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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 10, 2014 12:13:10 GMT -5
Celeste Chase watched with somber eyes as Elrond and the rest of the chosen Guild flew away on a huge chunk of flying rock to Era, and to meet with the Magical Council, leaving her alone.
Though she might feel that way, she most certainly wasn't alone. Turning around, she saw just how many people were in the guild, dozens and dozens, at least fifty. They were all different, all unique in their own ways, and she wondered just how well she would be able to fit in. She quickly began to miss Qi, for she felt she could connect best to that mage.
And the pressure to keep the Guild safe was another thing all on its own. There were no leader figures in the Guild now. There were no older members, no S-Ranks, no Vice Guild Master. Everyone were absolute rookies.
So, she decided now was the best time as ever to start trying to fit in. With numbers, perhaps there was protection. So, she went over to Cinder, the closest one to Qi around, and nervously started a conversation.
"So, how do you know Qi?" she asked, twiddling her fingers.
---
Elsewhere in the Guild, Felipe the Bird and Groundhorn were arm wrestling on a table that started to crack and splinter. Neither looked like they were ready to give in, though it appeared Groundhorn had a slight edge on the birdman.
---
In the kitchen of the Guild the chefs had finished cooking the breakfast and were now retiring to either their rooms or the main hall to relax. It was there in the kitchen that Jackson McClean was viciously scrubbing the floors.
"It usually never takes this long to clean these darn floors," he muttered to himself. He had cleaned the Guild many times before, and usually it would almost appear that they'd clean themselves. But this time, the grease stuck closer to the pans and the dirt clung to the floor as if it were magnetized.
---
Miranda Grimes had the dreary duty to go up to the clocktower. Just before Elrond left, she had asked the woman if she could go and rouse up Alden, and perhaps he could catch up with the other mages. She really didn't feel like it, but she guessed that it was as close to a mission as she'd get for now.
So she climbed the stairs and stopped at the dooor of the clocktower. She knocked on it a couple of times. "Alden, you still in there? You do know the rest of your pals are gone already, right? They wanted me to give you a message!"
---
What perhaps none of that mages might know exactly is that if they looked out the window, they would no longer see the town of Elm down the path, nor the cliffside overlooking the wide ocean, nor the blue sky above stippled with clouds, nor the forests in the distance or the mountains further than that. No, for if anyone looked out a window or a door, they'd see nothing but a white, empty void.
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Post by CJ on Feb 10, 2014 15:45:01 GMT -5
"Oh, hello Celeste."
Cinder looked up from a fashion magazine, seated on the luxurious purple couch she had brought into the main hall from her dorm.
"I met Qi when she was still studying to be an accountant. Even as a grade schooler she was studying that stuff, but we managed to find time to talk in school. We've been friends since then."
Her finely trimmed eyebrow twitched, realizing her baby blue dress underneath her clear glass armor was nearly identical to Celeste's dress. She tried to maintain her composure, feeling absolutley ashamed to share an outfit with someone in the same room.
"Why do you ask?"
---
"Come on, Felipe! You can take him!"
Beauty grinned wildly, leaning on the cracked table as it sank lower and lower under the weight of Felipe the Bird and Groundhorn.
---
Briar looked up from searching his belongings, noticing that something was very odd about the sky. It was white, though there were no clouds to be seen. He moved his long black hair out of his face and looked out of it.
There was nothing. Absolutely nothing.
"I must be dreaming," he whispered, "which means..."
His eyes sparkled as he pressed his hands to the sides of his cheeks.
"I FELL ASLEEP."
After loosening his long wild hair from a ponytail, the spindle user sprinted into the guild hall. The widest, happiest smile came over his face.
"You guys! I finally fell asleep! I did it! You're all part of my dream!"
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Feb 10, 2014 16:37:31 GMT -5
"Alden, you still in there? You do know the rest of your pals are gone already, right? They wanted me to give you a message!"
There was the sound of the lock being kicked loose, and eventually the trapdoor was lifted open with a foot. Standing in the room above, Alden leaned down with a plate in one hand, a bottle of milk in the other and a bagel hanging out of his mouth. His face was rather expressionless, as though he hadn't even heard what she said.
"Hwhat."
