Laue

The Witch Hunt

I'll finish my character posts a bit later, at least the general meta post is up.

The Witch Hunt

Mages

The remarkably comfortable beds let the Jackals fall asleep easily. The drinks they had also helped as well. However, each and every one of them dreamed the same dream, as they figured it out in the morning. In the dream they saw themselves walking down the strees of Kaosbund, in it's pristine condition. They were alone in the dream however. Something called to the dreamer, guiding them. Arriving near the palace, there was a large dome-like structure to the left, heavily fortified. However, the city was empty, and the gates to this structure were open. It lead underground to a massive circular room, with another circular room in the middle. It was all chained up, the massive magical and mundane chains connecting at the massive door, all locked and double locked via various means. The dreamers felt the compulsion to open the door, and felt themselves somehow undoing the locks, one by one. As they opened the massive door, the dream ended before them being able to see what's inside. Waking up, the Jackals grouped up to discuss the rest of trip, and the weird dream they had. It is then they figured out they all had the same dream. Even worse, Misala was missing, majority of her things still near her bed. Without much choice, The Jackals decided to look for her, most likely near the vault in their dreams. The path towards the palace took the most damage. Corpses increased in number and density, so did the damage to the nearby area and the path itself. When they finally reached the palace, they only found it in ruins. With near literal hill of bones at the entrance. Much more detailed and extravagant armor on the defenders made it clear it was the Royal Guard, making their last stand, literally. They blocked the entrance with their bodies, and slew many attackers. It seemed that their stand ended when siege weapons were used. As expected, the dome structure was there, still standing strong. It was only then that The Jackals noticed that the main city defense was not focused on the palace, it was focused on this structure. This structure itself was far more sturdy than anything else in Kaosbund. Something extremely important was locked up there. Descending down the stairs, they found Misala there sketching something in her notebook, which she always had on herself. It seemed it was some sort of diary, but she never talked about it. Just like in the dream, the circular room in the middle was constricted with both mundane and magical chains, connecting in the middle to be locked up with various locks. The locks themselves were protected heavily with magic. The door was even sturdier and heavier, one that would need several men to even open or close. Misala looked nervous, copying the various symbols on the wall in her notebook. Her confidant and calm visage was not there. She seemed anxious, distressed, hardly able to focus. "You're finally here. Good." she said nervously. "The goddamn whispers in my head are driving me mad, but I gotta copy down this writing. At the very least, after we are all done with Weisstraugh, I can find out what the hell is this and how to deal with it." Whispers? The rest of the Jackals stayed quiet for a moment. Sure thing, they could hear faint whispers, but you had to focus hard to even hear them. Misala however, was far more heavily affected. Discussing the place while Misala finishes copying the ancient writing, they finally decide to leave this place alone and continue their task. After leaving Kaosbund, Misala seemed to return to normal. In about two days, they finally reach Weisstraugh. Payday is not far.

