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 Posted: Thu Sep 08, 2011 11:53 pm
Ragnvald smiled as he straightened up. A sword shimmered in either hand as he watched everything unfold. Everything seemed to fade away and slow down as he watched the dragon transform into a fierce beast, and all of its wounds healing within mere seconds. The mercenary just stood in awe of such raw power; his dark eyes flashing back and forth in rapid succession as he watched the glittering dagger likes scales form over the soft under belly and extend.
In all truth the creature looked more like a siege engine ready to tear down some great city's walls rather than ravage a few farms and part of a city. It could do so much more...
Ragni just stared in amazement with a stupid grin stuck to his face that would not vanish no matter how hard he tried.
“I am going to kill you pretty... Then I am going to dissect you piece by piece.” The swordsman flashed back, the forest rushed back all at once and it was not just the dragon and himself.
He looked back to see Darius shouting and readying himself, and then he heard it; hoof beats and the shouting of men...
Ragnvald dodged and weaved as horses galloped past. He knew what he was waiting for and after a moment they were there, naked and robed men running from the forest. As they charged he dipped his shoulder and flipped the first naked man up and over him to slam into the earth behind Ragni. With a quick pivot and twist on his heel Ragni was there to crush his heel down into the man's throat. Blood spurted from the man's mouth and Ragnvald turned to meet two robed figures attack head on. Their blades rang out in a high pitch as the mercenary caught both as he fell to one knee. Gritting his teeth and releasing a snarl he slashed out as he rose back up to both feet. Either man fell back and Ragni was quick to make a double riposte, slashing past bother men to then flip his swords and stab both men through the stomach.
He drew both blades back out as he moved toward Sebastian to stand back to back with the young bandit.
His voice rang out coarse and dry, “You better pay up when we get back then... Otherwise I will kill you myself, or try at least.”
And there they stayed fighting back to back. Ragnvald's blades were a whir of motion, blood flecks following in their gleaming silver scarlet arcs as he dispatched each man that came his way. But sooner or later they would wear down or this naked and robed menace would dissipate into the woods again.
“So what is the plan, these guys seem pretty endless... Darius?”
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Posted: Wed Sep 14, 2011 1:13 pm
Kris watched in horror as the dragon changed and morphed. It became bigger and its wounds had healed over, she did take comfort as she watched the dragons eyes crust over in scales.
"at least if i die....which seems very probable, he will remember me forever"
Talia held her arm to her chest as Tamaro joined her side, she was about to say something to him when people ridding horses ran into the clearing.
Hurt and scared she had taken a step towards tamaro as she watched Darius stab a man and yell at them to fight. She turned to Tamaro and the man had now positioned himself between her and the oncoming enemies.
Tears sprung to her eyes and a pain seared her chest.
The pain and tears were because she had a realization, That within everyone of her companions, only Tamaro was the closest to a "good" friend, someone who even if from afar knew her.
"I know there's no escape but..." Talia wiped the tears from her eyes and nodded at Tamaros silent directions and turned towards Darius, calling out to her silent friend.
"You fool...You better not die for foolish pride..Run if you have the chance!"
Talia then Ran towards Darius, coming across a lance dropped by one of the attackers that Darius or Ragni had killed in the midst of this blood frenzy.
She took the lance, wincing with pain as she moved her injured arm to her pocket. "If only...i had not been so rash"
Kristalia was about to regroup with the others when she noticed a faint shimmer of blond hair. She spun about letting out a groan as she watched Jacob kill a rider and then notice he had been injured.
"WHY YOU LITTLE! ugh!" She bit back a sob of pain as she glared at jacob and ran to him, dodging the riders.
"You promised me! You promised to stay behind! you have walked to death's door!" Talia let out a desperate sob, only barely noticing the rider coming towards them, A naked woman the size of an Ox covered in blood and filth, Talia wanted to vomit but she refrained and with quick thinking she used the lance to stab the horses neck, making it flail and fling off the husky woman. Without much thought she pulled the lance from the horse and turned to the woman and using as much force as she could with her good arm, she stabbed her in her neck, the only sound from the horrid woman's lips was the gurgling wail of hatred.
"Jacob...lets go...Tamaro gave me a window to recruit with Darius, we need to hurry..."
She turned to her friend who had killed as well and smiled a resigned smile.
"Be careful"
She didn't know if he would follow but she turned and took the lance from the woman's neck and ran towards Darius and the others. She prayed that in her small detour that Tamaro had made it to their unofficial leaders side.
"Let me out...."
The voice came to Talias mind and soul.
"Please...stop this nonsense! i could help you..let me fill you with my power! "Talia shook her head, shuddering as she watched the riders and the Dragon, remembering what its eye revealed.
"I..i cant...i wont give myself over so easily"
She just heard a sigh from the goddess and felt a sense of irritation emanate from her, like when you wish to help a stubborn child and he refused.
It was then that Talia aimed for another rider coming at her, this time she took a few seconds to mentally prepare herself for pain before using the lance, she placed the sharp tip on it on the ground and with enough force with her body she flinged herself onto a robed rider, tackling him off his horse, sending it running towards some of her comrades with a startle of her shriek of pain.
"DIE" She had taken advantage of the surprised expression the rider had and stabbed him twice in his chest and abdomen, before running off and finally reaching Darius, her eyes scanning for Jacob, Aliana and Tamaro."what now!?..how do we kill them and THAT!?" She winced and bit back pain on her arm as she pointed to the Dragon, although now the pain was getting numb from the constant sting of it.
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Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2011 11:51 pm
Tamaro waved his arms to draw as many towards him as he could, and thus away from Talia. Of course, then he found he had a greater problem, which was that a good number of people were now headed straight for him. The horsemen were fastest, so Tamaro prepared himself.
