Jump to content

Faith in the Spirits Arc 1: To Align the Stars


Mercenary on the Winds
 Share

Recommended Posts

The Evokers' appearance was as much of a turning point as could have been expected, Tasha having to shake off the flash blindness caused by Tio's immense blast of light just in time to see one of the remaining knights smack the lights out of one of them who still wanted to fight. Ingverd dashed forward to come to Aly's aid, but was too far to make an immediate difference; it'd fall to her to get that done. "If you're here, that must mean things are resolved on the other side," she quickly said to Lani, "Good job. We're just about done here."

Switching back to an axe, she ran ahead of the man to finish off the last soldier. "Let me take care of this, Ingverd!"

Natalya moves to 15-9 and attacks Soldier 3 with Monster Carver.


Their spells worked just as they should, and thankfully, Tio wasn't so incensed as to keep attacking the nothingness she'd left behind with just the first beam. "Hold on. Who's that?" Versaris went ahead on his own, not caring about the strange fox that strolled up in front of them, but with the remainder being taken care of by Natalya easily, they could have this little detour before speaking with anyone that was still left. "Yes, we do; no, we're not about to tell a stranger we know nothing about. And you're not 'just' a merchant." Even from a small distance and her seemingly suppressing her mana much like Elisa herself was, with her specific talents, it wasn't difficult to tell that this Mikoto was more than she made herself out to be. Not to mention she'd never seen a fox Clouded with so many tails before. Just to get a better idea, she walked closer, slowly enough to not alarm the woman.

Elisa moves to 13-13.

...What the hell? Even should Mikoto have flinched away, Elisa had briefly connected their mana and realized something was very strange. Her mana flow seemed... different, to even other Clouded she'd done her thing with before. "I think we're who should be asking the questions, 'Mikoto'. Tell me, why is it that I can feel a wider spectrum of mana flow from you than anyone I've ever met before?"


This man really was bright, seeing as he realized what was actually important and went right to it. Ferid helped out himself, getting everything ready in short order, and got to leading the convoy forward. "The mercenaries' commander said they were here to escort the Evokers of Glacies. Seeing fire and light magic like that confirms her to have spoken the truth," he answered a bit late, now that the main issue was taken care of. "I'll see if I can explain the situation to them. My information should be more extensive than Maraval's anyway."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 3.6k
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

A bit of time passed after Siorel was back up and said her thanks. The issue was Renais was not in a good mindset at the moment, even after her friends were back up. She held her head a little as she tried her best to beat back that horrible vision she had. 'What...what's happening to me...stop please...stop...' The girl was so absorbed in her mind she didn't realize Alvira had approached her, and when the pull to a hug came Renais was in shock. So much so she dropped her staff. Panic filled her eyes for a moment, until they darted to who gave her the hug, then confusion filled them instead. "A.ahhh..." Alvira was the very last person she expected this from, she thought it would have been from Gean or Miria. But at the moment Renais didn't seem to care who it came from, not in her state of mind anyway. The pinkette's eyes started to tear up, and she returned the hug Alvira gave her ten fold with a good cry to go with it. "Mm...ah...."

Edited by TheRoon
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The leader seemed to have been... stoned? Like the other guy? Who did that? It didn't really matter in the moment. The enemy was retreating. The fight was over. Miria detransformed, and wiped some sweat from her face. Her body was worn, it felt like she was carting around a backpack of bricks.

She took a look around, she had to find her helmet. She wobbled about four feet, before immediately collapsing from her body's exhaustion. Down to her knees, her breath started to get heavy, as she attempted getting off the ground.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This wasn't the reaction she'd been expecting. Alvira let out the tiniest 'oof' as Renais squeezed her, bringing a claw up to pat the girls hair. "Geez... I didn't think you'd be the one crying from this... It's okay. You did great... You’ve always been doing great. Always." Renais had gotten the help she hadn't because the pink girl been human... But she'd never held it over Alvira. Never really bragged about it. They had barely talked before. I just decided you were my outlet when you didn't deserve it. Gods I've been the worst...

