Achronum

The Shattering of Aegis

The Snakeburrow Woods

_{16th of the Full Autumn Moon, 1698 P.A.
Evening - Overcast skies}

A few drops of rain threatened a downpour, but the sky still held true and the rest of the day remained uneventful. Cerric’s seemingly endless chatter had him jumping from the current state of Relfin politics to the best names for dogs to the possibility that an air aetherbone may have touched a star. Even Esvelee was losing her patience with the man, having run out of words and care for whatever mindless shit was streaming out of the energetic half elf’s mouth, and she couldn’t sound more relieved when she announced her intent to pull off the road at a waystop for the evening. Not that it stopped Cerric. He kept a hearty one-sided conversation up until Esvelee all but shoved him off the cart and shooed him away so she could tend to the horse. Her eyes fell on Kyreth’s horns and for a moment a sneer curled at the corner of her lip, but she looked away quickly to focus on her task.

“Now, before we call the day done and gone, let’s discuss the day. Nothing terrible, but a lot happened and based on what I saw, you don’t know enough to understand how dangerous what happened earlier was.” Cerric piped up from where he was putting another log onto the fire. He gave them a few moments to pull themselves from their conversations and their thoughts before continuing. “I doubt anyone here is ignorant of Rot. A nasty colloquialism, but an apt one, Rot is an affliction in which a living creature, or a corpse, suffers undeath. It is a perversion of natural aether, warping a creature’s very biology until they are no longer a mortal creature. Food, drink, air, and the pleasures and tribulations of life are no longer their concern, stripped away in the unrelenting crusade of hatred and despair. They become lifeless, violent creatures with only the intent to spread their vile disease, as we saw today. How rot happens, I’m not particularly sure, only that it does and when you encounter an undead, you give it wide breadth and let it pass or you put it down from as far as you can.” Cerric startled as the log slipped from his fingers and sent a whirlwind of embers spiraling towards him.

“You were discussing a puppet master during and in the aftermath, but little was spoken about the consequences of Eila’s injuries. While yes, the beasts’ saliva clearly contained concentrated Rot, who is to say it couldn’t have been transmitted through the claws? Rot is an aetheric sickness and as our mental Animas friend here knows, its afflications and manipulations can be subtle and unseen. This means Eila is now a potential security risk to the operation, and to each living creature she comes in contact with, until we can be sure she isn’t at risk of turning.” Cerric explained, drumming his fingers on his legs he thought. “Normally, I would recommend putting her out of her misery-no offense Eila, but it is the most merciful thing to do rather than letting you suffer-but truth be told, she likely knows more on the subject of Rot than I do so I’ll leave that decision in the hands of her peers unless it becomes undeniable.” He patted Eila’s shoulder before continuing.

“Furthermore, your… teamwork.” The pause was palpable as Cerric struggled not to include a colorful description. “I would also recommend you talk about that because yes you successfully defended the caravan, but you won’t always have an Animas aetherborn around to patch you back together. You each wield powerful abilities - talk strategy so the short term, you come out in better condition and the long term, you have an idea of what supplies and tools to purchase as stock supplies.”

Court of Nuhl

_{October 9th, 528 - 12:20am}

Execution Level, Execution Chamber - Hasgad Holding Facility

Over the crackling of electricity, shouting echoed down the hallways and the elevator whirred to life. Reinforcements were on their way - with Quinn isolated.

The air mage swore as the room shifted and someone else wisped the magic of her spell away, the damned gravity mage clearly intent on making her life hell. She was less concerned about the advancing vampire, planning to slip away from him once she was airborne, but she hadn’t anticipated the trick. What should have sent her breezing past Donivan just out of reach, instead sent her face first into an electrified field. She spasmed and the skin on her face blackened, adding to the smell of burnt flesh, and she rolled over onto the floor, barely alive and unconscious.

Meanwhile, Hasgad’s crazed grin didn’t leave his face even as the first blow struck, slightly too slow to avoid the hit. However, Maxwell Alderman didn’t tolerate fools. For all his insanity, Hasgad had clocked the threat, thanks to a certain brutal Grand Inquisitor sharing an affinity with the gravity mage killing his soldiers. The metal calmed as all the lightning in the room coalesced into a crackling ball in front of the Inquisitor that he let out in a wave powerful enough to stun the brutish vampire bothering Hasgad, but instead of exploiting the opening, he vanished in a bolt of lightning that raced out the open door.