He stood there like a target until the very last moment, then he plunged his spear into the earth and held the point out. As the horse tried to trample him it ran into the spear point instead. The spear fully impaled the poor beast, causing it to topple over and crush its rider. A second horseman tried to cut his head off, but his sword clashed with the shield that Tamaro held to protect him from the dragon's breath. Though it was made to combat the dragon, it worked as a conventional shield as well.
Tamaro removed it, though, to use as a weapon. He hurled the heavy shield at a third advancing rider, hitting him squarely in the face and knocking him to the ground, at which point he was trampled by the footsoldiers that came fifteen strong and half naked.
It was unlikely he would be able to take them all on at once, but it was also unlikely that he would have to. He turned and ran from them, kneeling to search the crushed rider for a weapon and finding a dirk. It was a small and thin blade, suited more as a secondary weapon than a primary offense, but it would work well enough.
By this time the second horseman had come back around and was looking to make another pass. Tamaro had nothing to block him this time, as his shield was by now on the other side of a small mob. Instead, Tamaro laid flat on the ground. There was no hiding the laugh the rider gave when he saw this, mirthful and insane. He aimed to trample Tamaro, but Tamaro had something else in mind. He rolled on his side to make a thinner target, and just as he hoped the horse's hooves trampled the ground on either side of him but missed his body completely. As the beast passed over, and as the rider laughed, Tamaro grabbed the straps of the saddle and latched onto the beast with his legs.
The rider looked back and was confused by the absence of a Tamaro-like stain on the ground. He didn't realize what happened until he felt a sharp pain in his leg. Tamaro had stabbed him and was now aiming to do so again. The rider was quick to react, though, and slashed at him. Tamaro was quicker and dodged, pulling himself to the other side and stabbed his other leg. The man was howling in rage and pain now, slashing both sides frantically to take his head off, whichever side he appeared on.
Slowly losing his grip, and with little hope of getting another good hit quickly enough to get away, Tamaro thought fast. He cut through a strap on the saddle and caused it to tip, pulling the rider down to the bottom and placing him on top of the horse instead. The rider fell off and broke his neck, and Tamaro cut away the remains of the saddle, then rode it through and around the crowd to where the others were.
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Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2011 5:23 pm
The world seemed to be spinning and everything was happening too fast for Nox to track. The dragon had been brought to the ground and Darius had gone to the base of the beast's neck to chop off the scaly b*****d's head so the group could collect the reward from the town, but something happened..the dragon seemed to change and grow as it's wounds scanned over with more rock-hard scales. As the beast grew a swing of it's tail threw Nox to the ground at the edge of the clearing and Nox felt his body tumble against the ground and stop a few feet from the clearing. Nox then stood up his body ached from the dragon's blow and hitting the ground, but he could still fight. Then he saw them. The people were rushing into the clearing and attacking his friends they seemed as if they wanted to protect the dragon. Nox knew he had to go back and help his friends so Nox pulled his kunai from their hiding place and dashed back into the melee. The new human enemies quickly took notice of Nox charging into the area one of them even shouted about another blasphemous fool had showed up to die. But Nox didn't plan on dying today.
"What's with all of the crazy naked people and why is the dragon twenty times larger than about a minute ago?" he yelled towards Darius as he stabbed the blade of his kunai into the stomach of one of the enemy. There was almost too many of them for Nox to count but they weren't very skilled fighters as far as the boy could tell. He made his way over to Aliana and cutting down a couple more of their nude adversaries on his way there. Once he had finally reached the girl he positioned himself between her and the main forces.
"We need to get to Darius!"
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Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2011 11:51 am
Aliana watched the flurry of action unfold before her eyes. Her companions sprung into action, doing all they could to wound the dragon. Ragnvald dealt a grievous wound to the beast, and she almost cried out in triumph when Kristalia took the thing's eye. She gripped the spear tighter. Her arms were shaking with the weight of the heavy weapon, but even the thought of her planned lunge was enough to start her heart pumping adrenaline through her body, and the spear seemed to lose some of its incredible weight. She waited for the right moment, then started rushing forward, aiming for the base of the dragon's neck. She intended to plunge the spear down into whatever wound Darius would make in his attempt to take the dragon's head.
The dragon began to change. It seemed to grow right before her eyes. She blinked and shook her head, then squinted at the dragon. Her eyes were not deceiving her, and she doubted it was a trick of her mind; the dragon was literally getting bigger by the second. Its wounds were healing over. Scales crusted over its maimed eye and stitched together the wound in its belly. She hoped the internal damage would remain, but considering the situation, she doubted it. She wanted to rush forward and attempt to hurt the beast anyway. She wanted to drop the spear. She wanted to run. She wanted to say something. She longed for the ability to move, but her body was locked in place. The spear had no longer had any weight in her hands; it simply rested in her hands as if nestled in the curled fingers of a stone statue. She could not move. She wanted to move, to yell, to panic. Even panicing would be better than this. Panic would bring a burst of energy to convert into strength or speed. Panic would make her mind race, her heart pound, and cause time to seem like it slowed down. Panic would be better than this paralysis, this sheer, pure horror that gripped her, mind, body, and soul. This beast was no longer a lovely, admirable, majestic master of the elements. Now it was simply an invincible killing machine, bent on destroying her and everyone she loved. As it grew from adolescence to its full adult prowess, Aliana was incapable of feeling anything but despair, a crippling hopelessness.
