Fantasy Well of Wishes | Main IC | [Closed]

[BriiAngelic]

• Roland Marek || Savanna Elven Street Kid
• Helena Lis || Human War Cleric

• 
  
  
  
  Tags:
  Aedzal ( Colorless Spectrum ) Ayana ( Jet ) Valentine ( Arcanist ) Lorrin ( Pik ) Gwen ( Sarahspn ) Celestine, Amalia ( Anne Boolean ) Obsidian, Kuma ( Lost Echo )
  

  ~ Above Ground ~
  Inspire the Liars || Roland's CS File
  
  He took the outer layer of his dress and tore it creating something to tie up the carcasses of the things in. He… they had to be of some use. He’d never seen them before, and if they were going to show up again he wanted to be ready. He tied them into the cloth completely covering them from view.
  
  He heard Aedzal, the woman that saved him, heaving. Oh of course she would. Even if the smell of decomposition hadn’t started yet he couldn’t imagine death was a sight anyone wanted to see. He walked over to her placing the makeshift bag down far enough away to not gross her out.
  
  “Miss Aedzal? Are you okay? We have to go now, it’d be a problem if there was another earthquake right now.”
  
  He asked her as he approached her and Valentine. He would wait for them too. He saw Helena look back biting at her lower lip and he nodded to her. He was okay now… He had to be. Helena seemed to accept it for the moment but he was sure that she wouldn’t let him be long. With a quick snag of his bag he took up with the rear of the group. He looked back just a second at Freya, he could see where it would make her vomit. He felt tears welling up in his eyes as he turned back to the rope.
  
  He looked at the empty streets with confusion.
  
  “Wha- where did… Where is everyone….”
  
  He looked back at the others as if doing a headcount. Kuma, Mom, Lorrin, Obsidian, Aedzal, Amalia, Gwen, Ayana, Celestine, the uh swordsperson. They were missing a lot of people, and so was the town. There was no guarantee that they’d find them if any of them ran into what they did.
  
  “Why is the church fine?”
  
• 
  
  
  

  ~ Above Ground ~
  Dispossession [Music Box] || Helena's CS File
  
  This town sucked ass.
  
  She was ready to leave. She’d nearly lost Roland, Kuma tried to be a martyr, Freya died and nothing was changing that. At least they’d been reunited with a portion of their Caravan. She heard the heaving behind her of Aedzal and knew this must be the woman’s first time staring death in the face.
  
  Lorrin seemed to beckon them to leave and she nodded. There was nothing for them here, the best they could do was aim for a headcount and flee with as little losses as they could. She kept her eyes on Gwen as the woman went ahead. She was clearly limping but this dreary place was not where one would wish to be treated. She followed close behind the woman after locking eyes with Roland, he’d be safe she was sure. He was only helping Aedzal and Valentine.
  
  She looked upon the streets. Empty. Twilight. Eerie. When they had descended they’d left a wave of people that had nearly tried to drag them into the church. She’d left her once good friend now turned into some sleazy shadow to run away from the clear danger. The church that had not a single mark.
  
  Just what was in there?
  
  The thing that drove masses of the touched in the head to it. She had a flash of a memory of hushed whispers in the pews. Of Sister Knightley looking terrified. The stone-cold Matron never seemed phased, yet the terror of that one day still held her memory even now. Even with having grown up in a church, she’d never really cared for them, and she certainly didn’t wish to embark to it now.
  
  Yet as Gwen looked her eyes followed. Were the others headed there? She barely remembered who went where. She watched as Gwen continued forwards. Taking a stride behind her ready should the woman collapse.
  
  "We should regroup with any in the lodge. Gather our things from the lodge, grab the horses, and split. One group should leave town immediately, some are too injured or drained to afford another fight. Another should look in town for the others, but even then we shouldn't dally long. This town is nothing but dangerous."
  

 

[Anne Boolean]

Master Elizabeth && Kiel Shan && Leone Locke
(Collab with Jet )
​

The Master Mage’s brow furrowed as the dragon seemed to just swallow up the lightning bolt. The way the purple current pulsed through the beast made it seem as if it had just simply absorbed the electricity. This being seemed to go beyond all the scientific commonalities she had seen throughout her long career.

Her temper rose even more when the dragon’s rider scolded them for hurting his poor pet. “Your help is utterly counterproductive!” she called. The woman was practically red in the face when the light-blue-haired man then went on to blame Luna’s death on them. Before she could spit out any more spiteful words, his sudden change in demeanor caused her brow to be raised.

This man wasn’t just some psychotic sadist, but, as Tallis had theorized with his son as well as the rest of the townsfolk, was under some sort of mind control. Was this… magical in nature? If so, she had never come across anything like it during her studies and didn’t have the first idea of how to counteract it. The rider had become lucid not just long enough to warn them but also cause the dragon some pain, resulting in her throwing him off her back. Despite him now being on the ground with everyone else, Elizabeth was hesitant to consider him an ally. Sadly, she was right to be cautious, as he went on to attack one of the newcomers, aiding the beast even though he was no longer mounted.

Her partner’s response brought about a rare sight: a smile on her face. “Well said, love,” she responded. The woman was certain Leone heard Tallis’s response, but felt the need to reiterate, “we will not collapse these tunnels!” before channeling magic from the white orb to rebuild any damage Leone may have done to the ceiling and fortify the architecture around them. With how the dragon had now started swinging its tail around, the woman assumed things would get messy. On top of that, her specialty was in everyday magic. She wouldn’t be very helpful in combat, especially if her lightning bolts were simply swallowed up by the beast. It would be best for her to keep their surroundings stable.

There wasn’t much Elizabeth could do while she channeled her magic into the infrastructure around them, even with the aid of the white orb. Thankfully, she had chosen a safe, somewhat secluded space to start casting her spell, as to not allow herself to be too prone. While her concerns about Tallis, Luka, and the rest of the people of Stone’s Throw stormed in her mind, she tried her best to play her part in their path to success. There were shouts among the others, with one defending another from a lightning attack, two grabbing the dragon’s limbs, and one hopping on its head and trying to attack its eye. Despite this being a ragtag group, they seemed to be working fairly well as a team. The Master just hoped their strategizing would prove fruitful.

“As stable as ancient catacombs can possibly be!” she shouted back to the armored man when he questioned the integrity of the tunnels they were in. “Do try not to be reckless!”

Meanwhile, even though Kiel’s lightning bolt was evaded, the lifeless smile from his face didn’t fade. “We’re still playing these silly games, I see…” he said in a voice that was equal parts menacing and comforting. He brought his hands together for another spell, forming a small orb of flames in between his palms that slowly started to grow. Before it could be used for its intended purpose though, the fireball was snuffed out as the light-blue-haired man found himself being pushed to the ground. He wriggled around under the weight that was now holding him down to eventually turn over and see the dragon woman. “Come now… these games are becoming quite childish and dull. Let’s just stop this, shall we, Yo?” he asked as his lightless eyes stared into her’s.

Leone sprinted across the room and skidded to stop beside Yo. "I'll bind him!" He pointed his palms down and manipulated the stone, forming cuffs that looped around Kiel's wrists, locking them in place against the ground. "That'll keep him down!"

Leone appreciated his handiwork for a moment, then sharply stared at Elizabeth. "This isn't a game, don't fight me here I know what I'm doing!" He pointed his hands up and cast kinetic waves at the repaired ceiling, covering the dragon with a thin layer of sandstone dust. "When the tunnel destabilizes we can evacuate. I'll drag Kiel on the way out!" He kneeled and pulled his rope-cube from a back pocket, then tied a line around Kiel's squirming ankle. "This should work…" he stood and looked at the woman once again. "If you have a better idea, share it or hold your piece!"

Even with his arms being cuffed, the light-blue-haired man didn’t stop smiling and didn’t stop struggling. He bucked his hips up quickly to throw the woman weighing him down forward suddenly. Expecting her to catch herself from falling forward with her hands, he prepared to pull his untied leg in close to his chest underneath her and kick her off.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth let out a low growl at Leone’s defiance. “I’m well aware this isn’t a game! You’re the one acting like a child who hasn’t gotten his way right now!” His plan took into account everyone in the tunnels with them, even the hypnotized dragon rider, yet it wasn’t without risks. There were other factors he wasn’t considering though. “And what of the people above ground?!” she questioned. “We’re under the church and there are many people taking refuge there! You intend to sacrifice them in order to make a cowardly escape?! I knew you and your lot were fools for searching for the Wells, but I’m surprised to hear you’re cowards as well!”

