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 Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2011 11:42 pm
WHO: Sloane (Snoof), Danylrein & Nella (Arana)
WHERE: A town roughly between Anica, the North Base and Lord Yizhaq's Estate alight with riots
WHEN: Mid-morning, March 17th, 1411
WEATHER: Frigid, clouded and windy with no snow Fellowship of Mages
Mages, Fellowship loyals, practitioners...
"Protect"
Dear Mages, the Fellowship is now facing a time of great hardship... the Grand Magus' brutal death in Queen Valhalla's own hands have resulted in the unease of many in Shyregoed and beyond. The controversy over Benedicta Waldgrave's death have left many Fellowship members into leaving their faction to go off to their own devices, and many of the people in Shyregoed have been rioting the Mage bases in search of ambiguous answers.
Protect all Fellowship sanctions across Panymium and spread the news of the Fellowship's still good name, and protect the innocent and those you can with the Magic you have been blessed with.
The town was nestled in a clearing held between two of the mountains, many trails leading around each of them which lead in various directions. To the West in some manner rested Anica, the North was where he had just come from and to the East and South respectively lay Winterview and Colwe. Whatever was in between was none of his business but now that he had gone through the mountains twice, once to get to the North Base and again departing from it, his current destination was intended to be the Grand hub, Waldgrave's personal dwelling, Anica. It was a tad more difficult navigating through the mountains than in other regions, however, and what should have been a straightaway turned instead to something of an awkward spiral thanks to the terrain.
Coming over the top of a snowbank, Sloane narrowed his eyes behind the helm and let his shoulders go limp. The scene before him in this small town, at the heart of which rested a small but well fortified castle, was being ransacked.
And there were no beaked members of the House to blame.
Clawed fingers clenched into fists as he entered its borders, this town on the edge of wilderness, and all of his senses came alight. Shouts and screams pierced his ears, the scent of fires old and new with a faint hint of blood and a delicate taste of ash and taint on the wind. Something was very, very wrong here and the Infitialis couldn't put his finger on it until he heard a very distinct shout in his direction.
"THE IMPERIAL GUARD!"
People turned, squabbled, swarmed; all of them took their attention away from what they were doing and zeroed in on the white knight who looked about the many faces in confusion. "YOU'LL NOT STOP US! THIS IS ALL THAT WRETCHED MAGUS' DOING!" and in that one exclamation, the current situation fell into place. These people were rioting against the Fellowship and that was all he needed to understand. Their weapons were readied in defense until someone plainly pointed out the symbol on his helmet. "...He's one of them!" In point of fact, he had nothing to do with the Guard whatsoever, and this realization soon dawned upon all of them.
The group charged and his own weapon readied, a long silver blade slipping out impossibly from between the plates at his wrist. This was not a pleasant journey.
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Posted: Thu Jun 16, 2011 2:40 pm
Dan decided that this just wasn't his day. Or, perhaps, a more accurate statement would be that it just wasn't his week.
This week should have been happy, a celebration to welcome a new member to the family, and it had been happy at first. However, the joy was soon lost in the face of terrible, almost unbelievable news - Lady Benedikta Waldgrave was dead, by the hand of Queen Valhalla herself. Not exiled, imprisoned, or even taken in for questioning..... dead. His mother, his father, even Dan himself, all of them as members of the fellowship had considered Waldgrave their leader. While in Dan this led to confusion and good deal of personal contemplation, the reaction of his parents had been..... slightly less subdued. Over the past few days the disagreement between spouses on whether Valhalla or Waldgrave was in the right had escalated, to the point where Dan was beginning to fear they would bring down the house around them. By this morning, he had had enough.
Step by step Dan slogged through the snow, blinking his eyes against the cold as the top of his travel cloak absorbed his fogging breath. He had to admit to himself that his destination today took him much farther out of the way than he usually went, but he wanted to just go, get out of the area near his house. Not to Colwe, or a secluded area near his home.... just somewhere else, preferably a place he hadn't visited recently. He hoped that this way he just might escape unwanted attention. He'd gotten enough of that from his parents recently.
Stopping for a moment Dan began to unwrap the top of his cloak with one of his gloved hands, resting his hiking staff in the crook of his elbow. Once the fabric had been loosened sufficiently, he looked down inside towards his chest and spoke softly. "Are you doing okay there Nella?"
With these words a lump on his chest began to wiggle, and a few moments later a little orange head was poking out of the fabric, the little phasmas like a warm ember against his collar bone. "I'm alright," she said, her red mouth standing out against her face with its movement. With the recent argument in the household Nella had been staying close to Dan as often as she could, and there had been no argument on whether she would go with him today - in fact, he had a feeling she would have tagged along even if he had told her not to.
"Is it okay for me to come out now?"
Dan gave a small nod. "I think it would be oka--"
Suddenly, he stopped, listening to something on the wind. Was that.... screaming? Muscles tensing, Dan quickly trotted towards the noise, and when he saw the source, his mouth went dry. A stronghold of the fellowship, in the midst of being ransacked.
"Dan? Dan? What is it?" the little lantern asked, trying to squirm out of the fabric to get her own look, but she went still when Dan's hand came up.
"There's a riot going on, against the fellowship," he said tensely. "I.... think it might be best if you stayed hidden for a little while longer."
For a moment, he considered turning around and hightailing it out of there, but then he saw something happening in the middle of it all. A white knight was trying to fend off some of the rioters, and as he looked closer he became positive that the individual was a member of the fellowship. He didn't want to put Nella in danger, but at the same time he wasn't just going to leave another member of the fellowship to the mercy of the mob.
