Sanguine Rose

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello, GM @Zarkun

Markovis pinched the bridge of his nose a bit harder. This all seemed counter-intuitive. They had the chance, they had the capability, to find where the lightning beast denned, and they were being told to withdraw. Had they not proven the prowess of mages thus far? To be put on hold for some warmage to show up and lead a hunt when there were two well and capable mages to get them started right now was insulting even with the praises. They would need the information Kiba wanted to get. And yet...

A heavy sigh escaped him, and he dropped his hand to the side. "Yes. Less restrictions for our next job would be preferrable."

He put the VOX away and turned back to the others. Given Sergeant had seen fit to praise them, it was probably due. Right? That was what leaders were supposed to do after tasks, right? Media suggested good leaders helped motivate their subordinates with praises or reassurance that their work was worthwhile. For...morale? Or something. As the mage that undertook the job on his own and accepted these two as partners, that kind of made him leader, didn't it? Even if Adelyn did most of the smoothing over when he lost his temper back at the garrison, he felt like the fact the job was under his name kind of made him the de facto head of this mission.

He glanced between the two before settling his gaze on Adelyn. "Your performance was unconventional but effective. Keep it up the good work." He hesitated for a moment before patting her shoulder twice, in two solid pats, before dropping his arm to his side. Then turned to Kiba. "Your idea was good. I will ensure you are part of the team to handle the beast when we get our next chance." He gave Kiba two similarly solid pats, before heading over to his mount. Dealing with the horse, making sure it was calm and ready for the ride back, was easier than trying to figure out how to deal with people. He'd take dealing with animals over people any day.

---

---

Interactions: Nolan @Remram, DM @Zarkun

"Two hours?" Ria blinked then tapped her chin as she considered the time frame. It was seemed way too long and would definitely have them back to Rembrandt later than she thought they would return, but also too short for her to recover as much as they thought she might. So why bother with the time frame if they got confirmation they would actually receive the support they were promised? Oh, Nolan did fight. Maybe he might need more time to recover. Sure she'd helped, but he actually fought. And if they don't get support he'd probably need to do more. He'd need to be as tiptop as he could get.

A cheery smile brightened her face. "Sounds good. We'll meet you back here in two hours." She spotted Damian wave and she rocked up onto the balls of her feet to make herself more visible as she waved her arm. "Bye, Damian! Don't be a stranger!"

She didn't waste any more time, or even give Nolan further opportunity to respond, before she hooked her arm with his and started them off toward the canteen. "You know, this turned out to a great opportunity. I haven't visited a Pergrande outpost. I'm kind of curious if their canteens are similar to other lands. Are you curious too? Well, I suppose probably no, given your relations with the guardsmen. But it's still good for us to see, right? Better than just awkwardly standing around in the yard or getting in the way somewhere."

As soon as they entered the canteen she found them a table in a back corner and taking a chair that put her back to the room. She trusted there wouldn't be trouble, but also figured he might prefer back to a wall. He'd been on edge enough for the rest of the trip, knowing no one would sneak up on him short of spells that let them just appear behind him, would be a bit comforting. Her ass was no sooner in the seat than she jumped to her feet with an "Oh!" then just walking off toward the bar to request two waters before returning to the table.

"So, I have to say...Thank you," she started, offering him one of the glasses before taking her own seat. She ran her finger around the rim of her glass, the water slowly trailing in a lazy wave following the path of her finger. Her gaze remained on his face and her smile softened. "I don't typically take jobs that take me out of Rembrandt beyond the farms. I usually just do stuff around town to help with the guild's PR or earn money less magic intensively. So thanks, for agreeing to this job with me.

"It's been a nice change of pace for me. Doing this job. I know I'm not all that impressive for helping in the fights, but you're quite handy in them. That's not very surprising. I don't think anyone is surprised to find you can handle yourself in those situations. But I still think in is worth noting. You're a very skilled mage and combatant. This must be a cakewalk for you even with the swarm. You must have trained hard to get to your skill level. Did you have a mentor, or were you - ya know - self taught?" She finally seemed to take a breath, if only to give him the chance to answer her.

