Blood & Snow (Bleuenn Bosser, Wes, Emi Kazama, Daiko, Kiigan, Trishna)

All eyes seemed to be on the establishment of a church to Fleuve'ir. 'Holy Newdale' is what the papers spouting on about tolerance and acceptance. To Bleuenn acceptance was something the half blood dreamed about her whole life. It's one of the driving reasons behind her goal towards becoming a Guardian Knight. Snapping the paper open as the lovely Mackemmian weather did it's best to cover and pull at her attempts at reading.

Walking over to the other side of the cart, Bleuenn placed ice over where her feet would land to stop her legs from sinking into the inches of snow that covered the town. Dusting the snow off one of the many massive logs that were tied onto the cart before she would lean against it to continue her reading. Getting back to her spot, she thought about how heavy the resistance would be as shipment after shipment coming from Mackemm had been destroyed or lost. She knew that many disagreed with the construction of the church, but was surprised that they were able to completely cut off all trade going out of mackemm. The Church and Engloria must be spread thin trying to defend every trade route going to Newdale. If they are having issues dealing with whoever is stopping lumber from Mackemm how am I going to stop such a large opposition.

Freezing the paper, Bleueen would shatter it so as to not litter. Whatever force she may be up against she is not going to allow them to destroy this shipment as this was her ticket to getting her name out. If she could be the one to lead a shipment to Newdale when everyone else had failed they'd have to recognize her. Moving to the front of the cart Bleuenn waited for it's departure not bothered by the freezing winds as the young witch looked out for any would be scouts or saboteurs.

[Wc: 319]  @wes  @Emi Kazama  @Kiigan  @Daiko

The church of Holy Newdale smelled quite a lot like the church of Illumin back in Fiore. Churches were pretty chill and quiet inside, he had visited one like three times in his life, but it felt much more influential through this paper. Humans were to be allowed their right to practice their faith in Newdale, located in the Outer Realm quite close to Engloria, and Daiko really didn’t mind churches; he had nothing personal against them, and the notion of them reminded him of an old friend…

But he was set on going to Mackemm right now. Thanks to Kura’s advice, he had gotten used to Vyldermirean atmosphere and awakened some new type of Magic involving poisonous gases and droplets – while frustrating to work with, it would give him a fighting chance against any who were planning to prevent the church from being built. Maybe it would earn him some coin, too… he was slowly upping this new currency called Vyldergold. If he could just, somehow, transform his currency of Jewels into Vyldergold, then he would have been set…

…

…

…

Okay, the forest wasn’t as wild as Hoptus, but he began to notice the cold that embraced his form. Instinctively, he rubbed his shoulders with his hands and also stroked Coda’s plumage all over to gather warmth, sliiiiiiiiiiightly annoying the raptor in the meantime. “W-What’s with this cold… it was alright a moment ago?!” he groaned as he hissed and breathed on his hands… forgetting that he wasn’t a Fire Mage anymore-

“Aaaaaaaargh! I should’ve taken a bigger jacket! What even is this!?” he complained, noticing the inches of snow climbing up on his feet. Coda was having a sickened look on her face, not having grown her winter plumage out in time for all of this. She tightly held onto Daiko’s shoulder with her talons as he finally reached the entrance to the town called Mackemm on the map he obtained.

Mackemm… w-wait, Mackemm? It was spelled with two m’s! How did that work, then? Was it pronounced ‘Mackem-m-m’ or ‘Mackemem’… mmm

“Mack-… M-Mackem… Mackemmm… mmm- WAH!” he yelped out loud while trying to read out the name from the paper as he slipped on an extremely smooth surface, flipping back and landing on his bum right in the snow. Hey, at least he made it to one of the carts… and it was still in one piece.

Coda merely leapt off of his shoulder mid-fall and perched on the log right next to the short, peculiarly pale woman who wasn’t phased by the snowy climate visually… at all. Coda’s curiosity went straight to her petite beauty, first and foremost, and didn’t question the mechanics behind her apparent resilience.

WC: 453
@Bleuenn Bosser @Wes @Emi Kazama @Kiigan

Trudging along with the weird green-haired girl and his boss, Kiigan seemed especially frowny and unreadable today. He was never especially bright and sparkly, but he seemed a bit lost in his thoughts, so much so that he hadn't noticed just how close the red-head was walking to him. This whole church business had him a little confused. As a Gaiyan, their faith spreading even into the darker regions was something to celebrate, as was more churches in general, but he wasn't sure what good such a thing would do amongst all the Eldritch. There was also the fact that he was terrified of turning into an Eldritch, yet he continued to walk that fine line and hoped his prayers would be enough to keep him clean.

Either way, he wasn't here with an official stance on the church business. It hadn't been mentioned once, so he seemed neutral. He was here because Wes made him come.

Unlike his two companions, Kiigan was dressed in only a white T-shirt, jeans, and brown boots. The cold didn't bother him in the least, and any snow that landed on his hair or flesh promptly melted and dried. So basically he was a walking fireplace without the smoke and fire.

Wes asked him a question, but he hadn't quite caught it. There was a bit of an auditory delay, and by the time he realized he had asked for cigarettes, Minty Head was chattering. There was something annoying about this chick. It always took him time to warm up to new people anyway, but this one was weird. Every time he looked at her, he was squinting. Just, the laughing...and the terrible jokes. Did she think people would laugh at those? His red eyes watched as she pulled crap out of the pockets of her ugly coat, balking at the smoked salmon. "How long was that...in there...?" he muttered, then turned away to ignore her. Don't indulge her. She'll take it as encouragement, like a stray animal. But then... she was there... pulling... a pipe out of his ear?? He flinched away, wide eyes staring between her and the item. "Witchcraft?" he asked, taking a couple of sideways steps to put some more distance between them. He wasn't sure if you could catch Eldritchism, but he wasn't taking any chances.

Still disgusted and definitely not laughing, not that he ever really laughed in any way that was nice, Kiigan patted his back pocket and produced a pack of cigarettes. Yes, his boss had gotten him hooked. Not only had he more or less defeated the smoke sticks, but he craved them. One sounded good right about now. Placing one between his lips, he then tapped one out and offered it to Wes while his free hand produced a flame on the tip of his finger to light his own and take a drawl.

Kiigan was never so pleased to see a cart of lumber and two more strangers in his life.

[wc: 498 || total: 2626/10,000]

Bleuenn was beginning to grow impatient while waiting for the driver to prepare. While nothing seemed suspicious or out of the ordinary, the young witch’s ears perked up upon hearing the complaints of a younger man. The voice grew loud and loud until its owner slid right in front of her. As the man fell on his backside, Bleuenn took note of the bird that had preached on the log next to her.

The bird in question was a marvelous creature the likes Bleuenn had never seen or heard of before. However, by its trembling it was clear to the young witch that it was not meant for the cold. Holding her hands up as she turned to the bird. “Hello there I mean you no harm, but I can help you stave off the cold liken to my own resistance”. Cocking its head but showing no signs of anger or fear gave Bleuenn the impression that she understood and accepted her help. Slowly moving her hand to the bird’s plumage, upon contact thin ice would spread along the multicolored bird becoming transparent as it completely formed. Moving back with a smile as the bird chirped and flapped its wings in thanks as the cold no longer affected it. With a giggle Bleuenn smiled, “You very much welcome, but since we'll be working together it is only natural to help an ally”.

Turning to it’s downed owner though by the bronze of his skin he looked no better suited for the cold than his feathered friend. Offering a hand to the downed, down filled falconer. “Apologies for helping your friend without asking first, but I could not stand by and see him suffering”. Hearing a chirp, Bleuenn glanced as the bird flapped its wings at her. “My mistake, her”.

Whether or not the man accepted her help or not the young witch would look at the man inquisitively. “Excuse my bluntness, but I've never seen such as ceatu… beautiful lady such as your friend here. Perhaps it is my lack of knowledge, but both of you seemed to be far out of your element, where do you hail from and what business do you have with myself and this shipment”. Trying her best to remain polite, but even if the man seemed harmless she could not let herself lower her guard for anyone.

Though as she conversed with the man, three others appeared shortly after. Two she recognized as Wesley the Baker and his green haired companion that was with him at the ball still as chipper as ever as she joked at both Wesley and the other man’s expense. Trying her best to not make it seem as if she was ignoring the man she was speaking to, but the young witch was concerned about the odd connection Wesley and the Blue haired man shared. It could be nothing as his other employee had the similar connection, but why is it so sinister? Bleuenn hoped the three were fully committed to the delivery of the lumber as the fire magic warming the blue haired individual would be difficult for Bleuenn to handle.

Moments later a woman in a white and lapis veil with matching winter clothing bearing the seal of the church exited the nearby building just as the driver had finished. While much of her body was covered, she was rather young for a nun, very likely a novitiate or just took on her vows. Moving between the two groups the woman would clasp her hands together and make a wave motion to the groups. “May Fleuve’ir’s flow be bountiful and calm to you”. Flashing the group a smile her blue eyes would set upon the two younger members first.

Focusing on Bleuenn the woman would beam as she waved her hand over the young witch to bless her. “I see we have one of Tuer’dur’s children among us. It is a blessing that one with such a command over the unforgiving elements is here to assure our safety; a rare act of mercy from him. I am Sister Amélie though Amélie is just fine”. Unsure what a Tuer’dur even was, Bleuenn simply smiled, “Pleased to meet you Sister, I am Bleuenn Bosser”. The Sister's grin grew even wider as she nodded.

Expelling a cry of excitement as her eyes fell upon Coda. “Now who is this elegant creature”? Fawning over the bird she glanced at Daiko as she held out her hand to request permission from Coda’s owner if she could pet his bird. “Sure a majestic bird I'm sure your eyes will no doubt reveal all threats that may attempt harm on us”. After the Sister had finished fawning over Coda she would approach Daiko blessing him in the same manner. “You may already know as I spoke to your companion, but allow me to introduce myself properly. Sister Amélie may I have the name of the dashing young man who will be protecting myself and it’s cargo”?

