Fandom Soul Eater: F.A.T.E

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Scorpion Cavern​

As they journeyed deeper into the cave system the whole situation became all the more concerning and confusing, though the bloodshed was amusing for its own right, a fact her more psychotic outbursts was sure to highlight, she did have the presence of mind to study where they were. While Raph's heart was in the right place with his anchor they would be well and far away from it to make use of it any time soon. Going down deeper and deeper into the earth, their paths constrained, and order needed to be maintained, soon the 6 were found, or at least an estimation of where they were.

Humming to herself as she examined the blood on her dolls weapons and set about cleaning it off with rags in her carrying pouch she was more than content letting the boys decide where they were going, how far and who was in the lead. She had not the slightest interest in making sense of the imperfect, chaotic, labyrinth. Listening to all Rand had to say as she looked down at what lay below she shrugged. "Even had I the broom I would have to see what I was attacking and with such weight of numbers I would worry for my darlings."

Still, if they were in the center and a way must be reached, her mind hatched a morbid thought as well as solutions, both of which she gave voice.

"I wonder if they really made their way here and entombed themselves, or if the larger Scorpions captured them and kept them contained to use as food for the brood practically next to them. We should prepare a scenario in which not all can walk out of here. Better to have such a plan and not need it, than to need a plan and not have it.

But I digress, wax and wane, toil and soil... Ah, options I have a few, one we could use Ark and Raph to give me a zip line so to speak and I could carry out the culling with my dolls as you suggested. Ark himself could just dislocate portions of earth to collapse on them, provided we avoid that one mound all should be fine, alternatively we could set fire to the place and hope they have air enough to survive, but depending on the burning we may just roast the six alive by mistake.

The best solution would be to turn them all upon one another, but I have no such ideas on how to pull that off... Mayhap the others have ideas of their own?"

Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Sir Les Paul

 

[Merciless Medic]

Sara & Eva​

Date: April 12, 2067
Location: Weeping Woods - Northeast Forest Line, Valaam, Republic of Karelia, Russia
Collab with Mook-LandStrider
Interactions: Cyrus, Irina, Adrian, Nadia, Dani
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen

Depression, it was something she had more than her fair share of recently. She considered herself rather lucky for the fact that she was difficult if not nearly impossible to influence or fool. ‘I wonder what the voice or call is like.’ Eva spoke within their shared soul space. She looked about from within her flail, her eyes going to the trees. ‘Imagine being bound against your will within a tree. No wonder I feel… off.’

Shivering as she floated within her soul space she produced a blanket and wrapped herself in it. “So are the souls released when we destroy these trees?” Eva asked, her mind beginning to contemplate ways of releasing the souls. A part of her needed to do it, it drove her stronger than her need to steal and give away. It was a part of her she couldn’t really figure out but something she never ignored.

‘Sara, I’m getting the impulse to burn this forest down.’ Eva spoke just to Sara.

The werewolf felt Eva’s impulsions, even if it wasn’t as strong due to their weakened connection. She clicked her tongue, shaking her head as she spoke aloud yet only to Eva. “No… That’s not a good idea.” Especially as Irina explained how this place came to be, Sara spoke within her soul space this time. ‘Destroying these trees might very well cause these souls to go to hell, if it does exist. I’d rather not get the churches or other religions mad at the DWMA or the Fate program if we end up burning down the forest. Imagine that you died, knowing you’ll return to heaven after some pain, and then going to hell instead because someone thought they were doing you a favor by releasing you from your temporary torment early, only to go to hell for all of eternity so all the time you spent in these trees and in pain were all wasted… I can’t condone that. That’s even worse than freeing them from their imprisonment.’

Sara felt absolutely horrified. The way Irina was so blasé in explaining this whole thing, and getting excited and passionate over something so horrible… Granted, Sara had no room to talk, she had a want and an urge to rip and tear sometimes. But talking of the Suicide Forest… Noah told her about it from the stories his mother had and that was one of the reasons why she didn’t want to go to Mount Fuji at all.

… Is my former bell weapon partner there?

No, that’s too depressing, let’s not.

Mulling things over, Sara finally spoke, albeit quiet, forgetting Cyrus was on her earpiece. “So, Christian crusaders did this a long time ago? I wonder when their ascension date is…” She said as she looked over at the trees. “Granted, the Leshy might be causing the spirits to… I dunno… Stay for longer? I don’t think our focus should be on these trees. It’s like Vladimir putting his enemies’ bodies and heads on pikes to demoralize his enemies. I bet the Leshy is using these trees like that as well as a power source. It’s all to ward us away, but he’s weak now…”

Taking in a deep breath to steady her resolve, she hugged Eva’s weapon form to her chest with a soft smile. “Hopefully, dealing with the Leshy will be enough to put at least some of these souls at peace.” She didn’t fully believe that, but it was a good hope to hold onto, for her sake and for the sake of Eva, if she chose to believe that. She then looked over to Irina and Nadia. “If the trees die earlier than expected of them by fire or other means, would they still go to heaven in accordance with this religion, or would they end up going to hell? Regardless if any of these planes exist or their rules, I’d rather not willingly condemn souls who thought they were going to heaven and instead be sent to hell. Eva wants to see the forest be burned despite her and I not being able to use actual flames that burn, but I don’t think that’s wise if it’s going to only free them to an eternity of torture.” She waited for a response for either Nadia or Irina, or even Cyrus. Unsure of what to make of it and she was starting to feel the divide between herself and Eva due to their confliction on this matter.

She really didn’t want to do another bout of rejection again…

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

Date: April 12, 2067
Location: Scorpion Cave, Mojave Desert, Nevada
Interactions: Rand, Maria, Ark
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper

The scorpions were so easy that Raph ended up not using any more spells that weren't just growing or breaking off his chains. They were just so easy to handle, and while it was physically intensive, it was something he was thankfully used to considering he had done several years of living on the streets, going on missions, walking those damn DWMA steps, and the aerobic and parkour exercising he underwent doing all these activities.

He stopped counting past fifty, and the onslaught just continued for even longer. His attacks became more measured as to keep himself from becoming too physically drained, finding a nice pattern to attack the scorpions without them getting near. Once they were done, Raph let out a soft, whooping sigh. He looked down at himself as he brought the chain back to wrap around his arm. That was when he noticed all the gunk on himself. He scowled, now looking over himself with a more fussy demeanor. “Ew, bloody minging… Fuckin’ hell…” He snarled quietly in disgust, wiping off the gunk that attached to his arms and sides, then getting grossed out that he touched it.

Eugh…

The smell was atrocious, but not as bad as this awful goop!

Raph followed the others and got in line as they traveled through more of this subterranean cavern, until they found a room that was essentially a large pit, with scorpions the size of horses guarding this small area where the agents were in.

Thinking about how to even get down there in the first place and give a way to climb up, he realized this was kind of simple. While Rand tried to figure out how to get down there and Maria rationalized what those scorpions were doing (that’s just horrific) and what to do with herself being the vanguard.

“But that’s too dangerous…” He mused, commenting on Maria’s plan. “I’d like to make some anchors down the side of this wall so I can hook my chains there. That way, we can climb back up if Ark is busy. As for what to do with the scorpions…” He then smiled and looked at Maria. “If they’re close enough, I can try my entrapment spell again, but aiming for the tails. They just need to be in a position where I can get most, if not all, by the tails and prevent them from using them. But if you want to make them attack each other… Is there a way to hamper their sensory so they attack anything within range? Sound, a change in smells, maybe even temperature? We did just learn how to that firestarter and ice spell we learned? And, if we did do the whole fire thing, we do have that insulation spell you taught us. Actually, why couldn’t we just spook the scorpions with the firestarting spell, control the burn while they freak out and I keep them from going anywhere, have Maria’s dolls and Ark go into rescue the people trapped inside, and Maria and you can use that insulation spell to protect everyone from the flames as we leave? If earth starts to crumble, Ark can make sure it doesn’t.”

