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Post by Kuro on Jan 24, 2014 17:16:03 GMT -5
Dofun sat against the door, his legs outstretched and his body limp. In his hands on his lap was the mask, the crack easily visible. Although the mouth and eyes were still smiling, he just couldn't look past the tear. One sloppy line that went all the way to the bottom edge of the mask. It couldn't have even just been a small tear, one that he could see as a sign of raucous laughter. No. This could never be mistaken for such a thing.
It was ugly. It was weak. It showed sadness when it was supposed to be a constant of happiness, an unchanging mask that would hide any moments of his other emotions, the sad and the mad and the bad and the...Sigh.
The mask reminded him too much of himself. Now it truly displayed the face of the clown behind it.
And because had been so careless, it was all his fault.
When he heard the loud knock on the door, he jumped a bit but soon leaned against it again. He sighed and spoke with little pretense of happiness or fake joy. He wasn't downright vicious or bitter, but his tone was certainly harder and maybe a bit more spiteful.
"Go away, Beauty. Unless you have any mask-repair kits, I don't really see the point of letting you in here." He turned the mask over in his hands, looking it over and occasionally running a finger across the tear, despite the reoccurring thought that he should not. That maybe if he didn't confirm its physical existence again, it would just cease to be. "If you want something, I can just give you a show later, maybe a little thing with puppets and the such." It would serve in hiding his face. He made a short, irritated sigh. "Don't you have better things to do than talk to some clown behind a door?"
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Post by crocoduck-2 on Jan 26, 2014 10:21:46 GMT -5
Druid considered the mage's words carefully. It was the first time he was truly listening to anybody since he had stepped in here. She was saying something that resonated deeply within him.
Celestial Spirits aren't subject to normal biological rules. They come from another dimension.
Long ago, Druid has to accept that science could only take him so far in this universe, as magic would always be there to challenge what he knows. This existence of an alternate dimension was a whole other story though. He highly doubted it didn't have rules and standards, every universe does, regardless of how crazy it is. Theoretically, at least. So it was here and now that Druid made it one of his goals to enter the Celestial dimension so that he may study it as well.
Druid's body glowed the bright green again for a few seconds before his body suddenly turned back into his natural human form. It seemed he was going to be social for once. "I know as much as I study, If i know more than anybody here, it's simply because I've asked better questions." Druid gave her an answer as a bargaining chip, so that he may present the following question. "For example, could you perhaps tell me how celestial magic works? Can you go into the Celestial Spirit's world if you wish? How do you bring the spirits out? How do you send them back in? Do they have any side effects to staying in our dimension for too long? Does anything happen when you summon a spirit, for example, do you see anything odd in the air or the material around the location where the spirit appears?"
It had seemed for a brief second that he was going to be a regular, social creature for once, but then he attempted to exchange one measely answer for 5 obnoxious questions.
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Post by Kyubey on Jan 26, 2014 21:40:28 GMT -5
Asmoday would have noticed Beowulf's eyes grow wide, and the corners of her lips curl in a most tense manner, when she gave a direct confirmation that, at least at one point in the past, John was indeed a member of a guild that Beowulf was now a part of. Now the question was, how long did he stay in Renascence, and what were his motivations for joining in the first place? If he had left already, then his objective must have been fulfilled. Given John's normal career, she could guess at the rough nature of whatever mission he was on when he joined and left. More than likely, the other members, particularly the ones that had been there during John's stay at the guild, would still harbor some resentment. She had to speak more cautiously than ever. With the welling surge of excitement that filled her chest after Asmoday's rely, however, that wasn't too easy.
"Ah... well, perhaps, I mean, yes!" she replied, her straight face nearly slipping. "I just have some business with him, is all. Nothing important."
Easy now, she told herself as she brushed a few wayward strands of hair from her face. You still can't give away too much. Not while you know so little...
"Elrond, you say? Thanks for letting me know! I would like to speak with him sometime."
Still too many variables. Still too much left unsaid. And still far too much that Beowulf could give away, that had the potential to ruin everything. She just didn't know. And, as a professional detective, it was her job to find out everything.
"Well anyway, thank you for the tour! You all are so kind here, it's really not like any other guild I've ever seen. Now then, I should probably get some food before it's all gone. I'm starving!"
That much, at least, was the truth. It had been a long journey to this town, and since she had been so anxious, she had barely eaten anything on the way. In order to find the clues she needed, it seemed she might have to stay with the guild for some time. Might as well take advantage of some of the benefits...