Then she heard the approach of something else. Hooves. Yells. Finally, she was able to force her body to turn just slightly to be able to see the wave of people emerge from the forest. More people than she could have expected. Some of them were wearing odd robes. Some were naked and covered in bodily fluids. All of them were screaming and flailing, and Aliana would not have been surprised if some were foaming at the mouth. These people were clearly insane. She watched as they engaged her companions, and while the sheer numbers of the crazy people concerned her slightly, the way they used their weapons was mediocre, and they obviously had no clear train of thought. She and the others would be able to win the fight with these people. She almost completely forgot about the dragon. Darius had managed to restrain the creature, and she managed to focus on the most immediate issue, which was the crazy strangers running amok. This broke her paralysis. She managed to unfurl her fingers and drop the spear, and that seemed to act like a cure to the crippling spell of terror cast on her. She drew the two knives Ragni had given her, feeling a moment of remorse for her looted knife still stuck in the dragon's side like a useless thorn. The people now noticed her. Before they had moved around her, ignoring her frozen form as they would a tree. Now, her motion had drawn their attention, and they realized she, too, was an enemy, not some arbitrary statue. They moved toward her.
Nox threw himself in front of her suddenly, yelling something about needing to move toward Darius. How stupid! She understood his train of thought, but it obviously occurred to him that attracting more people toward Darius, who seemed to have the greatest chance of defeating the dragon once and for all. No, they needed to attract the people away from him. She would have been very slightly annoyed by Nox's attempt to protect her, but she knew his motivation and could not blame him. She could not afford to humor him, though. She hoped she did not hurt his feelings by pushing him aside and yelling "Like hell we do!" She lunged forward into the approaching crazies. As she moved, something flickered in her mind, like a small but bright candle being lit in the back of her skull. It was inconsequential at the moment, so she ignored it, focusing on the people she faced. They went for the most obvious paths, working with nothing but blind rage. Their only goal was to kill her. On the other hand, Aliana's only aim was to incapacitate her opponents. They were numerous, but it would take nothing but a nasty cut in the right place to make them unable to fight. Unlike when she trained with her companions, she never attempted to confront these people head-on. Her first focus was not getting hurt, and she only went on the offense when she was sure of her own success. She dodged a punch and countered with a kick to the face and a quick stab in the ribs. A sword came her way and she jumped away from the man wielding it. He stabbed at her again and she ducked, then shifted her weight forward and struck out with her knife, leaving a deep cut in the man's calf. One cannot fight when drowning in their own blood or walk on muscle sliced in half. Hers was precision work, and she dodged and retreated far more than she attacked, but she was simply too fast to be hit, and she remained unscathed and did not tire quickly.
After a while of her cowardly fighting, she managed to find a spare moment to look around. One thing immediately caught her eye. A man in slightly different robes than the others, up on a horse. He was doing more yelling than fighting. Even she could tell this was the leader. All her companions seemed too occupied with the chaos to notice. Her stomach turned at the thought of it, but she took the initiative anyway. The was not giving orders so much as inspiration, judging by the way he seemed to be yelling, so his death was unlikely to halt the attack completely, but it would be a fatal blow to the morale of the horde of people, and that was just as good. She glanced quickly at Nox. She was reluctant to stray from him, but he could handle himself, and what she was about to do was necessary. She ran toward the leader, fighting off a few opponents on the way. For a moment, Aliana paused to decide how to approach the man. She confronted him head-on, simply rushing forward with every intention of luring him in. He was intelligent and didn't fall for it. Instead, he spurred his horse away. She was about to give chase when he turned, his horse carrying him toward her as fast as it could go. She expected some of his followers to get trampled, but they parted before him without even looking, as if they sensed his presence and accommodated for him. She held her ground until the last moment, when she jumped swiftly to the side. His sword barely missed her. He turned and made another pass and another close dodge. This was repeated several times, and she could tell he was beginning to get annoyed. She was not a challenge, but a nuisance, just as she intended to be. He rushed at her again and she pretended to be tired, jumping a bit late. The sword came frighteningly close to her shoulder, she felt the wind of its movement. She let him have another dangerously close pass, suffering a tiny cut on her ear. It bled a little, but it was unlikely it would even scar. It still had the desired effect. The last of the leader's attacks would hit. She bent over, resting her hands on her knees and breathing heavily as he approached. The sword came down. One twitch, and it went harmlessly over her back. She took the opportunity and jumped up, grabbing the saddle and pulling herself up behind him. He looked at her, surprised, and she had the urge to giggle at the silly situation. Then she plunged one of her knives into his side. He groaned in pain and toppled off the horse. He grabbed Aliana's shirt and took her with him. They tumbled to the ground, and he managed to land on top of her. It hurt and she heard a crack, which she worried was something breaking; it was only a stick she had landed on. But now she was pinned under a man who was heavier and stronger than she was. He lifted his sword and brought it down toward her heart, and by some miracle she managed to catch it at the last moment and divert it so it thumped harmlessly into the dirt. While he was preoccupied pulling it out, she twisted her body in such a way that she managed to bring her legs up around the man's neck. His head was bent backwards and his back was arched awkwardly, but he managed to land a nasty blow to Aliana's arm, the blade slicing through the flesh of her bicep down to the bone. She howled. The man grinned, but she pulled harder with her legs, managing to flip their positions. She now straddled his stomach, and she didn't hesitate: She jabbed her knife deep into his chest. Then she did it again. And one more time. He was going to die, but he seemed determined to take her with him. He weakly raised his arm and slashed at her, but only ended up hitting the side of her head with the flat of the blade. It was a hard blow and split the skin while making her dizzy, but he didn't have the strength for another last attack. He used his last breath the mutter something about chaos, then sputtered and quit breathing. Aliana was coated in his blood. She attempted to stand up, but she had something of a concussion and almost fainted, so she had to sit back down.
She had succeeded. Her arm hurt so much she could barely lift it and it was bleeding profusely, and she felt like she was about to pass out, but she had succeeded. She had done something significant. It was a struggle just to stay awake, so she stayed sitting, but watched carefully as she waited for the concussion to wear off.
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Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2011 5:44 pm
BEHOLD! THE DRAGON!