Blowing into his hands the Inu driver shook his head as he watched the Sister make her way over to the other three. Setting her sights on the gleeful mint haired woman first Amélie blessed the young woman just like the others as she spoke. “Jubilance will no doubt warm us from the cold of the element and bolster our spirits against the ruthlessness of the ones who wish to halt our goals. I am Sister Amélie and let me be the first to thank you for keeping our spirits high”. Peering at the two men, the sister seemed unimpressed by their smoking, but held back her distaste as they were assisting in the defense of the lumber. “It’s good to see two strong looking men here as well as we will need an unwavering front line to protect us”. Walking over to the two she would bless them just like the others. “May Fleuve'ir protect you, as you two may very well be on the receiving end of the majority of the danger. However, I hope the three of you can become closer and work together with your younger compatriots”.

After she introduced herself, Amélie climbed on top of the cart to overlook the group. “As you already no doubt know, you have been tasked with the protection of this lumber. However, while I'd like to say that everything will go fine, that is far from the truth. The Church has lost many shipments already and the enemy appears to have plenty of weaponry and knowledge of the area. While I do not wish to see anyone come to harm over lumber. I am sorry to say that this will be the last shipment Mackemm can spare without future damage to its future prosperity”. Bowing her head Amélie mumbled to herself conflicted with her duty and the safety of others. “Even though I am in charge I have no experience in the matters of war, and while I would not like to see the construction of the church halted I do not wish for you to die for it”.

“Death is our friend and foe in this task”. Speaking up, Bleuenn looked at Amélie plainly. “All of us here are well aware that we could die on this trip. As adventures we face death on a daily basis, it’s something we accept and understand. All I can promise is that I will give my all to see this shipment to its destination”. Walking ahead she would look back at the Driver to tell him to move on.

[Wc: 1260 - Total: 3886]

H-Huh, Coda was taken aback by the warning ‘I mean you no harm’, usually not the first thing she would hear from strangers who admired her birdy birdiness. Once the porcelain figurine offered to rid the raptor of the cold air hanging by her wings, however, Coda brightened up and chirped in approval, wanting nothing more than to collect some warmth against this weather. As she cocked her head, she would then notice the thin film of… ice… that donned her plumage like a thin layer of chainmail or bodysuit. Despite it being clearly ice, it wasn’t cold at all… and it helped! Coda couldn’t have been more overjoyed, flapping her wings in excitement!

“Darn, Coda, you’re way too good at making friends…” Daiko groaned through the little headache that formed on the back of his skull from the fall. He eagerly accepted the offered hand, not seeing any ulterior motives behind those genuine eyes of hers – chalk it up to his naivety, but she seemed like she could be trusted and reasoned with, unlike many inhabitants around the western part of the Common Realm. Besides, any friend of Coda was a friend of his…

“Y-Yeah, that… woah, Coda looks all tidied up! Thanks a lot, whatever your name is!” he thanked her with sparkles glistening from his eye sockets, “It looks like a thin armor piece or something… you can still flap and fly, right, Coda?”

The bird responded by levitating herself upwards with her wings for a brief moment, then landing back on the log once more. She could still fly, and thus scout… good, good. Nice.

The generous helper and newly acquainted friend of Coda and Daiko with a name still left unknown appeared as inquired and curious about the pair as a few others who met them on their way to Mackemm. She even asked what they were doing here, appearing ‘out of your element’ as she put it… wait… was she catching on to their status as Otherworlders? Maybe he should just confirm it for h-

*FLASHBAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK*

"Um, M-maybe don't mention the um... you know.... Otherworlder part. Just cause, well, Mireans don't often trust Otherworlders. So you might get more help if you omit that information."

*END FLASHBAAAAAAAAAAACK*

“… I-I, uh, me and Coda caught news of a new church being built in Newdale, as you might already know… since you’re here, too,” he mustered up, recollecting himself before continuing, “I don’t really… know much about it, but it sounds very nice. Churches are calm, quiet places, and you can always visit one and be left in silence and peace… t-to think things over, if you ever wanna get a grip of things… in yourself, and all…”

Truly spoken from experience. Daiko had visited a church exactly twice, and each visit brought him a revelation about himself; mainly about how his oldest [s]human[/s] friend was, in a way, cursed with inconvenient amnesia, and how sad he truly was for the loss of his guild. Even if he wasn’t the most religious guy around, he admitted that the peace and quiet that a church prioritized in keeping inside its walls was necessary… for some people, it could be a bolt that kept them piked to a sense of balance and spirituality.

Arrrrggghhhh, this was ruining his mood so much! He almost forgot the cold stinging his skin!

“I’m just a simple bird guy, along with my birdy bird pal and partner in crime- n-not that kind of criminal crime, but as in the- y-you know… you know what I mean, p in crime! Her name’s Coda… … … C-Coda? You still there, girl?” he spoke, snapping his fingers twice in front of the infatuated creature, “… D-Don’t mind her, she just really likes you. She prolly thinks you’re her heroine, destined to slay the beast that is frostbite and save her chained soul from… uh, something.”

*Sniff*

Unlike the jade-haired girl, Daiko didn’t recognize the group of three walking towards the wagon. Therefore, his exchange of reaction was switching focus between the jade-haired girl and the… other jade-haired girl along the sapphire-haired smoker and amber-haired dude with a very stylish hat… wait…

How the heck? The second guy with the blue ponytail – yes, you – wasn’t even wearing a jacket! Had he gone mad?!!?!?!?!?!?

He was about to comment on it, his mouth gaping open in shock, but they were now a group of five, and a sixth person entered – one draped in a veil of white and lapis with a seal akin to the one on the newspaper regarding the church being built. She blessed them with Fleuve’ir’s favor upon greeting them and appeared to have been a clear member of the church, although not exactly a typical elder… she was too young to be anything like an arch-priestess or close to that. She also addressed the porcelain girl as one of Tuer’dur’s children, which was a new term for the Fire- sorry, Poison Mage. It cast a little light on the girl with the round hat and some connection to the forces of ice and cold vapor.

Heeeeeeeey, even the priestess was fawning all over Coda! Coda was just the most buttered up lady magnet out there, wasn’t she? He nodded in approval of her petting the raptor before answering: “That’s Coda, my trusty birdy bird! True, she’ll spot anything within range; no mouse will sneak by without her knowing…!” he bragged of her talents. He crossed his arms in pride before greeting and presenting himself: “And the name’s Daiko. At your service!”

The Sister was grateful for everyone’s aid as she greeted the group of three that had joined last – causing a snicker-cough of pain emerging from Daiko’s mouth as he wasn’t even accounted among the ‘strong looking men here’… ouch.

The Sister made things clear that, due to the growing opposition of the building of the church, this wouldn’t be any cozy ride towards Newdale. They were to face ambushes and the likes on their way… if this was occurring a few weeks ago, then Daiko would’ve peed himself. Arriving in this world with a fucked up mana that bugged his Magic beyond repair made him feel naked and empty, as if all his years of growth, training and improvement had just been erased… so fucking unfair, really.

But thanks to Kura and the help of her companions, he didn’t immediately die upon arriving here. He survived, he gained a new type of Magic, and he began training again. Now, he was once again a Spellcaster, and corrosive Poison was his weapon! He could definitely kill a person with it, now…

Therefore, despite the gloominess of it, he sort of understood Bleuenn’s statement… she reminded him of someone with long, raven hair and… and… like, ten sizes larger boobs.


S-Shut up, imaginary Guild Mistress! It’s not that funny! He was trying to focus, urrghh…

“… Hmh, Coda, you’re up then. Be our eyes, and warn me of suspicious approach,” he commanded his birdy companion before nodding up to lead her wings up in the air, where she would conquer the winds and fly around the wagon before finding a good height above them where she would be out of range for simple archery and the like while being able to spot sneaky bastards lurking in moving shrubbery.

He was read-

*CHIIIIRP!*

“Shit, there’s a group hiding ahead of us…” he warned everyone, “They’re about… *looks up at circulating Coda* 300 meters, I think.” Upon glaring more at Coda’s line of flight, he noticed the figure her track would form… it looked like a triangle, but one of the lines was arced out, and she drew a line going through the middle and straight down.

“… And they’re carrying axes. We could go around the road, doesn’t seem to be that long, but…” Yeah, the thick shrubbery made itself quite an annoyance; an idea was to simply go around the spotted group of ambushers, but there was no convenient road to do that. Think, think, think…

WC 1343
TWC: 5229

Being in the pocket of a coat where a smoked salmon had been kept for an undetermined amount of time was fearsome, indeed. Kiigan didn't like showing discomfort as he had-- he tried to play his cards close to the vest when he could-- but it was hard not to when it came as such a shock. Given how quiet he could be until his feathers were properly ruffled, it was no surprise that any more words aimed at him were met with either simple eye contact or a silent nod.

Now that they had properly joined the party, no matter how absent his mind was from the moment, his eyes flickered to the others they'd be joining. A boy with a bird was gaping at him, which caused him to squint at him in vaguely irritated confusion. Said his name was Coda... or was it Daiko? One of them was Coda and one was Daiko, if he heard right. If it was important later, he'd figure it out then. The girl with him with the round hat was Bleuenn Bosser, which he was also likely to forget unless he came up with something about her to make it stick.

Kiigan's attention was finally fully taken off of the Salmon Witch-thief and the worrisome fact that they'd kissed by a lady dressed in white and lapis lazuli, which he recognized as the embellishment of the main chapel in Engloria. He couldn't say he'd ever seen anyone other than the Grande Priest wear it, and even then it was probably to make the King and the humans more comfortable. Humans sometimes made the church weird with their sensibilities. This was one such lady, in his opinion. He was batting three for three with forgetting names today, mostly because he was distracted by other things. What the heck was the veil for? Did she think she was ugly or something? Either way, he nodded his head aloofly at the blessing, though it did make him feel better in a way. He probably needed a blessing after being around Emi, who has Wes blithely pointed out, needed no extra portion of 'jubilance' if they (or she) were to survive this outing. So far, only the small, charming ginger man could get his lips to a neutral line and a huff distantly related to a snort of humor from his nostrils.