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello, GM @Zarkun

Calling the mission? While it was the smart thing - the easy thing - it meant they were abandoning a perfect opportunity to observe and understand the relationship dynamic between the two beasts. After all, the claimed reason for needing a sniper overwatch was to keep an eye out for if the lightning beast showed up. It was illogical - neigh, cowardly - to retreat just because the circumstances changed from handling just the one beast to also contending with the known threat as well. It was too...standard military operating procedure for him. Especially when the original job they accepted was the understand this very situation.

Actually, the more he focused on that - the quieter his world became. It was such a gradual thing that he barely noticed nature was no longer deafening. There was no longer that swell of pressure making even his heartbeat sound like a beating drum. All the easier to focus.

Of course the lightning beast would show. It proved it was a beast by doing so, made this all the more logical and important to study. There was unfamiliar energy - scents - in its territory. Any predator would investigate another predatory intrusion such that they posed. No, they couldn't just surrender this opportunity. It was all laid so properly at their feet. Except that just reinforced that retreat was the correct call. Adelyn was - well he wasn't actually sure what to classify her as at the moment, but he was certain she was not mentally up for the task he had doubted her physically capable of just half hour before. He had no intentions of needing to explain to Jenna how a lightning mage was killed by a lightning beast even if it was her own sheer stubbornness that befell her.

No, he had to accept the mission was a bust. There would be another time, another chance, even if he had to make it without a job.

Markovis was about to voice as much into the VOX until Kiba spoke up. The quiet swordsman would not make the request to track the lightning beast on a whim. While he wasn't sure what Kiba's skill at tracking was, he was confident in his survival skills. He was confident he could operate quietly and safely enough to do it alone. Because he had to. Adelyn's assistance with it would ruin the mission and that was more abhorrent than calling it off completely.

"Perhaps instead of calling the mission completely, altering it is better. If you have visual on the creatures, it will give us the opportunity to observe the dynamic. If the town is unaware of where the lightning beast dens, Kiba heading out to track the path it traveled to arrive here while it is preoccupied will provide invaluable information. If the VOX range is great enough to communicate if the beast disengages, that is." They had to give it a try to salvage the mission. Unfortunately, he wasn't in charge. If Sergeant demanded the return, then he had little room to push back; really, the little he was negotiating here was already a bit more effort than he really wanted to put in. They'd just head back, collect whatever they'd get for the job completed to the guardsman's instruction, and he'd take Kiba back out afterward. It would just be such a burden to make the travel out here twice.

---

---

Interactions: Nolan @Remram, DM @Zarkun

"I suppose you would call that fun," Ria laughed softly. "Truth be told, I was hoping that was the job still available. But oh well. I'm sure we'll hear that we ended up having more fun!" Despite how taxing it was for her, she did enjoy this job a bit more than she assumed she'd like monster hunting. Well, unless it was monster hunting near the water but then an ash mage probably wouldn't like that too much. No, this was the best mix for them. She'd just tell herself that until it was true.

On the topic of rest, she had turned her attention to the guard and opened her mouth to turn the offer down, except Nolan got to the answer first. Resting if the others were ready to head back to Rembrandt seemed like it was an unnecessary burden on the guards. Surely they were interested in getting back to their original post to rest. Staying at the outpost wasn't exactly rest. Both had their minds made up that she needed to rest. They were right, but - why were men always so certain on what women should do? It was done out of concern. They were just trying to look out for her wellbeing. Someone needed to, and she had been ready to not be concerned about it at all.

Another smile accompanied a shrug. "Okay, yeah. Resting sounds like a good idea. Just a little bit. Okay? I'm sure everyone wants to get back on the road."

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello, GM @Zarkun

It's all yours.

Every nerve in his arm tingled with a surge of adrenaline. Pushing harder, utilizing stronger magic - it was what he wanted in his core. But it wasn't what Mark wanted logically. He wanted to be tactical in the application of his magic. Of all their magics. But the impulse was becoming numbing again. It was such a big reason he preferred working alone. The babysitters so far out and the other guild members so much closer made following the darker part of his tactics impossible. The Sergeant's frantic attempts to break through static interference didn't do him any favors trying to go about this with a clear head.