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Post by Hitotsumami on Jan 27, 2014 21:47:49 GMT -5
Asmoday was certainly curious on what business Beowulf had with the old member, but she was not aware of the circumstances that led to John's defect of the Guild, so she decided it was a topic for Elrond to handle himself. Speaking of Elrond, it was around that time that Jupiter returned to the Guild, and it appeared he had a message. She watched curiously. --- Elrond smiled at Ian and Lakin. Food was good enough reason for them to join the Guild, he knew that much. But to answer Lakin's curious question, Elrond thought about it a few moments. "How do we stand with the Magical Council you ask?" Elrond chuckled. "Never heard of them! Hopefully that'll keep you guys around, cuase your members for life from now on!"Afterwards, Elrond's attention turned to Jupiter. Elrond approached Jupiter and took the letter and opened it up. He read it to himself, then, with more alarm, jumped onto the stage that sat in the center of the eating hall. "My mages, get everyone together here, quickly! Run down the halls and call them all here!"With that, many cannon fodder mages began running down the halls, calling out that Elrond had an important announcement down in the main hall. They banged on every door, yelled down every hall, and even went up to the clock tower to deliver the message. Elrond would give everyone a few minutes to come if they wanted to, and then spoke to his Guild. "This!" he yelled out, waving the letter in his hands, "is a message from the Magical Council! Funny thing, I thought Lakin here was just pulling my leg with all this "magical council is real" stuff, but turns out, they do actually exist, and they have a very interesting message for us all!"Elrond read out the text word for word. "Dear Renascence Guild. It is with great joy that we've heard of your conquests and heroics in the southern Fiore region. Many have given testament to your great pride and power. However, we do not officially have you declared a Guild. Therefore, any continued action, be it good or evil, will unfortunately not be tolerated. Thus, we request you, Guild Master Elrond Vir, and your most loyal Guild mates, visit us in the City of Era, at our Headquarters, to be deemed an official Guild of Fiore! Included is a map with directions. We expect you as soon as possible. With honor, The Magical Council."A gleam could be seen in Elrond's eyes like never before. He clenched his fists together and jumped high in the air. "YEAAH! Hear that everyone? We're not just a Guild in our imaginations anymore! We're the real thing! Renascence, greatest Guild in not only Fiore, but the world!"Elrond slammed his fist onto his open hand. "That settles it! We're setting out for Era today! Right this minute!"Then, of course, Elrond realized that not the entire Guild could go. There were so many members, and he needed people back here at the Guild to do some small time missions if they arose. He would have to pick out members, and so he decided on a mix of new and old, a full spectrum of Renascence representation. "The members that will be coming with me are: Qi, Dofun, Jupiter, Alden, Beowulf, Lakin and Ian, Druid, and Asmoday! You guys, pack only the essentials and when you're ready, meet me in front of the Guild! We're heading to the big city!"Elrond also briefly mentioned that if he hadn't called your name and you were interested in joining, to feel free to ask. --- And Elrond had not called Azealya Thorn's name. Azealya could not believe her ears. She checked the date on a nearby calendar and was sure of it. This was the same exact day that Astral Lance and the rest of Oracion Seis were beginning their attack on the Magical Council! If a group of so called powerful mages were to suddenly show up, it could definitely throw the plan completely off! "Yo, Elrond," said Azealya, trying to stay reserved. "About this trip to Era. Uh, you see, I've always wanted to see a big city like that.. So uh how about--""Say no more!" yelled Elrond. "Of course you can come with us!""Oh, thanks," said Azealya. She felt like she should have been surprised at how easy it was, but then remembered she was talking to Elrond. She went back to her table and began sipping from a cup of milk. She thought to herself that she'd follow close by and make sure Renascence did not interfere with the Oracion Seis' plan of-- "ASMODAY!!!?" yelled Azealya as milk went flying out of her mouth and nose. She fell on the ground, gasping from breath. She couldn't believe it. Did Elrond just say that name? Asmoday, being close by, went to Azealya's aid, along with a few other mages. "Are you okay?" she asked. "Did you just... yell my name?"Azealya quickly stood up, wiping milk from her sloppy looking face. "I-I'm fine, no, don't worry. I just, uh, hey, you're Asmoday?"Azealya outstretched a hand and Asmoday curiously shook it. "That's my name," she said with a small smile. "I'm Azealya," she said. "Just, uh, wanted to say hi. Nice to meet you, Asmoday. If, uh, you'll excuse me."Azealya escpaed to a corner where she leaned her head against a wall, thoughts flying through her mind. Asmoday was no ordinary name. She knew of only one person who had that name, the woman Astral Lance always talked about. But this was a girl, no older than in her teens, and she certainly didn't appear to be the evil mastermind behind the ancient Oracion Seis. Just what the hell was going on? It convinced her that now she'd have to talk an extra close eye on the Guild as they went to Era, and if the time came, to strike. --- Near Era, the Oracion Seis had already assembled. Astral Lance shrugged as Elly decided to volunteer to destroy the