Crimson Paladin

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Fleuri Jodeau

Fascinating, Fleuri mused- whether or not this Florian was the real Mirror Knight, he remembered. More than just remembered- judging by what Randon had said, Florian had spoken of the experience to another in the dreamscape. Speaking of Randon, he couldn't help but be amused at the thought that Lein wasn't the first male Hundi Iron Rose to put on a dress and make the look work.

The ancient knight's words were no less fascinating. Fleuri had for some time looked at his past tournament history with some shame, despite the considerable benefits it had yielded for him. At the time of Fleuri's knighting, his mentor offered to put a good word in with the Roses and ensure that their unsung two-man crusade against the necromancers during the war would be taken into account with the order. In other words, he could've joined the Roses right away and started fighting the good fight. However, between the war ending and being put off at how heroism and merit meant nothing in the Roses when it came to who would succeed the fallen Captain, he had opted to fight for himself instead.

Up until meeting Florian, he had been hesitant to look upon his tournament career with anything other than regret. But if Florian approved of the diverse avenues of combat that Fleuri had pursued, just maybe he was looking at this the wrong way.

"I'll certainly join you," he replied to Florian's offer. "Where might I leave my armor?"

@Eisenhorn@Raineh Daze

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Fleuri Jodeau

As wild as it was at the thought of meeting the original Roses- or at least Merilia's dreams of them- it was probably a good idea to start figuring out more about this dream world. Fleuri opted to head to the library behind Sir Rolan. The other knight had expressed interest in looking over the maps, probably in hopes that the maps in this dream castle's library were an accurate depiction of the dream world. Cyrus' words implied that things shifted around though, so it wasn't impossible that the maps might show something completely different than the current state of the dream world.

Fleuri was a bit more interested in the other books, though. What sort of tomes and texts could be found in a centuries-old Witch's dream plane? Were they the same as those in the real Candaeln's library, or perhaps as they were when Merilia was an active member of the Roses back in the days of Elionne?

There was only one way to find out. Fleuri headed to where Cyrus had pointed them, hoping that the location stayed put like the ancient knight had assumed would happen. Once inside the library, it was easy enough to see Rolan, looking through the maps. He wasn't the only one here, however. There were two others in the room.

The first was unmistakable- Mirror Knight Florian. Unlike the last time Fleuri saw him, Florian was wearing fine clothing instead of armor, and he was with a Hundi, whom Fleuri presumed to be Raya. Or it might be Randon- as Lein had demonstrated at the ball, a male Hundi could look quite feminine in a dress.

"It's...good to see you again...Mirror Knight," Fleuri spoke somewhat stiltedly but sincerely, taken aback by running into the knight in his dream. "I found our duel very enlightening."

Fleuri was very curious as to whether these dream-knights remembered anything from the first dream. The answer would help a great deal to figure out what the knights were truly dealing with in this dreamscape.

@Raineh Daze@Eisenhorn

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Fleuri Jodeau

Fleuri didn't expect to find himself back in this place again. Up until now he had been going on the assumption that Merilia's dream would be a once-in-a-lifetime event. Clearly, however, his assumption was incorrect, and Merilia wasn't done with them yet.

This time it was different, however. Instead of being alone, he was accompanied by a number of other knights, including Gerard, Renar, Fionn, and Sergio. He noticed two sets of horns poking out of the crowd, belonging to Steffen (the towering Ingvarr being quite easy to spot) and Amy, the half-demon empath. And perhaps most importantly, he spotted the Captain.

He was wondering if they were they his fellow knights, brought to one place in the dreamscape, or if they were just phantoms, but when Merilia appeared and began to address the group, he became confident that it was the former.

He wasn't surprised when Merilia mentioned that she was testing them, nor was he surprised at her unknown contact's assessment that they needed to get better if they wanted to survive. The first dream made it rather clear that they had a long way to go. What did surprise him a bit was when Merilia announced that they had all passed her test. More than that, the fact that she had narrowed them down for this next test was even a bit flattering. He wasn't sure what to make of this Witch apprentice that Merilia had handed over to them, but there was definitely some merit in having someone with magical talents on their side.

For now, he should probably focus on the more immediate matter. He wasn't sure if this Cyrus was a phantom from Merilia's memories, or if it was the real knight, pulled from the afterlife to play a role in the Witch's dreamscape.

It was somewhat amusing that upon meeting this long-departed hero, the first question uttered was Fionn inquiring about their encounter with the twin Hundi knights Raya and Randon. As far as he knew, it was perhaps the first time the Iron Roses had learned of the Hundi marriage customs.

If anything, Fionn and Cyrus seemed to be hitting it off quite well, as the topic delved into the topic of Tyaethe. It was somewhat amusing to hear one of the vampire knight's old friends speaking so candidly of her. Renar, however, didn't care for this jovial conversation, and turned the topic towards the matter at hand. Figures that a killjoy like him wouldn't appreciate the appeal of engaging in casual banter with a long-departed legendary knight.