Ignore that! Kill it!

He closed his hand to form another sphere when the smell hit him. Ozone of a coming storm, but there wasn't a storm on the way. And it wasn't from Adelyn. Adelyn, thus far, had not created such a shift in the local atmospheric energy. That meant only one thing. And the coms cleared up just in time for Sergeant to confirm it.

Rather than continue his assault on the red beast - as much as he hated to disengage from his primary objective - he instead temporarily shifted, using Into The Void to phase in and out of where he was to avoid being hit by the lightning from the new combatant. While the red beast was well in hand, and moreso when it fell heavily after the latest hit it took, the lightning beast he knew was not something he could take on while liabilities were nearby.

No! Stay! Fight! Kill.

He could. Surely Kiba would convince Adelyn to follow Sergeant's orders and get her moving toward safety. That would eliminate that threat and he could stop holding back. The arcs of lightning were creating too much static interference. Everything was too loud.

Then Adelyn shouted. Arcs of lightning shot back toward the lightning beast. Dammit. He was not going to explain to Jenna how a lightning mage was killed by the lightning beast terrorizing the forest of Rembrandt.

He took a step forward, teleporting directly beside Adelyn and Kiba. A wall of tentacles sprang up between the three mages and the two beasts in the clearing, acting as a short term barrier to protect them. Just needed long enough for him to grab hold of both mages and pull them with him as he stepped backward...

And Void Stepped all three to appear beside the horses.

Mark didn't care he didn't give them warning or an option. This was his job they were allowed to accompany him. This call needed to be made and he was not going to deal with arguments before he made it. It was...why wasn't it quieter here? Everything was still buzzing too much in his ears. The Sergeant wouldn't shut up.

Go back and kill them both.

The dark haired mage yanked his hands from his companions. A hard breath pressed from his lungs and he closed his eyes. He turned his back to the others and pinched the bridge of his nose. It was the closest thing to showing the others how stressed he was at the moment. Despite how much he was ready to scream, his voice was as level toned as always when he grabbed his COMs and made it translate, "Sergeant, we are clear. Report: is our target still down?"

---

---

Interactions: Nolan @Remram, DM @Zarkun

Okay, she had not planned to focus less on the barrier than she already was but here she was: doing just that. But they were within shooting range for the snipers so...it couldn't hurt too much at this point. She guided her horse over to Nolan and the Corporal. For good news, that was some of the worst she had heard. Nolan's assessment of the Asterin was rather spot on. So much so she was fairly comfortable conserving her energy at this point.

It took barely a thought to let the barrier cascade away without a drop spilt on anyone. "Yeah, if the snipers aren't seeing any within range, then it is better to conserve energy now for the ride back. Odd to think, but I kind of hope it is an ambush scenario. If they are potentially reacting to something bigger, that may be bad for whomever is handling the red beast." Though even conserving her energy wouldn't help her restore enough to be useful at all. Nolan would surely have to do the major lifting in another fight, but then...hadn't he already had to? She'd do better to support them all during the next fight. If there was one.

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello, GM @Zarkun

Look at what restraint got you.

It was a simple instruction to stay down and away from the fray. But from the arch of that lightning jolt, Adelyn had assuredly done neither of those things. And no sooner had he restrained the Vulcan than she had set it free. The tentacle had barely enough time to securely latch before it was zapped into pieces. While the red beast destroying the tentacles he sent after it was well within the expected outcomes, apparently no plan survives Adelyn's involvement. Each tentacle cut down squirmed and bubbled away into the ground, leaving behind dead plant life wherever it oozed away.

She better have her own plan to overcome the Vulcan, then. She had Kiba and Sergeant on her side though. That was what teams were for, wasn't it? Divide and conquer. The other two guild mages could handle a single Vulcan. Sergeant would take pot shots at the thing if it broke through their defenses, and would radio in if the lightning beast was inbound. So that left Mark's only concern being the red beast. With Adelyn's poor choice injuring it too, he needed to ensure he regained it's undivided attention.