Luminous Knights

Trekking through the forest and nearing their destination, Team Aegis came upon a clearing, with a large group of well-armed people guarding it. There were some minor fortifications as well, acting as makeshift walls. In the back was the large cave entrance, as reported. The armed men quickly noticed them and quickly grouped into a formation, with shield bearers in the front, spearmen in the second row, and archers in the back. In the very back was their leader, who coordinated their movements. These people were no bandits holding a weapon for the first time. Their weapons and armor were of high quality, and their stances showed experience and training. They also well as a team, and moved as one. While the mind-controlled bandits were no match for even a fresh paladin, these people will be a significant challenge. "Time to earn our pay, boys!" their leader said to his men, then switching his gaze to Team Aegis. "Hmm, seems you're the rookies that kicked Seth's ass. Oh he's going to be so mad when we bring the boss your heads. I can't wait to see the look on his face!" the man, who also appeared to be a mage, taunted them. However, they were not advancing. The mercs stalled for some reason. Moreover, the reports said there should be twice as many of them here. Aela was suspicious. Team Aegis started to notice something odd, the blades of grass near them being stepped on by something, footprints appearing in the dirt. Without warning, Aela unleashed a blast of Luminosity from her, a warm breeze for the team, and fiery burn for the mercs under invisibility trying to flank them. Receiving minor burns from their enchantment being dispelled, they quickly grouped into a formation. "Plan B, pincer attack!" their captain commanded, and the team found themselves out of formation being advanced towards from front and rear. They needed to break their formation, and Aela did just that. She charged towards the front formation swinging her greatsword horizontally, knocking back the shieldbearers and anyone behind them. A gap in the formation, just what they needed. As the fight began, both sides quickly dropped their formations. It turned chaotic. Aela was taking on 5 people at the same time and winning, others were outnumbered roughly 2 on 1. Their captain and a mage supported them from afar, imbuing their weapons with fire, frost or lightning. The mercs made sure to block any attempts on reaching their captain, and the captain himself used lightning to intercept Luminosity projectiles used against him. "That invisibility cloak is Seth's trick. You met him once already. A brat, but a pretty damn skilled brat, and he taught me this as well." the merc captain continued his speech. "Mimel is quite scary and intimidating, but given what she had to experience, I can't blame her. Watch this paladins, it's gonna be amazing!" he said, as he switched the enchantments on the mercenaries to something shadowlike, just like Mimel's claws. Suddenly, the mercenary weapons became incredibly sharp, easily slicing through the paladin weapons and shields. A few members of Team Aegis already lost their weapons trying to parry with them. And even though the paladins continually burned off the enchantments of their foes, their captain would just put them back on. "And this is one of the favorites of the Boss Man himself." A faint hum could be heard, as suddenly any attacks made towards the mercs glanced off their path, as if some invisible force surrounded them. While luminosity could pop the protection, it would be quickly reapplied and the mercs themselves didn't just stand there - they tried to push every advantage they've got, however slight. It became a battle of attrition, as each side couldn't really strike anyone down any opponent by themselves. [This difficult battle forces Team Aegis to improvise and come up with new ways to break the stalemate they will soon lose. Every member of Team Aegis can either learn a new basic spell/technique or improve an existing one.] The battle was won, finally. Everyone was tired, and only their captain remained. He threw down his weapons, and proclaimed his surrender. "I surrender, and I will cooperate. On one condition - my men get a proper burial. They died because of me, therefore it is my duty to face the consequences. But they deserve better." It was an unexpectedly reasonable request, to which Aela agreed. Shackling his hands and posting a few recruits to guard him, the rest scoured the hideout for evidence. It wasn't very big, but it contained various documents, maps and plans, as well as a few captive paladins, relatively unharmed. One old map grabbed the attention of Team Aegis, where a place called Weisstraugh was circled over, with "Top priority" written nearby. After taking everything of interest, they buried their opponents, as per deal, and headed back, both with the prisoner and the freed paladins.