---
Washing through one of the doors to the kitchens, a large cube of water began to flow into the room, followed by Fathom in the old diving suit contained therein. Floating about in the water amidst the various fish, were a number of plates and utensils, probably picked up from the main hall.
Slowly traipsing over to one of the sinks, the diver began to channel water torrents to cast the plates out of the water block and into the sink, with a degree of success. Surprisingly they were not broken, and the mage must have been used to this kind of fine manipulation with their power.
Of course they noticed Jackson on the way in, but it didn't seem like he needed any help or other, at the moment.
---
Maisie sat on the main stage as before, though she was more or less done playing for now, simply messing around with some random chords and humming what seemed to be a work in progress to herself.
At about that time though, Alden came down the spiral stairs to the main hall, breakfast free. He didn't appear completely dressed yet, and was busy affixing his cloak as he descended.
"Did they say where they were going? And, what was the message they wanted you to give me?"
Looking about to make sure he was not being pranked, Alden reached the end of the stairs and paced through the main hall by the tables. He noticed some of the other mages milling about though for the most part the place had largely cleared out. This was also the case, with the other older members, seeming to confirm what Miranda said.
He did not suspect that had up and disappeared for no reason, but that they all left so suddenly, he had some small concerns at least.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 10, 2014 19:43:29 GMT -5
When it looked like Groundhorn was going to win the arm wrestle, Felipe the Bird suddenly KAWED as loud as possible and pecked at Groundhorn's hand with the tip of the beak on his bird hat. In the midst of the confusion, Felipe the Bird then slammed his hand down on the table, smashing it into pieces.
Felipe then jumped into the air, flying through the room.
"Hey, that's not fair!" yelled Groundhorn. "You totally just cheated! Not fair, not fair!"
Felipe the Bird laughed as he flew in circles above the hall. However, not a second later, Felipe came crashing down into the ground, breaking through a couple of tables and chairs.
"That's what you get!" added Groundhorn.
Felipe, confused, sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "WHAT? HEY WHAT? WHY I NO FLY? WHY I NO FLY?"
---
Jackson McClean saw Fathom pass by, but he was much more interested in something very weird happening on he floor. Usually, Jackson didn't need to find soap and water to clean the floor; he could create his own. But for some very odd reason, whenever he'd push his hand along the dirty floor, not a speck of soap would appear.
"Something isn't right," he quickly determined, and he stood up, left the kitchen, and entered the main hall.
---
Miranda walked own the stairs too, to the main hall, where she saw Briar run past, yelling that he was in a dream.
"Sure you are," she muttered, rolling her eyes. Looking over at Alden, she mutterd, "Kid's got more screws loose than the clown does."
When Alden asked about he message Elrond left, Miranda quickly explained. "I don't know, they said they were going to some city where the Magical Council live, I think Era. They're going to become official or something. They wanted you there with them, but they're long gone now. Don't know how you'd catch up."
---
Celeste smiled as Cinder spoke. "Since a young age I've also been involved in magic," she answered. "I love learning more about it, trying to enhance my skill. Though I hope one day to be just as an amazing mage as she is, I still have a lot to learn."
Celeste pulled one of the many magical wands she held on her hip. She waved it through the air and small snowflakes appear.
"These wands have innate magic," she said. "Each can do a different thing."
It was then that Jackson noticed Celeste's spectacle. He ran up to the girl and asked how she was using her magic. "I can't use my magic!" he said.
Felipe, hearing what was going, lifted his head out of the rubble. "FELIPE THE BIRD CANNOT EITHER! WHY CAN GIRL USE MAGIC AND I CAN NOT!"
Celeste, confused, put her wand away just as a few other random mages began yelling from the large windows in the hall about something being seriously wrong. Celeste looked that way as the curtains were raised, and to her confusion and fear, she saw nothing but a white, empty void.
"W-what is going on?" she asked.
It was at this point that all of the mages within the Guild would slowly start to notice that their innate magical abilities were starting to fail, and eventually, vanish completely. It seemed like magical items still worked, but all other magic had mysteriously disappeared.
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Post by CJ on Feb 11, 2014 0:46:44 GMT -5
"Yeah!" Beauty shouted, rocking back on her seat as the table fell apart. It didn't matter that Felipe cheated. The fight was still awesome.