"Everything will be okay, Renais. Promise."


Mikoto's ears twitched and she tilted her head, not quite sure what this woman was getting at. "Well! For one, I am simply a merchant," and with a flourish of her arm, blue fire bursts set off behind her, several incredibly rare weapons and tomes forming from within them, resting in the air behind her.

"As for this mana question, I don't understand what you mean. Between us girls, I am a little older than I look, so perhaps you're just feeling how old my magic is... But, pay that no mind~ Would I be able to interest you or these fine mercenaries in some goods for coin? With this fight finishing, I should do what I originally came here to do..."

Edited by Nanami Touko
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gean was a little shocked that the cavalier managed to dodge her strike, but Siorel had managed to finish the job for her. Finally lowering her axe and taking off her shield, the young woman felt a weight lift off her shoulders. This shield did more to me than the knights.

It was then that Gean noticed that her employers had returned... and were not happy if the flaming rock and pillar of light were anything to go by.  "Guess we didn't have to worry about the other group."

Now it was time to check up on- well then. One dragon was running away in a panic, while the other was hugging someone she actively avoided in the past while they cried in her claws. Topping things off was their newest scaly friend making a friend of their own. Sixteen had definitely been a box of surprises this day. A certain 'cub' toppling over brought Gean out of her thoughts.

Gean got over and picked Miria back up from the ground. "I got you. You're ok. Let's get you some rest." Turning to the rest of the group, she figured things would be fine without her presence. "Hey Vira I'm gonna take Miria to the inn. I take it you and Rene can keep an eye on this pitiful statue over here." Passing by Siorel, Gean stopped to put a hand on her shoulder "Look after the big guy for me ok? I'm worried what he might do if he's by himself right now." Moving to the next duo, Gean smile at Sixteen and her wolf friend. "Great work out there Sixteen, you really helped get us through this. And thank you too mister, I hope you don't mind keeping our ball of questions here some more company. Our boss should be on her way soon to take care of things." 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Aly tries to get vengeance for the stabbing! 

[86, 96]

The knife flew true, but Soldier 3 seemed as if possessed by something, and he continued to stand! 11 damage! 

Aly gained 8 EXP, and +1 Hidden EXP! 

Tasha moves in to subdue the still fighting soldier! Brandishing the Monster Carver!

"That weapon does not belong to you, demon!" He hissed. 

[6, 4

As if to cap off the end of his meaningless battle, Natalya swung the axe with all of her might. The axe did not pierce the man's armor, but his body bent in an unnatural way accompanied by a rather sickening crack. With the soldier's final twitch, the battlefield appeared to fall silent. Soldier 3 broken! 

Tasha gained 10 EXP, and +2 Axe EXP! 

MAP CLEAR!

Party gains 10 EXP via the two knights who surrendered! 

Renais gains EXP based on the first heal of injured party members! Using the Heal Staff! 

Renais heals Aegean for 12 HP! 

Renais heals Aly for 16 HP!

Renais heals Nxy for 11 HP! 

Renais heals Syndra for 3 HP! 

Renais heals Ullr for 10 HP! 

Renais heals Natalya for 14 HP! 

Renais gains 64 EXP overall, and +12 Staff EXP

Renais reaches Level 6! 

45    21    32    82    16    56    36    55

+Mag, Speed!

Siorel also reaches Level 6!

4    8    82    85    57    33    59    74

+HP, Str, Spd, Luck!


Commander Natalya, and Alriana subdued the remaining fighter, but even before Tio could start figuring out what the hell had just happened. They were approached by a... fox clouded? The proper term escaped Tio at the moment, but she'd heard something about them in her myriad travels. Her presence seemed to pique Elisa's concern, which had Tio's eyes narrowed. Then almost immediately after saying that she was a merchant, she manifested incredibly rare and valuable weapons in a flash of blue flames. "...You're really not doing a good job of proving that you're just a merchant." Tio released a sharp breath, lowering her hand, and all of the crystals returned to her, once again floating in a circle behind her. "I normally would peruse, but I can't right now. As for the Tigers, you'll have to speak with their commander, not me. Though... the fact that Elisa is concerned about your mana flow is a bit intriguing. It's not like her to have so many questions." Tio turned away from Mikoto, "Pardon my curtness, but I really have things to do. If you're still about later on, perhaps we can all chat, but until then, I don't have time." Tio had already spent her conversational energy with Sarasin, and was hardly interested in wares right now. She exchanged a glance with Elisa, before moving on ahead to the feline commander.