Distract, extract, and escape. It sounded simple to Raphael, he just hoped he wasn’t missing anything else.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Nadia Semyonov - Daniella Ethalyn - Valaam Island, Russia

​

“Fuck, so we can’t even talk to each other now?” Dani questioned with a growl before turning the sheen of her blade towards Irina. The witch’s trailing off didn’t instill a feeling of safety. She wondered why people had to do that. Just get to the point. “What? It couldn’t be what?”

However, her response wasn’t answered. Instead they traveled deeper with the monster cat leading them. Nadia’s comments caught her attention.

“The trees are alive?!” Dani repeated with concern. The call with Cyrus didn’t help much either, for the reason that it was Cyrus as well as the information he provided. Souls forcibly implanted into objects.

And then, finally, Irina answered her question from before, and Dani wished that she hadn’t asked. There was a lot of lore that went into her hypothesis, and Sara seemed somewhat interested. The Demon Sword however opted to unceremoniously condense their situation.

“Great, so it’s a fucking murder forest,” She said with a huff. “No offense Sara, but I’ll be more worried about the superstitions of these motherfuckers when they’re not jumping us.” It was some pagan ritual by the Christians to cope with sin, she certainly wasn’t going to risk any of their well-being for the peace of mind of the dead. “Still… Adrian’s wavelength seemed to hit it hard, so much as I’d prefer to get the fuck out, I’d also rather the Lushy be dead while we have the chance.”

Listening to all that they had to say, she relayed what Irina’s point of view was on the situation, that came first before her own opinions on the matter were stated, and there were all of what the rest had said, Adrian was being awfully quiet she thought to herself. “...And that's a good enough explanation about the trees.”

“No, it’s not a murder forest, it can’t harm us, but I’m sure that bastard is drawing power from it somehow. The only risk is what it can cause us to do if we do not stay on guard.” She said of Dani, ignoring her in regards to the Leshy.

“Sounds like a murder forest,” Dani briefly cut in.

Then there was Irina. “No, that is likely the case of what you said, I’ve seen holy sites of other sorts but not like this. Our new Mentor, the weapon might have been worth asking this, da… As to why do this Mankind has an interesting history, more so my native Russia, from raiders, to Tsars, from the Sickle and Star to the Tricolor flying in the breeze, Arctic Tundra to the Black Sea. Countless men and women with their own thoughts, from a state defender of the Orthodox Church to State Atheism. Those priests back in town likely know of this, or the purges made it lost to the records in Saint Petersburg…

As to beyond Witchkind, oh I’ll keep that in mind the next time refugees cross over or another slave rebellion stirs up, or a male witch is used as a bargaining chip, at the end of the day we both are human, those that give concept and thought to demons and angels...” She says with a snort, it was utter hypocrisy that a Witch of all things would call man more barbaric, when they preyed upon mankind from times long ago. Turning her head to Sara, it seemed her weapon was being a bit…

“...What…?” Blinking at that, the woman that jumped between lawful extremes looked at the pair, or rather Sara and her flail and blinked. “No. We aren’t setting the Deaths Damned Forest on fire. Mostly as we have no idea what it will do to the souls. As to Crusaders, it likely has all manner of times and officials overseeing it.

As to what happens when the trees are burned, when the souls have no confines? No one knows, not even Death. It is why even when in the face of a true divine being other theories and faiths have grown. Some believe they are reborn, some to a heaven or hell, others that they cease to be. No answers have been found; no accounts left. So, we could be just releasing them, or we could be condemning them.

Either way it is not our job, though I will question the Church when we return, the DWMA has no jurisdiction over this, nor is it why we are here. Matters of Faith are between those in the ground and those in the Church. We should be moving now. Anyone else have ought to say?”

“We decide on how we’re gonna not get fucked by illusions?” Dani questioned.

Looking down at the Sword, that would be for all of them to decide, still she was being more than a bit irritated, maybe she should have brought the Vodka. “The best we can do is find another way to communicate with one another and to keep close. The sooner we get him the sooner we can leave, though who knows, maybe now it wants to talk, though I’m of no mind to listen. Irina, you are a Witch, Sara, you with Eva have a detector weapon…ideas from either? Heh, maybe Adrian cares to add in… Ah, Cyrus, unless you have more for us, I can end the call, you may find this all amusing, but there is no point marking us dead just yet. And all else fails we could ask our mentors. But I want something decided now... That prick will be back.”


Interactions: Sir Les Paul Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Cyrus Kallis​

"Blue Reaper"​

Species Human (Weapon)
Partner Lord Kidd
Rank Three-Star

Location Death Room
Mission The Waking Forest
Status Relaxed

​

Tags: RedArmyShogun Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

While Irina was on her rant about the Spirit Forest, Cyrus was already researching the topic from within the archives. Based on all the data present, he concluded she was probably correct.

It was the missing piece to the puzzle. An old Fae Gate was likely irrelevant. The Leshy more than likely was drawing power from this Spirit Forest. It was possible. There were no direct references for the last few hundred years that he could find, but then all of the DWMA's paper archives hadn't yet been digitized. Eight hundred years of history didn't exactly turn digital quickly, especially when it was a global entity even in those early years. In any case, Cyrus had a fairly good idea of the circumstances now.

'Nadia is, in many ways, correct. Let me dispel any misconceptions you may have,' Cyrus commented, still within the earbuds. Nadia seemed ready to go, forgetting he was still present. Well, at least ther e until the very end. Rude. Not that it mattered enough for him to formally comment on; just make a mental note. 'Our world has but one God: Lord Kidd. He is a Shinigami. A God Death. Death is the only constant in the world. Momento Mori, after all. What happens after death is an unknown. The Shinigami can release souls, or in the case of Corrupted Ones, prevent them from returning to the world by allowing a Demon Weapon to consume them. I can assure you, neither Kidd nor his father knows what happens after that release,' Cyrus informed them, though his speech was slightly more long-winded than his normal matter-of-fact commentary. It did relate highly to the Shinigami, though, giving it some credence.

"Spirit Forests are protected lands. Any object housing a soul is a sensitive situation, let alone a whole forest. From what I've gathered, Lord Death wanted to release all the Souls within these forests. Not because of what would happen after, but because he found the process unnatural. He is a God of Death, and the magic at play here circumvents Death. He had the same distaste for it as he does most immortal beings; Maba included. She regresses her age every couple of centuries," Cyrus told them, giving them some insight as to what the former Shinigami thought.

"However, the Pope at the time of this discovery was an advocate for expiratory purification; he even demanded priests sanctify many of these forests. He came to an accord with Lord Death that the Forests would not be cut down, but instead guarded. Per a centuries' old agreement, you are not to damage those trees," Cyrus explained, his words being an answer more for Sara than they were Nadia at this point, "so, in short, no one knows if they go to Heaven or Hell upon release, however, they do slowly lose their corruption--for whatever that may be worth."

"I have nothing more to add. Sometimes, these forests can impact Madness, but only to minor degrees. Your collars should prevent that as long as you don't take literal days to complete the mission. I would typically allow you the opportunity to withdraw without penalty at this point given the finding, but it seems you are intent on seeing the mission out to the end. What little advice I can give you is this: because they have human souls, you can interact with these trees as if they were human. It's probably unwise to touch them or try to feel their souls. Similarly, if Adrian had some profound effect, it was likely because he made their agony a hundred fold worse. This can all be an advantage or a detriment depending on how you elect to use it," Cyrus told them, giving his last lengthy bit of input.

"I'll remain available in the event you need to contact me," Cyrus told them, "just don't underestimate your adversary. If it Leshy, they're just as problematic in person as they are at a range."

With that, the slight hum of the open line came to an end.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

0735 | January 16th, 2067​

OBJECTIVES​

- Locate and Incinerate Mercenary Bodies (0/5)
- Destroy all Magitech Equipment (0/5)
- Reach the plateau atop Mount Stheno (0/1)
- Signal faction Helicopters to retrieve statues (0/1)
- Defend Helicopters until retrieval is complete (0/1)

An Ancient Quarry

Laying the Foundation for a Better Future

The boat ride to Daedelon Island proved as luxurious as Aegis had promised. The entire trip including getting to port, setting sail, and getting to the drop-off point took the better part of a day, but that was expected. Reaching some hidden island at a leisurely pace to avoid drawing attention added a more than significant amount of time to the commute, let alone the fact none of the three had any idea where they were actually going. Apparently, this island was close enough it could be reached in a half-day of sailing, which was their only indicator.

