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Post by Sorrum on Aug 18, 2017 9:01:21 GMT -5
Aqua sorted over the information in her head. It made sense for the most part; Silver being a free spirit would be hard to hold down. But she was only a half dragon, so that was another set of questions altogether. It wasn't pertinent, though. Her ability is strong enough to take down these crystals, but not by herself. Aqua thought to how Rion had to carry her back to town after she neutralized the crystal, with the others protecting her during the battle.
She really does need us..
The danger posed by these mages could be measured by their magic ability, or the size of the crystals they created. In simpler terms, the bigger the crystal, the stronger the mage. If that were the case, then the crystal they found at Aldur meant the mage they were pursuing was relatively weak since Silver had referred to it as small. It was a small relief to know that the individual they were chasing wasn't frighteningly powerful.
After Terra posed her questions, Aqua awaited Enfurnus' answers, then posed another question. "These archmages you mentioned. Who were they? I read the legend of the elf Urufu and his attempted conquest using the magic, but it's disputed as myth in my lands.. being an elf and all.. Aqua muttered the last part. "The other question I have is where these lands are? My purpose here is travel, outside of helping Silver." She glanced at Terra. She had questions about her too, but now was not the time. She was glad to have someone just as curious as herself around to ask questions.
She wondered briefly if Rion and Silver were alright. They had better wrap this up and rendezvous before those two disappear. Their mission was slowly becoming Aqua's.
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Post by Bloodbane on Aug 19, 2017 1:46:32 GMT -5
Rion smiled as Silver said she had never heard of Eulene. "Perhaps... maybe someday we will wind up going through there on our mission..." he said, avoiding the fact that he had not been there since the Diamond Town incident, nor did he particularly find a good reason to do so. However, while he figured that asking where Silver was from was a reasonable enough followup, it appeared to have dug up a fair bit of history, both good and bad for her as she reacted to his question. Supposedly the place she lived no longer existed, having been lost to the blight. While she was half-human, she had lived and grown up with the silver dragons, knowing of little else besides that. He watched as she rested her head on her arms again, staring off into the distance, before taking a silent moment to decide what to say.
"... Sounds like we've both lost a lot to this... we've both lost something we'd consider family." He said quietly, before walking over and looking across the landscape as he stood directly next to Silver. "But in the end, that's all the more reason for us to fight back with everything we can. For everything those mages have taken, they sure haven't left us with a lot to lose, and sometimes that's when both dragons and humans become most dangerous." He added, before seeing just where the sun was positioned in the sky. Although it had not felt like long, they had taken a pretty decent time to look around and then journey up the clock tower.
"Come on, we should probably find the others before it gets too late... And... thanks for helping me out there, Silver." He said, smiling back at her before turning and heading back toward the door leading back into the building.
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Post by Arashi on Aug 19, 2017 3:12:31 GMT -5
"They conjure them. Though, they look just like any old crystal when they are deactivated...besides the fact that they have an unusual color that is not found naturally. Not many people in recent times notice the off color, though." Enfurnus replied to Terra, after he ate a little bit more of his food. They sure did have a lot of questions. But, they were all so far still very reasonable.
"I'm not stationed here. I do the stationing...for my people, anyway. I'm investigating the issue alone. I was just here to talk to Cliff about it...but your group beat me to it." He shrugged. It was lucky timing...and weirdly coincidental. He had witnessed a blight attack himself, and it seemed to be around the same general time of the blight attack this group had witnessed. Odd. Two blight mages out and about, perhaps?
He then sighed as Terra mentioned dragons being reclusive, and Silver. Of course they are. But, perhaps she wasn't aware of that mindset, so it's a fair comment in his judgement.
