be veeerrrry greedy. My sweet little Sage knows that all to well, hehe.”
As Augusta would treat the screen just like one of those old RPG stat screens, she’d ‘press’ on the Queens name. Didn’t seem there was anything she was hiding there. At the top of the screen, something odd would happen though. A little chibi version of what looked like a black haired woman in a long, blue flowing robe with bright blue eyes would poke her head out from the top of the screen and wave.
With an impish giggle, the small figure would drop down from the top, fall until it hit the ‘Weaknesses section’. Standing on top of the section under it, she would take out what seemed to be a book, and a three-pronged trident that seemed to have a paintbrush of some sort on one end. With a flurry of motion, the chibi version would start filling in blank areas with black ink.
Name: Vasserassa Race: Elf (Urutha) Physical Attributes: Weaker than you Magic Attributes: Stronger than you Weakness: Because of her advanced age, physical capability is lacking. (Not that she had much to begin with lol) Cute girls (I think she likes you, ask her on a date! She likes it when people are forceful! (Don’t tell her I said this lol)) Is weak to divine magic and holy things, while naturally resistant to demonic taint. (Maybe she knows something about that pup of yours?~ I still say you should murder it~) Abilities: Soul-Weaver Master A magical trait unique to Shadow Elves, taught by the demon which took their wandering tribe in during the Moonless Era. Allows them to manipulate their souls...and the souls of others. Some consider this one of the greatest Taboos. Only the Goddess of Death has any perceived right to manipulate another’s soul. (I don’t get why its a Taboo. That dumbass death goddess and her silly maids, hmph. Maybe you should have asked about that if you didn’t want my help? Although, who doesn’t want my ever so amazing help, fufu~!) Special attributes: Goddess’ Far-seeing A special form of clairvoyance carried by the female members of this persons lineage. Allows one to see all possible future events that may occur from the point one begins looking. Doesn’t need previous knowledge to know. Given by the Moon Goddess, Delpithi (I considered it a bit of a curse myself…how boring it is to know what’s going to happen! Like who’s going to stab you in the back! Who’s going to betray you! To see you’re not going to be the hero any more! Fufu, I think I’m talking too much~)
With its work done, the little chibi would drop to the bottom of the screen, seeming satisfied and pleased with herself as she’d twirl the trident-brush with a smug, ‘praise me’ sort of expression.
Augusta was in a mild state of shock. She didn’t expect that the goddess would help her in such a thing. Not in such a… “Cute…” way. She didn’t know what to exactly expect, but it definitely wasn’t a tiny version of… Was that what the Goddess looked like? Either way, she should probably thank the Goddess. “Umm, thank you Goddess. You’re the best!” She said, praising the out of touch being the best she could at the moment. She should think of something better to say for later if it comes to it. That said, a limited form of communication was possible between them it seemed. Maybe she could ask the goddess to talk later in some capacity.
For now though, she spoke to Queen. “Soul-Weaver Master. Goddess’ Far-seeing…” Augusta mentioned. “That’s quite the weakness you have there, apparently, Your Majesty. Maybe I should act on it.” Augusta teased, looking at the woman with a smile. She’d measure the Queen’s response before saying much more though.
“Heheh, damn right I’m the best!” The text bubble would say. “Bring me some moonflowers later as proper tribute, hm? I’ll leave you two lovebirds alone for now…though mind Leuca-guh!” The Chibi version of the Goddess would look to the side of the screen, flinch a bit with a visible ‘Guh’ in the text box. If Augusta was still looking, she’d see a flash of blue lightning streak across the screen, slamming into the goddess and knocking her out of frame.
Well, whatever that was it seemed she was gone for now.
“Weakness…?” The Queen said with a frown. “Aha…oh, well…I thought that was obvious? I am rather old dear. Getting on in age is not something you’d need that eye of yours to see.”
Augusta’s eyes would show a small amount of surprise as the goddess was blasted off screen. Well, she would be fine. She was the Goddess after all, right? She could pay full attention to Leuca and the Queen for now. “Well, I think the Goddess is just messing with me a small bit, but it has another weakness listed here, well two, but one caught my eye more than the other.” She went silent a second before continuing. “How do you feel about ‘Cute Girls’, Your Majesty?”
“Goddess…? The goddess is ‘messing with you’?” The queen would frown. “Still full of surprises that even I can’t see.” The queen sighed, shaking her head in a mildly resigned fashion. “Be careful not to mention that in such a fashion. It might get you in trouble if someone else hears it…but to answer your question.” She’d smirk. “Well, the goddess has no reason to lie.” She seemed somewhat disappointed as far as things went, but was satisfied enough if she had helped Augusta with helping her perhaps, understand a bit more about this eye of hers.
