Conscripts

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

"Mm. Fighting fire with fire indeed." Halfway through preserving the other shelves, it was already extinguished. Nevertheless, it was a pretty damn good job of her thinking up unconventional means to get rid of the hazard.

Once Tillius was certain nothing else proved a hazard, he turned to Vesemir. "Don't worry, I have no such interests. Just making sure we die from the appropriate monsters in this faraway land instead." The orc quipped, more jokingly, but then again, orcs don't tend to have good sense of humor.

While Roxas tended to the injuries the party received, the elf went and opened another door to another room, while Engelbert wanted to keep moving. Tillius wasn't sure if rushing it while there were still injured people was a good idea. There could be more like this golem in the next room.

"Sure, have fun with it." Tillius took the crystal out from his belt and handed it to Vesemir. "However, I will stay with the injured for now, until Roxas finishes her work. The danger that potentially awaits in the sunlight takes less priority than the danger we potentially have now with them."

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

By the time Gray Flame shot that arrow, his premonition of an imminent explosion warned him not to commit to the attack and instead duck behind his large. It turned out to be wrong, but the decision was for the most part a correct one, as the laser through its damaged lens scattered off and scorched off the metallic skins of his shield, but it otherwise was completely fine and held up. His positioning right next to the pillar also created a pseudo-barrier from the lasers, something to which Gray Flame took advantage of when he couldn't with Roxas's.

When Tillius reviewed the scene, Engelbert was already finishing the golem off, and by the time the orc reached it, it was already head-deep in its own blood, or whatever that even is. The fight was over, they needed to handle the aftermath. Firstly, Carnatia, the one member who did not utilize either covers, and was promptly shot with the lasers. Roxas was already on the scene for it, but Tillius remembered the brooch Carnatia had given him earlier today, one said to be enhancing mana efficiency. If there is a time to be using that loot we got from the abandoned house, it would be now.

"Might come in handy." He tersely stated, taking out the brooch, knelt by the two ladies, and let Roxas decide if she'd like to take it. He didn't linger around them though. The second aftermath requiring his attention was the fire. It wasn't because he suddenly had sentiments for those precious old relics that he never heard or had respect for, or that Vesemir was crying about it in the background, but the fact that there were multiple bookshelves nearby, all of which could easily catch fire from that already burning shelf. Tillius had fought fires before in his times in the army, and while no one would be in danger of burning to death, inhaling smoke is the invisible killer many had perished to throughout the years, even decades and centuries. They were also underground, which wouldn't help if all these shelves catches fire

Unfortunately, with only his shield, he wouldn't have much to stop the already burning fire. He could, however, prevent it from getting worse. And that is what he did, going to the right and pull the two shelves away from the flames.

"Any of you, handle the other one." He gestured towards either Rezello or Engelbert, the two strong men of this group, to do the same for the other ones. If someone could stop the actively burning fire, Tillius presumed they would be doing that soon.

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

The knee of the golem was in disarray, and that weird barbarian did strike a good blow against it somewhat. The molten blood seeping out of its stone seemed serious, if not fatal. To make sure, Tillius readied his wooden javelin, moved to a spot where he had a clear shot of the exposed stone.

The orc took a few steps back before moving his entire body into the throw. From the two steps run, the lean back, the arm length and the orc strength, it was tailor for a piercing shot towards that molten stone. The golem's system were begging for death with its screech, and hopefully this should put it out of its misery.

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

Unlike the rest, Tillius didn't have much experience dealing with golems, so he preferred to stay silent and listen. From the description of both Gray Flame, Roxas and others, it didn't seem like the orc would require his sword here, not at least now. No need to bite into granite and rocks. The target to look out for were the eyes and its monstrous warhammer. There might be a coordination module somewhere according to Engelbert but who knows where it is in this one.

"If you'd consider this damaging, I can try going for its eyes or core." Tillius showed Engelbert the wooden javelin. It wasn't an impressive show, but it's at least an option. "I'm better off playing the bait though."

Tillius watched calmly as the golem switched from its dormant state to an immediate danger. At least he was expecting to having to fight this, he held his javelin as if it was a normal spear, and his shield ready to block or deflect its warhammer if he ever failed the dodge.

