Fantasy Dragoon (OPEN)

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Enkerzed

"Suit yourself." Wit said taking a large bite of a crunchy apple. It was refreshing. He closed his eyes for a moment and listened to the water running. Feeling the gentle breeze on his face. He was deeply relaxed and began daydreaming about when he had first arrived at the monastery and how quickly he was learning new skills.

Chiara's voice snapped Wit back to reality. He didn't really have a reason to say no so he just shrugged and agreed.
He watched her Leap across the stream paying close attention to her posture and then got off the ground and began putting his shoes back on.

"I hope I don't fall into the water." He called back as he knelt to tie his shoes.

He stood and walked to the side of the stream. Positioning his feet as closely to how Chiara's were as possible, he crouched and looked over at her. He held his breath and began his attempt to Leap.
He failed.
Into the stream he went. The water was about waist high but the current had swept him onto his backside. He stood up and soaking wet, trudged through the water to the side of the stream Chiara was on.

"I'm already soaked I might as well try again." He said with his hair in his eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wit used one ability in this post. His stamina is now 9/10

 

[Enkerzed]

TheSortingHat

Chiara tried her hardest not to laugh as she replied, "Ar- pff, I'm sorry. Are you alright? Here, use this to dry off a bit first."

Taking off her red travelling cloak, which was nothing more than tattered rags really, Chiara tossed it to Wit before standing at the edge of the stream and looking at where Wit had fallen in.

"Well, there was nothing wrong with your form from what I could see, so I'm guessing it's a matter of prana control. I don't think that was much further than if you tried without using any at... Uh oh."

Chiara trailed off as Kherek came marching over, having heard the splash from earlier. At first he looked as though he was about to yell again, but when he saw and recognized Wit all drenched in water, he looked towards Chiara and merely nodded with approval. It was no secret that Wit was having trouble learning to Leap. "Don't tire yourselves out," Kherek said before turning back. "Still got a ways to travel."

"Yes, instructor." Letting out a sigh of relief, Chiara turned to Wit and said, "You know what, forget about the stream. Let's just work on your vertical, over here."

Walking over to a nearby tree, Chiara pointed up at the closest branch and continued, "Try getting up there and focus on controlling your prana this time."

Chiara has not used any abilities in this post. Her stamina is now 10/10.​

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Enkerzed

Wit dried himself off with the red rag Chiara had handed him.

"Yeah, I'm alright. You can go ahead and laugh at me. I kinda knew that was going to happen." He said. "It was actually quite refreshing." He continued and smirked.
As he was roughly scratching his head with the red cloth he heard Chiara's voice trail off and turned around. Kherek was coming straight toward the stream, but he let them continue training when he realized that it was Wit.
"Yes sir!" Wit replied quickly when he told them to conserve their energy.

He stripped off his dripping jacket and shirt and laid them out in the sun to dry.

Wit scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Actually I have a better idea." Wit said grunting as he began climbing the tree and positioned himself on a branch a bit higher than the one Chiara was pointing at.
"Master Arbo gave me some advice. He said get used to the falling before the flying. Or something like that." Wit explained as he dropped about twelve feet from the branch and landed next to Chiara with a thud.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wit did not use any abilities in this post. Stamina now 10/10.

 

[Enkerzed]

TheSortingHat

Chiara blushed and feigned a coughing fit to hide her reaction when she saw Wit taking his shirt off, revealing a slim but well defined physique full of taut muscles and straight lines. She was not prepared to see that, not at all. When he started climbing the tree however, Chiara couldn't help but wonder what on Ith had gotten into him.

"What on Ith has gotten into you?" she said as Wit clambered upwards.

When he gave his explanation, Chiara could only shrug and respond, "Well, whatever works I guess."

Shortly after the mention of Master Arbo, she remembered the envelope he had entrusted her to deliver earlier and quickly checked her pockets, sighing with relief when she felt it at her side. Not that she bowed and scraped to the old man as the other apprentices did, but Chiara would have hated to disappoint him in any case. He was the very image of the ideal grandfather, kindly and ever ready with a word of wisdom. Still, she had to wonder whether he had given bad advice when Wit dropped down from high above and landed heavily with a noise that made her wince.

"How many times do you suppose you'll have to do that before you can Leap?" she asked, wondering how his knees were holding up.

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Enkerzed

The impact on the ground did strain his legs a bit. Wit clenched his jaw and straightened next to Chiara.

"How am I supposed to know? I guess I could try Leaping after every few drops." Wit suggested and shrugged. "Here, I'll try to Leap up to the lower branch right now." He continued while looking up at the branch.
Wit shook his legs to loosen them a bit and mimicked the position Chiara had showed him again. He focused all of his energy into his legs and pushed off forcefully.
He flailed a bit as he flew through the air toward the branch and his legs scraped against the it. He had to catch himself with his hands. It was clumsy, but he made it. He pulled himself up and sat on the branch with his feet dangling off the side, looking down at Chiara with a small smile.
"Hey, it's a start." He called down to her before hanging from the branch by his arms and dropping down again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wit used one ability in this post. His stamina is now 9/10.