“But if you’ll excuse me, I’ve done what I came for and I must get back to court.”
“Truthfully, I feel like I’ve failed about as much as I’ve succeeded. But don’t worry, I don’t plan on mentioning any of this business about the goddess to anyone outside this room aside Isidore, at the moment. Maybe when my husband-to-be seems to take an interest in me.” The elf woman gave a small sigh and shrug. “That aside, why don’t you let me wash your back? You look like you could use it before you get out there to the world of being the most beautiful queen.”
“Most beautiful queen, hm? I’m sure many queens out there would say such a thing about themselves.” Vasserasa would reply with a small smile. “But, very well, I can at least allow that much. Leuca, be a dear and grab some soap, would you?”
“O-oh of course!”
Augusta returned the smile as she moved around a bit so she could reach the Queen’s back. “Thank you for allowing me.” The woman said, giving a small giggle. As she got closer, she really did realize just how tall Vasserassa was. Towering wouldn’t be the right word, but there was definitely a feeling like that. She grabbed a nearby wash cloth and got it ready for Leuca to return. “Do you share the bath with others often?” Augusta asked, trying to avoid an awkward silence.
“Hm…? Not particularly often, no. My son often bathes near the waterfall around the lake. Says it helps with his training.” She’d smile, letting Augusta scrub her back. “What about you? From the way you speak I get the impression you do this sort of thing often.” A small, teasing smile as Leuca returned with the soap.
“I use to.” Augusta mentioned as she took the soap from Leuca. “Thank you Leuca.” She started to apply the soap to the cloth as she continued. “It was pretty easy to have a personal bath from my hometown. There was infrastructure for it, believe it or not.” After that, the cloth was ready and she started to wash her soon-to-be mother-in-law’s back. “There were public baths at one point, but those fell out of favor.”
“Public baths, hm? Well, most simply draw water from the lake or one of the various rivers in the city.” The queen hummed quietly. “The water here was taken from the lake. I have my servants drain and refill it every morning. More, if it gets particularly dirty in the day.”
“Tamalns baths are all public.” Leuca mentioned. “Well, they’re more natural springs than baths. They have fairy magic in the water that helps heal and help people recover from fatigue! A lot of warriors and hunters are always there after the day ends. They’re almost never empty, eheh.”
“Well, we didn’t have anything as special as fairy magic in the water. The way it use to be was there were these structures called Aquaducts. They would carry water from further away to a place they were needed. It would help supply drinking water and anything else water was needed for.” Augusta stated as she washed the Queen’s back. She was fine talking about this since she considered this might be helpful in some way to the Queen. “After its arrival in the city, it’d either find itself in a well or put into a system of pipes that would take it through the facilities that would need it. Such as baths or even other wells.”
Augusta stopped midway in a rub down the Queen’s back as she thought about something before continuing. “It might be simple enough to set up a system for your bath here. The sewage system would probably be the more annoying part.” Augusta continued, wiping down one of the Queen’s arms.
“I see…well,” The queen smiled, turning to Augusta. “That’s going to be something for you to figure out soon, isn’t it?” She’d give Augusta a friendly pat on the head before standing and making her way out of the bath. “I do hope your training goes well. I shall be heading back to the throne room now. May the goddess bless you, Augusta.”
Maybe she should work on a plumbing system here in Gloomhaven soon. Perhaps she’d look into it. “Thank you, Your Majesty.” Augusta smiled. “And may she bless you as well.” As the Queen made her way out, she looked to Leuca. “Well, I believe we’re both cleaned up, shall we head out?” She asked, getting out ready to finish up her day.
The spell pulsed in Leannah’s hands. The familiar feeling of heat, burning, uncontrolled power forming in her palm. It was already growing considerably, reaching the point it had previously within a manner of seconds and by then it was too late for her to stop its growth. The miniature sun grew and grew, sucking out every last bit of magical energy Leannah had.
The slime screeched in response, shifting its mass to its arms realizing that it likely couldn’t stop the buildup of whatever it was that was happening - so it opted for a defensive measure. Its arms formed a wall in front of it, its defensive, bony plating melding together to form a wall of slime and bone between it and the exploding ball of fire.
The ball of fire was nearly as big as a beachball, now. It was burning Leannah just from holding it, threatening to blind her from the intensity of its light. It had truly become a miniature sun by now, there was no denying it. In fact it was even starting to pull on her and seemingly suck in everything around it as though it had its own gravity wall, insatiably hungry for more magic to feed its mass.