"Let's not delay further. What's everyone's role?"

If the golem began attacking and the elf still hadn't doled out what he was supposed to have done, Tillius would take charge.

Avalia

Time: Evening
Location: Forest clearing, campfire
Interactions: Aurora/Rowan @mole Veric @Lava Alckon
Mentions: None
Equipment: Longsword and Plate Armor

---

"Damn it..." Seeing how this dark elf was unfazed by his ruse, Barrock couldn't do anything to prevent Veric from getting to Zora. His only hope that Aurora or Rowan could protect the girl from this assassin was dashed when he heard the sickening sound of the axe crunching into her bones. Tempers quickly rose in him. He imagined the elf being torn into a million pieces. Sliced, quartered. But Barrock reminded himself that the fight was still going on. His target was still at bay, and soon, in a fit of rage, the elf actually took the bait that he smartly avoided earlier.

Any plans or thoughts gave way to pure instinct, honed by thousands of hours of training, all focusing on the sword he had sheathed in his left hand. Barrock might be clumsy on his feet, but if the dark elf opponent was going to come to him, he might find the 'little' green grunt that he was intending to have fun with after finishing his mission to be faster than he anticipated. With breaknecking speed, the orc simultaneously unsheathed his sword and swung the sharp blade upward in one movement, while trying to side step the fist, albeit he could probably take it head on if it failed. The uppercut would be attempting to intercept Veric in his stomach area, and should be sharp enough to cut cleanly through him if made contact at this high of a velocity. Though it might end up cutting through Zora in the process, but the orc figured the girl was dead at this point, so vengeance comes at a higher priority.

If Veric got through the attack, the orc would very quickly be turning around, trying to close the distance to the elf and swung the sword downward at him as a follow up.

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

The shadows gave way to reality, and the first thing Tillius heard was Gray Flame. Everything else he had been fighting earlier was gone, even the blood on his sword. This was starting to get freaky. He clearly wasn't knowledgeable with any of this.

The orc gave Vesemir a solid nod, sheathed his sword back in his sword and turned to the group who were caught in the fighting. It seemed like everyone made it out relatively unscathed.

"If anyone is injured, go in the middle." He said.

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

So the guy was real, or at least as real as it gets, with the bones cracking and the blood seeping into his sword as Tillius plunged it directly into his veins. If so, there is a weird and somewhat twisted sense of joy tingling in ending this soldier's life. Nothing more satisfying than seeing the bloodlust and bravado drain from a man's face as he realized how much he had bitten that he couldn't chew. Better yet, even if he was just a simple fragment of the past, the soldier's records ensured Tillius would sleep peacefully hearing his pathetic life fading.

But Tillius would not dabble long. Once he retracted his sword, he knew the soldier was dead, so he immediately turned back and headed towards the other soldiers swarming the ladies. But it seemed like they were keeping pace. Two soldiers were staggered by frost on Fia's side, and on Roxas's side, only one proved an immediate danger to her, even as the man continued taking on arrows, his axe were raised. That's who Tillius was going for next.

If the soldier hadn't fell to Roxas's continuous stream of fire, he would soon be facing the giant orc soon, with a shield ready to bash on his knees.

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

"Harridan! I'll tear out your eyes and feed it to your friends!" Yelled one of them, squinting as the squad continued to try surround the trio albeit much clumsier than before. One of the sword-wielder halted some distance away at the front, momentarily gobsmacked by the sheer size of the tower shield before him while the rest split into a pair of sword and poleaxe on each flank. They'll be in position soon, and likely wouldn't hesitate to begin the assault after.

But would they have a moment to begin the simultaneous assault? Tillius recognized the fear in his opponent's face. And this was the time to strike. If the swordsman was such a coward to close in the distance with the legionary, then the legionary comes to him with a few strides, the shield now towering even higher. The swordsman needed to act fast, otherwise his face would be bashed in with the shield then followed with a sword in his belly or neck.

