Mas Bagus

Into the Land of Twilight

And soon, the whole world seemed to be fading in the intensifying light. The whispering too suddenly ceased, and as they opened their eyes, the world was dim again, and they found themselves returned, to the same place, but this time no more cries, anger sadness, or pain could be heard, and no more trees, blood, corpses, soldiers, or burning houses could be seen.

All they could see for the first time, in this normal world was Vesemir checking them one by one, faint hazes of mysterious smoke emanated from their bodies, and they felt rather lightheaded.

To their surprise, they were still in the same position as before, as if the whole experience were happening outside their physical body. But the mark from that battle seemed to be carried over. Roxas could still feel and see a trace of pain and blood on her arm, and those who clashed their weapons with the enemy could still feel the fatigue.

"Sir, Vesemir, are they all right? We must move now. The tranquility wont last for too long." someone said, and it was Gray Flame, with Carnathia standing between them and the lantern. A white, refined blaze danced on his palm, providing additional light that also seemed to be keeping the curious shadows and malicious darkness at bay.

"You heard our Ranger." said the monocled elf, patting Tillius's shoulder and subtly indicating the ever-present shadows surrounding their illuminated path, like they were on a small island surrounded by an abyssal sea.

"I bet you all have plenty of questions as big as a pyramid in Abydos, but it is ill-advised to discuss it hither---

As he said that, howling winds, sounded more like a horrifying moan blew from one of the nearby ramshackle houses.

"Let's go for now, until we find a safer place. I will take the rear guard this time, Mr. Gray Flame and Sir Engelbert, you two take points."

Into the Land of Twilight

Rezello

---

Better, Rezello reasoned, not to leave any loose ends. Advancing towards the captain, messer angled and ready to block any desperate attacks he might try with his longsword, Rezello raised his morningstar in the air and swiftly brought it down upon his staggered enemy's helm.

@Valkon

The Masked Rezello marched forth, and whatever observable reaction the Captain could muster was insignificant at best. Like... he was not even paying attention to his enemy's next move, and when he did, all he could do to anticipate was to raise his dominant hand, to weakly parry the strike, such a futile endeavor it was.

The morning star swung true, smashing the Captain's helmeted head and sending his already bent posture to slam down against the paved ground. The morning star's protruding spikes penetrated the metal helmet, and for a while, remained stuck on the captain's head until Rezello yanked it free.

It felt real; the impact, the recoil, the sensation when the spike hit the captain's head. The feeling when you were sure that man's head was already caved in like a watermelon. Yet, no trace of blood could be seen as the captain lay unmoving before him, and then for a while, all Rezello could hear was the cacophony of dark whispering that suddenly intensified, voiced by begrudging, shadowy spectators.

As if conforming, That the blow was fatal, the captain was dead, and there was no mistake in that.

Into the Land of Twilight

Rezello

---

Rezello felt the magic flow through him as the surge of electricity stunned the captain and his steed; with his opponent dismounted, their primary advantage over him had been taken away. As the captain lunged, a powerful but clearly telegraphed slash incoming, Rezello's weapon flashed sliver as he swung what was now a messer in his off-hand to deflect the captain's longsword up and over his head, shifting his stance to put as much distance between the blade's trajectory and his neck as he reasonably could.

Continuing the momentum of his parry and dodge, Rezello moved his other hand - now wielding his morningstar - to strike at the captain, his weapon seeking the gap in armor between the torso and underarm.

@Valkon

The deflection by Rezello was perfectly timed, the Captain had his arm raised above his target, leaving a gap in his armor under his armpit exposed. The blunder was quickly identified, but not quickly rectified, and as he was about to retreat from his awkward stance, a swing from a spiked heavy mace crushed his right ribs.

The sheer force from the blow pushed the dark captain sideways, stopping his advance, and now he was retreating, staggering to gain some distance, left hand clutching his crushed ribs. His red eyes were still fixated on the goblin-masked knight. Huffing and grunting as he struggled to keep himself from falling.

He still clutching his sword with his right hand, yet his posture was crooked. He was just two strides from Rezzelo's striking range, and clearly vulnerable.