Hasgad reappeared behind Quinn, hand wrapped neatly around Quinns throat.
“Now, now, now. That was a creative little trick you pulled there. But you won’t do that anymore or you’ll die, and your little friends won’t do anything anymore either or you’ll die!” Hasgad cooed, lightning already arcing in his other hand. “Now, I thought I was quite civil. The least you could do is offer me a response. Your call here, little Lyra. Either they all live and you stay, or I kill him now, kill everyone else, and then capture you. What do you think?”

Avengers Academy: Junior Year 💥

Danny Kingston

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Location: Agitha’s Tent -> Kree Spaceship
Skills: N/A
First Day Fit

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Out of sight, out of mind was Dee’s running motto and honestly, Andy’s comment would have bothered him if he didn’t already understand why she was acting like that. He got it - there were lots and lots of new people and it was too much for her to take in. Zar-zar got so antsy ‘cause she knew Andy wasn’t handling the crowd well and well, fight seemed like her default mode so it made sense. Danni could work with that! After all, Dorian, Princess, and Beanie got a little overwhelmed by the people sometimes too and he was besties with all three of them! He hummed a happy little tune, plotting how to endear himself to the pair. They seemed like a fun pair!

However, Princess put it into the universe that Dee might ask that prick to movie night. Danni audibly gasped, shocked that it might be a possibility. “Absolutely not allowed. No, no, no, I can’t do that. Not allowed! I would rather let myself sit our first test naked t’an let t’at munchkin ruin Dee’s day anymore.” Danni announced, emphasizing his statement with a stomp of his foot. Thankfully, the universe seemed to agree as things exploded (without his help, Danni would like to add!) with the mean freshie. Danni didn’t know what a para-why-u-hulk was but with how spicy the freshie spat it, he couldn’t imagine it was anything good. He gasped in shock as he clutched at imaginary pearls, just in case.

And then, Danni gaped at Dee as he just let loose. Dee was a crier, an internalizer, but to get him angry enough to react? Yeesh, the freshie had fucked up. Danni could count the times Dee had-after the powers stuff and the x-mansion of course cause that was a whole ‘nother nightmare-that Dee had actually raised his voice like that and Danni was usually asked to leave him the fuck alone for a while. Well, at least Danni knew any potential invites were dead on arrival. “Ew, Mads, what kind of advice is t’at? We swear blood oaths over grudges ‘ere, silly goose. T’at freshie is a dick and he deserves whatever shitty t’ing Aggie is goin’ ta reveal ta him.” Danni announced in response to Mads suggestion, fully ignoring the fact that even when he is angry, he basically forgets about the issue once the next day rolls around. “And I don’t know about you guys, but I have a dragon and t’ere was always a chance I turn into a massive flaming ball of death so you know, silver linings right?” Danni played it off, waving Dee’s concerns away like he wasn’t genuinely terrified of burning everyone around them alive because hero’s didn’t get scared!. He reeled in his favorite dope, kissed his cheek, and used his free hand to awkwardly shape his mouth into a smile.

“Gotta turn t’at frown upside down! Cause guess who still ‘as presents and cake and ‘is favorite dinner made by ‘is favorite person?” Danni beamed, “It’s t’e birt’day boy and t’at’s you! So let’s go see…” Danni thought really hard about all the conversations that had been happening around him. Gods, there was just so much. Dee mentioned something, something… “Oh! ‘he spaceship! T’at was it right? Everyone walk and talk, walk and talk, lovelies!” Danni grabbed Dee’s hand and started walking, “But Beanie’s right like always, gotta make t’at list now so we can text t’e right people. And just for the record, unless someone is about ta port me home or like, I dunno, ‘ave some groceries delivered, only birt’day boy and whoever he wants ta give it ta get special birt’day dinner. I only brought enough for like four…ish?I don’t remember but you better get t’at noodle cooking!” Danni commanded as he took off from the tent. They were going to have a good time! Agitha and the freshie would just have to deal with it!

