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Post by Althea on May 2, 2017 20:15:21 GMT -6
"Ya both could stand to learn a bit of common decency, boy." Was this what it was like to have your dad yelling at you? Althea couldn't remember for sure, but she didn't want to get in the - and now he was looking at her. "And my name aint YOU or GUARD for that matter, missy. Name's Robert." So much for that idea. He rapped the front of his chestplate twice, lightly, with his fist as if to emphasize in case they got confused about all the other Roberts who happened to be nearby. "Now this is the part where you two magey types give me your names like a coupla decent human beans, an' normally we'd all shake hands but you two is shaking like a pair a leaves in the wind. Didn't you fools ever have anyone tell you not to push yerselves so damned hard? You're no good to anyone, least'a all yourselves, if you're half dead after the first time you cast that mumbo jumbo voodoo bullshit."
He wasn't... WRONG, exactly, but Althea privately thought that he could stand to use a bit more of that tact he had hinted at earlier. She HAD kinda sorta saved his life after all. Maybe it was her mutinous expression or maybe he actually did have mindreading powers, but regardless the soldier's creased face smoothed out slightly after a few moments. He wasn't THAT old, she realized, at least not some wizenly old whippersnapper. She would guess somewhere in his fifties or sixties, his skin was just so leathered it could pass for someone who was eighty. "That said, that was some pretty fancy magickin' out there. Don't know what that blackberry vine lookin' crap was and I don't much want to, but you broke up them bone fellers real good, and whatever that goopy crap was it sure made the other ones freeze up for me to smash em. You two uh, gonna finish naptime in time for us to go fight some more or what?"
...Althea just looked over at Drei, exhausted just from hearing the soldier speak, hoping that he would feel like doing the talking for the both of them.
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Post by Drei on May 2, 2017 21:15:20 GMT -6
Right. So this guy had probably never opened a book. Let alone held the capacity to comprehend the strain for various expenditures or outputs of magic and trying to manage them. Did he even understand that magic could take alot out of the practitioner? No, he'd likely never contemplated anything beyond what to paint on the walls of his cave before hunting for a new pelt to cover his knuckles so he didn't dirty them when dragging them through the mud or- Right. So perhaps he didn't get off on the best foot with this new man, but it was clear the older male had held his own. Drei had to remind himself. Life was filled with all sorts. So once Robert had introduced himself, the Shaman quietly shifted and tried to straighten up somewhat. A few breaths. Deep ones. To force himself to steady. Strong inhales that slowly filled his lungs no matter how fast his pulse raced or how badly he wanted to swiftly inhale. A forced regulation.
After a few prolonged exhales and inhales, he began to feel his headache ebb and his heart-rate steady. The honey hued shaman gazed towards the male quietly, lavender robes rustling around him as he tried to tug at his hood slightly and adjust it so it would be nestled around the back of his neck instead of almost draped over him and potentially obscuring his vision. At this particular intersection in life, he was learning to appreciate the finer points of socialization offered by the likes of soft spoken Althea.
"My name is Drei. "
He turned to gaze at Althea. The nearly pleading expression in her gaze speaking greatly at a look he himself might've cast her way had she not been in such a state, and as such understood all too well.
"This is Althea. We both may need time to recuperate and better replenish our fortitude. Magic can be quite taxing on one's stamina. Especially Elder Magic."
He really hated talking to strangers.
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Post by Althea on May 2, 2017 21:35:00 GMT -6
"Drei an' Althea, is it?" She wasn't sure if that was a rhetorical question or a literal one, but if they didn't even have enough trust to agree on their names, they weren't going anywhere in the first place. Either way, he didn't wait long enough for them to answer. "So ya plumb tuckered yourselves out. Well aint that just fan-tastic. Guess we aint goin' nowhere for now then, Sounds like folks still fightin' something fierce up there though," he gestured above them towards the front of the caravan, "so sooner you two pulls yaselves together the sooner we can get to the business of savin' lives and kickin'... uh, whatever the hell those things were. Either of you know?"
Ah... yes, Bonewalkers were a fairly recent re-development so to speak in Elibe's history. They had apparently been more common long ago, sometime before the Scouring, but then gone missing for so long that people no longer believed they existed... until now. "I... believe they are called Bonewalkers," she stated, her voice wavering a little as she contemplated the universe from her perch flat on her back. He didn't seem enthusiastic. "They couldnt'a come up with something more creative than that? Really?" "Yes." He scoffed. It was hard to tell if he was disagreeing with her assessment or just really didn't like the name. She... couldn't quite blame him either way. Compare say, Mauthe Doog, or Bael, to... Bonewalker. Walking... bones... yeah.
