Fandom Power Rangers Sentinels

[marorda]

"If the bull hasn't been fed in a month, it's dead and you don't really have anything to worry about," Erin stated dryly to the guy who had introduced himself as Clay, a wide grin on her face. "And cool... not the word I'd use to describe this all," she said to Dylan. Really, demon frogs attacking people and hearing voices from strange portals was the stuff of books and series, not the things to happen in daily life. Weird, downright crazy. those were the words coming to her mind to describe this all. Perhaps a bit insane. "But I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one to have seen what I saw and heard what I did. Means that if I'm going crazy, at least I'm not alone." She got back to her feet and smiled at April's concern. "I'm fine, April,"  she said. "As good as anyone would be after this all."


Erin couldn't help but laugh as both Benji and April seemed to freak out at the idea of going into the woods, saying about it being haunted. "I'm with Clay here. Haunted woods is storybook stuff." Then again, she had thought the same about monsters and portals and voices in portals and weird lights and... wells everything that hat happened today, basically. Still. Fairytales didn't scare her. Her eyes trailed off towards the woods again. "With or without the rest of you, I'm going."  Her words were directed at April, Benji, and Dylan, the latter whom had made no remarks on going to the woods. Clay was the only one who wasn't too much of a chicken to go and check out the woods. Maybe they'd find nothing. Maybe the source of the lights was long gone. She hoped it was still there though, just to see what could have caused such a thing. "Let's go,"  she said to Clay, making her way down the street, heading to the Witchwoods.


---


A not too long walk later, she and Clay, along with anyone who decided to follow them, stood at the edge of the woods. The wooden sign at the entrance told the story on how the local legend says the souls of the witches burned in the area haunted the woods, how electronics failed after a certain point and how that was the main reason why nobody dared taking the entire forest down, as well as going into the woods at nights. "Huh, this is rather interesting,"  Erin said, reading the sign carefully. "Time to go in there and see just how haunted these woods are, no?" she laughed shortly. Yes, monsters were real. But magic and cursed woods? That still had to be a load of horsecrap. Her mind simply refused to even for a second believe the things she had always disregarded as nothing but stories had even the slightest chance to be real. "As my dad always taught me: never be afraid to take a road less traveled."


And from the woods, a pair of watchful eyes looked at those arriving at the edge, soon enough to enter the woods. The city belonged to the mortals, but out here in nature... the woods were still his domain. He perched himself on top of a tree trunk, shaped like a young boy. For now, he was hidden from sight, but they would all spot him soon. About right after the first turn.

 

[PenBlade1326]

"Highly nice to meet y'all."  Clay grinned at everybody's reactions and thoughts on the situation.  April and Benji seemed the most timid toward the woods.  Haunted woods?  C'mon now, that's silly talk.  "I for one wanna know what just happened.  Scary babbily woods or not."  He said to the others, looking down at them all, some by just a hair.  It paid off being taller than most of this group.  Even if going into the woods was mildly insane to look for answers about weird smelly frog monsters, he was going to do it.  He wanted to know what was interrupting him getting food.  Also what had just made him tough as an ox.


"Right behind ya."  He said to Erin as she motioned to go into the Witchwoods.  He wasn't scared of anything that might be in there.  Which was probably a lot of squirrels and deer, to be honest.  He followed her, looking back at Dylan, April and Benji, giving them a chick expression, impersonating a 'bawk bawk bawk' to them all.  He hoped they would come....just seemed like they should all check it out.  But he and Erin would suffice, surely.


Benji rolled his eyes.  "I think the fact that we all did see that is a sign of insanity...especially since you want to look more into it!"  He exclaimed, glancing at everybody like they all just smoked a bunch of crack.  They had to be joking?  Venture into the creepy woods that just did some weird mumbo jumbo to them?  And right after encountering creepy demon things?  No thank you!  "Go get eaten by a giant frog demon thing, then.  As for me, I'm staying here....I gotta get back home anyway."  He said, finding a personal case to not go into the woods.  He watched as Erin and Clay ventured into the woods.  And Clay did the chicken thing!  'How rude!' As Stephanie Tanner from Full House would say.  He sighed in frustration.


"Oh.....oh wait for me!" He called to them both as they ventured forth.  He wasn't chicken....just sane.  But now that was in question as he was going right toward the woods with them.


---


At the edge of the woods, Benji also read the sign.  "Electronics don't work after a certain point, huh?  Another reason to not go in further..." He said to himself.  What if something happened and they needed to call for help?  They would be so screwed!


Clay just folded his arms and adjusted his hat once more.  "It is purty interesting, I'll say.  Why not go give it a look over yander?"  He said to everyone with him.  Like Erin said.  It was time to see how haunted the woods really were.  


He glanced at Benji, looking like the scrawny fella was about to piss himself or just turn back.  "C'mon, now.  It'll be alright, Benji."  He told him.  Benji huffed and took a breath.  


"Whatever..." He said to him.  "What else did you dad teach you?  Go directly towards your doom?"  He asked Erin softly as she mentioned her dad.  Now he wasn't trying to offend her or anything, that much was clear, just....c'mon, this is insane!

 

[Lady Insanity]

At least Erin was alright.  And all of the guys seemed okay as well.  No serious injuries meant nobody would have to go see a doctor or anything and explain what happened.  That would be of heck of a story to tell.


And if April had been drinking something, she'd have spat it out.  "What are you serious?  Go into the woods?  Erin, I dunno about this..." She said after Erin told the group she was going in no matter what.  And she was taking the big cowboy with her.  April sighed and ran her hands through her hair.  What is she supposed to do?  Further risk her life for a girl she just met, and three total strangers along with it?  Why is it of all days, she just had to be exposed to insanity on move-in day?  Freshmen with their weird families in the hallways should have been the only monsters she faced.  Not literal monsters!


Benji was apprehensive, so she wasn't alone at least.


And then that cowboy....he clucked!  Or at least mocked a cluck at them all.  "Oh...why you!"  She said to Clay, watching as he and Erin went into the woods.  She threw her hands up.  She could just go back to the dorm....but no...no.....oy.


"God I'm so going to regret this!"  She told herself, following Benji against her better judgement with the others.  She glanced at Dylan behind her.  "Coming?"  She asked him.


---


At the very outskirts of the woods, that sign was all that reminded her she was sane.  A warning about the woods was good enough for her.  She could still turn back and just go unpack...she could...


"Oh leave him alone, Clay, the guy's just displaying his own shred of sanity."  April said, taking up for Benji as Clay spoke to him.  She nudged his arm and looked at Benji.  She gave him that expression of 'don't worry, I know this is crazy, too.'


Erin's dad really said that?  "What if the road less traveled is less traveled for a reason, Erin?"  She asked her.  April also felt watched...like something had its eyes on her.  This wasn't a good feeling....none of this was.

 

[Steel Accord]

"Don't worry guys. I've been going in and out of those woods for years. I know them like the back of my hand." Dylan said as he took the lead. He quickly turned back around. "Oh they're definetly haunted though. No doubt about that." He continued with no sense of concern or worry.

 

[marorda]

"If it's less traveled, there's got to be an adventure ahead," Erin grinned brightly, turning around to look at them all, the warmth of the sun shining on her face. She merely shot a brief glare at Benji. Really, she couldn't quite blame him for being wary. If circumstances were different, if she hadn't been raised the way she did, she too would have been wary. But adventure ran through her veins. Along with a good mind telling her things such as haunted woods were pure bollocks. "The perks of being raised by an archeologist is a knack for adventure and knowing curses on ancient tombs are a whole lot of horsecrap," she said, still grinning. "If curses on tombs were real, my entire family would be dead by now. As well as the research team," she shrugged. "So with things not supposed to exist suddenly showing up.... how could one NOT want to find a logical explanation behind that?" She, too, felt the watchful eyes burning in her back. Odd, certainly, but it simply had to be her mind playing tricks on her after this rather boring-turned-hectic day.