She blinked, watching the bird mage crash after a short flight. Looking about, she came to the realization that no one was able to use their magic. She felt at her head, perhaps to see if her beast horns really wouldn't appear at her all.
"Of course you guys can't use magic," Briar laughed at the others. "It's a dream. Surely you can't use magic inside of a dream! You're not even real!"
"You're not dreaming, weirdo," Beauty growled. "I'd know if I was fake or not."
"This is incredible," he said, ignoring Beauty. "I haven't slept since I was a baby, when I was cursed to never sleep again. Now I... my eyes feel heavy. What's wrong with... my... eyes?"
Briar's eyelids flickered and his head fell forward. His legs caved in and he collapsed on the floor. Sighing, he went limp as he suddenly drifted to sleep. In the chaos of it all, the spindle user found what he had been looking for his entire life in the oddest of places. His curse, for once, was gone.
His trademark spindle stuck out of his jacket pocket. When it pricked Briar's finger, it subjected him to the will of anyone nearby. He could spin any non-living substance into thread, even magic itself, but needed someone to command him.
---
Cinder frowned, deeply concerned with what Celeste was saying.
"My dear Qi is a wonderful friend," she said, "but why do you admire her? She is not an amazing mage by any means, just lucky to find her summoning keys when she did."
Her tone wasn't malicious, but the glass-make mage didn't seem to find Qi very impressive. She held her breath as mages about her came to the discovery that their magic wasn't working. She snapped her fingers, expecting a pretty glass sculpture to appear, but like the others, nothing happened.
"Did you do that?" Cinder asked Celeste with cold, untrusting eyes. "Did you make all magic disappear with your wand? What is going on here?"
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"Hey," Beauty said, lightly kicking Briar on the floor, "you feeling OK?"
Looking to Alden, she gritted her teeth and crossed her arms. She sat on the edge of a long table seat and propped her feet up on Briar's unconscious form.
"Alden, what's going on here? You're the member with the most experience here. You're the best one to lead us right now... I think."
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Feb 12, 2014 0:30:00 GMT -5
"I don't know, they said they were going to some city where the Magical Council live, I think Era. They're going to become official or something. They wanted you there with them, but they're long gone now. Don't know how you'd catch up."
"Era... isn't that the capital of this country? No wait, that's Crockiss."
This became a problem suddenly for Alden, not because the others had left, but because he wasn't exactly sure where they had left to. Being a foreigner, simple knowledge about Fiore off the top of his head, was not his forte. He had been around the country to a fair extent, but actually remembering and knowing about the places, he always left to other people.
"Era... Era..."
He turned the name over and over in his mind, in the hopes of remembering, as he made his way through the hall.
---
From beneath the kitchen doors, anyone paying any attention might notice a small flood of water come washing out from under, accompanied by what sounded like a surprised scream coming from inside a large diving suit.
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Hearing all the commotion, Stanley entered into the main hall to see what was up. He only made it a little ways though, before the animate chair he was riding on suddenly locked up and broke to pieces beneath him. Rising to his feet, he looked at the bits about him, and then to no one in particular.
"I can't drive."
---
Masie as opposed to the others, didn't seem worried all that much. She hadn't really a need of her magic at the moment, so learning that people's magic was failing, wasn't so dire a threat to her. If anything, she found the situation to be rather interesting and it made her terribly curious.
Adventure and mystery weren't the primary reasons she joined the guild, but she found herself enjoying them nonetheless. For now, she stopped playing, and sat contentedly as she carefully observed the others with a high degree of interest.
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"Alden, what's going on here? You're the member with the most experience here. You're the best one to lead us right now... I think."
"Yeah hold on a minute..."
Amidst the panic, Alden didn't personally step up to the plate, but it seemed the others may have wanted him to. Honestly, a darker part of him found the situation to be quite amusing, all the magical sorts running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Whatever was causing all of this, he had half a mind to see if it could be replicated for later use.