Though it was interesting to note that despite his ornery nature he didn't seem to give much of a good god damn about the dark magic he had witnessed. Granted Althea was now exactly a show-woman when it came to her craft, but the times she had used it before others, people had generally reacted... worse. "Are you not... bothered by dark magic?" She couldn't think of a better way to put it, but the subtleties of wording were clearly lost on the guy. "Aint done me no worse than them light magic folks is doing up in Ilia, miss. Hard to take all that rigamarole about light and dark seriously when the light is burnin' folks to death. Well, that and I distrust all manner of magic equally. "
...He probably could have done without the last line. It had almost been kinda deep before that.
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Post by Drei on May 2, 2017 21:47:00 GMT -6
Depth lost its meaning no doubt in totality when the man blundered through each thought, albeit honestly, with the tact of a rampaging bull. In-fact Drei was sure bulls were probably a bit more considerate at this point than the older male. Though the soft tones of Althea were a welcome change of pace he was more than content to simply not speak..or think...or exist for as many moments as he could handle while recovering from his exertions. Traditionally ruin wouldn't have taken so much out of him but he'd pushed himself. Though now that he got to situating himself he could indeed tell there was combat going on elsewhere. Had he known that he wouldn't have gone out of his way to test his very limits to their core.
Despite this and his fatigue, the Shaman did turn to examine the elder while he answered Althea's question. His right hand quietly inclined to massage his wrists gingerly. All the while bending and tilting his elbows and testing his limbs to ensure the physical strain from his spells hadn't taken any excessive tolls on him. No fractures or other wounds likely based on the backlash of wielding physically manifested nether magics. The Shaman's gaze averted to the sound of combat a moment later before he decided to sate his curiosity. Though he did not address either of the two directly but simply kept his eyes pealed for potential dangers while speaking, slowly and gingerly testing his magical stamina by faintly tapping into the nether in the smallest of deposits mentally just to test the waters.
"So what...exactly did I stumble on? How many others are there of your companions and why exactly are you all here in such a dangerous location to begin with? "
The second question was a bit more than he'd normally ask but he also knew they would need some time anyway so it was best to learn what he could when he could.
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Post by Althea on May 2, 2017 22:32:59 GMT -6
She hadn't pushed herself nearly as far as Drei, at least so far as Althea could tell - but at the same time she didn't think she had as much in the wise of magical reserves, probably, so it was hard to gauge exactly. Still, he seemed in worse shape than her overall so she was ill disposed to be the one to push him further. Robert seemed a bit uncomfortable with the whole situation, which was not difficult to understand given that he had just watched the rest of the guards die and narrowly escaped death himself. For her and Drei, they were just... corpses. She hadn't known any of them. She didn't know their names, their faces, what made them laugh, what they got prickly about.
As for the other shaman's questions, well, that wasn't as hard to answer as some. When Robert looked to her, perhaps reverting on some level to guard rather than guide, Althea knew that this time she was getting stuck answering for all involved. Wonderful. Yes, just set her up as the spokesman for the entire group, what could go wrong? "We were, um, headed for a dig site that was supposed to have pre-Scouring ruins, and there were some unconfirmed reports of wild magic. The caravan was ambushed by those creatures shortly before you arrived." Hey at least it was pretty concise and accurate by her standards. What that said about her she wasn't sure.
"Ayyup," Robert weighed in, "We stopped on account 'a Jed goin' missing in the bushes. Guess we know what got him. Poor kid. Hope he went out quick rather'n sufferin."
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Post by Drei on May 2, 2017 23:15:23 GMT -6
Those ruins he was looking for were almost certainly coinciding with the ruins they were looking for. Wasn't that great? The place he'd been looking to relax and try to study history from without worrying about monsters or attempts of murder was now likely filled with monsters that would attempt murder. So that was a fantastic revelation. As ever however the shaman's expression entirely devoid from his visage, even if internally he was just a tiny bit exasperated and frustrated by the turn of events. Part of him wasn't necessarily surprised though. Wasn't that literally always his luck?