The beast.

With the Vulcan around, it wasn't a good time to utilize the Fury attack, but there the other options would destroy the forest. Perhaps a little more precise measures. Not many spells were appropriate for that. At least, none he had mastered to this point. Theoretical applications were dangerous enough for the environment, much less the fact there were people he was supposed to not injure. The trouble of working with others, he sighed.

Don't hold back.

There was no choice though. He needed the thing to focus on him as the target. If it diverted attention to the Vulcan it would possibly divert attention to Adelyn and Kiba. He was not going to explain to Jenna why they died. He was the bigger threat here anyway. He needed to prove it.

Mark kept lashing at it with the tentacles spawning from the ground as he stepped into the clearing. The thing could dodge and destroy as many as it wanted as long as it was distracted. After one last attempt to catch the beast in a draining grasp, he stopped in clear view of everyone. Abyssal energy pooled in his palm before he wound back and threw it like a baseball aimed for the monster's side. "Abyssal Destruction." If it contacted, or even if it missed, it would blow up like a grenade. A beam might have been better, a continual attack that would cut rather than explode, but this was bound to be less dangerous for the others. He didn't give it time to land before he charged up another ball and threw it where he anticipated the beast to land if it dodged the first one.

---

---

Interactions: Nolan @Remram, DM @Zarkun

The travel wasn't long, and the hits to the shield were not exactly hard to handle, but she really needed to concentrate on it to keep from getting distracted and dropping it. She couldn't time it, she couldn't predict where the next one would be, but she was getting the feeling the attacks launched upon the shield were testing its integrity instead of actual attempts to get to them. That wasn't a comforting thought. Hearing the chatter about the patterns of attack didn't make it easy to stay focused either, but knowing they were almost out of the forest was comforting. Once they were out from tree cover it would be probably safe enough to drop the barrier; surely they would have clear line of sight to handle any attacks. Except there could be long grass or brush along the path that would make it easy for them to hide in. Then she would just need to hold out a bit longer. She could do that. Even though it wasn't easy, she could manage the barrier until they were absolutely in the clear.

When she heard her name, she blinked herself to more attention. How was she doing? To be perfectly honest she was certain she wasn't going to be able to hold a barrier up the whole way back. For now? "I'm fine. Once we get to sniper range, I plan to drop the barrier. How are you holding up? You sound tense. I know Asterins can be nasty to deal with, but they should be no trouble for you even if there's trouble on the return trip. This will go fine. We're all trained professionals."

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello, DM @Zarkun

A twig snapped, but not from his left or across the way. From his right. Markovis released his spell and dropped down from sight. A blasted Vulcan. An unwelcome complication.

A heavy exhale did nothing to relieve the tension now building between his shoulder blades. He had fought Vulcan before. Troublesome but not particularly difficult for him as they were not the most tactful or agile of combatants. But given they didn't know what their actual prey was as a combatant, perhaps this was for the best. It would give them a chance to observe it's fighting style and maybe see an opening that would make for a better angle of attack.

Could kill them both.

Waiting would mean less effort to fight, less risk of injury to the others. It would be easier to take the canine-like beast in alive if he waited. He had little doubt the beast would kill the Vulcan even if the Vulcan thought it could take the beast. But if he made his presence known, he knew it would draw the attention of both - regardless of how he attacked. Inaction was easier. Safer.

Slower.

How long was it safe to draw this out? The lightning beast the Sergeant was watching out for could come across them in the middle of waiting and make everything harder. Hell, it could come to complicate things at any moment given no one knew how the two beasts were related. Too much risk.

Calculations swirled through the mage's head as he watched the first seconds of the combat. No, waiting was insufficient. It was going to be unfortunate, but he could not afford the greater risk. Adelyn was a mage - she could manage to survive the encounter if she used her head - and Kiba was more than competent in keeping himself safe during a dangerous task. Entering the fray was the only acceptable option, and thermodynamic conversion would not suffice in ending this quickly.