"Humans were never all that kind to dragons. Some of them treat us as beasts to tame or conquer instead of equals...though it has improved over time. Do you blame them? Not to mention, many of them would rather stay out of human affairs. They don't see the point. Of course, not all of them are that way, but remember...dragons live a long time. They don't forgive easily either...it's just how we are. That combo means there are a lot out there that don't like humans because of past conflicts. I don't blame them. I'm not all that fond of humans as a whole, but I realize that not all of them are the same, especially now in recent times. The only reason I am not that way is because we all needed to work together against the blight to ensure the safety of all of us. So, I had to do something. That's why I was placed in the position I am in." He took a sip of water before continuing. "As for Silver...she has her own further reasons for not trusting humans, and I will not share them so don't bother asking. I don't blame her. Don't expect her to trust you unless you prove yourself in her eyes. She may be half, but she was raised as a dragon. She has far more dragon personality traits than human...and that's one of them. Maybe that offers some insight in to why she is the way she is."
He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms.
"You also are not ordinary civilians to me. You're in this fight, so you're soldiers now to me. I would not be so open to ordinary civilians. I do expect this information to not be shared."
The dragon then continued taking a few bites of his food, finishing it, before Aqua asked more questions. He looked to her to answer them.
"Yeah, that's not a myth. It's entirely true, and I can confirm that because I fought him. Multiple times. And plenty of his underlings, too. I think a lot of people consider it a myth because it happened so long ago, and the only ones left from around those days just...don't talk about it. Because...they're either dragons, or don't want to be considered crazy. Or in your case, they don't want to be associated with it. As for where the lands are, it varies....heavily. All over the world. So don't worry, you will travel plenty if you stick with it."
Enfurnus looked to them both, then leaned back and crossed his arms again.
"We should probably be going soon, though. I'll travel with you for awhile, so you can ask me all you want on our travels, if I missed anything."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Silver looked at him and smiled back a bit as he mentioned maybe they would see his hometown someday on their mission. That was kind of a neat thought; not only would she be fascinated by it, but she would also get to see a friend's homeland. That sounded kind of cool to her. Her fear of humans was slowly turning more in to very wary curiosity...at least for now.
She then resumed quietly staring off in to the distance, thinking.
Then Rion spoke, breaking her out of her thoughts. She quietly nodded as he mentioned they had both lost things very important to them. They had...they were similar in this way. This made her realize he prossibly has the same drive she has to protect others from the same fate.
She then became aware of him walking over and standing next to her, still speaking, which caused her to slowly stand up straight while still looking at the view. His words were true. Very true. After a few moments of silence, she spoke.
"You're right...and it only makes my drive to destroy them stronger. I will give it all I have. We will defeat them, and avenge all of those lives they took from us. They should be afraid." She spoke with determination now. She now had a means to get vengeance thanks to her newfound companions...and now, for both herself and Rion. This only fueled her drive further.
Silver then stayed silent for a few moments again, thinking...she did, just a few days ago, have absolutely nothing to lose in her fight. But now, she kind of did have something to lose.
Rion then spoke again, mentioning they should probably be heading back now...and thanking her. It made her happy to know that she had actually succeeded in helping him; it made her glad that she had decided to do what she did. She wasn't too sure about it for awhile, but apparently she did make the right decision after all...even though she kind of blurted out words back there at Shin.
"O-oh, right...I guess we have been away for awhile." She looked at him, now with a small smile as he glanced at her. "You're welcome...but no need to thank me. It's what friends do."
After all Rion's kindness to her, she had began to become very loyal to him, and the loyalty of a dragon was a very strong thing. It only made sense to her to help him out in any way she could. She had never really trusted anybody so quickly though, especially a human, which was interesting to her. What did that mean? Oh well.
She looked at the mountains one last time, before turning around and following Rion out to the door. It would soon be time for harsh reality again. Part of her didn't want to leave.