The shaman quietly clasped his palms together and tried to lean against the wagon, partially retreating into the warmth of his heavy over-sized robes. No longer shivering but still exceptionally frigid in bodily temperature. Drei's fingers lacing quietly with one another, though hidden within large violet sleeves. He couldn't really imagine how large their convoy or caravan would've been but if there was at-least another group out there it was likely a decent size. The initial idea of working so closely with strangers on such a large scale/body count bothered him some. At-least he knew someone there an was secretly grateful to Althea for that. Even if she hadn't done anything beyond well..be present.
Ashen bangs were swept aside after he parted his hands and lifted a palm to brush the silken grey threads aside. Fingers lacing through for a moment to better prevent the shaman's vision from being imposed. He wasn't feeling 100% by any means but he was starting to feel better in general. Drei's restrained tone quietly conveying this.
"So it stands to reason then there are more closer to the ruins..if not in the ruins?"
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Post by Althea on May 3, 2017 20:19:31 GMT -6
Althea crossed her arms beneath her head, burrowing through the strands of soft hair to get her head away from the hard wood, as she tried to relax a little bit. Not quite so much 'take a nice nap to the accompaniment of screams and death' so much as helping stabilize her emotions fully and ruminate on the subject at hand. Well, subjects, not that she liked to think about multiple at once. Drei still needed to recover, she had a bit more, Robert was breathing a little harder than he wanted to show off it seemed. But they still didn't have much more time to faff about, recovery or no, if they wanted to save the ideal number of other caravan members, aka all of them. Or... any of them.
As for the idea of even more Bonewalkers being in evidence as they neared the ruins, the pale shaman was NOT a big fan of that idea. At all. No way no how. "There were no monster reports from the scouts who investigated it, so I wouldn't expect an army of the creatures... but then we didn't expect this ambush either," she finished lamely, half laughing out of a mix of awkwardness and nervousness. Not laughing at those who had died of course, she wasn't THAT callous, but it was a little ironic. "After what happened in Nabata, and then the ship, I had hoped to return to peaceful studies... so much for that idea." Robert grunted. "I hear that. Best a guard's hopin' for is no trouble at all. Get paid the same either way, don't have to risk ya life in the process."
"Though." Althea spoke again, slightly more firmly this time. She didn't want anyone seguing off into any unnecessary stories. And despite her seemingly overly relaxed demeanor, she was not happy with the idea of abandoning the rest of the caravan to their fates. Circe was up there somewhere, and she wanted to save her friend as soon as possible... if possible. The need for recuperation, even if only temporary, had been too great. "It would be best were we to move out soon. The longer we wait, the greater the casualties will be. Enough damage might even lead to the expedition being canceled entirely." And THEN who would meatshiel-bravely protect her as she worked?
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Post by Drei on May 3, 2017 20:42:52 GMT -6
Though he would've preferred to be stationary for just a bit longer, it seemed that lives hung in the balance. However there was a degree of hope. If there were other segments of the caravan it meant other guards. Which gave him time to cast. That in turn meant he had less to worry about. So the Shaman quietly clasped his palms for a moment longer before fully standing. Althea was correct in her assumption. As someone who was very familiar with caravan lifestyle, having lived a heavily nomadic life himself, he could attest that it was likely for them to return to a town and disband if formed from common goals. From what he could internally surmise this was a full on expeditionary caravan. Which would explain the armed escort as well as size.
It also meant saving the other lives was of mutual benefit. Though he wasn't one to let innocents die if he had nothing to gain, it simply made it easier to motivate him and spur him on. The ashen haired shaman was quiet with palms clasping and fingers lacing before lowering his left hand. His right idly tapping a bulge along the length of his right hip where his father's leather bound tome was chained to his hip. The faint clinking of metal links a relaxing sound even as he traversed his finger along the spine in absent thought. Words housing no vestige of hesitance though once he turned to nod fully towards Althea and the..loud man.
He might not've been in the best of shape but he'd definitely recover if he could be left to cast fully. Even their brief reprieve was enough for him.
"You make an excellent point Althea. We must assist the others. We shall simply have to hope enough others are alive to work with and effectively put down these..undead. Frankly..I'm tired of facing skeletal foes. This is not the first time and I've a rather frustrating hunch it won't be the last."