All the while, Tillius was silent. He hoped to quickly get rid of this bozo, or make him commit to an attack, or at least probe him into running, so Tillius could separate him from the remaining four, so he could reinforce the two behind him.

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

Tillius continued going, even with the arrows bouncing off the shield, which he could only assume was from Roxas, or the scream filleting through his ears. This was fake. It was all fake, created by evil forces seeking to break wills and drag them into the miserable abyss where they belonged. He would not be tempted. Every time he lowered his shield, Vesemir's light grew closer.

However, the people behind him continued to be swarmed by the phantoms. It was as if they knew he wouldn't be fazed, so now they began to target the weaker and susceptible. He could not afford to move any further when she was engulfed in injuries, both mental and physical, stopping right in his track, refusing to abandon the people behind him. Just before his sanity began to slip as well trying to assess the situation, Roxas was healed back with some form of magic, unknown where, unknown whom, but she recovered. Good, they needed to keep moving.

"Lads! We found them!" one of the soldiers cried, his voice was unusually cruel, coarse, and amplified. Their weapons were drawn, sword and poleaxes, and soon they would initiate the skirmish by making a flanking move toward the party's frontline.

No, not good. This snapped Tillius away, seeing the phantoms recognizing the group's existence. Or did they? Was this just a ruse? Was this a fragment of those dark ages, or were they actually attacking him. But their weapons were drawn. One of the soldiers briefly locked eyes with Tillius, the bloodlust dripping from his eyes told Tillius it was real, but somewhere his brain continued saying it was fake.

"Hmph." Tillius changed grip on his shield to a downward grip, no longer trying to block vision. His sword unsheathed behind the shield, his soldiery instinct heard, and now the die is cast. They would now fight. The captain of the butcher soldiers galloped past his group towards the two big men at the back. Unfortunately, they would have to deal with the captain alone, seeing him, Fia and Roxas would be severely outnumbered if he went on to help.

"Watch behind me, and keep moving towards the light." Tillius had his shield covering most of his upper body and his sword posture, as he witnessed the erupting light do its work. Once again, he had no business going on the offensive, it would just split the group up and the two ladies would be picked apart. If these soldiers were to attack him, they would have to attack a coordinated group instead of one orc.

@Randomness@Visyn

Into the Land of Twilight

Tillius

---

Eight hours of rest seemed good, though that meant they were messing with their circadian rhythm, and night march was a more serious than many would initially imagine. But fine, it's nothing this group shouldn't be able to take. Tillius once was reassured, he would retreat back to the newly-built camp to rest.

---

Time passed, the clock hit the top, the group went ahead with the Lasse exploration as planned, the floating lantern in the distance the only anchor from the abyss. Quite literally. The abyss took the form of the relics of a bloodied past looking to smear the group with it. It's even worse for anyone who only glazed past the embellished version of history, one whose rough edges had been smoothened out for a nicer viewing for the more ignorant masses who were unwilling to put themselves in discomfort. The atrocities at its rawest form began to assault Tillius's mind.

'Stay vigilant.'

If not for Gray Flame and Vesemir's advice, he might have reacted differently and worse. But knowing that these were phantoms and not to be interacted with anyway, Tillius continued going, a foot ahead of the other. Scenes of mass deaths did little to phase him anymore, and one more screaming elf hanging on a tree wasn't going to stop him from rejoining the group.

But a frozen and scared elf does. The real one.

Tillius bumped into Roxas as he kept his head down. He flinched, having thought that the phantoms had manifested, but it turned out it was just her, frozen in place.

"Tch." The orc growled, looking around if anyone too was also caught in this. He could simply side-step the elf and continued moving towards the light, but what is to happen to them if he just ignored them. One was clearly ensnared by the phantom, many more could have as well. But how could he get them to break off? His quick-thinking, pressured by the current situation, fired off one solution.

"Heads down, fall in." Tillius gave as short and concise of an instruction as possible for Roxas and anyone in view. He squeezed past the elf and stepped in front of her, hoping to cover her vision of the five butcher-soldiers, his shield raised above his face, hoping to cover even the vision of the people behind him who might be tempted to have a staredown with the abyss.

@Visyn