It only took half the song to get Iri resting. Her eyes were shut closed. A peaceful looking expression actually on her face. Alberik had done well in soothing her. She could have just slept there if it were to be allowed. She wanted to. She desperately just wanted to go away to her subconscious.
Of course, she wouldn't be able to.
Her eyes shot open as the angels scream filled her ears. With Alberik urging up, she got to her feet, clutching her blades hilt. She was, once again, horrified by this sight. It felt like she was going through a relapse. She wanted to drop her sword and run, or hide, or just stab herself and end this nightmare. Her eyes began shutting in fear, tears leaking out, her mind trembling. It was just too much. Being in a pregnant state, seeing those poor woman like this, seeing an angel of all things being trapped. What hope did they have if a savior of the heavens had been bested? Iri began muttering out incomprehensible words of fear. If anyone were trying to understand her, they would hear "Why" and "No" a lot, but any full sentences were gibberish. Another breakdown had started.
She was about to fall to her knees and give in, when suddenly, Alberik's own shriek pierced her ears. This made her eyes shoot right open. That scream... It did something. Perhaps it broke something, shattering it like the poor soldiers mind had. Or perhaps, freed something instead. It caused a chain reaction of even more emotion to flood through Irienys. Not fear, but anger. Rage. The timid, fearful, pitiful girl was feeling the rage of a wild beast being cornered by hunters. These emotions, they freed something else. A power that had been building, forming itself, within her, caused by the corruption that had warped her very being.
Battle aura. Will keep it up for as long as possible with her 15 points of EP
Her eyes glared sharp daggers, mind becoming blurry as a primitive anger took over her senses.
Red lights had appeared all around her. Glowing, surging! It was enough for her hair to even start lifting up. A strange, powerful aura. Not something she had ever been able capable of until recently. It was thanks to Alberik that this potential had been released. Her teeth clenched together tightly as her eyes targeted the coming foes. separating, she screamed this at them all.
"NO.... MORE!!!"
With a battle cry, the girl would charged right at a group approaching woman with every intention of slaughtering them. She would kill as many as she possible could in this short brief period of surging power. If they all died fast enough, she would just move over to the next group.
Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill.
Make these things suffer, spill their blood. Release your frustration and hatred for everything that had happened to you. MFor everything THEY did to you. It was all of their fault wasn't it? You were just a nice innocent girl before they did these things to you. Made you suffer for nothing.
This is what her raged engulfed mind shrieked at itself. Even after the aura would fade away, which it quickly would after a few minutes, she would continue going ballistic until everything that wasn't either Sera, the angel, and Alberik was a mangled pile of flesh and blood. Anything the woman summoned would need to keep a fair distance from her, else a retaliation would be likely.
Alberik: HP = 11/52, PP = 61, EP = 11/116, Status = Pregnant, Injured, Low on Energy
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 61/76, Status = Pregnant, Battle Aura 15
Rolls
Alberik summons 4 angels! 105 EP and 41 HP spent.
Irienys activates Battle Aura X = 15!
The Angel attempts to struggle free
Resistance: Success!
Casting (3 Elder Lords) : Success.
Attacks: All Hit.
The Elder Lords each take 10 damage.
Damage: 4 + 3 + 12 + 2 = 21 x 5 = 105 damage.
Resistance: The Angels all win, thankfully.
Triads spend 15 EP on Stunning Gaze
Resistance (Alberik) : Alberik wins (that Lucky Talent just saved you)
Resistance (Sera) : Enemy wins, Sera has been stunned for 3 rounds
Resistance (Irienys) : Irienys wins.
A lot of things began to happen very quickly in the moments following the binding of the angel, such that it might be difficult for either of the women to keep track of all of it. Firstly, four globes of white light appeared in front of following Alberik's call for help, coalescing into four white winged figures in white robes, two men and two women. Not a word had been spoken or communicated to her about any debt that she may have incurred, and not a word was said now as the four angels faced the beings that had attempted to capture one of their own.
The three tentacled creatures definitely took notice of this, however, and turned immediately, their tendrils waving below as power swirled around them. Three bolts of warped, rainbow-colored light suddenly streaked out, striking three of the freshly summoned angels directly in the chest. Each of the beings emitted a grunt of pain as they were struck, and the very air around them seemed to warp and twist for an instant before returning to normal. The chains around the angel in the center of the room suddenly burst, the woman tearing free of them with a scream of fury.
The three groups of turned elven women all continued forward, and their eyes began to glow white suddenly as their assembled minds reached out to attack the three. Alberik recognized the attack at the last possible second, just barely assembling a defense around her mind as an alien presence attempted to worm its way into her thoughts. Irienys, in a mad rage and surrounded by power, simply shrugged the mental attack side as if it were nothing. Sera, however, was not so strong of will. Still reeling from her loss, the elven woman's body suddenly went slack, her expression going blank as her eyes clouded over. The three groups continued forward, but one was stopped in its tracks, identical expressions of surprise on all three faces as Irienys burst forward, glowing bright red and with her sword in her hands.
(Long recap is long, mostly just a tidied and sorted transcript.)
Alberik smiled, watching Iri speed off towards the group. Sera hadn't moved, however, and a quick look told her why. Moving to stand between Sera and danger, she switched her grip on the sword, holding it briefly by the crossguard, and focusing her mind on the leather binding on the handle. She willed it to snap off and float in front of her for a second, before sending it shooting off, aiming to hit the previously-bound angel in the forhead and ruin the seal holding her power in (Telekinesis). The angel saw the strip of leather coming, but also realized it's intent, not dodging the blow as it struck her solidly on the forehead, marring the seal there and breaking it as the angel's head recoiled from Alberik's telekinetic touch.
Irienys remained in a blind fury, caring not for anything but her burning desire to slaughter (Attack). Her sword clove through the three in one clean swing, a look of collective surprise on their faces as all three were evenly bisected and the glowing girl was bathed in their blood. Irienys would stare at the dead bodies with a strange, sadistic satisfaction. She was certainly not in her right mind, enjoying the killing of others like this.
Alberik replaces her hand to the now-bare grip of Erik's sword, and calls out to the freshly summoned angels. "Try to capture one, if it can be done safely!" (Holy Fire: Blast) The angel that had been sealed exploded in white flames similar to the ones that Alberik often used, as well as those that these creatures had used to slay Erik. The slimy grey flesh of the alien creatures burned and bubbled, emiting the most vile smell that either of them had ever experienced. Irienys is thankfully too angry to fall over and puke, and Alberik was far enough away the stench caused only a grimace.
(Holy Fire:Target) Two of the angels that had been struck calmly pointed toward the floating creatures as the smoke cleared, and rays of white light pierced them. They both fell to the floor, quivering occaisonally but otherwise totally motionless. (Binding) The third angel that had been struck heard Alberik's words, and reached out a grasping hand instead. Astral chains bound the creature just as it had attempted to bind the first of their kin. (Seal) The fourth angel, unharmed, approached it, hand outstretched, and placed a seal on its torso.
Sera stood numbly, helpless as the trio of elven women approached her, but Alberik was blocking their path. "No!" She yelled at the women as she made a slash at the group. Unbothered by this, they simply grabbed at her instead, and Alberik lacked the skill with the blade in her hands that might have warded them off. (Grapple) Disarmed, their slime begins to seep into her body, igniting a now all too familiar flame...
The other group ignored Irienys and moved in on Sera, moving around the cluster that formed around Alberik, grasping the helpless elven warrior and rubbing their hands over her body....
Bathed in blood, Irienys quickly turns her attention to another group and rushes them with the very same intentions she had displayed with the last group. She paused a moment, looking between the two groups and their apparent captives, a moment of calculation within her state of madness. Without another wasted moment, she dashes at the one attacking Alberik with every intention of decapitating them or giving them some other horrible form of execution.