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Post by Althea on May 3, 2017 21:02:08 GMT -6
...And Drei was up and at'em like nothing had ever happened, more or less anyways. Althea sat up quietly in the wake of his ostentatious rise, feeling a little embarrassed to have been the only one of the three to look completely unconcerned and casual even if it wasn't actually true. She caught Robert's knowing grin and glowered at him, looking remarkably unthreatening even by her standards, before looking back at Drei. That was the problem with magical overexertion... so much of it was internal that she couldn't simply glance at him and say 'oh yeah he's back to 95% efficiency;' he was certainly making an effort to look the part but from what she could read of him - which wasn't much admittedly - Althea had the feeling that he wasn't quite at 100% just yet.
But at the same time, as she had said and he had reiterated, time was not on their side. Whether or not they felt like intervening was irrelevant. The only choice they had was to aid others or flee in the confusion, and - well - Althea did not think herself much of a hero nor brave in the least, but she didn't think she could leave Circe behind to her death. And besides. She wasn't big on familiar wisdom either, on account of not liking to think too about her family, but that was something that her father had tried, and for a time failed, to ingrain in her. That those who could help, should. That if you had the power to do so, it was your responsibility to use it to aid others. Althea... wasn't sure if she believed it, even now, but it did sound nice. And in this case, if she could aid others without trading her own life, it only made sense. Both on practical and ethical levels.
"It is my first time," she stated, drawing herself back into the conversation with her mind made up and guarded from weakness. "I have heard of their existence, but not experienced their resilience or mobility first hand until now... rather than mindless creatures, they seem almost uncannily intelligent. To launch such an ambush speaks of the ability to plan and account for the future actions of others. It was not a truly complex plan, but the effectiveness... speaks for itself." Unfortunately, indeed. But whether they were tactical geniuses or fool creatures didn't matter. The undead monstrosities had succeeded in stalling and perhaps shattering the convoy. It would be up to them to try to thwart it. Althea sighed and stood, flexing her arms, her hands, her fingers as she prepared to throw herself to the tender mercies of the infinite darkness in the near future. "Drei. Robert. Are you both ready to move?"
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Post by Drei on May 3, 2017 21:39:25 GMT -6
There was a system of status checks he liked to go through between bouts. Often it was instinctive and he didn't notice he was doing it, the reassurance he could fight born through it and a direct byproduct of it traditionally. However in his current state he was quite vividly aware of his process when he started doing it. Fingers quietly tugging at the hems of his sleeve while he tested his digits. Curling and uncurling them without gazing down at them or actually visually confirming it. His body's internal conduit opening silently and the faintest extension of his will conjuring a tiny essence of nether. Barely noticeable really. The dark wisps slithered and writhed around his finger tips which hung idly at his sides. The magic traversed in arcing paths around each pale digit, twisting and turning like a snake. At first it was merely a standard state of magic. A moment later his will solidified it as if it'd always been composed of a metallic substance.
Still it moved and responded to his command. Drei's index finger on his right hand twitched for a moment before he halted the flow of magic. When he probed internally he could faintly feel the twinge of a still lingering ache behind the base of his skull. A strong urge of pain that would no doubt persist to varying degree's. His body still ached as well. He felt the burning protest in his forearms and biceps when moving his arms. They would not recover so quickly. All in all though he was in quite working order and capable. He felt like he was at a solid...40%. Which..wasn't dead, so he wouldn't complain. His tone passified as ever when he nodded towards Althea.
"I am ready. I can move when ever you are ready to."
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Post by Althea on May 4, 2017 0:32:21 GMT -6
Well, Drei seemed to be, uh, doing his thing, Althea wasn't really sure what the heck he was up to but assumed it was something very important, or at least a good time killer. She wasn't feeling too bad herself, just the short time recuperating had been enough to mostly remedy her state. Privately, the shaman was actually pretty proud of that. The first time she'd managed to unleash the torrential portals had nearly ripped the skin off her arms and possibly done internal damage - if Christa hadn't been there it might well have been fairly serious. Over the next few episodes she had gradually improved in their usage... they still took too long to make to be practical for close in combat, but at least it felt as if she was growing somewhat as a magus. It was a... weird feeling, but not a bad one. If anything, she kinda liked it. Just not something she had really been conditioned to think about as a generalized ideal.