Alicia

When they arrived, it was already clear the paladins were expected. They also worked for the mages that attacked them. Unlike the bandits, however, those people were well armed and well trained, and Alicia knew how a proper stance looks like. The mercenaries were stalling for some reason, however, and despite their threats, did not advance. The answer to this mystery was discovered when Captain Aela removed the invisibility from the other half of mercenaries trying to move behind them. Were they always invisible? Were they waiting out of sight just in case? It was not a time to think, but to act, and Alicia prepared to do just that. With a display of inhuman strength, Aela broke through their front formation in one blow, allowing Team Aegis to rush through, breaking any manner of organized fighting among both sides. Their captain, who was also a mage, supported them from afar, and any attempts made by Alicia or anyone else to hit him with a Luminosity projectile were prevented by a defensive blast of lightning, which he seemed not use offensively. Upon seeing Alicia's weapons and stance, the mercs in front of her instantly adopted a defensive stance, while trying to flank her. "Cute, a Sioretto user. Come on, give it your best shot, see if you can get through our shields before your rampage timer runs out." the mercs taunted her. And they were right, to fight a Sioretto user one must weather the brief burst of prowess. After that, Sioretto is far less effective, especially against an experienced fighter. And they knew it well. There is nothing she could do to go through a shield unless her opponent's try to attack, and it was clear that they won't. The various enchantments on their weapons didn't help either, though thankfully, Alicia, unlike her teammates, wasn't the one being attacked. Fire would heat up and burn anything around the weapon, frost would freeze it, and shock would send a powerful jolt of electricity down the opponent's armor, shield or a weapon. For Alicia, however, it was more like an angry stare contest, as they slowly walked around, trying to get into Alicia's blind spot or otherwise distract her. The first one to make a move loses. The one in front of her with a spear was constantly poking from afar and behind his shield, offering no chance for retaliation, distracting her as his buddies are trying to flank her. The others on Team Aegis were fighting fiercely, yet unable to take each other down for good. To turn the tides, their captain changed the enchantments on their weapons to something very similar to the magical claws the girl mage used. Almost as deadly as the real deal, it seemed to cut through any metal with ease. It changed nothing about Alicia's standoff. However, she had an advantage - she was learning their movements, however slight. The patterns of the spear-man. There was a potential gap in their defense, she just did not have a certain tool in her arsenal. A distraction. Even a moment of distraction could win her the fight. When he pokes with a spear, his shield moves a bit, obscuring his vision to the side. But Alicia can't move to his blindside THAT fast. Unless... Luminosity. In a lot of ways, it's just like regular light. It is a light source, it can either warm or burn, or blind. Blind... That's it! Conjuring up a Sword of Light, Alicia points it towards their leader, fooling her opponents. Focus. It was time to focus. The timing has to be precise. The spear-man pokes again, for a slight moment covering up the vision of his left. Alicia dashes to that side, launching the Sword of Light towards the face of the spear-wielder and then detonating it in such a way it emits a blinding flash of light. This gives her a precious second of confusion, allowing her to hit the merc in the neck. Next up, the two who previously tried to flank her, using the trusty sword and board style. They knew she was on a timer now, and if she does not manage to deal with them until it's up, she's done for. But Alicia already had a tool to circumvent that. The mercs would expect her to use the same trick, trying to attack from the side while they are blinded. They would try to turn slightly to the side, to be able to protect their flanks quickly. This would leave them very slightly vulnerable to a frontal assault, but it was all Alicia needed. "Let's go!" she said to them, detonating two more Swords to blind them while rushing towards them, they reacted as expected, allowing her to finish off the rest of her opponents. 5 seconds. It took five seconds to accomplish that. Now the remaining 55 seconds were to be used to help the rest of Team Aegis, seeing as the mercs were now protected by some kind of barrier. ... The battle was over. Their captain, the last surviving member surrendered, only asking to honor the men that served him in return. "Honor, huh? Never would have expected that." she mumbled quietly. Up next, raiding the hideout, she grabbed anything that looked important. Some paladin prisoners were also found and freed, relatively unharmed but tired. They looked really relieved, as they didn't expect anyone to find them anymore. Burying your foes felt odd, but it also felt right. Morality aside, both sides were doing their jobs to utmost of their ability. Unlike the various stories of evil outlaws and cutthroat mercenaries, these people were almost like them, just on a different side. After all of that was done, it was time to go back. Their first mission as an official team was a great success. It felt good, and despite being exhausted from the battle, everyone was in high spirits. [Alicia learns [Blinding Flash]. This ability allows her to detonate a Sword of Light to produce a strong flash of light, temporary blinding opponents. Just like with shatter, this spell has dramatically reduced magic negation capabilities.]

Eddy

Eddy has never ever slept this well in his life. These beds felt divine. However, the dream, which he could remember clearly after waking unnerved him. Gathering up with The Jackals early in the morning, everybody mentioned that wierd dream they had. ALL of them had the same one. And Misala, of all people, was missing, with her things still near her bed. And there was only one place where she could have gone. "I don't really want to get closer to that vault door, if it is actually there, but I sure as hell don't want to leave Misala near it either. Let's go find her." he suggested to The Jackals. The closer to the palace they got, the more devastation their saw. This is where the majority of the fighting took place. The palace itself, grand and pristine in the dream, was now totally and utterly destroyed, with what appeared to be the Royal Guard's bones blocking up the now ruined entrance. "Well they sure were fanatical in defending their Empress. Wonder what she did to inspire such loyalty." Eddy commented. He never bought the stories that every mage that lived back then was utterly evil. Heck, Eddy himself was a mage, and he met plenty others. They were people just like anyone else, with the capability for both good and bad. But history is written by the winners, even if that was a very pyrrhic victory. As in the dream, the dome-like structure was there. It stood the test of time rather well, however, being much more heavily fortified than even the palace. Taking the stairs down, they found Misala in the chamber, as well as that vault from the dream, exactly as they remember it. She had her notebook or a diary with her, copying the strange writings on the walls. Eddy didn't even bother to ask why. What surprised him, however, was the whispers Misala was hearing. Focusing, he could definitely hear it too, but it was faint and you had to actually try to hear them. But not Misala - she was losing her cool and collected appearance quite fast. Turning to the rest of Jackals, who also started to explore it, "So, what do you think is behind that door?" he asked. The Jackals gave their guesses, but no one really wanted to find out. They all uniformly agreed , including Misala, that it should remain closed. "You know, I don't really like her trying to find out more about it either, but as a hunter, I agree. You are better off knowing something and never using that information rather than the other way around." he defended her. "I'd like to believe that no one is stupid enough to open a door that was locked up hundreds of years ago, especially with locks like these." Some discussions and arguments ensued, but when Misala was finished, they all were glad to leave. Picking up some supplies from the magical inn, they all left Kaosbund. Weisstraugh was just a few days away now. Leaving also helped Misala return to normal. Trying to deny it as hard as he could, Eddy felt, in the back of his heart, that they will return here, and sooner or later, those locks will be broken.