"Electronics not working can be scientifically explained," Erin reasoned. "There's more places like that on Earth. Something with magnetic fields or something. They speak of curses there too... but it's just old wives tales. Gotta be." It seemed like she was trying to convince herself more than the others. How was she going to explain this to her parents, if she ever would? Hey mom, hey dad. On my third day in Ebongrove, we got attacked by demon frogs, and then went into the cursed woods after getting strange powers. They'd worry... worry that she might have gotten sick from some strange kind of tropical virus and was now vividly hallucinating.  "Come on, guys. What's the worst that could happen?"


Wasn't that how bad things usually start?


Shaking any thought keeping her on the edge off her mind Erin walked into the woods, the others near her. At least if they just stuck together, they wouldn't end up being murdered. Worst case scenario they'd get lost in the woods and have to rely on their instincts of getting out again. Good thing she was used to being outside and all. The cowboy, too, seemed like he'd be able to handle himself. So it would just be the two of them taking the lead in getting everyone back to safety if worst came to worst.


As they went around the first turn, they could spot a young boy, standing on the road. He looked at them curiously, tilting his head. Odd. A kid shouldn't be alone in the woods. Especially not if they were said to be this dangerous. Also, she had to admit it creeped her out just a tiny bit. Little kids in scary movies usually meant nothing good. But this wasn't a scary movie. The poor kid was probably just lost. Maybe he had fled into the woods after the attack? "Hey there," Erin said, kneeling to the boy's height. "Are you lost?"


"Nuh uh," the boy shook his head, examining the five of them. "But I do need help. Can you help me, please?"


Erin eyed the others, unsure what they were thinking on this. She... she thought she had to do something. A little kid, alone in the woods, needing help. "What do you need?" she asked kindly. The little boy glanced at Clay, reaching out his hands to him. "You have'ta come with me," he said determined. Erin couldn't help but smile to herself. Of course a tall cowboy in a cool hat was more worthy of attention than some girl. She looked at the others, wondering what they made of this. Surely they'd all stick around to help the kid with whatever he needed?

 

[Lady Insanity]

Erin's reasoning was...interesting.  April shrugged and merely let out a breath.  "I guess you've got a point for finding logic in the illogical."  She commented.  And the electronics not working is likely a reason of science, but nevertheless, losing cell signal in some creepy woods wasn't a good sign.  After all, what if something happened?  Erin and Clay seemed the most able to survive, but if they got hurt, then how would the others make it out to get help?  This all seemed like a bad idea.


But that logic alone didn't stop April from following Erin and the others into the woods.  And wait...don't bad things usually happen as a result of asking how bad it could get?  Oy.  Maybe April has ought to teach Erin how to be less triggering of horrible events.  Lesson one, perhaps?  And instead of showing her around Ebongrove, she might want to take her and get her checked out by a psychologist.  Just...just in case.  Not saying she's crazy, but she's a little bit coocoo.


The trees of the forest were tall, luscious and green.  Maybe a few dead leaves here and there, but really dead leaves are gonna be around at any time of year.  Not just autumn or winter.  As creepy as the place was, it was still kind of pretty.  April took notice of the nature as she followed Erin down the path.


And then there was a little boy.  Oh gosh, the poor kid probably got lost in here!  As Erin investigated, April followed, standing behind her as she spoke to the boy.  The boy claimed to not to be lost..but to need help.  And then he gestured to Clay?  She looked back at Erin and shrugged, then looked at the guys with a look of 'what is going on?'


"Sweetie, what's going on?"  She asked the boy softly from behind Erin.  Her expression was gentle and compassionate, genuinely interesting the boys well-being.

 

[Steel Accord]

"The perks of being raised by an archeologist is a knack for adventure and knowing curses on ancient tombs are a whole lot of horsecrap," she said, still grinning. "If curses on tombs were real, my entire family would be dead by now. As well as the research team," she shrugged. "So with things not supposed to exist suddenly showing up.... how could one NOT want to find a logical explanation behind that?"

"Wouldn't the 'logical' response of seeing and touching verifiable inhuman and greater than animal creatures which could ONLY be called monsters be to accept that some things thought of as myth might be true or that our current scientific understanding needs some re-evaluation?" Dylan said, always ready, even eager, to believe the improbable and accept the phenomenal.


~ ~ ~ ~


Dylan was now the one a little wary. See he HAD been through this forest more than once, but he was always with friends. That was one of "the rules" of Ebongrove kids. Going into the haunted woods was for adventures but you NEVER went alone unless it was on a dare or something. This kid was not out here on a dare.


"Careful." He muttered to Clay and Benji. His eyes never left the boy. They betrayed a "I ((STRONGLY SUSPECT)) you are not what you appear as," sentiment.

 

[PenBlade1326]

"Your reasoning and logic don't make going into those woods any less insane, to me, personally.  Just I like having a safe route in case something goes amiss..."  Benji replied to Erin as she promptly displayed info as to why the woods aren't as scary as one might think.  Sure they probably aren't haunted, but after what just happened, who's to say they aren't?  Anything is possible now...


Clay just smirked.  "How's about we skip the chit chat and check out what's a'lurkin' in them 'er woods!" He said.  Very southern.  He was eager to see what was inside of the woods, he'd never been in before.  Something dangerous, nothing at all, or just more woods awaited him and the others inside.  And Erin's right, what's the worst that could happen?


Benji glared.  "Why do people always lead with that?  What's the worst that could happen?  That always signifies something bad will surely happen!"  He said.  But...he did follow this far.  Might as well see it through.


Both Benji and Clay followed Erin and the others through the woods.  Tall trees, plenty of nature, and as one called it, a lot of squirrels!  Benji still had both of his bags of art supplies.  He couldn't just leave them on the street, could he?  Supplies weren't that cheap.  His eyes looked the woods up and down, looking at the trees and other plant life.  It wasn't his ideal place to be, but man there was some serious artistic inspiration in this place.  He'd love to sketch a landscape here or take some photos for reference!  Despite being kind of creepy, the woods are really pretty!


Clay adjusted his hat so he might look around the area.  The woods weren't his normal cup of tea, but they sure were a beauty.  not even creepy, really.  Just good ol' nature.  Maybe growing up on a farm desensitized him to certain things like this.


Rounding the first turn, a little boy standing in the path made Benji jump.  Dylan said something, but he ignored it, too fixated on the boy and how...odd it was he was out here.  He and Clay both rationalized the kid was lost.  Maybe he was playing with friends and got separated?  Do kids even play this far into the woods though?  They both watched Erin as she and April walked over to the kid, trying to see what was going on.  


Benji and Clay both were unsure what to make of it...he said he wasn't lost or anything, so what was the problem?  They both gave Erin a look of 'well we obviously have to help the kid regardless.'  They couldn't leave some poor kid all alone, could they?  Maybe he could travel with them, they could escort him out or something?  Maybe lend him a cell phone if they had service?


Then the boy pointed at Clay and said he had to come with him.  Clay smirked and approached the boy.  He got down on his knee beside of Erin in front of the kid.  He grinned.  "Right.  Uhh....where exactly do we need to go to, champ?"  He asked the kid, adjusting his hat and ruffling the boys hair.  He relaxed his broad shoulders to keep a calm presence.  Champ?  Jeez, way to sound like a dad.