Unaware of her pending rescue, Alberik did the only thing she could, gathering what little of her energy remained and forcing it outward in a ring of white fire, saving only enough to keep her from passing out entirely... (Attack) Irienys sword tore through the three women attacking Alberik like so much tissue paper just as Alberik unleashed her own blast to attempt to deal with them. (Holy fire:Blast) There was nothing left to deal with for her, but the ring of white flames spread outwards far enough to catch Sera and her tormentors in the radius as well. The flames licked at the women and burned them, but didn't have enough energy behind them to do much more than distract for a moment. They howled in pain, but continued their molestations of the increasingly willing Sera.
Alberik fell to the ground as the women around her did, struggling to maintain control of herself from the slime still on her body. She pointed wordlessly at Sera as she writhed, seemingly unnecessary, as the angels were already on task.
An angel idly turned toward the three slime-infected women surrounding the elf and pointed at one, sending a lance of light through her chest. The other two tumbled to the ground lifelessly, and a second later Sera shook her head and blushed brightly.
The door that the angel had appeared from suddenly exploded inwards, followed by a rush of elves bearing swords, but they stopped as they saw that the only remaining enemy was already bound.
Irienys would drop her sword suddenly once it clicked in her mind the fight was over. She slowly looked around, her burning red aura starting to die down, the rage in them was fading as the soldier began to slowly fall to her knees. She was surrounded by the bodies of the people she had slaughtered.
The five angels closed in around the bound and sealed elder lord as a score of elves poured into the room, finding it empty of anything further hostile. They were of mixed sex, including several whom Alberik and Irienys had met before, perhaps reminding the two of their current state, though most likely not so much for Irienys.
Alberik managed to even out her body's needs with her own willpower, slowly standing again. First thing she noticed was the small horde of elves entering the room, so she busied herself with using her hands to cover as much of herself as she could, and slowly made her way towards the angels. Sera, for one, seemed highly shy, attempting to cover herself with her hands shyly until one of her kin offered her a cloak.
Irienys would cover her face instead, taking very clear note of the elf kin in the room now with them. Her mind was dull with what she had done in her rage. 'I... I lost complete control of myself... I actually killed these woman! Those people, I... What will they think of me now? I can't believe I did this...' Irienys would try to silently stand up and get away from the dead bodies, trying to get near a wall of some kind.
"Thank you." Alberik said simply once she had reached the angels. "Anything you wish in return for this help, I'll be glad to give it." She told them evenly and sincerely. The hooded angel whom Alberik addressed nodded silently to her, and then started forward to join its kin gathering around the bound elder lord.
Irienys was offered a cloak to cover herself in by one of the elves, the woman staring silently at her face as the girl approached a wall. She would timidly reach would for said cloak slowly, muttering out "F-forgive me..." with a trembling voice.
"For what?" The woman asked, tilting her head. She glanced at the corpses, and then shook her head. "We are not strangers to the effects that corruption can have upon a being. You did nothing wrong." Irienys seemed to relax a small bit after that. "I-I see..." She would nod. "Thank you."
"You are welcome." The elven woman curtly replied, and then turned away to rejoin the rest of her kind, joining a squad of ten that left and went off into the complex through the doorway that Albeirk and Irienys had come in through not too long ago.
Irienys didn't feel too much better, but at least she could not worry about the people here being enraged at her, a human, for killing a bunch of their own kind. She swiftly threw the cloak over her shoulders and began to look for her dropped sword after that. She would, after a moment, go over to join Alberik and stand beside her.
Alberik left it at that, and turned towards the elves, still covering her nudity as best she could, even going so far as to wrap her facial tendrils around her breasts to try and hide more skin {Hey, they've grown, when did that...?}. "How goes the fight outside?" She asks the nearest elf, to try and distract herself.
The elves seemed to be largely ignoring the amount of nude flesh on display, and one of them in a robe who had been moving towards Alberik replied to her, "The fight outside is over. The.... Invaders... Have been routed. Our home has already been mainly cleared, and the thing floating above is caught in the grip of the storm.
"I see. Thank the gods." Alberik responded with relief in her voice. "I don't know how much more I could have helped." She adds simply, giving an apologetic shrug.
"Thank the angels, might be more appropriate." The robed man replied, and then glanced at the five divine beings surrounding their captured foe. The ground around it suddenly shifted and formed a cocoon around it, just before the chains around its body vanished.
"That as well." Alberik said with a wry smile, looking over at the cloak Irienys was now wrapped in, but not saying anything about it. Instead, she gave the robed figure a small bow, and returned to the angels. "How long will it be safe to keep it?" She asked nervously, watching the additional measures they were taking. A moment later, another cloak-bearer came over and handed one to Alberik, evoking a quiet "Thank you." from the woman.
"You will not keep it." One of the robed angels calmly replied once Alberik had made her way over. The angel that she had initially summoned scowled at its comrade, and then turned to Alberik to say; "Not long. We could keep it indefinitely, but there is little to be gained in allowing such a being to live. It's mind is warped and twisted beyond any I have ever felt before."
"I'd like to learn where they came from, and what they were doing, other than the obvious. Are these things a major problem? Sera and Erik didn't seem to know what they were. Are there more like them, or is that massive thing outside the only one of it's kind?" Alberik asked, inundating the angel with questions, now that she had the attention of one that tolerated her presence. She made a mental note to ask about the other's reaction as well, but decided it could wait.
The angel sighed, and replied; "No. That isn't the only one, sadly. They are everywhere now, having appeared just as suddenly as that one over every major mortal settlement. We have been... Busy, today. And it comes as no surprise that the elves have never seen these things. Not even we know what they are, or where they come from."
"All the more reason to use the resource we have available then." Alberik started, motioning towards the trapped creature. "These ones have to be intelligent, to lay a trap like that. They knew I was the one that summoned you, and that you held the winds binding that thing in the air. They left us here to draw you in. If this is indicative of a larger problem, if these things have appeared everywhere, then we should find out what we can, while we have the chance." She insisted. "How are we to know, otherwise?"
"That much is true, but several more of my kind have arrived since you called to me. They have held the winds, so that no more can come from the beast that bore them. It is being questioned currently, in the only method that it seems able to communicate. I can allow the two of you to join in, if you'd like to know, but as yet we have learned very little of value. Its mind is... Twisted. Difficult to navigate."
"I would like to at least listen, if it's possible. I lack the energy to even touch it's mind myself, right now." Alberik replied with a tired nod, neglecting to mention the scorched sensation she felt from the channels her energy ran through as well. "Has it been passive mentally as well, should we be cautious?" Irienys would pause for a moment, thinking before she answered the angel. "Um..." She would nod. "Y-yes, please." Scared as she may be, a part of her didn't want her to miss out on this.
"It cannot intrude upon any of us through the seal we have placed upon it, so you should be safe so long as you do not offer it entrance to your thoughts." The angel nodded, and then both felt a gentle prod against their senses as the angel sought to include them in the link.
Alberik nods in understanding, opting to lay down again for the time being, unsure how much longer she could remain standing in any case. She tied herself into the angel's link, and remained quiet, choosing to listen for a bit before trying anything herself. Irienys would allow it as well, her heart beating quickly as she connected.
{Why have you come here?} {What is your purpose?} {What created you?} Voices, all disembodied, appeared within their minds. All three questions were answered with images. The first question received an image of a burning golden orb, the second question was answered by the orb slowly darkening before being extinguished completely, and then winking into existence again. The second question remained unanswered.
Irienys seemed to be utterly confused. "I don't understand at all..." She would turn to Alberik. "Maybe it's... An object they lost? Then it came here..?" Not a very good theory, but Iri wasn't the smartest to begin with. Alberik twitched at Iri's words all the same, her guess striking a chord within her, though she knew not why. "Hmm..." Alberik would respond vocally, separating her thoughts from being broadcasted to the creature. The angels would be able to hear her as is, in case they felt her thoughts merited notice. "A sun, perhaps? Dying out, causing them to flee here? But what would the rekindling mean?"