Leone venomously scowled at Elizabeth. "Deepest apologies, but the Inquisition wants us dead. If you want me to stop on the church's accord… you've hit the bottle ten too many times." He cast another kinetic bolt, smirking when cracks branched across the ceiling. "Not to mention this collapse should be a small one, but if you have another plan let's hear it!"

Interactions: Yo, Dragon
In Scene: Hubyr ( Taigakitt ), Sigurd, Tallis ( BriiAngelic ), Vaal ( The Regal Rper ), Nezumi ( Lost Echo ), Luka

 

[Taigakitt]

That Path Again
Collab with: Sarahspn Fred Colon EldridSmith ​

Rose watched as the two figures walked, well, limped out of the cell and down the tunnel. She scrunched her nose at the sight of their mangled bodies, dumbfounded at how they were still alive. Luckily, they were going the opposite way that her sister and the others went. Letting out a sigh, she leaned against the wall to collect her thoughts.

“I’m going after my sister. You guys can either join me or follow those demons out.” She said, wiping the white blood off of her knife. Looking down to her leg, she grimaced at the wound one of the crawlers gave her. Blood began seeping through her boot and she shrugged it off. It wasn’t the worst injury she’s gotten and it didn’t seem to affect her too much.

Without looking back at the others, she exited the cell and began walking down the tunnel in the direction her sister went.

Liam, stunned at first by the strange creature oozing out, now notices Rose’s injured leg as he surveys the group. He didn’t care about the random dude still so he was ignored, and Daisy looked fine. Liam decided it would be best to carry Rose to Jane, since he was headed that way as well.

Liam slithered behind her, stuttering to try and offer before tapping on her shoulder. “W-W-Would you l-like to b-be carried, I-I’m h-headed t-that way…” He timidly offered, he was getting better at speaking compared to before, but since this was the sister of his crush it carried a different pressure than most others. He really wished he could talk like a normal person, but due to his social anxiety such things were currently beyond him. However thanks to Jane he felt he was getting a little bit better.

Rose felt the tap on her shoulder and quickly pulled away. “No. Don’t touch me ever again.” She said, giving Liam a glare. Turning forward, her face rested into a frown. She continued walking, slightly picking up her pace.

Liam recoiled at her response fearfully, what had he done to make her mad at him? His stomach twisted in knots and he felt like curling up and hiding there. ‘Why do people hate him for things he didn’t do? Was it wrong of him to have desires of his own? Why did things always turn out this way when he tried being nice?’ He thought to himself as he rushed past Rose, holding back tears. He kept following Jane’s scent as fast as he could, leaving the others behind. He wasn’t going to stop or turn back. Jane was different, she was nice, she wouldn’t betray him… right?

Daisy watched with vague consternation as the other two seemed to ignore what she’d been saying and passed her in the tunnel. Rose’s casual abrasiveness and Liam’s painful awkwardness.

She turned back to the only remaining person in the cell, Kadar.

“Well. I suppose they want to do their own thing. I’m going to head in that direction as well, keep track of them and look for Pozou and the others. What are you doing, stranger?”

Kadar snapped his exasperated eyes to Daisy. "I choose safety in numbers," he stepped through the door and glanced between the women, smirking before he spoke. "Finally the wheat's split from the chaff, that man will get people killed." He scowled and released a disappointed sigh. "To think someone so weak comes from the desert wilds, pathetic." He subtly shook his head and started to walk, scanning the shadows for monsters of the deep.

Daisy lifted an eyebrow at Kadar, but said nothing. Getting into an argument wouldn’t help. So she simply let her seismic senses spread out in every direction, testing for hidden foes or passages while walking with the rest of the group that remained.

Rose rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh as she watched Liam run off. Glancing back at Kadar and Daisy, she shook her head. “Do not speak ill of my comrades.” She said, scanning the surrounding area. The sound of dripping water caught her attention and she looked to the walls. In the dim light, she could faintly see small puddles collecting water at the edge of the walls. Looking ahead, she hesitated. It was getting darker and she didn’t know what lurked in the shadows

“Could either of you cast a light spell of some sort?” She asked, stopping her steps for a moment. Looking back to Daisy and Kadar, she patiently waited for the cavern to be lit.

Kadar flashed his bracelet and scowled. "Without this I'd cast a lumen" he picked at the bracelet and increased his pace, tapping his spear-shaft on the ground. "What about you geomancer? Or were your masters too narrow for light spells?"

“Let me go ahead.” She repeated, sighing deeply through her nose. She would be calm and reasonable, if no one else would be. It was funny, she thought. How she was a nervous wreck around other people in a safe, friendly setting, but here, when there was peril all around, she felt perfectly calm. At least in regards to speaking with others.

“As I said before, I can feel our surroundings. I don’t need light, so no, I don’t know how to cast it. But unless something is capable of flying and not disturbing the air in these cramped tunnels, I will sense them long before they reach us.” Though with the strangeness of these shadow creatures, she thought it was totally possible there was something that could do that. “It will be inconvenient for you, but it’s better than nothing. Better than light, in some ways, as I can sense hidden passages and people even through walls. I can make passages, too, if our tunnel brushes up against another tunnel closely enough. Anyway, if we can find the gear that was taken from us, I know I have a lantern in my backpack.”

Rose sighed and watched as Daisy walked past her. “I would still like to be able to see.” She muttered, crossing her arms. She resumed walking and stayed close behind the woman, attempting to watch for things lurking in the shadows. Glancing over to Kadar, she looked at his bracelet. She silently handed him her knife so he could try to cut off the jewelry. A bracelet still hung around her wrist but she didn’t mind it. It wasn’t like she had any magic and she liked how gold looked on her.

Kadar passed the blade between his hands and chuckled. "Better than nothing… thanks." He examined his bracelet and pressed the knife against it, bearing down until a groove formed in the metal. Then he started to saw. His rough movements cast metallic squeaks through the tunnel, and with each one the groove deepened more and more. "These bracelets are weaker than I expected. With a little mo—" he suddenly stopped as the bracelet snapped apart, then tossed it away with a smile.

"Lets see what we have here…" he waved and summoned a purple lumen orb, revealing the next twenty feet. "Much better, now for our gear. I agree we must find our va— weapons, without mine I won't be useful."

With the light spell’s help, they could see that they came upon the same fork that the trio had passed earlier. One direction would obviously lead to deep water and that there was no visible way through. The other way went at a slight incline. The only difference for them was that the ancient lichens were not glowing and carcasses of the creepy crawlies lay scattered about. One was splashed up against the wall down the watery direction, foaming up where any open wounds touched salt water.

Rose looked between the two paths. Dead crawlers littered the area, illuminated in the purple light. Her eyes landed on the one near the stream. Furrowing her brow she watched the foam from the creature float downstream. Looking to the other path, it seemed to be going upwards. Without a word, she strode towards the inclined tunnel. A string of voices could be faintly heard, echoing down the path. Listening closely, she recognized one of the voices to be Jane’s. She quietly gasped and picked up her pace.

Emerging from the other side of the tunnel, she felt a wave of relief wash over her at the sight of her sister. “Jane.” She sighed, taking a few steps towards her.

 

[Taigakitt]

Yo Saiwa​

Yo put all of her 185 pounds on Kiel as he had not avoided her. She did her best to keep his hands from meeting. She frowned at his words, “You attacked us first. Just snap out of it!”

Leone came and used a stone magic that helped with Kiel’s wrists, though relief refused to wash over her as the bigger danger still loomed.

Surprise came over her when Kiel managed to throw her off and she found a foot to her abdomen and she was coughing on the ground, hand covering where she was just kicked. No matter, unless he could break Leone’s cuffs.

Staggering up, she hesitated before finally drawing out her dagger from her thigh. She had to ignore the argument between the Master Mage Elizabeth and Leone, mostly to keep from unfocusing. She knew they were disagreeing on something, and glancing up at the ceiling, it seemed to have made negative progress to actually cracking and falling.