Adjusting his cloak and hefting his staff as Nella once again hid against his chest, Dan sprinted down towards the conflict, going to see if there just might be something he could do to diffuse the situation.
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Posted: Wed Jun 22, 2011 2:31 pm
The large mob had their torches and pitchforks, picturesque and at the ready, as they backed the knight further down the streets and into a stone corner. With each step back, he held his blade aloft, readying it for a reaction. One of the rioters would occasionally attempt to intimidate him with a plunge of their fork but his reaction was swift, swinging the blade through the air and causing a few gasps but there was no contact made by his blade and so their approach resumed.
How could he when these people were just angry and confused? At any other time they were mothers and fathers, simple bakers and craftsmen, all innocents just following their religions or ties to the Fellowship. And the Fellowship had failed them.
Waldgrave had failed them.
He had been there, he had seen Waldgrave fall under Queen Valhalla's blade. He had allowed it, enjoyed seeing her death at the hands of so sturdy an individual as the queen of Shyregoed, but the consequences of her demise rippled endlessly through the snowy mountains without any sign of stopping and were not helped by the black cloaked figures stalking and spying out of the corners of his eyes.
Their voices screamed accusations and bagged for answers, all clamoring over one another into one large cacophony of discord that was growing by the minute as more people drew out from their homes in response. Overpowering numbers of innocents whom the knight refused to harm decided enough was enough and if this man of the Fellowship would not give them the justice and answers they sought then they would bring him down in their blind rage. They charged like hurricane, screaming and shouting, waving their weapons wildly in his direction.
Without so much as a sound, the knight turned on his heel and began a steady run toward an opening that was soon blocked by the appearance of a young man with a staff. If nothing else, the staff in accordance with his age was a dead give away for where this boy was among the factions and the knight's unsworded hand slipped beneath his arm and held fast, beginning to drag the young Dan along with him. Even if he had a moment to explain it would all be lost beneath the shouts but hopefully the mark of the Mages upon the knight's helmed brow would be enough to assuage any fears in the young man.
For now, at least, there was only retreat and hopefully they would be able to loose the mob within the den of stone arches and small towers.
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Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2011 8:11 pm
Shortly after arriving at the mob Dan was questioning the wisdom of his decision, but the bodies closed in around him, and he was committed. Each moment he was jostled and pushed, the townsfolk in their anger caring little for personal space. A few times he came close to loosing a tooth, but the most terrifying instances came when people nearly collided into his chest. He felt Nella scrabbling at his chest with each push, curling up smaller and smaller to try and escape the incoming beating. Dan cared little about his own personal pummeling, but each blow near his chest kindled his protective instinct - and his anger. Muscles and teeth clenched, he decided he'd had enough. Cycling spells through his mind, he settled on the one he wanted, prepared to cast it --
And suddenly found himself pushed into a break in the crowd. The abrupt release of pressure caused him to stagger, and he had to be careful not to be absorbed back into the other side of the mob. Shortly after this emergence, voices began to split off from the shouting against the knight.
Who is that
Look at the staff
His clothes
His age
I've never seen him before
Who is he
What is he doing here
I don't trust him
Clutching his staff as the voices around him got more and more hostile, Dan looked around frantically for the fellowship member he had come to help. However, the member found him first.
With barely a moment's warning he found himself being dragged along by the white knight, and though under usual circumstances he might have resisted, this was far from normal circumstances. A glance at the symbol on the knight's helm confirmed his alliance, but the sight was whisked away as they ran from the charging mob.
Soon Dan lost track of where they were, the numerous twists and turns they took thoroughly disorienting him. Throughout all this the noise of the mob waxed and waned, but never disappeared completely. As his feet and the feet of the knight pounded against the ground, he hopped desperately that they would be able to loose the crowd - not just for his own sake and the knight's sake, but for Nella's as well.
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Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 10:11 am
With the knight's large form, it was easy to drag the young Dan along. Despite the frantic motions of their fleeing bodies and the frenzied cries from the mob behind them, there still seemed to be some care taken that the smaller mage was not tossed around carelessly like a rag doll. Even more careful was the grip the knight held upon the young man's arm; claws as sharp and dangerous as they were, they didn't even pierce the cloth of his sleeve. Still, his hold was firm and forceful and he easily whipped both himself and his newly forced companion around corners, zigzagging through the maze of town.
Though much of the town was in uproar, it seemed that this mob (large as it was) did not consist of the entire townsfolk and many a lady's gasp and gentleman's outcry in surprise was heard throughout their chase. When the sound of their pursuers was the faintest, the knight clutched Danylrein's arm ever tighter, pulling him in front of himself and ducking through a stone archway. Without a word or sound, he pressed his back against the wall, forcing Dan to do the same beside him with one heavy arm. As expected, the group caught up with them, enraged shouts carrying throughout the mountains. Their combined footfalls gave their voices a terrible low rumble which only served to make them sound all the more intimidating. However, as quickly as they had grown louder they grew faint once more. Unaware, the mob had lost sight of them and slipped right by.
Once their outrage was nearly out of earshot, the knight finally seemed to ease up; his arm was still kept in front of Dan but without the pressure to make him stay hidden and a sigh of warm white air escaped the thin slats of his helm.
"That could have turned out better," the knight mumbled distastefully, his voice accented with the echo of metal so it sounded all the more inhuman. A quick turn and the knight's nearly featureless helmet was pointed at Dan; though it couldn't be seen beneath the metal there was a definite feeling of eye contact. "You'll want to lose your staff. They're not too keen on us at the moment and that seems to be your only marker."