The angels glanced at Alberik, but said nothing either vocally or through the mental link to her. Instead, they turned their attention to the elder lord and asked; {Where have you come from?} {What led you to this world?} {What allowed you to come here?}
As before, the questions were answered not with words, but with images. The first received an image of the stars, and nothing more, the third received an image of the thing floating above Gods-Reach, only now it moved through the starry void, accompanied by dozens more just like it. The second question, however, returned something that might have piqued Alberik's interest, A picture almost identical to the one that she had seen in the book appeared, of a very familiar looking artifact...
Irienys scratched her head, but Alberik sat bolt upright as she saw the second image. {What do you know of that item?} She sent mentally at the creature, suddenly very focused.
The creature showed an image of a dozen such artifacts, each loaded into a small metal pod and flung at incredible speed out into the void. {What is that object?}, the angels asked the creature. They received no response.
Alberik was dumbstruck, trying to collect what she knew of herself and the artifact in light of this new knowledge. {What are their purpose? Why were they sent?} She asked quickly, adding another after a short period. {Do you have any knowledge of me? Or this man?} she asked, sending with it a picture of a wizened old man, completely without any hair on his visible body.
An image of a planet in space appeared, followed by the image of the star winking out once more. There was no response to Alberik's other questions. "Argh!" She exclaimed out loud, slightly frustrated. {What of these? And these?} She asked it, sending it every image she could remember, the odd tree, the tall rectangular buildings, all that had flashed into her mind since she arrived at God's Reach...
She received no responses to any of her images, the alien apparently not knowing anything or unwilling to answer. Alberik slapped the ground beside her in frustration, feeling like she had come close to solving something, only to have it slip out. Then she realized how she had been acting, and slowly laid down again. "I'm sorry." She spoke to the angels. "I'll try not to interrupt again. Please, continue." She added, then sighed. Irienys would look at Alberik with concern for a moment. She felt very much useless at the moment. Confused and quiet as well.
The angels continued their questioning, learning nothing else of note, as the alien seemed unwilling or unable to answer many of their questions in an understandable manner. Finally, the angels were concluded, by which time the elves had cleared out.
"Unless you would like to ask it anything else, I believe that we are done here. There is something that you might like to watch outside as well." The first angel said, looking at Alberik and Irienys as the rest of them left through the door.
Alberik continued to listen quietly, waiting until near the end to think of a few final questions.
List of questions before Alberik stops asking questions:
-Are you connected to each other?
-What are your plans?
-Why do you take the women?
-Why do you change them?
-How do you do it?
-Is there any way to restore them?
-(Everything regarding the creature's history, culture, language, stuff. play me a video, screw the pictures XD)
-(Anything else I can't think of right now that may be important, it's 2AM and i work at 9)
Irienys would sigh quietly. 'If only they knew our tongue and could speak it...'
Unsatisfied, but sure she couldn't get anything else out of the creature, Alberik nodded along with Iri's comment, then turned to the angel. "Yes, I believe so." She replied, slowly standing up and following the angel outside, wrapping the cloak tighter around herself as she did so.
It was surprisingly warm outside, despite the still going blizzard. The floating monstrosity above was lit up by a series of glowing orbs, white and gold and blue. No less than a hundred angels flew in the air around it, and dozens of elves were in the courtyard, watching the flying divinities do whatever it was that they were doing.
Irienys would clutch the cloth covering her skin, freezing. She was finally taking note of her new tail, which was now wrapping around her leg. She would look out to the many angels, staring.
Alberik looked up at the swarm of heavenly beings, mouth agape. "How many others summoned you? Did this leave others without answers to their summons?" Were the first questions out of her mouth, suddenly feeling slightly guilty. "Many others. We've been very busy today." The angel replied, not joining her comrades above.
Every added glow increased the intensity of the others, until the glow was almost blinding. Finally, the angels all lowered themselves back toward the ground, and the glow suddenly darkened...... Just as pangs of sharp pain within both Alberik and Irienys signaled the beginnings of their births. Sera suddenly groaned as well, and one of her kin helped her to the ground, another moving to aid Irienys while the angel assisted Alberik.
"I see. If it takes this many, I believe-Ah!" Alberik started to say before she felt her unwanted guest begin it's exit. She quickly fell to her knees, and then her rump, unable to keep herself standing after all else she's been through. Her hands pressed at her belly, trying to will the pain to stop...
Irienys would just as suddenly begin her birth. Her eyes would almost pop out of her eye sockets as she fell down to her knees, then going to her back. "Tell me when it's over..." She groaned, shutting her eyes tightly and covering her face. "Someone, please, be sure it dies quickly!"
As the three of them felt an intense pain, Irienys getting the worst of it as their births began. A set of writhing tentacles was released from Sera's womb, and immediatelly impaled by the man helping her. Something similar came free of Alberik, though the one that came from her was much larger, and it grabbed for an elf before the angel cut it in half with a blade of white fire. Irienys actually released a seemingly normal looking child, at first glance. A closer look revealed that it had no eyes or mouth, and it was oddly deformed, its arms too large and bulky for an infant. It was promptly crushed udner the booted heal of a man in full plate armor.
While this was going on, however, there was suddenly a violent flash followed by a tremendous roar, and the elves that weren't busy helping them cheered and clapped uproariously, marking the final removal of the thing hovering above the fortress by the swarm of angels.
Alberik just watched from her spot on the ground, gasping mightily as she struggled to regain her senses after the ordeal. "That's..." She finally gasped out, lolling her head back to lay down again after. "Gods, never again, please..." She muttered quietly. And with that, her body couldn't sustain her weakened state any longer, and she slipped off into unconsciousness, a deep sleep full of more visions and images awaiting her...
Irienys would pass out herself after giving birth, every part of her at her limit. A few tears streaked down her cheeks and she turned away from her destroyed child, vision fading out...
Alberik: HP = 52, PP = 61, EP = 116, Status = Fine
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 76, Status = Fine
Questions:
-Are you connected to each other?
No answer.
-What are your plans?
An image of the large thing that had appeared over Gods-Reach drawing in something and then vanishing.
-Why do you take the women?
An image of an orb that splits in half, and then both split again once both halves have grown back to full size, immediately followed by an image of a star winking out and lightning itself again.
-Why do you change them?
No answer.
-How do you do it?
A vessel being emptied, and then filled with something else.
-Is there any way to restore them?
No answer.
-(Everything regarding the creature's history, culture, language, stuff. play me a video, screw the pictures XD)
No answer to any of it, and a feeling of vague confusion at all of the concepts presented for it.
-(Anything else I can't think of right now that may be important, it's 2AM and i work at 9)
55
Irienys opened her eyes first between the three of them, only to find herself in a large, spacious room, lying within a small but soft bed beneath a small mountain of down blankets. She was not alone, firstly having Alberik on her left and Sera on her right, each in their own bed. There were many other beds in this room, all of which were filled, mostly with women. At her left, between the bed with Alberik and herself, the angel that Alberik had summoned first sat straight in a small wooden chair, her wings wrapped around her body and her eyes closed.
When Irienys stirred, however, the angel did likewise, her wings slowly folding outwards as she turned toward the corrupted girl with a kindly smile upon her face. "Hello, Irienys. Are you feeling well again?" She said, her voice low and quiet so as not to disturb others. A moment later, an elven women in a thick, heavily stained gown came in bearing a tray of food, which she set before Irienys silently before leaving the two alone.
A few minutes later, Alberik awoke as well, and the angel turned to her once she had finished speaking with Irienys. "Alberik.... It seems that you owe my kin and I a great debt still. Are you feeling well?" The same woman quickly came with food for her, and left just as silently as before. Sera remained asleep, for now, but was tossing fitfully in her bed.