He did not know what had occurred. He had overestimated his abilities. Suddenly the small creatures were all over him. Stabbing him, cutting him open. He tried to get them off, but his body was wracked with pain. Then suddenly all of his pains were gone and he was growing. He was filled with more energy and power than he even thought possible. He let out a roar of triumph. Though blind in one eye he knew that now was his time. He grew bigger than all of his brethren. He would become a god on this puny world and he tilted his head back and filled the heavens with his furious fire. He looked down to the tiny creatures swarming around his feet. They were riding the other animals and scurrying around. The dragon was filled with unbridled rage. These animals almost killed him. He would kill them all.
He lowered himself down and smashed several men under his feet. He watched many running by him in a line and belched out flame onto them. They shrieked in fury as the skin melted off of their bones. He swung his tail around killing more and more of the stupid creatures. He was unstoppable. He swung his massive claws. Slaughtering all of them. They would rue the day they challenged the might of the dragon.
In a powerful thrust Darius’s blade went through the horse’s throat and into the rider’s midsection. The impact of the running creature tore his sword from his hand and he barely rose his shield in time before a lance came at him. It pierced through his shield and tore it of his arm. He cursed as another horseman came at him with a spear extended. He sidestepped the polearm and grabbed it’s shaft. Tearing it from the riders hands. He jammed it into another man’s face. Then noticed everyone coming to him. He was trained as a military strategist. But this was getting ridiculous, and he felt the blood rage that flowed through all of his ancestors veins begin to overtake him. Everyone asked him what the plan was. There was a monstrosity of scale and flame killing everyone. There were countless enemies. He started to laugh.
“The plan is to live my friend” He shouted at ragni as he swept the spear tip across someone’s unprotected stomach, spilling their intestines onto the back of the horse they were riding. “There is no escape. I am going to kill me a ******** dragon.” He ran from the group of allies that had begun surrounding him. He watched as some of them were off doing their own things. He saw Aliana going after a man that was dressed in especially fancy clothes and thought her a silent cheer. Then descended into chaos.
The only smell was the burning flesh of man and horse. He gritted his teeth in disgust but plunged onward. He impaled a horse on the end of his spear, and it threw the rider. He charged he fallen man, and stomped on his throat repeatedly until it crunched under his boot. A blade sliced across his back but he shrugged it off. The dragon was his main objective, and was acting to sporadically for him to pay attention to the idiots not realizing that the dragon was killing them all as much as it was against Darius’s Companions. He suddenly realized that he was holding his twohander again, but couldn’t recall where he had gotten it/ It was slick with blood. His bloodlust overtook him and he saw red. There were men on foot charging at him. He charged them as well. It was about now that the men started realizing that this was a bad situation. That maybe the psycho leader who had been preaching his filth about chaos could have just been some sort of crazy kook. Darius didn’t give them enough time to do anything about it. In a blur of rippling muscle and furious battle cries men toppled in torn body parts under the savage might of his blade. He carved a path of corpses up to the flailing dragon. It was then that Aliana stabbed the Savior in the chest repeatedly with her knife.
There was a moment of silence. All of the clearing seemed to stop momentarily as the spell crumbled. The dragon was no longer immortal. With a flash of golden light, the villiages from Orsin Vear suddenly were filled with even more energy from the magic of the world. The essence greater than mortal understood what was to come, as was it’s intention. It rewarded it’s minions early. Their powers rose.
Darius’s third eye opened. He suddenly knew what was going to happen before it did. His body, it’s highly trained muscles and reflexes went through the motions. He came to the dragon. He could see it’s emotions radiating from it in an aura of pain and fury. Sweeping words raked across his mind. His subconscious awaked and he knew he was a messenger of death, and was here to release this creature from it’s physical bonds. He saw flames come at him in a rush, he rolled himself to the side and ran forward. The dragon clawed at him, but it’s size was slowly reducing. He swung his sword around and allowed the momentum of the dragon’s swing collide with the sharp blade. It’s claws fell off and Darius was bathed in the blood of the dragon. His focus left him no time to muse as he came to it’s legs, he spun in a rapid strike, cleaving open gaping wounds through the scales and flesh of It’s heels. The dragon cried out in fury as blood spurted from open arteries. The dragon tried to simply fall on Darius to squash him under It’s mass. But the warrior knew what was to come, and had cleared himself free before it happened. Then he drug his sword along the one of the beasts wings, cutting through skin then scale and bone. The reptile flopped around in confusion as it finally reduced itself to it’s normal size. It’s old wounds reopening. Darius took a place beside it’s neck. He peered into it’s beautiful eyes and smiled.
“Lets try this again shall we?”
He raised his sword above his head and brought it down with all of his might. Magic coursed through his body and filled his strike with energy. He cleaved completely through and his sword met the ground. The dragons body flopped on the ground. Refusing to die. The head snapped wildly at his feet. Wanting to drag him down to hell with it. Darius put his foot on his bounty and watched it finally die. There was another wave of golden light. He saw it strike his friends and enter them. His mind filling with knowledge. Then he just watched as his friends, with their new power decimated the remaining warriors of chaos. The butchery left him pleased.
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Hermit Omega Vice Captain
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Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2011 8:50 pm
Sebastian had been in many fights before. Some raids had been only seconds, his bow and the bows of others tearing through the peoples clothing and armor so quickly that they were dead before they even knew what happened. Then there were the ones that lasted minutes. These were the ones where he actually would use his daggers and throwing knives and not relying on the bow. These were the ones where he learned small amounts about how to fight with small weapons. Then there were the rare ones that last from a half hour to an hour. These were the big hauls, the ones where the guards knew what they were doing, the ones where they would actually lose some men. This fight was different though, it was one of those moments where he actually used everything to his knowledge. One of those moments where he actually cared about the outcome; well, his outcome. Before he would just fight sporadically, not going out to get himself killed, but not caring if the others died to much. This time he was out for his own survival, but he cared if his comrades survived. Mostly because if they died he knew he and Ragni would be overwhelmed.