first of two secret tunnels. He also noted a strange messenger approaching Apollo, but held no interest. He knew Apollo was a real asset, so he didn't question any of his own motives. He did, however, watch Elly curiously as the girl entered into the dark tunnel. Only a few moments later did he realize just what was happening. The tunnel then collapsed and Elly appeared behind the group. Astral Lance, in awe, looked from the tunnel to Elly, then threw his arms up in jubilation. "I knew it was fate that you ended up here in my group! Fantastic! Such a powerful magic!"He grinned and approached Elly. "Yes, powerful magic. You will certainly come in handy later." His composure almost looked ominous, but then he gave a carefree smile and slapped her on the back. "One more cave to go!"And so, after the group said and did anything they wished, they would travel to the second tunnel which sat between two small hills and covered in thick brush. Astral Lance said that he'd handle this one, and so he entered. Unlike the darkness in the previous tunnel, this tunnel lit up like the sun as bolts of electricity shot everywhere. Astral Lance then jumped from the tunnel just as a rush of dirt and debris signaled its collapsation. Afterewards, Astral Lance would lead the group to the final tunnel. "This," said Astral Lance, "will lead us directly inside of the Magical Council HQ. The plan is simple. Follow me, and if there comes any hostility to us, have no mercy."He turned and grinned at his group. "Today is the day we conquer this city in the name of Asmoday!"If the group had anything to say, now would be it. If not, Astral Lance would lead the group inside the dark tunnel, setting it aglow with electricity from the tip of his lance. --- Inside the Magical Council HQ, the Magical Council, or as many as possible, had arrived for the meeting. Mark, Rank 1 and leader of the Magical Council, sat at the end of a long table. "So," he said in a gruff voice, "this is all. Out of all ten members, only Eliza, Jericho, and Azriel. Only four out of ten. Fantastic."Mark sounded less than enthusiastic. He leaned a hand on his open palm. "Oh, what's even the point? It's not like this is a big meeting or anything. No one could have shown up and it wouldn't have made a difference. But, I guess I should go through with the meeting anyway."He lazily picked up a scroll and read through it. Then, he said, "Hopefully today, our letter to the Renascence Guild should have been delivered. The journey by foot could take a few days time at a comfortable rate, so we should expect them here in just that, a few days. When they get here, eh, I guess I'll make them official. What do you guys think? I mean, they are located in the same place as the legendary Fable Guild, and the new Guild Master is a descendant of a Validus Vir, but otherwise, few connections to the old Guild are there."He shuffled papers and then continued. "Honestly, the only reason we should be alert is because Fable, over a hundred years ago, became a Dark Guild. But, if what we've heard is true, there is nothing dark about this Guild. We'll just ask a few questions, get a list of current members, make them official and send them on their way. Should be a simple process really."Jericho took a puff from his pipe and looked out the grand windows into the distance. For a split second, he thought he saw something, but shrugged it off. "Yes, should be simple. I am, however, quite interested in meeting this Elrond Vir."
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Post by Mise™ on Jan 28, 2014 10:42:17 GMT -5
”I should've never delivered that damn letter. And letting that bear go was also a mistake. I could really use some damn bear stew right now.” Jupiter was a lot less enthusiastic about all this than his guild master was. He really did not want to go meet the magic council.From past experiences Jupiter knew that he and authorities did not mix well. He might have felt better to know that Elrond considered him one of his most trusted guild mates if that list didn't also include names Jupiter had never heard before and who had literally joined about five minutes ago. After having packed absolutely nothing, since he is poor and doesn't own anything, Jupiter reluctantly readied for their trip to Era. --- As he watched Elly blow up the first tunnel Aether clapped blissfully, but did not seem to notice all the rubble flying towards him and the others and a few seconds later an unusually pointy piece of the exploded tunnel pierced his tiny head. Aether fell down from the impact, but he did not stay down as only he soon got up and tried to pull the piece out. ”It's stuck.” Aether sounded mildly agitated, but he did not seem hurt, nor was he bleeding, even though this should have killed him. It would seem like he truly was unkillable. Shortly afterwards Aether returned back to happily munching donuts. --- Azriel was caught off guard when Pony Love came asking about bathrooms for ponies. By this point he was already finishing his business at the bathroom and now was flushing it. How did the flushing work? Who knows. It's magic. ”Toilets for ponies? I guess they do exist... Why not? They gotta exist somewhere. Not sure if we got one here though...” --- After his adventures in the magic bathroom the prodigy, Azriel Dominion, had made his way to the meeting room. He was both the newest and the youngest member present and hadn't attended these meetings much before, but he was surprisingly comfortable in there, way more than he should have. Here Azriel listened to the chairman speak, though it wasn't quite clear how well he actually followed the speech, and when Mark was done Azriel spoke: ”Yo. I got a question. What's Fable?”