The stoic mage stood once more, thrusting his hands out toward both creatures. "Leeching Abyss." The air around him grew hazy and dark despite the daylight. Tendrils of the black and violet matter shot up from the ground beneath both creatures in an effort to latch onto the creatures limbs and hold them in place. He watched both creatures carefully to angle the tendrils of dark magic for each movement they made, anticipating adjustments to grab them and start draining some of their energy.

Pokémon: There and Back Again

Faye Wrexlyn

Inventory

Pokédollars: 3,550
Egg in Egg Case
1x Potion
9 Pokéballs, 3 Mineral Balls, 3 Steam Balls, 3 Sky Balls
Critical Capture Card (note for me-theplayer- that this helps with discount on custom pokeballs)
Dawn Stone
Camping backpack with a cold weather sleeping bag with a sleeping pad added to it, waterproof canvas tarp, 50 ft of rope, mess kit, extra clothes, a week of food (granola, jerky, a few canned soup, basic pokemon food for a few common types, etc), water purification kit and canteen, compass and maps of the region, magnesium fire starter, multi-tool knife, and a camping saw.

Pokemon

On-hand

Sage

♂

Species: Eevee
Type: Normal
Level: 6
Status:
Moves: Tackle, Tail Whip, Growl, Sand-Attack
Ability: Adaptability - Increases STAB from 1.5x to 2x
Held Item:

Tilia

♀

Species: Rowlet
Type: Grass/Flying
Level: 5
Status:
Moves: Tackle, Growl, Leafage
Ability: Overgrow - Powers up Grass-type moves when the Pokémon's HP is low.
Held Item:

Titania

♀

Species: Tinkatank
Type: Fairy/Steel
Level: 4
Status:
Moves: Astonish, Fairy Wind
Ability: Mold Breaker - The Pokémon's moves are unimpeded by the Ability of the target
Held Item:

Puck

♀

Species: Tinkatank
Type: Fairy/Steel
Level: 4
Status:
Moves: Astonish, Fairy Wind
Ability: Pickpocket - The Pokémon steals the held item from attackers that made direct contact with it.
Held Item:

Bounty

♀

Species: Bounsweet
Type: Grass
Level: 8
Status: Currently low HP
Moves: Splash, Play Nice, Rapid Spin
Ability: Oblivious - The Pokémon is oblivious, keeping it from being infatuated, falling for taunts, or being affected by Intimidate.
Held Item:

Tailor

♂

Species: Sewaddle
Type: Bug/Grass
Level: 5
Status: Currently low HP
Moves: Tackle, String Shot
Ability: Swarm - Powers up Bug-type moves when the Pokémon's HP is low.
Held Item:

PC

Faye took in the surroundings in as much awe of the gorgeous interior design as she might shelves of books of the library in Kings Cross. She loved seeing fancy old places like this. She was about to raise her camera to snap a picture when she noticed the portrait on the wall. Aria Eberg - or the plaque said - staring down at her made her reconsider taking an unpermitted picture of the interior of her house. And for the life of her, the trainer couldn't take her eyes off the woman's portrait.

Her hands lowered the camera, but she didn't realize the motion. Her eyes just stayed fixed up. Her focus narrowing on the woman's face. She was someone that held secrets; Faye could feel there was secrets hidden within even that portrait that refused to surface. Maybe those secrets would help? Or...no, if she stared long enough maybe they would reveal themselves. They had to reveal themselves.

The hand on her shoulder and finally hearing the receptionist's voice were rewarded with a sharp inhale and soft squeak. "Oh, um, sorry. I - no, yeah I'm alright. I just..." She glanced at the portrait then firmly made a point to turn her body to fully pay attention to the physical person totally not about to push her back into a void of existence. "I got distracted by the portrait, I guess. This place - it's my first time coming in and it's all so beautiful. Oh! Right! Why I came in here. Do you happen to know about the Pokémon that live in the park? Or if this place has a library? Kind of two fold thing. I'm a new trainer and I'm looking to see if there's any rare Pokémon that live in the park, but also I'm trying to find out more about the geography of this particular area. Figured that this might be a good source of books on the subject given how old this place is."