Of course, his frown would return the instant Wes escorted the priestess back to the cart, where she then basically repeated the job's purpose to the group and shared her sentiments about life outweighing building supplies, to which he initially offered no response. Then the oddly commanding blue-haired girl piped up to speak for the entire group, which he wasn't fond of, leading him to get his last say in. "Speak for yourself. I'll protect it, but I won't die for something like this," Kiigan corrected in a low voice, frown deepening. While he appreciated the church making a proactive decision for once instead of waiting endlessly for Fleuve'ir's favor to shine, building a chapel in Eldritch territory seemed to be a worthless move. Emi's jokes or no, it wasn't worth anyone dying, but that was their choice. He just wouldn't be one of them.

Since both Wes and Emi had moved away from him to do other things, he considered the bird's intel report as quietly as he had everything else, then made his own decision. A cart this heavy wouldn't be able to be taken off the main road, and the church lady was pretty adamant that this shipment make it through. The only option was to press forward and fight the ax-wielders when they decided to reveal themselves. They'd already lost the element of surprise, so that lowered their threat level quite a bit. With a long drag and a slight cough of inexperience, Kiigan moved out in front of the shipment. In the hand not holding a cigarette, a long, red spear was stitched together by light and slung over his shoulder should danger come calling. He stood at the front, ready to leave whenever they were, since he could see no other reason to delay.

Unless they were waiting for one more? Fleuve'ir's banks, he hoped whoever it was was quiet and normal...

[wc: 715 || total: 8491/10000]

The large log building with the billowing smokestack stood out in stark contrast to the frigid white expanse around it. The building sat in a small clearing up on the ridge quite a ways from where Trishna had left her mentor, to the point where Trishna wasn’t sure whether she would be able to see the wagon even had the trees not been in the way. She had followed the drifting black cloud that could be seen even over the treetops, on the advice of the villagers near the pickup point, with every intention of showing Bleu just how useful she could be herself even without the ice bending powers that her mentor had. Still, she couldn’t help but wish she had her partners seeming invulnerability to the wind and cold; even with the great white fur coat she currently sported the cold winds seemed to cut right through her.

With a shiver, she continued making her way towards the log building. This cold was so bitter that even with her fabulous new coat she wished she had someone to warm her up. She shook her head as images of her partner came to mind, distracting her from the bitter cold but bringing her mind back to the unfortunate fact she hadn’t had a decent chance to feed since she met the blue bombshell. Trishna was unfortunately nearing her limits, and no matter how decadent a dessert Bleu might be, Trishna would need to feed very soon.

Aside from the cold and her own hunger there had been very little in the way of danger as she made this strenuous trip up the mountainside, it only took a few short moments to finish her trip and reach her destination. She stopped for just a moment outside the door to gather herself, slightly nervous at the prospect of letting herself loose outside of the brothel she had grown up in. Trishna wanted to be useful to her partner Bleu though, so this was a necessary step to ensuring the success of their mission in her mind. It was SHOWTIME.

Trishna opened the door to the large log built structure and was greeted by a blast of heat as the temperature inside the enclosure attempted to equalize with the outside chill. The clamour of the usually noisy occupants quieted down as all eyes turned towards the succubus letting in the cold air. Trish strutted inside the hearth warmed structure and closed the door behind her.

“Hello boys...” Trish said with a slight flourish, flashing a seductive smile around the room and opening her coat to reveal a bit more of her skin despite the fact she was still freezing from the walk. She has learned well from her mother that a good succubus used a combination of physical and mental charms to enthrall an audience, depending too much on one or the other was a surefire way to lose anyone with mental fortitude. She didn’t honestly expect a ton of resistance from these rugged yet simple folk, but being lazy could lead to disappointing her true crush and she couldn’t have that.

Looking around the room, she seemed to be having the desired effect. At every table sat burly men in various shades of plaid, most sporting thick beards of various colours and lengths, but every single one of them had eyes on her. So far so good! Trish’s smile twisted a tiny bit in satisfaction before she continued, “Are you all the big… strong men who prepared this load of wood my friends and I will be escorting today?”

The words hung in the air for a moment as nearly every one of the rugged men shared the same entranced look, one part dazzled and another part confused. Trishna hadn’t been completely sure her charms would affect these men who hadn’t dealth with Eldritch like herself often, but thankfully enough of her sensual charm was a universal language that it hardly seemed to matter. One of the larger loggers near the back of the room was the first to manage to break his trance enough to offer the succubus a reply, clearing his throat unsteadily before he responded. “A-aye, miss, that’d be us.”

“Oh, thats wonderful!” Trishna exclaimed, locking eyes with the gentleman that had spoken up. “I had been worried that with all the times the shipment had been robbed, you gentlemen wouldn’t be much to look at, but I am SO glad to be proven wrong…”

Trishna made her way over to the man that had spoken up, keeping her audiences’ attention captive as she made sure to strut in a way that allowed the bits of glances the men around her could see of the clothing beneath her coat to accentuate the curves of her hips. She reached out a hand to the larger man before her to stroke his cheek, bending only slightly despite the fact he was sitting down. “I was wondering if you big, strong men would be willing to come with us and…”

“N-now hold on there miss!” an elderly voice behind her interrupted. Trishna broke eye contact with the big logger and turned her crimson gaze to the newfound speaker, who turned out to be an elderly axeman whose beard had greyed to almost white. Despite the fact it looked as though his body was beginning to wither somewhat, there was still an intriguing fire behind this one’s eyes. “ While we appreciate you folks coming to help protect our shipment, I’m not about to send my guys out to their deaths…”

Trishna licked her lips as the man talked, making her way over to him. Now this must be the leader of this band of loggers, a man with experience and spirit even if his body couldn’t keep up… and most certainly the main obstacle here. Her eyes met the old man's own grey-blue orbs that had certainly paled with age, and his voice slowly trailed off between the combination of her feminine charms and seducing magicks.

“I would certainly never wish to put you brave men at risk…” Trishna replied, running a single hand through her hair and feigning concern. “I just didn’t want to believe the rumours…”

“Eh…? What’re you talking about lass?” The old man replied, his face torn between the confusion he must’ve felt and the lingering trance-like affects of Trishna’s presence. She had almost lost him, but she hoped it was worth the risk of roping his emotions.

“You know…” Trishna said, feigning bashfulness and allowing a tear to form in one of her eyes. “I didn’t want to believe that you all were afraid of being ambushed and were content with losing cart after cart of your hard earned wood… I told them all that rugged people like you would NEVER back down from something as small as these brigands who keep stealing your goods…”
“Who would dare?!” The old man growled, his sentiment quickly echoed my a good majority of those around him. Before he could continue, Trishna interrupted him.

“I was mad too! I told my sisters that couldn’t be the case!” Trishna said, inwardly smiling but trying to keep it off her face. “But I couldn’t possibly ask you all to risk yourselves..”

“Argh…” the old man growled. Trishna suspected somewhere in the back of his head he knew damn well he was being taken for a ride. All she could hope to do was seal the deal before he managed to come to his senses.

“I know!” Trish exclaimed, acting as though she had just thought of an idea. “What if you all just came with us part-way, through your territory?” Trish continued, grinning and shifting her gaze to touch on all of those in the small building. “Then I could tell everyone how the brave woodmen of Mackemm made sure their work didn’t go to waste... I would LOVE to tell everyone how brave and strong you are back home...”

The unspoken promise of the gratitude of a seductress seemed to be rolling around in the heads of the majority of the loggers. The head of the axemen frowned for a moment, considering the words of the succubus before finally agreeing. “Alright, you win lass… but I’ll not be forcing any of me boys to risk themselves. Anyone who wants to stay can stay!”

Trish let out a small eep, overjoyed at her success in manipulating these lumberjacks, then leaned in and planted a kiss on the lumberjack leader. He stiffened in surprise for a split second
Before relaxing due to a combination of the enticing powers Trishna had and the fact she was also quickly sapping his vitality. Trishna drank deep, slaking her thirst and ending the drought she had been in since meeting the ice queen whom had become her goal. It only lasted a couple of seconds in reality, though, and when she finished he didn’t exactly look worse for the wear. He just wore a stupid sloppy grin and drooped a bit in his chair. Trishna turned to the loggers around her, having no more need of the old man now that he had given them his blessing.

“Thanks so much to you who are proving I was right about you!” Trishna said with a grin. “Grab your axes and we can make our way to the carts we’re escorting!”

In the end, almost all the loggers in that particular cabin ended up joining Trishna for her trek back down the mountain. Only the leader and one other ended up staying, which was fine by her. She couldn’t match her mothers powers yet but perhaps one day....


“Hey beautiful! I brought help!” Trishna shouted, a beaming smile on her face as her entourage made it to the main path. It seemed as though Bleu had readied everything else and was ready to go! Her smile faltered slightly when she realized that Bleu had seemingly been busy as well, and aside from the nun she had her own group of help following alongside the cart. It seemed her crush had won this match of who could bring the most help as well, though Trish could hardly blame them for being enticed by the same Ice Princess that she had been. “Looks like you made friends too!”

“Hi I’m Trishna!” The succubus greeted the group with a twirl and a curtsy. “These gentlemen want to escort the shipment a ways with us, are we ready to head out now?”