Avengers Academy: Junior Year 💥

Danny Kingston

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Location: The Field (School Carnival)
Skills: N/A
First Day Fit

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Danni felt the goosebumps raise on his arms and a shiver run through him at Dee's teasing. "Nope! No library tonight! Only when t'e sun is out and t'e ghosties are asleep! I 'ave my own little 'auntling right 'ere, don't need no more!" Danni decided. He could read up on dragons when the library wasn't a horror movie waiting to happen. "Actually, I'd look pretty damn good as a ghost right now. All t'e ot'er ghosts would be jealous. Maybe t'ey wouldn't even kill me because t'ey know I'd look perfect for eternity and t'ey'd look bleh with t'eir sheet clothes and chainsaw makeout faces."

He was a little annoyed at the situation - he was planning to make Dee's favorite dinner, but he only had enough for four and he wasn't certain if these invitations had a return time or if it was Carnival fun into dinner into movie marathon. The cake was fine - Danni had a sweet tooth and he would shove that onto anyone in the vicinity so he bought a cake that they could eat for days. But dinner was special. He'd bought stuff from the street markets back home to make it as perfect as possible. He couldn't just go out and get more! New Orleans was thousands of miles away and the parents looked like they were getting hammered. Useless adults with their pretty, fancy drinks and incurable need to feel woozy.

Danni could feel the storm clouds brewing, his cheeks puffed out as he stewed in his own irritation, but the squeeze from April ground him and he squeezed back. The little gesture of affection had the cloud dissipating so when Mai shook their little group as she all but full tackled April, he made a sympathetic noise and used April and his hands to comfortingly pat the top of Mai's head. "Well, at least Princess got a good one from Aggie! Aggie told me I'm going ta kill everyone and everyt'ing I love someday." He offered cheerily. "W'at did she give you guys?"

Danni's attention was returned to the green haired girl, who was nothing but snark and bitchiness. "Insultin'? I wasn't! I was offerin' w'at's t'at phrase teachers alway… constructive criticism! Vintage isn't bad, but vintage isn't vintage unless it's on purpose." Danni explained, pouting that she thought he was Insulting anyone. "Not like t'reatenin' to stab people is any better." He muttered to himself, childishly.

And then, if that couldn't get any worse, the meanie freshie that made Dee cry showed up! And apparently knew stabby mcstabberson here. After all that, they finally got everyone back together, not crying, and now this freshie showed up to make a mess of it again, but this time with help. "So I should like… stay out of t'at, right?" He asked Princess and Beanie. He'd ask Mai but she'd want him to go charging in just for the chaos. But this was someone Dee was trying to make friends with, something he almost never did and even if the freshie was a meanie, Danni supposed he should be supportive or whatever.

"Oh shit, t'e jacket!" Danni jolted as he remembered where it was, and he let April's hand go as he shifted the egg out from under his arm. He carefully unwrapped the jacket from around the egg, and shook out the jacket. It was… a little more wrinkly than before but it was fine! A new jacket was a new jacket right?

Right?

With cartoonish movements, Danni snuck behind Dee and slowly slid the jacket into his hands. "Ignore me, ignore me, ignore me." He whispered to Dee before creeping back to April. He frowned at the egg, now entirely sure what to do with it, so he gently tucked it into his own jacket where his body heat could keep it warm.

Bounties of Space

Danny Kingston

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Shields: 35% - Hull: Mild damage sustained - Turret: Mild Damage - Engines: Mild damage sustained - Life Support System: Oxygen Recycling at 90% - Sensors: Online

"What is goin- OMFG I DIDN'T SEE T'AT!" Danni screamed as all the commotion brought his attention to the wayward senors. He hit the throttle as hard as he could, screaming through entire time, and the Excelsior hurtled through the remainder of the Belt.

The trip was as rough as expected. Perhaps it was shot concentration, or the adrenaline still pumping through their veins after the tussle and the recklessness of Dorian, but the smooth sailing from before the Ravager ambush was but a memory. Asteroids, ice crystals, and scrap metal wandering every which way proved a difficult course for even the most experienced ship's in the galaxy and the wayward mercenaries were learning that, ugly bump by ugly bump. Even with April's marksmanship, Dorian's quick fingers Engineering, and Danni's (once in his life) focused flying, the Excelsior limped to the finish line. At one point, a bad turn and a missed shot nearly left them dead in the water but Dorian managed to reattach the dislodged thruster even as April rallied and shot everything down that floated his way.