For now though, while he didn't step up to take command, he did aim to help the others. Whether he was suited to do so because he lacked any magic potential himself, or because he was the most senior person there, was up to the others to decide. The mage hunter himself though, steadily paced towards the front entrance to the building, drawing the rifle from his back. Upon reaching the door, he cracked an aether-lock round and chambered it, ready to fire.
"Era... Era..."
Assuming nothing stopped him, he went to open the door, and fire the round into the white void. He had an idea of what was going on, and the first thing was to check for the possibility that the white expanse could be effected, plain for everyone there to see as he did. Depending on what happened after that, he had more than once course of action planned out.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 12, 2014 20:13:14 GMT -5
Hearing Beauty ask Alden what was going on and what they should do, Celeste realized that there was still one last senior member here. If anyone knew what to do, perhaps it was him. Still, it was curious how innate magic was fading, but items still worked, like her elemental wands and all of Alden's tools. When Alden opened the door to prepare to fire a round into the white void beyond, Celeste approached, just enough to see, but not too close to be a bother. Joining her, a small crowd of mages formed. From Felipe the Bird to Groundhorn to Jackson McClean to Miranda, they were all there to watch and see just what would happen. Then, Alden fired. The bullet would leave the barrel and quickly vanish into the white. Everyone was silent, quietly listening, wondering what had happened, what was going to happen. And then, murmurs. Sounds, voices that came from far in the distance. It quickly grew louder and louder until it was clear that it was yelling, like a crazed mob! "Well that don't sound good," muttered Miranda, leaning against a post, her eyes focused outside the front door. Then, the entire guild leaned to one side, creaking and groaning at the stress. Celeste fell on her face, sliding down the floor before grabbing onto a post for stability. As soon as it leaned to one side, however, it leaned back to the other before finally settling straight once more. The yelling outside was growing louder and louder by the second.
"FELIPE NO LIKE! FELIPE NO LIKE!"
"W-wait a minute," muttered Miranda, who was flat against a window. "S-something's out there!"What everyone thought was a white void then, miraculously cleared away, for it was never a white void. It was a cloud. Te clouds rushed to either side of the Guild, which was traveling at quite a high speed, and revealed not the cliff side they were familiar with, but an entire city flying in the sky upon huge floating rocks. The buildings sitting upon the floating rocks were tall and angular, with long wide windows, while other buildings were short and made of squares that looked like they were haphazardly stacked upon one another. Huge twisting castles took up entire floating islands, while other islands were so large they contained entire towns and cities. Connecting some islands were long brides, while many flying zeppelins and airships dotted the sky, flying long flags. If anyone chose to look down, they'd see that the Guild had not been 'floating' but actually had been precariously sitting upon a rather wide airship. Below the airship was a complicated docking system with a large group of people, the source of the yelling everyone had heard earlier. Some had guns, others had swords, but they all looked angry as they yelled up at the airship the Guild was floating on. "Get outta here! We don't want anything to do with you! You've hurt us enough!" This was just some of the complaints coming from the angry mob. Celeste could not believe her eyes. Looking down at the people, then up at the sky where giant floating planets sat, she realized just where she was, and everything made sense. "I know why our magic isn't working," she muttered, scooting away from the windows and the angry crowds. "We're in Edolas!"Edolas. It was a dimension separate to Fiore. A place where mages of Fiore's magic failed them. But exactly how the Guild of Renascence got there, and just how they'd get back home, that was the real mystery. OOC: Click for reference |
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Post by CJ on Feb 16, 2014 23:25:45 GMT -5
"Eh-doe-lass?" Beauty barked. "What the hell is that? And why doesn't it make our magic work?"
Hearing muffled screams from the kitchen, she opened the door to be greeted with wet feet and the sight of a stranded scuba diver on the floor.
"Ehhhhh... hey, Fathom. I know you're freaking out. Everyone else is too. We need to calm down and find a way out of here as safe and secure as we- AWUGH!"
Beauty nearly fell over, seeing Briar suddenly sleep walking behind her. When she last kicked him, the spindle picked his left pinky, forcing him into his infamous trance. He followed her with the spindle in hand, as she was the last person he was in contact with, ready to obey her every command, though she didn't understand this.
"Freaky Briar, can't even sleep right! Come on, Fathom. Take my hand, we're getting to a safer place."