Not that the boat itself didn't provide more than sufficient distractions in the mean time. While it was far from a yacht, it did have various forms of televised entertainment, fine dining, even finer wines, and was manned, as they would come to learn, by a former Meister from the DWMA. A three-star back in his day with plenty of interesting stories about his experiences. Astor, and anyone else that would listen in, would have a chance to hear some insight as to how much the DMWA had changed in the last few decades. It seemed this man, known simply as Captain Isaac, shared many common beliefs with Shihan.

Then again, he was also a staunch hater of Witches. The racism was obvious within him. From his stories, however, it was obvious to see why. He had fought through the Second Coming of Salem, been around for the assassination of Spirit, and his father was an agent before him, telling him stories of Lord Death and his incredible feats during the war with Arachnophobia. Kidd fought in many battles, but his accolades always seemed to fall short of his father's. Beyond all of that, it was a Rogue Witch that was responsible for the prosthetic leg that Isaac had, and apparently the death of his older brother. He had plenty of reasons to be jaded. All probably why he sided with the Plague Doctors.

As the night went on and the drinking picked up, he even broke out the stereotypical pirate peg leg and donned it for shits and giggles.

But, the night had passed and the morning came. The group was given their inflatable, and set off at a specific time in the morning to reach a massive tower and a strip in it called Pegasus Landing. Apparently, the entire island was circled by Charybdis, which was tethered to the island and hunted the surrounding area by creating massive whirlpools. Somehow, Lord Death at some point must have relocated it from the Strait of Messina, a point made by Astor in a scholarly moment. Either way, timing was important to getting on the island itself to avoid the creature.

In truth, the shores of Daedelon Island were beautiful. As pristine and vibrant as any tropical island. Salty sea air breezing by them, the laughing sun present but no overbearing, the glistening water around them, and most of the island untouched by man, left for the creatures to inhabit. The Tower of Pegasus that sat inside the bay area they entered stood out even more so because of it. It wasn't one of their objectives, but it was an impressive creation. Made entirely of stone and only slightly degraded with time, it housed several creatures that took to flight. It was originally created for winged horses to nest. According to the reports, it now housed a nest of harpies.

Landing on the beach was simple enough. Destroying their inflatable boat was as well. It was designed to be incinerated. With them and their gear out of it, its destruction relied on a simple pull tab that was hidden beneath two secure latches. Once it was pulled, there was a slight delay, a spark, then the whole thing went up in flames. It wouldn't be the first thing they were burning, either. The group had been given a map of sorts to the island, as updated as it could be, and it was littered with points on it where the reports from the last group claimed their members went down, or expected to, at least.

After encountering the Harpies, the group attempted to make a direct trail through the forested area to the foot of Mount Stheno. This proved to be a mistake as the area was guarded by centaurs. One of the men was brought down by the legendary archery skills of the centaur while two others were dragged away by them in some rigged traps. Nets that they apparently could not cut with standard combat knifes. The remaining soldiers avoided the rest of the forest to head straight North, then finally East to the foot of the mountain. There, they encountered a horned snake that captured one of their men, and in their fleeing from it, attracted a Griffin. This Griffin ultimately became their only confirmed casualty as they could not pass without killing it. In both instances, they lost a man from their party. It was doubtful that they would retrieve the corpse of the one consumed by the serpent, but said griffin corpse needed destroyed, and traces of Magitech needed removed.

From there, it was a climb up the Mountain to its plateau where the Gorgons lived. Chances were, any survivors would be turned into stone, so they would simply be added to the shipment, and any leftover gear destroyed. For the destruction of all of this gear, the group was loaded up with special incendiary devices. A backpack full of them for someone to carry. They were fundamentally simple devices. Once activated, they released a thin layer of a low-viscosity material that would ultimately be superheated for upwards of thirty minutes. According to the instructions, it would even melt most steels. What it left over would be unrecognizable.

Before the group could even debate over who had to carry the backpack, those harpies they were informed of were already on them. Screeching echoed through the air as they flew down from atop Pegasus Tower. Ugly little things. It was true they had a face of a woman, but the rest of their form was that of an Avian menace. Worse off, they didn't merely just fly by or swoop down at them. As they neared the group, they extended out their legs and in turn fired a flurry of razor-sharp feathers from their thighs, each whistling through the wind. The aim wasn't perfect, but with ten or so harpies all using the scattershot method, aim wasn't a necessity.

EmperorsChosen Merciless Medic

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Adrian Hackney​

"The Maiden"​

Species Human
Partner None
Rank Fate Agent

Location Russia, Republic of Karelia, Valaam, Border of the Weeping Woods
Mission The Waking Forest
Status Enraged, confused

​

Tags: RedArmyShogun EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider Merciless Medic

Souls within the trees?

Adrian pondered on that thought.

A living purgatory. The goal to cleanse them of sins. Somehow, to go from a Corrupted Soul to a pure one again.

He didn't care much for the concepts of Heaven or Hell. Religion wasn't a major part of his life. His parents were some type of non-denominational Christians, and he was taught some of that growing up, but none of it stuck. The concepts didn't elude him. The value that this system had if there was some truth to it all seemed high, but even he couldn't stretch his imagination that far. It didn't suspend his disbelief.

Having experienced Madness for the first time not that long ago and knowing what the first step into corruption was like, it was the cleansing properties here that interested him most. In no way did he think it was worth it. Not only to sacrifice his life, but to take that of another just to imprison them in a tree of all things was far beyond what he considered acceptable. Where his mind went were the fringe cases. Infernal Souls, or at least those so corrupt there was no redemption. Would this system be any better than him simply consuming the Soul? When a soul was consumed, it was broken down into its very base energy and merged with a Weapon. He had felt that plenty of times. For a while, memories or feelings from a soul would linger, but fade eventually. How comparable was just digesting a soul versus torturing them in these trees? Or, were these trees actually just digesting them in their own way?

His mind wandered.

That was, until Nadia called out his name for input. He had to snap back to reality.

He thought about it all, processing what had been said and even what Cyrus was saying. To formulate an actual opinion wasn't easy, especially when so little of this actually mattered to him.

"I guess, uh... avoid hitting the trees..." he said, agreeing with that part at the least. He didn't sound sure. He wasn't.

"Honestly, I don't care about a lot of these details. They don't like... change the objective," he admitted, finally tired of trying to figure out a way to word his apathy to the current findings.

"The only idea I have about the illusions issue is maybe to use technology. If this Leshy-thing is a creature of the woods, I doubt it knows how half our tech works. Earpieces, phones, whatever. I mean, I'm not gonna lie, that idea is ripped straight from a video game, but that doesn't mean it won't work," he added, somewhat shamefully explaining where the inspiration from what might have actually been a solid idea came from.

"I just want some fuckin' orders," he went on, venting some frustration, "I am not the sit-still, do-nothing type."

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Irina​

"The Research Witch"​

Species Witch
Location Russia, Republic of Karelia, Valaam, Border of the Weeping Woods
Mission The Waking Forest


​

Tags: Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen RedArmyShogun Mook-LandStrider

"If I may interject," Irina chimed in after Adrian had demanded his orders and the conversation seemed more open to input.

"Spirit Forests are spiritual anomalies, not magical ones. If they're making this creature more powerful, it must be by some indirect means. It may just be corrupted. If that's the case, then it stands to reason that it's getting a boost not dissimilar to what a Meister gets from a Demon Weapon," Irina explained, giving some insight as to how she believed the system here worked. It was an absurd thought to effectively think the Leshy was resonating with the forest, but if it was true that there was no magic in the woods yet power was gained from them, it was just as good of an explanation as any.

"I'm not sure what Adrian is doing that blocks the connection, but if he can do that consistently, we can probably make in the Woods without too much worry of another treant army," she told them, giving her the fruition of her hypothesis. It made sense, especially to anyone that had ever felt what his pain wavelength did. Sara for example would be well aware of how nigh-impossible wavelength control and even Resonance could be under the excruciating pain his wavelength could generate. Especially if the souls in the woods were already in agony.