And then she’d lob it towards the slimy creature.
A blinding flash of light. A deafening explosion. Heat that would singe and burn the people near it. The snow on the ground in a roughly 30-yard radius upon impact would nearly instantly vaporize. At 50 yards it melted, turning to water as the heat radiated from the area. A mushroom cloud extended meters into the air. The slime creature shrieked, gurgling as the impact would cause the creature to recoil backwards, the bones on its arms, its slimy defensive wall evaporating in seconds as it would lose its cohesion, boiling away as its body fell to the ground, being pushed so far that its tail would hang off the cliff.
It wasn’t out yet, but it had lost its arms.
Donovan’s hair would be lightly singed if he managed to take cover. Eirhild and Akando took shelter behind the Obelisk, preventing them from being hit from most of the blast.
The creature, would retaliate immediately. Slimy tendrils would grab Leannah by her ankles, lifting her high into the air. The act of making an explosion that big had completely drained her, exhausting any magical supply she had, and thus, was completely unable to resist as she was pulled. If Narkissa or Donovan did not intervene, she was likely to be its next snack.
“Haaa, I suppose you’re right. Sorry, I’m just a bit tired. All of this is really sort of getting to me I guess.” Lazhira replied, shaking her head solemnly. “But thanks for that. I’ll be glad when all of this is over and I can go back to just skipping history lessons from Enli and looking around the forest without worry about getting jumped by some animal-ah-”
It was in all honesty, fast.
A flash of steel from nearby.
Lazhira’s dress would soon be stained red, eyes widening as an arrow stuck out from her stomach. A second arrow would fall upon the fawn, though it wouldn’t hit anything vital, just hitting it in the leg, earning a pained call from the animal as it would stumble to the ground.
“She’ll be coming with me, fox.” It was Soyala, having caught up with them from the battlefield while the others were occupied with the slime. Misaki could feel the sharp edge of steel on her neck, probably a spear or some other sharp, bladed instrument held against it. “Don’t worry, she’s not going to die…yet, at least. The arrows coated in a sort of...lets say poison that'll stop her from bleeding out.”
And lo, night fell upon the village where the future would rise. The sound of battle would slowly draw to an end, the monstrosity of slime would fall, a final push from the one who builds the future upon his hammer into the sea below. As it fell, all it could think of was
'why?'
Why, had they slain its mother? Why, had it been killed for the second time? A final, pitiful cry, but perhaps, now it was at peace. As the water would slowly wash away its body on the beach below, only a small skeleton would be left behind. As the heroes would take a moment to respite, the huntress would force the Scholar to hand over the now injured god-child, and when the others learned of this they would immediately begin preparations for what would likely be the final night for the village should they fail.
That night, the group consisting of the future Queen, the Warlord, the Builder, the Skilled one, and the goddess seeking Bastelian would confront the face of the God of Knowledge. Of course, she wasn't going to go down quietly - she would reveal that now that the seal had been appropriately weakened, she just needed only one of the keys...and that Lazhira, was one of these keys herself. Much like their bodies had been created, Lazhira had been a prototype of sorts. The first 'True' homunculus created by him and his mother. This, also was the reason the girl had an affinity for the seal, as well as sought it - the sealed half of the goddess was attempting to use her to get the other key so she could use the two of them to free herself...which was why the Illuminator had a little fox steal the one from the true temple.
She didn't say why she wanted to - only that she was tired of being someone else's puppet, and wanted to do something for herself, for a change.
The ground rumbled, the moon bled, cracking like an egg as the stars would fall into the void left behind. The ancient goddess would descend, eager to give humanity a trial. A trial to see if they were worthy of carrying the worlds future. The Illuminator would return, promise kept. A weapon that should not exist. A weapon of the future. With the explosives the Queen had made, and a bullet of divine origin the weapon roared, splitting the moon in half, the weapon destroying itself in the process from the force of it.
In the end, a new dawn would fall upon the village.
A cheer would ring out.
Perhaps, the humans of this village, had some future after all.
"Hehe, there. I think that's quite done enough."
"...seems rushed."
"Well thank you yes, I am aware."
"Not happy with it, then Del?"
"Well, my little Lottie, perhaps I've grown impatient. I can only hope they had fun with it, and got something out of it in the end."
"Surely you're not going to leave it there, are you?"