“I think if we can get away from the monster, we should. Drag Kiel if we can, and get out where we don’t risk collapse.”

Stone spoke up from his position on the dragon’s head, where the dragon was trying to throw him off at this point, “We have it distracted for now!”

With an intake of breath, she said, “We need a plan we can all agree with! We can’t be fighting against each other right now, else we will fail, and that thing will kill us!”

Mentions: Jet Anne Boolean The Regal Rper BriiAngelic Lost Echo ​

 

[Fred Colon]

As they walked, Daisy was about to alert the party that she sensed people up the path with the stream, but then realized the point was moot. Dead crawlers littered the area and Rose seemed to have already decided that that was the path to take, somehow.

As they left the tunnel she was pleased to spot Jane, Pozou and Tammond, as well as a man she didn't recognize. She was also, she supposed, pleased to see Amal even if they had abandoned the rest of the party during a time of need. At least they'd gotten Daisy's bracelet off before they'd left.

"I see we've accrued a few more of us." Daisy said, resting the tip of her spear in the earth. "I'm Daisy Rosenbloom. A pleasure. Forgive me for being short, but do any of you know where stolen possessions might have been brought? If not, I understand, but when we were captured..." She motions to herself, and the fact that she was wearing nothing more than a shift. "They took our possessions. I have something that I need to recover before I leave this hell hole."

Her eyes turned to the wounded Pozou, and her expression softened. She wished she could help, but it seemed Amal was doing something, and what could she do that Pozou couldn't? He was a doctor, after all. She only knew the body through examination of the dead. Useful, but only when there wasn't a proper doctor around.

"How are you doing, Pozou?" She asked, trying to crack a smile. "I know the typical Quetzola funerary rituals, but I hope you won't need them. You should rest. Take a nap, if you must. I'll carry you if I have to." Though she hoped someone else would do that instead. Perhaps she could put Pozou on Liam's tail? "You seem tired. Sleeping is only dangerous for head wounds. If you were going to bleed out or something, which you aren't," She added quickly, "then it would happen asleep or not. Sleep might shore up your strength, however." She was sure he knew all of that, as a doctor, but in a situation like this she knew sleep was hard. She could encourage him to rest, at the least. He wasn't going to help in a fight in his current state regardless. Hopefully they wouldn't need to fight at all and she could find a way out for them.


EldridSmith Taigakitt Jet Sarahspn Mook-LandStrider

 

[Pik]

Lorrin Yumi

BriiAngelic Jet Colorless Spectrum Arcanist Anne Boolean Lost Echo Sarahspn

Rising from the hole that could very have been his tome, Lorrin would be shocked to see the state of what was once a perfectly good town. Homes collapsed into the ground damage being everywhere they looked and not even a single soul out trying to clean it up. And the most disturbing thing being the twilight sky around them despite the fact it should be at most mid-day just how long were they underground for. Something is not quite adding up around here with the sight of a mystery he's not even sure he wants to be apart of. "What is even going on here," Lorrin muttered to himself, it must have something to do with that Jester but is it even strong enough to cause all of this it was able to almost drop the earth on them after all maybe he has others working for him. But for what? Then Roland said something that completely took his interest why was the church fine some sort of divine protection maybe no the gods could not possibly care about one little church do they. Listening to Helena Lorrin gives a nod of approval "In that case, ill go on and search for the others if memory serves most of our people had gone to the church earlier today ill start there. Would anyone wish to accompany me it probably for the best if none of stay alone?"​

 

[Jet]

​

The town's unnatural darkness confused Ayana, but she showed and said nothing — there was nothing to say after what she'd seen. The others were on the same page too, forming a tired processesion of worried, unsettled people who walked without a word. Through abandoned streets and market squares they went, a malaised cloud over them as they watched for enemies.

Ayana sensed the silent unease, especially Gwen's when the church came to view. "They'll return to us alive, I'm sure the mother will protect them," she managed a smile and kept close to Gwen, nudging her side with an elbow. "With that group, I'm more worried for the demons' sake!" Ayana forced a laugh and caught Roland's eye, continuing her facade. "Dont worry young one, the townsfolk must be fighting demons too!" She winked and gently punched his shoulder, listening close as Helena and Roland planned.

"I'll come with you, there's no time to waste! We must find everyone and hunt the demons together!" Ayana looked between the others and spoke from her chest, "Who else will accompany us?" She held her breath, hoping a few would volunteer, and thankfully some did. It was a smaller group than she wanted, but enough hands were on deck. "Many thanks for coming with us," she smiled as her group branched away, heading towards the massive, imposing cathedral in the distance.

Sarahspn Pik Arcanist BriiAngelic Anne Boolean Lost Echo Colorless Spectrum

 

[Taigakitt]

Outside the Church
In Scene: Ayana ( Jet ), Lorrin ( Pik )
Outside: Helena & Ro ( BriiAngelic ), Gwen ( Sarahspn ), Aedzel ( Colorless Spectrum ), Kuma ( Lost Echo ), Amalia ( Anne Boolean ), Valentine ( Arcanist )
Everyone Else, Not Involved: EldridSmith Fred Colon Mook-LandStrider The Regal Rper ​

Garbled giggles down the tunnel bounced off the frozen, stoney walls. Hand-in-hand their hands swung between them, the Gambler (the guard from the cells), and the Thief (Doctor Cash) torn to pieces, skipping from the cell block, toward the rift their pet Dragon slipped out of, where all of their sacrifices had been hopping within- the bodies that had been possessed by the same creatures that Kiel had been possessed by, the same creatures with the six legs, antennae, and no eyes.

Thief never caught their snake, even with Gambler’s help. No matter. They had enough bodies to level up.

They skipped past a group heading to the rift, happy greetings passed between them.

It wouldn’t take too many more bodies into the rift to open the second hole, to empower them further.

The air started dropping colder as another pair of footsteps approached, a discordant giggle following along. Jester!

All three in the spacious cavern below the church’s basement, they stared upon the deep, seeping rift, glowing it’s anti-light, all darkness. Another person hopped in and that’s when the rift responded. A rumble before the rift grew in size and all the light in town dimmed hard.

Outside, the daylight suddenly appeared like it was twilight, the lighting before the darkness would fall.

The Jester joined hands with the Thief and the Gambler. Thief held the stub of Jester’s arm to close the circle they made.

“We haven’t done this in a while! We missed us~”

Their bodies melted together, dark, solid shadows seeping around their combining bodies.

They grew in mass, but didn’t reform here.

They slithered up and threw the same hole the Dragon slipped through, going up to the church doors that they could feel were no longer warded in the basement. Insidiator rifters, those squirrel-sized, six-legged demons skittered beside the Blob Boss.

They pushed past the door in the church’s basement, slithering up the stairs.

Waiting, waiting! Patience is key!

Someone opened the church up to them, and they would thank them later. They made it to the first floor, finding the guard that had collapsed when Hubyr and Sigurd had slipped down. One of the Insidiator’s took him over, becoming one with the Hive.

That’s when the fight would start. Insidiator demons attempted taking over church refugees. The Blob Boss had a goopy arm form and pushed those getting in their way, out of the way.

To the front doors, they slammed them open, breaking the rest of the wards in their way.

No longer was the church warded, no longer was the church a place for people to hide from being saved.

Just outside the front doors, the Blob Boss finally started to take a true shape, solidifying into a large mass with four arms, no mouth, and glowing white eyes, out into the Daytime Twilight. If one were to eventually look toward the church, the monster would be very easily seen, as they were taller than the gates that surrounded the church.

 

[Sarahspn]

​

Gwendolyn stopped walking for a moment. Catching her breath, she turned to look at Ayana. She gave the woman a soft smile accompanied by a nod. “You’re right. It’s a strong group of hard-headed warriors, but I still find myself worrying for their safety.” She said, her smile slowly fading. She resumed her stride and listened as Helena came up with a plan. “As much as I would like to find Leóne and the others, I think it’s best for me to rest.” Gwen sighed, glancing down at her leg. The blood-red ice was beginning to melt and the pain was slowly creeping up her calf. She was sure something was broken and was thankful that she had comrades that were willing to heal her. “If I can find my staff at the lodge, I can restore my energy but it wouldn’t be wise to fight another battle.” She said, rejecting the proposal of joining the search of the church. Watching as members branched off towards the church, she felt her heart ache for a moment. She took a deep breath before continuing her walk towards the lodge.