Granted, that brought up a whole plethora of additional questions. How did spiritual pain compare to physical pain, for example? Adrian had only ever used his ability to amplify physical pain. Furthermore, how ethical was it to essentially further torture these souls just to make their lives easier.

"It seems everyone follows you, Koreleva Nadia. I still believe it's worth going forward. My mana has returned in full, minus what I've spent casting, since whatever happened that drove off the treants. As long as that persists, I'm far from useless," she told them, informing them that they did in fact have one fairly potent magical ally.

"Oh, and Spiritual Magic is forbidden. There isn't a Witch alive that knows it, and if they did, they'd be sentenced to death. So if some ritual from humans embed souls in trees, that most certainly is beyond Witchkind," she spat back out, taking a charged shot at the comment Nadia made in defense of humanity.

 

[Mook-LandStrider]

Annika
Somewhere in Romania
EmperorsChosen Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun Peckinou Merciless Medic The Regal Rper​

Seeing the ball come flying in her direction Annika ducked down, her hands going to her back and dragging the sheathes down and to her sides. Hands quickly going to her pockets she produced two flames grenades. Clicking the activation runes she pitched them towards the Morningstar pair and the crossbow pair. “Ill try to spare the thralls.” Annika spoke as she moved to the left, her eyes locking onto the one that attacked her. She then took a quick look at the Priest just in time to dodge another strike from the one with the morningstar.

“Cheeky fucker.” Annika cursed as she hugged the ground, crouching down like a predator prepared to strike. Realizing that with Gauss immobile he was likely to become a target for the priest. Reaching out with her soul perception she meant to take stock of the peasants around her but ended up realizing there was an unknown variable in their midst. She could feel the locations of all those but didn’t feel anything from the grasp of the priest.

She was almost certain the man would be packing some kind of weapon partner considering the two pairs already on the field but he didn’t have a damn thing with him. She couldn’t believe it but didn’t sit on the thought for more than a split second. Acting on the sudden intelligence she erupted from her position. Charging herself with her own wavelength she strengthened her legs and kicked off like a feral animal towards the priest as she drew her blades. Clearing the short distance in a split second Annika gunned the engine on her left chain blade, the engine sparking to life as the activation throttle was pulled mid swing. Throwing her wavelength into her left blade, the obsidian charged, her strike a faint meant to goad a parry or deflection out to allow for her following attack.

With her left attack being made Annika stabbed in with her right chainblade, the engine whirring to life as the teeth spun up to speed in an instant. Pushing her energy into the right blade she followed through one way or another. With her leap she left no alternative than to slam into the priest regardless of if her attacks landed or not. She made to unsettle him and cause the priest's balance to fail. "You will make a fine test subject." Annika snarled on impact.

 

[EmperorsChosen]

Katsushiro Hoshi | Southwestern Montenegro
____________________________________________________________________________________________
​

It seemed as though Aegis wasn't bullshitting about the amenities. Luxurious vessel, cozy furnishings, and expensive alcohol. The only thing missing were some call girls to make the picture complete, though perhaps Aegis opted against that after Alek's warning. Nonetheless, the Hoshi didn't seem to shy away from conversation, taking to the whiskey as he interacted with the captain. As Aegis had requested, he seemed to be holding off from being an asshole, or perhaps the both of them were simply big enough of ones to find amusement in the other.

As the morning came and they were deployed, Katsushiro would have liked to know about the water monstrosity circling the islands. As far as Hoshi went, Katsushiro had the confidence and arrogance of one, but even he knew not to fuck with the ocean. However, the feelings of unease dimmed as they made it to dry land.

Examining the map, Shiro let out a short whistle as he noted the last updates from the team. "Well, the snake took care of some of the clean-up at least," He mused aloud as they walked, his eyes drifting up to linger on the tower. It was imposing, and in the distance he could since tiny figures buzzing around it before drawing closer. Closer, until it became evident that these were the harpies the group first encountered.

"Yeesh... I liked them better when I couldn't make them out," He commented as their visages grew more clear. Unsurprisingly, they begun their attack, screeching and hollering. "Really testing the no killing thing right off the bat, huh?" His question was one more of inconvenience as he dashed and bounded to evade the scattering of razors shot at them.

Given his speed and agility, it wasn't all that great of a challenge, though the number did keep him moving. With each jump and weave, he nicked stones and pebbles off the ground. As he gained ammunition, Shiro began shooting and slinging the stones back up at the harpies. Perhaps under normal circumstances, it would do little. However, with a bit of wavelength and enhanced strength pushed in, he was sure it would take them down a peg.

Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul

 