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Post by Sorrum on Aug 21, 2017 2:03:57 GMT -5
"Alright, let's go meet up with Shin. I'm satisfied for the time being. If anything else comes to mind I'll let you know. Oh, you can ask me things too if you want, I've got nothing to hide." Aqua stood up and put her helmet on, and waited for the others before heading out. Some time had passed now and it seemed to be getting late. Streaks of sunlight colored the sky orange as lights in windows of homes started to appear. An elf walked by, lighting streetlamps with a magical tool. Aqua wondered if the town would be safe tonight. A creeping feeling of unease set into the back of the elven girls mind. Her shoulders stiffened and her back straightened as her and the party made their way back to the keep's gate.
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Post by Swim on Aug 24, 2017 17:20:28 GMT -5
It was beginning to get dark when her companions signaled that they'd better go meet with Shin. Terra stood up and pushed her chair in, but as she turned around she locked eyes with a particular individual sitting at the bar opposite her with some companions. "I'll catch up with you later," she breathed quietly to Frida and Enfurnus as she drew her hood over her face, no time to explain. She walked briskly toward the door hoping that her movements would seem casual and broke into a sprint as soon as she'd cleared the building.
Behind her she heard the café door slam open and several men thunder into the street. She'd been recognized. She whipped around the corner, cloak trailing behind her and down an alley, hoping to lead her pursuers astray so that she could double back and rejoin her party at the keep. A trio of ruffians rounded the corner after her, just as another two appeared ahead having gone around the building to cut her off. They'd left her with no option than to use her power, which was ironic Terra thought laughing inwardly, considering the reason they were chasing her.
She coiled her legs and blasted into the air with a flash of fire, removing any possible doubt the men might have had regarding her identity. Terra Bicheparte was back in Agrova. Terra landed on the roof with a roll and began to sprint over to the next building, at least up here the men would have to waste time climbing or risk losing her from the street level. She turned toward the market thinking to hide among the crowd.
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Post by Arashi on Aug 25, 2017 1:17:40 GMT -5
Enfurnus nodded.
"Yep. Sounds good. I have nothing to hide as well." He smiled at the elf. She seemed like a pretty pleasant person.
He then raised an eyebrow at Terra, who left very suddenly. He didn't say much though, not really one to question things. She must have some weird unfinished business of some sort going on...not his business, he thought.
Enfurnus stood up and followed Aqua out on to the streets, taking notice of Aqua being...what seemed like tense maybe? For what? Hm. Maybe some talking would help her out.
"What the heck was that woman that was with us on about? Any idea? She just...left so suddenly. Heh. Weird." He looked at Aqua as he walked beside her, heading to where Shin said they would meet. He wondered if Silver and Rion would find them...where did they run off to anyway? It wasn't like Silver to vanish with a human.
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Post by Sorrum on Aug 27, 2017 8:03:11 GMT -5
"Y-yeah. She's been relatively quiet since we left Aldur, and the way she just took off like makes me worried. Come to think of it, I haven't seen Lucas since we got into town. This whole group feels split up.." Aqua said to Enfurnus. She felt a tinge of sadness as she spoke those last words. Even if they hadn't been close, Aqua was growing fond of the others.
With Enfurnus, their plights had been revealed. To understand what they have to go through was something Aqua could empathize with, painting them in a warmer light in her mind. She looked back at Enfurnus. He was kind. She could trust him.
"I.. I think I'm scared." She confided. "I haven't left The Frontier before now, and I wasn't expecting to run into danger that could hurt so many people." She continued. "I'm a warrior. One of the best back home, but I've only dealt with nomadic humans and some few beasts before. Yesterday, I saw some horrible 'things' swarm a town of innocent people, and fought them acting on instinct. Now that I see what the big picture is, I don't know if I can handle it." She pulled out the crystal charm she had been given earlier. "If only I could do what Silver and Rion could do, maybe I wouldn't feel so afraid of this new enemy.." She finished. These thoughts in the back of her mind that had been building up finally came out.