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Post by newb23 on Jan 28, 2014 13:24:58 GMT -5
Lakin was one of the first to start cheering after Elrond did. Ian quickly pulled Lakin to his seat. “Did you not hear that man? We are going to the Magical Council. You know who will be there,” Ian said. Slowly he took in the people of the guild. After a moment Ian yawned quickly then stood.
“Yeah guess it could be fun. Lakin let’s go find a room with two beds and some fresh clothes maybe.” Without waiting for an answer Ian made his way to the area where rooms were kept. Kicking in the first door Ian was welcomed to the smell of a new room.
Quickly he made his way to the closet. Looked like whoever use to live in it didn’t have time to clean it out. Quickly Ian grabbed the clothes that were located in the closet and dressed himself. Lakin came in shortly after Ian had gotten dressed. Quickly he grabbed some of the clothing as well as some accessories. Without hesitation he dressed as well though he had to quikly sew the outfit so the overhanging portions were now attached to the non overhanging portions.
Coming back down the stairs the two made their way over to Elrond and stood in front of him. They now wore button up shirts though the shirts were untucked and hanging over a pair of orange dress pants. Though Lakin’s fit loosely and he had added some accessories to it as well. A small sheep bag was connected at his waist. The two had also placed back on their hoodies though had removed the arms as they were tattered and beyond saving. Now the hoodies ended at the shoulders, but thanks to Ian’s sewing skills. looked like they were made that way.
Flopping over his head Lakin looked up to Elrond. “Where to now?” he asked excitedly and it was evident he missed some of the speech while eating
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Post by CJ on Jan 28, 2014 23:47:35 GMT -5
Beauty actually growled in frustration when Dofun passively told her to go away.
"Don't tell me what to do!" she barked. "I'll do what I want. If I want to talk to a stupid clown, then I will."
She grunted and pounded her fist against the door, making it rattle and shake.
"But you're right. This is lame. Stay right there. I'll be back."
Some minutes later, stomping and sighing could be heard coming down the hall. A loud noise could be heard as many objects fell to the floor outside Dofun's room.
"I acquired some masks for you until you can fix yours. Pick whatever you want. Elrond wants you and some of the others to go to some Council or something so get to it. I'm out, you freak."
Beauty stomped down the hall, making an incredible amount of noise. Dofun would easily be able to tell when the beast mage had left the hall.
The masks had been stolen from other Renascence members, most of them bought from the Harvest Festival. There was a puppy, kitty and other animals. One mask in particular was very odd. It was undoubtedly Jupiter's face. But who would ever wear such a mask?
---
Briar opened his closet and was shocked to see a very important item of his missing.
"Where did it go?" he asked, digging through his belongings. "WHERE DID MY JUPITER SLEEPING MASK GO?"
---
Qi explained a bit about her magic to Druid. She told him that anyone could use it so long as they had a key and strong enough magic power. One thing she made very important was that she didn't like how the summoner made the contract, not the spirit. Spirits were often abused and tormented by their owners. Sometimes they ended up hurt and injured from battles or staying too long in their world.
She privately thought of one in particular that was bound to the world for a century. Qi was only a child then, hospitalized after falling out of her bedroom window. Her parents and relatives were busy working, so they didn't visit her often. One night, she saw a strange sight outside of her window. It was the man they called Janus, an immortal criminal who terrorized and hurt people. His skin was patched with rashes and his eyes were bloodshot. He whispered and scratched at her window with chipped fingernails.
"Your magic can make the itching go away. Kill me before I hurt people again. Please!"
A nurse screamed and called for help. The man sunk back into the shadows and fled into the night. She would meet the summon again, but it wouldn't be for another twelve years. It was only then that she realized he was a spirit called Monkey, whose psyche and body was warped and twisted by his previous owner's magic.
Qi wanted to change the rules and make it so spirits could break any contract at any time. The only way she felt she could was by going to the Celestial plane herself. But the only way she knew how to do that now was with Achyls's Sand.
The want crawled back into her mind. She craved the power the sand in the jar could provide her. She bit her lip and twiddled her fingers, trying desperately not to think about it. Already she could summon two spirits for a minute or two. It would take a long time but she felt if she could access their plane, she could change their worlds.
She could only hope that if Druid looked into Celestial magic, he would treat spirits with more respect than he showed Sheep that day.
---
Eliza pressed her tiny hands together. Her squinty eyes peered out at the other three.