Her dreams were full of them during her sleep. A swarm. They began with Irienys being violated by the same monster that had started this hell for. She was quickly defeated by it in battle, penetrated, and fucked until she passed out, crying out in passion as the beast came inside her. As her mind faded from even the dreams, an hour or so, perhaps, passed by as she found herself in the same red and black room the wolf had raped her in. Only now? Her legs were being lifted by the same giant demon that had originally impregnated her. Her mouth now gagged, her body without strength, she was helpless to resist as the oversized cock forced its way into her and fucked her for what felt like hours. Eventually that nightmare too ended. It brought her to the final one, where a group of faceless villagers were surrounding her helpless body, beating it with clubs and throwing fire at it. The last thing she remembered was her hand burning off as her eyes finally opened.
"...."
She stared out for a moment, registering the angel. She turned her head to look at her, only halting as her mind took note of something else. A dampness between her legs. Her eyes began to water up as shame washed through her. She hardly even noticed the elf bringing her food. Unfortunately, she wasn't feeling very hungry at that moment, even if her body desired nourishment.
"F-f-fine, I'm fine.... Thank you for your c-concern... I'm undeserving..."
Her voice shook as she sat up, wiping her eyes and trying to fight the emotion. Hold it all inside and keep it there, that is close enough to what Alberik told her to do.
Alberik! Iri remembered her that instance, looking over to her.
Alberik slept restlessly, visions and scenes long forgotten playing through her mind, none making any sense. Finally she woke...
She opened her eyes to stare at an unfamiliar ceiling, the feel of soft fabric against her skin. She looked around and saw Irienys already awake and speaking to the angel she had summoned, which caused her a flash of worry. Were they still in danger?
"Alberik.... It seems that you owe my kin and I a great debt still. Are you feeling well?" The angel asked, noticing she was awake and turning to look at the woman. Alberik nodded, taking stock of her situation. She was clean, someone had washed her while she was out. She felt well enough, no physical aches or pains. An elf arrived and brought a plate of food, setting it on a small table beside the bed, and departed again. Tentatively, she reached out with her mind, brushing against the angel's mind for a moment before withdrawing suddenly with a slight cringe. "Well enough, though my channels are still raw to the touch. I can tell they're on the mend though, I'll be fine soon enough." She responds finally, ignoring the first part of the angel's statement until Iri pointed it out.
"Such powerful aid does not come to us without a price..." She elaborated for the other woman, before turning back to the angel. "I fear I failed to perform my half of our bargain as admirably as we had both hoped. Even less so for the other aid I brought." She said, managing a small smile. "When I first came to and saw you still here, I was worried God's Reach was still in danger. You've spoken with the others? What would you have of me?"
Alberik: HP = 52, PP = 61, EP = 116, Status = Fine
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 76, Status = Fine
"Undeserving? Nonsense! You have lost much of yourself in defense of those not of your own blood. Few humans that I have met have been so noble." The angel replied to Irienys as she continued to smile at her. Then, her voice filled with perfect serenity but also containing a degree of power such that her words seemed to wrap around the pain in Irienys and erode it away, said; "The nightmare is over, Irienys. Over and done. You don't have to hold it all inside anymore, and if you do, it will poison your heart. The sooner you let it out, the sooner your pain will fade."
After Alberik had awakened a few moments later, the angel allowed the channel between their minds to form only for it to dissolve again, the divine being holding a puzzled expression for a moment before replying; "Gods-Reach is safe, for now. But much has happened in the hours that you two have been asleep. Some good, some bad, but all important. But before I tell you of that, I must make you aware... My kin and I have agreed upon our final price for your service."
The angel paused a moment, and her smile dropped as she adopted a serious expression. "Though you did all you could in your service to me, and called upon my kin only in order to rescue me, our aid is not to be granted without a price. In exchange for the help that we have granted you, will have all agreed that there is only one suitable price." She paused, and her eyes began to glow a deep sky blue as she stared down upon the bed-ridden Alberik. There was a power unlike anything that Alberik had ever known before in her voice, though the whispers of her memories grew louder as she felt it brushing against her soul, as the angel concluded; "We bind you, Alberik, to our service. You may call upon our aid without indebting yourself further in your darkest hours, but until you are released from our service, you will abandon all of your worldly desires in order to aid us in our causes, even if you do not agree with them or they conflict with your own goals. The conditions of your release will be determined by us. Do you understand?"
The angel fell silent, her gaze as intense as any Alberik had ever received as she waited for a response. It should be noted that the angel had asked if she understood, and not if she accepted the conditions set before her.
Alberik let out a sigh of relief at the news of God's Reach, moving for the tray of food and slowly starting to eat it. She got a few mouthfuls in before the angel began her speech about the price to be paid, where she stopped and listened intently, matching the angels gaze evenly. She listened to the entire thing without changing her expression or asking a single question. Once the angel finished, Alberik broke the gaze, her head and shoulders drooping as she stared into her food for a moment, considering the entirety of what she was being told. She remained silent for nearly a moment before speaking still looking down at her food, and a slight twinge of sadness to her voice.
"This... Is much more than I was expecting." She said slowly. "But I am certain that I, and many others, would not be here, safe and sane, without the aid I engendered, so in that light, it is a comparatively small cost. This is binding to only myself? Iri, Sera, and any of the others have no debt to you?" She asked, finally looking up to meet the angel's gaze again. She received a positive nod from the heavenly being, and let out a small sigh, continuing.
"Then yes, I understand succinctly. Until you have no further need of me, I pledge myself to your cause, without reservation." She said slowly and clearly, giving a determined nod as she spoke. It was obvious it was hard for her to say, but she managed a small smile afterwards, mostly directed to comfort Iri, as she was expecting the other woman to have something to say about the matter.
"Well, let's hear this news then. I have a feeling it's quite important." She adds after a moment.
EXP spending, before i forget again. 2 Body, 4 Mind, 4 Spirit, 10 XP total. currently at 0 XP, once again.
new totals, for easy replacement of spoiler stats:
HP = 58, PP = 68, EP = 123
"N-noble? You think I'm... Noble?" She sounded baffled. Irienys thought lowly of herself, at least on the grand scale of things. Getting such a compliment from a being of ultimate good... To her, it was mind boggling. The angelic voice seemed to ease the pain she felt. Her heart had a gaping hole in it, her mind burnt out. It felt like it mended both of those. "...." A few tears streaked down her face, the girl reaching to wipe them as she sobbed softly. "Thank you... If an angel thinks this then... My soul isn't damned after all?" After being turned into a mutated, demonic looking being, that had become something of a worry for her. Noble though? Certainly she wouldn't be barred from heaven after her death. Why, if she continued to get the angels favor, maybe she could even get her to do a minor favor for her and help change the views of her village! After all, what could hold more sway then the words of something so holy?
The girl couldn't help but feel a bit of fear when the angel began speaking to Alberik about debt. She had been bound to them. She could think of far worse things to happen, but even still... Working a debt off couldn't of been fun.
"Um..." She muttered out when she was mentioned, waiting for a chance to speak. "E-excuse me..! If... If it's possible, I'd like t help work La-, um... Alberik's debt off. I can't think of anything else I'd rather do or someone else I'd rather help."
Really, what would she do anyways? This probably meant she couldn't go to the academy, but at this point, did that really matter? She was starting to think it would be best to accept these mutations instead of obsessing over removing them somehow and trying to make things go back to the way they were.
Alberik: HP = 58, PP = 68, EP = 123, Status = Fine
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 76, Status = Fine
"An angel cannot lie, Irienys. I would not call you noble if I did not mean it with all my heart." The angel replied earnestly, and continued to smile even after she asked if she was damned. "Damned? What could you possibly be damned for? Having corruption forced upon you against your will? The views of your kinfolk are well intentioned, but wrong. It is not what a mortal is, or what they looks like, or even what they can do that determines the value of a soul in our eyes. It is what they choose to do, and what they choose to be. And what you chose to do is risk your life in the defense of a people not your own, whom you barely even know. When you saw one of them fall, I could feel your heart breaking even up in the air. Such pain would not be felt by one who had given into the way of the demons, and so long as your heart is so pure, you should never fear for your soul, Irienys."
It was about then that Alberik awoke, and joined in the conversation.