 

[Enkerzed]

TheSortingHat

"Well I'll be damned," Chiara replied with a whistle as Wit launched himself into the air. "That actually worked."

Seeing him sitting up there on that branch and smiling so boyishly, she couldn't help but smile back when he dropped down next to her, landing quieter than last time.

Clapping him enthusiastically on the back, Chiara looked up at where the elf had managed to reach and said, "Heck of a start, you pretty much got it. All that's left to do now is to keep practicing until you can get all the way up... here!"

Not one to pass up an opportunity to show off, Chiara ascended all the way to the top of the tree with an effortless Leap and stuck her tongue out at Wit as she stood on the highest branch, holding onto the tip of the trunk with one hand as it swayed in the wind.

"Hey, I think I can see the town from over here!" she called out as she made an exaggerated show of shading her eyes whilst looking off into the horizon. "I bet I can make it there before y-"

​

What she saw then had stunned her into an eerie silence. It was true enough that she could see the town from where she stood, a smattering of cobblestone houses at the side of a river with smoke rising from their chimneys and people going about their everyday business, and hovering just above it was a dark figure that Chiara had mistaken for a bird at first.

The people in town might also not have believed what they were seeing, because all activity stopped when they too noticed the menacing shape beating the sky with its bat like wings. Chiara could even see a child holding hands with a parent and pointing up at the figure, moments before they both disappeared in a great gout of flame, alongside everyone and everything else around them.