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Post by Bloodbane on Aug 27, 2017 23:45:01 GMT -5
Rion simply nodded in agreement to Silver's determined statement, having said something similar moments ago. He then turned and headed back toward the door that led inside, only to pause as Silver said something that caused him to turn his head, looking towards her briefly. 'What friends do, huh...' He thought, a smile moving over his face as he saw Silver look back toward the mountains, before he turned and headed back inside. From there, he proceeded back down the clock tower without another word, only looking back to Silver once they were back on the ground floor and outside in front of the building.
"Guess there's not much to do but head back and see what's going on." He said after getting outside, before looking back in the direction of the guard tower. "Let's get going." He added, before walking back in the direction of where he had left the others. Hopefully someone would still be around...
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Post by Arashi on Aug 28, 2017 0:02:10 GMT -5
"Weird. Well, don't worry. If she is up to something fishy, I'll take care of it." Enfurnus smiled at Aqua in a reassuring manner.
"It does, doesn't it? I can't judge it yet, but we'll see. Perhaps you all just need to get to know each other a little more." He kept smiling as he walked. He was starting to feel a bit bad for Aqua; she seemed very genuine to him.
He tilted his head slightly as she looked at him and spoke her mind. This surprised him a bit; the elf seemed to be okay confiding in him. This is good; it means she must at least trust his word, and that was very important to him. He listened, letting her finish before he spoke.
"If you were one of the greatest warriors there, why be scared? You're strong. I'm certain you can hold your own in a fight against blighted beasts; they really aren't all that tough. They don't have much of a thought process left...you can easily fool most of them, save a few specially crafted minions. All you need to worry about are arch mages, but you have an entire group fighting right alongside you. You are not alone in this...and if you choose to stay in it, you can save so many lives. Even still, if you are afraid...just remember, bravery isn't running in blindly like an idiot and waving your weapon around and leaving a trail of corpses behind you, it's being scared of something, but still having the courage to rise up against it and fight back." He paused for a moment, "As for Silver, she has no special abilities keeping her alive. You don't need to do what she does...she puts herself in grave danger every time she deactivates a crystal. All she has is total disregard for her own life...and the drive to do whatever it takes to keep others out of harm's way. It ends up being a pretty risky combo, but that's really all she has. I don't know Rion well enough to compare you to him, but I am certain he has no extra powers besides some sort of drive of his own. It's what keeps us all going, so...just remember what you're fighting for."
He crossed his arms.
"And if at any point you wish to stop, you can. Nobody will hold it against you, I promise you that. I realize how big this is."
They were getting closer and closer to the meeting area where Shin would be, and would arrive there likely any moment now.
"If you stick with it and ever need to talk about things, feel free to reach out to me. I don't want you to be afraid, and I'm a general, so if I say I need to pull you aside to talk, nobody is going to question that."
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Post by Bloodbane on Aug 31, 2017 0:05:36 GMT -5
Before too long, Rion and Silver had arrived back in front of the guards' keep, soon spotting Aqua and Enfurnus as well. Oddly enough... neither Terra nor Lucas were anywhere to be found; wasn't Terra at least with those two? Before Rion could say anything, however, Shin soon stepped out from behind the gates with what appeared to be a map in his hands, looking across the party briefly and raising an eyebrow when he also realized there were people missing. After a few seconds, the man shrugged his shoulders, before looking to Rion with a calm smile.
"Good to see you back... looks like you're missing some folks? Ah well, sometimes it's just too heavy a weight to bear... Who knows, maybe they'll show up while I'm talking." He said, before opening the map in his hands and showing it to the group. "Our scouts picked up some roaming undead at the foot of the mountains north of Agrova. Further investigation led to the discovery of a blighted region deeper within the mountains, but they could not find the crystal. If I had to guess, it's somewhere in the caves; maybe whoever put it there is trying to build a force using the wildlife in the region. Either way... it's not close enough to either town to be a threat right away, but if left unchecked the area could be within striking distance of Eulene." At that, Shin caught sight of Rion's eyes as they seemed to catch an increased interest in this information, before the silver-haired man looked to Enfurnus. "I'm not sure if you intended on tagging along or not, General, but you guys will likely have to set up a camp either near or within the mountains; it's too far away to simply handle in one day. But if someone's trying to make a blighted lair, you can bet that'll get the right people looking into the matter if it's close enough to a place like Eulene."