"Only you called upon us, so only you are bound to us in this way. Irienys, Sera, and the other elves of Gods-Reach are not included in it." The angel replied, nodding, to her question about the debt falling on others. When she agreed, the angel nodded serenely, but then Irienys interjected with her offer to share in the debt that Alberik had taken upon herself. Turning to the corrupted girl and smiling, the angel said; "I am not surprised that you make such an offer, Irienys. You may assist her in this, of course, but you will not be bound to it. Trying times are ahead, for the both of you. But.... I have confidence that the two of you will see it through, and come out of it all the stronger."
She paused, and then sighed, before she finally began on telling them what had been happening. "Much has happened in the last few days. Firstly, the lich king of Badaria, the one who found the artifact that you seek..... Is gone. Taken by the invaders, we believe. Much of Badaria is in ruins, and what power remains among the mortals have already begun to squabble among themselves. The Empire is fallen, though a much more grave threat has risen to replace it in the form of these invading monsters. Even the greater enclaves of the fey were attacked, but the Golden City still stands intact.
"Powers long forgotten have stirred. The dragons have returned, and have begun to fight alongside our kind in order to push these beings back. The gods have returned as well, it seems, as the creature above Therion was destroyed by the Thunderlord, Doraleous. Matthias the Godslayer has been seen as well, though he has been far more reserved than in his campaigns against the demons. Others, like the goddess of life, Naya and the Huntress Sivicine have been seen as well, all joining our fight against these things. By their help, the North has been largely spared the destruction of the other parts of the world. Therion still stands, and the invaders are being cleared from it. The Academy has pushed back the invaders as well. Not all of the cities have fared so well, but enough have that Crolia is still strong. Strong enough to weather the coming tide, perhaps.
"The desert and the jungles, I am sad to say, have not fared so well. The ancient cities of the east now lie empty, their magics silent for the first time in centuries. The catfolk to the west have been overtaken, and the invaders remain in those skies, and seem to be staying there. Much of those ancient places are now lost to the invaders.
"Nearly three million souls have been lost in the last few days. Many of my own kin fell in the battles for this world. But.... We have halted them." The angel paused, and began to glow slightly. It was not as dramatic a thing as it might have been, no sudden flash of power or intense glow burst from her, but rather a slow build into a light that filled the room as a whole. When she continued, however, the angel's voice radiated with power beyond even her own might; "We have halted them. And now, we will turn back the tide. Until every one of them has been burned from this world, we will fight them. And we. Will. Win."
~~~~~Finite~~~~~
(Well, that's the end of Alberik's and Irienys time in DG2, at least. There's a short part where they reach the Academy, but I think I'd like to take care of that in a real time session rather than on here, and let Shrike or IronAnt post the summary of it. They are bot,h of course, welcome to respond to this, and once this is all wrapped up I can start their DG3 antics.)
Alberik listened intently, noting the seeming power that emanated from the Angel as she spoke. Some indication that they shared a connection to a higher power, perhaps?
When the angel was done her speech, she nodded, and spoke up herself. "With this done, are you leaving again? I have some questions, if you can spare the time..." She asked easily, starting in on the meal in front of her again. She still felt conflicted about the current turn of events, but she was determined to make the best of it...
Alberik: HP = 58, PP = 68, EP = 123, Status = Fine
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 76, Status = Fine
"Not immediately, no. I will remain here, at least for a time, in order to better explain to you what must be done. I will also appear to you at times, or contact your mind directly if I am more urgently occupied." The angel replied.
(Here is where the records of the real time session at the Academy should go. If you don't have it Shrike, I can dig it up. Once that's up, I can move on to DG3 timeline, and the attempt to reclaim the lands of the elves from the orcs.)
A transcript of what occurred in the live session. You two should post what you intended to get done between DG2 and DG3 in here, and then we can move on.
our intrepid adventurers were last seen recovering in Gods-Reach
18:43 Tassadar003 but we'll move on from there, and say that they left after a while, just the two of them, to head to the Academyt
18:43 Irienys would have trained a bit more with her new powers just to get a bit use to them at some point during this.
18:44 Alberik Plenty of time on the road, Al can help with that.
18:44 Tassadar003 After much danger (in the cold,) a lack of supplies (it was really cold,) a narrow escape from a pack hungry wolves (who were also pretty cold,) and a great deal of shivering..... In the cold! The pair saw the village of North Buttersville, which sat at the base of the Academy.
18:45 Tassadar003 They had passed through several acres of farmland to get here, and were greeted with a great deal of suspiscion, though no outright hostility. >>
18:45 Tassadar003 The Academy loomed on top of a high hill just up ahead.
18:47 Alberik looked between the academy and her companion. "Nearly there..." She said simply, managing a bit of a smile before moving on ahead.
18:48 Irienys shivers, looking over at Alberik. "Lets... Hope my family member here is nice. I don't know anything about him or her besides a last name..." One that she had gotten from a letter she had seen her father get from the person. She honestly had no idea what to expect.
18:50 Alberik just nodded. "I'm sure we'll be fine. Even if you can't contact them, we can simply deal with the academy itself, instead of your family."
18:51 Irienys Y-yes, well... I'm not much for talking so... Thank goodness you're good at that.
18:53 Tassadar003 (what was this family member's name? If you don't want to name them, I can just make something up.)
18:53 Alberik let out a chuckle. "Just a matter of being clear, and honest. You worry too much, this is a place of learning, we'll be fine." She tells Iri reassuringly. The stares of the farmers they had passed comes to mind, but she pushes those thoughts aside for now.
18:53 Irienys (I derped and forgot to talk to you about that, I'm sorry. Go ahead and make up anything you'd like.)
18:54 Tassadar003 (male or female?)
18:55 Tassadar003 (and no worries, I just thought I'd ask)
18:55 Irienys sighs a small bit. "I'm suppose to be a soldier, but I get so nervous so easily. Maybe that will go away after venturing with you. My lack of power seems to of..."
18:56 Irienys (Well, either is fine if you can think of something that'll amuse you more then the other, but otherwise male I guess?)
18:56 Tassadar003 (Uncle Otis it is!)
18:56 Alberik (yep, amusing XD)
18:56 Irienys (Yay!)
18:59 Alberik "You don't lack in power." Alberik interjects quickly. "Tariel told you that herself. And this trip has just proven it. Have some pride." She tells the other woman, her tone uncharacteristically stern, for once.
18:59 Alberik (Tariel is the name Tass came up for for the angel, as well. So ya know)
18:59 Tassadar003 (Tariel is the angel's name, according to the great random name gener-ninjaed!)
19:00 Irienys looks a small bit embarrassed "I-I just meant that my level of strength wasn't extremely high until I unlocked that strange ability."
19:03 Alberik calms a bit after, her odd features smoothing some. "Of course, I apologize. Sometimes it takes an event to unlock our true potential, it seems you were that way. In time, you'll come to trust and rely on it, it isn't really different from any other skill. Like swordplay, for instance."
19:05 Irienys looks up at the sky, her breath visible as she sighs. "Do you think I've always had that power within me, or it was the result of the mutations?"
19:06 Tassadar003 The two of them came to the entrance of the academy, and were stopped by a quartet in grey robes. "What is your business here? This is not a refugee center. We cannot help you with your mutations." One said, obviously assuming their purpose here immediately after asking the question.
19:07 Alberik "Always been there. It's a power from the soul, and yours is as white as can be. No way the creatures could have tainted that." Alberik says with sincerity, the pair arriving at the gatehouse shortly after. "We're not here about that." She told the apparent guards. "We come bearing news from God's Reach, as well as information on these new invaders."
19:08 Irienys nods at what Alberik says, also meekly adding in "I've... Also got... Family here I'd like to see."
19:12 Tassadar003 The guard replies; "Apologies. We've had a lot of people coming here hoping to be... "cured." You may go inside, and if it's family you're looking for you can try asking any of the faculty that you see. They're the ones in the more ornate robes."
19:13 Irienys Of course, um, thank you.
19:14 Alberik "I understand, thank you." Alberik says with a small bow, heading inside afterwards.