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello

Once the beast was in sight, Markovis crouched down and motioned for the other two to do so as well. Then he placed a finger to his lips, staring directly at Adelyn. He wasn't concerned that Kiba might speak and break their element of surprise. But Adelyn...? He wasn't certain she would but if either of them were going to do something foolish like that, it would likely be her. That was the bigger concern he had than whether it was insulting to her or not.

With them settled up, he pointed at Kiba then motioned toward the left then motioned his hand as a signal to wait once he got in position. He was fairly certain the silent swordsman would understand that was the position he was being asked to move to. He then pointed at Adelyn and pointed to the ground before flattening his hand and motioning for her to stay low; the beast looked far more formidable than he anticipated. Considering he'd initially shot her down from joining the job because of the danger, he was certain that now this was far more than she was capable of. As for him, he pointed to himself and then pointed to the right. This way everyone knew where everyone was supposed to be. He hoped it meant they were less likely to cause each other harm in trying to subdue the beast. If everything went well, he could subdue the beast into a cryogenic stasis with freezing temperatures. If not - he wasn't looking forward to a fight.

Markovis didn't waste time waiting to see if there were questions. He moved into position and watched the beast for another minute before slowly creeping to the very edge of the clearing. Studying this creature alive would do the guards and the guild far more good than dead. Dead was just fine if it meant the beast was no longer posing a risk to the locals. Well, no sense in drawing this whole ordeal out.

^{Don't hold back.}

A nerve twinged at the right side of the base of his skull. A sudden itch from an involuntary muscle spasm cascaded down to his finger tips. The stoic mage rolled his shoulder and shook out his hand as he stood. He extended out his arm out toward the beast with his hand clenched in a fist. As quick as opening and closing his hand, he cast a sphere of Encompassing Freeze around the beast to suck the heat from its body. If the beast woke, and if the beast broke free, he wagered the thing would spot him and launch an attack at him rather than the others.

^Good.

He was ready for that.

Pokémon: There and Back Again

Faye Wrexlyn

Inventory

Pokédollars: 3,550
Egg in Egg Case
1x Potion
9 Pokéballs, 3 Mineral Balls, 3 Steam Balls, 3 Sky Balls
Critical Capture Card (note for me-theplayer- that this helps with discount on custom pokeballs)
Dawn Stone
Camping backpack with a cold weather sleeping bag with a sleeping pad added to it, waterproof canvas tarp, 50 ft of rope, mess kit, extra clothes, a week of food (granola, jerky, a few canned soup, basic pokemon food for a few common types, etc), water purification kit and canteen, compass and maps of the region, magnesium fire starter, multi-tool knife, and a camping saw.

Pokemon

On-hand

Sage

♂

Species: Eevee
Type: Normal
Level: 6
Status:
Moves: Tackle, Tail Whip, Growl, Sand-Attack
Ability: Adaptability - Increases STAB from 1.5x to 2x
Held Item:

Tilia

♀

Species: Rowlet
Type: Grass/Flying
Level: 5
Status:
Moves: Tackle, Growl, Leafage
Ability: Overgrow - Powers up Grass-type moves when the Pokémon's HP is low.
Held Item:

Titania

♀

Species: Tinkatank
Type: Fairy/Steel
Level: 4
Status:
Moves: Astonish, Fairy Wind
Ability: Mold Breaker - The Pokémon's moves are unimpeded by the Ability of the target
Held Item:

Puck

♀

Species: Tinkatank
Type: Fairy/Steel
Level: 4
Status:
Moves: Astonish, Fairy Wind
Ability: Pickpocket - The Pokémon steals the held item from attackers that made direct contact with it.
Held Item:

Bounty

♀

Species: Bounsweet
Type: Grass
Level: 8
Status: Currently low HP
Moves: Splash, Play Nice, Rapid Spin
Ability: Oblivious - The Pokémon is oblivious, keeping it from being infatuated, falling for taunts, or being affected by Intimidate.
Held Item:

Tailor

♂

Species: Sewaddle
Type: Bug/Grass
Level: 5
Status: Currently low HP
Moves: Tackle, String Shot
Ability: Swarm - Powers up Bug-type moves when the Pokémon's HP is low.
Held Item:

PC

So, now what? Faye had caught two more Pokemon, and that put her at a full roster. Not even including the egg that would eventually hatch and need consideration for her team. At least for now, she had a decent spread - okay, well, sort of. She could replace Puck or Titania, but that felt wrong after she had just promised to take care of both of them. No, both of them would stay until she figured out what made them leave their home. Then, maybe, she'd just set one, or both, free. Or not. Puck did decide to stay after all.

But the point still was, what now? After tapping her finger on her chin a few times, she decided to go off in search of Rosa. Mostly so she didn't just disappear on her friend after convincing the girl to travel with her. There had to be something a bit more rare in these gardens than the Pokemon she had found so far, and she figured the best place to find out about that would be going into the manor to ask.

When she finds Rosa, that was the plan: to let her friend know she was headed into the manor to find out more about the park - in hopes of finding out if there were any rare pokemon to be found in it. And perhaps even investigate the forest and what might be going on in there if the Manor had a library involving the forest.

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Nolan @Remram, DM @Zarkun

The guardsmen wanted to help, and Ria certainly couldn't deny them the right to do their job. They were nervous, they were underskilled for an alpha to be part of the attack, but this was what they were trained to do anyway. "Okay, so when it comes time for the shield to drop, we will work together to ensure the vehicles arrive safely, and Nolan and I will do our part to keep everyone in one piece." Safe wasn't exactly a word to use with Asterin. The armor she had provided everyone would do them at least a little good to keep them safe from an Asterin's bite, but it would break eventually and they wouldn't have it for future attacks once she dispelled the water to hydrate the grass near the outpost once they arrived. But having a game plan was better than nothing.

It'll have to do. After all your plans always fail when you rely on water to do what ice does better. Nolan was right to not be confident in her plan. It was a half-cocked idea in the first place. Ria swallowed and let out a slow breath to steady herself.

What she hadn't expected was Nolan to turn his focus on her. She blinked any self-doubt from her eyes the moment his hand touched her shoulder. If? When... "No one is dying today." She offered him a confident smile and patted his hand before he let go of her shoulder. As soon as his back was turned, her smile fell and her stomach knotted. Why was she making these promises? Her father's voice personified the knowledge deep in her gut she would find a way to mess up her part. History loved repeating itself.

She shook herself from the thought and quickly mounted her horse. She didn't want to spook any of the guardsmen by casting and maintaining magic on the back of their horse, especially if they weren't used to riding double. She trusted her horse was trained enough to allow her to focus on the magic while it stayed with the group, but to be sure she rode to be as centered as she could with the group so she could create a dome rather than shape the spell - the less she had to put effort into the spell, the easier it would be to maintain.

Properly seated, animal calmed, Ria let out another calming breath and cleared her mind of her worries as best she could. "Water-make Barrier," was accompanied by her raising her hands over her head then lowering them to the ground. Water rippled and flowed down around the group. The water swirled and whirled fast, splashing droplets to wet the ground around the edges and allowing a sense of cool air from the constant powerful current. Her eyes closed as the convoy began to move again. Only the feel of the reins in her hand kept her grounded to her horse. The rest of her focus was on the dome of the barrier, keeping it moving as if it were attached to her by a giant pole so it moved with her.

Rising Stars: A Fairy Tail AU

Interactions: Nolan @Remram, DM @Zarkun

The water mage anticipated feeling resistance. She anticipated having to concentrate hard to keep her spells up. But a sound called the things into withdrawing and made her preparation unnecessary. For now. She didn't like it. She could almost sense Nolan was upset about it, and as soon as they disappeared beyond her barriers she turned her attention to him to see him looking more disgruntled than she saw him in the guildhall on the noisiest of days. But it seemed he quickly came to the same realization she did - they needed to remain clear headed, if not for being able to properly react to the beasts regrouping then to at least properly communicate with the guardsmen they were accompanying.