"Is everything alright here now, commander? I must ask, did you have to accost the commander, or something? Anyone of relevance with the knight's command? I would like... answers." The crystals behind Tio glimmered on the emphasized word. "If not, it's not much of an issue. From what Ing-- Versaris said, the knights provoked the assault. If they're as..." She angrily gestured over to soldier that the commander had just felled, "Dense as that man was, I wouldn't blame any of you for defending yourselves." 


"The Evokers of Glacies? One and the same?" Noah had heard tales of the current Evokers of Glacies, and for a moment, the stories that he considered tall tales were suddenly well in the realm of possibility if those flashes were any indication. As they led the wagons forward, and came into the clearing that they'd retreated from. Noah saw the bodies, and the group of mercenaries about. It was clear that they'd won, and fairly handily it seemed. Even if he'd erred on the proper side of things, he couldn't help but tense a little. The air was still quite charged, perhaps from the magic that the Evokers employed. 

"I think that's for the best if you do explain things. The Evokers of Glacies are magical experts to my recollection, perhaps once things are settled down more, they could lend us their expertise... Or not; if these mercenaries are with them, I'd doubt they'd be so willing to assist the people who were all so willing to attack their entourage. I hope that damned man got his..." 

Edited by Mercenary on the Winds
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cin fled the village, finally skidding to a halt in a nearby cluster of trees, hands shaking as he fell to his knees. "Come on, come on, come on!" He pulled another fire spell out, floating above his hands. "Calm. Let your emotions go, just focus on the spell. On your control." The flame turned into a circle, a square, but again as it started to form the diamond, it flared, slowly starting to coat his arm in fiery scales. "No!" He flung the spell away, narrowly missing the trees to burst harmlessly in the air, as he fell backwards into a seated position, pulling his knees close and wrapping his tail around his legs as he started to shake. The memory of the fight flooded back, the actions he had been too angry to really realize he was doing. Effortlessly snapping a man's neck. Punching a man so hard he turned into a rag doll as he flew through the air. And in his anger, he had barely known who was friend and who was foe.

He wrapped his arms around his legs with his tail, slowly pulling himself into a tighter and tighter ball, shivering. He didn't realize that tears had started to build up in his eyes as he rocked there. I could have killed someone I care about. And I was getting mad at Ingverd for the things he did when he was angry. Ha. Cutting off a man's hand, how is that any worse than snapping a man's neck like I did? What right do I have to get annoyed at him when I just snapped in the middle of a battle? I'm a danger to everyone here...  His breathing rate was starting to rapidly increase as he sat there, left to his own thoughts about what might have been if Siorel hadn't called out to him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Alvira was very kind, a far cry from what Renais imagined her to be. Normally she would be hesitant to speak her mind about he issue, but the moment seemed about right to do that. Renais pulled back slightly once she got enough tears out and she looked Alvira in the eye. "I think I'm losing my mind, Alvira...when Miria and Siorel fell I saw this terrible image, one of people dying in fire..." She sniffed. "Maybe it's from my missing five years, I have no idea...I don't know what's happening to me. I'm scared..."

Edited by TheRoon
Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Cin!?" He was running off, Siorel beside herself on what to do. She'd expected someone from their group to go after him, but no one seemed to have noticed, or were too winded to do much else. Should I? We just met... I know I've been teasing him a lot, but, this seems like a much bigger issue, am I really the one that should be helping him with this...? While she watched him shrink into a distance a little, Aegean approached her. About to ask the woman to go after him... Aegean cut in first, telling Siorel to follow after Cin. Siorel cocked her eyebrow in surprise. "You mean, you're not going to?" Was NO ONE else going to? "Ugh..."