[RedArmyShogun]

~~~Mountain Path to Calimani~~~
​

With the actions of Gauss and Annika, the assault was halted in part, or at least the momentum of it was broken with decidedly mixed results.

The thrown grenades were immediately pulled by the same vector as the electromagnetic pull being focused upon the would be gunmen, carrying the magitech pyro grenades away from the intended targets, while not quite back into the faces of the teams concerned, they veered off to the side, partially between the group and the lesser vampire led gunners as it burst into flame. Fortunately, not coating any friendlies in the field of fire.

A literal field of fire as the grenades bounced and rolled, exploding mid movement like a miniature vortex, swirling with flame. For now, the Lesser Vampires with the gunner thralls halted, not much caring for fire and with the annoyance of Gauss some commands are shouted in Romanian, the meaning unknown to all but the Agent.

<"Move in and beat them, if we can't shoot we still can bash. Around the fire, he's a sitting duck. I don't care what the countess said, we'll bring them back if it's convenient.">

If the Priest were not engaged in battle, he might would have said something to the blood sucker giving orders. But right now it was much too dangerous as in a surprise move, he grabs the rosary around his kneck, using his free left hand to lock the metalic chain and beads into the chain assembly and to shield his hand in this risky attempt. His right hand hurled the axe into the same point of articulation in the other hand. While he ended the immediate threat to his life, well, what was left of life, he is bowled over as he releases his right hand and quickly reaches towards his waist, pulling up a dagger as he aims to stab it into the side of Annika.

"Don't flatter yourself. These old bones can still move."

Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul Mook-LandStrider Peckinou

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Arkayis Misonuka
Rank Fate Agent

Location Romania, Hiking Trails
Mission A Bloody Investigation
Status Focused

​

Tags: RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

Gauss was well-aware his current strategy of locking down the use of their weapons via his wavelength wasn't one he could maintain long. Not due to his stamina, but due to how it left him a sitting duck and Annika alone on the frontlines. She was a potent force, and he quite enjoyed watching her work, but the opposing side had a numerical advantage and she lacked access to Resonance or any advanced techniques to give her an edge beyond what she already displayed. Her obsidian chain blades also seemed functional within his magnetic field, which was useful information, but he was sure some of her equipment either wouldn't work or would be damaged. If anything, the pull from the grenades informed him that it locked her out of using those to their maximum efficacy as well.

He didn't intend on remaining a passive force in this fight. He was sure Noah was fine with whatever strategy he came up with, but he was sure Arkayis would like a chance to vent some steam. Not only that, an abrupt switch in tactic would force their opponents to stay on their toes. It was much more difficult to predict sudden shifts in tempo. Not a dissimilar thought process to why he created the spikes in his magnetic field as to avoid these enemies getting accustomed to it, thus aiming through it.

He assessed the battlefield. Annika was holding her own against the priest. He was a medium range fighter. Even if he wanted to get into melee range, a staff and scythe meant he wasn't a true close-range combatant. Logic dictated it was best to have some faith in Annika. More so, to avoid those two in general to avoid any potential collateral damage. The Bloodsuckers seemed positioned behind the gun line, which itself seem comprised of thralls. Hell, he wasn't entirely sure. The spacing made it difficult to differentiate. Killing the thralls wasn't ideal, but at this point, they were intermingled with Bloodsuckers and he was focusing on Resonance in general.

He would need to adjust his positioning to be of any real use.

'Let's see how well that training helped with your control,' Gauss said to his weapons via their telepathic link. 'There are sure to be more fights, so conserving our energy is important. Noah, try to restrict your electricity; I want to stun them, not explode their hearts. Arkayis... we're gonna burn the Bloodsuckers, but just try not to burn through my reserves in a few attacks,' he instructed them further, giving the layout of his upcoming plan.

With that, he grabbed Noah mid spin, stopping it abruptly. He did not end their Resonance. Not yet. Instead, he used the multiplicative boost from it to dash forward, leaving a sparking trail behind him alongside a neon blue streak from the flames Arkayis now emit. With that, he was able to dart around Annika and the Priest with next to no difficulty, and immediately took to the entirely of the lines behind them.

With the remaining energy from their Resonance, Gauss targeted those within the gun lines to the best of his ability to release what he hoped Noah would restrict to a stun-oriented chain lightning between them. Annika and the Priest were out of range, so he didn't have to expend a lot of energy with Noah trying to control its path. As long as it hit one, it would jump between them and leave whoever it hit--Thrall or Bloodsucker--with a nasty shock. Whether it worked as a stun, kill, or just a painful lesson was entirely up to how well Noah could control his half of their Resonance and his own wavelength.

That move also dropped them out of Resonance entirely. He didn't intend on expending any more of his precious reserves. The fight seemed relatively safe from here.

Instead, he followed that chain lighting up with a quick lunge, swapping his focus from Noah to Arkayis. Now he was closer and more focused, he could see which ones of them were a Bloodsucker. With jet blue flames emanating from the head of Arkayis' scytheblade, he took a quick horizontal slash at one of the Bloodsuckers with the intent on simply eviscerating it in one go. If that didn't work, the flames might do some damage as is. He couldn't be sure just how adept these Bloodsuckers were in direct combat, but it was about time to find out.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Yutu Tatigat​

"Astor"​

Species Meister (Werewolf)
Location Southwestern Montenegro, Bay of Kotor, Repurposed Mage Tower
Mission An Ancient Quarry


​

Tags: Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen

Astor was familiar with the ocean. It was something he actually adored. In his youth, the sea was this frigid, unforgiving thing that very few were inclined to deal with, even in this day and age. Once he escaped his homeland, though, the ocean became so much more. The salty air. The radiant heat. Teeming with life. More sights than one could ever experience in a lifetime. Not only that, the realization that the ocean or the sea was a generality. The waters changed in different parts of the world; no two seas were the same. Each was truly a different experience, if one took in everything the environment had to give.

The boat ride itself had him in a more amicable mood. He wasn't quite as passive-aggressive with his teammates in this new environment. The food was pleasant, the liquor acceptable, and the stories were interesting. He couldn't say he cared much for Witches one way or another, but he questioned the DWMA and its methods regardless. There was some simplistic, albeit primitive, logic in questioning how an ageless enemy could become an ally. The bad blood between the two would doubtlessly require generations to wash away, and it had barely been a few decades. If the alliance persisted, Astor doubted he would live to see the day there was more open acceptance of Witchkind.

The thought somewhat soured him on how long it would take to have his own kind receive fair treatment, let alone stop the atrocities as he saw them in the current day. It stood as a reminder of why he was here in the first place.

It seemed his companions weren't terribly well-informed of Greek mythology. He might have found this a little less disappointing if this was some niche myth, but there existed a saying "choosing between Charybdis and Scylla" that effectively meant the same thing as being stuck between a rock and a hard place. This creature was supposedly epic characters like Odysseus and Jason. It wasn't that poorly circulated.

Whatever. They didn't intend on fighting it anyway.

The Harpies, however, were annoying. He could see them flying out their perch and circling around. They were sure to attack given their flight patterns and tight formations. Plenty of them, too. They didn't seem particularly fast or strong, so this wouldn't be a challenge. When they swooped in to launch their feathers from their thighs, he did find that method to be interesting. Harpies were known for their talons, but to have their legs also be the source of projectiles was a logical adaptation. Their arms were also their wings, so he imagined their feet were used for the majority of their dexterity.

He found it interesting. But, not impressive. From his left side, he drew a slender, slightly short scimitar with his right hand. The runes on its hilt flared to life, and suddenly it was surrounded by a vein of Wind Magic that created a significant amount of swirling turbulence around the blade. It's slightly smaller size was counteracted by this coating of wind, resulting it in roughly being closer to a more appropriate size for the weapon. It did prove to be a perfect counter to these lightweight projectiles as he barely had to maneuver it to deflect them. None even managed to actually hit the blade being dispersed by the wind that surrounded it.

He sighed. Shiro was taking a more direct approach to these creatures. Expending much more energy than Astor felt to. Still, he would observe how the man approached this.

"If they hunt like other Avian species, all we need to do is prove they can't prey on us," Astor commented, giving insight as to how he expected these Harpies to hunt. "Unless they're just deadset on trying to kill anything that comes to the beach, one display of force should have them flying back to their nest," he added in a deadpan tone. He was assuming these creatures, be them mythological or not, would behave like their closest animal counterparts. They may have possessed higher intelligence, they might have even been able to speak, but chances are, they hunted as their ancestors did. If that was the case, this could be a low-effort endeavor.

 

[The Regal Rper]

Ark | Mojave Desert | Rings: 0/3

He was caked in it, and it was a damn good thing he’d left himself topless as they entered the cave. His combat boots were caked in the goop more as well were the ends of his outfitted pants- all save for his arms and face were spotless, save for the goop that spotted his upper torso and chest.

Rand’s disgust was mildly amusing though. Maria may not have reacted visibly much at least but he for certain didn’t even blink much at the mess around them. In Ark’s mind, it didn’t matter. He’d been spotted with blood several times in the past, his allies and the enemy. These were just pests that were in their way to the real goal- saving those One Stars.

And time was of the essence.

As he led, with a flick of his wrist he brushed aside any bumps that might trip up Maria’s dolls. The faster they moved on stable ground the quicker they could execute anything she wanted to put in their path. It wasn’t every time he did it, but when he did the movement they made was just a bit clearer- not that he could do much about the narrowing of the tunnel itself. Doing that would require more magic, more power to force everything to rearrange- and he didn’t have the energy in him to do that right now. All he could do was repair certain damages at best- nothing huge.