"What? Fufu, of course not. Don't worry, they'll get as...proper of a send off as I can manage. After all...my brush is the one which writes the history of this world, and my book is the one which records it all."
"Sometimes, I wonder why I love you."
The heroes would go their separate ways, Four, traveling with the Merchant. Three would head south, across the mountains that had loomed in the distance since their arrival. Their fates, all up to them to determine. Their lives, theirs to determine.
What of the reincarnated warlord, then?
They would eventually reach the merchants homeland, missing only one of their number. Upon reaching the islands to the west, perhaps she'd feel a bit at home here, after so long...both the good, and the bad parts of it. Oni clans roamed the beaches and mountains, the Merchant that had brought her here unable to follow for she did not wish to risk setting foot back in the land she was exiled from. Eventually, she would succeed - the Oni, Human, and Kitsune clans fully united...at least, until an unwelcome face would show itself and pose the greatest challenge to the Warlords rule.
And of the young Scholar? She would go on to make so many advances in the fields of science, agriculture, and civil affairs. Needless to say though, such things made her a target...especially for the troublesome God of Knowledge, that both would occasionally tempt her with things beyond what a mortal should know, as well as prevent her from messing with things he felt that the world should not mess with. Of course, being of Kitsune origin, she would not be able to refrain from being pulled into a century old conflict, in the end...
The bright and curious seeker of skill would stay with the Merchant, training, learning. The Oni and Ninja that she commanded both beating all manner of skills into him, turning him into quite a tool for her to use and as well teaching him the ins and outs of proper business. Eventually they would leave, and the Merchant would take him to see the rest of the world. Across the vast northern plains where primeval monsters dwell. To the eastern seas, where the people lived in a sky-city, worshiping the Goddess of the Dead, to the south where the remnants of humanity cling to ancient ideals and false prophets. But so too, would he eventually return. The Merchant would meet her end here, putting to rest a conflict with her sisters old as she was. She would leave her company, teachings, and everything she had to him.
As for one who sought the Apex of Humanity, he would not stay with the merchant for long. Upon meeting the ice-beast worshiping cult upon the northern ice fields, an accident would split him and Chohei away from the group, where they would become wanderers, eventually taking in many refugees and humans, becoming a wandering band of nomads across the land. Soon though, he would find a pristine city of ice amidst a lake, where he would find an blood-drop shaped artifact with a single red eye gazing out over a city frozen in time. Perhaps, he would make the ultimate sacrifice once more for those who believed in him...
"I'm surprised none of them have met a terrible fate yet."
"How rude. These are supposed to be the heroes of civilizations! The builders that the civilizations from the world are all built on! They're supposed to be triumphant tales of courage, heroism, and feel-good stories!"
"You said that about that one king too, and look how that ended."
"Look sometimes I get a little carried away I can't help it, watching humans struggle and clinging to me for salvation, hehehehe...its all the more sweeter when they hopelessly die."
"...just finish it already before I decide to put you back in the prison I found you in."
"Tch, alright alright!"
The three that had crossed the mountains, would stay together for quite some time. The builder, along with the dwarf companion he had picked up in Dawn. They would first find themselves crossing the mountains, only to fall victim to a raid by the Bastelian peoples. The one scorned by the sun would be taken, ripped from them as the goddess had demanded it...for she had yet to carry through on her oath of killing an Elder beast, and she was getting impatient. So the Goddess would tell her such, and tell her to kill a false sun that was plaguing her peoples. Once done, she would gain the Goddess Favor, and name her the incarnation of the sun - and the one who could lead her peoples.
With a life of building futures and hopes behind him, the one with hammer and blessings of the Oldest God would be given a piece of advice by the Beast of Forests and Winds - if he wished to understand the nature of beasts, demons, and those that had come before, he should first seek a beast guised as a human across the mountains. After learning all he could from this person, he would eventually find his way south to the place where humans of old cling to false prophets. He would soon cast out the lies and false inheritors from the palace, and build a true future for humans upon its corpse...but when one makes a splash within the world, others will notice. And the God he had been worshiping for guidance...would soon be beset by old enemies.
The Queen would soon find herself standing upon the precipice of greatness. After her initial worshiping of the moon back at the very beginning of the temple, whether she wished it or not, the Goddess of the Moon would take interest in her life from that day forward. Eventually, after overcoming several more trials the young monarch would find herself upon an island, just off the coast of the mainland that felt close to home. She would find a final trial upon this land whether she knew it or not. At the end of it all, she would possess a necklace of Divine Tears, that marked her as the true queen of that land and would give her both great wisdom and magical affinity rivaling that of the Goddess herself. Of course...such hardships would never end. The Goddess, after all, desired a good story...in the end, would she overcome the greatest challenge? One designed to ultimately kill her?