Even if she felt like she wasn't the right choice for this, Siorel raced off to follow Cinaed. Despite his head start, he was a pretty easy guy to follow. Big frame, hard to miss the red hair, not a lot of places to hide around here... He ducked into a small patched of trees, Siorel slowing down in her running after him. Slowly, she peeked into the brush, eyes catching him curled up. She didn't say anything; she couldn't possibly know what to say in this situation. Quietly, she walked into the opening and sat down next to him, curling her tail around herself. She didn't touch him or mention she was there... She simply figured, it would be better if he wasn't alone, even if she didn't have the words.


"Sure thing, Gean." Renais seemed like she was calming down a little, Alvira giving her a bigger smile as she finally looked up. "Sounds pretty scary... But if you look, you'll see they're fine. See?" Alvira gestured towards the tired MIria near Aegean, the lizard running off after Cinaed. "Alive and... Mostly well. So take some deep breaths, try your best to calm down. We're all alive, yeah?" She patted the girl's head again, slowly letting go of the hug. She had other people she wanted to talk to as well, but she wasn't going to ditch Renais until she knew she was well enough. "Mmm... Just between us, then," she started, lowering her voice to something of a whisper, "I've got some missing memories too... It's terrifying. I get it. I really do... What I think, though," she began, bringing her voice back up, "is that, what matters most is you aren't alone dealing with them. Yeah? You've got Aegean. You've got Miria. You've got Cinaed, Tio, Elisa, Natalya... You've got me. You're not alone, so no matter how often those memories come back, no matter what they mean... You don't have to tackle them alone. That's what a family does and I'd say the Tigers are a pretty good family."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Renais was surprised to learn Alvira also had lost some memories. "You too? That's surprising..." Having two people with lost memories in the same troop was quite a stroke of fate, she felt bad for Alvira now. "Alvira..." She turned her head to the side and took a breath. 'She sounds just like Gean, the Tigers are my family now...yeah, that sounds about right.' "...yeah, I think you're right. Thank you." She wiped her tears away. "I'm sorry you had to see that from me, I don't make a habit of breaking down." She slowly regained her composure. "Miria and Siorel are fine, you all will be. You have my word..." That last part was a bit of a strong front, but she did mean it. 'Whatever that vision was I won't let it get to me...I can't.' 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cin heard someone approaching, tensing for the words he knew was coming, the lecture on losing control, the scolding for running away, words of condemnation for his actions in battle. They were coming. He knew it. It didn't matter who had found him, surely they were shocked by the shameful show he had put on back in town. He couldn't even make himself look to see who had chased after him, curling up tighter instead, waiting for the words to come. I deserve it all and more. Whatever they have to say. That display... I'm lucky that I only scorched the ground and myself.

But the words didn't come. And so he and his visitor sat there for a long minute in silence. He kept waiting for them to say. Something. Anything. To condemn him. But nothing broke the silence. So finally he snuck a glance, just long enough to see Siorel sitting nearby, tail wrapped around herself almost imitating his pose. Quickly looking away again, he mumbled, "Just. Leave me. I put everyone at risk with what I did. I'm just a dangerous hypocrite. You're safer back in town. I'm sure one of the others will introduce you to the Commander. So just. Go away."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Miria was taking aback when she felt the sudden lifting. Her body couldn't really react in the condition she was in, but... thankfully she was in the care of Gean. The girl could only physically react by slowly curling in the arms of her sister. Truly, this feeling where moving was hard, just from over exhaustion, Miria was upset about it. She hated the feeling of needing Gean to carry her, even if it made her happy she was here in the first place.

"Gean," she softly leaned into her merfolk sister's chest. "S-Sorry, I should've been more careful..."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"It's fine, Renais. Today was... Today was hard. But, everything that doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I know you'll keep us together, no matter what." Risking being a little too touchy feely, Alvira ruffled Renais' hair just a bit, glancing around. "Hey, do me a favor that I know you'll enjoy. Go and find Tio for us, yeah? So she can give this guy a piece of her mind when he un... Whatever, from what happened to him. What... did happen to him?" Now that Alvira was thinking about it, how had he been stoned? Renais wasn't strong enough for effect magic, yet. Did one of the Evokers hit him from afar?