A small sound escaped the knight then and his attentions dipped slightly lower, toward Dan's chest. Moving his arm, he lightly pressed his palm against the young man's robes and easily felt the warmth therein, warmth far too great for a human to put out especially in weather such as this. Though the pressure was far less than required to squish anything or cause discomfort, he could still detect a lump of some sort beneath the robes and, perhaps, the slightest bit of wriggling.
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Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2011 11:44 pm
Danylrein's feet worked frantically to keep up with the knight dragging him along, the gauntlet garbed hand around his arm suffocatingly tight; he had a feeling that if stumbled he would either be dragged, or have his arm dislocated. Luckily it never came to that, but after awhile the young mage still felt slightly bruised, each whiplash turn adding to his injuries.
However, after a few more frantic turns and slightly surprising (to Dan at least) gasps from towns folk, the two of them finally came to a stop, pressing against a wall. He gritted his teeth as the stone behind him dug into his already sore back, but no complaint was voiced, as the mob passed them without notice a few moments later.
When he felt the knight relax slightly, Dan leaned on his staff as he clutched his arm, gasping quietly. This moment of rest did not last though; the knight spoke to him for the first time - in a somewhat inhuman voice, Dan noted - with a simple request - ditch the staff.
Dan's grip tightened on his staff as this request was given, not wanting to have to follow, but he knew that it was something he would have to do. Despite it being a hiking staff and not a foci, it still led people to the conclusion that he was a mage, and being an obvious mage in this environment was not good for his health, or his lifespan. Giving a dejected sigh, he nodded to the knight. "Most likely I will hide it and come back for it later. I would quite prefer not to loose it if I can help it." He prepared to go out and find a hiding place, but suddenly stopped. The knight, the man he had come to help, had placed his hand on Dan's chest. Right where Nella was.
The staff was whipped up below the knight's chin, the anxious grip on the staff of before turned into a death grip, knuckles white. "What are you doing," Dan demanded, his voice low but threatening.... though the threat was slightly undermined by a current of fear. His breath was heavy, and his eyes were wild as spells raced through his mind. Even if he had come to help this individual, even if they were a member of the fellowship, Dan didn't care. To him, protecting Nella trumped his concern for the knight.
"Dan!"
The young mage halted, snapped out of the moment of tension by the small voice coming from his chest.
"Dan, calm down, it's alright."
With these words the lump at his chest began to move upwards, and soon an orange face was seen looking at the knight before them.
"Nella...?"
"It's okay," she said, bringing her arms out to grip the top of his cloak. "He won't hurt me." With this she pulled herself fully out of the fabric on Dan's chest and floated up to her usual perch on his shoulder.
The little lantern gazed thoughtfully for a few more moments, head tilted slightly, at the knight before them. "He's..... not the kind of person that would hurt me." While Nella was almost positive that the individual was a fellow plague, she decided it would be best for the individual to confirm it themselves. Even so, just the thought that she might be across from a fellow plague, one that wasn't a stunted, had kindled a spark of excitement in her breast.
It did not take long for what Nella was suggesting about the knight to dawn on Dan, but even though his staff was now lowered and the tension had left his body, he decided, like his phasmas, not to say anything. He knew that some people would react somewhat....... poorly to being taken for a plague, and he did not want to potentially start a conflict from an assumption. Dan would let the knight speak for himself.
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Posted: Sun Jul 17, 2011 11:15 am
It was obvious to the knight that the young mage was closely tied to that staff, the obvious assumption being it assisted in his magic casting, but whether that was true or not was not the issue because the mob would believe it no matter what the truth was. Even the knight assumed as such, though it was merely lucky happenstance the young man had a staff and happened to be a mage. His plan made little difference to the armor-clad man so long as the staff was out of sight in the mean time.
It seemed, however, that the hand upon the young man's chest had struck a cord and the staff in question was thrust just beneath his chin and aimed carefully at his throat. What he hoped to accomplish by going up against metal with a glorified stick was beyond him but clearly the knight had intruded upon something important. That gut reaction of protection was, indeed, just as important for survival as it was for protecting something precious. The knight withdrew his hand. His chin lifted to accommodate the staff, allowing the mage access in an almost mocking manner. A quiet grumble of approval was heard beneath the helm though the accompanying expression that nearly took up his entire face was lost to anyone but himself.
"Dan!"
That quiet little chirp brought his wide toothy grin even wider and, surely, if the helmet were not in place, the poor young Grimm would have thought the knight was going to eat him. Or would his companion have told him otherwise? He stood his ground the same as Dan was, towering over him naturally, and watched with rapt interest as the wriggling mass pulled itself out from beneath his robes and continued its attempts to assuage its Grimm's gut instincts. A bright orange head, small as could be, poked out and was featureless save for a small red mouth.
Little Nella.
Her explanation was simplistic at best but it spoke volumes all the same. Without a doubt, he was not the kind of person that would hurt her and if her Grimm kept himself in line he was not the kind of person that would hurt him, either.
"Little one, I could not smell you in this air. Their torches carry a similar scent," he explained shortly before looking over his shoulder. The mob had gone but their angry shouts could still be heard, now becoming confused and if there was one thing worse than an angry mob it was an angry, confused mob. "We shouldn't linger. Hide the staff," his attentions returned to Nella perched atop Dan's shoulder and his voice took a softer tone, not an order but a request, "Tuck yourself back in."
There was no time for confirmations of his lineage now, not when they were being hunted. Such a frenzied group of humans would only settle for one thing whether it logically brought an end to their troubles or not; they were out for blood if they couldn't get their answers and there were no answers to give. "I don't suppose you're familiar enough with this town to navigate," he asked somewhat rhetorically as he jogged forward a bit, pressing himself against another wall to try and peer around the corner.
