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Caravan: Resurrection

Smor'Gen'Blok, The Wor Hearthsite - 10:16 AM

To say Hi'Wor was amused would be putting it lightly.

"You show how stupid Kul are with empty words!" He roared, "Wor never been more respected in all history of tunnels! Lok'Sha bow and whimper before my father! Even great tribes know! Even great tribes know!" He slammed his closed fist against his chest and grunted. "We let dark-skins that have learned this walk our tunnels! You, the Kul, have not learned respect, so you stay in deeper caves! I have nothing to fear from stupid dark skins! They just like rats! You can take offer and drag it back to papa, sooner than later! Come back with Slaves!" He waved the two Kul tribesmen away with both of his hands. "Go now, or maybe I send you back, one Lok'Sha, and one corpse!" Hi'Wor glared at Za'Kul, not giving him or his ally a moment to speak.

"Make sure Kul know soon," He said quietly, "The Wor have no enemy."

Hi'Wor got very close.

"Nobody ever think," he breathed into Za'Kul's face, "Not even for a second..."

He backed away and smiled.

"To attack the great-"

Without any preamble, the ground began to shake. Quakes were not especially uncommon in the deep tunnels. But it served to bring worry to the Lok'Sha, even thick-headed tyrants like Hi'Wor. There was no telling whether a quake could simply shake the dirt, or collapse entire tunnel systems. thankfully, it had been decades since the last collapse, but that didn't stop Ju'Kul from glaring at the ground with worry.

"Stupid earth even know not to do battle with Wor."

It was after that mockery of the tunnels they lived in, that the ground beneath the Wor Tribe's hearth site gave way. It started right there where Za'Kul and Hi'Wor stood. The tent's flooring crumbled and cracked as the earth beneath them began to shake violently. Larger cracks quickly shot across the entire tent and split the earth, swallowing several of the bystanders as the entire tent began to collapse. The ground parted in several places, and began to fall downwards in massive chunks. Ju'Kul didn't have any time to comment. Instead, he tapped Za'Kul on the back, and quickly retreated from the collapsing lengths of leather and wooden supports.

Hi'Wor fell backwards into a crevice that opened in the ground behind him. The ground was sinking and rising at random, leaving the Wor's acting leader tumbling down into a dark hole that continued to grow deeper and deeper.

From outside of the tent, roars and shrieks echoed across Wor's hearth site. A series of smokey explosions resounded from the highest points of the cavern, causing the walkways to collapse. Lok'Sha fell to their consecutive deaths from the highest points in the cave, while those that scrambled at the ground level were left to find themselves crushed by debris, or force to retreat into the deeper tunnels.

In a few moments, the rambunctious crowds that flooded Wor's hearth site were degraded into panicked mobs, fleeing for their lives from the literal collapse of their very society.

Caravan: Resurrection

* * *

Smor'Gen'Blok, The Wor Hearthsite - 10:16 AM

Hi'Wor glanced at Za'Kul while Ju'Kul caught his breath. He stepped past the larger Lok'Sha, and got right in Za'Kul's face.

"Ok, we bargain." Hi'Wor took a step back, motioned towards his chest with his knuckled and pouted sarcastically. "Wor want slaves." Then he pointed to Za'Kul with his thumbs bent inwards. "Kul have slaves." Then he pointed to himself for a moment. "Wor," He spun around and stretched his arms out at the men behind him. Then he spun his head towards Za'Kul again and leaned in close. "Wor stronger than Kul. Kul a disgrace. Wor kind enough to not wipe out pitiful dark skins, in exchange for slaves!" He paused and offered the Kul tribesmen a wry smile. Ju'Kul's lip quivered with an uncommon anger. "What Kul say? What counter offer?"

Za'Kul's pride was truly titanic. But perhaps, those who value their pride above all else could be baited just as easily as those they attempted to lure out.

"Well? What say?"