She shrugged, giving Renais a final wave as she walked off to her next target. "Lani!" She met the cat with a bright smile, reaching up for her ears without thinking. "You did great! Great tag teams... Sorry about the least one, heheh~" Her ears were so soft! Hopefully this was a pleasant feeling for Lani too.


"Leave you alone? Like you'd leave anyone else alone, Cin. Bet if Gean went on a rampage, you'd find her after and try to keep her company. Or Miria or Alvira or... You get the point. Not going anywhere. Gonna have to toss me if you want to get rid of me~" Siorel shrugged, not looking at him yet, nor trying to touch him or anything... She was asked to be there, so even if she felt a little awkward, being here for him instead of people he'd known for so long... She'd be here. "You can talk if you want. Vent, or whatever... I don't know you enough to know if this is common, or what the others think. What I do know is you didn't hurt any of us, and you were mad at the right people."


With Natalya taking care of the enemy soldier, Versaris rushed to Alriana's side, sliding in onto his knees and pulling a vulnerary out. "Stay still, Aly." It would sting, of course, but the wound from that soldier's weapon was pretty solid... The Evokers were going to have to spend time finding answers for why this happened and he didn't know where Renais was. This would do for now. "I'm sorry I wasn't here to help. We don't have anyone with a mount, so I... Well, I think I run faster than any of you, but maybe you'd have me beat. I'm here now, though... And I'm so glad you're okay. Almost done..."

Edited by Mel the DM
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah, sweet relief, and success! Nyx had initially thought to go back to the inn and both sleep off her fatigue, and more importantly let Persica know things would be okay now. But something about that fox lady had her curious, especially since the Evokers were involved… not to mention she did owe Nattie a talk. And maybe Gean, too…

Oh, never mind, Gean was already becoming the life of the party. She vaguely saw the big guy take off into the forest as she peered over to the group building around her erstwhile daughter, but when someone else ran off to him in everyone else’s stead, Nyx just let it be. Nattie it was, then, even if she wasn’t entirely looking forward to it.

“Oi, Nat. Ye doin’ okay? Ye, uh, really fucked that last guy up. Ye wanna talk bout some shit? As the mums o’ th’group, should probably make sure we’re doin’ okay.” Nyx dropped that little tease about being the group moms there, hoping maybe it would cheer Nattie up enough to not make an already potentially awkward discussion much worse.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Didn't hurt... Ha." Cin stuck out his hand, still not looking at the woman. The small fire spell he used for his calming exercises popped into existence, slowly starting to change into the normal pattern of shapes before once again transforming into the scaled gauntlet. Quickly crushing the flame in his fist before it could go further, he laughed, a painful, bitter laugh. "I can't even control a single flame but sure I didn't hurt anyone. This time. And what happens next time? When I lose my temper and do... Whatever this is. I left nothing but literally scorched earth behind me this time. I was just lucky no one I cared about was in the way. Next time, well. I can't let there be a next time. But I don't know how to control it. So then what am I supposed to do? Just. Leave?"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Find someone that can help you, dummy." Siorel leaned onto her hand and stared at him. She'd seen stuff like this before. Someone lost control of their magic and then got afraid of using it... But they always went in circles without thinking things through. "Aren't there a bunch of mages in your group? And whoever could perform those big flashy spells near the end of the fight... Cinaed." Siorel finally tried to touch him, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. "We can't do everything alone. People are social creatures... For help with things and for living. So if you're scared... Ask for help. You'll get it. You're a nice guy. You're very caring... You're only this upset because you could have hurt people you care a lot about. So please... Take the time you need for today, and then face this."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Cin flinched away from Siorel's touch, scared that he was going to explode with flame again, catching her in the blast. "I don't even know, what I did. I just remember anger. And then snapping that man's neck. How can they help me if I can't even explain what was going on?" He shuddered, pulling his legs tighter into his chest.

