[h3][center][color=#BD3EC2]N[/color][color=#B344C2]o[/color][color=#AA4BC2]x[/color] [color=#9759C3]A[/color][color=#8E60C4]l[/color][color=#8467C4]i[/color][color=#7B6EC5]g[/color][color=#7275C5]n[/color][color=#687CC6]m[/color][color=#5F83C6]e[/color][color=#5589C7]n[/color][color=#5F83C6]t[/color] [color=#7275C5]C[/color][color=#7B6EC5]e[/color][color=#8467C4]r[/color][color=#8E60C4]e[/color][color=#9759C3]m[/color][color=#A052C3]o[/color][color=#AA4BC2]n[/color][color=#B344C2]y[/color][/center][/h3] [sub][@Rtron],[@Lucius Cypher], [@May], & [@Luna][/sub] Helena was glad for the cease is shifting walls and floors, but she was still not very excited to be where they were. She followed along near the rear of the group, keeping pace easily despite her shorter legs, but she was used to following along after much taller men. “C’mon c’mon,” she kept muttering as she looked back over her shoulder in the darkness to see if there was anything behind them. She wanted to never see that beast again and she was praying to whatever god felt like listening that they wouldn't. But somehow, she figured that wouldn't actually work in her favor. Shortly though, they came to something. And just one look into the room made her question if it was actually a better outcome than if they had to keep running from the Nitemare. Her hand held her knife tighter and she scanned the room quickly to see if there were any other ways out that didn't involve going by the figure with the eerie aura. “Who is that?” she asked quietly to those nearby her, hoping they knew more than her about the Nox, because she was sadly under informed about the whole thing. Once everyone entered, the doorway in their wake immediately sealed shut. Shadow and darkness swirled into the opening, blackening it completely, before it became completely solid. When touched, it felt like living flesh and even quivered at the contact. It gave an unsettling sensation. At Helena’s question, the masked figure looked at her. He seemed to be smiling underneath. Casually he stepped from the crystal toward the seven flies that had made it to his web and welcomed them with a gravelly voice, “I see you’ve arrived at the heart of the Nox.” His arms raised to indicated this place was their original goal and their way out. Rotating slightly toward his left, he seemed pleased with the fact and continued, “Congratulations would be in order but sadly, it’s short lived. I can’t tolerate insects.” The man turned his back on the students then prodded a finger into the Nox’s core. The liquid light rippled and wavered in reaction causing a loud, ear piercing sound to erupt within the student’s hearing. It started off soft then quickly grew enough to fill them with pain, their knees crumbling from the intensity howling at their eardrums. Then it ceased suddenly. Their shadows extended from their feet, moving behind and then began to shift into about seven bizarre tentacle like creatures. Darell cursed under his breath, “Shit, not a Uth.” “Kill them all…” Came the man’s orders causing the beasts to pick a target and suddenly attack. [hider=Uth] [b]Name: [/b] Uth [b]Class:[/b] Medium 6 ft Height and 4 ft Length [b]Species type:[/b] Nox [b]Image/Appearance Description:[/b] [center][img]https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/e0/98/8c/e0988c8ea06375976ae908d368495660.jpg[/img][/center] [b]Abilities:[/b] Unknown… for now. OOC Notes: Feel free to control the beasts, but keep in mind I decide when they die. Have a little fun showing off your PC’s abilities and pound the snot out of the NPCs. [/hider] [center][h3]Uncovering Shadows[/h3][/center] [u][color=pink]Lyn,[/color] Hysteria (Djarkel)[/u] [hr] The thief made his way through the outer edge of the crowds far easier than the students. Even the ones who had opted to take the roof path and attempt to cut him off were having issues trying to navigate the rocky territory of each building. When he made to the street’s other side he broke off from the crowd, his head briefly glanced upward to spot Ssarak high above him and following. Without hesitation, he easily pushed open the door to the nearest building then vanished inside. It turns out it was an established warehouse where food supplies and more were being held. Meanwhile, Lyn’s ears caught Keri’s question. She nodded and replied,[color=pink] “I can try but I need to get ahead of him first as I’m not in range!”[/color] With a goal in mind, she continued to navigate the rooftops at a fast pace. Upon the few buildings with flat tops she easily stepped across, her feet covered the distance and closed onto an upcoming gap blocking her path. She whipped her head over her shoulder to notice Keri’s location right behind her. She flashed an apologetic toward the vampire than sped up. Her foot kicked off the edge of the gap as her body sailed through the air toward the other side. For a heart stopping moment, Lyn thought she wasn’t going to make when her body sank downward faster than she expected in midair. Her arms waved in circles, a fruitless attempt to urge her success, and her heart jumped into her throat. Time itself seemed to stand still at that point. [color=pink] “Shit!”[/color] Immediately, her torso smacked into the edge and purged her of all breath. Her body began to slid down causing her arms to scramble for any purchase among the edge. If she fell from this height, it would likely break a few bones or even kill her. Panic set in as she felt her grip slowly, her eyes widened in fear. [center]~~| Ssarak|~~[/center] If the Esyire was aware and wide scanning, his mind would’ve caught about three other minds converging on the same building. However from his position he would literally see nothing. [h3][center]Diplomacy at Yarosmere[/center][/h3] [u][color=lightcoral]Mar,[/color]’s group, Sansar (Yarsomere): Arriving at the Palace[/u] [@Konan375], [@Luna], [@Vesuvius00], [@cqbexpt] & [@Fallenreaper] Gradually the daylight hours faded and night time rose to take its place, guards in the distance idly roaming to watch the distant sands for shadowy figures in the distance. Not a single animal, none seen, stirred when a darkness formed and the missing students were suddenly ejected from the Nox portal. They each landed harshly just a few feet from the palace entrance requiring that they walk until they reach a guard. Mar was the first to pull upright from the entanglement of limbs. She groaned and looked down, her eyes traced her skin alive with vivid bruises spotting her surface. Every part of her ached with a dull fire in her muscles and bones causing her to bite back the scream in her throat while she stood upright. The sand cobras hadn’t held back in venting their anger over the whole situation upon the students in order to make the ruse believable. Casually Mar looked down to assure herself that she still held the rune in her hand and ease her anxiety over this whole ploy working. She still distrusted the resistance but the grudge against those that murdered her people overcame that. [color=lightcoral] “Looks like we walk from here. Anyone has any idea where we’re at?”[/color] Mar stated as she dusted herself off. Meanwhile, the students that had managed to remain with Yolin had eaten, rested and anything else during the period their comrades were gone. Now they were touring the outside ramps to ‘sight’ see how things had changed from their prior order. Several young men who appeared to never been within conflict had volunteered to stand watch over the desert’s landscape with the type of energy most veterans wouldn’t be caught dead showing. A young man peered further over the ramp edge and looked into a direction hard, his lips pursed into a frown. If the other students managed to look too then they would easily spot a small group of individuals not far away. They seemed to appeared from nowhere, but within Yarosmere’s desert sands that wasn’t unusual. Already the man was notching an arrow into his cross bow and ready to shoot unless someone spoke up.