The Witch Hunt

Going to post later today, the missing mages be dammned :(

The Witch Hunt

K I'll wait a bit more, because I'm a bit busy myself. I no more mages post, I'll have to move on without them.

The Witch Hunt

All the mages seem to be very busy atm, unfortunately.

The Witch Hunt

Ah, my panic mode. Nobody posted in OOC in a day or two? EVERYBODY LEFT OH SHIT IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN.

The Witch Hunt

Where is everyone?

The Witch Hunt

Whoever posted, posted. Let's move this forward!

The Witch Hunt

Mages

Supplies were running low, and the encounter with the Tyrants didn't help. At this point, everybody treated Misala with suspicion, and she seemed to prefer it that way. The vegetation was starting to get sparser and sparser, as they hit a rather overgrown, but still visible paved road. White marble, it's shine barely lost, grass growing through the cracks. Nearby they could see a great wall, and crumbled gate, all white, with vines all over. Through the gate, the ruins of Kaosbund awaited. It was getting late, and the Jackals preferred some kind of shelter. The ground was littered with decaying remains of 300 year old corpses. Torn and faded armor and cloth, rusted weapons and sun-bleached bones, ready to crumple apart. One side was wearing blood-red plate armor, with the city insignia still quite visible on them, and wielding weapons of matching color, beautifully ornamented. The other had no uniform apparel, likely the original Luminous Knights. Despite that, the city remained in relatively good condition. Even nature could not breach those walls that easily. White marble towers rising in the sky, some crumbling, some still standing. Building were more varied in materials, but still in pretty good shape. At least those that were further away from the battles that took place within Kaosbund. Reaching the city square, a giant golden statue greeted them. A woman clad in some kind of plate armor, holding a massive, intimidating scythe in her hands. It was rather imposing, even in it's current state. It was cracked in places, and overgrown with vines. On the bottom, an inscription said: "Archon and Empress of The Eternal Empire, Meireli von Eternus." Upon seeing the name, Misala seemed shocked for a second, before regaining her composure. This name sounded familiar, though none could figure out why. Nearby they found what looked like an inn for the wealthy, in a very good state. It was rather odd, as the place seemed as if it was recently cleaned up. This mystery was soon solved as The Jackals could feel magic everywhere. Nearly everything was enchanted with it, seemingly to be able to maintain themselves. It had a grand dining table, with pristine plates and utensils ready for the visitors that never came. Up the second floor, the rooms were also still in pristine condition, complete with luxurious beds that were fit for kings. Up below was the kitchen and a massive wine cellar. Even the food, contained in some sort of magical containers, was still good. The Jackals decided to use this opportunity to unwind a bit, and prepare to resume their journey tomorrow.

Luminous Knights

Their task complete, and the bag full of pretty crystals, the squad returned to camp. Though now it had the majority of it's walls up, and already a huge watchtower was nearly completed in the middle of this carcass of an outpost. A well dressed dwarf greeted them and took the bag, dragging it over to what looked like a long metal tube, with various sockets in it of various sizes. A table was nearby with various gemcutting tools, which the dwarf started using on the crystals they just brought. It was getting late, and after eating some food they made way to what seemed a giant tent specifically for their squad to rest. No longer just some rolls of cloth on the ground, there were bunk beds constructed for them, as well as a place for them to store their belongings. Seeing from the various boards in the corner, it wasn't going to be a tent for long. They even had a huge table in the corner, likely for briefings. Discussing various things before heading to sleep, the squad noticed that Alicia had a wierd red tattoo on her stomach, which she claimed to be a family tradition, as her father had one too. Though that made a little sense, it still was really wierd, even for an eccentric family. Morning came, and after getting some breakfast the group was given new orders, and a name - Team Aegis. Despite their very first mission taking a horribly wrong turn, their superiors took notice in them, and having a team name already meant they will be assigned to more important missions, and more dangerous ones. As Levran told them, this decision was made because of Aela's experience, and the superiors trusted her to forge these greenhorns into seasoned veterans. Their new objective was to investigate a cavern half a day away from this outpost. It seems that a group of well armed mercenaries keeps guard over that area, scaring away civilians and chasing away scouts. The cave might be some kind of smuggler's hideout, or an Undercity entrance, or anything else entirely. But the fact that it is guarded means it is important. And Team Aegis was to investigate. Grabbing all the necessary supplies and a map, they set out.