* * *

Kel, Marvis Astorian's Manor

Marvis was compelled. It was hard to explain - he couldn't even manage a thought of his own - and even harder to deny. He looked to his cousin and nodded without a second thought, but said nothing. He was willing to offer her his ear for the time being. But despite that, there was a feeling buried deep in the pit of his mind telling him to kick her our then and there.

Of course, against his better judgement, Marvin was forced to ignore it.

* * *

Kel, The Whispering Cove

Finnick was finicking with a little bobble with his head bent forward, his usual state of existence. Vetch didn't quite catch his attention right away. Not even after a few seconds of waiting with his imposing stature towering high over the little handicapped Eldi. But he looked up once as Vetch spoke. Then he looked up again. He locked eyes with Vetch for a few seconds before returning to his little bobble.

"M'lady too prissy teh' com'in 'erself?" He grunted, "Seems I 'aven't seen 'er in 'eh long while!"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"You say these things like you understand anything at all," Yzeira sighed, "You're no different from the idiotic children of the multiverse that preach peace and love without a single shred of understanding of the bigger picture. Do you even know the origins of my energy? My Research? Are you so stubborn, indescribably stupid, that you would claim to know a solution to the issues that taint the world? Things you know nothing about? Do you even know what the void is, you insufferable simpleton?" He held one hand towards Jenso as he did earlier, aiming to cancel out his connection with Ki once again. But this time, it wasn't enough to simply shut off his abilities. He narrowed his eyes.

"Dangerous are those gifted with insurmountable power, knowing nothing of the strength they command. It is like giving a child a knife. How many times have you cut yourself, already? How many more must you hurt in your belligerent quest for righteousness? Where does it end?" Yzeira lowered his hand and began to amass a few more spheres of energy, bringing his total count to ten.

"I move with purpose, I am the only one capable of universal balance. The chaos that I bring is a necessity, one that cannot be disregarded or suppressed. To do so is to invite destruction of not only your universe, but reality as we know it. It is the perpetual motion of your crusade against reason, it is you with whom the blame falls." He stopped and slowly rose his hand to scratch the side of his head. "I find myself at an impasse, reaching out to you even now, despite the fact that you've demonstrated the intellectual capabilities no sharper than an animal's. Do you even understand what I'm saying? Or will you parrot the same ignorant phrase that you, and your miserable kin resort to when understanding is beyond your grasp?" His eyes changed.

"Go ahead. Say it. Tell me that I'm insane. Try once again to punch me. Use your fists, rather than your brain. Show me just how pointless my musings are."

Caravan: Resurrection

Zay put all of his strength into pushing Sasha back at first, but before long, the struggle to regain his ground turned into a struggle to stay on his feet. The metal casing that covered his legs creaked as it bent against the small Myti's mysterious strength.

"Surprised, little Hyuman?" Sasha growled, "Not often you'll find Myti capable of soul magic. Consider yourself-"

"Can. You. Shut. Up?" Zay groaned, syllable by syllable, as he slowly pushed back against Sasha's might. The Myti was thrown off by his arrogance, but even more when she started to lose ground. Sasha's nose twitched. She looked down at Captain Copp's stomach for a split second, and noticed that the metal around him had thickened. But that's not what put her on edge. Suddenly, she jumped away and let Zay take a wide step forward. Her ally had already left her to deal with the captain, instead deciding to jump down off the front edge of the cart's top half. Sasha glared at Zay, who looked as if he was smiling through it all.

"I didn't think you'd smell it through my armor," Zay huffed. There was a spike protruding from his stomach, just long enough that if Sasha had stayed within range, it would have pierced her heart. The Myti growled and scratched the floor of the roof with her right foot's claws. "Soul magic, huh? Probably shouldn't have said anything. Or, did you think you'd already won?"

This assassination was starting to drift closer and closer towards failure.