Saint Valerius Academy - A Knight/Noble Fantasy

This looks like fun and cozy. I've been thinking about a character for this RP, but looking at the OOC section so far, it seems there will be a lot of things to know first before I jump in.

How many confirmed players so far if you don't mind me asking? And does this RP have a railed plotline, final goal, things the players have to achieve together, or just a slice-of-life RP?

Into the Land of Twilight

While making her way around the soldiers along with Tillius and Fia, it seemed Roxas had become injured. Some form of healing magic had been used on her in response to the wound, though it didn't appear to be her doing. The work of one of the party members outside the illusion, perhaps? Regardless of the cause, the light that had engulfed her as a result of the spell had drawn the attention of the captain and his soldiers; while the soldiers moved to attack Roxas, Tillius, and Fia, the captain charged on his horse towards Rezello and Forbann, wielding a blood-stained hatchet. Rezello held out a hand, a long line of silver light manifesting in his grasp before changing into his bec de corbin, the knight lowering himself into a defensive stance as he readied to counter the captain's assault, streaks of lightning magic running down his arms and into his weapon.

Galloping at full speed, the dark captain, whatever he truly was, seemed to be quite well-versed in knowledge of warfare. So, when he saw the masked knight summoned a type of polearm to anticipate his charge, rather than trying to face it head-on, he maneuvered slightly to his right and swung the back of his axe against Rezzello's Bec de Corbin to demoralize him.

Two weapons collided with a clang. What he did not anticipate was, that it only needed the slightest contact for Rezello's lightning spell to transfer its mighty shock toward the unsuspecting enemy, and it did. Maybe because the spectral captain was too careful not to have his axe snagging the polearm's namesake beak, the attack was clumsy and was easily countered, causing the Bec de Corbin to connect with the captain's iron greaves and instantly electrocute both the rider and the steed with paralyzing lightning.

Should Rezello look back to face the fallen rider, he would find him immediately crawling all four like a dazed beast, while his horse, still awkwardly trotting, mindlessly rushed into the profound darkness behind him and gone.

Two red eyes of his stared fiercely at Rezello, and he abandoned his bloodied hatchet for a longsword that rang as he drew it from his side. Then, with sheer hatred, he lunged forth, uttering words in a fashion that was more similar to shrieking and hissing rather than speaking.

There he cried: "Traitor! Here, your fate will be sealed!"

The strike was coming, wide yet powerful, seemingly intended to decapitate Razello with a single swing.

@Valkon

Into the Land of Twilight

Another light appeared in Carnathia's hand after she uttered the verses. But unlike what appeared in Gray Flame's hand, in Carnathia's the flame engulfed her entire palm. It was warm for a moment before the blaze stung her with a fiery heat.

"Steady," murmured the masked elf as she squeezed her left hand. The fire was warm again like there was a translucent barrier insulating her palm from the burning flame. However, true to his warning earlier, the mysterious power quickly drained her and the longer the fire remained, the more she felt like she was steaming from the inside.

"You are trying to invoke the power of those you never knew before," warned Gray Flame. "And without my barrier, that might hurt you. But my power can only bargain, not to repel this grace. So while the grace still tolerates you, you must pick those you deem worthy and give them the light. That would help them defeat the phantoms."

After saying that, the fire on Carnathia's hand swirled and concentrated on her palm before refining itself into a radiant glow. Gray Flame released his grip on her other hand and exclaimed.

"Go! Before you burn yourself!"
@Randomguy

Into the Land of Twilight

Gray Flame just stood there. He uttered no word nor spared a glance, not even when Carnathia asked for a solution. If one could figure out an emotion from his white mask, that should be of a man who is deep in thought, and troubled, not because he had no answer but because he had a lot, but all were his secrets, and he now pondered which one of it that he would share.

"Dear Carnathia, would you be so kind as you let me talk with Mr. Gray, thank you?" said Vesemir, who arrived behind her, smiling as he patted her shoulder and gently urged her to move aside.

None of them dared to move their lantern from its original position, which was now placed on the cold pavement, guarded by Engelbert.

Roxas had his eyes closed, like sleeping, but her breath was unsteady, the shadow was still clutching her arm, blood dripping steadily from her wound.