Word Count: 1757
Personal Word Count: 1757
Thread Word Count: 10248/10000

Everyone seemed to understand what the young witch meant, everyone but the baker’s compatriots. While Bleuenn could have handled the jokers' antics at her and the parties’ expense. She could not ignore Wesley’s tethered assistant. “Something like this? Forgive me, I was not aware of your peerless skill”. Scoffing at Kii, Bleuenn took her attention off of the boastful fool. “I suppose we need not worry as no doubt your proclamation will see us through''. As the conversation turned argument begun to heat up, Amélie who had just thanked Wesley for assisting her onto the cart turned to the two bickering. Her blue eyes narrowed at Bleuenn ever so slightly before quickly reverting to her soft gaze. “Miss Bossor, it's great that you take the protection of not only the cart but the lives of others so seriously. However, both you and… Mister Wesley’s companion are here for the same reason. I am sure that you both understand that working together is far more effective than fighting alone”. Once she has finished the sister looked at Wesley expectantly hoping that he would help her keep the group together. Sticking by Daiko’s side while side eyeing Kii as he walked ahead of Daiko and herself “Do not worry I shall remain professional, though if he does not wish to cooperate our lack of cohesion lies upon him”.

Bleuenn now finished dealing with the more troublesome members, focused on the road as they began to leave the town. Unfortunately for her and Daiko, they appeared to be Emi’s next targets. Glancing to the ‘jubilant’ member of the group her ruby eyes scanned the joker of their deck. The witch had to admit that her ability had great potential, but it appeared to be wasted on the mint clown who used it for pranks. Looking past the woman and to what looked to be a face etched into one of the logs. Inspecting the odd marking closer, warmth enveloped her body slowly melting away her icy persona. The joy began to reach a boiling point as a smile cracked across Bleuenn’s serious demeanor. Tearing herself away from the odd almost entrancing hex, Bleuenn looked back at the trickster, her crack of a smile faded into a scowl as she covered Emi’s magic with her own. “Why am I so serious? Perhaps it is due to the manner of situation we find ourselves in? I’ll cool down once the cart has been escorted and we’re still among the living” Stopping herself, Bleuenn realized her words and how Emi’s antics were beginning to affect her. Sucking her teeth in annoyance, the young witch focused back on the road remembering her past interaction with another of the baker’s allies.

Watching Coda as she took flight, Bleuenn was glad not only for Coda’s birds eye view to at least warn them of an attack, but the witch was also grateful for Daiko as he seemed to be normal for the most part. Though it did not take long at all for Coda to cry out. Looking to Coda then to Daiko as he translated his partner's words? Her fascination and confusion about the how of Daiko’s and Coda’s ability to transmit such detailed information would have to wait as the other equally puzzling ‘ambush’ took priority.

While she thought on the oddity of not only the attackers equipment but their location; Wesley took the role of leadership. Wesley’s questioning Daiko finished rather abruptly snapping the young witch out of her thought bubble. Momentarily looking at Wesley with a haze of confusion as she was unsure why he was suddenly placing the leadership role onto her, but she quickly casted it aside. “You're correct about us following the main road. Not only is the cart too large, but the less traveled roads would be impossible for a cart; It’s one of the main reasons why no one has been able to escort any wood from Mackemm as we are fighting on the enemy's terms". Looking around the rather flat tundra barely out of eyeshot from the town, “I’m unsure about your knowledge on the attacks, but none of them have been this close to the town or on such unfavorable terrain and simple tactics”. Nothing added up with the past attacks, yet she would not take any chances. Holding out her hand a sigil would form over the snow a safe distance from the group. “I’ll set a trap, and defend the area around the cart if need be, at the very least we can turn the tables even if any ambush attempted here would be ineffectual. Though that’s about all we have going for us as we lack the knowledge or experience fighting alongside each other. Hopefully they are as unorganized as us as all we can hope to do is to try to stick together and fight normally as trying to cooperate without any training is next to impossible”. Bleuenn would have liked to gain more information about the other’s before a fight, however perhaps she can learn about her allies’ talents for when they have to fight something more threatening. Turning onto the main road, Bleuenn snapped her fingers occasionally to reposition the trap as they moved along. She very much doubted that the axe welders were the enemy as the little information she did glean from the townsfolk and survivors of the attack was that the saboteurs attacked from elevated terrain with guns and artillery. Even though she was confident in their ability to take on such a force, she doubted their ability to take on the more organized force that was no doubt lying in wait for them.

The calm was finally broken. The shapes of what was sure to be the axmen appeared from the woods. Yet instead of a charge the group simply marched… no even from afar called their stumbling within the snow a march was far too generous. As the figures grew closer, the one at the head of the group had an odd skin pigmentation. Hoping that their leader’s complexion was merely a hat and scarf, but as the group grew in size and detail Bleuenn knew exactly how it was. Placing a hand over her face as her pink companion called out to her the witch dreaded not only having to explain Trishna to a group she was already at odds with, but the fuel that Trishna would be to Emi’s future jokes and teasing. Taking a deep breath she kept her eyes on Trishna as she dared to not look at the group especially Emi. With a sheepish wave to her companion, Bleuenn tried to hold onto her mask, “More like a temporary alliance, though I have to admit I am surprised that anyone showed up”. Look at Trishna as she introduces herself then to the volunteers. Inquisitive, raising her hand about halfway before dropping it back down as it was clear that the volunteers appeared to be less than voluntarily following Trishna. Glassy eyes vacant expression, not a single word aside from the odd grunt or moan they clearly have been dominated. though thankfully not a complex application as those are very difficult to crack as the magic is merely clouding their mind not etched into the soul. Scowling, Bleuenn glared at the pink demoness. "Volunteers, more like volunteered, did you honestly think that a witch let alone anyone with eyes would have been able to see that they were under your influence, release them now"! If there was one thing the witch hated above all else it was the act of taking another's freewill. Bleuenn's command was heard clear as day by Amélie who merely placed her hands over her mouth in shock at the act. Shaking her head, the young witch was done dealing with people. Turning around her glare focused on Amélie, "That's right I'm an Eldritch just like Trishna. While I cannot speak for Trishna I am not looking to harm or control anyone. Perhaps you may want us gone, but I took on this quest to show others that I can and will be a knight and a protector"! Sighing Bleuenn walked ahead past Kii, taking the lead to be left alone.


The cart pushed on though it was clear that it's defenders were fractured and splintered into groups. Bleuenn was aware that the lack of knowledge and cooperation would be their downfall, but was not in the right headspace or position to try to be the keystone of their group. Amélie, while still shaken by Trishna's actions, knew that she needed everyone to work together, even if she did not wish to work with those who used others. "Everyone please stop, stop the cart"! With the cart coming to a slow stop, Amélie stood up to address the group. "I know that all of you come from different backgrounds and homes, but despite your differences all of you came together willing to fight side by side even though none of you would ever speak or spend time with one another! I do not know the how or why all of you came here to defend and help spread the faith, however it does not matter! Even if you hate or dislike each other, please for at least the sake of your goals and wishes; push your disagreements aside and work together"! The sister was right, Bleuenn knew it. Looking to the group but focusing more on Trishna, Kii and Emi, "She's right, we can't hope to defend the cart unless we work together. I don't care if you hate me or what I am, I'm used to it. Though if you can put that aside I will make sure that the cart makes it to its destination unharmed". Moving closer to the group Bleuenn manipulated the snow nearby to form snow sculptures of the group standing side by side. "I'm sure most of you are already aware of my dominion over ice. I am sure you don't need me to explain the benefits of being surrounded by the element you master". Sighing as she still held onto to her annoyance an persona, "I apologize for my coldness, it's just that most tend not to lot favorably on me. I will do my best to defend all of you and take up the offensive if possible". Fiddling with her hands she was still not fully comfortable with leaving herself bare to the group. The half breed still hide her mixed blood from the others as those of her kind were treated worse than even Eldritch, who were merely feared and hated. Tugging on her tag in an attempt to hide her face with her hat. It was obvious as the young witch shuffled around as she did not like being the center of attention. "... Does anyone else have any defensive abilities? If so... I can take aa more offensive role".

Wc: 1822
Total: 12070

Was it just him or was the weather growing a little? Or was it a subconscious result of Miss Kazama’s quite strange statements? To be fair, you couldn’t expect Daiko to have a good sense of humor – and by that, it meant that he found humor in quite many things that most people wouldn’t deem funny or laugh-inducing. He did snicker at the jade-haired woman’s funny lines, knowing jack shit about her, her profession, her backstory and her standing with the two males accompanying her. They seemed like such a delightful gang, almost like guild mages from where he came… the ginger-haired one even got the fanciest, most stylish hat the Poison Mage had ever laid eyes on.

A-Anyway, back to the task at hand. The Emi girl sure took it very lightly, and yeah, sure, they had to not panic or anything – y-you know what, Daiko held great confidence in this group! They all looked so dependable, strong and experienced in at least aiding with hard labor or combat. Although, not all here wanted to give their lives for the logs… and their talking had begun to heat up for some otherworldy reason, but none of them were going to die! If anything, Daiko would make sure that no one died – he was starting to itch for some real combat, wanting to catch up to his original level of magical prowess and strength.

Daiko looked up at Coda once more and saw her fly in lines forming a certain number. “Oh, there are- n-nhggg, ngghahaha-“ he was trying to inform them, but… w-what happened? He was suddenly beginning to feel ticklish deep in his belly, armpits and hips, as if someone were tickling all his sensitive places at the same time. “Hahahhaahahahh, h-hhaaaaah, haha, s-sto- wait-“ he protested against… well, himself? Quickly, he smacked both his cheeks with his hands at once, snapping himself out of whatever trance he fell into.

“… T-There are few, s-she spotted like 6 or more…” he informed them after regaining his cool. The blue-haired companion had readied himself up front with what looked like a long, red spike that seemingly came out of nowhere… wait, was that Requip? W-Wait, they don’t have the same kinds of Magic here in Vyldermire as in Fiore, right? What would it be called here, then?

… C-Conjuration?