"Dragon..." Chiara muttered as she watched in horror and then to everyone beneath her in as loud a voice she could muster, "DRAGON!"

~~~​

xrakkax

At the same time, two Dragoons were riding hard from the east towards the town on horseback. They were less than a kilometre away when one of them stopped short at the crest of a hill as the town was set ablaze.

"No... we're too late," Galzis whispered when he saw thick black smoke boiling up into the air.

All those weeks of dogged pursuit, all that time and effort spent trying to prevent this very moment. All for naught. Breathing hard as despair began to take hold, Galzis let it out in a single furious roar as he cursed the dragon, "Why? Gaia damn you, WHY? We're right over here you FUCKING BASTARD!"

Chiara has used Leap in this post. Her stamina is now 9/10.​

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Enkerzed

Wit shielded his eyes from the light with his hand as he watched Chiara soar through the air. She gracefully landed high up in the trees and stuck her tongue out at him. He smiled and did it back then walked over to where his clothes were laid out and picks them up.
"I hope these dry before we have to leave. It would be uncomfortable to be in wet clothes for the rest of the day." He thought to himself while wringing out his shirt.

When Wit heard what Chiara said he froze for a moment. Then he turned and looked up at her.
"Chiara that is not funny." He yells up at her angrily, but then saw the look on her face and realized she is not joking.

Wit moved as fast as he could over to Kherek. After grabbing his things, he ran straight through the stream, splashing. He frantically scanned the area for him but didn't see him until he sauntered out from behind a group of apprentices. He approached him and he realized he had been holding in his breath.
"S-S-Sir there's a d-dragon in town." He tells Kherek, shaking. "D-Do you want us to engage?" He continues questioningly.

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Wit has not used any abilities in this post. His stamina is now 10/10.

 

[xrakkax]

Enkerzed

Thundering hoofs of a dapple grey, not long behind Galzis, were catching up shortly where he halted. Horse and rider curved in an arch around Galzis to keep close but not lose speed. Atop the beast rode a female Orc; Reiyu. Straight black hair whipped with the wind where it had loosed from the Yoltan braid she had weaved. The shirukoi battle robes Reiyu wore were marked with the toil of their seemingly endless chase. Though their road had been harsh the muscles in her face kept her features untwisted, yet determined.

“Galzis!” Reiyu shouted for his attention, not unkindly, from her saddle, “There's still hope. ” And with that, she broke out from circle she made around him like a sling-shot towards their menacing target. The three javelins strapped to Reiyu’s back and the hook-and-chain coiled at her left hip clinked the only way adamantine can— a bright tang to put the fear in a beast with leathery wings and scorching breath. The she-Orc shifted in her seat so that her shins gripped the horse’s belly. Reiyu freed her hands from the reigns and grabbed one of the javelins from her back.

Reiyu [Abilities: N/A ; Stamina: 10/10]

 

[Azallea]

Enkerzed

Cassandra Fariá

The road wasn't particualry long nor it was laborious and they have been walking for maybe three hours at most but to Cassandra it seemed like eternity. It was boring and she had nothing to focus on. Sure the scenary was nice, but it barely changed the whole time they were walking and you can only be impressed by a nice tree so many times.
She tried thinking about the immediate future, but she didn't know what exactly would their role in this trip be or what to expect in the following days when they return. She just kept quietly leading Cake with Wit and Chiara following closely behind.

When it was time to rest, she finally had something to eat with a group of apprentices who were also tasked with tending to the horses, but those moments of peace and quiet didn't last long. After hearing a loud splash from the nearby stream, she looked up and saw Wit practising his Leap with apparently no more success than before and Chiara attempting to train him.
To her surprise, the next time he tried he actually managed to pull off a decent Leap. She thought about going to them and congratulating him, but before she could make a decision, Chiara's shout came from above and shocked everyone.
It was a quick warning, just one word, but the worst possible word to hear in their situation. Everyone jumped to their feet.
Cass thought, or better yet, hoped that the apprentice was joking, but not even Chiara would joke about that, at least not with Kherek and judging by his expression, he belived her too.

Her stomach dropped and she froze on the spot. She might have been unable to move, but her thoughts were racing and she felt dread and anxiety overwhelm her.
A dragon...
An obstacle no one was prepared for. She gulped and tried to calm herself, only managing to do so partially.
They had no adamantine weapons and as it was already mentioned to her, ordinary weapons had almost zero effect on dragons, but there were no 'real' dragoons in the vicinity except their instructor and they, as aspiring dragoons, had the moral and professional obligation to help. No matter the odds.

A feeling of absolute determination was fighting the crushing fears of not being ready, not being prepared or good enough to face a challenge so big and while the emotions were waging war inside her, suprisingly something logical prevailed.
She saw that beast before with her own two eyes. She saw it being defeated. It could be done. It can be done. And it will be. They will find a way.
A sudden feeling of calmness came over her as she turned to Kherek and said: "We have to go there."

 

[Enkerzed]

TheSortingHat Azallea

​

"Absolutely not!" Kherek snapped at both Wit and Cassandra as he drew his twin axes. "None of you are Dragoons yet and the only adamantine weapons around here are mine. This is my fight, all of you get back to the monastery and go warn the others."

"Screw that, sir!" Chiara called out as she Leaped down from the tree towards the other side of the stream, scooping up her spear as she landed. "I saw people burning alive out there. We got to help them!"

Kherek briefly considered knocking her unconscious as an example to the others, but after looking around and seeing nothing but firm resolve in each of the apprentices' faces, he realized that their minds were already set. They were not going to give him a choice.

"Damn you all, fine," he said, glaring balefully at them all. "Riders, take the wagons. Everyone else, with me. Your mission is to evacuate the town while I lure the enemy away. Get as many people onto the wagons as you can and then head straight to the monastery. Do not engage under any circumstances, understood?"

"What if we help act as a decoy?" Chiara offered as she held up her spear.

"NO! And that's final, now move out!"

Without another word, Kherek bent down in a crouch and took to the skies with a Leap, intent on reaching the town before any of the apprentices could do anything foolhardy.

"Come on," Chiara said as she nudged Wit on the arm and followed after the dwarf, also with a Leap.

This was it, there was no turning back now. Their first battle against a dragon. A storm of fear, dread and exhilaration raged within Chiara as she watched the dragon flying over the smouldering town, its rooftops ablaze like a roaring bonfire while the people below fled for their lives. Then through all the smoke and embers, she saw two riders approaching the town from the east.

Dragoons, she realized when one of them shot into the air, flying directly towards the dragon like an arrow of vengeance.

~~~​

xrakkax

With a few words from Reiyu, Galzis rallied to his senses and spurred his horse down the hill with a determined hyah! His partner was right, the dragon had only just begun its attack. Most of the people there could still be alive, they could still be saved! But it was a race against time. Galzis could see the dragon beginning to wheel around for another pass over the town. If it was to unleash another blast of fire, how many more people would perish in the flames?

No, wrong question, Galzis thought as the town came within sight. How quickly can I get there before that happens?

Seeing Reiyu grabbing a javelin from her back, Galzis spurred his horse on to catch up as he called out, "Wait!"

He did not doubt that she could hit the dragon from the distance they were at, no more than a few hundred metres now, but the town was too close to fight without the risk of collateral damage.

"We need to lure it away first," Galzis said as he rode alongside Reiyu. "I'll be the decoy, you find a vantage point. Clipper, got it?"

Trusting Reiyu to understand the strategy outlined by that single word, Galzis stood up on his saddle and Leaped towards the dragon as it made its way back towards the town.

"You're not getting away this time," he said, drawing his adamantine longsword as he closed in on the beast. "Not this time!"

Chiara has used Leap twice in this post. Her stamina is now 7/10.

Kherek has used Leap in this post. His stamina is now 9/10.

Galzis has used Leap in this post. His stamina is now 9/10.