"Aim Mae! Séyan hûm urdagor anat ar faemor."

Said Vesemir. The Gray Flame shook his masked head and sighed.

"Im alat yakin," he said, glancing at the white lantern behind him in anticipation before taking out a bandage from his inventory and trying to apply it on Roxas's arm. It refused to be in contact with the healer's skin like there was an invisible barrier blocking it from setting in, and when Gray tried to force his attempt to have the gauze wrap around her arm, his hands got cut again. "Faya hûm alat órënya, im istamat."

"Haimanan, Nár'elda, séyan emme har feriap an falunn gorthob." The monocled elf shrugged. "Istama ada mala-alwë lyen difa, mal ada eith alwë dalam mestatië attima vare ḥayāt?"

Giving up, Gray Flame removed his glove and patched up his injury instead, tucking the rest of the gauze in his pocket when he was done.

Looking back at what he said earlier, his instructions were clear, follow the light and do not touch and stare too long. As demonstrated by Carnathia and that Samurai Guy, who easily escaped the phantom's treachery, the advice was proven sufficient, so why the rest hasn't returned?

Or, was it like Vesemir concluded? They were lured into a trap and deceived into fighting on enemy's turf. Roxas' injury seemed to reinforce that conclusion.

Fighting those phantoms was a solid option, true, but he didn't reveal that as a solution because the risk was too big, and their parties seemed full of hotheads who itched for a fight. Not to mention injuries received in the phantom realm damage not only the body but also the soul, and one will be powerless to do anything about your physical injury until the phantoms have been vanquished.

Unless...

Now he was thinking about what Vesemir said. Knowledge to safe life.

He approached Carnathia once more and spoke with a heavy heart. "If you believe I deserve those words of blame, then I accept it. However, there is a reason for my caution. We are not supposed to speak about the shadows in detail, especially not in this Land of Twilight. Discussing what they can do and how to counter them is like declaring an open challenge that might be answered by even more perilous treachery. And for that reason, I preferred to keep them away from everyone's mind by not telling, letting them not be engraved too deep in everyone's mind, forgotten and ignored."

Carried by the howling wind that suddenly blew around them, both could hear the whispering intensified into pugnacious curses and loathsome wailing.

"But my dear Carnathia, since we have opened Pandora's box and you asked if there is something we can do from our side..."

He beckoned the noblewoman to follow and offered his hand.

"Before we go further, A fair warning! This... what I am about to do will be very taxing for those who are untrained, and we don't know what's ahead of us after we escape from this darkness. Sieze my hand if you would not heed my warning, and repeat what I say."

Im liuth difyn anan Ar Malik faldirian
Uin sharri nan Së eän
Adh uin sharri ghāsiqin húrun
Adh uin sharri húnas caran núlëd
Adh uin sharri ḥāsidan malam ḥāsad

From Gray Flame's right palm, a small fire kindled, then started from its base, it changed color. White was the flame until it condensed into a dot of light, akin to a star that gradually grew brighter. The night became silent again, and the shadow writhed and slithered away before the dawning light as Gray Flame clutched Roxas' cold hand. For a brief second, the place was as bright as the day, and then the light waned again and the masked elf let go of his grip.

The light on Gray Flame's palm was still shining, but it was carefully adjusted so that it wouldn't be too bright and outshine the guiding lantern. It could also have been done to conserve energy, as everyone could see vaporized breath emanating from his mask and hear the sound of his breath up close.

A faint trace of light now surrounds the unconscious elven healer. The bleeding in her wound had stopped.
____
Meanwhile, inside the land of the dead, Roxas' injured hand regained its strength again, but the radiant light that surrounded her had somehow negated the veil that kept their presence invisible to the phantoms of the past.

Immediately, the soldiers abandoned their current blood sport. Their vicious eyes glared at a newfound opponent, eager for carnage.

"Lads! We find 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.

As everyone's attention seemed to be distracted by what was happening in front of Tillius, the captain had already galloped toward Rezello and Forbann, brandishing his bloodied hatched.