She lied. There was no way to know what this place was or why their magic didn't work. She found most of Renascence's mages to be annoying, including but not limited to Fathom and Briar, but she figured if she ever was in danger, she would want their help.
---
"What is this Edolas?" Cinder asked Celeste with crossed arms. "Seems like you're the only one who knows what's going on. Care to explain?"
Unsurprisingly, the glass mage didn't trust Celeste. It wasn't the first time Cinder accused Renascence mages of suspicious behavior. She didn't think the situation to be very amusing, considering the frightened reactions of the mages around her.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Feb 17, 2014 23:46:44 GMT -5
Some of the others wandered back inside to do what they would, but Alden remained near the opened main doors, still looking out at this new land. Slowly he scanned, one side of horizon to the other.
"Huh... Edolas."
Moving a toothpick around his mouth, he gave one last glance downward before he turned back to the building and began his walk through the hall to the stairs. He wasn't sure what was going on, or what the deal with this Edolas place was, but the angry mob told him everything he needed to know already. On the way to the stairs he spoke aloud, but to no one person in particular, just anyone who cared to listen.
"Five minutes! Get everything you need, your essentials, and meet me by the front doors in five minutes. The locals don't seem happy to see us, and while the building can handle whatever they throw at it, I'm not waiting around to find out. We move fast, we move light, and we find a better place to hold up while we get to the bottom of things."
A little ways up the stairs he stopped, pressing his hands on the rails as he spoke down, feeling the need to further address something. He was not the guild master, he was not even a mage. He had an obligation to help the others, perhaps more than ever now that they didn't have their powers, but he certainly wasn't going to put his life on the line for any of them.
"You don't have come with me, I'm not in charge. If we stay here though, I can't guarantee our safety. Five minutes!"
With that, he proceeded up the stairs to the clock tower, not only to gather his basic belongings but also perhaps to see if he could get a better look from up high as to where they could go upon leaving the guild.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 18, 2014 11:59:24 GMT -5
Celeste grew restless when suspicion was put down upon her by Cinder. She was just as confused as everyone else.
"Edolas," said Celeste, "is where I was born. It's like, uhm, another world, like how Qi's spirits are from their own world. But in this world, magic doesn't work like it does back at home. Humans," she placed a hand on her chest, "do not have magic! Magic is stored in items, like my wands!"
She pulled out another wand off her belt and it began to glow. "How we got here though, and just why those guys down there are yelling at us... I don't have a clue!"
Tears were already forming in her eyes. She was scared and confused and more than anything just wanted to be on stable ground. Peeking over the edge of the doorway, she saw the large airship from which the Guild sat upon, but as the airship tilted again, so did the Guild, and Celeste scooted backwards for safety.
It was then that Alden alerted that they'd have to leave the Guild. Leave the Guild!? Elrond had left it up to them to keep this Guild safe! But sitting atop a very unstable airship and having an angry crowd at the docks was something that forced their decision. They had to leave.
"I-I'm sorry," muttered Celeste, as if this was somehow her fault. She quickly ran to her room, gathered a backpack of some necessities, made sure she had all her wands, then made her way back to the main hall where the other mages were gathered.
There, Felipe the Bird, unable to fly, stood at the windows peering down at the angry mob next to McClean. Miranda sat on a bench, her legs crossed. She had nothing to carry with her, no real possessions.
"Oi, girl," called Miranda to Celeste. "You know this world, right? Where can we go to get out of here?"
"I don't know!" called Celeste. "I was born here, but... I don't really have any memories. We just have to trust the seniors. Trust Alden."
Elrond would understand, she thought to herself. He would understand.
Groundhorn, however, had no intention of leaving. He sat firmly in the center of the guild, his arms crossed across his chest. "I will not leave!" he yelled. "I will protect my strong Guild! I will not leave!"
---
At the top of the clock tower, if Alden looked outside, he would probably be able to see the docks below. There, he might notice that a few of the mobs had actually started throwing lighted molotovs at the airship upon which the Guild precariously sat. Once the explosions started, the airship began to tilt at such an extreme angle that it threatened to throw everyone inside out of the Guild.