Benji kept a watch on everyone with the boy, stepping closer but not getting directly involved.  He just watched, unsure of what to do.  But if this kid needed help, he'd be glad to give it to him in any way.  After all, he's just a kid!

 

[marorda]

(right.. so I figured I still need to charge my camera before I can go to my friend XD Whoopsie. But it does mean I can still put my reply here online before I get going )


"Were you playing with your friends and someone got hurt?" Erin asked. That would be a logical thing to think here. A boy, playing with his friends... someone fell and got hurt, so another friend had to get back out and find help. Kids this young probably didn't have a phone on them. And if they were somehow far enough in to be in the area were electronics didn't work.... Well... Then there was no other way to get help than to go back to the city.


"You have to come and see this!" the boy insisted. "Something weird happened."


No shit. Something weird had happened indeed with the frog monsters and the lights and everything that had happened today.


"Did you see something?" Erin asked, now more concerned. What if there were more of these creatures in the woods? Yes, she had seen them retreating into whatever it was they had come from, but she had no idea just where they went.


"Uhu!" the boy nodded. "You have to see it and help. It's this way!"


The kid rushed away from them, leading a bit further into the woods, waiting ahead of them and turning back to see if they were all following. Well, Erin didn't know about the rest, but she sure did! If there was something dangerous or weird out here and the kid needed them to help... Oh gosh... what if those things WERE out here and they were attacking his friends, or something other terrible like that? Merely the thought made Erin sprint even faster. Geez, for a child, this boy was quite quick.


Erin kept following, running on and on after the boy, heading deeper into the woods. The trees around them were changing. They were still lush, but it felt... different. These trees seemed older, much older, and it was just a tad darker here. Made sense if the trees were bigger. Erin skidded to a stop, realising she could not see the boy anymore. He had rounded a corner just before, and now that she was there also... nothing to be seen. She took her phone out of her pocket, only to figure out it had shut off. "Weird..." Erin muttered, pressing the button in an attempt to turn it on again. Nothing. "What the...?" She held the button longer. Still nothing. Aaah.... so that part was true then, about electronics not working. Either that, or her battery had just died. "Guuuuuuuys....? Are your phones still working?" she asked, her eyes carefully scanning the trees around them. If that kid was hiding near them and playing a prank on them.... But there was nothing to be seen or heard. Except a short distance ahead of them... there was what seemed to be the ruins of an old watchtower. Erin made another two steps closer. What felt as if it was a gust of wind surounded her. And the tower... not much of a ruin anymore. Erin rubbed her eyes and stepped back. Ruins. Forward. No ruins. Backwards... She rubbed her eyes again. "Guuuuuys...?"  she said again, in the same tone as before. "You might want to take a look at this." 

 

[PenBlade1326]

What did they have to see?  This boy's tone just changed an awful lot.  From odd and needing help, to eager to show them all something.  If something was really wrong....man, what if those things from before are in the woods?  What if that's what's wrong?  Is that why the kid needs help?  


Clay and Benji both just watched as the kid dashed off.  "Man, for a little guy with little legs he sure moves like a cheetah..."  Clay commented, standing up. Benji nodded.  "Whatever is going on, it has to be important to him."  He said.  Clay nodded in agreement.


They both joined Erin in pursuit of the boy, running after him, following into the woods.  Deeper.  "Hey!  Wait up!"  Benji called out to the kid as he soon became out of sight to them.  They sprinted even faster after him, soon catching up to Erin and noticing that the woods seemed....darker?  Older?  If not, a little drearier...Something didn't feel too right here.  Oh God...what if something happens to the boy....they didn't even know the kid, but surely they'd not want to hear about a dead little boy found in the woods on the 6 o'clock news!


"Where did he go?"  Clay asked everybody, looking every which way.  Benji shrugged, catching his breath and trying to see if he could see him somewhere up ahead.  They both then looked at Erin, fiddling with her phone.  


Erin's phone not working?  Jee, who would have saw that coming?  Benji immediately took out his phone  "MY isn't working either."  he said, trying to turn it on, but no success.  Clay tried his as well.  "Nothing.  No power, no nothing.  Man....I guess nothing works out here, and they mean it.  Not just no service..."  He said.


The guys both looked at Erin, tilting their heads.  They stepped up with her.  "What are you....what the?"  Clay started asking her, looking ahead and appeared to be some old ruins, but then...stepping forward, and it was...bigger?  A tower?  Backward...ruins again?  Something was going on.  Clay kept looking ahead as Erin told the group they might wanna have a look.


Benji just walked up cautiously, seeing the same thing as Erin.  "What in the world...." He muttered...at a distance, it looked like old ruins up ahead.  Closer...was that freaking Hogwarts or some shit?

 

[Lady Insanity]

Boy, that boy sure could run!  He had something to show them, it seemed.  Something apparently important.  Some kind of emergency, maybe?  Or maybe he found something worth showing?  Wait a second...creepy woods, lots of space.  Oh dear, what if he found a body?  You always hear about bodies being found in the middle of nowhere or some woods.  What if this kid's been traumatized and found a corpse?  Bloody Hell!


And the chase was on.  April huffed, not fond of running, chasing after the boy along with the others, sprinting through the woods, jumping over roots of many of the tall trees in their path.


She came to a near-screech halt.  The boy was gone?!  They just saw him a second ago!  "Where'd he go?" She asked in unison with Clay.  April's eyes danced around, noticing how...old and different this part of the woods looked.  Something really didn't feel right, here.  Something felt off.  Like something wasn't right.  But she just couldn't place it.  Hmm.


She shot a glance at Erin as she asked about everyone's phones.  Oh no.  Electronics don't work in the woods....out of range for signal.  She pulled her phone out of her back pocket.  That's strange.  It wouldn't even turn on, no matter how hard she mashed the button.  Like the battery had just died on her?  It was somewhere in the 90% range last time she checked.  That's not ominous at all.  "Mine's dead...I swear it was charged like five minutes ago..." She said, confused.  Okay, something isn't adding up.  And where's that boy?


And then something else occurred.  Of course.  Why would this day choose to go back to normal at all?  She joined up with the others.  "What's all the hubub about?"  She asked them, looking at Erin, Benji, Clay and Dylan.  She looked directly ahead.  Just some old ruin of some kind.  Maybe an old house or something from a long time ago?  Who's to say these woods didn't use to be something else in the olden times?  She took a step forward...and suddenly that ruin turned into a...tower.  Like a Harry Potter looking tower, or something straight out of a fantasy movie, it appeared to her.  She rubbed her eyes and stepped back, only to see it a ruin again.  "I'm officially weirded out..." She commented 

 

[Steel Accord]

Dylan ran off in pursuit along with the others. He sure as heck wasn't going to be left alone in these woods after all these years! When Erin did ask for them to check their phones, he mentioned how there was no service out here anyway. This was different though. He thumbed and fiddled with his phone and it wouldn't turn on even. No battery icon or anything. It just plain wouldn't work.


"Hey what you guys looking at- whoah!" He said as he stepped past the illusion barrier or whatever was at play. He stepped forward, castle, he stepped backward, ruins. Forward, castle, backward, ruins. Back, forth, back, forth, back, forth. "Hey guys, check this out!" He was buzzing with awe. The castle itself looked like something out of . . . Dungeons and Dragons!


The wall or whatever it was also felt kind of strange when he passed between it, but good strange. It sort of felt like pulling on a warm sweater with a lot of static electricity. Only doing so over and over again. The place itself was a watchtower though. Watchtower out here in the woods? Who built this thing? How long ago? And what on Earth could they have been watching for? Maybe it was a totally undiscovered early Viking settlement? A very old Quaker church with just a really ambitions architect? Of course these were background thoughts Dylan was entertaining in between watching the ruins change back and forth.