Surely, the redirecting of the cart wasn’t a good idea due to the terrain preventing them from being too flexible with their journey. Daiko readied his mentality for some sudden ambush, then, fearing that enemies would be lurking in every corner at one point… while a little confident in himself, it was still a new Magic, this Poison thing…

… Wait, the loggers ahead of them were friendly? Daiko had just upped his nerves for a quick emergency reaction for nothing! Oh well, it was better than being attacked any day, so he’d accept more help… although, it appeared that Bleuenn knew her. Coda had just decided to perch on Bleuenn’s shoulder ‘cause screw Daiko when the one leading the new group – an… odd-colored lady with- w-was that a tail? Her eyes looked all dark, like looking down into a well at night! Was she some kind of Takeover? Or was that just due to a racial trait?

Come to think of it, he would have to learn more about the races here in Vyldermire besides those with traits of beasts.

Daiko couldn’t see the issue at first – what did Bleuenn mean with ‘release them now!’? Were they captured by the pink lady? They weren’t tied up or anything, and they didn’t complain at all. And the phrase ‘under your influence’… were they under her spell?! Illusion Magic?!?!?

Awww, this was such a weird group of people now… from what Daiko could gather, there was the mint-haired Cryomage who looked like she belonged in his old guild, the ginger-haired dude who emitted no mana and had the prettiest hat of all kind, a jade joy-spreader with enthusiastic and weird funny remarks, a blue-haired spearman who seemed not to care too much about the logs that they were defending, and the chirpy pink-skinned lady being with some kind of mind-control… m-maybe Daiko should stay more wary around her, in the end. He didn’t want to lose his mind or get thralled under someone else’s control-

T-Then again, she had come here to cooperate, so… w-wha? It honestly confused him.

And thus, it ended with the tour looking like they were all mad at each other. Daiko’s face shivered with worry, having small, comedic droplets of sweat shake off despite the weather as he flailed his hands: “N-Now, c’mon, guys… w-we might as well look past whatever and all, w-we’ll be riding for a while-“ Feeling that they needed some glue to stick with each other, he rose up on the moving cart just as it was demanded to brake, causing him to topple over the front and almost fall if not for his quick safe by grabbing onto one of the logs. It did cause a few stutters to escape his panicking lips, but he wasn’t going to fall twice.

The priestess made a good point, exactly! That was what he meant, too! And what was with Bleuenn and Trishna and being, what, Eldritch? Daiko didn’t even know what that really meant, anyway! Was it a race? If so, was it racist to dislike them? Why would he even- he had never met them before, so he should try to start out their encounter in a good tone! Exactly!

While having decided to sit near the ginger with the fancy hat due to curiosity taking over the Poison Mage, Daiko was soon captivated with the snow sculptures made by Bleuenn. He even jumped off the cart to gaze upon them, inspecting the builds and even handling the red spear made for the sapphire mane’s sculpture, strong enough to stay solid even when he was swinging it around. “W-Wooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! The snow’s so solid, it’s not even breaking apart when I swing it!” he spoke up in awe, showing his more immature side as he was easily in awe at magical spectacles; more so when this was the first… no, second arcane showcase to him since he arrived here, the first being Kura’s fox fire.

He also sneakily equipped the snow hat meant for Ginger, checking himself out with it on while Coda, still perched on Bleuenn’s shoulder without poking into her skin too much, chirped annoyingly at Daiko’s apparently poor taste in fashion. Well, fashion was subjective, wasn’t it? Daiko liked it.

Upon hearing Bleuenn’s promise to defend them all and question, Daiko poked up again. “I don’t really have any good defense stuff going on, but I can make sure that any would-be enemies lose their breath before laying a single scratch on any of you!” He was grinning widely, definitely hiding away how he would do such a thing, because he wanted to surprise them and show just how dependable he could be. That was how good mages were sought out – by how dependable and meritorious they could be.

Looking at Coda again, Daiko nodded for her to fly up again, which she did. Now, Coda began flying in circles again… until at one point, quite early, she flew in certain lines once more, revealing the number of a new group nearby. “… Oh, we're in the clear. Good job, Coda!“

WC: 1247
TWC: 13317
New TWC: 1317

TL;DR:

Angry puffs of cigarette smoke appeared out ahead of the cart, as if it'd become some sort of steam engine...not that he knew what such a thing was.

Misunderstood as usual, Kii only tossed a slightly hateful glare back at the mouthy, leader-apparent of this band of misfits and otherwise completely ignored whatever was going on behind him. However, as always, he didn't open his mouth to correct her and let her think whatever she wanted about him. Why should he care? Either she'd see she was wrong or it wouldn't matter in the least. 'Bosser' was right. As long as she left him alone and wasn't as bossy with him as her name sounded, everything would probably be fine. Bossy Bosser. If everything failed and they all chose to blame him, bring it on then. Someone had to be the scapegoat.

Then Wes appeared at his side. Reeling his mind back in from the distant paths of Grumpland, he slightly turned his head to observe. Had he missed something? Why was he giggling like that? Blinking, he turned more fully with a little alarm, trying to figure out if he was hurt. Or drunk? He hadn't seen him drink anything though... "Boss, what's wrong--"

Kiigan went stalk stiff for a long moment, eyeing the giggling man holding his hand, speaking in....some kind of tongue. His brain just stopped working as if it had blown a fuse. An encantation? Was....was Wes a witch, too?! He silently stood there, staring at the giggling man, holding his hand as if nothing was wrong even though his face was starting to sweat.

Wes asked why someone was pink. Dread filled his whole body. Had that darktongue spell turned some poor innocent soul pink and he hadn't even meant to? The angel slowly took his eyes from his employer to, yup, someone with pink skin. But it wasn't a poor innocent soul who had been pinked. It wasn't an innocent soul at all!

As if the pink-skinned, obviously demonata woman that joined their band wasn't enough already for the Gaiyan, Bossy Bosser soon exploded into a short monologue about her own Eldritch heritage. Another witch. Lumberjacks and thralling aside, all Kiigan got from any of the speaking happening was that he was surrounded by Eldritch. His red eyes flashed between Trishna and Bleuenn, then to Emi as well. Three Eldritch. He glanced back at Wes. Four? He was basically surrounded. While he didn't hate Eldritch, he was plenty wary from a whole life of sheltered mindsets and cautionary tales. Worrying about falling to sin was hard enough alone, but now... this was a predicament. Kiigan was more than happy to give Bleuenn a wide berth as she stalked past him, but Wes taking off for the back of the cart seemed wrong. By all fairness, the angel should've been giving all the sin-happy folk some room, and for a moment he considered it.

He should have stayed home.

Was everyone here a freakin' witch?!

Turning accusatory eyes on Daiko, the strange boy was playing in the snow, his temper flared for just a second. "Are you some sort of Eldritch, too?" he asked in a small but simmering outburst, eyes narrowed and scowl deepening.  

Kiigan didn't stay around for the answer, though. Not standing for Wes, of all people, also possibly being a witch, the man stalked off after the small gingersnap with an extra scowly scowl on his mouth. "Hey...wait!" he demanded as he became even less focused on the mission and more on finding himself some answers. No peace for Wes. Emi he could deal with. Gumball girl was a bit more iffy. Bossy Bosser...he didn't care as long as she stayed away. But Wes? Wes?! No. It can't be. Not with all the time they spent together!

[wc: 636 || total: 2838]

It started off so well. The pink demonata had stepped onto the scene with a cadre of little helpers at her back, ready to contribute to their little caravan.  The friendly green-haired woman had introduced herself right away to Trishna with just the sort of excitement the succubus had wished to see on her first big group quest, while Bleu herself began to greet and inspect the crew that Trishna had brought! Before Trishna could return the happy greeting, however, things fell apart for her. Trishna had been hoping for a bit of praise from her mentor for contributing to the cause, despite the distinct lack of people in this snowy landscape. Trishna had gone out of her way to find these fools to ensure a safe trip… and Bleu actually chastised her for bringing these lumberjacks under her control! Her little frosty partner was unhappy with her! What were her talents there for, if not for this?! Was she not allowed to help? Was her magic off limits because it changed hearts instead of temperature? Was… was Bleu going to stay mad at her?

The green haired woman with the oversized coat and personality snapped Trishna out of her emotional crisis, bringing her back to the present… something about a charm spell and a punchline. The succubus was mildly confused by what the comedian woman meant, though she assumed it was a joke of some sort... maybe trying to break the tension? She was half listening and having a moment, after all, but she supposed she should get this over with before she managed to make her icy friend even more unhappy.

She turned to face the lumberjacks and raised her left hand, snapping her fingers. For those nearby, the snap of the succubus’ fingers seemed amplified. No matter where one was standing in the immediate vicinity it sounded as though it came from right beside their ear; not loud enough to hurt, but loud enough to hear it clearly. The reaction from the lumberjacks was immediate, most of them blinking away their glassy expressions and looking around in confusion. Trishna blinked away the tears in her eyes from her current emotional state and addressed the lumberjacks.

“I’m sorry for influencing you all… I wasn’t trying to be cruel. I just wanted to be a bit safer on this trip.” Trishna said, loudly enough for the lumberjacks and likely most of the others present to hear fairly clearly, though this was certainly not magically enhanced in any way. She bowed apologetically, “Please, I hope you all have a safe trip home.”

Trishna kept her head bowed and awaited whatever response these men were going to give her. The lumberjacks, for their part, seemed to still be getting an understanding of where they were and what had happened. “Look, lass, I don’t exactly understand what kind of tomfoolery you may or may not have done, but I’ll stick around with you until you all leave Mackemm. Our boss may accept the loads going missing as not being our fault, but I’ve got a bit more pride in our work than that…”

Trishna looked up to see the man speaking lay his axe on his shoulder and smile confidently at her. Two others, from what she could tell, seemed confident and willing, though the rest seemed more on the fence. It didn't take an empath to tell that they didn’t want to go, but also didn’t like the idea of walking away from a fight and being labeled a coward. Trishna rose from her bow and took the lead lumberjacks free hand.