"If young Elrond is anything like his grandfather, we have nothing to fear. After all, it was not Validus Vir who transformed Fable into a dark guild. It was the summoner, Joan Ruby, and the criminals that took advantage of that great guild after he died."
Pony Love disappeared as Azriel left the bathroom. The youngest of the members would find the oldest waiting for him with the others, seated on her throne of sweets.
"Fable is an old remnant of a time that should be long forgotten," she said with a sad smile. "Don't concern yourself with such things. They make no difference to this world anymore."
---
Apollo's face was pressed against the ground, prepared for the inevitable chaos of Elly's magic. He had been smacked last time and wasn't going to let his beautiful face be damaged.
After it was all over, he smiled, impressed by Elly's abilities. He signaled to Casandra to try and attempt to take the shrapnel out of Aether's skull, but with her tiny little arms, she didn't stand much chance.
Apollo had something he wanted to say, but he obviously couldn't say it without hurting anyone there.
---
Summoned to travel to Era, Qi met up with the others at the entrance. She tried to get out of a squeezing embrace from Cinder, who had come to say goodbye.
"Oh, Xing Qi!" she said, hugging tighter. "I'm so proud of you!"
"I'm proud of us," Qi said with a smile. "The guild's come so far! I'm happy to be a small part of it. Oh, what are those?"
"Letters."
In Cinder's hands were nearly stamped letters. She covered their addresses with her hand and placed them in her dress pocket.
"Letters?"
"To family and friends."
"Oh!" Qi said with a beaming smile. "That is great! I hope Driz and Ana are doing alright."
"Me too," Cinder sighed, looking out onto the plains beyond Elm.
Climbing on top of Sheep, Qi positioned her pack around the summon, as though she was a horse. The summoner would have ridden Horse himself, but the giant looked a bit awkward, naked but for his boxers. She would have walked alongside the others, but her disability would have slowed the others down. She was happy to hold onto her cane, rather than walk with it, and Sheep seemed to be just as happy to be with her.
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Post by Kuro on Jan 31, 2014 16:48:39 GMT -5
"Hello, Jupiter!"
Jupiter would suddenly see his face staring at him with dead, empty eyes atop a horrific clown's body. The strange being stood inches away from him, having leapt into the position from seemingly out of nowhere. He laughed and pointed at the copy of Jupiter's face that he was now wearing as if he had draped a slab of skin and meat over his head. "Isn't this mask great?! I thought that you, of all people would truly appreciate its craftsmanship. Absolutely fan-tabu-wonder-lastic, right?!?"
He looked around, and spoke in what sounded like a voice that wasn't completely overloaded on joy and energy or dripping with sadness. "Say, you...you haven't seen Beauty around, have you? There was something I really wanted to say to her. A thank you of sorts. Hm. I don't see her anywhere. Or hey, maybe i'm just really bad at person-seeing!" His voice went to the happiness it was usually at. "Oh, an official guild! Won't that be fun, Jupiter, won't that be fun? Eh? Eh? Eh? Eh? Eh?!" With each "eh", his mimic face had gotten closer and closer, staring Jupiter right in the eyes with its own soulless and piercing gaze.
spider thighs no say nothing
walk in tunnels and nothing to say
nothing but to wait wait wait wait wait and play quiet game
spider thighs is good at making them quiet
he always lose because other person would be quiet four ever
that is lot of evers
that is not fair
that is cheating
maybe soon he win quiet game this time
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Post by crocoduck-3 on Feb 1, 2014 12:08:26 GMT -5
Druid listened carefully, providing his entire focus onto every word the girl spoke. It'd actually be quite uncomfortable for her, most likely, as he was staring with a fierce intensity without blinking. It was how he looked when he was concentrating, but considering he was concentrating on a person talking to him, and that up until now he had barely acknowledged her existence, it could be a little odd. When Qi finished explaining, Druid went back to basically ignoring her. He sat down right there on the ground and he just thought. He digested the information and considered it carefully, not noticing the buzz of activity occurring around the guild. OOC: About to do some nerdy monologue.
Interesting. There's an entire other dimension where these creatures come from, which immediately supports the theory that this universe we reside in is not the only universe that there is. The existence of spirit summons alone redefines our entire perception of the universe. With this confirmation, so many other theories are destroyed and so many new ones replace it. Perhaps the bubbling multi-verse theory is no longer applicable either, as the bubble theory indicates there's no intersection of universes. Instead, it appears that we're either superimposed on each other, or we occupy the same space and location, but in different dimensions. Yes, that seems more feasible.
Truly, I'd need to get into this spirit universe. Their inhabitants seem to defy the logic of this universe, which leads me to believe it probably has its own physics and natural laws. The interesting thing, however, is how their inhabitants appear to be hybrids of organisms from this world. Or perhaps the organisms of this world are derived from the spirit dimension?