The battle became monotonous after the first kill. He had sheathed his daggers after that, using his hands to throw his knives into oncoming enemies. The first few had been perfect throws, neck wounds to the people and not even worrying about the horses, and then a few chest wounds. After that, though, he began hitting shoulders, stomachs, to the point that he would have to use one knife to slash a victims throat as they got close. He escaped most of the major wounds any who got close threw at him, as well. Fighting with daggers and throwing weapons had taught him to be careful in close combat, leading to him being more dexterous than most bandits. By the time his knife collection was exhausted he had suffered no wounds, but his aim had decreased to the point where he would be throwing two to three knives per target.
When he started to fight with his daggers things became a little more difficult. He stayed back to back with Ragni, relying on the merc to cover him for the promise of gold. The bruise on his back, however, made it difficult to dodge all the blows towards him. He soon had a scratch across a chest, a bruise on each shins from the people kicking, and a decent sized wound on his left hand that bled down and made his hands slippery with the blood. He dared not slow down, though, for he knew that if he did he would certainly accumulate more wounds than he would be able to muster. He had to survive.
That was when it happened. The enemies that headed towards him slowed slightly as they started to realize that the dragon was killing them as well, letting him to have his vision stray to the others. The first person he saw was Aliana, the girl heading towards the one that was obviously the leader. He knew that from the way he dressed, the way he held himself away from the battle. He saw as she rushed him, as she stabbed him in the chest. The dragon began to shrink after that, as if it was losing power. He felt himself grow stronger, more full of life than before. His wounds no longer bothered him at all. His perception of the battle changed, as if he was viewing things differently now. He managed to glimpse as Darius struck the blow to the foul dragon, separating it's head from body. He watched as a gold flash went through him and his comrades. Felt the effects on his body.
It was amazing.
He knew the legends of magic was true after that, for he felt it course through his veins. He saw as the faceless ones danced away from the battlefield, felt as if he knew how to control some of the magic. He looked at the oncoming enemies and smiled slightly as he felt his skin tingle, more accurately the air around him. He knew it wasn't his body healing, but he saw as his wounds disappeared, along with his clothes. They transformed into robes before his eyes, he felt the air shimmer around his hair and knew that he appeared as a bald man. He knew his eyes changed colors and he himself changed. He was no longer the effeminate man he once was, instead he was an illusion of the enemy. The enemies closest to him still attacked, but filled with this magic he struck them down quickly. After his kills he moved away from Ragni, towards the enemy themselves. The ones now approaching the Merc knew not that he was a foe, they only saw an ally heading towards them. It was this mistake that cost them their lives.
As he got close to the enemies, he felt the illusion fade, saw the wounds re-open on his skin, felt the air shimmer around his head again so that his hair back, his clothes back to the garments he wore before the magic hit him. By this moment the enemy couldn't stop running forward. Couldn't bring their weapons up to defend themselves. They could only continue running as Sebastian's daggers found their mark, the foes throats. Two of them were dead before they could even realize what had happened, leaving three more rushing towards him and Ragni. The first two began to pause as they realized what happened and began to stop, but Sebastian was quicker. He quickly threw one of his daggers into the eye of the only on his right, the blade sinking deep into his skull and resting there as he fell to the ground. He then used the other to stab the second man in the throat, quickly and without pause, he withdrew as he kept running towards the third man. This man had time to try and defend himself, he swung at Sebastian, but he wasn't where he swung. Sebastian had ducked the blow the swung out with his own blade, slicing the mans stomach open. He screamed in pain as his intestines spilled out before his eyes. The mans last sight was Sebastian's dagger dragging across his throat and his own blood spraying across an already bloody covered foe. Then he was dead.
Those were the last three from his angle, so it was after them that Sebastian walked back to the man with his dagger embedded in his skull and took it out, both of his matching daggers once again in his possession. He smiled widely then, watching as the others began to decimate their foe.
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Posted: Tue Sep 20, 2011 7:05 pm
Jacob dispatched another riding savage from his horse by striking the man's thigh. The horse whinnied and bucked off it's rider. The rider's face dug in to the dirt and his horse galloped off into the trees. His enemy wasn't dead; the man jumped up and lunged at Jacob all in one motion. The medic was caught by surprise and stumbled back. However, the enemy's leg had bucked under the sudden pressure and was again on the ground. The young boy lifted both hands in the air while they clutched his weapon but halted before bringing down his strike; a strange feeling had washed over him. Why was he so eager to kill this man? Why did it feel like a natural reaction? Before, in the woods with Talia, he killed to protect but now...? Jacob's mind was betraying these new instincts of his, the instinct to take down any enemy.
While the savage warrior was gripping at the blood that was gushing from his thigh, the boy took his chance and used the back of the sword to knock the man unconscious. He instantly felt idiotic for doing so. Each thought contradicted the other; this man would not hesitate to kill Jacob or any of his comrades, so by eliminating him, Jacob would still be protecting those he cared for. But was that really true, or just an excuse to give reason to killing. Wasn't it better to stay out of the fray and protect by healing? He grumbled to himself and turned the man over with his shoe, then bent down and sliced through his jugular. Red fluid pooled over, but it bought Jacob no relief, instead his insides twisted into a knot. This was the very reason he didn't want to join their hunt in the first place, but his desire to protect was overwhelming...
Between the shouts of the remaining savages he heard Talia's voice; now he was in trouble. Jacob's shoulders hunched, as if he were trying to hide behind himself but he peered over his right shoulder to better understand her words. He didn't know much of battle tactics so when Talia ordered him to regroup he nodded in agreement.
He moved through the battlefield getting quick glimpses of his comrades slicing through enemies. Tamaro, Darius, Sebastian, Nox, Ragni, they all seemed to know exactly what to do and the precise moment in which to execute. What amazed him even more was Aliana. She swiftly took down the leader without any help.