“Please, if not for yourself, go back for me ok?” Trishna said with as much earnestness as she could muster, looking up into the big mans eyes. “If a single hair on your head comes to harm I’m not sure my partner will ever forgive me… and you’ve more than proven your resolve. I’ll be sure to tell my sisters when I see them how brave the men of Mackemm Village are.”

The lumberjack looked from the succubus to the ice witch and back, registering the pink demonata’s words. Finally he smiled helplessly and shrugged. “Right then. I suppose there’s nothin for it. We’ll be on our way, but next time you’re in Mackemm stop on by and have a pint with us. You can tell us how it went and we can share stories without the funny business, ok?” The men gave a general grumbling of agreement and the cadre were on their way.


-------

For a time, as the caravan trudged through the snowy landscape Trishna had continued to mope. As much as she could manipulate  some beings, it still bugged the hell out of her that she was having trouble with Bleu. She didn’t understand! That whole group was fairly easy but then the person she liked was not. I mean, was it the fact that Bleu was super pretty? There were plenty of pretty people though! The blue haired gentleman wearing just a t-shirt in this frosty weather was cute despite the fact he couldn’t seem to stop glaring for whatever reason. The darker skinned man was cute as well, and to top it off not only did he have almost a sense of childlike wonder but he apparently had one of the prettiest birds Trishna had ever seen as a pet! The funny green haired one, as far as Trishna could tell she was super cute though the oversized coat made it difficult to estimate her bodies curves(the succubus had tried), and the upbeat personality was something Trishna would absolutely love to see more of! And to round them out there was the cute giggling red haired man with the awesome hat. Even the priestess was quite easy on the eyes, though Trishna got the distinct impression they were avoiding looking back at her purposely.

Was it the magical essence emanating off of her? All of the others aside from the red haired fellow had that, including the priestess. Maybe it was the fact she was an excellent chef? That was something Trishna could honestly say was something only Bleu had going for her on this convoy, though it wasn’t as though she had tried the others cooking so there was no way of knowing for sure. She supposed the ice queen was the first one Trishna had truly went on a quest with, but she wasn’t sure if that was it either. As much as the pink demonata wracked her brain she didn’t understand what made her so nervous around that bombshell of a woman.

The succubus was once again brought out of her thoughts when Bleu called for a stop to the caravan and began her pep talk about unity, even going so far as to make sculptures of them all! The dark skinned one and the green haired one began to play with the statues as Bleu talked, finally stating that she would do her best to defend everyone and asking for everyone’s specialties. The dark skinned man with the oh-so-cute bird seemed to indicate defence wasn’t his thing, and the others hadn’t responded yet so Trishna spoke up.

“Umm… so hey, I think most of you have a good idea of what my specialty is.” she said somewhat nerviously, one hand playing with her hair thoughtlessly as she spoke. “I wanna see a world where we can all get along, and I plan to try to do what I can to help.” She finished, hoping the implication didn’t make her mentor even angrier at her. She wanted to avoid that, if possible, but she wanted to be useful too! Why was this so hard! Once the group was ready to get moving again Trishna would find a spot on the cart to ride for a bit and hope dearly she didn’t find a situation where her choices were to be useless or make Bleu hate her.


[WC: 1326] [Total WC: 4164]

Chaos that was all that could be said about the scene before Bleuenn. Wesley, a man she looked to as possibly another person to help guide and help focus the group, was now laughing at not only her but her idea of unity. Anger boiled within the ice witch threatened to melt her even temper. Forming a snowball, Bleuenn tossed it at the crackling baker only just missing the man as he tumbled over from sheer laughter. Sucking her teeth at the lack of contact, her eyes focused on Daiko and Emi playing around with the sculptures she had made. Raising a hand to protest though she held back as Daiko and of course Coda had and were helping the group. She could not bring herself to spoil his fun even if he had missed the point she was trying to make. Giving Emi on last side glance as she had escaped her wrath on Daiko's account. However, the one who was fairing worse than her was the priestess. Looking to Amélie the witch could see that she too was at her wits end as she simply sat back down looking rather dower at the lack of others answering her call for unity.

Taking a deep breath, Bleuenn formed a sort of cone like object in preparation to shock the group into listening. Though as she was about to yell into the makeshift megaphone a somewhat dejected Trishna stepped up saying something that warmed Bleuenn’s heart and shocked Amélie as she did not think that the Eldritch would be the one to step up for unity. Lowering the ice cone, a soft warm smile spread along Bleuenn’s face. “ And they say us Eldritch are the selfish and cruel ones”. Letting out a giggle she would stand next to Trishna giving the succubus a slight side bump while looking up to her. “I saw the exchange with the lumberjacks, it seems that they truly did wish to defend their work, all they needed was a push”. Pushing against Trishna's side with her thigh Bleuenn sighed. “Though even though they may want to help, all they would do is get themselves and us killed trying to protect them”. Taking her fellow adventurers' hand she would turn and focus fully on her friend. “ However, this does not mean that you can’t enthrall our enemies”. Flashing a sly smile, “In fact your talents will be quite helpful. Causing chaos and confusion within the enemy wins wars and battles, don't sell your gifts short”. Patting Trishna’s hand before letting go, Bleuenn turned back to the group, raising the ice megaphone in preparation to knock some sense into the group.

“Attention attention”! The voice of Bleuenn boomed across the entire group. Tossing the cone away she continued. “Perhaps you may not know or care, but let me remind you that we are not the first group that has attempted to escort the lumber to Newdale. The fact that we are even here is due to others' failures”. Focusing on Amélie then back to the group, “ Our fellow adventurers and Amélie’s fellow priests and priestesses have given their lives to try and help have everyone come together and not repeat the mistakes of the past. You may not care about me or the church, but at least some respect for the dead”! With her speech done Amélie would mouth a thank you to Bleuenn and Trishna as she motioned the driver to start moving again.


Keeping to the front of the cart, Bleuenn cleared any snow and ice that may hamper the cart and ease everyone else’s ability to travel. As they came upon an area with two hills overlooking the road, Bleuenn tugged on Trishna to warn her while she moved closer to the cart. “Daiko, does Coda see anything strange”! Just as Bleuenn called for an update the roar of a cannon echoed out! Raising a dome of ice the cannonball slammed into the right side of the dome cracking the ice as it ricocheted, bouncing a few times along the other part of the witch’s dome before landing down next to it with a dense thump. As Bleuenn reformed the crack, shouts could be heard leading to logs rolling down to blocking their path while the ambushers appeared out of the snow encircling the cart.

Surrounded and cut off the group had two cannons on both of the hills with a line of gunners defended by a larger line of more melee focused combatants on the lower half of the hill. Behind them was a mix of wolves and ambushes waiting to charge in once the ice was cracked open.

“Well well, well looks like we have ourselves a far more competent group”. Jabbing his halberd into the ground a large man in full plate clapped. “Well, that’s fine we already knew about your little ice witch”. Whistle a less armored ambushers would step forward producing a flame. “You're already surrounded and out matched, just abandon the lumber and will spare your lives”.

Not responding, Bleuenn looked back to the group and the cart that the driver and Amélie hid under. “I can hold back the cannons from destroying the cart, but not both. I know it’s extremely dangerous, but if someone can deal with the fire mage and the cannons I”.. Fire bore through Bleuenn’s shield, weakening it for the next volley of cannon fire. Creating another dome behind the first one the domes shook as ice fell from them though she was able to defend the group for a moment longer. However, her ragged breathing and trembling hands showed that holding two spells at once was extremely taxing on her.

“Impressive, but that was your last warning. Keep talking and will see how long you witch holds out till she pops. We have no bones about another dead eldritch in fact it's rather it heroic of us don't you think”? Laughter roared out from the attacks as Bleuenn looked to the group huffing, ready to open and do her best to support them if they wished to fight. If not the young witch feared that her goals and life would end here.

Wc: 1034
Total: 5198

… Wait, hold up- that new, pink girl with black-red eyes was a succubus?! Now, even Daiko was feeling at unease… he had read about those before. They were, like, demons who nourished from intercourse, and surely Daiko would’ve known a bit more if not for the illustrated drawings in the book back then… those shriveled up bodies prevented him from sleeping for a whole week.

He was understandably afraid at first, but then he realized that she might’ve been a Vyldermire-like regional subspecies of succubus! And who knew; given her cooperative attitude, maybe succubi weren’t as douche as those he read about back then… at least not here. It seemed that he was in the clear.

Then the bluey man suddenly asked him with anger in his voice if he was an Eldritch himself, which Daiko wasn’t ready to even process for an answer. “W-Wha- what even is an Eldritch, though?!” If Bleuenn was an Eldritch, then Daiko’s own logical conclusion would be that people who resembled her were Eldritch too… but that was if said term ‘Eldritch’ meant some kind of race. Gummy girl was also an Eldritch, though, so… what exactly was an Eldritch?

“Oh, you mean like a Mage? ‘Cause I do have Magic, but does that count?”

He felt that it was safe enough to ask the blue-haired male, just in case if he got things mixed up. The falconer even glanced over to the ginger-haired dude with the pretty hat, wondering if he was an Eldritch too. He should’ve asked Kura about these things before, but… he had no knowledge of the term before now, so it was impossible.

Oh well, no matter what these people were, they seemed like such a fun gang! Although, the full weight of the situation would hit Daiko once Bleuenn grabbed his and the others’ attention with a glacial megaphone, raising her voice as she reminded them of the casualties having led up to their involvement. Truly, it had gone over Daiko’s head, but could you blame him? He had yet to really catch up to these new things, this new geography, areas, cultures, and the news! Up until now, he had been keeping such a low profile that it was a godsend for him to stumble upon the flyer calling for arms and strength to transport the wagons deep in the woods near Auntie’s home. And, since he had caught up to the fact that he was located in the north-eastern part of Vyldermire – at least for now – he still wanted to keep a low profile on his Otherworlder status… but still…

He had been a regular quester back in Fiore. It wasn’t that different, and his ignorance was really a mockery to those who had fallen before. If his Guild Mistress had watched him now, surely she would’ve been displeased with his lack of resolve… but there was still time for redemption, by which he made his inner promise; not a single one of them would be killed by this!

