[h1]Lily Strider vs Pithy - Round 1[/h1] Shoving her hesitation behind her, Pithy pressed the arrow into the flesh of her upper right arm, gritting her teeth at the pain from the wound. Nothing seemed to happen except for the droplet of blood running down her arm, and the dull throbbing of pain from where she had stabbed herself. [i]So it does nothi—[/i] Fire and ice flooded her veins from one instant to the next, singing her nerves and chilling her bones. Flashes of agony sent shocks from the wound and through her body. She could hardly scream. Her body locked up and it was all she could do to remain standing as she felt every muscle spasm, every bone break, every tendon snap. She could hear nothing but white noise and blood rushing in her ears. The taste of iron filled her mouth, and slowly, distantly, she became aware of a new pain. Whatever had happened was abating, and soon the only pain that remained was where she had bit her own tongue. Shaking and sweating, feeling warm and cold all at once, Pithy forced herself to stand up straight. A mewl of concern had her open her eyes, meeting those of the serpentine plant creature. “I’m fine,” she grunted and gave herself a cursory inspection. Her tongue hurt and the taste of blood remained. Unavoidable. The rest of her, however, seemed to be unharmed; even the wound from the arrow was healed, leaving behind a small scar. She glared at the arrow still in her right hand, before throwing it to the floor. She looked again at the snake and lifted her hand, about to shoo it away when she spotted something in the corner of her vision. She whirled towards it, rapier at the ready, before she even had considered if it was friend or foe. It stood still, watching her expectantly. It had the [url=https://i.gyazo.com/a1d3cddf330878e955b6a6d7c48c566d.png]upper body of a woman[/url], white skin with a steel-like sheen, atop a towering body held aloft by furred, crab-like legs. It slowly moved to follow Pithy’s gaze, yet found nothing but a bookcase. “What are you?” Pithy hissed, the runes of her rapier still aglow from expecting to fight. Why did it not attack? Had it snuck up on her? A curse from the arrow? Her eyes narrowed at it, but even with the tip of her rapier a mere hand’s breadth from its flesh, it was immobile. Her thoughts returned again to the arrow, and the letter that had come with it. It had promised power; power that she had now accepted to stand up against her next opponent who had, if the message was to be believed, they had struck a deal with powerful individuals, and would come with reinforcements. Her gaze rose to the creature again. It had not moved, or acted in any way since it had appeared, except to turn its head. “Move,” Pithy said aloud, pointing with her rapier. She wasn’t certain if it would work, but if she could just make it take a few steps in some direction, then— The creature moved, stepping in the direction that Pithy commanded, and stopped at the exact point where her rapier pointed. Her eyes widened. There hadn’t been any hesitation in its movements, her order had simply been obeyed without question. Was the power she had been granted just an extra monster? The serpent’s own power had been more than that, by her estimate. Perhaps if she… “Push it,” she ordered, and like she intended it brought on its massive front-pincers up to a bookshelf and pushed it. It tipped and hit the adjacent one with a small crash. It remained there, leaning against the other bookshelf as tomes big and small tumbled down on the ground between them. It obeyed her, to the letter. Astounding, she thought. No, not quite right. It obeyed her orders to the spirit. It had moved to the exact spot she was gesturing towards, and had simply pushed the shelf enough that it tipped, but not so much that it caused a domino effect and destroyed potential cover. The snake made a sound, like a wordless question. It looked to Pithy, then to the bookshelf. “Stay calm,” Pithy told it, whereupon it coiled in on itself, its head low. This new… creature, whatever it was, displayed not only blind obedience, but a degree of comprehension as to her intent. Intriguing, and possibly a great boon to have in the coming confrontation. She took a breath, steadying her nerves, and let it out slowly. Turning to face the front of the bookshop, she resumed her waiting. [hr] Instantaneous, large-scale AOE attacks like those were bullshit, in Dew’s expert opinion. Not only had the guy appeared out of thin air, he had also ruined his vantage point instantly, but he had also managed to singe Dew’s hair! His grumblings continued as he dashed for the bookstore where the Ice Queen would be waiting. In the interest of avoiding a reaming about his new eye, he decided on finding a new vantage point, from where he could help. From afar. Where Pithy’s commanding voice couldn’t reach him. With any luck he would get to shoot something too. Movement. It was quick, perhaps a trick of the light, but years of listening for footsteps and gun barrels poking around corners had taught him better than to ignore it. He slid to a stop, sniper raised and pointed at average head height; finger on the trigger and ready for the no-scope. Nothing, except for a small trash panda rounding the corner of the alley. “Huh?” It looked at him curiously for a moment before scurrying off into the adjoining street. “Coulda swore I saw something larger,” he muttered and took off again. “Visual glitch, probably.” He shook the bizarre event out of his head and, spotting the bookstore up ahead, hurried into one