Regardless. If all three were ready... she glanced at Robert, who nodded and hefted his poleaxe - she was going to call it that until she got a chance to ask him what it actually was. Welp. Good enough. Time to commit suicide by stupidity. The sounds of combat still rang, after all. "I believe we each know our respective strengths. I will support you both as best I can." Robert looked about to say something snarky, but clenched his jaw and strode around her and Drei instead, rounding the corner of the wagon with her close behind. Least the old fart could keep his mouth shut when he needed to. Actually, it had been like that before, hadn't it? He was all sass and vinegar until the fighting started, then his jaw might as well have been rusted shut.
Before them the carnage was still fresh - at a glance Althea guessed that another two or three contingents of Bonewalkers had attacked from various directions. Two of the carriages directly ahead of them were dead in the road, surrounded by dead defenders, but further up several had become a makeshift barricade, circled around a group of survivors who still seemed to be relatively safe as they fought off remaining undead trying to penetrate the defense of swords, spears, and the occasional bolt of fire. Althea couldn't help but smile a little at that. "Not all the researchers were helpless, it seems. Shall we aid them?"
She wasn't ACTUALLY asking - that would be silly considering what had happened - it was more just her sperging for a second and trying to sound like she actually knew what the hell was going on in the situation. Thoroughly aware of all that, Althea's jaw clenched shut like it too was about to rust closed, regretting ever opening her mouth, and began drawing upon the Nether again, welcoming in the familiar overwhelming presence as she began to mold a spell of her own.
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Post by Drei on May 4, 2017 17:18:18 GMT -6
Another nod. Drei was conserving his stamina and mental fortitude and that required ensuring he was centered and ready for this battle. Though Althea had affirmed her own connection to and experiences with the nether were highly emotional ones, Drei found his own experiences opposing. If he allowed himself to become emotional he took too much from the void. Drew upon too much and paid the price later. Though he did fully open his touch with the darkness and call upon it to channel a series of inky black wisps into a singular twisting blob. A sphere that bulged or exuded various expulsions which twisted and curled around it only to inject back into it, a thriving teeming near life-like mass of dark essence that occupied the space a few inches above his palm.
The sight before him gave him brief recollections of his first conflict in which he'd met Mila. The abandon wagons. The corpses. Then there were even shifted and strategically utilized ones. Going so far as to see a flash of ignited heat and think for a moment that he was within that very place. Until of-course the skeletal fiends were made visible. To which he could see that the defenders were really being put to the coals. The one problem he saw however...was that though they could come from behind and intially likely cause some severe havoc with their element of surprise, they had little ways of following through afterwards. Now way to stay alive if the bonewalkers all turned upon them.
Ah. But of-course he was a fool. The people the bonewalkers sought to vanquish were also fighting this and would very likely assist them. They wouldn't be benefited by just leaving the trio to die. The Shaman curled his fingers around the orb of magic he would use to fuel his ruin spell before first trying to find his focus. His words quiet as if to let the din of combat conceal them fully. Fell energy slowly began to circulate around him in preparation.
"It may be best to focus a localized cluster of them to break apart their line of assault. Could give the defenders room to push back and perhaps break them entirely in a swifter route. That's..also speculation though."
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Post by Althea on May 4, 2017 18:05:53 GMT -6
Breaking the lines from behind... didn't that sound familiar? "Much like the ship battle, isn't it Drei?" Perhaps not the best time to be making casual conversation or the highest quality opener, but the urge to speak up had struck nonetheless and in the wake of a moment of madness, Althea had been no match for it. Or maybe she was just a moron. Regardless, she considered Drei's suggestion seemingly apathetically, sweeping the battle lines with her gaze wrapped in thought. The Bonewalkers were spread unevenly in a ring surrounding the defenders, focused slightly more on each entrance between the circled wagons. Weakening or destroying one such cluster might, as Drei had noted, open an exit for remaining defenders to break out and engage them more effectively.
"...The left entrance," she stated after a few more moments though, not having a free hand to point but hoping it would be clear enough. The creatures seemed to be pushing up very near to the hole in the defense there, less effectively held off there than by the lancer at the other entrance she could see off to the right. "Striking there will relieve pressure and ideally turn the tides where it is needed most." And if worst came to worst, the defenders might be able to evacuate from there if the entrance in the back, that they couldn't see or support, happened to fall in the meantime.