Not with the faint ache in his muscles every now and then, reminding him not to go too far.

Collaborating with Rand on this stuff was proving to be more enjoyable than he would have liked to admit. There was a part of him that seemed to have an even greater respect for their mentor figure, as they crafted the map that outlined paths and directions they could take.

All of that intrigue and enjoyment however only got sucked out from the grim fact they were running on time.

Again, Ark chose not to reply to Maria’s comment on the use of flames in the moment.

The girl was growing on him, she really was, and he couldn’t blame her outward voice of thoughts, but he really didn’t want to use that as a solution given all the likely issues it would cause in this enclosed space of air.

Her follow up suggestion however caught his attention, the idea of turning them against each other would certainly speed this process up. Sure, it wasn’t grating work but it was time consuming killing armies of scorpions marching towards their death. Only for Ark to frown at the recollection they were down the very Witch that could have feasibly granted them such a solution. Chant was out of commission- and it wasn’t like he could just conjure up a pheromone inducing spell out of dirt. He wasn’t even sure if Rand knew how to create such an effect when Chanterelle wasn’t present.

He wondered if he could branch off into plant based magic or something along those lines.

Mapping out the pitfall and taking note of the positions the signatures were located at based on Rand’s input, Ark considered things carefully. He hadn’t brought his armor with him. He would be defenseless- it’d been stupid not to bring it, but armor underground would not have helped him. The design and slight bulk would have slowed his movements, made them more restricted and made it that much harder for him to provide support where needed.Now that they were here though, he wished he’d brought something.

“I can’t risk using anything lava related there. Not without putting those One Stars at risk. I could bring this whole place down around me after you guys evacuated the One Stars- but frankly I don’t have the energy to pull that off.” He admitted, still feeling those minor aches in his body from the mana drag.

He wasn’t sure. What he was certain of was the rings would need to come off. All three slid off his bicep with a tug, and clicked them to the side of his belt where a latch had been added on for them.

They couldn’t go down, they couldn’t fight from above with enough efficiency. And from what Rand was saying, if there were members guarding clutches, than these things really were evolving.

“If we use magic circles and my magic, do you think it’s possible to shift the terrain to get as many as the large ones as possible. Shift the terrain to elevate them up, instead of attacking, basically strand them momentarily so we can attack them more easily from a distance?”

Mentions: n/a

Interactions:: Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun

 

[Mook-LandStrider]

Annika
Romania
RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper Sir Les Paul Merciless Medic Peckinou
​

Annika felt the chainblade in her left hand buck for a moment before the engine roared and chewed through the rosary and beads. Shrapnel erupted out the rear cover of the chain blade and sprayed all over the priest as fine bits and pieces were ejected at speed. The chainblade continued and while the priest’s defense would have worked if her
weapons were mundane, his attempts made little difference.

Passing harmlessly in front of him her true attack came up, a thrust meant to drive deep into his stomach. The Axe was next, impacting against the teeth and causing damage to them but being deflected away somewhat harmlessly, pieces being sheared off by the brief impact.

Driving the attack home she impacted him, driving the chainblade in and through the man as they tumbled over. Gunning the engine as she applied weight to it she was immediately coated in blood. It ran off the hydrophobic material but still made for one hell of a mess. In the moment she hadn’t realized the man reached for a dagger, only feeling it when it struck her in the side.

Grunt loudly the blade didn’t pierce but she felt her ribs give abit and wondered if he had broken something. The pain made her anger flare and she immediately reacted. Letting go of her right chainblade she thrust her hand down and into the man's chest, the obsidian coated gloves allowing her hand to slip into his chest like a hot knife through butter. Gripping whatever she could she ripped her hand back out, letting the internals fall onto his chest.

Gripping her chainblade she gunned the engine and pulled it free, some of the teeth noticeably missing from the belt. Breathing heavily she turned her eyes onto the morningstar pair next. Raising her right blade up she pointed it at them before beginning to move towards them at speed.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Rand Mabason​

"Soundwave Sorcerer"​

Species Witch
Partner N/A
Rank Two Star

Location Nevada, Mojave Desert
Mission A Last-Minute Rescue
Status Focused

​

Tags: RedArmyShogun Merciless Medic The Regal Rper

April 12th, 2067​

Rand listened to all of the ideas presented. Each of the three had a different set of creative solutions. Many seemed to involve Ark, but Rand was extremely hesitant to utilize Ark to his fullest. The entire area seemed to be comprised of fairly soft sandstone. He knew Ark possessed the ability to harden various forms of Earth, but not on the scale they were referring to. Any significant change to the cave, he rationalized, had a high chance of resulting in a cave in. If his wind slash alone could shake the cave as it did before, it stood to reason Ark could do far more damage.

Raph had some more creative ideas. Burn them out, gas them out, change the temp somehow. While he wasn't sure if the agents were in an air tight chamber, he could easily test that himself. He taught Maria a spell that could change the composition of air and he knew plenty more himself. That could be a viable option, if the chamber was air tight. The other option of using flames was something that just wasn't on the table. Open flames would burn through their oxygen pretty quick. It wouldn't be immediate given the size of the chamber, but they would have to do their damage immediately. Restraining the Scorpions wouldn't be a poor decision, either, if he was within range.

Ark and his idea had some strategic value, but fell prey to the same problem that Maria's did: the unsteady ground. It did inspire a new thought from Rand, however. With Magic Circles, they could create small earthen spikes to impale the Scorpions and with their small diameter do so without significant damage to the cave. That was a whole idea. It was still risky, but far less so.

Rand continued to mull it over until he thought of a solution that was somewhat in line with Raph, but a bit further out the box.

"The idea of an indirect attack on their temperature has some merit," Rand commented quietly, still thinking of how to word his suggestion. "But, not with fire or by adding heat. If we can freeze or chill them, I doubt it would affect the chambers. Scorpions do hibernate, so I would think that if we lower the temperature enough, they would slow down. Then eliminating them would be child's play," Rand told them, explaining the idea he had, primarily inspired by Raph.

"I only taught you all to freeze water, but we could easily adapt it to air. If I use a magic circle to target the area, I only need one of you to cast the newly adapted spell. Then, once they're sluggish, the other two of you could take out the scorpions one by one. I don't think the scorpions can call for help, but if they can, this approach might avoid reinforcements," Rand told them, providing some outline of his plan. It wasn't full proof and it did rely on several assumptions. None of them were well versed in water or ice magic, so it would also be draining for the caster.

It had its own dangers, but it wasn't quite the same danger-level as bringing the whole cave down on them.

"Any input on that plan?" Rand asked, seeing if they had any more creative insight or additions that could increase their success rate.

 

[RedArmyShogun]

Maria Mayer - Scorpion Cavern​

Adding their own thought and plans in turn, most of them had elements that struck of the mindset of one another and all the plans seemed to depend on Ark from one degree to another. Maria hoped it didn't way too heavily on him at least. Though all of their methods seemed a bit dangerous. Planning such things she rather leave to another, she had voiced the downsides with her own plans. They each may or may not have seen the flaws in their own, but there was little else they could do, time and the safety of the 6 were of the utmost importance, rather than killing the Scorpions, provided the three weren't incapacitated and dragged here as she considered the worst-case scenario.

Rand was then to suggest a plan in freezing them, she was not sure that was wise as none of them shared an affinity or even a proximity towards the elements of water and by extension ice.

"Hmm, no, that plan seems sensible enough, though none of us share that element, I would hazard the spell will be very short lived, a single spell is not an affinity nor can we depend on the element that is opposed to two of our number. With that in mind we should focus on breaking the six out and making a path in and out than in trying to kill them all. As to who goes down, I should be one, I have utility in these sorts of fight and the numbers or abilities to kill more than one at a time.

As to who else goes, I'll leave that up to those two to decide." She said, looking to Ark and Raph.

Merciless Medic The Regal Rper Sir Les Paul

 

[The Regal Rper]

Ileana & Alvilda| Hiking Trails, Romania

The follow up attack was not entirely unexpected. With the rockslide dealt with and their adversaries approaching, her attempt to provide support was stopped when the crossbow fired.

Ileana moved out of the line of the volatile wavelength bolt. Turning Alvilda towards their opponent she aimed, and Alvilda concentrated the wavelength of her meister into the bolt that would release- small projectile of concentrated wavelength the flew to intercept the next bolt the Crossbow Weapon and Meister fired.

She swiveled her aim towards where Annika fought and was about to let loose a round to support her assault against the Priest but a flicker of light caught her eye and she rolled out of the way of a wavelength crossbolt that struck where she’d been. Pointing her weapon back and firing at the Demon Weapon and their partner, Ileana’s attempts at making distant shots to support the others kept finding blocks when the Crossbow shot at her in retaliation.

Smart move getting someone with a good aim. Why didn’t they just use these guys from the get go?

Probably didn’t want to show all their cards.

Having the distance to her advantage, Gauss wavelength effect did not impact Alvilda like it did some of his intended targets. Mor did it effect Annika, which she was thankful for. If it hadn’t been for Gauss making the decision to move up, she would have switched tactics to using the Electrical wavelength to try and immobilize the group as a whole. Charging up Alvilda’s wavelength to utilize an attack like that however took concentration that the crossbow meister was not allowing her the opportunity to utilize while dodging his fire and trying to support her own teammates in the process.

While Gauss landed his attack and followed u against a Bloodsucker, she launched out an attack against the Morningstar Annika approached. With a bullet of electrical energy fired, set to stun to provide Annika the opportunity to provide the finishing blow.

Mentions: n/a

Interactions: Sir Les Paul Mook-LandStrider

 

[RedArmyShogun]