"...no."
"What?"
"No killing any of them."
"Awww, come on! What story is fun without a little bit of death! Tragedy! Lemme murder at least one of theeeem!"
"No. Those bodies of theirs are mine. I forbid you from needlessly maiming any of my handiwork."
"Even if I bring you your favorite little treat later?"
"What are you talking about? My favorite treat is already here."
"...oh~ Well I suppose if you're being affectionate for once-"
"...not you, this ice cream I made."
"Guh. Ow. My poor little fragile heart...maybe I'll go write a sad poem..."
Those that had left the village of foundation earlier, would not always stay together either. The young Elvish queen that would bring civilization to those of the Shadow would soon find herself ascending to the throne. The queen, perishing during a ball where a vicious demonic hound would attack her - the Elfs own pup nowhere to be seen and was soon found to be the culprit. In the end, she'd have to either make the decision to put the pup down, or become part demon herself in order to full control the creature...who can say what she ultimately would have done - but the queens words were absolute and final. After stopping Rullphana's plot to resurrect the old Demon as he had instructed them to do in return for his magic, she would ascend and lead them to a brighter future. The one who bore the storm on her shoulders would leave shortly after, receiving a letter from Tamaln...but such a position is always fraught with trouble. In the end, it would not be an enemy that would potentially be her undoing - but an Elf she would have helped raise.
As for the man that would become her right hand, he would learn all he could from Rullphana - and the demon that had nearly flayed him alive? She would eventually become a close friend, too. Well, as close as any demon could be with a human - she would tell him the ins and outs of the red lightning, and that it was really just a single half of a whole...that is, the art of Alchemy. Understanding the natural world and creating something from almost nothing. In the end, the blond haired warrior would ask him to come with her to Tamaln, where they would discover a tragedy most profound, but the warrior woman gaining resolve to finish something she had started many, many, years ago. He would return to the dwarves, where he would earn their respect in settling a caste dispute, but eventually...he would settle back into his old life as a businessman, having a firm grip on the underworld of both those of the Shadow, and those of the Stone.
The wayward traveler, would soon find kindness would be met with hostility and cynicism. The girl would merely use him as a bargaining chip - after all the maids were forbidden from harming those uninvolved with their target, and he was simply a traveler in the wrong place at the wrong time. The witch would leave, making her escape...and of the young warrior that had traveled with him? She'd blame him for letting her get away, in fact, she'd actively accuse him of conspiring with her...as after going back to the village - she found every single one of them dead. Whatever his reasons were at the time, he'd soon find himself in the care of the Maids themselves...where he would meet with the Pale Violet of the underworld. Amidst an ancient gothic city he would finally meet her, and the sage. After a long, arduous journey he would stand at the end of the world, a blade of a God of Travelers and Path-making before him. Would he swing it, allowing him to return to his world? The sage would warn him, however - that there is a rule that every alchemist must follow. That of equivalent exchange - to get something, you must first give something of equal value. Would he give something up, to travel back to his world? All anyone knows, is that day, within the heavens a new star would flicker to life.
"There we go, I think we're done."
"...Hm, seems like it. You're not happy, are you?"
"Heheh...not every story is destined for greatness. Nor are they all destined to be remembered. All I can hope is that someone, somewhere, had fun reading this little venture."
"...Heh, well...knowing you, you'll be trying again soon, won't you?"
"Maybe once I that annoying hag in the underworld isn't out for my blood. I swear, those maids are Scaaary! Especially that Cynthia one! She could have killed me!"
"Well that's what you get for pissing off the other gods constantly."
"I can't help it, its what I do. They shouldn't get offended when I decide to test their little champions! That's literally my job description!"
"Missing the mark as always...haa, for now...how about we just go relax a bit. I've got a surprise for you anyways."
And so, this little project of mine comes to an end. Two years, huh? I hope you all at least, had fun with this little imperfect project of mine. I've wrapped it up, and hopefully given every character as proper a send off as I could have here. I'm sorry for cutting things short, but I've already mentioned in the discord all of my reasons for doing so...but not to fret, after some time to think about everything and give the RP a fresh coat of paint, I'll certainly be restructuring and giving it a second attempt.
Thank you all for being part of this and putting up with my amateurish attempts to tell a story here. Really, I couldn't have asked for a better group of people. Thank you all and stay tuned for the future.
2x Thank