No, impossible. The organisms in this world make evolutionary sense. Their current state can be tracked back to a common ancestor or a particular mutation, whereas these spirit creatures have no tangible way of having come about by evolution.
Unless biology and reproduction exist entirely different as well. In this universe, hybridizations do not occur in such a dramatic way because of how fertilization works. Such different organisms can't simply fuse. Perhaps in the spirit dimension, there is no such barrier and any creature can mate with any other creature, and the resulting offspring is a simple mix of random traits.
Or perhaps, the creatures don't reproduce at all. Perhaps each is made by a creator. Or maybe these "spirit" summons are really that, "spirits." If magic is energy and different humans and organisms possess different amounts of it, perhaps upon death, this energy transpires into different dimensions, including the spirit dimension. What if our universe was also a byproduct of another dimension's dead?
How very intriguing indeed. It was here and now that druid made it a definitive ambition to travel to the spirit kingdom and answer all of his questions. His goal had always been more to understand how this world works, but now it seemed he would get to study the universe(s) as a whole as well. By this time, mages had swarmed in and filled the area and Elrond had begun addressing them all. Druid focused on him, as he was one of the mages he had put on his list. Any guild leader must have a reason for being made guild leader, Druid reckoned, and that reason was usually powerful magic. If Druid were to attempt to gain a better grasp of magic, he thought it wise to associate with those that were more adept at it. Thoughts of the spirit world still lingered as Elrond claimed that this guild would now be travelling to meet the Magic Council. All of these magic council members were on his list as well, so he was slightly interested. What caught him off guard, however, was hearing his name. He had only just joined this group of obnoxious creatures and they were already putting him to work? It was an odd situation for sure, and he'd normally just completely ignore teh invite, but he still had so many more questions to ask. He had so many more things to do, and there was a journey before him that would lead to his encountering several new and powerful forms of magic. So begrudgingly, Druid made his way to the meeting point, not taking a single thing with him. Everything he owned, he carried in his pockets. He needed very little, considering his magic allowed him to turn into any animal when he wanted, which made it so he could survive through basically any environment or situation.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Feb 4, 2014 1:04:42 GMT -5
"Yes, powerful magic. You will certainly come in handy later."
"Uh, heh heh... thanks, I guess. It wasn't that ama- OOF!"
Scratching her head in embarrassment, Elly tried to play off her magical display. It was the first time in well, forever, that someone actually responded positively towards her abilities. Normally she didn't spend enough time in a place to get to know anyone well enough, but the few times when she did, people almost always acted with hostility towards her. Probably due in part to how unpredictable it could be, but either way her ability had always caused trouble for her.
Before Astral's praise could sink in though, the force of his pat on the shoulder did first, causing her to stumble forward a little. Being shook back to reality, she held her arms as she walked after the others, not exactly sure she liked or agreed with what Astral's plans were.
Who the heck is this Asmoday person everyone's on about?
---
Alden fairly heard some commotion coming from downstairs, but he figured it was just the others being loud. That, and he wasn't finished with breakfast. He figured he might give it a look-see later, but for now without any notification, he was busy.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 8, 2014 12:03:23 GMT -5
With the group ready, Elrond was the last to leave the Guild. He waved at all the members, smiling brightly.
"Listen up you guys! Keep the Guild safe, no matter what! When we return, we will officially be the best Guild in all of Fiore! You hear that? So, just wait for us, and we'll be back soon!"
The Guild doors then closed, and Elrond looked at the group he had before him. Qi, Dofun, Jupiter, Asmoday, the old ones, and Druid, Beowulf, Lakin and Ian, and Azealya, the new ones. Together, he was sure that this would be enough to convince the Magical Council just how official they should be.
He paused a moment and turned to look at the clock tower atop the Guild. Alden was there, but he had chosen not to come. Sure, Elrond wanted all the early members to be there, but in the end, it was his choice.
"Alright everyone," he said to the gathered group. "Time to go! Time to fly to Era!"
Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet began to rumble and shake like a big earthquake. A huge crack began to appear in front of the group, and in big jagged movements, it circled around everyone. Then, upon Elrond's command, the giant circular rock broke free from in front of the guild and went flying through the air.
"YEAAAH!" yelled Elrond, the wind blowing all around him. "This is the way to travel! We'll be at Era in no time!"
If someone asked if Elrond knew the way, he'd say he did, but he wouldn't say anymore than that.
---
Azealya didn't expect to be flying to Era, and less so upon a giant rock. So, when the rock began flying through the air, carrying the entire group, Azealya grabbed onto Qi and Sheep, holding on tightly.