This is now a combat situation. Any posts involving any action towards the dragon must be open ended.​

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Enkerzed

Wit looked down at his pathetic steel ax and realized Kherek was right, they were not nearly properly equipped or prepared enough to fight a dragon yet. He glanced around him.
All of the apprentices were staring Kherek down. Wit felt a wave of relief when he gave in and allowed them to help, even if in a smaller way than physically fighting the dragon.

"I hope he know's we couldn't just run away from danger as defenseless civilians were torched." Wit said under his breath to Chiara as she took to the skies.
He felt a surge of energy flow through his body while focusing on controlling his prana. He began sprinting, the ground blurring underneath him as he swiftly moved down the road.
Ahead of him he could see the thick, black smoke rising above the trees and over the sound of the roaring fire, you could hear people screaming. He clenched his jaw and pushed harder. He was almost there. The stench was awful.

The hair on the back of Wit's neck stood on end when he saw the dark figure circling back toward them.
Wait, there was something else, something small flying towards it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wit used Enhanced Speed in this post. His stamina is now 9/10.

 

[Azallea]

Cassandra Fariá

Without a word, Cassandra climbed onto the wagon. She took the reins and started driving it, determined not to waste any time.
"Tell them wagons are coming!", she yelled at the nearby apprentices as she watched them Leap towards the town, hoping that they'll be organised enough to save the majority of the people who live there without a proper plan.
How much inhabitants could a small town like that have?, she wondered, thinking about the capacity of each wagon. She hadn't even counted how many wagons they had so it was impossible to determine an exact number. Not that it mattered right now. For all she knew, all of them could have died the moment the dragon attacked, completely unprepared to face their demise. She hoped that wasn't the case, though.

Wanting to get there as soon as possible, Fariá pushed the horse to its limits and soon the smoke became thicker and darker, until it was all she was able to see. She pushed foward blindly, orientating herself by nearby screams and trying to figure out where they came from. "Hey! Where are you? I'm here to rescue you!", she called out, hoping at least someone would hear her and answer.

 

[xrakkax]

Enkerzed

As smooth as water rolling over ancient river stones, Reiyu diverted from her trajectory toward the dragon to a nearby rocky meadow. The edges were dotted with natural rock spires. A crippled dragon would have a difficult time hobbling away if it landed there— ‘If’ being the key word. ‘Plan A’ was often not the course they usually ended up taking.

Reiyu turned her horse around to face the village. The sun glinted off the adamantine weapon poised in in her hand. Bring it in, Gal.

Reiyu [Abilities: N/A ; Stamina: 10/10]

 

[Enkerzed]

xrakkax

Flying through the sky and over the town, Galzis brought his weapon to bear as he prepared to strike. The dragon was so close now, he could hear each thundering beat of its massive wings and smell the stench of sulfur emanating from its body. Within another heartbeat he could make out the scales on its back, black as coals and glistening with oil. Then in the space of a deep breath and an almighty roar, Galzis brought his blade down onto the dragon's leg and cut through scales, hide and flesh with a single powerful swing, just as the beast was preparing to unleash another blazing inferno.

As the dragon screamed in pain, Galzis began to fall and he looked back over his shoulder to see it changing course to follow him. Perfect, he thought when he looked towards the ground again, straightening his body out for a quicker descent. Now to lure it towards-