Her group finally arrived at the lodge and Gwen let out a sigh of relief once she caught sight of the mostly demolished building. Carefully stepping around the wreckage, she looked around the main room. The bar seemed to be frozen in time as plates and drinks laid half-consumed with personal belongings surrounding them. Furrowing her brows, she shrugged off the eerie setting and walked towards the back, towards the rooms. Once she found her room, she frowned at the sight of the door. It had been cracked down the middle and she pushed it open. Twilight shone through the curtains, enveloping the room in a soft purple. Everything was exactly how she had left it except for the small amount of debris littering the floor. Limping towards the bed, she sat at the edge as a sigh escaped her lips. The room felt empty without her rouges presence and tears began to well up in her eyes. She said a small prayer for Leóne and grabbed her staff that rested against the bedside table. Touching the gem that sat atop the carefully carved wood, she felt the mana run through her veins. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and let her energy be restored. “Thank you, Solas.” She whispered, sending appreciation towards her deceased master who had gifted her the item. Standing up, she began to gather her things that were scattered around the room. Stuffing her belongings into her bag, she looked over at Leóne’s items and bit her lip. She took it upon herself to pack up his luggage, making sure she grabbed everything. As she stepped towards the door to leave, she let out a small gasp. Lifting up the mattress, she saw Leóne’s stash of coins and gems hidden between the sheets. “Sneaky.” She whispered as she stuffed the pouch into his bag. Walking back to the main room of the lodge, she smiled at the others. “I’m ready to leave when you guys are.” She said, gripping onto her staff for support as her and Leóne’s bags weighed down on her shoulders.

Jet Pik Arcanist BriiAngelic Anne Boolean Lost Echo Colorless Spectrum

 

[Colorless Spectrum]

Aedzel Phriln

It was disgusting. The image the Jester had left in her mind and the taste of her own vomit. Truth to be told it wasn't the first time she had encountered a dead body, and it wasn't her first encounter with such danger. "... Ugh," She groaned as she felt Valentine's hand on her. The Quetzola appreciated it but she was equally embarrassed to be seen like this. "Thank you." She croaked weakly to her relatively new acquaintance.

She heard the kid, Ro or... Roland, talking to her. "I'll be okay. Just-" She said as brought up a finger and let out another spew. She gave herself a few seconds to recover and steady her breathing before facing the two. "Sorry about that." She said to them rather sheepishly. "I'm good to go now."

Aedzel gave Ro a small shrug. She wasn't gonna pretend to be happy after what happened as Ayana was doing. She might have a slight penchant for acting but she really can't will herself to do so right now. She wondered where everything went wrong. They just went out to get see some entertainment and yet... Am I so cursed that I bring death where I go?

Every night she's haunted by dreams and memories of the people that used to surround her. It made her wonder if Freya would visit her dreams and blame her too, just like they do, just like he does. A rather rueful smile painted her lips. This is why she never stuck much to a group. "I'll go and help with the injured. I think I'd be much more helpful there than look for the others and deal with possible danger when I have little to no knack for it." She said to Helena as she followed the others. "Take care and be sure to come back." She said, looking at Helena, placing a hand on Ro's shoulders, even if she meant it for all of them.

Once in the Lodge, Aedzel merely stayed in the main room. She had nothing inside the rooms they had taken anyway. She let out an exhausted sigh as she plopped down at a chair waiting for everyone else to come back. The moment she saw Gwen walking back, she was quick to run to the mage and took Leone's bag from her. "You shouldn't be carrying two bags with your injury." She said in a worried tone.

mention: || interaction: Arcanist Anne Boolean Taigakitt BriiAngelic Lost Echo Pik Sarahspn Jet

 

[Mook-LandStrider]

Amal

"Well, where I came from we'd like to consider ourselves far more... civilized despite our attitudes and culture being more likened to.... well it doesn't matter. Either way, we have come quite a long way in the pursuit of magic, just so few have ever seen it without being killed and devoured for sacrifice." Amal stated without batting an eye. "So, where is that hand." Amal piped up being seeing Jane pat her side. "Give it here, it will take a few minutes but I promise it should be clean and more or less well off, just don't whack it on anything." Taking the hand she looked it over and seemed unphased about it.

"One good thing about my previous status is I had all the resources of my people at my disposal. While I can't really fight all that well I do know quite it about quite alot. Medicine is one but without magic, this would be impossible in this disgusting place. So hold still, this will hurt quite abit." Amal said with some warning. Wings unfurling they vibrated slightly, causing a ripple to flow down her wings, into her body and then into the hand itself. It surged up the hand, vibrating the surface and making it turn slightly hot to the touch as it burned away the bacteria. Once it was clean she looked to Pozou and did the same thing before gripping the stump of his hand with her slightly clawed fingers. The energy rushed into the area causing the stump to burn intensely for a moment as the surface layer of the stump was burned away. "It may be slightly and I mean ever so slightly shorter but... that's the price of field surgery." Amal continued on as she raised it up to her eyes. Looking it over she seemed content before holding the hand up.

"Take your hand." She says holding it out to him before reaching down and letting out a singsong chirp. Clicking could be heard before she plunged her hand into a box at her side. Reaching in up to her elbow, far past what one would think possible she finally pulled out a roll of string before closing it up and plucking a sharp feather from her wing. Wincing slightly at the pain she looked to Pozou "Now, relax." She stated. Taking the feather she ran it through her sharp teeth, sharpening the point before biting into the end to create a loophole. Running the string through she then took the hand and held it up. "I could use someone's help for a second."

Once someone had ahold of his hand she set to work with her magic. "Make sure its pressed firmly against it." She commanded before her wings fluttered again. This time, however, the energy stopped at the tips of her fingers. Running them against the newly exposed flesh she began to stimulate the cells and skin. Once she was finished she grabbed the hand and Pozou's stump and pushed them together as she poured magic into the wound. Early mending could be seen happening as bits and pieces of his skin began to fuse together before she took the sharp feather and began to stitch the arm back onto his stump. "Like I said, DO not whack it on anything or the mending will get all screwed up. Plus I will need to keep mending it as we go. Hopefully, in a while it'll be more or less fixed in place and we won't have to worry as much." Turning to the others. "There will be no need for funeral rites. Though you all will ned to figure out how he travels. I will leave that all up to you, I will just keep watch over him."

EldridSmith Arcanist Fred Colon Sarahspn Jet Taigakitt​

 

[Anne Boolean]

Amalia Winters && Celestine Oceania​

So the group would now split. Helena planned on helping the injured among them leave town while Lorrin and Ayana wanted to search for any stragglers who were left behind in this chaos. A good plan, in Amalia's eyes.

"I'll accompany you, Helena," the knight said, stepping towards the group heading towards the lodge. Hopefully they people they found were alright or at least not beyond help.

Celestine stayed with the green-haired archer and the wood elf. "I'll... help you search," she said. Had she found herself in this situation before the whole ordeal in the cave, her only concern would have been self-preservation. But just like her land faring companions carried a fallen comrade's body out of what was essentially the abyss, she too felt the need to make sure no innocents were left behind... even if they were land dwellers. She wondered for a moment if whether she should go with the other group. She was nowhere near as injured or exhausted as Gwen, but using land magic was quite taxing for her, especially without her trident. She had recovered it now, though, and could feel its energy flowing into her from where her palms gripped it. No, she would be a force to be reckoned with for whatever monstrosities were plaguing this town.

Coincidentally, on the other hand, Amalia also wondered whether she would be more useful in the other group. Out of all the others who were being evacuated, she was practically unscathed. She had quite a bit more fight in her, and wondered if her strength would be of more use for finding any survivors. Then again, even if the goal was to simply evacuate, some unexpected casualties or hinderances could come up for their group as well. Individuals who were still fighting fit would certainly be required for any situations like that.

As much as Amalia appreciated Ayana's optimism, she stayed silent. She had never been superstitious, but her experience on the field had taught her to hold her tongue about an upcoming mission, no matter how easy it seemed. In this case, the easiness had yet to be seen as well. Celestine, on the other hand, found herself too confounded by events that happened in the last few days to wager anything will go one way or another with this group. As much as she hoped what the elven woman said would be true, she dared not agree.