"I-I-I don't like heights!"
Still, she kept an eye on Asmoday. Though the young girl looked happy and was laughing as they flew through the air, she knew something wasn't right.
---
While flying to Era, which would take but a few hours, it was a perfect chance for the group to get to know each other, especially the new members with the old.
---
Astral Lance had lead the group through the escape tunnel. It took half a hour of long, hard walking through cold, wet, slippery conditions, but eventually, the group reached a round porthole door.
Astral Lance placed a hand upon the smooth, metal door. Upon the door, one could see concentric rings stretching from the outside, in. "This is the door," he said. "Beyond this is a hallway. We will enter quickly and make our way to the right. At the end of the hall, we'll find a set of double doors, and that is where Mark, Rank 1 of the Magical Council, should be."
And so, without further hesitation, Astral Lance pressed his palm against the center ring of the door. It would glow for a few seconds, and then the door would just vanish. "Let's go."
Quickly, Astral Lance entered the hallway. To his surprise, there were more guards here than usual. He guessed there must have been a meeting going on. Perhaps there would be more than Mark to deal with. There were five guards in total, each readied with a spear and swore.
Gasping at the sudden appearance of the Oracion Seis, the guards pointed and yelled to go alert their higher ups.
"Don't let any of them escape," commanded Astral Lance to the group behind him. "Not a single one."
Some of the guards ran to alert others, while some readied their swords and went to attack the group.
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Post by Mise™ on Feb 8, 2014 14:19:44 GMT -5
The words couldn't describe the horror Jupiter was met with right now, not only did he once again come in contact with the devil himself, but this time instead of the usual horrifying mask the king of hell had stolen Jupiter's own face. He might have been the toughest guy in the town, but there were things that were too much even for Jupiter. ”G-go away!” Jupiter was too horrified by this to actually do anything more than that and even his voice sounded weak, unlike usual. If it had been anyone else they would have gotten beaten up bad, especially the mask's original owner, but Dofun was different. --- A little bit later the group was flying towards Era using Elrond's earth magic. It sure would beat walking, but maybe it wasn't the best form of transportation. ”Man, going to the council sucks. Fun goes to die at that damn place. We'd be better off stayin' unofficial.” --- One way or another Aether had managed to get rid of the tunnel piece stuck in his head and someone might have been able to see a glimpse what is inside his head: nothing. Only thing that could have been seen was an eerie light, other than Aether's head was seemingly hollow. This was only visible for a short amount of time however as the wound closed very quickly. ”Oohh...” Was Aether's reaction as the guards appeared that and some clapping. He seemed quite amused by this, like with everything else. However as usual Aether would not be doing anything, but watching and munching his sweets. Not that he seemed to have any strength what-so-ever, other than being unkillable that is.
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Post by crocoduck on Feb 8, 2014 14:55:02 GMT -5
These were his guild companions? Some of them looked powerful and interesting, such as the girl from earlier with the spirits. He had a lot of plans for her and her spirits, and he could only hope that these other guildmates had a magic that interesting.
What he was currently most interested in was figuring out what this Elrond's magic was. He was the guild master, so surely he had to have interesting magic, right? Eh. Not exactly.
Druid was mildly impressed by the earth cracking around them before rocketing in the air, but he wasn't particularly interested. He looked back as the giant rock flew forth with them all upon it, noticing the giant hole where their current platform had currently been. Elemental magic was a bit boring, too straight forward for Druid's tastes. It was certainly powerful, and it was no great leap to assume that Elrond had great magic reserves and control, judging by the seed ease with which he moved the entire platform with all these people on it.
It just wasn't particularly interesting. The only questions it brought to Druid's mind was if his magic could create earth, and if earth manipulation was all he could do.
With a tinge of disapointment, Druid shifted his focus to the other members as his green magic formed around his face, specifically his eyes and his nose. After a brief moment, his eyes were replaced by two stalk eyes that moved in every direction, and a long snout replaced his nose.
The transformation made his face look quite freaky and disturbing, but as always, Druid couldn't care less about that. Instead, he was focused on the overwhelming amount of sensory input he was receiving. The Silverback snout he had adorned was receiving countless scents from the surrounding area at the same time as his Mantis Shrimp eyes flooded his brain with new colors and visuals that he couldn't even begin to interpret.
Until his brain made the needed transformations as well.
After a brief moment of sensory overload, Druid now managed to grab a hold of what he was sensing. He could smell many scents from over miles away, which made it hard to concentrate, but it was just a matter of focus. He first focused on the more prevalent smells, the ones that were closer. Even then, however, he could smell remnant scents, he could tell what everybody here had eaten or stepped in or showered with. It was all rather distracting, but it was useful in getting a unique scent for all of them.