Nodding, Rion showed no hesitation as he made his decision. "If that's where we need to go, then we'll take care of it..." He said, looking to Silver first, then to Aqua, then finally to Enfurnus. He, too, was not quite sure what the other dragon's role in this was going to be, as he was likely too busy with his own forces to waste time on a trip like this... but considering who was missing, he wondered just how good of a chance the group had with just the three of them.
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Post by Arashi on Aug 31, 2017 3:07:09 GMT -5
Silver took notice of Rion's smiling at her, which caused her to tilt her head slightly and then smile back at him. She must have said something that made him happy. Good.
She then followed him down the stairs quietly, left wondering something. Where would this friendship lead? Is it just to get through a mission...like military friends? Or would it actually be a real friendship? She couldn't help but hope it would be a real friendship, even if somehow their mission ended soon.
"I guess so. I wonder if they're thinking we vanished. Heh." Silver replied to him as they reached the outside of the building they were just in.
~~~~~~
As Silver arrived back near the others with Rion, she couldn't help but notice Terra was missing. Odd. Oh well...the human didn't seem to like her much anyway. Maybe Terra had decided she did not want to help any longer? Hm.
Silver stayed closer to Rion, but now the group was all people she generally trusted. She was starting to gain a fondness for Aqua, so she felt a little less caged now. She waved to Aqua with a smile.
She stayed quiet as Shin spoke, still mildly annoyed by him. Though, he spoke with authority and he knew Enfurnus, so he must at least know what he is talking about...and he did seem to have extremely useful information.
A cave, huh...this meant scouting the crystal out in her dragon form would be impossible. This would complicate things and slow the group down considerably, but...it must be dealt with either way. She also had no way of knowing how large the crystal is, which would be inherently more dangerous, for both herself...and the group. She would have to be extremely careful with this one, and perhaps convince Rion to stick with her, just in case the crystal was too overwhelming. She was confident that Aqua and Enfurnus would be able to fight against whatever they may find in those caves though, at least. She then took note of the name 'Eulene'. That was where Rion said he was from, wasn't it? Interesting.
"I'll go. I want to see things first hand, and I feel our group could use assistance. A cave mission is difficult. Besides, if I tell someone what I see, they won't question me. So...it's worth it." Enfurnus replied to Shin's statement about him tagging along. He was certain he wanted to; this group was small, and any help for them would likely be useful.
Silver smiled a bit at Enfurnus. She was glad he was coming along; it was rare she got to fight alongside him; someone she pretty much considered her brother.
She then looked at Rion as he glanced at her, nodding in reply to his statement. There was no doubt about it for her. Though she had the extra concerns of keeping everyone safe now, it still absolutely needed to be done.
"I agree. We will go and do what we can." She smiled a bit, then looked to Aqua. Though she was pretty sure she could reply on the elf, Silver wouldn't blame her if she said no to this one.
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Post by Swim on Aug 31, 2017 16:23:05 GMT -5
By the time Terra made it to the guard's keep the rest of the group had already assembled and were pouring over a map as Shin gave directions regarding the newest Blight crystal he'd discovered. "Sorry I'm late," Terra said, stopping next to Frida and Enfurnus. She kept her hood raised, partially to hide the fist sized bruise around her eye and partially to hide her face from those who had inflicted it. The guard's keep was probably the last place they'd look for her anyway.
She glanced over the map, she wasn't familiar with Eulene the nearest town but after Agrova that wasn't such a bad thing. Fortunately the Blight wasn't close enough to threaten the town yet and if their group could neutralize the crystal nearby it never would. "I'm ready to do some spelunking, when do we move out?"