---

Celestine Oceania​

After the other group had branched off, the syphid princess eyed the church up ahead. It seemed to be beckoning them with how it stood perfectly intact while the world around it crumbled. As they approached, she was certain they were walking into the lair of the beast.

Except the beast decided to step out and meet them. "Neptunia help us..." she muttered, eyeing the four-armed creature and raising her trident. There still seemed to be distance between them and its white eyes hadn't fallen on them yet, so she hoped they could come up with a plan before rushing into anything. The expectations she was raised with caused stress to set in when she couldn't think of anything besides hide and shoot, but she took a breath and turned to the other two. Her companions had been the ones to make a successful escape plan earlier, so she tried to have faith in them for any ideas currently.

Interactions: Ayana ( Jet ), Lorrin ( Pik ), Valentine ( Arcanist )
---

Amalia Winters​

Meanwhile, Amalia listened to Gwen speak as they continued to the lodge. "I believe you've earned a long rest," she commented. From the glimpse into the dark she got, the knight had seen Gwen being one of the major players in the creation of the stone staircase. "Focus now on simply escaping and resting." Her words came off as a command, an effect of her time spent as a captain. She had always tried to have a warmth in her orders, like a stern mother telling a child something for their own good, but could never be sure it didn't come off as too aggressive. Her regular speech was much lighter, although once again she hoped it wasn't all that abrasive.

Her eyes then fell onto the little elven child. Ro... curiously, the name was short for Roland, a name typically given to boys. Amalia herself had no right to comment, yet still found herself interested. Now didn't seem to be the time to ask Helena about the meaning behind her daughter's name, so instead she just stayed silent.

Early on during her time as a knight, Amalia had learned to keep her things packed and tidy when making a temporary stop. That's why, when they arrived at the lodge, she was one of the first to get her things and return. "To think... we were simply watching a play earlier today..." she muttered to Aedzel, who seemed to be an extremely light traveler.

When Gwen had returned, she watched as the Quetzola woman ran over and picked up the extra bag the woman carried. "Indeed," she said, walking over. "Please allow me to carry your other things if you need."

Interactions: Helena, Roland ( BriiAngelic ), Aedzel ( Colorless Spectrum ), Gwen ( Sarahspn )

 

[EldridSmith]

"C-calm my n-nerves?" Liam repeated as he looked around unfolding from his balled coil. The only way he could think of doing that would be doing something with Jane, whether it was hugging, talking, or anything of the sort as his typical methods took a while to calm him down. As he looked to Jane she explained Rose was always mad, which puzzled Liam, how could someone be mad ALL the time? There was always someone or something that could cheer you up. As this thought crossed Liam's mind he blushed while looking at Jane who was now busy helping Pozou and Amal.

He could see she was getting tired as she moved to sit and he wanted to help so he thought of moving to her to let her use his coils as a seat as they would be more comfortable than the ground, but he thought against it as it would be strange. Her nod made him smile and feel like helping her in any way he could. "Y-you're tired, w-would you like me to carry you t-to the surface when w-we head up?" He asked trying to not stutter as he looked at her, he wanted to hold her longer but couldn't bring himself to ask. He noticed Rose returned but kept himself in front of Jane, as much as he wanted to hide behind her. Amal soon spoke up but Liam didn't know what was going on there and he stayed where he was, though he would be willing to carry both Pozou and Jane if he needed to, though he would rather just carry Jane.
Jet Arcanist Sarahspn Mook-LandStrider Taigakitt Fred Colon

 

[Arcanist]

Valentine
Mentions: BriiAngelic (Ro), Colorless Spectrum (Aedzel) | Interactions: Anne Boolean (Celestine), Jet (Ayana), Pik (Lorrin), Taigakitt (Mr Blobby)​

Valentine could only nod to Aedzel. No point in making her feel more embarrassed than she probably already was. They waited with Aedzel until she felt strong enough to move on ahead. They were especially grateful that she had Roland looking out for her too and couldn’t help but think a lovely child she was.

Though, a shame to see that dress of hers to gather up the corpses of those…monstrous leech-like creatures.

Once they could get moving again, it seemed the group was beginning to split in two. Seeing as he was able-bodied and old enough to handle a sword, Valentine had turned to both Lorrin and Ayana when they had requested for people to join them to look for the others (of their group, how much larger could it possibly get?) and to fight off demons in their wake. Though the prospect scared him, they raised his hand, “I’ll be more than willing to accompany you.”

The three were then joined by Celestine before they all began making their way towards the cathedral, truly, a gothic masterpiece on this otherwise dreary day.

…when did it get darker?

Valentine stopped in their tracks at the sight of that hulking, shadowy blobbed mass. Whatever this was, it was the kind of monster that would only be read to people in fairy tales and myths. And yet, here it stood, just at the doors of the Cathedral!

Valentine also looked to the others like Celestine, but it was with a timid determination. Their hand made their way to the blade on their hip, though, they still felt like they had to ask, “So...how do we go about this creature?”

 

[Arcanist]

Pozou Artith
Mentions: EldridSmith (Liam), Sarahspn (Jane), Jet (Lucien, Tammond, Kadar) | Interactions: Mook-LandStrider (Amal), Fred Colon (Daisy)
(credit to @letoyga! for this commission!)​

With the appearance of a few of the others they were imprisoned with, Pozou gave a warm smile to those who arrived. They seemed to all come in one piece – he silently thanked Quetzocoatl for that – though, that meant most of their possessions had been sacrificed perhaps as a result. Pozou would have insisted on replacing such items. Though, Daisy’s mention of what he assumed must have been important memorabilia made him realise such things could never be replaced.

Though, he was unsure of how they would get it back, other than returning to where they came to look for it.

As Daisy asked after his wellbeing, he nodded, and smiled thankfully. “I’m…okay, Daisy,” he fibbed. He could have been a lot better in many senses but at least he was getting help now. He did frown a little at her expressing her knowledge of Quetzola funerary rituals. Something told him he’d need them, sooner or later regardless of the situation. But, hopefully, as she said, he wouldn’t need them right at this moment. Not if Amal’s doctoring would help deal with his wound. He nodded to Daisy, managing a small smile again. “I appreciate it, Daisy…but I’d like to stay awake for now. I’ll sleep when we’re safe.” As long as he could keep walking and talking, he would continue to help himself by not being more of a burden on others as they escaped.

Pozou stood to attention when Amal took his hand. He swore he could have seen his fingers moving...or perhaps he imagined feeling his fingers moving. Pozou had waited, watching her clean his hand with such unusual innate methods. She was practically burning away bacteria at an extraordinary rate. He hadn’t even been aware Quetzola were hosts to such healing methods.

Soon, however, it was his stump’s turn to face the heat. Amal hadn’t lied when she said this part would hurt. He flinched before the burning even started. He yelped, feeling like he had dipped his stump into a pot of boiling water. Pozou had been tempted to pull back, though, tried his hardest to resist. Amal eventually finished, raising the stump to inspect it. Pozou nodded to her observations of it being shorter. Like she said, it was a price to pay in getting his hand back.

Pozou slowly and carefully took his hand from Amal. It shouldn’t have bothered him as much as it did but with it being his own, he couldn’t bear to look at it. He took a deep breath in when told to relax, trying to calm his nerves. There was no telling to him whether this would work. But he still had to put his trust in Amal, and he was trying his hardest to do just that. He continued to focus on his breathing, even as someone else had taken his hand and pressed it against the stump. He swallowed back, feeling sweat trickle down his forehead.

Pozou could feel Amal’s work practically pouring into his hand and stump as it began mending. He had watched some of it, the way his flesh began to fuse again with his hand, and he couldn’t believe what he was witnessing. This…this truly meant he’d be able to get his hand back again. Wasn’t it?

“I…I don’t know what to say…” Pozou murmured, trying to keep still, almost afraid to move in case he somehow ripped it off his arm again. He looked up to Amal through murky eyes and a watery smile. “I…thank you, Amal.” Of course, the end results would still need to be seen. Nonetheless, he was grateful for it. Too grateful.

On the subject of how he would travel, Pozou hadn’t an answer to that yet. But he did have an idea regarding protecting his hand. “Maybe some sort of sling would be beneficial. To keep my hand from, well, getting ‘screwed up’.”