19:15 Irienys follows!
19:16 Tassadar003 The pair enter the Academy, entering a large hall filled with statues carved of stone and metal and all manner of other things, including a life sized skeletal dragon in the center of the hallways. There were only a few people in here, all garbed in simple novice robes, and the way was clear for them to go on if they didn't want to try asking any of these people for directions.
19:18 Irienys would try to call out to someone in one of those robes. "U-um... Excuse me!"
19:19 Tassadar003 A young woman turned toward Irienys. "Yes?"
19:19 Irienys Do you know where I can find someone named Otis?
19:20 Tassadar003 (including your last name might help.)
19:20 Irienys (Oh right, hold on. Sorry)
19:21 Tassadar003 "......No? There are a lot of people here, and I've only been here a month and a half. Can you be more specific? Maybe a last name, or what rank they are, or if they're faculty, staff or a student?"
19:21 Irienys Um... I'm not sure, staff likely. The name Otis Loyalar isn't familiar to you at all?
19:24 Tassadar003 "Oh, Professor Loyalar! Yes, his office is on the third floor, right above the entrance. Take a right when you leave this hall, and just go up the stairs. It's right near the stairwell."
19:24 Alberik seems entranced by the scene, staring at marble columns from the base to the ceiling and taking particular note of the skeletal dragon, to or three more flashes of images entering her head as she did so. Shaking her head to bring herself back to the present, she listened to the conversation until Irienys had what she needed. "Also, which way to the ~
19:24 Alberik headmaster's chambers, or someone else in authority? I have very important information for them."
19:26 Tassadar003 "The Dean's office is in the dungeons, but you'd have to ask someone else for directions. I've never been there."
19:26 Irienys nods. "Thank you very much, miss."
19:28 Alberik "Yes, thank you." Al adds, turning to Iri once the student walked off again. "It seems we're headed in opposite directions. Meet back at the gates tonight, perhaps? Should one of us ask about a place to spend the night?"
19:29 Tassadar003 "You're both welcome."
19:29 Irienys thinks for a moment. "Um, go ahead and speak to the one in power about that. We can meet back at the gate later. Wish me luck."
19:30 Alberik smiled. "Good luck then. See you tonight." She said, then went off a separate corridor, looking for the dungeons.
19:32 Irienys waves. "See you later, Alberik." she quickly heads off to where she was told Otis was located.
19:33 Tassadar003 Irienys arrived at her destination quickly, while Alberik began wandering through the labyrinthine corridors, asking random people for directions. Her uncle was in his office, a portly, balding, grey bearded man in a black robe. He looked up from what he was writing as she entered, sizing her up over his spectacles. "May I help you?" He said seriously, no recognition in his eyes. He hadn't seen her for almost ten years now.
19:34 Irienys would smile nervously. "U-um... Hello... Uncle Otis?"
19:36 Tassadar003 The man shifted at the mention of their relation, looking at her more closely for a second, before he hesitantly said; "Iri? Irienys?"
19:36 Irienys nods, her smiling growing ever so slightly. "Yes, it's me. I've um... Done some changing. Have you been well?"
19:39 Tassadar003 The man rises from his seet and comes to stand in front of her, his arms spreading as if to hug her, wshich he did unless she stopped him. "Iri! You've grown so much since I last saw you!" He said, and then pulled back or paused. "I can see that. Were these... Recent?" He conrinued, not yet answering her question
19:42 Irienys eyes would water up, this being the first time in weeks she had seen any family. "I gained them weeks ago... The tail is a recent addition." She sighed deeply, depressed. "You were the only person I could turn to... We both know how that village feels about these things."
19:43 Tassadar003 Otis scowls darkly. "Yes. All too well, sadly. You'll find people here are a lot more... Open minded. Are you here to stay? To study a bit, perhaps? Or are you just visiting?"
19:48 Irienys would force a small smile. "I don't think I'm smart enough for magic, heh. But um... Visiting for now. I'm helping someone I met at God's Reach. I was hoping you could tell me about a few things, maybe... Help rid these mutations?" Her voice was hopeful, though... Deep down she expected he wouldn't be able to help her.
19:51 Tassadar003 "Well.... The physical manifestations can be removed, but..... It doesn't always turn out well. Sometimes, the subject just dies, mysteriously. Sometimes they just grow back too, occasionally even larger than before. I couldn't recommend that for you, Iri. Did your parents try to force you to do this?"
19:54 Irienys lowers her head. "I ran away from home before they could see me like this... I couldn't stand for them to see me like this." she would wipe her eyes.
19:57 Tassadar003 Otis placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking his head. "Whatever happened to you, I'm sure that it wasn't your fault. They couldn't hate you, not their own daughter... You haven't seen them since?" Alberik, meanwhile, had arrived outside of a closed door that she had been told, and was marked as, the office of the Dean of the Academy. In a bare stone corridor, with no decorations and no place to sit save for a cold granite b
19:57 Tassadar003 ench.
20:00 Irienys shook her head. "It's been a long and hellish journey from home... I don't think I'll be returning for a long while, even if the village council had a sudden change of heart." Iri would sigh a small bit. "Will you write to them and tell them I'm okay?"
20:00 Alberik ((was gonna wait and do it one at a time, but sure!)) Al briefly considered her options. If she knocked on the door, the man may be busy. If she sat on the bench, he would not know she was there. Deciding on a course of action, she stretched her perceptions out a tad, trying to discern how many people were in the room, touching only long enough to count, not~
20:01 Alberik to disturb...
20:02 Tassadar003 "Ahhh... Of course, of course. Do you... Want me to tell them about your conditions?" He replied to Iri, indicating her wings.
20:03 Tassadar003 Alberik found her perceptions blocked by some barrier in the door, as though the Dean's office had been warded against such attempts, even as harmless as the one she was attempting
20:03 Irienys nods. "They should know the truth. I can't tell them in person, but... This is better then nothing."
20:04 Alberik Alberik nodded. She should have suspected as much in any case. Drawing her senses back, she knocked on the door, took a step back, and waited.
20:05 Tassadar003 "Alright. Who are you here with anyway? Did you just come to see me, or did you need something else?"
20:05 Tassadar003 There was a pause, and then a cold, stern voice replied to Alberik's knock; "Enter."
20:05 Alberik does so.
20:08 Irienys Well you see... We came here together. She has news from God
20:08 Alberik (( XD ))
20:08 Irienys (I messed up, hold on.)
20:08 Irienys (*Smacks self*)
20:09 Tassadar003 The door opens to reveal a bare stone room, also undecorated. A desk made of dark, polished wood and a chair behind, along with a simple fireplace behind the chair was all that was within the fairly spaceous room. A man sat in the chair behind the desk, surprisinlgy young for his position. His face was clean shaven, and his black hair was trimmed short. "May I help you with something?" The man said, disdain just barely evid
20:09 Tassadar003 ent in his voice.
20:10 Irienys The person I came with is named Alberik, she has news for the head from God's Reach. She actually helped save the entire place. Such an amazing person... I want to help her as much as I can now.
20:11 Irienys then remembered the other thing she was going to talk about. "Oh, and... I'd recently discovered a strange new power I had, if you would like to see it."
20:11 Tassadar003 "Really? Show me. Wait.... Is it destructive?" Otis said, at first eager and then hesitant
20:12 Alberik Alberik looked around briefly, noting the lack of visitor's chair in the room, coming to stand in front of the desk as she spoke. "My name is Alberik, I have come bearing nes from God's Reach, with information on the invaders as well."
20:12 Irienys It will be harmless as long as I don't try to do anything destructive.
20:13 Tassadar003 "Go ahead." (From both of them. How the hell did that happen?"
20:13 Tassadar003 )
20:15 Irienys will close her eyes, taking in a deep breath. She felt for it, tapping into the energy she had deep within her. Red energy began to swirl around her as a few small crackles of energy ran along her arms a few times. With a final burst of energy, battle aura had been activated!