"Pull your hood up. You'll be harder to spot," the knight brought a hand up to his face an examined his claws, fingers flexed, "I'm far more eye catching than you."
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Posted: Mon Jul 25, 2011 10:02 pm
When the knight spoke back to them, Nella's little chest practically swelled with glee. Even though he hadn't said so directly, she knew, absolutely knew, that the man before them was a plague. If she had been able to float more than a few inches, she practically would have sailed into the air at that moment.
While Dan's reaction might have been a bit more subdued than Nella, it was no less positive. For him it was reverence and awe, tinged with relief. He had seen plagues in the past, but it did not take away from his interest. Though his other family members would have been made deeply uncomfortable by this revelation, having his own plague had erased any past discomfort. In fact, he had even started gaining some of Nella's insatiable curiosity about her kin. This new status paired with the knight's alliance took the edge off his nerves from this situation. Even with the issue of the mob still looming overhead, he no longer had to worry about Nella's safety when it came to this individual. Dan prepared to ask a question, mouth beginning to move, but his lantern beat him to it.
"What is your name?" she chirped, and Dan couldn't help but smile at the fact that she had practically stolen the words from his mouth. The knight's next words however brought an end to this slightly more subdued moment, a pointed reminder of the current situation. Nella was exceedingly reluctant to hide again, as she wanted to keep seeing this new plague, but she understood the need and once again buried herself under her grimm's shirt and against his chest. Dan himself gave a short "Understood," to the knight's requests, and as soon as Nella was hidden he looked around to see where he could deposit his staff. Soon his eyes alighted on a secluded stack of crates, and it only took a few moments to hide the staff sufficiently and come back to where the fellowship plague was.
When the issue of navigation came up, Dan unfortunately had to agree. He had intentionally come to a spot he didn't know, and while on a normal day this might not have been an issue, it was certainly not desirous at the current time. All he could do was trust the plague beside him, and so when the next request came he put up his hood with a simple nod. As the plague spoke of it's own appearance, the young mage was struck by a peculiar thought. Though the knight spoke of his eye catching appearance, he also wore a helm, something associated with concealment. If his concealed appearance was this eye catching, what did it mean about how he looked underneath?
Before he could continue this train of thought however, it was interrupted by something in his sight, and Dan froze. There, he saw, out of the corner of his eye, was someone who had been in the mob. Dan turned his head as slowly as he could, to get a clear view of the man; he was walking towards them, hunched over and eyes squinted, as if his eyesight was not that good. He began to talk as he moved forward. "What are you doing out here sonny? It's not a good time, best to be inside--" A few feet away he abruptly stopped, his eyes going wide as he was finally able to clearly see what was in front of him.
"FELLOWSHIP MEMBERS!" he bellowed, "MEMBERS OF THE FELLOWSHIP! FELLOWSHI--MRGHPHF!" While the man had quite the ringing baritone, it was abruptly cut off as Dan rushed forward and wrapped the man's own cloak around his head. The mob member struggled wildly, but he had obviously seen better days and Dan was soon able to overpower him, shoving him into an abandoned building and quickly blocking the door before he could recover. The young mage didn't know how long it would hold the man, but he did not want to draw the ire of the towns people by hurting any one, so it would have to do.
Dan cursed inwardly at this rotten change in luck, and looked around wildly to see if anyone else was nearby, breath slightly heavier from fighting off the man. "I'd say we have less than a minute before we have company." Dan tensed his legs, ready to start running, simply waiting for the knight to take the lead.
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Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2011 9:56 am
Nella's small and enraptured voice pulled at the knight's lips behind his helm, all semblance of his smile hidden behind the metal visor. He wasn't entirely sure this was the proper time for an introduction on his part however, but the Plague knight opened his mouth to speak, uttering a simple "Slo--" before cutting himself off and turning to look as one of the villagers approached. He didn't have a torch in hand but there was a small knife, turned down so he would not cast its blade upon anyone undeserving.
For being in a rather excitable mob, they at least seemed to have the presence of mind not to hurt their own if it could be helped. Unfortunately for them, it was incredibly easy to see that they were not a part of this village, especially from the knight's armor. His call bellowed out like a war horn and echoed through their alleyway, no doubt filtering easily out between the houses and buildings. The Plague's claws flexed and he prepared himself for a fight, however short lived it may have been against a middle aged man that wasn't a trained warrior, but the lad took non-violent charge. His posture straightened as he watched in surprise as the immediate threat was neutralized without even a punch thrown and the confused man was shoved into a house.
"I'd say we have less than a minute before we have company."
He didn't need to be told twice. "Let's move," was the order issued as the knight dodged out from behind a building, looking back only once to make sure Dan was still following closely behind. As for where they would go, that was something they would have to make up along the way. Neither of them were familiar with this area and they were in "enemy" territory. These confused civilians were angry and when those two emotions collided the results were highly volatile, dangerous and potentially deadly.
"Over here! I heard him here!"
Voices were becoming clearer than a dull background murmur the further they navigated and though they were going away there was a sinking feeling within the knight. This entire situation, the mob, the disgruntled people... had the people's opinion of the Fellowship truly fallen so low even in Shyregoed? Was this due to the House's influence, rumors and conspiracies or was this the fault of the late Grand Magus whose name turned to poison upon his tongue? He would need to speak to his Lady about such matters. If things had truly turned so sour in their regard it was upon their shoulders to make things right in the eyes of the people.
These blind people who were currently attempting to chase them out of town, or worse.
"THIS WAY!"