Finally free of the Belt, Danni let the Excelsior drift for just a minute, taking in deep heaving breaths now that they were out of immediate danger. A million warning signs were going off, but he didn't have the energy to interact with them. It felt like his brain had nearly come loose in his skull with how often they'd rattled around, and his heart was nearly ready to jump out of his chest. He couldn't tell if he was relieved, excited, furious, depressed, or anything really. He was such a jumble of Exhaustion that they all blended together into one big noodlie mess in his chest. "Okay, okay. We're out. We're free! No more rattlin' around, no more damage, no more Ravager bots hangin' around just ta fuck us up. Just one hyperspace jump until 15 million credits!" Danni cheered wearily, sliding off the chair and into a boneless heap on the floor.

Another alarm joined the chorus, this one less urgent but no less piercing. Danni pushed himself upwards just enough to glance at it, before he whined. "Guys, we got company incom-" before he trailed off. In front of the Excelsior, 27 strange whale-like creatures suddenly exited hyperspace, the glowing blue of their skin fading away as they did. Each adult was roughly half the size of of the Excelsior, with four tentacles off their back, the familiar bulbous shape of a what with a larg eye on each side. Purrgils were sometimes considered a pest because they would sometimes jump in front of spacecraft unexpectedly during hyperspace. However now, they glided beyond the ship, a few nosing it gently in curiosity as they continued to swim beneath the Belt.

"I kinda want one as a pet." Danni mused, failing to consider the logistics of keeping something as large as a small spacecraft as a pet. "T'en it could just pull us t'rough 'yperspace, right?" Danni shrugged and since he was basically already up, he stretched to the tip of the console, punching in Titan's coordinates awkwardly into the Hyperspace computer one handed.

Court of Nuhl

_{October 9th, 528 - 12:20am}

Execution Level, Execution Chamber - Hasgad Holding Facility

The first guard never stood a chance. A sharp crack accompanied the first hit, jaw broken where Chadwick punched him and a knife in the throat and another in the chest sealed his fate. He hit the ground before anyone in the room even had the chance to register the intrusion, unconscious before the dull thud of his skull disappeared in the noise of the rebel attack.

The other guard moved with practiced grace and snatched the only one she couldn't side step out of the air before it could reach her. "Intruders in the Execution room!" She shouted through an earpiece. Her sword rang as she drew it and sent Donovan's knife hurtling towards Quinn, a gust of wind sent after it. The translucent glimmer of an evocation spell shimmered above her as she incanted.

A deranged grin overtook Hasgad's face after he recovered from the momentary surprise when the doors burst open. A dangerous, violent glint entered his eyes and he welcomed Chadwick's blade with open arms, barely registering that his captives were being snatched from under his nose. Static built around the Inquisitor as Chadwick's blade descended.

For a moment, it seemed like Chadwick had been quick enough. Cloth frayed under his blade, a faint tinge of red welling up from split skin - but Hasgad was quicker. The spell he'd been charging released on contact, sending a violent shock down the blade before he vanished in a crackle of electricity, running along the metal strip in ground towards the otherwise of the room. He laughed, tapping his fingers to his chest and watching with wonder as little prickles of red stained the tips.

"Well, well, well! Looks like I lost twenty bucks! I didn't think you'd have the balls to come find them when I leaked that info." Hasgad chuckled as he took in the scene. True, he was outnumbered but the whole room was built for him, by him, so he figured it was only fair they got that advantage. Two vampires, three mage…

Lyra fucking Luscin.

"You idiots walked the daughter of Lilie Luscin into my detention facility? Oh, you shouldn't have!" Hasgad cooed, hands outstretched as lightning poured from them into the metal strip on the floor. The metal sang with energy, Hasgad's power lightning up the entire room as massive bolts leapt around seemingly at random. Connected to the grid as they were, the iron doors also hummed with energy and the open one had a constant wave of lightning connecting each half. "How about this? I'll trade you two… eh, one and a half cause one of them is nearly brain dead, rebels for Luscin right now. In terms of bodies, you're definitely getting the better deal!" With the flick of his wrist, Hasgad sent massive bolts of lightning flying at Caspian, Quinn, and Chadwick, all while looking like a child at his birthday party.