Seeing the nod to follow, Ria wasted no time dismounting and jogging lightly to catch up to him. As much as she was uncertain if lapsing concentration on her spells was viable, she knew how long it took for the magic to dissipate and determined it was worth the risk. They needed to plan and even if she were to concentrate long term they would need to be quick to implement a proper plan. It wouldn't do to be regrouping themselves and be caught proverbially with their pants around their ankles.

An alpha meant more danger; they had a leader. She dealt with plenty of dangerous beasts in her homelands that were even more deadly when they had an alpha commanding them. Much like a unifying commander could turn people dangerous enough on their own into deadly units with proper direction. They couldn't wait for the attack, they couldn't see to initiate an assault on the beasts, and it sounded like they were trying to negotiate help from warmages that were unlikely to come because of the guild. Which only left one true course of action as far as Ria could see it.

Her mismatched gaze drifted toward the netting she crafted overhead and tapped her finger to her chin. There was always a way to work around obstacles. You just had to be flexible. "The mission is to get this cargo to its destination. An alpha and our inability to see the Asterins right now eliminates the ability to properly plan a counterassault." The recap was necessary to help her process, and as the wheels in her head worked, she needed to recap out loud.

She dropped her finger as her attention turned to Nolan. While she wasn't fully certain exactly what he was capable of, she knew he was strong. She trusted his combat expertise more than she trusted her own. "Perhaps the best course of action is not to prepare for an assault or reinforce a defense here, but to mobilize. This area is secure. For now, certainly. However, I believe you and I are better suited in rallying further away from this location. If we can get them within reasonable distance of our goal, you and I can split off and create a distraction - if not fully eliminating the threat - and so the shipment can reach the destination. I can create a dome shield that should prevent the beasts from breaking through - " unless they hit it enough it takes too much energy to maintain, she thought but tried to keep the mental note from expressing on her face. "and drop it once we get to the right spot, but I'll need to ride with someone so I can focus entirely on maintaining it. What do you think?" She always trusted her defensive magic. It was the only thing her father ever considered any good from her and she was not afraid to give it her all to provide defense for the others.

---

---

Interactions: Adelyn @Lunarlord34, Kiba @Cello

Welp, there was no time like the present to proceed. With their marching order in line, and a quick calculation of the air temperature of the area, Mark adjusted the temperature of the area they walked to create a gentle breeze that pulled their way. It was pure calculation - not something he ever attempted - but the trick to hunting was staying downwind. The trick to being downwind was knowing the direction of the wind, and the direction of the wind was dependent on temperature (among other things) creating a negative pressure system in one direction. If they wanted to stand the best chance, this was it. There was only so much he could do about how noisy they were, and he hoped Adelyn took to heart the instruction to step carefully. The girl didn't seem like she went stalking through the woods to spy on animals, too much of a city life girl.

This wasn't an area he was familiar with - and given the species of animals he was completely unfamiliar with, he supposed it would do to become more acquainted with the terrain - but there were still some carry over principles to properly walking the woods. Stay aware of your surroundings, mind your direction, and watch your footing. The last thing he needed was for one of them to sprain an ankle before they were ever in danger from the beast. He didn't like the snipers nest they were putting their back to, but he just had to trust that Sergeant wouldn't take aim at any of them while they were so far removed from the town; that would be an easy way to get rid of some foreigners, for certain. Sergeant, likewise, was putting trust in the guild to help reduce further threats to the townspeople and his garrison. It was just easier to assume Sergeant was going to hold the reason to trust the group on higher regard than to stab - or rather shoot - them in the back.

Mark waited until they were almost a mile and a half out before silently signaling the other two to walk more carefully and get down lower. He took more care with his footsteps and watched more carefully for the location they had been described the creature resting in. He didn't want to take any chances they might spook it, and being low meant they could hopefully duck out of sight faster. With Adelyn between them, it also meant he could get her out of harm's way easier should the thing sense them and decide to attack.