Back in the pilot's area, the combined efforts of Pyra and Flin had locked the still conscious Myti in place. But it was only for a moment. This one didn't move, instead protecting her body with a pulse of mana to disturb the control that tried to grab her body directly. But as she freed herself and regained her senses, something impaled her lower abdomen. She flinched, but lashed out at flin immediately, aiming to push him against the wall just behind him, and slash at his throat with her other hand. Around the same time, the Myti from the roof jumped down, clamped to the overhand with both hands, and appeared behind Pyra and Daelin with both of her feet careening towards their heads from behind. Regardless of whether she dealt significant damage, her momentum allowed her to flip in midair and land behind her targets.

Neal looked down at the injured woman and breathed a sigh of relief. "We're under attack," he grunted, placing her down on the nearby bunk. He stood between her, Noru, and the doorway to keep any sneaky attacks at bay. "Hurry up, Noru!" On queue, Noru emerged from the back room with a floating glob of liquid in his hand, similar to the substance he used on Neal.

"Mana supplies are unharmed," He announced, rushing over to Lyullia's side. He placed a hand against her forehand, while holding the amorphous potion in his free hand with a touch of arcane energy. "Don't move. I need to feel your mana."

"Today, preferably, Lieutenant," Neal grunted.

"You be quiet!"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"Precisely"

Yzeira's shield took the brunt of the force at first, but began to crack slightly. Despite his efforts though, Jenso wasn't able to get through the defensive barrier. The Order's leader rose a hand towards Jenso and conjured red energy around his fingertips for a moment, before firing a spear of crimson towards the hero's heart.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"Stubborn as usual"

The two clones placed their hands together and joined into one being. As the heat started to rise, his rejoined body began to push it away by expanding his outer shield.

"You could have been part of the cure to this disease."

A Hero Tale {Complete}

~ Chapter 211 ~

_{Faced with an insurmountable power, but…}

"I would have liked to see it," Yzeira shouted, "See what you could have become. I'm sure it would have brought an end to all of this, in a far less ugly fashion."

A Hero Tale {Complete}

[color=007236][/color] Zelraka blinked at first. It was instant, too quick for him to react immediately to whatever the hell had just happened to him. By the time his blood and flesh had finished cascading in every direction, the ordinance around the battlefield dispersed into nothingness. He coughed up some semblance of blood, and looked down at his own body as Gideon escaped him. There were gaps between broken bones and torn flesh, going through his body from one side to the other. He scoffed, unable to speak without his lungs intact.

But just as quickly as he'd been torn to bits, his body began to reform itself. The regeneration that took place was absolutely unheard of. From a fleshy skeleton, the massive man's body began to come together, until it was fully recovered, in a manner of seconds. He looked down and smiled.

"It's because I'm INVINCI-"

Pop

"-ble?" "-ble?"

Zelraka had unfused while recovering from his injury. The two men landed on a nearby platform next to each other. Rajaka looked down at his hands and cringed. "God damn-it! We shouldn't have let them hurt us at all." He looked over to Zelriane, and his expression changed to one of shock.

"I had... Under... Estimated..."

"Zel, you're..."

Zelriane fell forward, several holes still piercing through his body, even after the earlier regeneration. Rajaka's healing factor didn't seem to carry over.

With one last breath, Zelriane left the world, not with a bang, but with a whimper.

---

~ End Of Chapter 210 ~

Caravan: Resurrection

Pyra's assault was as successful as it could have been. The Myti, in its disorientation, couldn't react fast enough as it felt its head yanked towards the wall next to it. Normally, disrupting a telekinetic attack from another mage was as simple as expelling mana from the point of impact. But with its head already in the clouds, the Myti was pulled into a loud thump. It stumbled for a moment, moving towards its ally unknowingly, who was still too disoriented to notice. It fell down to its knees shortly after, ultimately losing consciousness at the foot of the doorway. The archers in the tree took note of Flin as he climbed by unseen, silently waiting for a moment to strike.