"Why are you even here? You barely know me, surely there was something more important. Something better than risking coming near me right now. Just." He shook his head, finally turning his head again, just far enough to look at her, the fear visible in his eyes. "Why?"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Syndra let out a sigh, "Finally, it's over."  The group on her side of the battlefield started breaking off, either to chase down Cinaed or just embrace one another. It had been a trying experience for sure, the hardest fight they'd had as a group, but in the end they still came out victorious and, for the most part, unharmed. Syndra turned back towards the enemy commander, still encased in stone. "Now what to do with you..." That high level of magical energy to my west must've been the Evokers. A laugh escaped from Syndra's lips. "Yes, I think I'll let the Evokers decide what to do with you." With that settled, she walked back towards the group. "Well looks like we made it out in one piece." Syndra turned towards Miria, wrapped in Aegean's arms. "How are you holding up? That blast of light looked like it really took a lot out of you.."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Because people shouldn't be alone when they're like this. No one else seemed to want to chase after you... So even if I don't think I'm the person that should be speaking to you right now, over others in your group, you're stuck with me~" She gave him a soft smile, letting her hand slide off of him, returning to sitting while hugging her knees.

"Well that's the funny thing about magic, Cinaed. Even if you don't know, there's a high chance someone else does. Because it's the only thing someone else can truly know better than yourself... Tricky little subject, magic. So even if you can't explain what went wrong... I bet someone that knows lots about fire magic and innate magic could help."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gean thought about Siorel's question for a moment as the lizard ran off. It was true that she did want to check on Cinead and make sure he didn't do anything reckless, but Miria too needed to get somewhere, and soon she'd be a bit to passed out and heavy for most. It was a tough choice but considering how taken the dancer was to Cin earlier, it felt like a worthwhile choice. Plus the lizard had a way with words if their initial conversation was anything to go by.

Gean looked down as the smaller girl began to move in her arms. A soft smile crept on the Seafolk's face as Miria spoke. The girls sense of duty was strong for sure. "Nonsense, I'm sure most people here would have dropped to a light blast that strong. What matters is that you're here and your gonna be ok. But for now my little cub needs to get to bed and rest up, so we can see that bright smile of yours." Gean hoped that this fight didn't eat at the girl too much. A setback like that could cause problems in the future. Having said her piece, Gean made her way to the inn to take Miria to her room.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Miria huffed as she leaned more into Gean's arms. Hearing Syndra, she did turn to respond, "I'm okay, promise. My armor just... took a lot out of me." She gave Syndra a reassured smile, before turtling back into Gean's arms as she began to walk away. What Gean said wasn't lost on Miria, it was just... different.

"I'm not worried about how I did. Just... wish I didn't have to inconvenience you by needed to carry me away." And she gave another sigh. "You shouldn't have to do this for me."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"Inconvenience who?" Gean jokingly looked around trying to find who Miria was talking about. "Should or shouldn't, you won't take this job away from me. What kinda 'sister' would I be if I couldn't be there to support you when you tire yourself out? This is a privilege I shall gladly relish when I can~" Gean gave a the small girl a quick squeeze or reassurance.

"Now enough of that. You need sleep. I'll be back once I tuck this one in Syn." And with those words, Gean was off.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

'No one else seemed to want to chase after you...' The words were soft, gentle almost, but they hit Cin like a brick. Of course no one else had wanted to come after him. Not after the show he had put on. Who would want to come chasing after someone that had just been a flaming pillar of rage? He sighed, shaking his head. "Mmm. I'll talk to the Evokers maybe. But not now. Maybe tomorrow." He paused, realizing what he had just said. "A-ah. Well, I'm not really supposed to publicly say that's who we're escorting but I guess I let that cat out of the bag earlier. And you're probably joining us anyways. If you still want to after everything today."  He'd tried to keep her out of this, but she'd been so insistent. Fighting a fight that wasn't hers. And she'd been so badly hurt because of it. He knew it wasn't his responsibility to keep her safe. Knew she'd probably stab him if he tried to claim it as such. But he still couldn't help but feel like he should have done more to stop the light mage from doing all that he had done.