That one sounded louder and closer than the rest, catching the knight off guard. He turned to look to his left, only catching a sudden white light as a something hard, stiff and wooden collided with his helmet. The sharp crack of the weapon sounded harsh against the ring of his steel helm which was sent flying. The knight stumbled back, shoulder hitting a wall as his claws tried to dig into the stone for support. Dark red hair, pale skin, an angular face, all fairly normal and human traits until one looked closer -- his intimidatingly red swirled eyes and rows of sharp teeth gritted in reaction.
For that moment, when they saw what was under the simple Fellowship knight's helm, all sound ceased until the clatter of his helm upon the ground banged like a gong. Then their anger turned worse -- enraged fear.
"A Plague! He's a bloody Plague!"
"It's... It's Estratus' Sword!"
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2011 9:06 am
Without a second to loose the two of them raced through the streets, unfamiliar walls and buildings whipping by as they sought to loose the mob. The knight was exceedingly fast, but Dan kept pace as if his life depended on it - and in a way, it did. They ran and ran and ran, and yet the voices of the mob came closer, closed in around them.
Cutting off their escape.
A shout was the only warning Dan got before he saw the giant beam of wood flung towards them, striking the Knight in the head and sending his helm flying. Despite the whole scene only taking a few seconds, the young mage saw everything with stark clarity. Shocking red hair, pointed teeth, and swirling eyes all answered Dan's earlier mental question on why the knight wore a helm. Now, however, that protection was gone and there was nothing to keep the mob from seeing what was before them. When the helm hit the ground it seemed to echo impossibly loud, and the mob spiraled into a frenzy.
"P-plague!"
"Estratus's Sword!"
"He's going to slaughter us! OUR CHILDREN!"
Angry and panicked voices ratcheted higher and higher, bodies milling about in a seething muddle and weapons threatening to come flying their way at any moment. Dan himself had heard the rumors about Estratus's Sword, how he was a monster in battle, and as a member of the Fellowship he also knew of him being a knight and a plague. All the evidence pointed to the fact that the plague before him was who the mob claimed he was, so Dan accepted it as fact.... and then proceeded as if nothing had changed. He knew the reputation that Estratus's Sword had, but that didn't matter to the young mage at that moment. Not once had he seen the knight try and maliciously attack a towns person, all actions instead taken in defense or for survival. This, paired with the facts that he was a member of the Fellowship and had helped him out personally, was enough to convince Dan to stay and the plague's side.
At that moment the mob surged forward, fists flying and makeshift weapons swinging. Dan found himself backpedaling towards the knight, right hand clutching at his chest in an attempt to protect Nella, who he felt shifting and shrinking beneath his hand. Unfortunately, the towns people did not know of his plague, and therefore interpreted his action in an entirely different manner.
"He... he's going for a magic item!"
"HE'S GOING TO CURSE US!"
While the frenzy of before was formidable, it was soon revealed that it was not as far as the mob could go, and the group before them exploded into a ludicrous hurricane of panic. Some trying to run, some trying to charge, others trying to attack or throw as many things as they could, all of them mad with fear and rage.
In this chaos, no one noticed when a torch went flying, striking the side of a wooden building, flames slowly but surely beginning to bloom....
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Posted: Tue Oct 04, 2011 1:36 pm
The words of the townsfolk rang clearly in his now uncovered ears. Plague. Sword. Monster. He had heard them all before, time and again, but that last one always stung when used by those who weren't his enemies. On the opposite spectrum, he wanted his enemies to think of him as a monster, to fear him in battle, but these scared people, these angry and confused humans were not his enemies. It was this plain fact that kept him from raking his claws through the neck of the man that bludgeoned his helmet off.
However, when a woman shrieked that he was going to slaughter their children, what was a stiff expression of clenched teeth and knit brows shifted and gave way to pain, as though the words themselves had cut him. The knight did not let that weakness show for long and he quickly reverted to its previous, more intimidating contortion. The mob was converging, their fear quickly changing to righteous anger. How dare a monster like him invade their town and bring a mage with him, that was all they could think, he was sure of it. Logic and reason were no longer welcomed in their minds, only fear and anger towards the Fellowship, towards Plagues, and only their weapons would put a stop to it.
"THE MAGE WILL CURSE US!"
That shout snapped Sloane out of his morbid reverie in time enough to see Dan clutching at his chest, trying to keep little Nella safe, but all anyone else could see were the dangers that the two of them posed. Another plank of wood came rushing toward Sloane's unprotected head and his arm shot up, splintering it against his armored forearm.
"TAKE IT BEFORE HE CAN USE IT!"
Hands went flying, weapons and torches were flung every which way as the mob all zeroed in on young Dan at once. The Infitialis wasted no time, dragging his claws against the stone wall behind him and issuing sparks as he pushed forward and closed an arm around the young mage's shoulders. Once again it was time to run and Sloane was sure that he wasn't going to let the Grimm get hurt, but the Plague he cared for was so small. Protecting Excitos was a difficult task, one he would undergo a thousand times or more in his life before he was done.
Behind them, unbeknownst to their small group or the large mob, the flames easily licked at the cold wood but it was the collected bundle of tinder sticks lined up outside that caught the fire's attentions most. Collected for fires in the hearths of most homes in the village, the fire from the mob torch was quick to spread across them and devour the dry wood, giving it enough power to cut through the cold and slightly damp covering of the building. Smoke rose, wood popped and cracked noisily, and finally when the flames were halfway up the building the residents inside and those not part of the mob shrieked and yelled in response.
Everything stopped. The mob skidded to a halt, for what could there be to yell about when their enemies were right before them? Collectively, they gaped at the spreading fire, searching for an answer as to how that could have happened. One man quickly shouted "HE DID IT!", pointing down the road toward the equally frozen Plague Knight and Mage. Now they thought poor young Dan had set the fire as a distraction! Things were getting worse and worse for the three of them, it seemed, and as the mob yelled and charged with increase fervor rather than stopping to assist those dwelling within the quickly charring structure, Sloane spoke quietly to Dan without turning to face him.