 

[Pik]

Lorrin Yumi

Jet Anne Boolean Arcanist Taigakitt

"We just can't catch a break can we?" Lorrin's eyes would glaze over in the amount of annoyance of the situation. He has just gotten out of a hole witch he felt like he's been traped in for almost an entire year now. Just to come out to a giant four-arm shadow thing, at this rate he wouldn't be surprised if he came out of this town with a few grey hairs from the amount of stress constantly being lunged into his head. Placing his hand around his chin at the request of a plan, Lorrin would take a moment to think. Let's see the creature in question is rather large in size likely making it slow in movement unless there is some sort of magic dictating otherwise. Its intelligence unknown. Strength likely strong going by its appearance definitely don't want to be grabbed. After a moment Lorrin snaps his figure in pride. "Got one Ayana you and I are going to keep the beast distracted from afar while Celestine and apologies I never got your name sneak behind it and try to retrieve any of our allies or any able fighters from the church. While you're doing that I and Ayana will try to find its weakness and exploit it. Any objections?" Lorrin pulls out an arrow knocking it onto his bow ready to start at a moment's notice.
​

 

[Taigakitt]

Splitting Up - Controlled Collapse Incoming
Collab WIth: BriiAngelic Jet
Involved: The Regal Rper Anne Boolean ​

With the dragon otherwise occupied with her fleas, she was unable to avoid the magical burst from the Master Mage, Tallis.

With a smash to the skull from Stone’s fists, she threw her head. Where the punch had landed, a strange bubbling started to surface against her flesh. That same bubbling, small and large, began to show where her other wounds were.

Deep purple fluid slipped from her jaws, coating the ground in her drool and blood.

More dust landed upon her body from Leone’s kinetic bolt and she finally managed to dislodge Stone from her head. The Momerki ended up landing right beside Tallis, covered in the demon’s blood. “Gross.”

The dragon was injured. So it was hurt it was more a matter of getting around the natural armors the thing had. That just meant he had an aim now. No need to bloat the thing forever, and he certainly couldn’t make it burst. But he could bring it’s weak points out and he would. This thing would not be allowed to live any longer.

“Momerki, are you injured?”

He didn’t think so but he’d need the frontliners at their best lest it wind up taking shots at the more vulnerable mages. He shot another rapid cell divide at the dragon aiming for beneath it’s plating. The openings were too risky to take otherwise.

With the thrashings the dragon threw around, Stone might have had a couple bruises or scrapes here and there, but nothing serious. He wiped a hand up across his face to clear the viscous blood out of the way. He seemed to have a knack for being covered in it. Boar blood four days ago, now a rift monster’s.

Stone grunted, “I am fine. Thank you. Now is the ceiling coming down or not?” He crouched, reading himself to lunge back at the monster depending on the answer. He didn’t want to leave the forest elf and Vaaltari to be the only ones to deal with it for long.

Then, the dragon beast broke her tail free from the Easterner’s grasp and tossed the forest elf towards Vaaltari just as the cell division magic slipped under her armor. Freed! Bumpy and vulnerable, but freed nonetheless. Unable to pinpoint where she was getting attacked by cancerous magic, her sights set on Luka rather than Tallis. With a lunge that tore the stone stakes from her, she aimed to take a chomp out of the apprentice and maybe even stomp out a few of the other ground ants being the other aggressors as she went. Her wingspan smacked against the ceiling as she lunged, damaging what had been getting worked on.

Luka was so focused on another spell, the charging dragon barely registered. He only noticed her when pebbles rained down from above, drawing his gaze up onto the massive beast. "Erm… wait let's talk abou—" he dove away as she snapped at him, then rolled over and scrambled backwards, pushing his palms and heels against the ground. "Who's a good dragon eh? That's right, you're a good dragon ain't ya?" He forced a smile and slowly reached through his pocket, pulling a short blade from within.

"That's a good dragon innit?" He snarled and launched his blade at her forehead, hoping she'd drop dead immediately, but her skull was too thick. His blade only sunk an inch and hung from her head, sending a line of black blood down her diseased face.

A roar flew from the dragon’s maw, spewing dark blood and drool across the catacomb walls and anyone in the vicinity as she pawed the dagger from her skull, causing it to clatter to the stone floor, the metal bent.

"Master Tallis… erm… I think she's mad now!" Luka scrambled back, stood and looked from the damaged ceiling to Stone. "The tunnel's a nudge away from falling on us," he cleared his throat as narrow cracks branched across the sandstone, sending a panicked jolt through his heart.

“We have no choice then… LUKA ELIZABETH GET BACK THE TUNNEL’S COMING DOWN EITHER WAY SO WE MIGHT AS WELL CONTAIN IT.”

With that he started changing his aim from the dragon itself to the ceiling. His focus wasn’t in reinforcement but it seemed Sigurd had already started on that. Which meant they just needed to localize the collapse. He ran forwards and used his magic to hold the ceiling still until Luka could get out of the drop zone.

With Sigurd and Tallis working on localizing the collapse, the dragon thrashed in her anger, splitting the group up between those close to Tallis and those close to Sigurd.

 

[Jet]

​

Kadar brushed past the group without stopping. "Time's wasting," he glanced back and gestured down the tunnel. "Let's move... before I grow a long white beard." He crunched gravel as he stepped around a corner, leaving Lucien with a scowl and Tammond with a smirk.

"Who the hell is that man?" Lucien crossed his arms and clenched his jaw.

"He's an even bigger asshole than you," Tammond mischievously chuckled and followed Kadar. "We should get going, this place isn't safe," he said, disappearing around the same corner.

Lucien was slower to move, taking a moment to admire Amal's handiwork. "Well done... and please follow their advice Pozou, someone should carry you out," he looked to Liam with a parental sigh. "You should carry him, we need him in tip-top shape for what's to come." Lucien started down the tunnel and glanced back to Jane, "The church is a good place to start then... unless everyone was captured of course. Whatever the case may be, speed is of the essence!" He beckoned the group and increased his pace, leading everyone from the intersection.

Through twisting tunnels they navigated the town's underbelly, coming across every manner of scuttling cave creature. There were more crawlers too, but they died faster than they appeared. And soon the group reached archaic sewer systems, connected to cave tunnels by a wide, hand-carved hole.

Near the hole was a rusted ladder leading to a manhole, and when the group climbed out they stood near the church. But many things were amiss. The town was covered by unnatural, oozing darkness that blocked out the sun, and the streets were abandoned too. Nothing stirred other than passing birds and stray horses — it was an absolute ghost town.

"Where is everyone?" Kadar peeked his head into a store and returned with a shrug. "An evacuation perhaps?" He scowled, watching nearby streets for enemies.

Tammond met Kadar's glare. "I'm guessing the whole town's kidnapped," he turned and checked another store. "Same here, not a soul."

Lucien watched them search, peered down an alleyway and shouted "Hello! Anyone here!" But only the wind answered him. "This is quite strange. We should check the lodge too, people might've returned th—" but he stopped when a black mass loomed over the church's wall. "The hell is that..." he mumbled, peering down the road at the massive, ominous figure.

Arcanist Sarahspn Fred Colon EldridSmith Mook-LandStrider

 

[Sarahspn]

​

Jane smiled at Liam, shaking her head. “I’ll be okay to walk. Maybe you could carry Pozou? I would, but I’m beat.” She said, letting out a small sigh. The sound of approaching footsteps caught her attention and she turned her head to look at the tunnel behind them. Watching as Rose emerged from the shadows, Jane’s smile grew bigger. “Rose!” She exclaimed, quickly standing up. Running towards her sister, Jane wrapped Rose in a tight hug. “Thank the gods.” Jane sighed, burrowing her face into Rose’s neck.

Rose closed her eyes and returned the hug, silently thanking the gods as well. Stepping away, Rose set her hands on her sister's shoulders. Peering behind her to look at Pozou, she gave Jane a nod. “You did well. Now we must find the others and escape.” She said, brushing a strand of brown hair out of Jane's face.

“Yes and we have the perfect escape plan,” Jane said, moving to the side of Rose. Putting her arm around her shoulder, she gestured towards Tammond. “Ol’ Tammond here has a caravel that will sail us straight to Blueport.” She continued, glancing up at Rose.