 

[marorda]

"Seems like we're all weirded out here..."  Erin said softly. Maybe.... maybe cursed woods weren't total bullshit then? Because really... ruins that turned into a full tower when closer, and ruins again. Very... Hogwartsy, this all. "So.... we're God knows how deep in woods that are said to be haunted, there were demon frogs or whatever those things were attacking on the streets, and we followed a random child who disappeared into thin air toward ruins pulling a Hogwarts on us. Not exactly how I pictured my time in Ebongrove would be like," she stated. The ruins, however, did intrigue her. Quite a lot. May be just her fascination with history popping up there. She had seen many ruins, and yet it never got old. She used to think of amazing stories tied to the ruins. Of heroes and knights, battles, magic, monsters, all that sorta thing. To even think any part of that could actually be true... Erin couldn't wrap her mind around it just yet. But... well, it would certainly explain the things that had happened today. 


The call of the ruins was strong, drawing her closer. It was as if something about it, something she had no idea what it could be, was calling out to her. A cal too strong to simply ignore, no matter how much logics would scream at her to turn around and leave. She had to explore, to see what was calling for her. The closer she got, the more the surroundings revealed themselves. A tower that could once have belonged to a castle, or at least an estate, a piece of wall and a bridge leading further into the woods.


"Say... maybe this is a weird question, but seeing as how today in its entirety has been weird..."  Erin started. "Have you guys ever felt like you dream of something, a place for example... And then run into that place later? You've never been there before... you just find it... After seeing it in your..." she fell silent. The tower, upon closer inspection, was more like a gatehouse. Its gate was opened, the portcullis raised. Beyond it, at the edge of a staircase spiralling downwards, stood the boy, glancing down.


"Look!" he said, pointing downwards.


Erin's heart was beating so fast in her throat she almost felt like it would fall out of her mouth if she wasn't cautious. Ugh... that was a strange thought bringing an even.... weirder taste to her mouth. The boy lead them to what he wanted them to see. Did the boy see this weirdness also, or was it just ruins to him? Certainly this place wasn't a playground! Maybe... Oh gosh.... what if someone had fallen down that staircase? What if a scary murderer dropped a body down there last full moon? Okay. Maybe she was now also creeped out, besides just weirded out. Erin glanced down, following the boy's finger. Down below, embedded in the floor, was the mosaic of a five point star.


She jumped back, bumping into one of the guys, but not even paying attention who it was. She swallowed back several curses and a loud yelp. It didn't quite seem to be the exact same location from her dreams, but it sure came close enough. Seeing how the boy smiled at them almost send a shiver down her spine.


"Good,"  he said. "You're all here, and all see it. Good." His shape started to change, to grow, until before them stood no longer a little child, but rather a young man. Erin guessed around their age. "Now, I must apologise, but... we're a bit in a hurry here."


A strange kind of energy surrounded them all, making the world twist and turn around them. As the blurriness and twisting faded, they stood in a room that seemed like it was carved out of nature itself, traces of plants growing out of the ceiling, the ground solid, but in a brownish color. "My apologies if any of you feel somewhat dizzy. It's a side effect of the teleportation. You get used to it after a while. Now.... where were I? Ah yes... explanation, explanation. Long story short, welcome to the Coven. My name is Novus Tarragon, and the five of you have been chosen by Fate to protect your world from an ancient evil." Novus smiled, quite satisfied with himself over this... very clear explanation. Meanwhile a particularly large white and grey freckled owl ruffled her feathers, almost as if she were shaking her head at him.

 

[Lady Insanity]

"I don't think 'weirded out' even cuts it anymore, Erin..."  April stated, glancing around.  Weird.  The closer they got, the more this tower sort of looked like a gatehouse.  And the gates were open?  Not at all ominous.  Then again, what's ominous about that?  Could have been left open for decades now, the place didn't give off the impression it was under constant maintenance or anything.  Or so she thought.


"Don't worry...I've lived here all my life and I never saw this coming either."  She stated again as Erin listed the weird factors of the day.   The tower...gatehouse, whatever, seemed to be calling them?  It felt like it was only natural to get closer...April followed Erin cautiously. 


And that's when she saw him!  The boy from before!  There he is!  Whew, he's okay!  Erin had a nice thought, though.  Seeing places in dreams and getting there in real life or something.  Is there a term for that?  "You see places like this in your dreams?" She asked her quietly, following up to the boy as he pointed down.  Down a...staircase?  Gosh...what was down there?  What's he trying to show them?


And why did it make April's heart race faster than a cheetah tripping on LSD?  Maybe following down those stairs did the trick...


Whatever's down that staircase had to be worth something showing.  The boy....he didn't seem scared as far as she could tell.  So maybe this is just something he thinks is cool?  She hoped for that.  But no.  At the bottom, embedded into the floor was a five point star.  A...pentagram?  Her eyes immediately fell to Erin as she jumped back.  "Erin, what's the--"  April began to ask....watching the boy go through puberty.  Literally...now he looked like he was in his early 20s?  See what?  That pentagram?


"Uh....what business?  And what the Hell is going on...."  She muttered to herself, staring at the boy...or just a guy, now. 


DID THE ROOM JUST CHANGE?  A weird sensation swept over them all, April feeling....quite dizzy.  Like she actually might faint.  Somewhat dizzy her ass....


Teleportation....the Coven, his name is Novus...ancient evil?  "The Coven?  What is this, American Horror Story?  Might as well be..."  She asked him....whatever he really was. April started to fumble, either as a side effect, or the utter shock of seeing this guy becoming a grown man before their eyes.  Or being told about them fighting evil.  Yep...that'll do it....someone catch her...

 

[PenBlade1326]

Upon further inspection, the ruins...the tower, was different.  Clay and Benji felt it, too.  A call coming from the tower...a strong one.  Something urging them and these people to come closer toward it.  It didn't make any sense.  It's what, some kind of sentient structure built by man?  If places can start talking or calling out to someone all of a sudden Benji is out.


"I don't think I've ever had a dream come to life, if that's what you're asking," Benji stated as Erin spoke, following her and the others.  Clay just stared ahead., unable to believe his eyes.  The tower was changing before him, again.  This time, it appeared to be more like an old gatehouse with the gates wide open.  And there was the boy!  Standing there, waiting for them!  "There's that little fella."  Clay commented, rushing over to him.  This odd boy was really getting...well odd.  Redundancy is key, apparently.


The kid pointed downward to a staircase.  Whatever he wanted to show them, it was down there.  Either a dead body, several dead bodies, or an alien spaceship was down there.  Benji hoped for the ladder, there.  Clay on the other hand, was just getting addicted to weirdness, it would seem.


They both followed down the stairs, staying close to the group, unsure what to expect down in the depths of this place.  Something didn't seem right.  They just couldn't place it.  And then it had been placed.  At the bottom of the stairs, in the floor...was a pentagram.  A big ol' embedded pentagram.  Usually not a good sign, meaning something definitely fucking insane is going on here. Erin jumped back a bit.  Maybe she had realized how insane this was, now?  She jumped back into Clay, his hands gently on her arms.  "Whoa now."  he said to her.


"Okay, pentagram in spooky woods?  I'm out.  See ya later, I'm not sticking around for this AHS BS where we summon Satan."  Benji said, minorly freaking out.  As he turned around to leave, Clay grabbed him with one arm and swiftly brought him back over.  "Uh uh, you're sticking with is there, buddy." He saud.  Gee, the guy's as strong as a freight train...Benji grumbled.  What, now he's here against his will?