The Shattering of Aegis

The Snakeburrow Woods

_{16th of the Full Autumn Moon, 1698 P.A.
Midday - Overcast skies}

Esvelee leapt for the reins as the horse regained its autonomy, the cart jolting forward as the frightened animal fled the scent of blood and fire. Cerric flew sideways as Esvelee shouldered roughly past him and before he could regain his balance, the cart hit a rough spot and he slid right off, blinking up at the foliage as he lay sprawled on the ground. He was silent for a moment while he processed his sudden change of perspective, but laughter bubbled out soon enough. "Dear gods, what fun!" Cerric cackled as he shoved himself into a sitting position. He peered ahead down the trail, nodding as he saw the cart slowing just around the next bend.

Meanwhile, the combined efforts of Ermes and Ceolfric managed to separate the wolf's head from it's body, where it slumped with a foul stench and black ichor seeping out of the wound.

"Well, evil necromancer or not, our ward has escaped our sphere of protection so make what recoveries you need, but do not dally. I will head onwards in the meantime!" Cerric announced as he stood and dusted himself off. One of his waterskins became unstoppered and spilled, but with a word and a gesture, the water slid back into the container clean and clear. He hummed to himself as he headed down the path, thumbing the corks on his waterskins.

Around the group the bushes rustled as the wind picked up but other than the lingering stench of burnt flesh and sodden cloth, nothing new leapt out at them.

Avengers Academy: Junior Year 💥

Danny Kingston

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Location: The Field (School Carnival)
Skills: N/A
First Day Fit

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Danni squinted suspiciously at Sabine as she spouted some weird shit that felt like it meant nothing, but also vaguely intentional. "All right, keep your secrets." Danni replied, sticking his tongue out with a silly smile. There was something icky in his chest that he couldn't really place, but it felt like it was hard to breathe around, even if he was breathing fine. He couldn't place it, so when April appeared back from the tent, he bounced eagerly as he quite literally fled from the feeling. He threaded his arm through hers, tucking the egg bundle under his arm, and blanched at the suggestion of books from all sides.

"Or, or… we could do t'at later, and just 'ave fun friends times before our taskmasters, I mean professors, get it into t'eir 'eads t'at we're all work and no play." Danni whined, wanting to stave off responsibilities as long as possible. "Like yeah, I want ta be a hero and save people and better t'e world and stuff, but I also just want ta set a paper ball on fire and t'row it as far as possible before it burns up wit'out someone yellin' at me for "possibly burnin' t'e whole school down" and "t'at could get you expelled if you don't shape up", you know?"

"Oh, but Princess, you should see t'is super cool t'in' Mads can do wit' her cards! She pulled one and pop money came out! It disappeared after it 'it t'e ground, but it still made somet'in'! It was fun! She promised readin's for everyone later!" Danni explained cheerfully, making sure she got thoroughly caught up on the excitement before turning his attention to the newcomers. He tilted his head as he skimmed over Leah, showing off some fancy rocks. The urge to show off his dragon egg was real, but Danni was dutifully distracted by the stranger in their midst. He gave her a slow look over, one eyebrow up as he did. The whole black monotone, silver biker stud jacket, tennis shoes, the whole nine yards…

"Oh bless your 'eart, but who let t'e aughts out of t'e closet? Gods, you look down right dated sweet'eart. T'e potential, magnificent. But t'e execution? Dreadful." Danni tutted, going to dramatically whip his glasses off only to realize both his hands were occupied. He looked from the jacket bundled egg to April's hand, to the egg again, and gave up on the flair as Mai brought another newbie in tow and then bounced into Aggie's tent. Danni barely registered Mai, entirely focused on the tragedy in front of him. "'ave you considered accessorizing? The whole got' t'in' can be salvaged, but you need somet'in', anyt'in' to liven t'ings up a little." Danni considered the idea, tapping his chin with the back of April's hand as he thought.