In an instant, the world became spinning madness as the Dragoon felt something impact against his feet and sent him tumbling out of control. He was not aware what had happened to him, but to those watching below, it must have been an impressive sight to behold. In an incredible feat of acrobatic prowess, the dragon had actually somersaulted in the air and struck Galzis with the tip of its tail. Then just like that, the hunter became the hunted and Galzis felt a panic he had never known before as he plummeted towards the earth, fighting to regain control.

~~~
​

TheSortingHat Azallea

​

"Shit!" Kherek shouted as he landed at the edge of the town. A moment later, Chiara landed a few metres behind and the dwarf said to her as he prepared to Leap again, "Help him when he hits the ground."

"Wha-" Chiara had time to say before Kherek took off, flying headlong towards the dragon as it chased its falling prey.

She could still barely process what she had just seen when the other apprentices arrived, some Leaping and others running. As Wit came speeding down the road, Chiara turned to him and said, "Did you see that shit? I had no idea dragons could do that."

"We all saw it," another apprentice testily replied while running towards the burning town. "Try to stay focused you idiot."

"Hey! You... are right."

Chiara pointed towards the burning town as she said to Wit, "I'm gonna go help the guy who got his butt slapped. What about you?"

As if in response, a voice called out from the streets, "Hey, are you here to help?"

It was an elf in a green travelling cloak, sitting at the head of a wagon loaded with injured people as it trundled down the cobblestones. Another elf was sitting at the back, hands held up against the flames from nearby houses as if forcing them back.

"There's more people, but we don't have enough wagons. Some are too hurt to move, please help us."

Chiara looked towards the elven rider and then to Wit as she said, "You got this, yeah?"

Chiara has not used any abilities in this post. Her stamina is now 8/10.

Kherek has used Leap in this post. His stamina is now 8/10.

Galzis has used Enhanced Strength in this post. His stamina is now 8/10.​

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Enkerzed Azallea

"Yes, I've got this. Go save that guy." Wit said confidently. "And Chiara, please be careful." He continued seriously, locking eyes with her briefly. Then he turned toward the wagon full of people. He scanned the faces in front of him, and when he made eye contact with the cloaked elf it felt like everything was going in slow motion.


"Ravyn?! What the hell are you doing here?!" Wit said, shocked.

"We will talk later, Brother." Ravyn replied shortly. "There are more people trapped in that building over there. Please help them." He continued, pointing toward a smaller house. It was covered in flames and deep black smoke was rising out of it. He jumped out of the wagon and started toward the building.

"We better. You should go with the wagon. It's too dangerous for you to be here." Wit told Ravyn and turned away, heading for the burning home.

"No way. I learned how to fight for myself after you left us." Ravyn said hurtfully as he matched Wit's pace.

"Fine, but I'm going in first." He replied and looked away, not able to find any other words.

Wit searched frantically for the nearest empty wagon and spotted Cassandra through the smoke.
"Cass! Over here! People are trapped!" He yelled to her as he ducked into the doorway. A lot of the ceiling had collapsed into the building and it was difficult to breath. Wit pulled his scarf over his face and continued through the house, staying low.
"Hello? Anyone?" Wit focused his Prana and listened for any reply. Then someone grabbed his ankle. She was trapped under the rubble.

"Ravyn! Pull her out!" He said, grunting as he used more Prana to lift a heavy chunk of ceiling off of her body.
Together, the two of them pulled her out and brought her outside.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wit used Enhanced Strength and Enhanced Hearing in this post. His stamina is now 7/10.

 

[Azallea]

TheSortingHat

Cassandra Fariá

It was becoming hard to breathe, the smoke was inescapable and the stench that came hand in hand with it certainly didn't help. Cassandra could hear the dragon roar above the town, but couldn't be sure which direction it came from or know of the battle happening in the skies.
She continued searching desperately for survivors, scanning the ground for injured people, but more often than not, seeing just dead bodies and debris.
The smoke burned her eyes, making her tear up. She both hoped for a gust of wind to clear the air and prayed it doesn't come, seeing as it would only spread the flame even farther.

Suddenly, she though she heard the sound of Wit's voice calling her name, and after staring at the direction she assumed it came from, she caught a glimpse of him as a confirmation.
She turned the wagon towards the small house he was in front of.
He didn't wait for her to arrive, instead immediately disappearing into the building, quickly followed by another person she didn't recognize.There must be someone trapped in the house.
Practically at the doorstep, she jumped off the wagon just in time to see Wit and the stranger stepping out of the ruin, carrying a wounded girl.

She quickly helped them place her onto the wagon. "Is anybody else inside?", she asked the two, simultaniously checking with a glance if Wit had any injuries, relieved to see none.
"By the way, name's Cassandra", she nodded to the unfamiliar elf who helped save the girl, not wanting to seem rude for not introducing herself.

 

[xrakkax]

Enkerzed

Shock flashed over Reiyu’s face. “Galzis!” She charged forward on her horse. There was no way she’d catch him from the sky. Reiyu targeted the dragon. She gambled that Galzis would survive the land, but she wasn’t sure he could handle it if the dragon escaped this time around. Reiyu felt her stomach wrench in anxiety from her decision, but as soon as she saw a dwarf— Kherek—aiming for the dragon, she immediately changed course to where Galzis was likely to land.

Fire and smoke veiled her vision and stung her lungs. Reiyu rode through swiftly, jumping debris, dodging falling wood, and evading blasts of fire. The people running this way and that didn’t improve her mood. Why can’t they keep a level head?

“Gal!” Reiyu shouted, both to call for him and to shoo a path through the panicked villagers.

Reiyu [Abilities: N/A ; Stamina: 10/10]

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Azallea