Before he reached Darius, a mysterious warmth started to fill his limbs and course through his veins, like an adrenaline rush he hadn't called upon. Jacob stood still and let the energy glide through him. He turned over his arms, watching the warmth move down to his fingers. His whole body felt calm, at peace even.
But then Jacob's eyes were pulled in many directions, first he witnessed Darius single handedly finish off the Dragon, then he watched as Sebastian's appearance reflected that of an ally of the enemy. He looked down at his own hands and his mind became determined; there had to be a better way to protect. There just had to.
He scanned the area and saw Aliana once more, she appeared to be fading in and out. She wasn't too far from him and so the young boy raced to her. The medic had the most peculiar thought; if he could just get to Aliana, he would be able to heal her, even though his pack along with his sword, lay forgotten in the dirt. This surge inside of him, made him feel like he could do just about anything.
Jacob knelt at her side and asked for her permission. "Please let me heal you." Though it may have sounded more like an order. He moved his hand until it was aloft and rested just above her hairline. It emitted a soft gentle warmth and for the first time he noticed a symbol etched into the back of his hand. A symbol that twisted in on itself.
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Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2011 1:53 am
Ragnvald Jeste Daussier let out another curse as he felt a blade stab deeply into his lower back on the right side. His only reaction was to ram his elbow back, then the cold steel ripped back out making cracking and popping noises with blood pouring down into his right boot. The impacted jolted his muscles as he collided with one of the robed figures ribs, then the crack resounded through the air and the man doubled over to fall on his knees. With a snarl Ragni pulled his knee back and then ripped it back to smash into the man's clothed face. Blood spit through the cloth which cover his face and he dropped face down into the earth.
The mercenary looked around, and for the first time he noticed how far he had drifted from Sebastian's back to go slay another follower. But he did not remember doing so, and then it hit him. His lower back was freezing cold. He wiped a hand on his lower right side and there it was, dark blood pouring from him. Slowly it registered that the follower had made a killing blow on Ragnvald the greatest swordsman ever. Or so he had thought until now...
Dammit... Why wasn't I paying attention, the young man berated himself as he wiped his sword blades off on the fallen man's robe, then his bloody hand after he finished sheathing his swords. With a heavy sigh and a slight resentment he turned to watch the end of the fight.
His dark primal eyes watched carefully as Aliana performed her daring last feats against a flamboyantly dressed man. A warmth seemed to fill him then, a bright light, almost like the sun was there. And then everything was black and white before him. Si'kon sat, blood grin on his canine face. With a noiseless howl Ragni was rushed back to stand on the blood sodden clearing that it had all started in. He dropped to his knees as pain seemed to wrap him in a blanket. Every wound on his body seemed like it was on fire. And no sooner than it had started than it was over. His hand fell back to his lower right side of his back, yet the blade wound was gone and only the blood remained, still wet but turning slightly sticky like it was just about to dry.
He stood slowly, feeling refreshed for the first time in a long time. His body felt brand new almost, like he had just been born, or maybe like he was revived after a peaceful slumber that had lasted a hundred years. It was something he did not like. Ragnvald ran his scarred calloused hands over his muscled stomach and scowled slightly. His body felt almost foreign. No longer did his knees ache from all the constant forced marches he had been on. No longer did his shoulder ache from his first real injury in combat when a blade almost cleaved him in two. It felt wrong, and even worse that it must have come from Si'kon...
After a few more moments he set it to the back of his mind and searched the field. Looking he saw only a few things he liked; Darius' pleased look as he stared down at the beast he had killed... and then Sebastian walking to the dead and looting them. Or at least the robed men who might have something.
He walked across the battlefield until he came upon Jacob. For a moment he just stared at the healer. At first only rude remarks filled his head and maybe an attempt to attack the man, but instead he only gave a few words, “If I ever see you hesitate again on the field I will personally come across a battlefield choked with enemies and me half breathing afterwards to kill you myself. Never leave an enemy standing. We all have demons from killing. But what is worse... Killing a man you don't know or don't care. Or leaving him wounded so he can stand back up to kill one of your comrades. What if he had killed Darius? Or Aliana, or even me? Never hesitate. Or stay away from the fight. That is what I thought you were going to do anyways...”
The mercenary turned his back to the healer and then started toward Darius, eyes shut tightly as anger boiled over him. “Well at least we will be rich, even if we are aching from pain after such a conflict... Yet another battle won means two more whores in the bed tonight I suppose... And a cold mug of dark ale in our hands.” He clapped the large man on the shoulder and looked down at the head of the dragon. Seemed a shame to kill such a powerful beast almost.
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Posted: Sat Sep 24, 2011 3:31 pm
Kristalia had been waiting for Darius command and even before he directed it to Ragnavald, she knew what he would say.
"I guess its "take as many as we can"."
Talia turned her body towards the fray of chaos followers and frowned, She knew that with her injured arm she was not much of an opponent for them, thus her death would come quickly.
The silver haired woman let out a sigh and as she was about to charge towards the enemies, a touch of white caught her attention. "A...aliana?" She turned towards the flurry of white and saw Aliana's slim body wrestling with a robbed man. Talia let out a yell of anger,feeling a wash of protective instinct for the girl as she saw the man try to stab Alianas heart, and miss with the girls efforts to dodge it.
"No no no!!!" Talia started to run towards the slim figure, hoping she could be on time and that the horrid man would not slay her, but something happened.
Aliana had used her legs to flip their positions and was now on top of the man, a look on her eye that made Talia gasp for air, the girl looked determined and dangerous and for some reason, each time the weapon in Alianas hand pierced the mans chest, the silver haired woman would jump as if it was her own.
"This goes to show you...Stop worrying about others! and start worrying about yourself, for if you die today, in given time they will not even remember your name."
Talia stood there and watched as Aliana tried to get up but fell down again, she had the impulse to go to her and make sure she was fine. But even with her doubts about her, the Goddess words got to her.