"If you know any wind or water spells, use them now." His words came out clear and calm, hardly a warning for what came next. Sloane released his forced companion and charged forward, arms stretched wide to meet the group. Most of the ones in front suddenly appeared struck with surprise and attempted to stop their momentum but it was too late. His thick armored arms collided heavily with their chests and necks, sending them to their feet in a long wave with a domino effect. He would push through the crowd, try to put the fire out with Dan's magical assistance.
At least, that was the plan, until a little girl's shriek from inside the burning building changed everything.
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Posted: Sun Oct 23, 2011 10:53 pm
For that one suspended moment in time, that moment where the mob moved in all at once towards him and Nella, he felt as if the world was about to stop. Never before had he experienced this kind of danger, this kind of mad fury, and his stomach roiled as he was faced with a glimpse of how dangerous the world could be. He did not realize that this was just a glimpse however, and the vision before him filled his entire world, all intent tunneling to protecting himself and Nella. Mindlessly he began to once again cycle spells through his head, not truly comprehending at that moment the harm they could do to the people around him, only aware of the fact that they could maybe protect him and his plague. If Dan and Nella had been alone that day, things would not have gone well.
Luckily, however, they were not alone. Just as Dan was preparing to cast a spell one of the knight's metal covered arms wrapped around his shoulders, and the young mage gave a ragged gasp as he was knocked out of his spiral of panic. While he was still frightened he could now think properly again, and he hastily discarded his spell before something could go wrong with it, realizing now what it would have done to the people before him. Unluckily, their woes just seemed to multiply with the regaining of his lucidity.
Dan's eyes widened and his mouth parted in horror as he saw the flames licking up the side of the wooden building, the screams from the people not in the mob only making the scene worse. Bile unconsciously rose in his throat when the mob accused him of starting the fire, the very notion repulsing him, and the bile rose even further when the mob rushed them again instead of trying to put out the fire. Part of him wanted to scream at them to help those by the fire, to put it out, but he knew it would be useless with the state they were in.
"If you know any wind or water spells, use them now."
These words were the only warning Dan got before the knight charged the mob, knocking members over like they were matchsticks, and only the barest second was wasted before Dan charged right after him, mind going into overdrive as he tried to think of a way to put out the fire. Each option was soon discarded, either too weak or having too much of a rebound for his current skill level. Just as he was beginning to despair, the entire situation shifted.
A little girl had screamed.... and it had come from inside the house.
The scream drilled into Dan's skull like a knife, but in a way it was just what he had needed. He realized now that the first priority wasn't to put out the fire - it was to get the girl out, and spell that could do that clicked into place. As he ran he fumbled at the top of his cloak, knowing that Nella could not stay where she was with the spell he was about to cast, and soon he saw her little orange face staring back at him. Understanding the intent if not the reason yet, the lantern scrambled out from under the shirt and cloak to cling to a lock of her grimm's hair.
"Nella!" Dan shouted over the noise of the mob, "Help me cast a spell! Don't touch me once we've started, you'll get hurt!" He wanted to explain further, but they were simply running out of time. The house was approaching rapidly, and the spell had to be cast before they went inside, but they couldn't wait outside to do it either as the mob would tear them to pieces, so their window of opportunity was closing rapidly.
While Nella had never cast magic with Dan before as a Phasmas, deep down she instinctively knew was being asked, and began to prepare herself no questions asked. "Okay!" she shouted, and then let go of the piece of hair, bracing herself for what was about to happen.
The moment Nella spoke Dan began the spell, incantation flowing from his lips and Nella beginning to glow even brighter than usual as she was used as a foci. Soon the reason for the mage telling the lantern stay away was made clear - pooling and tricking down Dan's body was a shield of water, just enough to protect him from the blaze and get him inside the house, and when Dan finally caught up to the knight and put a hand on his arm, the spell was set in motion on him too. This was done just in time, Dan pulling himself and the knight though the door and into the burning building just as the last of the water settled around their feet.
Even with the protective water the heat from the fire hit them like a wall, and while not painful because of the shields, it was still very noticeable and uncomfortable. Frantically Dan looked around his surroundings, but he did not see the girl in the immediate area. Instead he saw the flames devouring more and more of the wooden surroundings, and with his currently heightened eyesight he noticed worrying hairline cracks in the beams supporting the second floor. He just hoped they would be able to get out of there before that became an issue, but he had a bad feeling that might not happen. At moment Nella finally caught up to the two of them, emerging through the fire.
As the young phasmas came though the flames she gazed at the new brightness of her flexing fingers, the magic flowing though her and the heat and light of the fire around her giving her the most peculiar feeling. If she had had hair, it would have been standing straight on end. Looking up from her personal inspection over to Dan, the lantern gave a jump, realizing that she wasn't the only one who was brighter because of the magic being used. Dan's eyes looked as if they were glowing from within, and while it was not flashy, it was certainly striking once noticed.
Catching sight of her with his lamp bright eyes, the young mage turned to face his plague. "Nella!" he said, voice starting to show a hint of desperation, "Can you help us find the girl?" She nodded vigorously, positive that she would be unharmed by the flames and wanting to help. "Yes! I will!" she shouted back and before Dan could say anymore she had zoomed off into the building.