Robert sighed at the comment. "Welp, guess that's my cue. Y'all try not to hit me from behind, alright?" Althea managed a wan smile at him that he returned with a bigger grin of his own, placing a hand on her shoulder - which did destabilize the spell a bit, though quickly remedied - and put his war face back on. "Good luck to the two a yas." And with that, he was off, moving quickly without running pell-mell towards the undead leaving Althea and Drei to their work. Or fates. Who know which it would be by the end of this? At any rate, Althea followed him, though much more... slowly, given that she was locked to the pace of a sedate walk as she cradled the liquid Nether held between her hands, finishing forging the spell.
No time like the battlefield to experiment after all, when there was nothing important aside from their lives and the lives of countless others on the line! She was attempting to replicate the portal-torrents somewhat more efficiently, in this case gathering the energy more safely and then using it for a finite stream rather than an infinite source limited only by her body's ability to keep the portals and seals coherent. In theory - reasonably powerful - much safer - and significantly less overkill versus opponents that did not have the durability of a ship's hull. In practice... well, they'd find out when she got in range.
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Post by Drei on May 4, 2017 19:10:08 GMT -6
Ahhhh yes. The battle on the high seas. Drei would likely be avoiding boats for some time. If only to ensure that he didn't let his distrust of fate control his outlook upon such oceanic voyages. That did not prevent the faintest of smiles from visibly breaking through his grin as he looked towards his snowy haired companion.
"If it starts raining and getting windy I'm blaming you."
Ashen bangs no longer clinging to his face from sweat and his skin regaining what little color it had. He let his magic blossom as the undulating shifting shape solidified into a solid sphere while the magics of the nether echoed outwards and his robes stirred as darkened tides swirled around him before condensing into the hardened magic sculpted by his palm.
Drei was moving a bit swifter as was his style while silently jogging, not moving with as much speed or gusto as Robert the illiterate bruiser. Pale digits curved and coiled around the orb as if about to clutch it before he slid to a halt even closer than before but not quite within "murder" range of the dangerously well armed undead. The Shaman lifted his hand and condensed his magics further as it began to harden and twine around his palm.
The left, got it. His hand lowered and a tendril began to form as miniature ones extended and coiled from the orb at many points all over before snaking around his wrist and fingers before merging into one larger one. It wasn't ready right away, but he could at-least further prepare so that when their body-shield engaged, he could fully support with a more precise strike.
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Post by Althea on May 4, 2017 23:48:40 GMT -6
"What?" Her attention split between the giant murder death ball in her hand and Drei's seemingly completely unrelated statement, Althea nearly stumbled - on a flat road - as she tried to parse his commentary. "Why would it start raining? There are no rain clouds overhead and the wind is nearly-" Oh, wait, hadn't it been kinda windy and stuff on the pirate ship? Or rather the cruise liner that was attacked on the pirate ship. Or, well, it had been windy for both of them, weather wasn't localized to a specific ship - unless one used powerful anima magic, possibly, Althea had heard tales of powerful sages grouping together to control the very weather - but their veracity was quite dubious, even the Scouring Heroes had few records of such feats. "Oh! Yes, you meant the ship battle! I-" How interesting, her mouth just kept moving and nothing of value came out, only a torrent of verbal diarrhea. "-I understood that reference!"
NAILED IT.
Drei was already past her and focusing on the fight at hand.
Right! Time to get fighting.
Robert made the first waves in the small pond of, uh, ok she hadn't thought that metaphor through very well but with his poleaxe embedded through the skull and most of the upper ribcage of a Bonewalker his actions spoke for themselves, really. It was actually kinda cool looking, not that she would tell him that, especially the little flourish where he ripped the polearm out of the creature's body and the wrecked bones fell apart as if sundered by a mighty force. Which they had. Um, right. To break a siege, or a group of angry animated skeletons, one needed to either starve them out - not really aplicable here - or smash through them as she and Drei had both realized. To take the pressure off the defenders, hoping that in turn the beleagured fighters woudl sally forth to aid them - crushing the foe between hammer and anvil so to speak.
Raising the pulsing orb higher into the air, each hand contracting, expanding, fingers moving with minute exertions and shaking from the force, the orb at breast height - a torrent of ink that flowed like blood erupted out, neither perfectly straight nor perfectly efficient but a strange screaming stream of blackness that carved through the stark white force and slowly swiveled to the right as already began to weaken - she was leaking far too much magic for what she had gathered - but it was not a failed experiment, few were from which useful data could be drawn.
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