Meanwhile, perceiving his visuals was just a matter of understanding what he was looking at. The different colors, which he couldn't put into words if he even tried, the almost different dimension, he was seeing something that no other human could even imagine. UV rays, regular color spectrum and more, polar vision. It gave him more information that anybody would normally need, but because of it, Druid was now able to see almost everything, now he had to work on memorizing it.
Which is where the Method of Loci came in. With all this information, he needed a manner with which to memorize it all. This, he accomplished with a human technique as opposed to a magical animal transformation. He visualized a mental shack for each of these mages and set about storing information in each of them.
To obtain that information, he absent mindedly and wordlessly walked up to each of the mages on the platform, staring them up and down with his freakish eyes and sniffing awkwardly in their vicinity, storing the memory of the visual and the associated scent into each person's mental shack, in various different locations within said shack.
He would do this regardless of protests and reactions, working his way from the back of the platform all the way up to the front where Elrond was. By the time he reached the front, he had everyone's unique scent and appearance memorized, allowing for an easy method of identifying and finding them later were anything to happen.
With that done, his face glowed once more before all of his features returned to normal and he looked back at all of the people he had essentially just violated awkwardly, a bland look on his face like nothing strange just happened.
"How far until this place, anyways?" He called out to anybody within earshot. He wanted to begin dissecting the mages present, but wasn't certain how much time he had.
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Post by CJ on Feb 9, 2014 1:45:27 GMT -5
"Whoah! I've never been flown before!" Sheep exclaimed with a happy jump and quick flap of her bat wings. "I'm usually the one doing the flying! Is this what it's like to be human?"
"Ummmm... kind of," Qi laughed. It was incredible how powerful Elrond was. He never ceased to surprise her. It was one thing to have flight magic. It was whole other thing to utilize earth magic to make a gigantic rock fly.
Her head turned to see Dofun standing by Jupiter. The mask on his face... she had seen it before.
---
A few days before, Qi hobbled down a dorm hall. She tapped her cane when she came to a certain door. A slight frown was on her face.
"Briar," she said. "Some of the guild members and I are missing their pillows and Cinder said she saw you with one. Do you know where they could be..."
Opening the unlocked door, the summoner was surprised to see a horde of pillows in the middle of the room Briar shared with three other mages. It was a pyramid of sleep, a throne of fluffy majesty.
Two slipper covered feet stuck out from the bottom of the mass.
"Briar?" Qi asked, stepping toward it.
"I'm not Briar."
At the other end of the fort was a head that poked out from underneath a pillow. Qi beheld the blank, cold stare of the familar face on the mask. She couldn't look away.
"I'm Jupiter."
---
Qi's face remained stuck at it had at that moment some days ago. Her cheeks puffed and her eyebrows furrowed. She liked most of Renascence, but there were some things she would never be able to unsee. She questioned Jupiter ability to function on the most basic level around Dofun and the horrible parody of his face.
"So," she said, turning her stuck face toward Asmoday in a look of smug discomfort, "how are you doing, Asmoday? Are you excited to go to Era?"
Sheep had a constant frown on its face, clearly uncomfortable with Druid's appearance. Her master was too disturbed by Dofun to notice, but the Sheep felt ill simply looking at him. She let out a tiny fart of fear that might only be smelled by Druid.
---
As the guards charged, Apollo stepped abruptly in front of Astral Lance. He held his pinky up to the woman he had brought with him. She clicked her heels and turned to the group with a stern look.
"Don your earplugs. My master wishes to speak."
The Oracion Seis didn't have much time to react before the siren opened his mouth.
Apollo's voice was an incredible force. To those with earplugs, a beautiful melody could be heard, though the lyrics would be unrecognizable. It would be very tempting to pull out the plugs to hear the song more clearly, especially for those weaker in magic and will than the siren. They would feel a harmless vibration passing through their bodies, hinting at a deadly ability if Apollo were to alter his volume, pitch or something otherwise. Secretly, he hoped Spider Thighs didn't bother with earplugs. Unfortunately for Apollo, the horror would likely only be dazed. The worst that could happen to any of them was that they would obey Apollo's order, which wasn't all that much different than what they were initially doing.
"You will obey me and these folks behind me," he said. "There will be no objections."
If he was successful, all guards within hearing range would either be stunned or under their control.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Feb 10, 2014 15:39:57 GMT -5
"Yes master, whatever you say..."
Elly moved to stand by Apollo, large twirling spirals in her eyes as she swayed a little in a dizzy fashion. Clenched in her hands were a pair of earplugs that she wasn't fast enough to use, though by now she didn't even seem to realize. Instead, she appeared to be wholly content with obeying and not objecting.
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