"Umm Cass, this is my older brother, Ravyn." Wit pulled his scarf away from his mouth for a moment to speak. As he introduced his brother he gestured toward the slightly older elf. He was slightly shorter than Wit and had a darker expression. He was preoccupied with the unconscious girl they had just pulled out.

Ravyn's attention was drawn by his younger brother's voice and he turned toward the young red-headed girl.
"Hello, I'm Ravyn. I'd make conversation but we don't have a lot of time at the moment. I don't know if there are others. We need to go back in." Ravyn insisted and left quickly toward the blazing pile of rubble. As he entered the building a wooden beam fell and crashed against the ground, sending embers everywhere. He shielded his eyes from the sparks and then wrapped his cloak around is face to block the smoke. "Hello!" He yelled out "Anybody?" The smoke was so thick he could barely see in front of him.



Wit went over to the girl laying in the wagon. She was breathing shallowly and wheezing. He put his hand against her forehead and closed his eyes, willing himself to heal her. There was a soft glow around his hand and after a moment, her breathing returned to normal. Wit coughed and sat back to recover and observe his surroundings. A few buildings were on fire and the smoke prevented Wit from seeing more than twenty feet in front of him.
After he felt recovered he headed into the building after his brother.
"You should stay out here in case we pass out. If we don't come out, come in after us. The smoke is very thick in there." Wit turned and suggested to Cassandra
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wit used the Healing ability. His stamina is now 6/10.

 

[Azallea]

TheSortingHat

Cassandra Fariá

Cassandra observed the difference between brothers. If he hadn't mentioned it, she'd assume Wit was the older one, admittedly because of the difference in height. It wasn't a big one, but then again, she wasn't good at guessing people's age, especially when it came to elves.
"Nice to meet you, though", she smiled before Ravyn left and turned back to Wit who was busy healing the girl and commented absent-mindedly. "I didn't even know you had a brother."

When he got up and made his proposition, she protested. "No, I'm going too", she put her hand on his shoulder. "We can't afford to lose more time and three people have a better chance of rescuing or even finding someone in this chaos than two or one."
"Besides, I'd feel pretty useless just sitting here outside waiting for you", she added, shrugging.

The girl covered her mouth and nose with her cape, only semi-successfully managing to tighten it like a scarf due to its size and stepped into the building. It was now really threatening to completely give in to the fire.

Entering the hallway, she squinted her eyes, able to recongnise the outline of five or six doors. She doubted they would be able to check them all one by one before the house collapsed. She attempted to gesture to Wit that they should split up, hoping he'd understand her signals, and headed foward, straight to the heart of the house, with a strategy to go from the farthest rooms towards the ones closest to the exit. Just as she wanted to press down one of the door handles, a big chunk of the ceiling above her collapsed. Only thanks to her quick reflexes, she managed to jump backwards in time to avoid being hit. However, its remnants were now blocking the last two rooms. "Is anyone in here?", she shouted, hoping there wasn't since she had no easy way to enter those rooms. She heard no response initially, but after a few seconds, could make out what seemed like a muffled voice behind one of those doors. "Hello? Are you hurt?", she asked, looking back at the hallway and searching for Wit and Ravyn to help her.

-----------------------------

Cassandra used 'Enhanced Reflexes'. Her stamina is now 9/10.

 

[TheSortingHat]

Wit Alethkar Azallea

Wit chuckled. "I have five brothers and a sister." He replied.

Wit decided that they didn't have time to argue. "Fine, but if you feel like you need to get out, don't wait for me." He sighed and ducked in.

He walked into the first room on the left and the fire hadn't damaged this room as much. It was a medium sized room that looked like it was used for studying. The entrance was charred and the ceiling in front of it had collapsed, but other than that, only minor damage reached into the room.
"I guess they had the door closed to this room." Wit thought. A bookcase laid on it's face. Half burnt books, and papers were scattered everywhere.
"Is anyone in here?" Wit said fairly loudly as he looked under the bookcase. It didn't look like anyone was in the room. Wit turned to leave, but heard a small voice from under the couch. He crouched and peered under. A little boy was hiding. He was no more than five.

"It's okay, you're safe now. Come on out." Wit said gently to the frightened boy and outstretched his hand. The little boy grabbed his hand and crawled out.
'It's really hot and smokey. We have to go outside. Here." Wit said and unraveled his scarf from his head and tied it around the boy's head.
"This will make you invincible." He continued, raising his eyebrows.
"Where's my mom?" The kid asked.
"I don't know buddy, but we will do our best to find her." Wit said, picking up the boy, he turned and walked out of the house to the wagon. The woman they had pulled out was waking up. Wit left the boy with her on the wagon and headed back inside.


Ravyn had cleared two rooms and then walked into the hallway. He spotted Cassandra by some blocked off doors and walked over to her.
"Is there someone in there?" He asks her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wit did not use any abilities in this post. His stamina is now 7/10.

 

[Enkerzed]

xrakkax

With limbs flailing and his heart in his mouth, the world only continued to spin faster for Galzis as he struggled to control his descent. With the few glimpses he caught of the rapidly approaching earth, he determined that he had roughly six seconds before hitting the ground and landing in the town on any number of parts of his body. For some like Reiyu, six seconds would have been more than enough to correct a bad landing, but that had never been Galzis's forte. Without the reflexes or agility to right his form, he had only one option in a situation like this.

Spreading his arms and legs out wide, the Dragoon made a last ditch effort to curb his wild tumbling through the air and tensed up in anticipation of the impact, trusting the hard earned durability of his body. This is going to hurt, he had time to think just before hitting the ground hard on his back with his head bouncing off the cobblestones, knocking him unconscious.