How could they not see the pentagram?  It was there plain as day!  And then...the kid...grew up.  Just, as if by magic, turning into a young man, probably their age.  Benji and Clay both widened their eyes.  "What in tar nation...."  Clay muttered.  Okay...now it's just plain weird.  


In a hurry for what, they wondered.  Clay let go of Erin, feeling a weird sensation around hi, surging through him and changing the room...it looked old, Earth-y.  Benji felt dizzy, which was apparently a side effect.  As did April, it seemed.  Just in case they were to faint, he grabbed a hold of both of them to keep them stable.


"Get used to it?  We're gonna be doing this here uh....teleportin' a lot?"  Clay asked, confused.  The guy introduced himself as Novus Tarragon.  "Tarragon?  That's my favorite spice!"  Clay said to himself, still hungry.  And his stomach grumbled.


He and Benji both just stared at this Novus fellow.  "Chosen to fight an ancient evil....chosen by fate.  Does...does Elvis talk to you?"  Benji asked him, inferring that he was FUCKING CRAZY.  "And there's no such thing as fate...that's the oldest line in the book..."  He commented again.  Benji was just out.  Out of his damn ind, it seemed.  Clay stared in awe, baffled and a little...well, still hungry.  He had the same thought as April, though.  Coven?  As in the best season of American Horror Story?  "Uh....what?"  Clay asked simply.  Again, what?

 

[Steel Accord]

"Say... maybe this is a weird question, but seeing as how today in its entirety has been weird..."  Erin started. "Have you guys ever felt like you dream of something, a place for example... And then run into that place later? You've never been there before... you just find it... After seeing it in your..."

"Oh I see places like this all the time in my dreams." Dylan said. "Now that you mention it though, this one does seem more than a little . . . familiar? No that's not the right word. Belonging? Welcoming?" No time to think, they were after that kid again. Erin stopped suddenly, Clay catching her, and him just barely stopping in time from bumping into him. Only for Benji to follow up on that. "Sorry, again." He apologized.

"Okay, pentagram in spooky woods?  I'm out.  See ya later, I'm not sticking around for this AHS BS where we summon Satan."

While he didn't try and beat a hasty retreat as Benji did. Dylan nevertheless was unsettled by the presence of a pentagram. No they weren't always symbols of Satanic ritual but after fighting actual monsters, he was a little more suspicious. Speaking of which . . .

His shape started to change, to grow, until before them stood no longer a little child, but rather a young man. Erin guessed around their age.

"Called it!" Dylan said, mostly to himself.

Long story short, welcome to the Coven. My name is Novus Tarragon, and the five of you have been chosen by Fate to protect your world from an ancient evil."

Dylan approached the figure and poked him a few times, verifying that he was, in fact, real.


"First question . . .  

Second question? Where do I sign up?!" Dylan said, beaming and fists shaking like a child about to get on a roller coaster ride.

 

[marorda]

Novus slapped Dylans hand away upon being poked, mildly annoyed. "Stop that!" he called. "I suppose that, if it should have a name, yes. I am a wizard. In a way."


He eyed Clay for a moment and let out a small sigh. "And why is that always one of the first things people say?" Sucks when your last name is also a type of food. Or spice. Sometimes, he really detested the way his kin was named. Ah well... could have been much worse. Moondew, Blossombud, Starshimmer... Okay, the last one wasn't all that bad, but still.


Erin shook her head. "Listen, today has been really weird for all of us, but this is really where I draw the line. Chosen by fate.... fighting evil..." she shook her head in disbelief, pretty certain that nothing else could surprise her anymore today.


"I am serious,"  Novus said. "You were chosen by Fate."


"I'm with Benji on this one. There's not even such a thing as-..."  Erin started, but she was cut off by the owl flying off her branch, transforming into a woman who landed right in front of her and crossed her arms, a stern look on her face.


"Yes?" she asked. "No such thing as what, dearies...?"


"... fate..." Erin muttered, barely louder than a whisper. "I take it you're fate?"


"The one and only,"  the woman smirked. "Novus here isn't the best at explaining things when his mind is already miles ahead of him." 


Fate looked at each and every one of the five in the Coven. "Allow me to attempt and explain things a little clearer."


She paced around the room, the surroundings shaping themselves again. Another teleport? Erin braced her stomach before it would turn itself upside down. One teleport per day was more than enough to her, really! But... no such thing as dizziness or nausea overcame her this time. So what was it then? An... illusion of sorts?


"Thousands of years ago, there was the founding of a great kingdom, one of the greatest known to men. It was ruled in a unity between a king and a shaman. But as the kingdom grew in size, and both men grew in power, the king became wary of his magically talented friend."


The illusion showed a large, prosperous realm in an ancient time, almost as if it had come straight from a storybook. The king and shaman were both merely silhouettes of men. A dark cloud started to loom at the edges of the illusion.


"The king cast the shaman away, fearing his power..."


The illusion showed the silhouette of the shaman retreating into the woods.


"... but that may have been a mistake. The shaman prayed to the ancient gods, prayed to show the king he was their spokesman. And his prayers were heard. The shaman was granted new abilities to show the king his wrongs. He was then let back at the king's side."
A silhouette praying at an improvised altar in the woods, echoing voices, a power being bestowed on the shaman. The king letting the shaman back. Everything Fate told them was in one way or another woven into the illusion she showed.


"Together they ruled in peace. But as time passed, the two were divided again. The shaman had grown strong beyond comprehension. He waged a war, killing his former friend. the shaman ruled as a tyrant. All who opposed him were mercilessly slain. That was, until five other shamans, known as the Sentinels, stood up. They alone were brave enough to still make a stand. Working together, they managed to defeat the shaman, and banished him to the underworld. Throughout history, he came back to the world several times. And time and time again he and his allies were stopped by a new generation of Sentinels. Way back when, after the first time he was banished, I made a prophecy. I told the world that he would keep coming back, each time having grown a little stronger again. His goal is to regain his full power and reign the world once more. He would continue to do so until the Time of Prophecy would be upon us."  Fate paused, giving everyone the chance to take in the things they had just seen and heard. Not everyone always took this so well... And the worst had yet to come!


"This Time of Prophecy.... is now. Vorkalth, as is the name of the Shaman, has awoken once more. And this time... he is more powerful than ever. Soon he will be powerful enough to break free from the Underworld with his Legion, and this could well mean the end of the world. But.... there is hope. I prophesied that a descendant of the king, who was stowed away when Vorkalth murdered the old king, would fight alongside the Sentinels in the final battle, to settle the war once and for all."


"So those things that attacked.... they're part of this Legion?"


 "Ah, yes. The Spawners,"  Novus said, nodding. Spawners. There's that word again. "They aren't really much to be worried about."


"Not much to be worried about?!" Erin called out. "They ATTACKED innocent people on the street and would have reduced us to... something not much alive if it weren't for that shockwave coming out of these woods!"


"Let me be more precise: not much to be worried about for Sentinels. You all felt empowered, right?" Novus asked. "That was the Awakening of your Essencia. But I shall spare you the long-winded theory for now."


"What matters is that all five of you are here,"  said Fate. "And that the prophesied Son of the Archon is among us."


Both she and Novus approached Clay and bowed before him. "It is an honor to receive you."

 

[Steel Accord]

Dylan backed away and shrunk a little into himself. Sufficiently cowed into line even if Novus hadn't intended it to be harsh. Dylan had always suffered a bad case of servility syndrome and even slight disappointment or rebuttal from teachers and leaders weighed heavily on him. He despised being a burden or a nuisance. The feeling of being teleported, or maybe it was "merely" a mass illusion he couldn't really tell, also felt funny but also in a good way. Kind of like being on a swing or roller coaster, it was disorienting but fun disorienting.