By this time, Noru seemed to show little in terms of aiding his allies. He'd blocked his eyes to prevent blindness earlier, but couldn't do much on his own. At least, it seemed that way. He glanced at Lyullia, and then glared at Neal, who still stood guard with her in his hands. "Don't move her head too much," Noru hissed, turning towards the storage area. Neale looked at the medic and scoffed.

"Yes sir," He mocked. Taking orders wasn't exactly a commonality for the man, nor did he enjoy doing as he was told. But if it got that stubborn prep-Knight to do his job, then it couldn't be helped.

Back on top of the cart, Zay noticed Flin almost immediately, glancing at him for a split second as he emerged moments after Sasha spoke. The Myti woman took a step forward and exhaled a single breath of laughter. Zay's eyes narrowed and he took a sharp step back. That's when he heard Flin's voice. Unfortunately, it surprised him. The technique was completely different than hearing somebody communicate through telepathy, and far more useful as well. But it sounded like he was right next to him. Zay's guard dropped for a split second, which Sasha took full advantage of. Not before Flin's shards were fired though.

But despite his attempted sneak attack, Flin's inexperience with Myti had left him unprepared for what happened next. The woman next to Sasha turned her head slightly as Flin gathered Mana for his attack, and smiled under her cowl. Zay's eyes widened and he took a step forward, ignoring Sasha's approach.

"Kid!" Zay called out.

_{"Got him."}

As Flin emerged to fire his spell, Sasha ducked underneath it in preparation, and the other Myti spun around, swatting the arcane bolt out of the air while an aura of dark blue mana encompassed her hand like a rounded glove, destroying the spell. Before Flin could notice, an arrow was already whizzing through the air towards his upper body, aimed to make contact just after he fired his spell. Zay ran forward, but Sasha intercepted his path and caught both his hands before he could aim any spells. The Captain was taken aback. How the hell was this small Myti matching his strength? She glared at him with her mouth half-open, and slowly grew even stronger, to the point where she could easily push him back.

* * *

Nation of Kel, Kel, Marvis Astorian's Manor

Marvis was never fond of Kanna.

The way she walked around his showcase was insulting. Every last trait of her personality was insulting. Her very existence was an insult to the family name, as far as he was concerned. Spoiled to the core, a rotten example of what money and power could do to one's pride if not brought up in proper stride. Marvis was nothing like that, and he didn't like having to share the same roof as her or her parents, even for a moment.

She moved gracefully, but prodded at his collection with her words and hands without any restraint. Presumptuously, she would speak to him as if he'd accomplished nothing, and had no value despite anything he'd done in the past. Earning a place of power among the officials was no easy task! Years of blood sweat and tears, with no support from his family, or even the parties that agreed with his principals. And for what? Harlots like her to look down on him? What had she done? She was just another nameless scholar in the clockwork! Marvis grit his teeth as she began to toy with one of his arcane contraptions, but couldn't bring himself to say a word. Despite all his misgivings regarding lady Kanna's presence in his glorious home, he was never one to interject with anyone who moved against him. Although he would never admit it to himself, Kanna was right to criticize his stagnation. Marvis was a coward, and nothing more.

"When one approaches another in such a manner, with such unruly accusations, it does little to add an agreeable air to their propositions, Kanna," Marvis announced irritably while he moved towards the machine that Kanna had awoken, "It is never wise to disturb a hornet's nest." He fiddled with the mechanism until it went dormant once again, and shot his Cousin a haughty glare. "I didn't get to where I am today by agitating those who I seek to cooperate with."

* * *

Kel, Underworld; The Whispering Cove

It wasn't often that Ophon would find an Eldi taller than he was. It was unsettling, to say the least. Vetch towered over him like a lumbering scarecrow, as if somebody had cast a spell to raise him from the dead. Othozar pointed his thumb into Finnick's shack and nodded to the man regardless, while his brother took in another lung full of smoke and exhaled it through his nose.

"You know the drill gimpy," Ophon grunted, "No trouble, else-wise-"

"Shut up Ophon," Othozar cut in, stressing the interior of the shack with his thumb. "Go on in, Vetch."