------------------

“Hey, wait a second… you seem so friendly, I don’t get it! I read about succubi back in- b-before, but I thought that they were dangerous and very sneaky. Maybe I read the wrong book, or maybe the author had issues with you- urrghhh, I gotta read some more books sometime!” he began opening up to Trishna as he approached her on their merry way to Newdale, grateful to Bleuenn’s shoveling of the snow laying in their path with her cryokinetic prowess. He was even ruffling his own hair, trying to keep his brain from bouncing all over the place; he didn’t want to come off as that ignorant or oblivious, but at the same time, he was just so curious and wanted to know more!

Upon Bleuenn’s question, Daiko peeked up in the air where Coda was flapping her wings in one place violently, which meant- cannon ball!!!

Before he even stepped up, Bleuenn had raised a dome of ice to block one of the cannonballs from hitting them, but they came with such force that it still cracked a part of the dome. In all honesty, Daiko imagined that the rebels would be using less powerful weaponry, but this was heavy. He could even hear the footsteps outside, coming from a larger number of people than expected. This would’ve been when Daiko supported Bleu with a dome of fire, before he would dig through the ground, dig up near the gunners and take them out in waves of blazing infernos, but he wasn’t able to do any of that right now.

He possessed Poison Magic, so he would have to do with that. Luckily, he knew how annoying cleaning a dirty chimney could be, so he planned to use a similar thing against the enemies outside. “Bleu! If you can, spawn an ice tube that connects to outside…!” Upon his request being met, he grabbed the tube and breathed in deeply, ever so deeply until he could sense the sparking release of Magic merging with the air in his lungs, creating thick, concentrated dust clouds of dark-yellow, evil energy.

Then, he blew straight into the tube, and his birdy Coda decided to fly away, fearing that the Fire Magic threatening the ice dome would do something with the air currents that would screw her over. Lucky for her; the tubes stuck up from the ground outside and released the poisonous gasses, which quickly began their work on the gunners and those with the two cannons up on the hills. While Daiko emptied his lungs, revealing ambient magic light escaping his body, the poison clawed into their skin, down their air tubes and wherever it could get to cause their skin to burn and crack, their breath to weaken, their airways to tighten and their orifices to bleed a little. Some even began screaming, seeing distorted hallucinations. It came in a wave that affected people gradually, and the Fire Mage outside noticed the effect heading down the hill and towards him. In an act of resistance, he would aim his fire towards it to cause the rising air currents to push it away, and while Coda decided to risk it and try to bask the wings back, her wings weren’t as strong as those blazes.

The ice dome would be spared from the fire, for now. Daiko wasn’t totally able to affect everyone yet, but a huge trunk would be easy to deal with now, and he felt like a D-Rank Mage trying to use a high-level spell for the first time. Cut him some slack…

“O-Okay, most of them are weak now!” he warned the rest before charging outside through an opening on the ice dome. The poison gases were neutralized by a sudden glim radiating around Daiko’s skin, the first thing that he managed to train himself to do with these spells.

WC: 1150
TWC: 6348

"Are you--"

Before he could get his urgent question out to the annoyed yet snickering gingersnap, he was interrupted by some witchy bellowing once more. A vein popped out on his temple and throbbed.

Kiigan sincerely, from the very bottom of his Gaiyan heart, hoped that Bossy Bosser would cram those nagging monologues up her anus and stop demanding everyone fall into whatever unlikely perfect unit she expected. It was pretentious and dramatic and was grinding his frayed nerves down to a fine pulp. Frankly, he was so annoyed now that he didn't trust himself not to speak up and tell her just that, nor did he trust himself not to be just as blatantly prickly with Wes. "It can wait," he gruffed. With the smoke puffing from his nose and mouth at an accellerated rate, the angel abandoned his intended chat with his boss with an irritable grunt and took to walking on the edge of the forest in moody in hand-pocketed silence, still toward the back of the cart to keep an eye on Wes and everyone else, but keeping his distance. He had not always had this level of control over his short-fused temper and he wasn't about to blow it now.


The distance they'd traveled after that was thankfully quiet and he'd cooled off a little, but good things never lasted. The sound of cannon fire jerked his head up, crimson eyes sharp with alarm and trained observance. He'd been about to bolt ahead when an ice dome formed right in his path, cutting off his offensive movements. Glaring in surprise at the ice, he watched as it cracked from the projectile's impact. His eyes were still intense as he glanced down at Wes, who had actually startled him when he clapped his arms and said his name (as far as he knew it was for the first time since he hadn't been listening before). "West. Guy with halberd. Cannons," Kiigan repeated in terse bursts, his expression steely but his eyes starting to light up with excitement the longer he peered into Wes's azure hues. While he meant it when he said he wouldn't die for this stupid church, a dangerous fight would do him some good given his sour mood and the angry itch buzzing in his nerves.

Hanging back and watching as the enemy got into place, pointlessly sassed, and started trying to melt the dome was hard, but Daiko was up to something interesting. It was smart. Venting poison out to the enemies as an area of effect attack was similar to what he did with smoke, except more damaging. Kiigan was a bit concerned that the vapor would blow back into their ice prison, but thankfully he had good control. It was hard for him to trust the abillities of others, but he hadn't exactly been given a choice in the matter.

In a way, Kiigan was here more as Wes's bodyguard and to keep their 'prisoner' from escaping than being helpful on the mission, so he'd ultimately do as he was told (this time) even though he'd never gotten to clarify who was and wasn't a witch in this whole messy scenario. As the ice opened to release the more offensive members of the party, the angel wasted no time rushing into the fray with his spear swinging, Wes and Emi in tow.

Kiigan was an angel skilled in combat from years of training, but he fought like a devil. As soon as he could reliably hold a spoon to feed himself, he was given a weapon to hold and things to beat up. He hadn't been the ideal student and had his own ideas, but that didn't mean he wasn't good at what he did. Yet, even someone as good as he was would struggle from the sheer numbers, poisoned, laughing or not. The ones still standing did their bests to slow him, but he was a man on a mission. His focus was laser pointed. Past all these pawns and to the big guy in the armor, then to the cannon.

Meleers still able to stand and melee certainly meleed their best melees, but he made short work of the ones in the way. No movement was wasted as his spear lashed out to whack, trip, and tear into flesh. Punches and kicks couldn't even get close with the length of his favored weapon keeping them at bay, but the longer handled weapons made nice attempts.

There was a rather large, glaring weakness, though. Kiigan wasn't good with guns. The weapons were uncommon in Ilyanor, thus they hadn't been included in training. The blasting sounds they made were jarring distractions, and they were so difficult to dodge when aimed well due to the speed of the projectiles. Those that weilded them were usually way overconfident, which was annoying but useful, at least.

The cracking of bullets started once the melee field had cleared a bit, a bead of silver penetrating his shoulder with enough force to twist his body as a result. He staggered a step, but jamming his staff into the ground kept him from falling backward. Casting a hateful glance to the gunners, he righted himself and rode the adrenaline wave passed the pain.

He did his best to dodge more gunfire as he made his way up, though he'd take another to the thigh and suffer grazing. Now he was slowed down, bringing out an irritated growl through his pain-clenched jaw. He'd been avoiding smoking up the area due to his allies, which was proving to cost him. This is why he preferred to fight alone. A smoke screen would have done him a lot of good with these ranged fighters for quite a few reasons, but unlike Daiko, Kiigan didn't have a reliable way to clear the acrid mist from the battle field before his allies would likewise be blinded, teary-eyed, and choking.

Kiigan also made the conscious decision to just not use his magic at all until his bloody body moved beyond the firing squad and on to the leader. The ambushers weren't the only ones with fire magic, and he hoped this potential surprise would give him the upper hand.

Emi yelled for whoever was close to cover her and Kiigan cursed. Neither he nor Wes were quite close enough to do what the dingbat wanted. As she messed with the cannon, the leader was quickly closing in! Though his leg heavily protested, he broke into a full run and intercepted him, throwing his full weight against the armor and tipping him backward on the side of the hill. Both went tumbling down, then both were scrambling to their feet.

Halberd guy proved to be a little more difficult than he anticipated, but he at least pressed the leader away from the cannons and everyone else, ultimately allowing for Emi to have better odds. The violent clashes of spear to halberd and plate armor echoed down the hill as the angel pressed and pressed, trying to isolate the man so he could do his worst without worrying about who might be in the way. They exchanged the usual unpleasantries of two cocky fighters, nothing to write home about... until Kiigan got serious. Maybe he couldn't disarm the man who had started fighing much harder once the cannons were taken out. Kiigan took a shallow slash across the chest before he decided he'd finally had enough.

"See? Not much can get through this plate armor!" the leader bragged with a nasty smirk, his spirit not yet broken.

"It'll make a lovely oven."

"..What?"

The angel didn't explain further. Instead, he began spinning his spear. Fire erupted from his hands onto his weapon, then blasted a thick torrent of flames hot enough to singe his own fingers at the very shocked man. He screamed as he roasted within the searing metal, trying to run away, but to no avail. The spear stopped spinning and the angel fueled the flames with smaller ones from his hands unaided, not stopping until the man fell down to the scorched earth. Only then did the bluette extinguish his flames, pausing only long enough to make sure his enemy was down for the count before turning his back and limping his way back to the others. He didn't care to find out if the man was dead or not. He never did.

Any scragglers he came across once back on the main battlefield were licked by his flames, his body too tired and stiff with pain to do much more with the spear. He preferred being a brawler to a mage, but could easily flip flop between the two as needed. How were Wes and Emi fairing? He eagerly scanned to find them, making his way toward whichever one he saw first with the brave mask of a man who wouldn't admit that he hurt.