"Survive...that is all we need to do..."
Kris looked once more at Aliana and turned back to the enemies who where stunned at the death of their leader, Taly was about to run and take up this opportunity to kill the men in front of her, when a bright flash of gold blinded her and seemed to fill her with warmth.
"What?...what is this?"
When Talia regained her sight, all she could see was how the dragon had gone back to his previous state and how Darius looked into its eyes before his sword sliced his head off.
The woman's heart began to pound from excitement and horror. Although the leader and dragon had been slayed, there was now the followers and they did not look too happy.
She watched as they howled and foamed at the mouth, their insanity showing not just in their eyes but in their whole bodies.
She wanted to shriek as three men ran to her with jagged blades and anger, but she could not even move. Even worse than the death by the crude weapons was the unbearable heat in her limbs. The warmth that the light had offered was now as if she had drank a bowl of flaming embers and she was being burned alive inside out.
"N..N...NOOOO!" Talia closed her eyes and cried out as the men had raised their weapons to strike and shot out her hand towards them as if that could stop them. she sobbed and waited for the painful slice, yet nothing happened. "Did...i die burning?"
When Talia opened her eyes, she was somewhere far away from the battlefield and groaned. "I did die!...damn"
A silvery laugh caught her attention and she turned to watch the goddess behind her, watching her with interest. Talia trying to feel a tad braver dared to ask the apparition a question
"Tell me..did you eat me? and thus i am dead here?"
The Goddess just shook her head and laughed, yet there was a hint of annoyance in her voice.
"Why would I eat You?"
The Goddess walked towards Talia and shook her head as the young woman flinched at her cold touch.
"You let the heat turn you to stone...You need to use the warmth you have child"
Kristalia watched the woman with interest and fear.
"What do you mean?...I am already dead!"
The goddess just sneered and took Talias hands, making her gasp in pain,as the burning heat returned to her body.
"Had you died, you would not be feeling pain!"
The goddess let go of Talias hands and crossed her arms around her chest.
"Kristalia inverse...Listen to me, and listen to me good! if you wish to save your life that is"
Talia watched the woman with anger and despair, her heart was confused and clouded with doubt about her fate. If what this ebony woman wanted her to do was trust her, let her "in" what would happen to her.
"If your worried about me "eating" you...well dont, i am but a guide to you...now accept my help or so Fate help me i shall let the men go and chop you up!"
Kristalia jumped at the harshness in the goddess words, and closed her eyes for a second. If anything..The goddess was giving her more time in the world of the living.
"I...accept you help" The Goddess smiled at the silvery woman and without a word, she walked to her and turned Talias torso around, extending her hand towards the horizon. Talia was about to protest but something around her fingers caught her attention.
"String?" Kris watched with curiosity as strings were now tied to her fingers. "what is this?" The goddess moved in front of her and touched the three pieces of string.
"You are holding in your hand...The minds of your three attackers" Talia looked shocked and prodded the Goddess for more. "What? how?" But without answering, Talia remembered her last conscious moments, where the heat was unbearable and her hand had shot out towards the men. She looked to the goddess and the ebony woman just smiled. "..so...what do i do now?" The Goddess moved her hand on Talias. "Move your fingers...and feel their minds..test how far you have them controlled"
Kristalia nodded and as she wiggles her fingers, the strings trembled sending a wave forward, and in less than a split second the wave came resonating back. Talia wanted to double over. The minds of these men where twisted and horrid! she could mention every emotion that they had, ranging from, Lust, violence, Blood Frenzy to Insanity. Something in her wanted her to stop, but she kept going forward inside their mind, until she found what she thought she needed.
"They...they only see me..they Adore me, and would die for me..that is the last thoughts i acquired.."
The goddess clapped her hands and smiled.
"I knew you would do it!..Its true that when a mind is insane, or if its undeveloped like a child's, it is easier to control! but to do it in your first try...I am proud"
Talia blushed at the goddess words and looked towards the horizon.
"What now? what do i do with them?"
The goddess smile shone brightly and the vision started to fade.
"Anything your heart desires"
When the vision finally ended, Talia was now facing three huge men just standing there, drooling and watching her with eyes of a man gone blind, from staring at the sun. She shuddered and looked at them thinking about what to do. It was not long before she came up with an idea. She then with the spirit string, motioned to the tallest and stronger looking man.
"You..protect me if anyone is to attack me.." The mans eyes returned to their normal color, with only a twinge of white at the rims and nodded to the silvery haired woman. Talia then turned to the other two and smiled.
"Now..I need you two..to help my comrades! Slay whoever gets in my way or theirs! i want no mercy, for they are not your kin anymore" The other two came too and nodded to Kristalia, setting out and using the crude jagged weapons, meant for the fisherwoman's skin on their brethren.
Talias heart jumped as the men turned barbaric and chopped off their chaos members limbs, the last expression on her enemies was surprise and horror."This is so..Huh?" In all of the confusion, talia had not noticed her arm had healed and that she felt like new, a smile of triumph took over her lips and eagerness over her body as she picked up her lance and ran, her new bodyguard on toe as she harpooned enemies and commanded the men to protect and slay.
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 8:28 pm
Aliana looked around almost cluelessly as she watched the events unfold around her. Since she had left Orsin Vear, she had almost grown accustomed to strange things happening. She had just spent a good while fighting a dragon and a crazy religious leader of sorts. But as she sat on the blood-soaked ground, immobilized by dizziness, something happened that she could only imagine happening in a dream. Her actions seemed to have brought everything to a halt for a moment, as if time froze briefly in shock of her deplorable but necessary action. She vaguely wondered if she was going to be in trouble with her companions or if her dead adversary's followers were suddenly all going to turn on her at once. Then it was as if something filled her from within--a light that seemed to free her from the bonds of what we know as gravity. She felt like she could have floated up into the endless sky and never touch the ground again if she hadn't taken that blow to the head. She mentally chastised herself for allowing that to happen.