The story that was spun for them sounded vaguely familiar, at least in some ways. It reminded him a bit of how the Pharaohs would have magicians on staff as advisers and healers of the soul to serve alongside the physician as the healer of the body. From the appearance of the kingdom though, it definitely was not Egypt. But this story also felt very reminiscent of the story of Merlin and his relationship with both King Arthur and both Uther and Arthur. Except with the twist that rather than Nimue being the deceptive disciple to betray the wizard it was Arthur himself. That analogy though made Dylan worry as it would mean they were fighting the equivalent of Merlin, THE wizard! Novus informing them that Vorkalth having centuries of experience on them also did not bode well but then again, so did the one who was explaining this all to them.


Dylan was a tad dissapointed that Novus was not going to go into the long winded speech about essencia because it sounded right up his alley but time and place for everything. For now, his dream was coming true. All his life he had sought after the spiritual, the mystical, wanting to experience a higher form of reality. Now the literal embodiment of fate had, for some reason, found him worthy to take the position of a guardian of myth from an ancient evil. He was excited and ready to serve. He was also not at all surprised to see that Clay was in direct lineage to this ancient king. He had a kind of mature presence to him. He was about to congratulate him, but he bit his tongue for now.

 

[PenBlade1326]

"Sorry..." Clay muttered to Novus.  He was so hungry...Erin finally seemed like she had had enough for today.  Benji let out a sigh of relief, Clay just focusing on how hungry he was...And then, Fate appeared.  Literally.  An owl flew over, changing from an owl...to a woman.  IS anything what it seems around here?  Apparently not, it would seem.  "Whoa nelly..."  Clay commented, looking the woman up and down.


"So Fate is a person...or an owl...honestly I'm pretty sure I'm just seeing shit now."  Benji said, setting his supply bags down and staring at the woman, as well as this Novus fellow.  A promise of being clearer than Novus?


Oh...that explains the sudden nausea Clay and Benji felt.  Illusions, Fate telling about a king and a shaman, a kingdom, magic...all of it being shown in some sort of illusion.  Division of an alliance.  The king had been killed, the shaman got really strong and became a tyrant.  Geez.  What a douchebag.  Sentinels being those who chose to stand against him, shamans like him, but apparently not evil and such.  Total comic book material.  Although something didn't add up...


"If you made a prophecy that he would come back stronger every time, how doesn't that make you a bad guy?  Plus...instead of making that prophecy, why not just say this big bad guy would implode and the world would be rid of him?"  Benji asked.  Really, in his head, that didn't add up....


Maybe he just didn't take this weird tale well.


Time of Prophecy...Sentinels...all a part of some war?  


Convenient a descendant had been stowed away.    And those frog things from before are called Spawners?  Huh.  Who came up with that?  "I'm with Erin, how are those things not to be worried about?  They're monsters!  Monsters are something to worry about!"  Benji said, baffled that they could be considered not a problem.  And...not a problem for Sentinels?  So...wait...


Clay's eyes widened as Novus and Fate bowed before him.  "Uh....hi...I'm Clay..." He said, awkwardly waving and looking down at them.  "I uh...I ain't no Son of the Archon....I'm the son of a farmer...."  He said.


Benji stared in disbelief, looking at Clay, at them, at everyone else.  Say what now?

 

[Lady Insanity]

(I think you two literally went within minutes of one another lol)


Aaand an owl just turned into a woman.  First a boy had gone through puberty, and now they had species-changing creatures.  This is the cherry on top of the just plain wacky sundae.  Speaking of sundae, somebody get that cowboy a snack already.  April could practically hear Clay's stomach grumbling.  


The owl-turned-woman was Fate personified.  Chosen by Fate....literally, one could guess.  Cool.


But what isn't cool?  More feelings of dizziness and shit not staying the same.  Does anything in this Coven stay the same ever?  Visually, mentally, anything?


The story being told through illusions and Fate's words made April feel a little weird.  Not sick, really, just...trippy.  How many things are they going to have to get used to, here?  She didn't feel so sure about getting used to seeing and heard all of this weird stuff.


The story about the king and the shaman sounded familiar.  Like something out of a movie.  But April couldn't place it.  Ruling together, eventually parting ways, one killing the other, being a tyrant.  Kind of sounded like an anime she'd watched some time in high school.  But she didn't watch enough anime to even talk about it like a true otaku.  But back to reality.  Well, if this even reality, she may have hit her head a while back and fell into a coma.  It'd make more sense...but April probably couldn't think up all of this in her head.  The story, the Coven, Fate, Novus, these other people, none of it.  She wasn't that creative.  


Ohhh Benji had a point.  "He's got a point..." She agreed with him.  If Fate can apparently make prophecies...why not kill this evil shaman guy?  Who has just been revealed to be named Vorkalth.  


"Time of Prophecy, Vorkalth....a Legion...Sentinels, none of this sounds possible.  And those...Spawners?  How are they not to be concerned about..."  She muttered, shaking her head and gentle massaging her temples.


The shockwave in the woods....awakening of their....essencia?  What the hell is that?  And then, the two weird people bowed before Clay.  The...Son of the Archon?  Who?  He didn't look like anyone special...no offense to him.  April looked at Benji with that same expression of 'what?'. 


"I don't get it....what does all of this have to do with him?  With all five of us?"  She asked bluntly, not putting two and two together.   Five Sentinels...five of them...hmm.

 

[marorda]

"Aren't, if you think about it, good and bad debatable topics anyway?" Novus questioned. "If all those years ago Vorkalth had won, the king would have been branded a traitor, and him the victorious hero. History is always told by the victors, anyway." 


"My dear friend, you and I were both there, knew both sides. In this case the evil of Vorkalth is not as debatable,"  Fate said, smiling before she turned to the five. "As for me and my prophecy..."  she sighed. "The Ancient Sentinels were not able to destroy him, not permanently. They had merely managed to banish him to another realm, severely weakened. His evil powers still lingered everywhere in the world, and he would come back to recollect them. Saying he would simply implode would be giving people a false sense of safety. We knew he would come back. We all knew."


"Prophecies are trippy shit," Novus stated, resulting in a deadly glare from Fate. "What?" Novus asked. "It's a thing people say. We gotta keep up with the times."


Fate shook her head and sighed. This fairy was going to be the end of her, one day.


"Prophecies are... vague. You see an event, but you don't know when it will take place. You see the most likely outcome, but not always the one that will happen. 'tis an awful gift, at times,"  Fate said. Explaining things that came natural to someone were difficult. Even more so in a time where it seemed most if not all people had stopped believing in magic, where magic and horrors such as Vorkalth were nothing but storybook material.


"It would only make sense the Son of the Archon wouldn't know his legacy. It's been thousands of years, and the stowaway was likely left unaware, both to protect himself and those around him,"  Novus chuckled softly at Clay's denial. Or rather... maybe unawareness? "All of you might, in one way or another have your connections to the Sentinels of the old days, but that's a thing I wouldn't be able to tell. Every generation of Sentinels is different than the last one." He eyed Fate. "Remember... when was it? One generation ago? Two?"


"Ah, yes. That time with the priest, you mean?" Fate couldn't help but grin. Poor man had been so... shocked.


"That's the one!" Novus laughed, looking at the rest. "You have a lot to learn, should you all choose to accept your destiny. About your abilities, the previous Sentinels, the Legion... everything!"