20:15 Irienys "This... Is it!
20:16 Alberik ((heh)) "God's Reach survived the attack, we summoned a rather large amount of Angels to our aid, they destroyed the ship floating above and cleared them from the halls. There were a fair number of losses, mostly during the initial surprise and regrouping. When I left, they were secure." Alberik explained clinically. "As for the Invaders, ~
20:18 Tassadar003 Otis examined Irienys criticaslly for several moments after her aura had flared, having been impressed enough to smile, but not enough to be flabergasted. "Impressive! I have seen similar things from some students here, as well as some of the other teachers. It makes you faster and stronger, but only in short bursts, correct?"
20:18 Alberik tha angels, my companion and I managed to capture one of the taller, floating beings and interrogate it. There's really too much information to lay down in a single speech, but I ill do my best. They're Aliens, from another world. Their sun had died and they left, seeking energy to start it anew. That's what they're doing here, they plan on using the energy ~
20:19 Irienys would nod. "Only for as long as I can keep the aura up. Whatever energy fuels this can't keep it up for more then minutes at a time, then I'm drained..."
20:20 Alberik from the souls they've consumed to re-ignite they're own sun. Somewhere along the way, they realized the places they had taken earlier would be an easy way to create a dominion, so that's become a goal for them as well. Unfortunately, that means they wouldn't leave, even were they to win."
20:21 Tassadar003 "Yes, Battle Aura it's generally called. Can you control how much power you put into it? Have you tried stressing your limits yet? Tis a very dangerous thing, but a useful one in times like these. When did you first learn to use this power?"
20:22 Irienys would relax, letting the aura fade away.
20:22 Tassadar003 "I see." The Dean replied, his face stony following Alberik's explanation of all that had happened. "Who are you, exactly? Ahhh yes, Alberik. Well, Alberik, this is... .Most useful information that you have brought us. Most useful indeed. Do you know who it is that summoned the angels to save GodsReach?"
20:23 Irienys During a rather... Morbid battle, when I had been pushed to my limits, it... I-I don't know how to explain, but it exploded out of me along with an insane rage. I've only practiced with it a bit, and hope I can do much good with this ability.
20:24 Alberik nodded. "I summoned the first, the rest ere brought by that one, I think. I never thought to ask, to be honest. I brought four more to my aid later, but that was near the end, most of the fight was already over."
20:25 Tassadar003 "Oh, I'm sure you'll find some way to make good use of it. There are some here that can teach you to use it more effectively, if you would like me to point you in their direction." Otis replied.
20:27 Irienys would nod. "Yes, please. I've a few hours until I meet back up with Alberik."
20:27 Tassadar003 "Ahhh, well then, I owe you thanks. Gods-Reach is one of the most ancient structures known to mankind. Losing it to the invaders would have been a great loss to us. As for what you have learned of the invaders, I will call up a scribe, and they will record everything that you know on the subject. This must be made public, and if the angel's believed it to be true, then it surely is so."
20:29 Alberik nodded smiling a bit. "I did what I could, thank you. They told me that the aliens hit every major city at the same time, I plan to do hat I can to help everywhere I can."
Since her arrival at the academy nearly two years ago, Alberik has been constantly busy. She spent two days with a scribe, making sure everything she had gleaned from her interrogation of the invader the angels had captured was written down as clearly and completely as possible.
After that, she had immediately applied for acceptance to the academy itself, not knowing how much time she had before the angels truly began to call on her. She absorbed the lessons and instuction with the ease of someone simply remembering something they had mastered, but not used in a great while. Within months, she had become a confident caster in every school of magic, but had yet to master any of them. She was still eagerly learning, but her time had run out...
Tariel appeared to her again, calling her and Iri to action against the invaders. Using the Academy as a home base, they sent raids against the aliens all across the continent, using Alberik's newly remembered ability to teleport to harass the enemy in the least expected locations. They did little to stop the seemingly relentless advance of the invaders, but they slowed it by a fair amount, even having a few significant victories here and there.
All was not well, however. Alberik was constantly plagued by half-remembered nightmares, visions of places and events she was sure she recognized, but couldn't remembered. When news came that God's reach had fallen to the orcs, she immidiately asked Tariel to aid her in taking it back. Not only did the angel refuse, but she forbid Alberik from going as well, stating their fight against the invaders was of far greater importance in the grand scheme. Alberik relented, but the nightmares became more and more dire, showing her visions of loss, defeat, and death, dozens of different places and hundreds of people. She started losing sleep, and became more distant and unfocused in the time they used to rest, instead poring over the library's records like a woman possessed, searching for gods-knew-what in the academy's massive library, haggard, pale, and mumbling...
Her time in the academy had been something like waking up from a nightmare. She was somewhere safe and comfortable, even had a family member that cared for her there. She spent some time at first having isolated breakdowns and crying in showers and in random, desolated places outside. She tried to hide it from everyone, not wishing to burden them with her depression. Even though her uncle Otis and Alberik were extremely close to her, she didn't want to bother them with it. After a number of days, the breakdowns and crying in isolation began to fade away. She continued to feel tormented by her days of hell, but the wounds were healing.
She spent any time she could training, trying to get better control over her new powers, even learning new ones, such as flying and creating a sword made of her own energy. She mastered battle aura and figured out how to call upon it whenever she wanted. She felt invincible in that state, and wanted to perfect it, maybe even go beyond it and invent an even better ability. She felt too dumb for magic, and honestly the sight of all of those books made her head hurt just from sight, but perhaps this was something she could excel in. It would make her uncle proud none the less, she thought. So she practiced and sparred as much as she could.
Her timid and very apologetic personality was starting to tone down. Perhaps what all had happened to her was finally starting to have a toll of her personality. Maybe she was just growing up. Whatever the cause, she was a more confident warrior that didn't cry out in fear anytime her sword missed or something ugly looked at her. She seemed to have accepted her demonic like appearance, even starting to grow fond of it. Her wings, her tail, the strange aura she gave off to anything she fought against. At one point, someone called her, "The glowing red demoness" and another "The false demon of the academy" as well. She debated which she preferred. One was far more true then the other.
When the land of the elves had been taken over, Iri too wanted to help them. She actually felt a burning anger at the creatures that had invaded them. She questioned how they could do this when the entire world was under the threat of demons from beyond the skies. Had they no reason at all? She felt such a race should just be wiped out. In spite of this, she would stay besides Alberik's side, helping with the battles against the aliens and growing in experience and inner strength, staying besides her friend, even if she could of left and done whatever she wanted to do. She would always show great concern for her new best friend, and even if attempts were futile, would try to comfort her whenever it looked like she were feeling really low.
Alberik: HP = 58, PP = 68, EP = 123, Status = Fine
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 76, Status = Fine
~~~~~2 years later~~~~~
"You may begin, Alberik." Tariel said, the angel frowning as she stood against the wall within the dank chamber of the Academy's dungeon, where their planning session had been set to commence. The angel that had served as Alberik's liaison to the rest of her kind had made it clear that she couldn't assist directly, but she was still willing to aid in the planning stages at the very least. Irienys was there, standing faithfully beside Alberik as those at the meeting broke from their private conversations and moved to stand around the table, giving her their full attention. On that old oaken table was a map of Gods-Reach, laid out floor by floor in all of its defense prior to being taken over by the orcs.
Arikur, the commander of a group of Mercenaries called the Blue Falcons stood directly across from her. He and his men, native Crolian's all, had forsaken taking coin for their work in the battles against the orcs and the aliens both. The Dean of the Academy was not present, having appointed a woman named Miranda Greyback, one who had studied the aliens when they had initially attacked, to be his voice in these particular war councils. The curvy, white haired woman was hardly a soldier, but knew a great deal about the invaders, and had great skill with magic. Others, like the leader of the elvish resistance and the representative of the Combined Crolian Militia, an army of all the fighting men from all of the holds in the North, stood around the table as well, among others.
Alberik would have to convince all of them of her plan, if she wanted their aid, and she could see that that would be easier for some than for others.