If Fleuri wasn't already hanging on every word that Cyrus spoke, what he said next would've caught his attention- his mention of the others. If he was interpreting Cyrus' words correctly, Elionne and Tyaethe weren't here, but the other knights- and Erich- were around here. As for the "little one-armed thing", that description could refer to multiple people he knew of in Candaeln. It was probably Rui, since she was already associated with Merilia.

"So aside from those two, the other Iron Roses...and Erich...are they here in the castle?" he asked.

@Raineh Daze@VitaVitaAR

The Lion's Banner: A Fire Emblem-Inspired Anime Fantasy RP

Roger Falkner

"Err, he's certainly strong enough, but, well..." Roger began to answer, "Griffins are extremely proud creatures and they're very picky about whom they allow on their backs. I should be able to convince Shortclaw to take you as a passenger, but it'll take some bribing."

Shortclaw would never allow anyone aside from Roger or Roger's parents take his reins, but it was possible to sway him- usually through food- to allow a passenger. Still, sometimes the griffin was willing to put up with it even without coaxing. He didn't mind transporting Velvetica, having evidently deducted her place at the top of the Lions' hierarchy. In one instance, he had even been willing to give a ride to a woman whom Roger had met at a ball. With Cadmon, however, Roger wasn't sure if he could pull it off without bribing the griffin with food.

"But you can be assured that if you need me, I'll have your back on this," he assured Cadmon. "Even if this Baron Bridger isn't actually mad enough to make good on those foolish threats, he can't be allowed to go around pushing other nobles and land-holders around." He didn't really think that Baron Bridger would try it, though- Roger figured that the Baron was bluffing in hopes of coercing the young Cadmon into giving him what he wanted or taunting him into making a serious misstep. Over the generations, dealing with over-entitled nobles such as this was a common problem that the Falkners faced, and if Cadmon's trouble were any indication, this wasn't going to go away just because they had been elevated to nobility.

@The Otter@HereComesTheSnow

The Storm Cycle: Reclamation

The fight was finally over. The wyvern was certainly a tough foe, but in the end, their skills and powers proved sufficient to bring it down. And even if it was one of the few creatures capable of surviving having its head frozen inside and out, Lonan made sure it was dead.

Ethelred let out a sigh, releasing a breath of cold mist from his helmet. "That should do it. It's a shame that this thing refused to go down without killing people, but at least he won't hurt anyone anymore."

There were many questions that were left unanswered. Where were these "heralds" coming from, how many of them are there in all, and who were they heralds of? The Frozen Knight suspected that this would not be the last of these unique wyverns.

Ethelred walked over to his horse and mounted up. "I should head back to the castle and await Sorcha's return, she'll want to know all about this." He was unsure if they would or even could safely make use of this thing's corpse given how lethally venomous it was in life, but they'd need to know its location regardless.

@Rune_Alchemist@BrokenPromise

The Storm Cycle: Reclamation

The trap had worked, and the wyvern had been left stunned by the blow and further immobilized by Luana's vines. Well, except for its tail, which was as mean as ever.

They needed to use this opportunity to strike a fatal blow. Ethelred surged ahead behind Luana, careful as to not get struck by its tail this time. Instead, he came to a stop just short of its tail range and bided his time while the courageous druid grappled the dragon and allowed herself to be the target of its tail strikes.

As Luana gripped it and kept the beast distracted, Ethelred waited for a window of opportunity in between the wyvern's tail attacks to charge ahead, aiming his lance for the wyvern's eye and readying his powers to freeze this vile creature.

@Rune_Alchemist@BrokenPromise

The Lion's Banner: A Fire Emblem-Inspired Anime Fantasy RP

Roger Falkner

"She wasn't too much trouble," Roger replied to Istvan. Not too much trouble by his standards. He managed to pull it off without getting scratched or bitten, and without resorting to using a falcon's hood, so by his standards, it was not too much trouble. "Getting her in the carrier was a bit of a challenge since Griffins don't like being caged, but I managed to convince her into it. On a related note, you, err, shouldn't need to feed her for a while."

Sirona was probably capable of making the trip herself, but even if it was possible to somehow compel her to do so, it was far faster to use a full sized griffin to fly her here instead.

"As don't worry, Lord Cadmon, your cousins were no trouble at all. Having a chimerical apex predator at one's side tends to make people more agreea..." Roger's ramblings trailed off and ended upon seeing Cadmon's dawning anger, followed by a furious exclamation to Istvan.

Evidently there was something in Baron Bridger's letter that Cadmon had not anticipated, something that had made him livid.

@HereComesTheSnow@The Otter

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Fleuri Jodeau

This must be the head, Fleuri assessed. The helmet encasing it was a perfect match to what he had seen Halestadt previously wearing, and the tall knight reacted upon picking it up.