"I think my brain jus shut off..."  Erin mumbled to the rest. Fate was an owl. And a woman. People changing shapes, places changing shapes. Magic, wars, ancient evil, destiny... It made her head hurt quite badly. "I don't think I'm following this all anymore."


"Ah, a common reaction,"  Fate nodded. "You wouldn't be the first, dearie."


"But what we said is the truth. You were all chosen for a reason, long before you were all brought here. It is your destiny to become the Sentinels and fight the final fight with Vorkalth when the time comes. Follow me, please."  Novus said, leading them to a pedestal where five gemstones rested.


"These are the Sentinel Charms. They have all bonded to one of you, responding to the Awakened Essencia in your souls,"  Novus explained.


"Just what is this Essencia?" Erin asked, curiously now.


"All in it's own season,"  Fate said. "It will become clear soon enough."


"These Charms are what enhanced the Sentinels'  power. A small fragment of their souls was left behind after their demise. Whenever time comes, they connect themselves to another, compatible soul,"  Novus continued his explanation.


The Charms on the pedestal shone brightly, some kind of energy seemed to be swirling inside it. Red, Blue, Grey, White, and Brown. And each was placed on the point of yet another five-pointed star. The same kind that was embedded in the floor earlier.


As all approached the pedestal, the Charms seemed to respond to something, or rather, someone. As if an invisible hand picked them up and flung it at them, the Charms each flew to one of the five. White to April, Green to Benji, Blue to Dylan, Brown to Clay, and Red to Erin.... the latter much to the surprise of Fate and Novus.


"Impossible..." Fate uttered.


"That can't be right..."  Novus added. The two approached Clay and Erin, staring at them as if either of the two had done something wrong.


"The Son of the Archon is meant to become the Red Sentinel,"  Fate said.


"But now he's brown..." Novus shook his head. "Try switching them around? Maybe the Charms made a mistake?"


"The Charms never made a mistake, Novus,"  Fate argued, looking at the two again. What had gone wrong? Maybe the Charms had made a mistake? Maybe she had made a mistake? Was the Time of Prophecy not upon them yet, then? Something didn't appear to be right. But it seemed.... it seemed there was no chance for them to think of it any longer. Another, even larger wave of Spawners was attacking the city. Someone would have to do something.


"I understand you might have trouble taking this all in,"  Novus said. "But please. The time to act is now. Are you going to accept your destiny and defend your world?"


Erin looked at the Charm in her hand, about as confused at the situation as Novus and Fate (and likely the others as well) were. So... something went wrong here, and the Spawners were attacking again? She clenched the hand holding the Charm to a fist. It felt... nice and warm. Like a flame, but without burning here. She felt the warmth spreading though her entire body. Her glance went from her fist to the... window? What the-? Okay, another question to safe for later.


"I think the questions and confusion will have to wait. We can solve those matters later. Right now... Right now Ebongrove needs someone..."  she glanced to the others. "Or more someones... to kick those frogs back again."


(For the charms: describe how they feel  Be creative, but stick to the element your Sentinel has  So water for Dylan, earth for Clay, nature for Benji, and Air for April)

 

[PenBlade1326]

Prophecies are vague?  Make because they're just fictional...at least that's what Benji thought. Trippy shit indeed.  So past Sentinels could only partially get rid of this Vorkalth guy?  That is...ya know....if Benji believed all of this.  


Clay just crossed his arms, feeling a little weird how he'd been called a Son of the Archon, when in reality, he was the son of a farmer who grew up hurling hay and riding/fighting bulls.  And fixing tractors.  Good Lord don't forget the tractors....they get mud in the strangest of places.  Seriously, how does one end up with mud in the...okay that's extremely off topic.


What's this about a priest?  A priest was a Sentinel....huh?  Benji and Clay nodded in agreement with Erin.  "I don't think I even have a brain to shut off anymore..." Benji commented, Clay nodding still.  "And I do believe my brain has turned into a puddle of goop in my head."  He muttered, crossing his arms and fixing his hat again.  His hat's texture reminded him he was awake, and not dreaming.  Or having a nightmare.  Or hallucinating.  Or going completely bat shit crazy in a matter of what felt like an hour.  This was all a bit much....


Neither of them followed this anymore.  But according to Fate, it was common.  "Is she gonna keep calling us dearies...."  Benji muttered to Clay.  He shrugged.  Being called dearie over and over reminded him of an old caretaker in the orphanage.  Mrs. Fiddlestein....a weird old woman with a fixation of turning every child into her grandchildren.  Literally, the nutty old bat tried to adopt half the kids there for her own children to be grand kids of hers.  Messed up, that one was.  She's dead now.  Not that it matters.  Wow, that sounded dark in and out of context.


They were all the chosen Sentinels, and being told they'd fight Vorkalth in the final battle...yeah....none of the people here seemed like warriors.  Sure they handled the Spawner things, but just barely.  Plus it was because of the Essencia stuff, not any special gift of theirs.  Granted, that could be considered a special gift.  Benji and Clay followed Novus to the pedestal, looking at the charms.  So shiny...so pretty!  And of course, they're all on a pentagram.  Again.  C'mon, Satan, show yourself already...


Benji and Clay let out a little 'gah' sound as the charms flew up to them.  Green to Benji, Brown to Clay.  Did Clay do something wrong?  Because of the color charms he and Erin received, there was some confusion...like he should have gotten the red one.  What's the big deal, they're just shiny little crystals?  Or so Clay thought.  Whatever was wrong surely didn't seem as bad as what was next.  Already it's time to just accept all of this and go on?  Accept this destiny?  It's all a little fast...they couldn't really ask any questions, could they?  "But I..I..."  Benji said, unsure. 


Clay shot a look at the...window?  Spawners were attacking again, it seemed.  Crap....he tightly grasped his fist around his charm.  He got a feel of...home?  Like he was surrounded by dirt, rocks, the Earth itself.  Whatever he felt, it felt right.  LIke he was at home..."I don't know what's going on still, but if them 'er varmints are at it again, bet your britches I'll do what I can to take them down."  Clay replied, nodding slightly.  "I'm with ya, Erin."  He said to her.


Benji gripped the green charm in his hand, the smell of freshly cut grass filling his nostrils.  He could smell grass, fresh scents of pine, and the prickling of grass blades at his feet.  Like he was standing in a field...a nice field.  A pretty one with lots of greenery in it.  The smells calmed him...Benji felt something washing over him, but...


He too looked at the apparent window.  He sighed softly.  "Well I....you guys are insane...all of this is insane.  But I..." He started.  He just shrugged.  "I guess count me in, too..." He acknowledged what was going on.  Well not fully, but it felt like the right thing to do. 

 

[Lady Insanity]

April shook her head.  Prophecies, a priest somewhere in the mix, evil shamans, the Sentinels, she felt like her head as about to explode.  And magic, abilities, Son of the Archon....too much at once.  And way too fast for her.  "Right there with ya," she muttered back to Erin.  Her brain shut down, and she didn't follow at this point.  After all, who could really follow all of this?  Any normal person would have just walked away and called some nice men in white with a big net to come and get these two.  Maybe they're just some hermits in the woods, and everyone here smoked a whole bunch of crack earlier.  Yeah.


"Us?  Chosen Sentinels?  Supposed to fight an ancient evil being...yeah, and I have a third breast on the back of my knee."  She said.  Whoaaaaa, April.  Gee, that was...weird.  She didn't have that...but damn, was that the most necessary thing to say?  Probably not.  Did it feel natural in this situation?  Yes it did.  Yes it really, really did.    Despite the feeling of oddity, she followed Novus and the others to the pedestal holding five gemstones.  "Hmm. Kinda pretty."  She said, observing them all as they lay there on a pentagram, glistening.  Sentinel Charms...containing...souls?  Of past Sentinels?  Okay, where's the Ouija Board?   Where are the hidden cameras?