A small smile grew on Rose’s face and she nodded. “Perfect. We can show these land-dwellers a thing or two about sailing, can't we?” She smirked before walking towards the others.

With Jane right on her heels, they approached Lucien. Before Jane could get a word out, Kadar pushed past them, leaving a sour taste in the mouth of their leader. Rose rolled her eyes and Jane turned to look at Pozou.

“Pozou! You got your hand back!” Jane exclaimed, taking a closer look at the reattachment. She had been distracted by Rose's appearance and wasn't watching out for the quetzola like she was supposed to. “Thank you.” She said, giving a smile to Amal.

The group began walking down the tunnel and Rose grabbed Jane’s arm, catching her attention. As Jane turned around, she met Lucien’s eyes. Giving him a nod, she smiled, “Aye aye sir!”

The sisters followed the group through the twisting tunnels, watching the shadows for crawlers. They came across a few but with a group of their size and strength, they were able to snuff them out easier than a seasoned sailor's pipe. Moving forward, they climbed the rusting ladder and emerged into a blackened town. The streets were as empty as open water and the silence sent chills down Jane's spine. Looking to Rose, she met her eyes and they exchanged a frown. Watching as others looked through alleyways and stores, Rose rested her eyes on the church nearby. A black mass entered her line of vision and she instinctively put an arm in front of her sister, causing Jane to look forward as well. The brunette was frozen in fear for a moment, grabbing Rose's arm to reassure herself.

“R-Rose? What is that?” Jane whispered, too afraid to take her eyes off the monster.

“I’m not sure. Stay close, keep an eye on Pozou, and be prepared to fight.” Rose answered, finding the hilt of her knife. She remembered she didn’t have her dual swords and scanned the surrounding area. Finding a blacksmith shop nearby, a sly smirk appeared on her face. Jane followed her sister’s gaze and nodded. Without a word, the two bolted for the shop. Once inside, Rose studied the weapons on display, picking up a few to test their weight.

“Jane, grab what you need and we’ll get extras for the others,” Rose said, running her finger down the blade of a steel rapier.

Sheathing two rapiers and stashing a few daggers in her belt and boots, Rose filled her arms with weapons, careful not to nick her arms. Jane grabbed a broadsword and put it in her belt before grabbing a couple of swords to bring to the group as well. Walking back, the sisters carefully set the weapons on the ground. “Pick your poison.” Rose said, giving the others a blank stare.

Jet Arcanist Fred Colon EldridSmith Mook-LandStrider

 

[BriiAngelic]

• Helena Lis || Human War Cleric
• Roland Marek || Savanna Elven Street Kid

• 
  
  
  
  Tags:
  Gwen ( Sarahspn ) Amalia ( Anne Boolean ) Aedzal ( Colorless Spectrum ) Kuma/Obsidian ( Lost Echo )
  

  ~ Lodge/Stables ~
  Savage Daughter || Helena's CS File
  
  The group would be splitting earlier than expected then. She didn’t approve of the idea but it wasn’t as if she was in the position to tell others how to live their lives. Instead she raised the hood of her cloak with a sigh. Impatience would kill the best of them. Fate was not so kind to those who would not bend to her whims.
  
  She nodded to the others as a larger group headed to the lodge. She didn’t plan to stay long with the group. As much as she might wish to just stay at Roland’s side it would do nothing to protect them. Regardless of what she might have meant to the church in the past now she was but a criminal to be hunted down. If this was all that was left for them, they would not last long at all.
  
  Certainly not without their patron. Which merely meant that she couldn’t leave until they secured their connections. Though she would never risk her boy for it. As they arrived she and Roland split once again. While Roland went to secure the supplies, she did a quick search of the lodge. No one. Not a single soul. Irritating.
  
  She took the chance given her as the others went to gather their things to take a quick detour to the stables. She made loose each and every horse, both their own and the ones belonging to the townsfolk. As she yanked the reins of the steeds of her caravan she merely released the few that fought her off. Luckily the carts themselves seemed untouched.
  
  As she brought them out to the front of the lodge she found the others. As expected Roland started to pile in all the supplies he could carry. Some of which was clearly none of theirs.
  
  “Good. Pile it high. We have new steeds, be careful of them. Some gave me trouble. I’m off to find our meal ticket and protect the brave from their own stupidity now.”
  
  Typically she’d word it more diplomatically. Yet with all the chaos and the death of one of their own, one of the few she felt kinship to, she was left burnt out of the little range of emotion she had. Roland would be safe with them if she didn’t return, as safe as one could be on the run.
  
  “H-Mom please let me come with you.”
  
  “If you were to come who would they rely on as a healer? Pozou is still missing in town. No, I will come back with them. Don’t worry, have I ever left you long?”
  
  She could see his dissatisfaction, but he would never leave someone in need, and she needed to bank on that.
  
  “Alrighty, well I’ve already lost enough time as is. Better get going before I completely lose track of them.”
  
  
• 
  
  
  
  Tags:
  Gwen ( Sarahspn ) Amalia ( Anne Boolean ) Aedzal ( Colorless Spectrum ) Kuma/Obsidian ( Lost Echo )
  

  ~ ??? ~
  Blissful Death || Roland's CS File
  
  He was stuck. He would have to go out of town with them he knew that but… Ayana was going back. Lorrin was going back. Mom was going back. He was terrified of what would happen. The whole group was missing. There were so many that hadn’t come back yet. Miss Yo, Sir Stone, Sir Pozou…
  
  A hand to his shoulder helped to ground him again.
  
  He needed to not focus on that. They had to pack fast and get out. He wasted no time running up the stairs in the back. He could carry plenty on his own. The problem was… if they did find the others with their search who would be in a state to carry anything? Who would even be left?
  
  He went into his own room first. He grabbed his bags and Helena’s filling them both as full as he could. Anything could have use, anything could become necessary. Life was unpredictable. He brought their things down and placed them in the lodge’s front as he went back for more. Now for their caravans shit. He tried every door that he could remember, taking anything he could find before throwing that down in the lodge as well. The few doors that were locked he broke open.
  
  He wouldn’t feel remorse for anyone or anything that came from this cursed town. He had enough time to steal from a few other rooms, people he’d never seen before. Yet with the eerie disappearance of so many people… they wouldn’t need it anymore. He found a substantial amount of money in the place.
  
  As he finished up he had piles of stuff. Things that would help when they left, regardless of how many made it out. He heard the clacking of hooves as Helena returned with the horses and carts.
  
  He stared at the horses flinching as Freya’s came along too. He grabbed the piles and began loading the cargo into the cart. Everything that wasn’t nailed down was getting tossed in.
  
  He tried to argue to come along, but Helena shot him down quickly. As he looked to the others he understood even if he wished he didn’t. He instead deflated as she left him behind. No. He had to keep going. Luckily his horse was behaving as usual. He turned to Miss Gwen and held out his hand.
  
  “Let me help you get to the carts. You shouldn’t be pushing yourself. When we’re out of town I’ll take a look at your leg okay? I know… enough.”
  
  
  
  

 

[Jet]

​

Ayana swung her bow around and notched two arrows. "Distracting people is my expertise! Start moving when you see my signal," she sprinted towards the massive demon, reaching him twenty seconds later. "Hellooooooo," she waved with a teasing grin. "You're much uglier than expected, my friend was just laughing about it! He's over there!" Ayana pointed to Lorrin, drew her bowstring and shot two arrows at her monstrous foe.

"You should take a bath, I can smell you from here!" Ayana forced an obnoxious laugh and ran back whence she came, beckoning the beast as she neared Lorrin. "He looks angry... we should find high-ground before he reaches us," she entered an alleyway, fetched rope from her pack and tied it around an arrow. Then she shot her homemade rappel into a rooftop's edge.

"If you prefer the street I'll cover you from above," she grabbed her rope, tugging several times to ensure a strong hold. Then she started to climb, reaching the rooftop with an exhausted grunt.

"Now what to do..." she crouched and stealthily approached the opposite side, heart pounding as she went over monster types and strategies to kill them, but the blob was unique. There wasn't a textbook in the world to describe what she saw, nor technique she'd been taught. The best she could manage was a flame spell, one to scorch the monster's head to its core. It'd take time though, so she focused hard on compressing flame energy between her hands.