It was just in time when she looked around at her friends to make sure they were okay. A moment later and she would have missed their individual displays. Kristalia paused for a moment and the men in front of her also stopped, then turned around and began fighting their own comrades, as if their alliances had been completely forgotten after making eye contact with the lovely young woman. Sebastian changed right before Aliana's eyes, and she almost jumped as instead of the agreeable young ex-bandit, her eyes beheld what appeared to be one of the people they had just spent so long fighting; she was not entirely fooled though. Sebastian used his new deceptive form to tear through the mob, leaving death in his wake as the deranged people realized the mistake in assuming it had been an ally they had hesitated to kill. Aliana's gaze shifted again and she almost flung herself to her feet to rush to Ragnvald's aid. He was bleeding profusely; therre was no chance of survival with a wound like that. And yet as she watched, the wound closed and healed on its own, leaving no evidence of its existence save the blood caking to his skin and clothes. She finally noticed Darius, and at that moment she was legitimately frightened. He lifted his sword high and brought it down, swift and strong, to sever the dragon's head from it's neck. The death of the dragon was not what bothered her though, despite the way the body continued to writhe and the jaws snapped. What made her uncomfortable was Darius himself--specifically his face. The carnage around him seemed to bring him pleasure, and while she knew he did not mind battle, the enjoyment he seemed to be taking from the scene before him, she felt, was almost monstrous. There was something strange about his forehead. She decided it was a trick of the light or a smudge of dirt and dismissed it. At the death of the dragon, she felt another powerful surge, the same sort of brightness from before, and while she felt lighter than ever, it did nothing to alleviate the discomfort and intimidation Darius's power made her feel.
"Please let me heal you." The words confused Aliana. The voice was certainly familiar, but it did not belong in this setting--it almost sounded like Jacob's. She turned her attention to the young man sitting in front of her, and she was flooded with relief. Not only was Jacob here to help, but he seemed to be relatively unscathed. He put his hand on her head and his skin grew warm. The heat transferred to her, and the lightheadedness vanished. It radiated throughout her body and her strength returned almost completely; even the gash in her arm felt better, and when she looked down at it, it had healed nearly halfway and did not hardly hurt at all. After only a moment more, she was able to jump to her feet, and she felt fine, stars did not dance in front of her eyes. "Thank you so much," she said sincerely, smiling brightly. There were a few crazy people left, but she decided to leave them to her companions. She had had her fair share of fighting. The only exception was one man who seemed to have taken an interest in Jacob, and was trying to sneak up behind him. Aliana sighed and moved to take a step toward the man, but a whim gripped her. Instead of walking, she bent her knees slightly and pushed off. The lightness she had been feeling was obviously not just an illusion. With the effort she had exerted, she should have not lifted off the ground like this. But she did. The air seemed to carry her toward her target, and when she began losing momentum and sinking, she simply pushed off of the air itself beneath her foot, propelling her the rest of the distance. She slowed and, for only a second that felt like several minutes, she hovered in front of his face, suspended in the air. The man, as delusional and mad as he was, could still comprehend what had just happened, and the concept of a flying person was enough to make his eyes widen in confusion. Then the second was gone, and Aliana leaned back, her foot connecting with the man's jaw and sending him sprawling on the ground as her momentum carried her all the way around in a leisurely backflip and she alighted on the ground like a leaf landing gently on the still surface of a pond. "Please leave," she said. "I don't want to hit you again." The man stared at her for a moment before his instinct took over and he fled.
Aliana turned and walked back to Jacob as if nothing had happened. "How long have you been here?" she asked. "I haven't seen you until just now. Did you just arrive?" She looked around as she spoke, hoping to catch sight of Nox.
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2011 10:07 pm
With the plan in mind, Tamaro ignored the others and removed himself from them all in the hope that he could at least make their own battles easier by lessening the number they faced at once. He rode his stolen horse into the thick of the fray and jumped into a crowd of unaware folks, sending the whole lot tumbling to the ground but landing on his leg wrong. His foot twisted at an awkward angle and he couldn't stand on it well. He killed a few while they were down and then retreated a distance to gain some ground and buy a few seconds to come up with a plan. There were far too many to handle all on his own, and with his injuries and a plan like 'don't die', his death was almost assured. With these odds, he decided there really was no good plan. Rather than survive, he wanted to take as many with him into death as he could. He limped quickly to the edge of the battleground where there was a reserve spear and swung it wildy to keep his attackers at a distance, intermittently jabbing at them, wounding many and even killing some.
He didn't see the man sneak up from behind, but he did feel the dagger slip between his ribs. He cried out in pain and fell to his knees, while someone else took up his sword and instructed his fellows to stand back. He held it high, then began to bring it down into Tamaro's neck. It was at this moment that the golden light erupted from the other side of the field. It swept over everything, including Tamaro.
The would-be executioner faultered in blinding light and let the sword slip from his grasp, causing it to merely graze Tamaro's neck. A strong wind then picked up around them, carrying fallen leaves and lifting them into a vortex that surrounded only the small group. The others observed this, and as they were distracted Tamaro pulled the dagger from his side and threw it away. With the dagger gone he felt heat rising in him. He pulled his heavy cloaks away to find that he was now covered with light brown fur and his arms had become slightly longer than he remembered.
He looked at each one of them, then touched each of them on the chest in turn. They only looked at him strangely for a moment when he did this, so shocked and surprised by his appearance and actions that even in their insanity they couldn't help but stand motionless as Tamaro hobbled away toward the others.
Seconds later their chests expanded, their throats bulged, and their mouths erupted with blood as their lungs all exploded one man after another. He proceeded along, doing this to most everyone he met who was just as put off by his appearance and strange behavior.
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