Alberik nods slowly, looking over the assembled one last time, solidifying her thoughts in her head before she continued.
"Alright, as far as plans go, it's pretty simple. Sneak in with as much force as we can muster, hit the priority targets before they know what's happening, then the long crawl to clear the place. It's the details that make it shine." Introduction over, she moved on to said details, leaning in and pointing at the room she knew used to be Sera's.
"I'm familiar enough with this room that I can teleport to it, and bring people with me. We enter late at night, me and four or five air mages, enough to cover the entire room in a vacuum, which has the benefit of cutting out any sounds they may make as well. Enough to knock them out, not kill them, in case there's innocents with them. Once the room is clear, I can bring in any other porters we have access to, and we can start bringing in reinforcements. There, two other places I know well enough to be confident about, here and here." She points out the cafeteria, and the medical room they woke in. "But both of them are too large to have a reliable chance of emptying them without raising an alarm."
"Once we have enough reinforcements we can start spreading out. Stealth will be the objective for as long as possible, so someone capable of illusions or invisibility will be going with every initial group, until the alarm is given. Take out anything that can be done silently, but only if there's zero chance of discovery, or to protect the secrecy of the mission. From what I've been able to gather from elves around here that used to live there, the most likely places for the leadership to make their own would be these places here." Accompanied by more indications at the map. This time, the places were already marked for continued reference, small pins tacking a red slip of fabric to the pots pointed out. There were four spots total.
"I'll co-ordinate the teams so we hit all four of these rooms at once. Once that happens, chances are everyone else that can manage to spread out will hear the alarm raised, and the entire Reach becomes a warzone. priorities are Mages and Spirit Users, as well as any orc holding a long rifle. They have snipers, and anyone caught in the open is in major trouble until we can clear them out. I'd like kill teams of at least one mage and spirit user, with an even distribution of everyone else among those groups we can manage as well. the groups heading to the markers will be two such groups each, to make doubly sure we remove the head of the force with as few problems as possible."
"I've left the plan to be as fluid as possible, since I've not been sure what I have to work with so far. Additionally, I'm sure they have some preparations in place for an attack like this, though surely not on the scale we're planning, almost certainly as part of a larger sttack on the walls, if nothing else. I'm sure all of you know the abilities of you and yours better than I could ever, so I'll leave it up to you to choose your places or individual strategies as you feel you must. Secrecy for as long as possible is our best weapon, however. I'm also no strategist, and I'd welcome any changes to cover gaps in the plan." She admits, laying her hands on the edge of the table and viewing the assembled leaders again. "Questions? Thoughts?"
Alberik: HP = 58, PP = 68, EP = 123, Status = Fine
Irienys: HP = 65, PP = 35, EP = 76, Status = Fine
Those assembled around the table watched and listened with grim, troubled expressions as Alberik explained their plan. After she had finished and asked for comments, the first to speak was Professor Greyback, who said with some concern; "I don't know how many light mages we have... We might have to send those who employ demons with some groups of the initial infiltrators if you want an illusionist with every group. There will be a price to pay, but it could likely be paid by any prisoners that were captured." Some others looked slightly uncomfortable at the mention of demons, particularly Arikur and Telvesh, the leader of the elves who had escaped Gods-Reach. The latter was a short man with sharp, fierce features, his long hair braided and his bright green eyes surrounded by red and black tattoos. He had been a member of the Falling Leaf before Gods-Reach had been captured, and as far as Alberik knew he was one of the few members of that order that remained alive and free. The former was a man with a perpetually clean shaven head, though the stubble growing on his face suggested that he had dark hair as well, and his eyes were a light blue-grey color that drew attention almost as hypnotically as those of a demon.
"My men and I will be among the first in. We know how to remain unseen and unheard, and it is our home." Telvesh said, and stood back and away from the table. From his tone, there was no room for anyone to argue, and none of the others assembled at the table tried to. Arikur, his face drawn tightly, turned from the map to look at Alberik and said; "I can offer the use of my scouts, but most of my forces would be best saved for when things get more violent. We can keep our heavy infantry in the rooms we secure initially, and then deploy them when the full attack starts."
The representative of the CCM, a slightly heavyset man with blond hair and a full, thick beard stared at the map for a moment. Alberik had never remembered his name, as he had just replaced the previous representative, and old soldier from Badaria named Vartath. The elderly man had had only one eye, but his experience had been exceedingly valuable and his mind had not dulled with age. He had died peacefully, in his sleep only five days ago. "The militia can offer its scouts as well, but our forces are stretched thin. No more than fifty men are available on such short notice, most of them inexperienced." He finally said, his tone sounding almost bored, as if this meeting was a formality that he had wished he could skip. Alberik and Irienys both knew that there were at least three hundred men stationed at the Academy, most of whom were doing nothing but weapons training and taking up supplies at the moment.
"We'll give ya whoever we can spare, you know that." Greyback said, shooting an irate look at the man who had just spoken. Tariel remained silent, and stared down at the map with a troubled expression.
Alberik listened carefully to all the responses, sending a quick thought towards Tariel. {If you have something to say, then please do. I have a feeling I'll be needing all the help I can get.} She sent quickly, then returned her attention to the people collected around.
The new representative from the Military worried her. She had less time to get to know the man, and in fact had barely been introduced so far. Vartath had taken months to warm up to her and her odd way of thinking, which was a luxury she didn't have right now.
She started addressing comments, in the order they were made, so as to offend anyone the least possible. Following said pattern, she turned to Professor Greyback first. "Even older students that have gained more experience with All elements should be enough. I doubt any illusions would stand against a concerted effort against them, but simply sending the first groups out posed as other orcs should buy us a fair bit of time. About how many mages do you think could be gathered for such a purpose? I'd rather not traffic with Demons at all. We can rely on the lower castes of the fey just as easily, with less consequences."
Continuing along, she addressed Telvesh next. "I have no complaints there, your groups will be the first we teleport in then, have them set up and ready." She agreed, turning to Arikur. "How good are your scouts at combat? I'm starting to think we may have more groups in the first wave than i had prepared for. Do you think they'd be capable of going for the walls and the snipers? The rest can stay in reserve until the alarm is raised, I agree, that seems to make the most sense."
That just left the representative from the Combined Crolian Militia. She turned to him, and did her best to maintain a neutral and respective tone. "Sir, with all due respect, I can understand the importance of keeping a force garrisoned here, but I think you may not realize the scope of this operation in it's entirety. Last reports gave the numbers in God's Reach to be somewhere around a thousand orcs, even with the element of surprise and the lack of capable upper leadership we plan on inflicting to them, they will still outnumber us considerably. We need every able-bodied hand we can get. Even past tomorrow's operation, if we win, this will be one of the first truly successful operations against the orcs. Moral will improve, and the orcs may even take negotiations seriously at some point. Then both sides can turn their attention against the Aliens."
She had little she could say or add at all. In all honesty, she didn't want to risk making herself, and in relation,Alberik, sound stupid by trying to express her own concerns. She wasn't looking like a nervous, fidgeting, wreck, her time at the school had allowed her to harden herself and give herself the appearance of a stoic warrior. She could at least look like she could go into the battle without wanting to hide under a bed, were anyone paying attention. However, it was unlikely she could say anything at this meeting of any worth. Irienys was far from wise or book smart when it came to most matters, much less war. She was somewhat trained and experienced now, thankfully. It was best she kept her mouth shut and listened, not risking making a fool out of anyone.
She almost cringed when the mention of how many enemy soldiers there were had been brought up. 'Such disgusting creatures, not even willing to work with others when a world wide threat like this had come up...' You could certainly say she had a level of racism for orcs and the like. You couldn't blame her, could you? She had yet to see or hear anything good about them.
Even if things sounded totally hopeless, Iri had zero intention of leaving Alberik's side. She would stand by and fight. Besides, she was stronger then a normal human, right? Maybe she could make up a decent percentage of the lack of troops with her own strength. That was wishful thinking...