@Randomguy@Randomness@Conscripts
@Valkon

Into the Land of Twilight

The poor woman heard Tilli's voice and seemed to watch him come into view, but it didn't stop her from keeping her bow notched and pulled. Her arm trembled lightly as she stood there. Her eyes were still wide as she stared forward, looking at the shield and orc in her way, but not actually seeing him. Softly mumbled words escaped her as she trembled in spot, arms straining to keep the bow and arrow up and ready to fire.

"I can't.. I can't.. I'd rather kill myself.. Stay away.." Her breath had picked up after her words, likely an indication she was about to have a panic attack. In her panic, her hand let the arrow loose. Thankfully, with Tilli in the way, it seemed to just hit the shield, but being so close.. It bounced back; embedding itself in her arm.

A soft yell startled her out of her stupor, bow clattering to the ground as her hand moved to the arrow in her arm, which she looked to. Breath heavy as she looked around and up at Tili. She'd been entranced and thrown into a panic by the phantoms; but the pain pulled her out of it. "Apologies, Tilli.." She held a small face of pain, quickly breaking the arrow so it was shorter and then picking up her bow.

The pain she felt was sharp and real, jolting her out of her daze, but it didn't bring her back from this nightmarish landscape. The butchering soldiers were still there, with their captain and their gruesome handiworks, unbothered by Roxas' groan. Tillius was still there too, shielding her, and everyone else, and he too was ignored, as if the entire group was hidden in an invisible veil to them.

There was still some distance between Tillius and those massacring soldiers, who were now busying themselves with two mangled bodies their captain brought. The bodies were quickly disemboweled, their entrails were thrown into fire and the bodies became the additional decorations that adorned the tree.

The captain, who now had already dismounted from his horse, brandished his hatched as he approached the dying elven woman. Then he mercilessly hacked her, starting with her face, then slightly down to her neck. Only a short-pitched voice could be heard when the elf woman met her bloody demise.

Meanwhile, the pain in Roxas' wound intensified, and a series of agonizing whispers echoed inside her head, one of them inquired: "Help me! Help me! O' the Fair one! Why have you forsaken me?"

The elven healer felt the strength in her wounded arm gradually drained, and it wasn't because of just a panic attack this time.

___

Meanwhile, on the other side of the dark, The Gray Flame hurriedly approached Roxas upon sensing an increased shadow activity around her, and it was already upon one of her limbs, assuming the form of an elongated hand. It was already gripping her upper arm, that now red with blood dribbling out from a deep laceration on her bicep.

The moment the Gray Flame reached out to stop the bleeding, an incision appeared in his gloved palm as well, as if there was a very sharp scalpel made of pure shadow that lingered to harm anyone or anything that dared to interfere.

Into the Land of Twilight

As Carnatia came to, she sheathed her rapier back and massaged her temple, as she replied, "What did you mean where are the others?"

She glanced back at the rest who were frozen in their place, before continuing, "I presume they are still ensnared in the phantoms' illusions. As for what happened...I possess an ability that acts as a forewarning against 'attacks', warning me that the phantoms would trap me in an illusion of sorts, were I to pay too much attention to them—as you have warned us, something that I would like to get back to later—therefore, I did my best to avoid them. Though perhaps in the end I was still caught in it. There was a rider with decorated plates and winged helmets towing elves. At that point, I was unsure of what was real or illusory, so I drew my rapier just in case. It ended up ignoring me completely, though."

She then sighed, "Speaking of, Sir Gray, you warned us to not look at the phantoms too much nor to touch them. It couldn't be that you were also aware doing so would have us be ensnared in their illusion and simply opted not to tell us, could it? Because if so, I have to say you are a highly unprofessional guide...though I suppose now is not the time.

Misty breath escaped from Gray Flame's white mask as he squared his shoulder, and two pale dots of light glinted in his eyes when he faced Carnathia. There was a pause, and ominous was the wait before the elf gave her his answer.

"Darkness misleads in many ways, miss Carnathia," he said. There was no casualness anymore in his voice; it was cold like the frigid air of the night itself, and shadow suddenly crept upon his hooded head. With him standing there facing away their guiding lantern, Gray Flame looked like he was one of the animated phantoms himself.