Fleuri didn't try to peek at what was inside the helmet. Whatever Haelstadt's reason for concealing their face, he'd respect it. He in fact had a certain fondness for the romantic trope of anonymous, helmeted knights taking the field in tournaments or on battlefields. It wasn't exactly a realistic depiction- for any tourney of any worthwhile prestige, there tended to be a number of roadblocks to entering (as Renar could very bitterly attest to), and no organizer would let some random stranger hiding in a suit of armor take a precious competitor slot, but regardless, it was a concept that Fleuri liked. His own ancestor, Armand Jodeau, had a reputation for rarely showing his face to others, to the point that the paintings of Armand in both the Jodeau manor and Candaeln depicted him helmeted.

He had no idea what Haelstadt was- some sort of undead, perhaps? Generally, decapitation was effective in eliminating the threat of undead, but perhaps there were some for which it was merely an inconvenience? Whatever the reason, while Reon generally disapproved of undead, exceptions such as the Roses' very own Tyaethe was proof that they couldn't just run around and condemn people for not dying when killed.

Again, it was none of his business, and it was generally prudent to not pry too hard into an immortal knight's business.

"Here you go," Fleuri spoke, handing the helmet over to the black knight, careful to not let the head fall out. He was unsure what'd happen next, although he was a little curious as to whether Haelstadt would be able to simply reattach it by sticking it on their shoulders, or if they'd have to carry it back to have it fixed later.

@VitaVitaAR

Blades of Iron Roses: An Anime-Inspired Knight RP

Fleuri Jodeau

They had been victorious once again. While it could be argued that this entire ordeal was so far shaping out to be overall a defeat for the Kingdom of Thaln, there was no doubt that this particular skirmish was a smashing victory for the Iron Roses. Even with their monstrous abominations, the Golden Boars had been slaughtered without inflicting any casualties of their own- aside from the evidently immortal Haelstadt.

Fleuri feared that this was just an opening act to something much larger. The shard was still unaccounted for, as was whoever had hired the Golden Boars. And as for the Boars themselves, this was clearly much more than a simple mercenary job. To attack the Iron Roses, to attempt to abduct Veileena, to make use of such twisted cursed mutants in their ranks, suggested that their role may be more deeply involved one than merely swords for hire in this instance. Fleuri wasn't sure just how many men and women they could call upon, though- perhaps Gerard may have a good grasp of the malignant mercenary company's overall size.

For now, however, he suspected that they'd be heading back to the city. There was much information and news that needed to be to be conveyed to the kingdom. There were many questions that still needed to be asked of Veileena, and of those also involved with the shard. Lastly, and with the day coming to a close, the knights would need to rest and regain their strength.

Speaking of Veileena, she seemed none too pleased at being detained, and was asking for someone to help Haelstadt recover their head. With most of the knights conversing with one another, and with Tyaethe standing still, Fleuri decided to assist.

"Don't worry, Lady Cazt, I'll help find it," he spoke as he trudged to the general area where he had glimpsed Haestadt's head going flying. Theirs was not the only severed head, or severed body part, but none of it could be confused for Haelstadt's black helmet. The head wasn't where he thought he had seen it fall, however, and with night having fallen, the head might not be particularly easy to spot. It'd be a lot easier to find if the head could speak, but Fleuri couldn't recall ever hearing Haelstadt speak even when their head was attached.

Hopefully, the head had stayed inside the helmet, because he had no idea what Haelstadt's uncovered head looked like.

@VitaVitaAR

The Storm Cycle: Reclamation

"Sorcha isn't always like that," Ethelred replied to Luana as he stretched his armored foot out onto the path to refreeze the constantly thawing ground. "She doesn't show it to everyone, but she can be quite unqueenly when she wants to be. You'll see, just give her time and you'll get the chance to see her let her hair down. As for Elias, the man has always had a heavy burden placed on his shoulders, and it can be lonely at the top. He's a direct descendent of one of the old king's knights, heir to his vast power, and he's been through a lot."

Ethelred turned his helmet's faceplate towards Luana, who was currently in the form of a cat. "But I see your point. Elias and Sorcha don't seem to rely on others as much- they're so powerful, they don't really need to. As far as I know, Elias can't even be killed conventionally. I saw him disintegrated by that black wyvern whose corpse you may have seen earlier, then a short while later, he reappears, unclothed but no worse for wear."

It was precisely because of his severance from most of his past life and of his frozen, crystal-encased state that he was not an "icy" person. Whether confiding in a fellow knight or simply traveling with his faithful frozen steed- the last remnant of his past life- connections with others helped reinforce his humanity in defiance of his cold, inhuman form.

"Lunalel isn't like that, though. You haven't really gotten a chance to work with her yet, but she understands the importance of working..."

Ethelred was interrupted as Lunalel spoke up, commanding him to get into position. He looked up and saw the Lonan riding towards them, wyvern on his tail. This conversation could wait- it was time to act.

Just as Lonan passed, his supernatural mount unaffected by the slippery ice, the Frozen Knight swung his lance to trigger the trap and bring the swinging, spiked mass down on the incoming dragon. This trap of theirs was an example of what Luana was talking about- hunters combining their talents and powers to bring down prey.

@BrokenPromise@Rune_Alchemist