Usually it would have taken Nella an age to navigate the building with her small size, but the flames licking ever higher granted her almost uncanny speed, her small body rising and falling with each gout of orange. Normally Nella could only hover over a solid surface, but as she was discovering at that moment she could hover anywhere within flame, and it greatly aided her progress. The first new place she found herself was the kitchen, and her sense of smell was assaulted by the food stores that were being over cooked and burnt by the fire. No one was there however, and as Nella went out of the room she came to a set of thin stairs, one set heading down and the other heading up. The ones headed down gave her the creeps, and so she headed up instead, willing to look in the basement eventually but only after checking upstairs.
On the top floor the lantern found herself facing a collection of doors, and for a moment she had no idea where to go next. Just as she began to go towards the first door she came to a halt, thinking she had just heard a small noise over the fire. A second later it came again - someone coughing. Zeroing in on the noise Nella went as fast as she could until she came to the door that the noise seemed to be coming from. Lifting herself up, she took a peek inside though the crack of the door. There, in the room, huddling away from the flames with a blanket around her and over her mouth, was a little girl coughing weakly as tears streamed down her face.
Nella raced back down stairs, taking a large staircase from another part of the floor that came out right by Sloane and Dan, her grimm's head whipping around to see what she would say.
"I found her! She's in a room on the second floor!"
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Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2011 2:52 pm
What expectations the knight had about his mage companion's actions were far from reality. He had pictured the young man staying back, avoiding the rioters as best he could and dousing the flames with a mighty gush of water. As Dan quickly ran after, this realization dawned on Sloane. He was so used to working with either his own Grimm or the powerful mages within the North Base that his assumption towards the abilities of mages in general was, perhaps, unrealistically high.
Leaving these thoughts on the stoop of the flaming building, Sloane wasted no time in charging the front door. It was haloed by a bright orange on all sides, a warning of the heat and discomfort that would swiftly follow as soon as he was inside amongst the roaring flames. Covering his face with one arm, the other was braced and slammed against the heavy wood. It splintered easily against his gargantuan force, and as soon as the nearby flames began to lap at his skin, armor and hair... it all but ceased. The fire still burned, but there was an almost cooling sensation to it and, strangely, he felt a bit damp.
Sloane's brow knit, his vision seeming to wobble and morph more than would be normal when faced with this intense heat, and he quickly looked over his shoulder to Dan who seemed to be covered in a strange rippling shield that gently dribbled to the floor, casting a sizzling steam in response to the fire.
Well, it wasn't what he had imagined, but it was a water spell.
A sudden realization dawned upon him, though, as his mind had been too clouded to hear the exchange between Plague and Grimm, that if she was still upon him in the midst of these watery spells, her well being would be jeopardized. Fortunately, as he bared his teeth toward Dan with a horribly worried expression, her brightly glowing form all but flew into view and his heart stuttered.
Young Dan certainly seemed to have the situation under control, and prior to Nella accepting the mission, Sloane would have just run all around the entirety of the building until he found her. Small as the lantern Phasmas was, she was determined and with the added advantage of natural heat surrounding them, she was fast. Before he had time to think she was off, leaving both males to stare uselessly between themselves, dripping and steaming with the magical water covering. The short few seconds ticked by at an agonizing pace, but as Sloane began to itch with anticipation, there came her brilliant flame cloaked in black.
"I found her!" To Sloane, this exclamation sounded like the chorus of angels.
Without waiting for her to finish, Sloane was off. His armor thundered against the weakening wood, the stairs creaking threateningly with each bound. As soon as he was on the upper floor, the coughing reached his ears. The poor thing was behind a closed door, whimpering, wheezing and crying, hoping that the door would be enough to keep the flames at bay.
"Stay away from the door!" his voice carried past the crackle and pop of the fire, a shrill whimper of surprise his only response. Behind him, the sound of creaking steps came again, the young mage following suit. Sloane did not wait for him to catch up, prepping himself once again to plow through the door. This one offered little resistance, crumpling under his weight. His claws dug into the frame, catching himself from falling forward. Another shriek came from the corner of the room, a small lump of bundled blankets suddenly moving and scurrying. Without thinking, she ran toward them and wrapped her arms around the knight's leg. Sloane wasted no time in scooping her up, covering her head with the blanket and cradling her protectively.
"Is anyone else in here?"
"N-no!"
A huge weight lifted off his shoulders at her shivering words.
They were nearly out, she would be safe, and then they could get the hell out of this riot infested town. He turned, locking eyes with Dan for but a second. "Let's go!" The floor creaked uneasily with his added wait into the hall, groaning with despair at the congregation of bodies upon it as the flames clawed higher and higher. Sloane paused, attempting to step closer to the side but the floor beneath them swayed and drooped, a terrible cracking ringing out and deafening all of the other sounds.
Before any of them had time to react, the boards beneath their feet splintered and caved, the support beams below crumpling in half. All the Infitialis had time to do was pull the girl in his arms tighter to himself before he hit the floor below with a sickening thud and clang.
Outside, all of the rioters were gathered around the flaming structure either staring in awe, murmuring amongst themselves, or attempting to keep the fire from spreading to other buildings before it inevitably burned. Comments slipped out, wondering why those two wretched Mages went in to a death trap, others mentioning having heard a scream. Whatever the case, they all wavered on what was going on and most definitely what was going to happen now.
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Posted: Sun Dec 04, 2011 3:01 am
Dan vaulted up the stairs after the knight, his adrenaline filled mind not fully comprehending the ominous creaking of the steps below them as they thundered ahead. Steam exploded from his hand when he placed it against the handrail without thinking, but luckily the action was quickly corrected, palm only slightly warm as water closed back in around it.
"Stay away from the door!"