"Oh, 'ave you considered green? Red wouldn't be bad eit'er, fair skin and all, but frankly, t'at's Snow W'ite vibes and it's overdone. You know, let's get like a nice, emerald sash for your waist, but ta keep the angsty-one-in-baby's first-ship vibe, we get a vintage one from like, I don't know, 2023 t'at was washed badly a few too many times before gettin' saved by t'e textile gods. Do a tie just in front of t'e 'ip, let it dangle, give some illusion of leg and poof, immediately turn t'is ensemble reasonable. And t'at's t'e Danni touch!" He beamed, then continued. "T'ough, somet'ing shiny on t'e wrist might be nice too. Maybe somet'in' to tie you to her outfit?" Dannie waved at the girl that slid in with Mai. "Love t'e sleeves, btw."

"Oh! You asked a question. Uh, yes 'ello! I am t'e lovable Danni , t'is is t'e perfect Princess, t'e handsome Dee, t'e immaculate Beanie, and t'e magical Mads!" Danny gestured at each person, failing to consider that nicknames may be more confusing in the long run. "'aven't see y'all 'ere before! Are y'all freshies? You'll be t'e first decent freshies today!"

Bounties of Space

Danny Kingston

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Shields: 60% - Hull: Mild damage sustained - Turret: Mild Damage - Engines: Full Power - Life Support System: Oxygen Recycling at 90% - Sensors: Online

"If I get a gray 'air because of you, you're buyin' me 'air dye 'til I find myself on t'e wrong end of an Imperial blaster." Danni grumbled, the rising panic starting to fade away as everyone was, for the most part, back together. Danni wasn't against Dee fucking around in space - his little hauntling could just go ghost and be just fine - but that was in wide open spaces where Danni could just hit reverse or pull a u-turn and scoop him right back up. If Dee got stranded out here, he was basically on his own. "So… we uh… just goin' ta let t'at corpse vibe in t'e little ship now, or we got a way ta drop it before we jump after t'is bit of a rocky ride?"

Danni carefully pushed the ship forward, keeping an eye on his surroundings with their new cargo. The Belt had mostly stopped shifting, just the few odd rocks still shifting, but it was manageable. Danni wove through larger openings that before, slowing them down but preserving Dee's haul in the process. It seemed like the rest would be smooth sailing, a few hard turns and spirals to make them fit, but Danni was forced to wait for just a moment while things moved, and it was a moment too long.

Beyond his view, showing on a sensor he wasn't paying perfect attention to, an asteroid the size of the ship came hurling beside the ship, impact likely leaving them entirely stranded considering how damaged their shields were.. With the way around them still shifting to create an opening, Danni couldn't avoid it even if he'd noticed it!

Bounties of Space

Danny Kingston

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Shields: 55% - Hull: Mild damage sustained - Turret: Mild Damage
Engines: Full Power - Life Support System: Oxygen Recycling at 90% - Sensors: Online

"You know, wonderin' why th'e fuck our favorite grease monkey hates us right now!" Danni responded to April with a heavy dose of fake cheer. Danni loved Dee, they'd been in each other's lives since they were literal babies, but when he pulled shit like this, it made Danni feel like Dee cared more about his toys than them. Like yes, maintaining the Excelsior was important, but a huge amount of this damage could have been avoided if they'd just left. They were flying through this just fine before the Ravagers, and they could have already been partially fused or whatever it was and been on their way out. Instead, there was a crack in the gunnery, the life support system was damaged, the shields were in bad shape, and Dorian couldn't find it in himself to abandon the shit that nearly killed them in the name of repair materials. Dee was always complaining about preventative maintenance, why couldn't he see stalling in this damn field was a horrible way to prevent anything?

Danni sighed as Dee narrated his series of unfortunate events. Since he seemed… determined, and April was able to get a way cleared, Danni decided to help Dee out a little. The longer they were in here, the worse shit got. Danni threw the thrusters into reverse, whipping the ship backwards as he hit his turn a little too hard and bounced one of the few rocks still clearing the area. Thankfully, the shields were able to absorb all of it, flashing a warning at him that he promptly ignored.

"Okay, we're 'eading ta you, Dee." Danni sighed, savoring how easily the ship moved through the cleared space and settling just above it. "All you 'ave ta do is activate t'e mag-grip and you should be all good ta board after you kill t'e bastard you're in and t'en we'll be on our way."