However, he might also notice a second airship, one much, much smaller, roughly the size of the Guild's Main Hall. It looked like a raft with ropes on every corner wrapped around a large, orange, oval balloon and painted upon the balloon was a symbol of the moon, a large white circle with black dots representing craters.
This airship quickly pulled in close to the clock tower, so close that Alden could practically reach out the window and touch it. Then a woman came running to the edge of the airship with amazing speed and agility, peering inside the clock tower.
"I thought I saw you in there!" yelled the woman. She was tall and fit, with short red hair. She wore a long green cloak and leather clothing behind that. In age, she appeared a late teen. "Alden, that's you right!? What the heck are you doing here? You know it's dangerous!"
The woman looked down and could see the Guild resting atop the airship. "Man, I have more questions than one for you, but first things first. We gotta get you out of there! Are there others? We have plenty of room on the ship, but we have to hurry. Those conformists," she pointed at the angry crowd hauling molotovs their way, "aren't going to let us sit around forever ya know!"
She reached out a hand for Alden to take. If perhaps Alden looked confused at the woman, she'd say, "Did you hit your head or something? My name Ruby! Xin Qi Ruby! Now let's go!"
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Post by CJ on Feb 19, 2014 13:41:19 GMT -5
"You are most certainly joking!" Cinder exclaimed to Celeste, pressing her hand to her glass armored chest. "How could we possibly believe you? This place can not be a different world."
Her glass slippers clicked against the floor as she approached the Edolas native.
"I do not believe you are telling the whole truth. Do not take me for a fool. You waited until Guildmaster Elrond and the others were gone so you could steal away this guild to some bizarre location and keep it for yourself!"
---
"You heard our glorious leader," Beauty said with a sarcastic smirk. "Everyone, out!"
She would drag Fathom out of the kitchen if necessary. As nervous as she was, she wouldn't bring herself to break down and cry. She believed she had the spirit of a beast, even if she couldn't turn into one now.
Jumping onto a table, she called out to the others.
"I need someone to help with some of the members who aren't used to being without magic!"
At that instant, Briar lifted his head, recognizing a command. He turned about and extended the spindle toward the other mages.
"Fairy's Spindle: Protective Thorns," he whispered coldly.
A thread would break apart from each of the mage's shirt or other clothing. They would then find themselves levitating like a balloon, bound to Briar's spindle by their threads of their clothes, glowing in a soft pink light. Some of them protested and squirmed about, but found they could not release themselves.
"Whoah," Beauty said with wide eyes, "that's pretty freaky. Never do that to me. Ever."
Briar nodded and continued his strategy, swiping up mages throughout the room until there was one final person remaining. Groundhorn.
Extending the spindle toward the rhino man, he prepared to capture his ragged clothing in the spell with the others.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on Feb 20, 2014 23:13:48 GMT -5
Alden had plenty to busy himself with while gathering up his stuff, but when the opaque outline of the airship neared the tower, he opened one of the glass panels. When he saw who it was, he became very suspicious, and sort of tuned out. No longer was he really paying attention to what was being said, but more on what he could discern with his eyes. This stranger's appearance, the use and design of the airship, anything he could really.
"Did you hit your head or something? My name Ruby! Xin Qi Ruby! Now let's go!"
It took him a second to piece that last bit together, but against his better judgement, he slapped his helmet on his head.
"Ok, but not up here! Down, the main entrance, I'll meet you down there!"
Calling out over the winds, airship, and angry mob, he hefted a small bag over his shoulder and with his shield on his back he made his way downstairs.
---
The various mages responded in their own ways to being strung up.
Stanly looked utterly defeated, hanging as he was, "I can't drive like this."
Fathom struggled in vain, muffled cries of anger emanating from somewhere within the old diving suit.
Maisie meanwhile, didn't seem all that perturbed, and if anything was rather excited at what all was going on. A bit worried to be sure at all the danger, but excited nonetheless. She was thankful at least, she had managed to get the bare necessities into her luggage case, and seemed quite ready to go with her guitar across her back. "What will happen to the building after we leave though?"
---
Once he reached the ground floor, one of the first things he noticed was Cinder being a bitch as usual. He made his approach, hand resting visibly on his sword.
"Last time you accused someone of something, you got off easy. But I'm not Elrond; try that here, now, and I'll do what should have been done the last time."