Alicia

They could finally rest. Her breakdown in Allure's Scar left Alicia in a far better mood - grumpy instead of a blank, emotionless expression. Right now she felt like she made a fool of herself, and everyone is laughing behind her back. But, no one was. While not exactly proper beds, those bunks were still better than sleeping on the ground. It was a hot evening, and Alicia decided to take off both her shirt and her armor, leaving her in underwear, sitting on her bunk, listening to others. Alicia wasn't the one to be ashamed of showing a bit of her body, unlike some other women, so the way her squad looked at her didn't bother her at all. However, the team wasn't looking at her body as much as her bright red tattoo on her stomach. Out of everyone here, only Varkasan got see it during their time in the academy. It was just a silly family tradition, her father had one too. Alicia told it to Varkasan once, and now she has told it again. A new day came, and they've got a new name for their team - Team Aegis. And their new objective was to investigate a cave guarded by mercenaries. Those people were expected to be well-trained and well-armed, and the fight will be a challenge. Everyone on the group really wished that no more surprises awaited them. Bad ones, at least. Ready to burn down some more brands, Team Aegis? Alicia tried to joke, probably for the first time in her life. However, only some groans could be heard as a response. At any rate, Alicia considered this "joke" a personal progress.

Eddy

Kaosbund was impressive, to say the least. Despite the numerous corpses, the city was mostly OK. The statue of The Queen was really intimidating, at the very least. "Well, this statue sure makes me feel small and insignificant, that's for sure. Guess that was the entire point." Eddy commented. Nearby, The Jackals noticed an inn in good condition. Too good to be true, anyway. Upon further investigation, and after discovering tons of various magical tools and thingies, included cutlery and plates, the place was considered real. Nearly everything was enchanted with magic in some way, making the place self-maintaining. Discovering that they had means to preserve food for hundreds of years, a wine cellar and glorious beds, The Jackals would have a feast tonight. The table was set. Far too big for their group, the table was set with various wonders of the lost age. The majority of these foods were never seen by The Jackals, and every single one of them was majestic, to say the least. "And here I thought meat with spices was heavenly food. So this is what the rich consume, huh." Eddy wondered, after taking a bit too many sips of a very old wine. "So, Misala, since we are all in this together, it's really bad to keep secrets. We don't trust you, and this is not a good position for you." he blurted even more bluntly than normally. The wine was kicking in, for him and nearly everyone else, including Misala. "Trust me? TRUST ME? When people trust me, they die." Misala's confident behavior vanished, as she was on the verge of crying. "I was just another child in a big and poor family. I had many brothers and sisters, all as miserable as I was. We all were forced to find a way to feed ourselves and our family, by any means. Eventually, I tried to pickpocket the wrong people and got caught. But instead of torturing or killing me, they gave me a chance. They were called Jaegers - they were hunters of extraordinary game. Scar mutants or chimeras, if you needed anything like that dead, Jaegers were the ones you hired. They taught me everything I know. We hunted together. We weren't rich, but we still got to live well in-between the hunts. We even managed to find an ancient dungeon where a type of chimera was created. We found various notes, especially on other types. That dungeon however created only one, supposedly the ultimate Chimera. We saw it's cage, we saw it broken. We saw the rotting skeletons of it's creators. In our hubris, we decided to hunt it down. Tyrants, Banshees, Reavers? No problem, we took down many of them. We thought ourselves unstoppable. The Jaegers never lost, and I was their new full-fledged member, blinded by pride just like the rest. That thing had a name - The Reaper. We figured that it was just named this way to sound just as scary as the rest of Chimeras. After many weeks, we tracked it down... And today, there is only one Jaeger left. Me... Because I ran away in fear... It was nothing like we ever faced, and I just panicked... And people who trusted me died... The nightmares, the screams, they never ceased. They still haunt me to this day. But eventually I found a new purpose for my life. One that stops me from just slitting my wrists to just avoid the nightmares. A new purpose that will remain a secret. Don't trust me, just don't... " Even though she tried to hide it, Misala was definitely crying. Standing up and quickly leaving to her room, she left the dining hall sitting in silence. Finishing their meals and drinks, The Jackals too left to get some sleep. Eddy himself was not sure what to make of this. Her story felt sincere, but this new "purpose" of her, what was it? And more importantly, just what was this Reaper? It destroyed a group of hunters who hunted Tyrants and their ilk for a living. And the elf didn't really want to know. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.

The Witch Hunt

Hmm I think we need one or two more posts and we can move forward. Might be wrong, but I'll wait a bit more.