of the apartment buildings. Trash pandas, no matter how large their tails seemed to be, were still just critters; not even worth the EXP. Finding a good vantage point so he could help Pithy, and in turn avoid getting his ass chewed out by her, had priority. [hr] Pithy did not have to wait long before something happened. Outside a grey-black cloud came into existence within moments, flowing from the alley across the street. Sorcery, then? Was it her enemy who conjured it, or one of their allies? She tightened the grip of her rapier, the runes on it glowing faintly in response to her magic. The cloud pushed forward, obscuring whatever and whoever would be inside. She had demanded that only the wielder of the phylactery come to her, but she could not be certain that was the case. Behind her the snake hissed, its entire body tensing up in preparation for what was to come. She called to the ice around her, a number of icicles coming to rest hovering on her left—her right shielded by a hovering wall of ice. The cloud hit the front of the shop, the glass and frames warping and shattering. The ice started to melt, and Pithy had the horrible realisation that only a pyromancer was capable of conjuring a pyroclastic flow like that. She summoned the air and sent a blast of frigid wind forward, striking the cloud. It pushed inwards, creating a large dent where the wind had hit, but more smoke and ash filled it in and pushed forward. Willing herself to calm, she debated whether to flee or to remain. If her opponent’s plan was to kill her with volcanic ash they would have surrounded the building first, and no ice had melted near the back wall, indicating they hadn’t done so, leaving her with a way out. Alternatively she could chill the air enough that the ash cloud became only an obscuring factor, but it still hid her enemy. She had taken only a few steps towards the back wall, intent on having her new servant—ally?—punch through it, when the cloud stopped its approach halfway towards her, and a figure stepped out from within it. A woman clad in tight, thin clothes and looking barely out of her teens. Beautiful, but inhuman; a mix of beast and humanoid traits. Pithy narrowed her eyes, staring warily at her. Nine white tails moving like a sea of fur behind her. “I assume you are to be my next opponent?” Pithy said, holding up her rapier. “I come with an offer,” the other woman said, her blue eyes meeting Pithy’s stare without hesitation. Pithy snorted. “I have in my employ other individuals who would have a wish granted. Join me, hand over your phylactery so we can conclude this without bloodshed, and I will grant your wish alongside those of my own and my allies.” Pithy stared, stunned by the offer and the audacity. One one hand, was it possible to grant more than one wish? Depending on the method of asking for one’s wish, it was conceivable that it could be worded to grant several desires at once. On the other hand, she had no reason to believe this woman. She bore striking similarities to the fox spirits in the east of her homeworld—Tricksters all. There wasn’t any guarantee that it would work either way, and she was not willing to jeopardize her own life on a ‘[i]maybe[/i]’. Perhaps she could turn it around instead? It worked the last time. “Would you agree to trading phylacteries? That way we might work alongside one another, no servitude necessary.” Any extra drop in temperature would be negligible in this place; the distance to the wall of volcanic ash was sufficient, she hoped. She grasped a thread of magic and wove it into an illusion around the spent phylactery she still carried, and held up what appeared to be a still active phylactery. “Hand over yours, and I will give you mine.” The woman stood still, staring at the phylactery for a while. Long enough that Pithy was starting to wonder if perhaps she had gone mute. A minute of tense silence followed before she spoke. “I sense that you do not fully trust me. I see that you are one of the Fae, so perhaps these words will convince you: I swear upon my power that I will attempt to grant both your wish, mine, and the others in my employ, provided you hand over your own phylactery so that I may claim the soul within.” A slight widening of her eyes was the only surprise Pithy allowed herself to show. Those words were not said lightly. Breaking such an oath had consequences, and it was trustworthy in almost all cases. That still did not mean she could trust this fox-woman, and the risk of the wish-granting device being incapable, or refusing, of granting only the winner’s [i]personal[/i] desire still remained. She put the empty phylactery back under her robes, shaking her head. “I will not risk it,” she said, and sent forth one of the icicles. She spied a look of regret on the other woman’s face before the icy javelin tore through it, leaving behind nothing but a fading, smoky visage. [i]”So be it,”[/i] the same voice said from within her head. The ash cloud started approaching again. [i]Illusionist![/i] Pithy grit her teeth, berating herself for not trying to peer through the illusion earlier. [hr] Lily glanced to the side where Egon materialized. He gave her the brief version of what the elf inside the bookstore had said. She gritted her teeth and looked in again, thanking her luck that her goggles allowed her to see through solid objects. “Push the pyroclast forward,” she ordered him, even as she cast forward her voice to the elf; So be it. “I.O, stay within my illusion!” She hissed as well, prompting the behemoth to shuffle a few