~~~
​

Kherek risked a look downward for a moment as he flew towards the dragon, watching Galzis fall into the burning heart of the town and disappearing beneath a cloud of smoke. At least he didn't let go of his weapon, Kherek thought as he returned his attention to the dragon, which was now swooping after the fallen Dragoon.

"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Kherek snarled as he struck the dragon directly on the snout, cutting it open with both axes in a vicious spinning slash.

The dwarf continued flying past as the dragon screamed in agony and veered off away from the town, trying to flee from whatever had wounded it so suddenly.

Must've cut through the bone, Kherek thought as he reached the apex of his Leap, examining the blood on the blades of his weapons. As he began to fall however, he saw the dragon wheeling around and realized that it was not fleeing, it was gaining distance to retaliate. How could the beast still think of fighting with such a grievous wound?

"Oh shit," the dwarf breathed as the dragon hovered in the air for a moment before darting straight towards him, wings held fixed in a diving swoop. It opened its jaws wide as it approached and when Kherek could see the fiery glow of its eyes, he realized he was never going to reach the ground before the dragon had him. Alone against the enemy with no reinforcements, this was the worst possible situation for a Dragoon to be in.

~~~
​

Chiara was racing towards where Galzis had fallen when she heard someone shouting nearby. The other Dragoon, she realized when she saw the lady orc riding through the street, her long black hair whipping in the wind and three adamantine javelins mounted on her back.

"Over here!" Chiara shouted as she waved her hand and rushed towards Galzis, kneeling at his side. At first she thought he was dead since he was lying awfully still where the cobblestones had cracked beneath his body, but then she saw his chest rise and placed a finger beneath his nose to confirm what she already knew. "Sleeping on the job, eh."

The fallen Dragoon now confirmed to be alive, Chiara looked up to see how Kherek was faring against the dragon. When she saw him spinning like a top upon making contact, Chiara let out an exulting whoop as the beast screeched in pain and flew away. The joy died on her lips however when she saw the dragon slowing down in the air with inexorable purpose before turning around and flying straight for the dwarf.

"Oh shit!" Chiara shouted as she jumped to her feet, looking down miserably at her spear as she wondered what to do. Had it been tipped with adamantine, she would have tried to intercept the dragon with a Leap and strike it wherever she could, but with only ordinary steel to rely on...

No, now is not the time to hesitate, Chiara thought as she bent into a crouch. All she needed to do was distract it long enough for Kherek to reach the ground safely and buy him some room to breathe. But what if something went wrong? What if the dragon decided to breathe fire instead? What if they both ended up perishing? What if she could not even make it in time?

"Damn it, what the hell have I been training for?" the apprentice muttered as she fought to overcome her hesitation, her doubts and the fear of dying, because she was indeed afraid. It was a natural response to what she was facing and she hated herself for having no power over it. There was no time for this nonsense, the time to act was now. Now. NOW!

Letting go of any concern for herself or the immediate future, Chiara aimed herself at the dragon and prepared to Leap.

Galzis used Enhanced Toughness. His stamina is now 7/10.

Kherek used Enhanced Strength. His stamina is now 7/10.

Chiara has not used any abilities. Her stamina is now 9/10.​

 

[xrakkax]

Enkerzed

Time between being alerted to Galzis’s location, seeing him alive, and noticing the young woman readying herself for a jump, gave little room to think— Reiyu’s motions tapped into her instincts.

As agile as a cat, Reiyu crouched onto her galloping dappled grey with legs bent and feet set firmly on the saddle. Her left hand gripped the reigns and the other reached for her chain and hook. “HEY!” Reiyu called out. “Get the two of you out of here!”

Reiyu sprung into the sky. In a single motion, she whipped out her adamantine hook-n-chain and wound up momentum as the scaly monstrosity grew larger, while the world below became a canvas of smoke and fire. Her wrist maneuvered the wily metal cord expertly. It thwipped and cracked through the air as she brought it down, aiming for the dragon's muzzle, hoping it might lasso around it.

Below her, Reiyu’s horse halted by Galzis’s body. White foam dotted its body from exhaustion. Its skin trembled from adrenaline. But these horses were not bred to be cowards, even when a dragon soared above. It awaited its riders to mount.

Reiyu [Abilities: Leap ; Stamina: 9/10]

 

[Azallea]

TheSortingHat

Cassandra Fariá

Wow, talk about timing!, Cassandra thought as she saw Ravyn exit a room and approach her as if he heard her call. "I think there is, I heard a voice, but I don't think they're well", she replied worried about the person inside.They'd be screaming for help if they could and if they can't - there are only two options. They're either passed out or...
"Anyways", she continued to break away from her thoughts. "As you can see the room is blocked and I'm not sure how to best get inside. Not to mention that we don't know anything about the situation on the other side of the door. We might hurt someone if we force our way in?" She sighed. "I dunno."
She hated situations in which she felt helpless and this whole scenario had that word written all over it. First a dragon she can't fight and then people she can't help. It was as if she was just bound to be a bystander to horrible events with no power on her own to change them or make them better.

-----------------------------------

Cassandra has not used any abilities in this post. Her stamina is now 10/10.

 

[TheSortingHat]

Alethkar Azallea

Ravyn paced for a moment and examined the entrance. Wow that will be heavy. Ravyn thought as he looked at the large chunks piled on top of each other.

"We should try moving this rubble and go from there. If there is something on the other side of the door we will feel it when we push on it." He suggested and lifted a chunk out of the way.

Just then Wit comes back inside and sees the two of them standing next to a large pile of broken ceiling.

"Just our luck. The last rooms we have to check are blocked." Wit said as he walked up to them.

"Yeah, and Cass says there's someone in there and that they aren't doing well. What did you find?" Ravyn replied

"I found a little boy, but I didn't find his mother. Maybe she's in there." Wit said and gestured at the blocked doors.

"We have to get into this room then. Let's get this shit out of the way." Ravyn decided and started pulling at the ceiling fragments out of the large pile.

Wit agreed and began helping his brother.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wit did not use any abilities in this post. His stamina is now 8/10.

 

[Enkerzed]

xrakkax

As the dragon closed in, Kherek had turned to face it with both axes raised in defiance while he continued falling. So what? he thought, making whatever adjustments he needed to control his descent. I've been in worse odds than this, bring it on!

He could smell the dragon's stinking breath now. It reeked of fire and death, and Kherek was about to throw an axe right down its gullet until it suddenly snapped shut, mere inches away from his face. With a spiteful kick, Kherek pushed himself away from the dragon's jaws and launched himself towards the ground, seeing Reiyu as she rose through the air with her chain weapon in hand.

"Good luck," he managed to say in the instant they were side by side before passing each other by. In another few seconds, Kherek had reached the end of his descent and landed on top of a house that was not on fire.

Time for round two, he thought as he prepared to Leap again, that was until he spotted Chiara standing around in the street, looking up as Reiyu tussled with the dragon. It was throwing its head wildly from side to side, trying to shake off whatever had closed its mouth shut.

"What are you doing over there?" Kherek said as he pointed an axe towards Chiara.

Hearing the instructor's familiar berating tone, Chiara turned towards him and meekly replied, "I-I, uh..."

Shit, what the hell AM I doing? the apprentice thought as she looked down at her spear, burning with shame when she realized she could not work up the courage to Leap after all. She had hesitated until it was too late to act and by then the lady orc was already in the air, not wasting a single second or moment, fearless as a Dragoon should be.

Sighing with frustration, Kherek continued as he pointed towards Galzis, "What about him? Is he still alive?"

"Yeah, uh... YES, sir."

"Then get him out of here. Don't just stand around doing nothing."

As Chiara moved to obey, Kherek shook his head and muttered, "Gaia's sake," before taking to the skies again, Leaping towards the dragon as it flew overhead.