[wc: 1486 || total: 10061]

At first Trishna was shocked when Bleu bumped her, then her shock turned to straight up astoundment as Bleu walked back a bit on the harshness of her earlier words. What she said made sense, as well; the lumberjacks were hardly mages like the ones that had been hired on to guard this caravan. At best, if things did get as dangerous as was suspected since every other caravan of wood had been destroyed, they would barely be meatshields. While she didn’t exactly see a problem with using them as meatshields by itself, further wood shipments would be even more delayed while they gathered replacements. She didn’t really see any reason to sacrifice themselves defending meatshields, but she supposed she had a bit more to learn about this adventuring thing.

What Bleu said next, though… that lit a fire inside Trishna’s heart. Not only did she not actually mind Trishna using her birth given abilities, she actually ENCOURAGED it! Her mentor had complimented her abilities and though it might be reading too much into her words, Bleu has alluded to her abilities being key to winning this upcoming battle! The shock of it all made it even more surprising for Trishna when she finally managed to break her gaze away from those big, beautiful scarlet eyes to realize that Bleu had gripped ahold of her hand while giving her a pep talk! Her face reddened as let go to address the group at large, her mind circling with thoughts of what such a familiar  gesture could mean for Bleu’s feelings towards her… whether she was reading to much into it or not, she resolved to herself that she would do her best to live up to Bleu’s expectations.

------------------------------------------------------------------

The next leg of the trip found Trishna in considerably higher spirits as she walked alongside the darker skinned boy with the bird that had joined them by the name of Daiko. The boy was a bit awkward, yet endearing. Trishna decided she liked both him and the bird after all/

“Thats so odd, I really don’t know who would write such mean things about us. I’ve never met a succubus who was mean unless her clients were into that…” Trishna replied thoughtfully, sticking a finger on her chin as she looked up into the air as though her memories might be up there.  After a moment she turned to the boy and flashed a friendly grin at him and winked. “I mean, books are all well and good, but personally I like to do my learning hands on!”

Much as she would have liked to continue the friendly conversation with the young man beside her, the next few moments were absolutely insane. Before she was fully clear about what was going on, the bird up above them was screaming, Bleu had erected a great barrier that was now shaking as cannonfire rained down upon it.

-Trish goes after fire mages, dominating one to have him incinerate wolves attacking everyone
-The other fire mage sees whats happening, and launched a fireball at Trish which blows up in her face. She is barely saved by the thickness of the coat, which is completely ruined. She is left with minor burns. She launches herself at her attacker in a moment of rage, slamming him into the ground and using her tail to snap his neck

Holding up the defenses Bleuenn tried her best to hold back the hail of fire, bullets and the cannons that continued to chip away at her first layers of her defense and onto the second and third for the fire. At this current rate I'm either going to run out of space for more spells or mana. Shaking away the doubt she focused on the defense hoping that she could give the other time to prepare and form a plan to turn the tables.

Catching bits and parts of their conversation, but not enough to fully grasp what they intended to do until she heard her name was called out by Daiko. Keeping her face and arm planted against her shields she did her best to try and parse out what he meant. “Spawn ice tubes”!? As more fire burned through not only the layers, but her mana she did not have the time nor patience to explain how spells worked. Unsure why he wanted them to sprout out from the ground instead of her just warping the already premade ice into what he wanted efficiency be damned as she would just have to suck it up and do the harder method. Trying her best to split her attention between the defense and Daiko’s request she would drill into the earth spreading individual tubes through the battleground. Cursing Daiko under her breath as trying to create multiple tunnel systems at once while also keeping up the defense was more than enough to make her brain and body feel as if it was about to tear itself apart. Clenching her teeth as the burning sensation grew stronger as her ears began to ring, causing untold internal damage as blood began to pour out from her eyes and ears. Thankfully her ice armor hid the damage from the others as they did not have the time to focus on her. Pushing through the last hurdle the system would be complete as a singular tube curled out towards Daiko. Coughing out blood she made a few holes around the base of her chin to stop the blood from building up too much. Continuing to focus now fully onto the defense, blood trickled out from the ice witches chin as a strained “It’s done” was directed toward Daiko. Once the Poison Mage blew into the main tube, poison would spread out all across the battlefield weakening, slowing and causing a brief respite so Bleuenn could allow for the others to leave safely and not facing a hail of fire and bullets.

Unsure of how the others were going to go about it. Yet her concern grew as her allies charged the west side without thinking about the others to the east and behind that could easies flank and surround them. Her mind and body burned, screaming at it’s owner to stop as her vision began to blur. Completely shutting out her body as best she could, Bleuenn would continue the defense and offer what little offense she could to halt the east flank as best she could to buy the others a bit more time. Unable to keep up with all the fast and brutal details of the fighting she managed to parse out key factors such as the cannons' destruction and the leader’s demise as the cowardly screams and scattering blurry humanoid shapes. Further information cut through the thumping and ringing that sounded like the unpleasant sound of whimpering dogs, the crackle of a fire along with the smell of burnt hair and flesh. Not fully sure of the current situation with the sense that remained she was about to take a gamble. Giving a wide berth to the areas where she last saw Trishna, Daiko, Wes, Emi and even Kiigan. Resting against the innermost wall the ice domes would start to break apart bit by bit as ice needles fired out in all directions covering all of the battlefield making many of the remaining attacks that were still willing to fight or pincushions.

Stepping forward and scanning the battle for the sounds of pain from any recognizable voices and blurry figures that did not fit the colours of her friends and allies. Taking note of a glob of blurred figures and colours, Bleuenn raised her arm and was about to finish off the enemies even if they were fleeing, but Stop with the sound of the cock of a gun caused the barely standing witch to turn around.. While she knew that the only others that were inside the dome besides her, it was hard to tell what the mix of blurred whites, blues and blacks were. Shambling beside the cart to use as a support, a masculine voice roared out, “Stop, move any closer and I'll blow the priestess's brains out”! Meeting the man with silence Bleuenn would shift against the cart to get more comfortable as her barely conscious mind took in the information. “Well at least I know how they knew about us. It’s odd that you decided now was the time to strike instead of early, but I guess you were confident in our demise so you could keep your…” “Shut up”! The Neko Driver would interrupt Bleu and point the gun at her. “I would not expect a monster like you to understand my act to save my brothers and sisters! You can act and talk about caring and wanting peace and equality, but we know that you and the humans only care about yourselves! Connection and cooperation between humans and eldritch give me a break, it's never gonna happen! All of this is just a ploy to work together to put us back in chains”! Letting him finish, Bleuenn once again stood there staring off in the distance. “Say something, don’t just ignore or can you even hear me or see anymore”? Pointing the gun back at Amélie, “Leave the cart or the priestess dies”! Silence falls over the three till Amélie added her own input, “Bleuenn don’t listen to him I know you care about the lives of others, but if I have to die so others can live in happiness so be it”! A smirk came across Bleuenn’s face as Amélie’s words reached her. “Don’t worry he’s not going to kill you, you're the only thing keeping him alive”. Dragging her body along the cart as she closed in on the two. “Why kill the priestess? It won't stop the cart from reaching its destination. I’d save the bullet for yourself or perhaps the one that killed most of your friends kitty cat”. Slump against the cart as he pointed the gun back at her left hand at the ready with a smaller but still effective enough spell. “I promise I'll take good care of you. Feed you pet you and give..”. The explosion of gunpowder echoed throughout the now silent battle field as the bullet hit its mark shattering Bleuenn’s armor along her jaw revealing her blood soaked mouth. Flicking her arm at the drive her spell would drive right through the drivers head painting the now shocked priestess with blood, bone and brain.  

With the threat dealt with, Bleuenn shambled out towards the west side of the battlefield leaving Amélie to restrain the unconscious Neko to be taken in for questioning. “Everyone! Where are you! I’ll be there in a bit to fix you up”! Unable to walk upon the snow as she normally could. Sinking right into the snow slipping every so often while trying to not fall down. Just a bit more got to help the others, they risked so much in the pursuit of victory. Pushing through the snow and her own body’s protesting she tried to convince her body to just give her a bit more time before they can rest. Though as much as the hybrid wanted to keep going her consciousness faded as she fell into the snow.


Snapping out of her shock Amélie took note of Bleuenn face down with all but Daiko injured or possibly dead in Bleuenn’s case. Rushing over to help Bleuenn as fast as she was able she would call out to Daiko and ask him to help tend to the others while she tried to save Bleuenn. Moving to the unconscious Bleuenn the priestess would flip the witch over shaking the remainng ice from Bleuenn's spell off revealing her true looks. Blood coagulated across the young girls face yet no outside damage was visible. Placing her hands along Bleuenn's skull, Amélie pushed her healing magic into the woman's head in an attempt to perhaps heal whatever damage she had revealed. Spell after spell the witch's state did not seem to improve nor worsen. "Miss Bosser i'm sorry! I am sorry that I cannot help you, but please hold on I promise you that we will help just don't give up"!

Thankfully even though they did not have access to the best treatment, Daiko and Amélie were able to tend to the others enough to make sure they would not bleed out or succumb to infection. On the other hand the priestess could not do much for Bleuenn who remained unconscious for the rest of the far more peaceful trip to Newdale now that the ones who attacked the trade routes had been dealt with.

Once the cart was passed off to the church with a small amount of difficulty in the form of protesters trying their best to block it’s path only to realise their mistake when it’s guard’s vented out the anger to the fools, foolish enough to try to block the paths of those that made the previously impossible, possible.

With the contract completed the group was paid handsomely for their heroism and told that the church will make sure they are known as a friend to them. Bleuenn’s reward would be handed off to Trishna with the offer to treat her and the others that were injured dealing with the radicals that were far more armed than the church had thought.

The driver that Bleuenn had pacified would be taken in for questioning with the remark that they would have preferred that they did not kill the leader, but understood that it was not part of their contract while also being reminded that they were fighting a small army with only seven people. Not wishing to push or ruin the relations between such able fighters, everyone one of them where given a small fortune with the blessing of the church.