steps closer. “We saw the sniper, we know where he went. Don’t let him see you!” Carreau flew overhead, equipped with grenades of Egon’s make, and watching for the exact location of the sniper. Her own tails were a sea of writhing fur, blue sparks dancing between them impatiently, wanting to be set free and electrify the world around them. She kept a lid on it, watching the elf that had spurned her so. She heard the tingle of metal objects hitting the ground, followed near immediately by a distant boom. Carreau had detonated one of his bombs. Lily, Marotte and Brucie jumped away from the small grenade that rolled to a stop near them. Egon dematerialized, and I.O lunged. The giant beetle had barely covered it when the grenade went off, a flash and a muted boom sounded from underneath him, prompting a reverberating groan from the him. Lily looked up, spotting Carreau throwing another bomb at one of the windows at a building opposite them. She cast her voice to him, muttering the words even as the auditory illusion repeated them for the owl. [i]”Rout him. Take his weapons if you can.”[/i] He let out an owlish screech in return. “W̶h̛a͏t̵ ҉no͟w͢?́” Marotte warbled, jittery energy making his hands twitch. He was looking towards the ash cloak that coated the front of the bookshop, as if peering through it. “Circle the back. Brucie, leave Mouse, and flank with Marotte!” Orbs of cobalt flame flared to existence at her command. “Egon, keep the pyroclast up, and help Carreau.” None saluted, except Brucie, but all went on to their task. The elf within was rushing towards the back of the shop, having discarded the futile attempts at stopping the pyroclastic flow. A large serpentine creature following, nearly outpacing her. A burst of fire aimed at the building Carreau had entered signalled Egon’s continued assault. Lily watched the brick smoulder and the iron bend for a moment longer before resuming her plan. “I.O, with me.” She ran to the side of the building, slowing down to let the beetle keep up. She had dispelled the illusory bubble keeping them hidden. The sniper wouldn’t have time to attack now. “Break that wall!” She ordered once they reached the side of the building, past where the pyroclast reached. For the moment. I.O ran forward, one of his massive arms striking the building with enough force to create a small shockwave. A low roar rumbled from his chest, heralding the second strike. The wall caved, and shattered inwards. He climbed in, followed immediately by Lily. She looked towards where she knew the elf was, and hurried forward. She reached out to push open the door, only for pain to meet her where she smacked into the wall. “What?!” There had been a door here a moment ago, she’d seen the elf open it. Sweat dripped from her brow, not just from the heat. Turned out there was more than cryomancy at play. Conjuration? Transmutation? “I.O, smash!” “Yes,” he rumbled and rushed forward, his shoulder caving the wall. Looked through, she could see the elf briefly face them before rushing towards the back of the storage. Her jaw hurt from clenching. The creaking of brick and metal burning several metres behind them but a dull backdrop to the sound of I.O striking the wall again. And then again. “Lily,” he said slowly, confusion filling his deep voice. She looked up. “What?” “Wall is harder than before. Not stone anymore.” She blinked, wondering if she had misheard. Was the elf so proficient that she could transform a wall? She yanked off her goggles and looked at the wall proper. Where should have been stone she saw metal. Silvery grey, shaped like the bricks and mortar that composed it earlier. Pride told her to not let a simple transmutation spell stop them, but practicality instructed her to do otherwise. “Out again!” she ordered and ran out from where they’d come, ignoring the searing heat on her back and tails as best she could, having come much too close to the ash cloud for comfort. She heard the holler of Brucie followed by a foreign sound. A feminine yell, and the warbling cry of Marotte. A white light radiated from behind the building for but a moment, blinding in its intensity but for the goggles she wore. Almost immediately a wave of cold washed over her, enough to slow her down and make her hesitate. A cry followed and from around the corner flew Brucie, the shark covered in flecks of ice landed hard on the ground before sliding to a stop. He groaned, so alive at least. Another warbling cry from Marotte, and he darted around the corner as well. An icicle followed, embedding itself in the ground precariously close to where Brucie lay. “Ice̵ ́m̕a͞g̶i͡c a̕n̵d ̵plan̡t ̕s͢nak͟è!͘” he yelled. “Som͞eth͘i̵ng͝ invi͠sibl͏e͢ pu͝nch̵ed ̨t́h͝e̵ ҉Shar͜k̴” He glanced to the side and melded with the wall. I.O stood waiting for her commands even as adrenaline filled her veins. It was rapidly becoming clear that she was dealing with no ordinary spellcaster. She retreated several steps, giving I.O the order to keep the elf occupied as best he could, and protect Brucie while he recovered. Reaching within, she found the magic that made her a trickster. One advantage she had was that her opponent only knew of three of them so far. Not their full numbers. Calling upon memories of friends and foes alike, creatures that were once myth and legend to her world flickered into existence. Wooden dryads, ghastly fiends and hybrids of human and monster appeared around them, sidling up with I.O and started their advance with him. Time to see if this sorceress could distinguish one reality from another.