That was about as much a response as he cared to deign Cinder with at the moment, and proceeded past towards the main entrance again. As he went he called to the others.
"Everyone who's coming with, follow me... and get ready to jump, things could get pretty rough here."
He didn't step fully outside yet, but he leaned out to look for Qi and the airship. Hopefully she had some sort of ramp or ladder the guild could use to safely board, though it was possible they might have to jump aboard. And then, even if she did have a means of boarding, they had to take into account the angry mob and the altitude conditions. It might be that climbing some ladder or crossing a gangplank might not be safely feasible, so jumping could in that case, be the only option.
Either way he waited, ready to board when the time came, though he would wait till he was the last one. Once everyone else coming with was safely on board, then he would follow; his responsibility as the most senior member.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 21, 2014 16:43:26 GMT -5
Though Qi was still clearly confused at what was going to with Alden, she nodded at his command. "More down below, eh? Fine, fine! Just hurry it up!" Qi pulled away from the side of the airship and jumped back to the center of the deck. Alden might have heard Qi yell to start firing the canons as the airship zoomed lower, circling around the large balloon where the Guild sat.
It took less than a minute for the airship to align itself with the large double doors of the Guild. With the doors open, Qi pulled a lever and a large docking plank flipped upwards, matching the base of the double doors. It wasn't the most stable crossing, but it should do the trick.
"Come on, everyone!" yelled Qi amongst the sounds of cannon fire. Peering inside the Guild, she raised an eyebrow. "I don't recognize most of these guys... Are they rebels, Alden? Always the type to find more to fight the cause, eh?"
Someone from further into the airship yelled that they couldn't keep the angry mob at bay for much longer, so Qi yelled, "Last chance! Board now or go down with the ship!"
---
Celeste couldn't believe that Cinder was accusing her of all of this. She remembered rumors she had heard of Cinder doing the same kind of accusations to Asmoday, but Celeste never believed the rumors. Cinder never appeared to be that type of woman, but now...
Then, Alden showed up along with the airship right outside the door. "Who's she?" asked Celeste, confused, but she guessed since Alden was trusting her, they had to as well. There weren't many more options.
"I'll go first!" yelled McClean. He jumped past Alden, ran across the walkway, and landed face first onto the airship where Qi looked down at the man with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, we know what position you'll have back at central," muttered Qi.
Felipe ran across next, flapping his arms as if he were flying.
Next was Miranda. She had heard Maisie's question about the Guild. Miranda shrugged. "Hey, we've only been members for like, a month? After all, what would Elrond want? Us to die with this old building or to fight another day? I know what choice I'm making." And with that, she ran across the plank to the airship.
A large amount of other background mages also took the chance to board the ship while they could, though there were still some preparing their bags and trying to take all their belongings.
"It's as if you found an entire Guild, Alden!" called Qi, watching as one after another mage boarded her airship.
Celeste was ready, but she found it difficult to leave the Guild. However, she didn't have much of a chance to object as Briar's strange magic picked her up and would eventually place her on the board leading into the airship.
"T-thank you," squeaked Celeste to Qi. Qi put a hand on her head for some type of comfort.
Celeste turned back around. There were still members inside the Guild, and one caught her eye the most: Groundhorn. He was standing on both his feet, pulling away at Briar's magic with all his might. Where others might have not been able to free themselves from Brair's grip, Groundhorn was different. He, and perhaps most of the rest of the Guild, saw him as one of the physically strongest mages. He never had magic to fight. Just his own body.
So, with all his might, he stood his ground until Briar would eventually give up.
"I will never... leave my Guild!"
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Post by CJ on Feb 24, 2014 11:23:28 GMT -5
"Excuse me for being a little concerned," Cinder snapped at Alden. "I might have been wrong about Asmoday, but I can't think of any other reason this happened. Someone is to blame. We'd be better watching Celeste carefully and be wrong about her than have her accomplish whatever she meant to do in our ignorance."
She huffed and waltzed across the walkway. Her glass armor shimmered in the sunlight. Her new flawless face wrinkled, seeing who was waiting for them.
"You can not be," she muttered. The woman looked so much like Qi, yet she wasn't her at all. Was it some kind of cousin of hers she wasn't aware of?