~~~Mountain Path to Calimani~~~
​

As the improvised trio engaged the threats around them the enemy fell all too quickly. First was the static discharge, or more like unleashing an electrical pulse into the gunline. The effects of this proved immediate as the Thralls that were handling this mode of combat were humans. Normal, everyday, average humans. Or the Unlucky ones as some of Gauss's possible mentors would say. It was a miracle in and of itself that none of them died from that alone. Be it skill or luck, what was done, was done.

Next Gauss followed up his attack with hitting one of the bloodsuckers leading the gun line, while a being such as he was more than a match for the villagers, it became rather obvious when faced with Gauss and Fire, that most of the actual fighting was done by others not them. In fact, it highlighted well why the Priest was giving the commands, as while he put up a fight and did in some aspect harm his target, the Vampire simply slumped over dead. Curiously the physical situation of the gunners on his side quickly went downhill, while as of yet not lethal, they would need care.

The Second Vampire however broke the enthrallments she possessed to quickly scoop up and grab a rifle, kneeling with it and aiming she took the chance now to hopefully kill gauss as seemingly in slow motion of what was going on around them the finger etched ever so closely to the gun, the same situation as with the previous gunners now took hold.

Over at Annika as the Priest was finished, his had unclenched the knife. His battle had been brief, but with an actual weapon, how would the old man have fared? A question not for now, but later as the Flail swinging man, turned to face her, unleashing a primal roar as Annika climbed to her feet and started to charge, when suddenly the stun blast had landed home, the warrior, akin to a low one star, swayed, his balance and purpose shaken, it would be rather easy for one above his combat level or equal to dispatch of him, lethally or not. The Crossbow wielding man for his part, had grown annoyed at trading fire with the Agent, and sat his sights upon Annika from behind as the energy bolt was loosened.

As quickly as it started only three people were now standing, well, technically five and one of those pairings was currently stunned. And so, the next round of actions began...

Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul Mook-LandStrider Peckinou

 

[The Regal Rper]

Ark | Mojave Desert | Rings: 0/3

He wasn't showing it in his movements, but he knew if he did that spell he'd have little left in him to do much but minor things afterwards. He'd never been good at his opposite and their previous day of training had proved it, even if he'd been able to manage to get some of that skill down. It might be easier to put them all in a state of hibernation or sluggishness but the spell likely wouldn't affect the entire system and he knew if he used ice magic now, it'd only enhance the effects of his already sore muscles turning them into stiff joints and growing fatigue.

"Raph, if you want to swoop in I'd say now's your chance." He said in offering to his peer. "I can't do that spell in my current state. If we're going to need a quick exit later," which in his mind was always a likely, "then I'd be putting us at risk offering to perform the spell. Not only that, I'd be limited in what I could do afterwards."

Following Maria's line of thought Ark added "I'd rather we just attack them with the use of magic circles. You forget that even if you were to go down there, the lack of visibility becomes your greatest problem, and the only reason I assume Rand hasn't suggested I just harden sections of the pitfall while someone go down, is because it'd likely affect the cave system in some significant way that would leave us in a bind." He sighed, running running a hand over his hair.

"Let's go with the freezing spell." He decided. "I can't cast it, but if it'll give us the chance we need then let's do it."

Mentions: n/a

Interactions:: Merciless Medic Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Thaddeus Thales​

"Gauss"​

Species Human
Partner Noah Wiley, Arkayis Misonuka
Rank Fate Agent

Location Romania, Hiking Trails
Mission A Bloody Investigation
Status Focused

​

Tags: RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper Merciless Medic EmperorsChosen Mook-LandStrider

The female Bloodsucker decided a rifle was her best option. It seemed all of these Bloodsuckers were infantile at best. Jarvis was far stronger than any of them alone. Given the superhuman nature the Undead normally had, it was a strong indicated that most of these were just fledglings, malnourished, and desperately untrained. Creating Thralls was a rare type of magic amongst them, so it must all have originated from the Baroness creating them. They were puppets acting as the puppeteers of other puppets. Just as much pawns as the civilians they enslaved.

Gauss still had the speed advantage over the actions of the Bloodsucker, but he couldn't dodge a bullet. That looked like a large caliber rifle, too. He didn't have time to resonate with Noah again and without that, he wasn't sure if he could sufficiently alter the trajectory of the bullet to avoid him. Nor could he simply whisk the rifle away in time. Those facets of his ability required more setup than he had time to perform now.

So, it was back to the only thing Gauss had going for him: his wits and willingness to fight dirty.

In the time it would have taken the bloodsucker to get the rifle and aim, Gauss elected to run the scythe head of Arkayis through the ground. There was plenty of loose dirt and gravel from the landslide, and his fire wasn't even necessary here. The goal was simple. Kick up a cloud of dust to obscure vision. To that end, it was effective. Immediately after, he took to roll to the side, crouching down to minimize his surface area in the new cloud. Then, charged up his legs with his wavelength for a mad dash forward. This was yet again another chance for Arkayis to shine over Noah. With blue flames spiraling around him in his frenzied forward launch, he didn't risk going the entire way to allow the Bloodsucker a chance to re-aim and take a shot. Instead, he only needed to get in range to make another horizontal swipe and unleash the hellish blue flames Arkayis was so notorious for.

Out from the scythe head erupted a cone of intense flames that gapped the distance between Gauss and the Bloodsucker. This brought Gauss to a dead stop as even he couldn't resist the flames Arkayis created; he hadn't yet acquired the heat resistance of his weapon as they were hardly close enough to begin sharing traits. That same heat was the crux of his plan. Arkayis was plainly hot enough to soften and even melt steel if subjected to it long enough. Bloodsuckers as undead were naturally sensitive to the heat and flame. That should, in his mind, incinerate the Bloodsucker and make the gun to hot to hold or even capable of reliably firing at least a few milliseconds before they could aim a shot at him.

He was playing loose and fast, but this was what happened when you brought sticks to a gunfight.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Noah Wiley​

Date: April 12, 2067
Location: Hiking Trails, Romania
Interactions: Gauss, Arkayis, Annika, Enemies
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul Peckinou Mook-LandStrider RedArmyShogun

Annika was a wild one, wasn’t she?

What was upsetting was that Annika didn’t pause to realize that the grenades she just thrown got sucked up and he deadpanned slightly as the blast occurred within the field he kept up. He watched as the priest somehow used the rosary beads to stop Annika’s chainblades and he stared with some confusion.

It was then that Gauss spoke to them in their shared soul space to try and conserve their energy as much as possible. He gave a grunt of affirmation, restricting the use of his lightning to save some of Gauss’s energy. He had the time (albeit it was rather quick) to restrict most of his lightning, firing off a stunning chain lightning attack, yet it tired him out from holding back. Still, he knew he was going to be given some reprieve as it would be Arkayis’s turn. He had noticed Annika literally pulling out the priest’s heart and he went right back to whatever Gauss and Arkayis were doing, the sight sickening him just slightly.

They had reduced their numbers down and Gauss did the good ol’ dirty dirt trick, attempting to avoid the first bullet and going for a hot swipe with Arkayis. Noah found himself panning his vision around to see what the others were doing, having noticed that one of the enemies had changed their crossbow bolt direction from Ileana to Annika after the one with the morningstar got stunned.

They only had a few left. He was starting to get anxious.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Raphael Valerias​

Date: April 12, 2067
Location: Scorpion Cave, Mojave Desert, Nevada
Interactions: Rand, Maria, Ark
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul RedArmyShogun The Regal Rper

A perfect idea! Freeze them!

Why didn’t he think of that…?

It seemed so simple to Raph that he had nearly forgotten the ice spell they learned yesterday. After hearing everyone’s concerns, he just lightly patted Ark on the arm. “I was already planning on it. I have a better grasp on it than the two of you. I’ll also see if I can’t entangle them with my chains to make it easier on Maria and her dolls.” He smiled, getting his chains ready for what’s going to happen. He then looked to Ark. “Oh, and it’s not only going to affect the cave system, but yourself as well.”

“Alright, Rand. Let’s freeze ‘em.” Raph said, already getting ready to make the adjustments necessary with Rand’s guidance to his freeze spell within his grimoire.