Pik Taigakitt Arcanist Anne Boolean

 

[Taigakitt]

Hubyr and Stone​

When the dragon thrashed hard enough, Hubyr found himself no longer able to hold onto her, her claw slipping from his grasp and thrown in the direction of Tallis. Stone was helpful and caught the shorter forest elf before he took a bad tumble.

Stone released Hubyr and dashed past the dragon, swiping quick jabs at her ankles with his sharp knuckles, going to the side where Sigurd, Yo, and the others were. “I’ll grab the rat!” Did he remember her name? He quickly ran into the terrible room with one exit and sniffed her out. Finding her rather swiftly, he went and snatched her up despite her fear response with her fur on end. Not taking “no” for an answer, he didn’t drop the rat despite her paws trying to scratch at his hand to no avail. “I’m not eating you,” he said briskly as he joined back up with the others, ready to leave when things would start coming down.

Hubyr checked to make sure he still had everything in hand as he looked over at Tallis, “Don’t get crushed, old man!” With that, the Forest elf started to back up, not eager to be so close to something that could come down even in a controlled situation. Checking to make sure he still had everything on him, he cast a glance at Luna with sad eyes before nodding at Sigurd across from the dragon, “Meet back up with ya later, Big Guy!”

With barely another second to spare, the dragon stomped, bothered with the jabs that Stone had given when he had worked his way across and the ceiling cracked. Her wings attempted to stretch out, but her limbs were locking up, thanks to the cancer she had been given.

A pebble started first with sandstone dust following. A rumble could be felt as the ceiling spiderwebbed with Tallis’ and Sigurd’s work. The pebble turned into a rock, which then turned into boulders and soil following, crashing down onto the dragon.

The collapse split the group up, and Hubyr found himself on the side that only gave him entrance back into the church as an option. Stone and Yo were on the other side, hightailing it down the way to keep from getting crushed.

Involved: The Regal Rper Jet Anne Boolean Lost Echo BriiAngelic ​

 

[Anne Boolean]

Celestine Oceania​

Well, it seemed at least one of her current party could think on their feet. Unfortunately, another one was just as quick in her actions. The syphid Princess barely had a moment to even process the plan before Ayana was in front of their foe spitting out insults. With just a brief look at the blond besides her, she rushed to the sidelines, aiming out of the way and possibly hidden behind rubble if she could. The newcomer was tasked to follow her, which Celestine wasn't sure they were doing, but having someone else along comforted her, even if it was someone of a species she would typically look down upon.

Sadly, the four-armed monster wasn't the only thing they had to protect the townsfolk from. Strange creatures which crawled around like insects before jumping onto people's faces were also attacking them. Despite having her trident back, Celestine still found herself at a disadvantage. She couldn't just fry everything in sight with a fire spell, as innocent people would be set ablaze. She didn't even want to risk shooting a spell at one of the monsters in case it had latched onto someone and they ended up getting hit as well. At this point, the confusion with her concern for land dwellers was something she had gotten used to, so most of her brain was able to focus on finding an effective way of fighting without her magic. For better or for worse, this resulted in her smacking and skewering the skittering creatures, while praying to Neptunia that she didn't accidentally impale a townsperson.

Interactions: Valentine ( Arcanist ), Ayana ( Jet ), Lorrin ( Pik ), Facehuggers Insidiator demons ( Taigakitt )
---

Master Elizabeth​

After Leone's last jab, Elizabeth stayed silent and continued to attempt to fortify the ceiling. Another one of the adventurers attempted to thwart Tallis's decision though, leading to her job getting harder. She let out an annoyed growl. Thankfully, the equipment she had been given by the Church had much more power to spare. That wouldn't matter though, as even her beloved sided with the others. Her mind flashed to the people above who could possibly be caught in the collapse, but she went along with his decision anyway. The woman took away her attention from the ceiling and let the others handle it. Instead, after Luka had joined her and Tallis, she created a wall of energy to hold back any stray debris from flying towards them as the stones fell. She let out a small gasp as the cat man jumped out of the barrier and the forest elf jumped in. If they had had any more time, she would have a few choice words to say to the two for their dangerous antics.

And then the ceiling came down. Once the dust settled, Elizabeth dispelled her wall to reveal the cave in. She stayed vigilant for a moment, trying to hear if any of the instability would spread and bring down more rubble. When things seemed steady, she let out a soft sigh.

"Are you all alright?" she said, turning to look at the men around her. Her eyes then fixated on the pile of stones in front of them. "I hope they managed to escape..."

Interactions: Tallis ( BriiAngelic ), Hubyr ( Taigakitt ), Luka ( Jet )
---

Kiel Shan​

With his hands now cuffed, Kiel's maneuver to get Yo off of him and stand up had been thwarted. He tried his best to struggle free from the stone around his wrists, but to no available. All he could do is squirm and flail his legs.

"No!" he cried when more and more attacks were sent towards his dragon companion. "Stop it! You're causing her pain!" Despite the words of concern, his tone remained level and his eyes were still empty. As the group finally came to the decision of a ceiling collapse, it seemed he was powerless to stop it. His wrists were only freed once the architectural damage hand been done. Though he tried to resist being dragged away, all his struggling managed to do was slow things down for a moment and tighten the rope around his ankle. "Noooo!" he exclaimed once more as the rubble came falling down.

Interactions: Yo, Stone ( Taigakitt ), Leone ( Jet ), Sigurd ( BriiAngelic )

 

[Sarahspn]

​

Gwendolyn was taken aback by the Aedzel running to help with her bags with Amaila following close behind. She hesitated for a moment before letting Aedzel take Leóne’s bag and Amalia her own. She was used to doing everything herself and struggled with letting other people doing things for her. Pushing her pride aside, she let herself relax for a moment. “T-Thank you. You’re too kind.” She said, giving both women a nod of appreciation.

Sitting on a barstool to rest her foot, she watched Ro run to and from the bedrooms to the entrance of the lodge. She laughed to herself as the little girl pilled items into her arms, more of it being strangers things than their own. Everyone seemed to have finished getting what they needed and Gwen stood up from the stool. Using her staff as a cane, she made her way outside. As she stepped through the exit, she noticed it had gotten unnaturally darker and her instincts told her to look at the church. As she rested her eyes upon the grand building, she saw a small cloud of dust billowing from the side of the church and her heart sank. Helena had corralled a number of horses to the entrance and she spotted the one she rode into town on. Ro had approached her and she looked to the girl, worry still etched into her face.

“I must go to the church. I’m worried about Leóne. He’s in trouble and I must rush to his and the others aid. I’ll be okay and won't push myself too much, I promise.” She said, walking towards her horse. Petting its white mane, she glanced at Ro. “Listen to your mother and get the others out of town. I and everyone else will return and then you can show me how good your medical skills are.” She said, giving the child a smile.

She put her good foot into the stirrup and pulled herself up onto the saddle. Adjusting her position, she put her staff on her back and grabbed the reins. Looking towards the church again, she felt the fear return and start to grow inside of her. She couldn’t lose another companion, especially Leóne.

BriiAngelic Anne Boolean Colorless Spectrum Lost Echo

 

[Fred Colon]

Daisy dropped her spear and it rejoined the earth, picking up a more traditionally crafted spear that was amongst the weapons the sisters had brought them. It was better balanced, and felt a little more like Sombre. She needed to get that back. There was no way she was leaving with out it. She hoped she could leave with the others using their escape plan, but if she didn't find her family heirloom she would have to figure something else out.

She hefted her new spear and frowned, though her twisted, ruined lips made it seem like a snarl. That black mass, whatever it was, was something she felt like she should be fleeing from. But she didn't doubt, didn't doubt for a single second, that they were going to be able to find their remaining companions or their things without dealing with that first.

"I have to ask." Daisy said, staring off at the mass. "Does anyone here know anything about what's going on? Because I'll be frank, I haven't the foggiest. I was kidnapped while shopping, thrown in a cell, a pretentious shadow clown arrived to take Kiel, taunt us and babble about someone named Doctor Cash, and then we escaped. I don't know the who, the how, the why, the when or anything else, really. I'm reacting to what's put in front of me because I have no information to gain a larger picture, and I don't like it. If we could pool information, that would likely be beneficial, if any new information is to be had."

EldridSmith Taigakitt Jet Sarahspn