"And because of that, I cannot predict the treachery they may inflict upon you or others. Remember to always follow the light, and do not touch or stare too much. Those were my advice, and I deemed them sufficient. For in a world of darkness and shadow, excessive instructions and hypothetical knowledge could lead to disastrous consequences for those with less understanding."

Then that shadow receded and his voice softened again.

"I am glad you returned safely, it was very wise of you to avoid them."

"What are we to do with those unable to escape the illusion? Is there any way to have the phantoms disperse? Would it be wise to engage them? If they were beings created from magical phenomenon, perhaps their construction is similar enough to magical constructs that I could attempt to unravel it."

"These are not a magical phenomenon, neither was an illusion or something constructed." he shook his head and walked beside her, facing their frozen teammates. There was another eerie pause like he was refraining himself from explaining the very nature of the mystical phenomenon they were experiencing.

"These are the remnants of those who perished here, who were trapped in the realm of the living and distorting it. Fated to relive their past tragedies over and over. Those who are unfortunate enough to be caught in that past, should either ignore it or take a riskier approach; to fight that past and interrupt the loop. Those who succeed will return, and those who are not... well, they might join that past."

Into the Land of Twilight

Looking at the rider with a winged helmet towing behind two elves, Carnatia wondered if she had unknowingly caught in the phantoms' illusion despite her best effort. She was sure that she had discarded the whispers of the phantoms as excess, and had focused solely on the lantern's light, and yet...

Neither Gray Flame nor Vesemir had given any more warnings regarding the phantoms aside from 'do not look or touch' and Carnatia was sure she had avoided either, so was this rider...a real non-illusory existence then? Or had she been unknowingly caught in their illusions through methods she was not aware of?

'...If Sir Gray knew of other methods the phantoms would ensnare us into their illusions and fail to warn us, I swear—'

She shook her head and calmed herself down. Now was not the time. With the mass of phantoms just at the periphery of her visions and the darkness all around, it was a bit hard to quite make out where the others were. And trying to listen for any signs of the others was an exercise in futility, as the whispers of the phantoms drowned every other sound. Only the light of the lantern remained, acting as a beacon.

And so Carnatia drew her rapier, as she continued forward toward the lantern's light. If the rider was an illusion, then he should prove no real danger to her. If it was real, then she would be ready to fight.

The redhead fencer kept moving forward, and so did the captain of the cruel soldiers, who remained unaware of Carnathia's presence, even after having that silent standoff.

As the two moved toward their own opposite directions, the beacon shone trecherously brighter, and all was white for a while in Carnathia's vision until the world suddenly turned dim again. She finally walked back to the realm of the living at last, but because she didn't time her stop, it got her bumped into one familiar masked elf, who was kneeling waiting for her arrival.

@Randomguy

Nanashi was concentrated on reaching the light as the time became darker and more haunted. He was trained to be a shinobi, able to go alone across the fabled mist realm, which is home to yokais and other mythical dwellers. The determined man's fixation on something caused him to ignore the tricks and illusions. The black-haired man in a kimono rushed silently towards the light, bypassing obstacles and anything that could slow him down using ki sensing and keeping his guard hard and ready to counter an initiative attack. He had nothing to do with the surrounding events as he kept his mind the masked elven advice, reaching the light as could seen from far distance.

@Remuri v2

It seemed both Nanashi and Carnathia could see each other or perhaps everyone else if they wanted to, and thus why the communication between them was lacking was anyone's guess.

The samurai's return was even more clamorous. His mortal body, suddenly moved by the momentum from the other side, leaped forth and crashed into Engelbert in the process. But at least that was two people already returned to their senses.

Not entirely good news for Gray Mask, who immediately returned to Carnathia, checking her condition, that if she saw it, still emanating a faint mist from her body.

“Carnathia, can you hear me?” he inquired with a heavy voice, both hands clutching her shoulders. “Where are the others? Tell me what happened.”

Behind her, the others, from the tallest Forbann to their healer Roxas, stood at their places, unmoving as if freezing in time.
Carnathia was returned with her rapier drawn, and that was worrying.

"Did you fight those phantoms?"