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Post by Sorrum on Sept 2, 2017 4:38:58 GMT -5
Aqua rolled the words of the dragon over in her head. Now that she got her fears out into the open, it made them feel real and approachable. Enfurnus's uncertainty about her fears made sense to her now that she knew someone else's perspective. Words didn't come to her at the moment, so she simply nodded in content. Afterward, a comfortable silence accompanied their walk back to the keep.
~
The group had reformed. Silver and Rion looked like they had an intense discussion. Silver waved and smiled at Aqua. She didn't know she could do that, so Aqua was startled for a brief moment before returning the gesture. This was the first time she could recall her smiling.
She remembered what Enfurnus said about Silver being selfless in her quest, putting herself in harms way to destroy this evil magic, often alone. Aqua felt sympathy run through her chest. In this foreign land, Aqua was the same. Far from home, she also felt isolated. These Undead monsters terrified her, a warrior, but didn't stop this girl from fighting them by herself. Aqua felt a sense of admiration and care for Silver overcome her. She couldn't let her go on alone.
Determination filled her body. "Let's go check it out. When we find that crystal, we'll destroy it!" She said with valor.
Aqua then noticed Terra hiding her face with her hood. Her disappearance was very strange to begin with, so something must have happened. Thinking of how the group split up over personal issues being brought up just earlier that day, she thought it best to leave it. She'd ask later when she got the chance. She did want to get to know her better as well, along with Rion.
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Post by Bloodbane on Sept 2, 2017 21:00:01 GMT -5
Rion looked around, seeing Silver and Enfurnus agree to the mission, then Aqua... and then another voice chimed in; Terra had returned, although it looked like she was keeping her face hidden for some reason. He smiled at seeing the additional support, before nodding. "Looks like we've got ourselves a crew, then... Welcome back, Terra." He said, looking over at Terra before looking to Shin. "How bad would you say the situation is over there?" He asked, before Shin shrugged. "It's hard to say without seeing the crystal; I imagine you'd be safe to stay in town for the night if you think getting some more rest before making your way up the mountains would be best." He replied. This left Rion thinking for just a moment, before looking around to the others.
"What do you all think...? Sounds like we'll have to spend some time out in the mountains regardless of whether we go tonight or tomorrow... but we did spend a fair bit of time coming up this way already from Aldur." In truth, Rion felt like they had not had much to do and would be fine with making haste, though it was already approaching nighttime so traveling may not be quite as safe, to say nothing of what they will find when they reach the mountain.
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Post by Arashi on Sept 3, 2017 0:33:21 GMT -5
Silver looked at Aqua with a tilted head as the elf replied with such fierce determination. It made her happy; it seems Aqua had accepted the mission, and at least trusts Silver to some extent. This was good.
Enfurnus simply grinned at Aqua as she spoke. He was glad she would face her fears head on, and planned to see if he could somehow help her with that while he was traveling with the group. Perhaps he would stay with them for awhile after this mission. He then looked to Terra as she returned, mildly confused. Oh well, she must have come back for a reason.
Both dragons listened as Rion and Shin spoke.
"Silver and I can carry the group. I can carry two, and Silver can carry one...we can probably make it about half way in several hours before we will have to take a walking break. How does that sound? It still won't be a short trip by any means, but it will be ever so slightly faster. We can also effectively scout the air that way too, while still not getting separated from each other." Enfurnus spoke, volunteering Silver to fly someone. She looked at him with mild disapproval, but...she couldn't deny he was right. It'd be a little bit faster that way.
"He's right. It will work out better that way...if you guys are okay with it? Also, we can leave tonight for all I care, I'm not tired. But if you guys want to rest, that's also fine with me. As much as I'd like to get over there as fast as possible." Silver said in reply. She then looked to Rion. She quietly hoped that if they choose the flying route, Rion would choose to go with her. Though, she wouldn't mind Aqua either.
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