Either way, if this woman was related to Qi, then maybe Celeste was wrong. Maybe this wasn't Edolas or another world after all.
"Who are you?"
---
Groundhorn and the magic spindle were stuck in a draw. The item rattled and shook in Briar's hand, trying to lift Groundhorn off the ground and send him with the others. The mage audibly groaned as his head fell forward toward the spindle.
"Briar, stop."
The spindle's magic ceased, dropping all of the mages in its grasp without warning onto the floor of the airship. Beauty barely caught Briar as he fell back into his deep sleep, still freed from the curse of their world that kept him awake. She slung him onto her shoulder with some difficulty, not being able to use her beast magic to add to her strength. He was light enough not to cause any terrible burden, but she lamented having to carry the annoying mage.
"Groundhorn, your Guild isn't here. They're out there on that flying contraption."
Beauty was pissed and tired from consoling Dofun and Briar. She wanted desperately to abandon Groundhorn, but knew she'd never forgive herself if she did.
"I couldn't care less about some stupid building. Still, I get this place has value for you and others. But if you die here, you won't be able to protect the others. We need your strength to overcome this trial. Get your freaking act together and let's go."
She extend her hand to him with a snarl.
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Post by Hitotsumami on Feb 26, 2014 0:18:27 GMT -5
While Celeste hid in the crowd of Renascence mages, Qi was still standing at the edge of the bridge, hurrying along any final members who wished to board. She eyed Cinder, not recognizing the woman.
It made since that Cinder would ask just who this was, however. Though she resembled Qi, she was tall and had no ailments associated with the young mage.
"What's that?" asked Qi. "My name? It's Ruby. Xin Qi Ruby. Who I am? Well, that's another question." Qi smirked, though with all the canons going off and the crowd still screaming from the docks it certainly didn't seem like a time to be bragging. "Alden must have found you to help our cause, right? Then surely you've heard of me. Ruby of Arc! I'm the Vice Captain of the First Branch of the Caelus Rebllion Army! I'm sure you'll make a fine soldier!"
Suddenly, one of the men on the docks below brought out a bazooka and shot it off at the huge balloon where the Renascence Guild sat perched upon.
"But you won't get that chance unless we get the hell outta here! Hurry it up in there! Get in now or we're leaving without you!"
---
Inside the Guild, Groundhorn couldn't believe what he was hearing from Beauty. His body told him to hold his ground, like he always had, but his heart was telling him something different. This was just a structure. Just wood and nails. Just wood... and nails.
"DAMN IT!" yelled Groundhorn, slamming his fists into the floor of the building. He reached a hand inside the newly made hole and ripped out part of the guild: A short part of one of the beams with a few nails sticking out of it.
"Just wood and nails, just wood and nails!" grumbled Groundhorn, standing to his feet. He shoved the part of the Guild into his pants and then grabbed Beauty's outstretched arm. Pulling her along, he ran at top speed towards the Guild doors, clenching his eyes closed tightly.
"JUST WOOD AND NAILS!" Then he jumped from the Guild and landed hard onto the deck of Qi's airship with enough force to shake it.
And it was good that he did, for just at that second Qi commanded the ship's captain to set sail for the skies! With that, Qi's airship pulled away from the Guild, raising the boardwalk as it did. Angry men and women on the docks continued to yell and fire shots, but it was clear that the airship was going to get away.
However, the same could not be seen for the Guild. The molotovs had burned the airship where the Guild sat to the point of no return. It crumbled in ash and flames and fell from the sky into the milky white void below and the Renascence Guild, which had always found its home upon the cliff side overlooking the small town of Elm vanished with it, gone from view forever.
Groundhorn stood on the deck, tears streaming down his face as the Guild vanished. He pulled out the wood and nails, all that remained of Renascence. "At least Elrond..." he muttered, "can have this!"
Qi, on the other hand, had paid no attention to the Guild nor appeared to care that much either. No, she had other questions which she desperately wanted answered. She leaned against the open railing and looking straight at Alden, she said, "Now, Alden, Captain of the 2nd Branch of the Caelus Rebllion Army, mind explaining what exactly is going on?"
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