Taking his eyes away from his hand and back to the scene before him, the young mage witnessed the knight plowing through the door ahead, splinters of wood sent spinning into the air. A few moments later the plague emerged, charge in hand and an urgent declaration of "Let's go!" Dan didn't need to be told twice, giving a determined nod and turning around to get out of there, but it was their urgency that became their undoing. Only two steps had been taken when the floor before him yawned open, its breaking heralded by a terrible cracking and splintering that rattled his skull and vibrated through his body.
They fell.
Danylrein had only a few seconds to curl up before he landed roughly on his back and left shoulder, a cross between a grunt and scream expelled from his mouth upon impact. He panted raggedly as stars sparked before his eyes, the towering flames all around spinning in and out of focus. With this his concentration on the water spell broke, and what had once been a shield became normal water, drenching the young mage and the knight. Soon this water began to steam.... and there wasn't much time until it was gone entirely. Darkness began to creep in on his vision, but luckily part of him remembered the danger of being blind here, and almost automatically preformed a simple light spell, the flickering globe hovering above his head. In his current dazed state the water spell was too much to recast, but at least this way he had a little more time of sight, hopefully enough time to get out
Nella remained below while the two rushed upstairs, realizing that there was not much she could do in the actual rescue, floating worriedly in a flame as she watched the stairs. With each moment that passed her worry grew, worry that transformed into horror as she saw and heard the ceiling disintegrate and drop before her. While fire couldn't hurt her, falling debris most certainly could and the lantern had to make a mad dash to avoid being crushed beneath a deluge of wood. This was just barely done in time, one beam so close behind her that its wind sent her spinning, a strangled scream heard as she tumbled through the air. The head over heels travel was finally stopped when she was caught by a tongue of flame, but the relief of stopping was short lived when the phasmas realized what would have caused the ceiling collapse; her return to the area beneath the new hole in the ceiling was just as fast, if not faster, than her exodus.
"DAN!" she shrieked as rocketed forward towards her guardian, small hands placed on a worryingly dry face on her arrival. "Dan, you have to get up! PLEASE!" An attempt to pull on a wet lock of hair was made, but just a few seconds later she sprung back hissing in pain, hands rigid and steel gray, them only gradually returning to normal in the surrounding heat.
"Nella...?" Dan's head turned slowly, stars beginning to fade from his vision as he gave a rattling cough. Orange head jerking up, the phasmas flew over to her guardian again, beckoning urgently. "Come on! We have to hurry, get up!" His head lolled back to view the hole above before finally shifting his body into a sitting position with a groan, the surrounding flames uncomfortably hot as the remaining layer of water on him kept drying at an alarming rate, the light now hovering by his shoulder. Staggering into a standing position as pain shot up and down his left arm, he stumbled over to the knight, wrapping his right hand in his cloak and clasping it over an armored arm in an attempt to help him up.
The corner of Dan's cloak began to smoke.
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Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2012 5:45 pm
In his arms, the girl wailed. The descent was swift and short, but enough of a drop with enough debris that it was far from comfortable. Both bodies landed solidly against the ground the house was built upon, the first floor not having any special flooring in a quaint village like this. The knight let out a hefty grunt upon his armored back slamming against the hard surface, made more so by the permafrost clinging to the dirt. The impact caused his head to snap back, light flashing before his eyes in a daze as the wind left his body.
It was difficult and painful to breathe, and only the shortest of breaths came. The girl, too, was winded from his hefty arms that were intended to protect her, and quiet sobs of fear escaped her as she choked on the smoke.
"DAN!"
Nella's small voice called clearly through the flames, perhaps the fire even assisting with the volume since she was so attuned to it. The moisture of the water spell was evaporating rapidly and the fresh blood tickling from his temple was drying and cracking.
The knight's large form shuddered as he forced himself to move, holding the young girl protectively to his bosom. Wrapped in sheets, she at least had a buffer from the heat directly but it was no doubt pooling beneath the fabric and still posing a danger to her. Claws on his free hand at his hardy armored boots dug into the dirt floor as he pushed himself up, breathing still laborious and painful. Without fully comprehending, he felt the tug on his arm and he pushed himself harder until he was on his feet, but too tall for Dan to act as a proper crutch to.
Above them, the flames licked higher and the wood burned easily. The ceiling cried out in agony, threatening to give way at any moment. No words were necessary, only movement. Sloane reeled slightly when he was properly on his feet, but he used the forward momentum from nearly falling over to propel himself toward the front door that was in plain sight and now within reach. It was barely hanging on its hinges and with a sharp thrust of his side it flew to the street, causing many of the townsfolk to gasp and scatter. It was then his weight gave out and he fell to his knees, clutching the girl tightly, and rolled a few feet away from the burning house. Upon his back once again, he drew back the covers on the girl whose ash coated face was smeared with tears and sweat. She didn't look at him, only crying more once she was met with the fresh cold air and begged for her mother who plucked her from the knight's chest and backed away as quick as she could.
Sloane's swirled eyes looked back toward the house, scanning for the mage and his small bundle of flame. When their gazes met and he knew they were safe, he let his head fall back against the ground with a heavy sigh and closed his eyes. His hair felt singed, his skin was coated in ash and flushed from the heat, blood starting to pool in his hair and leak down his jaw now that it wasn't being dried immediately. He couldn't tell what they were going to do with them now, whether the riot was over or this only made things worse, but he was exhausted and his self preservation instinct was on the fritz. If young Dan and Nella were still threatened, however, the matter would change entirely.
Behind them, several men continued attempting to keep the flames from spreading to the other structures nearby and their efforts seemed to be fruitful. Its support, however, could last no longer and gave out. The roof caved in, smashing against the second story and destroying what was left of the stairwell and the remaining rooms. Everything that poor family owned, gone, but their lives were not forfeit, nor the life of their precious daughter.
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