An invisible hand or something must have did it, because the white gemstone flung right at April.  She yelped and caught it in her hand, thankful it hadn't just plopped int her eye and blinded her. 


As soon as she touched the gem, she could feel something.  Something telling her this was....right?  She felt wind sweeping around her, like her hair was blowing in a summer breeze....but it wasn't.  She could feel wind, air dancing around her....but nothing was happening.  She gripped it tightly, eager to feel that sensation again.  "What is this..."  She muttered to herself.  The way this breeze felt to her, and only her, was like the breeze you feel when gliding across the ice in a skating ring after your first major performance or victory...it nearly made her jaw drop.


Whatever confusing there was with Clay and Erin, it had to wait.  Something looked wrong...and of course...something was wrong.  "Accept destiny?  Already?  Hell, we don't even know what to do..."  She said, looking at this window and gripping her charm.  She wanted to help, especially if Ebongrove's people were being attacked, but...she's not a hero.  She's a college student and a waitress.  Not some mythical warrior...


April looked over at Erin, Clay and Benji.  Erin and Clay, obviously, were the first ones to volunteer.  Benji seemed hesitant...but he agreed, as well.  She sighed softly and stepped up.  "I guess if my roommates gonna go in to her doom...can't let her d it alone.  Not with these guys anyway.  Girls gotta stand, too...and stick together.  It's insane, but I guess I'll do what I can."  She said.  Really it didn't make sense.  Everything going on today...none of it made sense.  And nothing was as it really seemed.

 

[Steel Accord]

"Cassandra and you must have had a lot to share and talk about huh Fate?" Dylan joked at Fate's bemoaning of the uncertain nature of prophecies. It was true, after all, in both Greek and Norse myth, prophecies had a terrible habit of being tragically self-fulfilling. That even if the event had come to pass, it might not have turned out as bad had you not taken the actions you did. Everyone from Zeus and Odin, all the way down to mere kings learned that lesson the hard way. Not as much in Chinese myth, if he recalled. Not out of sense of superiority, just that the classical western myths tended to be, well consequential. Chinese myths were more illustrative and cyclical. Dylan was also growing a little more fond of Fate than her counterpart, who seemed a tad more cynical. He always hated that "history is written by the victors," nonsense. Any half decent historian will tell you there's a lot we thought we knew which reveals itself to be at least partially propaganda. That thinking appeals to those who think might makes right and that the truth won't come out.


Dylan was a bit glad Clay seemed rather reluctant to accept his heritage, be it true or not. He didn't like kings, which is to say, he did not like the concept or system or royalty or nobility. He was certainly glad it wasn't him who was the son of the Archon, or descendant, as he suspected with what Fate and Novus were saying about Erin. Speaking of which, when Dylan's charm flew to him, it felt at first like the initial awakening of his essencia. Then something . . . burst within him. It felt like he had been an empty vessel and he was being filled. He felt relaxed, like he was floating but he also felt . . . big. Immense even. Like nothing could hurt him but even those who knew him well paid him heed. Flowing, calming, crashing, surging, all at once.


"Be formless, shapeless, like water. You put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You pour water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle. Be water, my friend."


~Bruce Lee


"Whoah!" He said, holding and examining his charm in fascination. "As I asked initially, where do I sign up? I've been on board with this since the firs fight with the Spawners." He looked at the wizard and the prophet, and then his new friends. "I've always wanted this. Magic, mentors, companionship, a quest, an evil that must be stopped. I feel like I've been training my whole life for this. Now though, it's time for some payback." He gripped his charm tightly in his fist, ready to fight the Spawners on even terms.

 

[marorda]

(alright... time to see if I can squeeze out a decent reply XD Worked for 7 hours and it was busy as heck. I've been flying all over the store (though mostly behind the registers, fetching coins for coffee, cigarettes, cleaned up a broken wine bottle, a broken beer bottle... Tried explaining to people we DO NOT SELL COFFEE (from the machines) ANYMORE 10 MINUTES BEFORE WE CLOSE... It was exhausting XD Yet still it feels as if time went by really fast)


"Ah, Cassandra. That's a name I haven't heard in a long time," Fate smiled. "Yes, yes, we used to speak a lot back in the days. Apollo sure doesn't appreciate "no"  for an answer. But even if she hadn't refused him I still doubt people would have listened. People seem awfully hesitant to believe people who can see the future. Especially when it concerns women. Part of the reason why I prefer to spend my days as an owl. But... that's a story for another time, I'd say,"  she eyed the window. "You're needed."


"What exactly are we supposed to do? And how are we gonna get there?" Erin asked. "I mean we did kick their asses before, but only because of that shockwave. What if we're not able to do the same this time?" She was glad the others decided they were with her, though some were clearly more hesitant to believe the whole story than the other. And some were more... vocal in the matter than the other. Still... all four were with her. Five of them. Five Sentinels. Chosen by Fate. Nope, it was still weird and she still couldn't quite wrap her head around it. Although the power surging from the gem felt familiar, trusted... right. She just wasn't sure if she was ready to cope with this all. She wanted a normal life, damnit! That was why she had parted ways from her parents, why she had come to a smaller city where nothing ever happened. Well.. not until she arrived. Geez... this really did sound like the beginning of your average young adult fantasy book. Speaking of which... 


"You, my friend, have spend too much time in fantasy books, it would seem," she said to Dylan, grinning. "Just as how I might have spend too much time being hurried in ancient ruins all around the globe. We're attracting the weirdness." She chuckled. It would seem they all attracted weirdness, one way or another. I mean... statements about third breasts were also rather weird, not? Just as being told you're the Son of the Archon, some kind of mystical warrior, she presumed. As for Benji... well... Erin couldn't quite get a guess of him. But she supposed him being the seemingly most normal one of the bunch was what made him weird. Who knew? If, that is, they would al survive this new battle with Spawners and did choose to embark on whatever this weird journey might bring them. 


"No need to sign up,"  Novus grinned. "Fate already choose you, so did the Charms. I'm asking of you to fight again, just this one more battle. Then decide whether you're in or not. With any luck, the Charms will find someone else before Vorkalth sends in the big leagues."


"B-big leagues?"  Erins eyes widened. Whelp, that sounded... not too pleasant.


"Why of course. The Legion isn't just him, his Generals, and some low ranked demons,"  Novus stated it as if it meant nothing at all, as if it were the most logical thing to say. And maybe it was. But for now... nope, still not ready to grasp that idea.


"Now... to get back to the site of the attack, head to the pedestal over there,"  Novus pointed. "It's another teleport, to be sure your stomachs are ready for the teleport-sickness. Once there... do as you did before. Fight the Spawners, and trust in the powers of your souls."


Erin huffed slightly. What? Were they gonna throw their gems at the baddies and keep kicking until they'd flee again? Well... no time to think anymore, it seemed.


"Whelp. Let's just get going then." Erin hurried to the pedestal and stepped on it. And once the others were as well, they were teleported back into the city. Right to the site of the attack as Novus had told them. "I guess we're just gonna keep kicking their butts until they go back through the scary light,"  she mumbled. Weird thing to say, but hey. All had been weird, so this was just one more thing for the pile. She rushed towards a group of Spawners and started kicking again, and punching, just like before. The energy from the shockwave still surged through her body, keeping her going.


(right all, for now it's an unmorphed fight. With my next post, everyone will morph into action and the Sentinels really get... real? you get it )