He dug his fingers into his leg, the skin turning white, forcing himself to refocus. There was no sense going down that train of thought, not when it would just get him smacked if he vocalized any of it. "Siorel... You really should go back to everyone else. I'll be ok. I just need some time to. Think. I guess. And there's no need for you to waste your time just sitting here next to me, there's still a lot of people for you to meet. You don't need to worry about me losing control again, or anything like that either. I'll just not play with fire until I talk to Tio and Elisa." Hopefully she would finally listen. Being alone with his thoughts wouldn't feel good, but having her waste her time waiting for him to snap out of this would be even worse.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"I'm not wasting my time, Cin. No matter if you think I am... You're gonna have to pick me up and toss me out of here if you really want me gone. Until you do that, you're stuck with me. Not letting you be alone right now, big guy." She let go of her legs and flopped onto her back, crossing her legs and resting her head behind her hands. "The weather's nice and it's quiet now, so I'm content where I am~" The Evokers was a pretty big name to just drop... It matched the magic she'd seen, at least. Scary. But one of them should know what's up with Cinaed, right? They're really strong magic folks.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Either the question was posed in a context unfamiliar to the fox and she didn't know what that meant, or she was truly poor at hiding when something was going on. Elisa nodded to Tio as she went off, wanting to spend a moment longer to see if Mikoto wouldn't entertain her with answers, though insisting on being just a merchant after showing her rather exquisite wares in such a manner felt more like a bad joke she wasn't going to drop. "Maybe so. But for it to feel this different, you'd surely have to be generations removed from anyone else alive today. Or it's something unique to your kind. As if your mana flow has spectral traits of both Humans and Monsters, but not in the same way most Clouded do. Interesting... and suspicious."

Now taking a better look at what the items she was offering were, Elisa's suspicion only grew more. "And I don't think you're willing to tell where exactly you found all this rare equipment to peddle. No ordinary merchant should be selling all of the highest-level spells taught at the best magic academies in the Alliance."


"And it definitely doesn't belong to you, dumbass." One less violently prejudiced idiot in the world was a good thing in Natalya's book, but this whole battle could have been avoided if their captain hadn't been the same way. There wasn't any satisfaction to be had in pointless death. "Get out of here, and pray you get a commander who doesn't want to waste your life."

The remaining knights scurried away, and she was soon approached by Tio, whose form with the magic crystals behind her after the earlier show of force was just a tiny bit intimidating. "Their captain was on the other flank. I left the others to deal with that side, and it's a small miracle we were able to hold this side with just myself, Aly, and Nyx. Thanks for helping out, or we might've been close to folding." Mentioning the momentary blindness she'd gotten from the flash could wait for later, the Evoker clearly wasn't in a mood to address personal nitpicks. "You should go see how things went there and if there still is a commander to get answers from. What I can say is that the man threatened to search all of us and every villager, by force if anyone resisted to anything, while parading a detained Clouded in front of us. Called you two 'magical floozies', I think it was, while he was at it."

While Nyx's concern was appreciated, the tiger wasn't all that bothered. "It's fine. Just a bit pissed from seeing firsthand how even the so-called protectors of the people give less than a shit about the people if they've got funny ears." She crossed her arms with a frown, "Not that I wasn't expecting that, of course. I've heard enough about the Regent to know his appointees can't be that much better."


"We'll see. They have their own mission and it's our duty to avoid inconveniencing them as much as we can." The consequences of the armed violation of which had just been felt by the knights. Ferid's eyes caught the mercenaries retreating back toward the village, as well as something strange. Petrifying spells, here, with them? The Evokers could possibly do that, but... There was one other thought, but it didn't fit anything he already knew. There were no species of Monsters or Clouded still around that had that ability, so even those he had read about could have been conjecture, or at the least unreliably proven. "It looks like he's gotten at least something. Alive, but immobilized."

Who the hell are these mercenaries?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...