 

[Merciless Medic]

Alek​

Date: January 15, 2067
Location: Pegasus Landing, Daedelon Island
Interactions: Shiro, Astor, Harpies
Mentions: N/A
Sir Les Paul EmperorsChosen

The boat ride was decent, but Alek just wished he could just sleep. The captain wouldn’t shut up, even if the stories were interesting. Actually, that was the only reason why he couldn’t take a nap. The stories were actually riveting and it bothered him, but he wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. He enjoyed a couple drinks, stared off into space, and let everyone else talk, not inclined to really talk about witches or anything else that was brought up.

Especially not witches.

Upon arrival to the island, he couldn’t help but admire its beauty. It was a shame they’d have to trudge through it, but it was their job. After getting on an inflatable and arriving to shore, he busied himself with destroying the boat, pulling the tab and leaving once the boat sparked and burned, and then…

Damned birds…

Apparently, these things were the Harpies. He remembered them from some story book about Greek myths. He didn’t think some pastime would actually help him here. Looking at what his comrades were doing, he raised an eyebrow at the Hoshi and sighed as he watched the man dance about to kick stones at them.

He rolled his eyes, standing behind Astor to use him as some shield to avoid getting hit by the feathers. “Come on, Hoshi. There’s no time to dance.” He walked out of Astor’s shadow, clenched his fist to summon the white blood, then powered his legs to jump so his punch was in range to shoot out a strip of what looked like bandaging from the white blood to grab on to one of the legs. If he got it, he would swing the bird thing around before letting go and letting the momentum carry the bird back to the tower it came from. “Buzz off!” He snarled, really not wanting to be bothered right now.

 

[Sir Les Paul]

Rand Mabason​

"Soundwave Sorcerer"​

Species Witch
Partner N/A
Rank Two Star

Location Nevada, Mojave Desert
Mission A Last-Minute Rescue
Status Focused

​

Tags: RedArmyShogun Merciless Medic The Regal Rper

April 12th, 2067​

The plan of freezing out the scorpions seemed to quickly take root. Ark apparently was too drained to try it, though Rand was of the opinion that he also didn't want to venture so far outside of his field of specialty. Not that it would be that much less draining for Raph, but Raph also wasn't hit as hard by their previous training. Maria was right in her assertion that she was likely the best to go down and fight.

What he noticed with these three is that their minds still hadn't expanded too far outside of their comfort zone. Raph was showing the greatest signs of shifting his perspective, but it still seemed like the three had an overall narrow viewpoint of their casting. Rand wanted to change that. He couldn't expect it to occur overnight, but he did wish it was slightly more profound after the extensive training he put the group through with the elements.

What he soon realized was that he would absolutely need to teach them more about the structure of spells, especially Magic Circles. He taught them the basics, but there was a world more to explore. Especially if they were going to learn to utilize them on the fly. Magic Circles could be a massive boon to three Sorcerers if they gained some mastery over them as they allowed for adjustments on the fly without rewriting their spellbooks. They, alongside Calculation Magic, were really the only equalizers Sorcerers had with Witches.

Time for those thoughts came to an end.

Rand cast his Magic Circles, the ground glowing blue with his mana and tracing out various runes, right up until more runes sprang out from the ground around the tip of the pit fall, creating a crescent-shaped semi-circle around it. With that made, he instructed Raph to place his hand on the black fabric that comprised the top Rand wore, and channel the spell into him. From there, it went into the circle. Not long after, waves of cold air poured down from the lip into the pit, making use of the natural physics of the cold in that it was heavier than warm air. If anything, it compared to a silent and considerably colder air conditioning unit in the cheaper apartments in Death City.

It worked. The humidity inside the cave even outside of the pit began condensing into frost. It took some time. Five, ten, fifteen minutes, and it was certainly cold, enough that the insulation spell Rand taught them might have proved to be a wise gift at the moment. A peak down in the hole with either a Magelight or Seismic Sense would show these Scorpions were all but still, quiet, slowed, nearly in a slumber. Rand made up a large portion of the mana consumption for this cost with his Magic Circles, but even still, Raph wouldn't be able to maintain this spell indefinitely. It was time to descend, even if more time to slow the scorpions would have been ideal.

All that worry proved almost entirely pointless. Maria was the first one down with her dolls, and there was no reaction. Ark soon followed, still no reaction. The first Scorpion slaughtered by the dolls merited no reaction aside from a shrill shriek once its outer shell was penetrated, and even then its exoskeleton was much weaker than that of the spiders on Dall Island. More liberties were taken with the others, upping the light, killing them quicker. The light spurred some activity, but they were slow and sluggish. Their tails hung low, hardly prone to attack. It wasn't exactly a comfortable temperature for either Ark or Maria, but it made what could have been a risky fight within close range into an absolute slaughter.

In just a minutes, the Scorpions were dead. No more Scorpions seemed incoming. The path was cleared.

Raph and Rand ended their spell and joined the rest of the group after their anticlimactic cakewalk of a combat encounter. More Magelights illuminated the area. Carcass after carcass of the adult scorpions dead with their oozing purple-blue blood spilling on the ground. Six holes across the entire pit were open-air, and inside them was the still-developing life of egg clusters. Near the bottom here was the actual hole they were interested in. It was blocked by a large slab of fallen sandstone, many of which were around the pit as well, that had indentations from where the scorpions had tried and failed to carve through it. It seemed the suggestion that the group did this of their own accord was quite likely, all things considered.

Rand had Raph try out the spell he taught that changed the density of Earth, knowing it would be more draining on Maria due to her affinity. Same for him, in fact. With that, it was soft enough for Ark to easily clear without disrupting the surrounding Earth. Inside was pitch black, but deeper within the tunnel were still most definitely six forms of human life. Ark could have sensed them, too, though mostly their bodies. Each still had a heartbeat, which itself confirmed they were alive.

"We are with the DWMA," Rand shouted into the tunnel, "we're here to rescue you."

With that, activity sprung to life. Two individuals crawled up and out of the tunnels, obviously finding it difficult given their unstable nature. It wasn't exactly easy and they were caked in gritty dirt, some finer sandy particles, and what appeared to be like some amount of mud from the ground, likely made by the high humidity being frozen then thawed by their body heat.

"Thank fucking Death," said a male that emerged into the magelight. Nothing special about his more rugged combat attire, though he very clearly chose now-stained lighter colors knowing how hot the desert got. The woman beside him was much the same, though for whatever reason, she elected to wear a sun dress of sorts. Chances were, she was a Demon Weapon. "There are pitfalls all over; that's how they get you," he informed them, "we fell down one. Bryce has a broken leg. This was all we could do."

And, it all came together. These scorpions were using pit traps--which wasn't unheard of--to ambush their targets. A bunch of inexperienced agents in the dark not only fell for one, but ran into a wavelength-resistant strain. And, on top of it, they had an injured ally. These scorpions were always getting smarter and more dangerous. Rand wanted to put an end to them.

"I'm beginning to wonder why culling these scorpions is a tradition for new agents," Rand commented with a slight huff of superiority.

"Raphael, prepare a chain ladder to get us out. Figure out a way to make some type of harness or net for the Agent with the broken leg," Rand instructed. "Maria, if you can, would you check the leg? We're all supposed to have to first aid skills, but I imagine if anyone of us can splint it well, it's you," Rand asked, this time being more respectful with a request, "and, no, I don't have any Healing Magic capable of dealing with broken bones. Scrapes, burns, sure, but it's draining. If you don't have an affinity to heal, you basically can't do it in any meaningful way," he explained.

"Ark, with me," Rand said, now walking over to the other egg clutch pits. Rand knelt down and created a complex magic circle on the ground, not unlike those that Raph was using earlier, except this time in a smaller area with much more defined parameters. "We're gonna burn each of these egg clusters. I don't want them ever hatching," he explained. He doubted Ark would have any objections. Burning them inside a Magic Circle would right up his alley, hardly a mana expenditure given it was his element, and eliminating a threat before it had a chance to hurt others.

In half-awe of what was ongoing, the male Agent that had just emerged from the tunnels asked, "Y-You're all... Witches?" His tone conveyed disbelief. Some type of scrutiny, perhaps. It difficult to tell if it was true surprise, or some type of prejudice he might have had surfacing as curiosity towards their efforts, but his questioning nature made it fairly clear that he was uncertain about the efforts of their kind to rescue agents like himself.[/color]