~~~
​

TheSortingHat Azallea

​

Well, I'm glad no one was around to see that, Chiara thought as she struggled to lift Galzis by the armpits. While trying to drag him into an upright position, she felt a wetness on her face and wiped a hand across her cheek, surprised to find that she was crying.

"Great," she muttered angrily as she lowered Galzis to rub the tears from her eyes. "Fucking Kherek, that fucking asshole... and fuck me. Gaia damn idiot."

Sniffing her nose and regretting it instantly while inhaling a lungful of smoke, Chiara went into a coughing fit as she moved to reposition herself around the unconscious Dragoon and crouched down by his side.

"All right you heavy bastard, come on," she said as she heaved him onto her shoulders with a burst of prana and stood up again, back bent and knees straining. Then turning to Reiyu's horse, she said as she approached, "You'll help me, right?"

The horse was helpful enough as it stood still while Chiara threw the unconscious Dragoon onto its saddle, followed by both their weapons. Then hoping that the lady orc would not mind, Chiara took the horse's reins and led it down the street.

Along the way, she saw other apprentices riding wagons full of injured people, a few of them she was unsure whether they were still alive. Passing by a burning building, Chiara was about to keep moving ahead until she saw a wagon with two children in it, a girl and a boy, but no riders at the reins. Just a house on fire a few metres away with its door wide open.

"Hey, is somebody in there?" Chiara called out as she approached, wondering who would be irresponsible enough to leave a wagon and horse unattended. It was a good thing the animals were trained not be skittish, even when around fire.

Galzis is unconscious.

Kherek used Leap. His stamina is now 6/10.

Chiara used Enhanced Strength twice. Her stamina is now 7/10.​