A5G

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

Well, at least this one's receptive. Unlike a certain man-bear that's now taking the brunt of his foolish ritual, as if trying to wrestle a force of nature ever ends up well.

"You seek the young man upstairs, are you not?" Said Asevor plainly, not even trying to conceal the fact. "Only I have key enchantment to unlock his cage without triggering the dead man's switch."

That was one thing. The other, well. Asevor raised his cane, tapping to direct attention at the bulbous head. With a twist an outer shell was removed, breaking the concealment ward to reveal a red gemstone the size of an egg. Miniature runic carvings dotted every surface, coiling enchantments that fuels a feedback loop back into itself in a currently still stable cycle of energy... a massive amount of energy. Enough to be brightly visible even to the uninitiated. The entire construct was a desperate, demented creation designed to collapse inward and release all the stored energy in an apocalyptic blast should it be triggered. An insurance only the most paranoid master enchanter can come up with.

"And if you kill me I'll make sure no one wins. So why dont we both take a step back? I'll collect my things and leave. You can finish your mission without further casualties."

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

"Hello? Is anyone out there?"

The conversation must've been at least audible to the inside of the box, for the prince had noticed the change in the status quo. In some places he would've still be considered a boy, but it seemed that the little prince was more mature than he looked - whether by default, or changed by the kidnapping. "Get me out of here already! This place's flooding!" Not to mention the slowly spreading red lines that flashed ominously with every drop of water. "Or cover that hole, at least!"

Asevor had noticed Jazdia's descent, even before she showed up in the chamber. With the vines dead, the magic-detector once again could pick up various signatures... such as multiple arrowheads primed to explode or worse. Then the elf arrived, aged eyes widening at the sight of the bow. Someone had shot him earlier, through his invisibility and an ongoing hailstorm. He wasn't certain who, but he's not about to risk it. Cradling a ring as if it's a lifeline, sure enough that the elf snapped her aim to try surprise him with a two-pronged attack.

He cried in pain from frost-burn stabbing on his back, but only for a split second. A neutralizing pulse emitted from the ring, the artifact crumbling upon its last use. The arrows whizzed, dangerously close, the redirection amulet damaged from earlier overuse. Asevor traced and shifted, breathing in relief as the last addition made the tesseract complete.

It melted onto his finger, spreading quickly across his body in the form of a translucent crystalline growth that covered him head to toe. Without any other deadweight to cover, it'll last quite some time even against concentrated barrage. It's just... his mana pool was emptying. If he were to leave through the hail, he could not afford any other spell. So...

"Okay, you've got me. Parley." Stated the archmage, standing as straight as he could as he leaned on his cane.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

Asevor was close, oh so close to safety. His enchanted necklace was plan overwhelmed by the sheer amount of hailstone coming, and that proven to be his undoing as the artifact failed to properly redirect the arrow mixed amidst the projectile.

It barely strayed from the initial trajectory, practically exploding right next to the invisible old man and showering him in shrapnel. A pained gasp escaped his lips as he tumbled, crashing into an undignified heap in the first floor while leaving splatter of blood on the way. With a shaky hand Asevor tapped into another ring, hairline crack spreading through the inset opal as a wave of rejuvenation coursed through his body. With a pained cry the burns were replaced by new skin while the shrapnels were pushed out, though the lingering sense of pain still shook him oh so terribly.

Still cloaked in invisibility, the archmage started tracing another tesseract. Yet if anyone could see him, it was plain that his hand were shaking and the progress were much slower than before. The crystalline barrier that previously took mere seconds to form may now take so much longer, perhaps enough for someone to take advantage of it?

Above, the inner working of the metal box was revealed. It was a mess of toppled furnitures and a slightly bruised young man that nervously stared at the crack, barricaded on the far corner behind a toppled table and what must've been one of its wooden leg brandished as weapon. The box, from within, looked like just any other room but every time a drop of rainwater seeped in the whole edifice flickered off to reveal the cold metal laden with enough glowing runes to make one dizzy just by perceiving the entire thing. Part of the runes were glowing angry-red, centered on the popped corner and snaking just a fraction of an inch further every second. To the uninitiated, it was a concerning sight. To those skilled in runeworks, they'd probably figure out that it's a trigger for some sort of dead-man switch inbuilt somewhere into the workings.

As for the direction of the switch? Well, the bottom looked suspicious. The flooring was slightly taller than it should. Whatever's powering the construct, it's almost certainly buried down there.

Outside, the hailstorm intensified. Even the wooden stable started to buckle from the constant drop, not to mention Cedar and Jazdia who still remained without any roof over the head. Seeking shelter immediately seemed to be a wise course of actions.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

The sky was torn asunder. There's no better way to describe it. Dark cloud roiled into a great vortex, a colossal eye that oversaw the world and wept in watery deluge and cruel hailstones. The hill and the fort sitting on top was actually spared the worst of it, the eye of the storm marginally calmer than the rest, but even then it's still hazardous to linger as hailstones fell, furious wind blew, and lightning strikes introduced themselves into the already chaotic mix.

The village below was spared from the flame, only to be then threatened by flood and ice.

The effort to crack open the box finally found some headway, shortly before August was unfortunately incinerated. One of the previously sealed corners popped from the force, traces of magic immediately leaking out as inspection of the inner working was made possible.

Down below, a desperate Asevor fell under multiple layers of assault. Low as it may be, his bag of tricks were yet to run dry. Through one eye he saw the pain spell forming, and the activation of his ring sent a neutralizing pulse out that shattered it before it formed. Scalding light triggered the last instant barrier, the ring cracking and dimming yet it bought enough time for the archmage to reach his target.

"FOOL! Stop that! You have no idea-" The sentient bear had the audacity to insult him. And even tried to snatch his spellbook - only for the protective measure to trigger, releasing electric shock that rendered the limb burnt and limp. Like a possessed fiend it still kept going, swinging with a bloody makeshift club that glanced off the remnant barrier coating the archmage.

The insane ritual must be stopped.

"Blackwood's Shatterbone!"

Completing the last stroke of the tesseract, with hailstones eating away at his barrier, Asevor sent the magical construct right toward the dancing bear. It went through Cedar's hide and inside of him, pulsing once with no immediate effect before a step of the rain dance was interrupted with an audible crack. That finally toppled him, a few more muted cracks followed from the impact with the ground.

Asevor would like to see it continue dance with bones as brittle as glass.

Now, the rest of them. The sky was too dangerous at the moment, but he could still sense Harlek's invocation awaiting patiently beyond the cloud. Once the heavy cloud dispersed Asevor would be able to do make good use of it, but until then he need to avoid further confrontation. Him, a mighty archmage, fleeing from this half-baked lot. The very thought of it burned and ate him from within, but as long as he survived he will be able to snatch victory at the last second.

The barrier shattered. Raising a hand to cover his head, Asevor tapped one of his ring before abruptly disappearing from sight. Plain old invisibility, with the weather this bad it'll be nearly impossible to keep track of him. Flying low as fast as he dared, the elderly man rushed back toward the fort where he'll be safe from the wrath of the sky.

Hailstones kept on falling. Already cuts and bruises marred his wrinkled skin.

Nearby, Veronica was busy. After bailing out Chounan yet again, she had to drag him into the nearby stable to keep him away from the hail. Then the vampiress went back out and retrieved Yvonne and Reinhold, both burned rather severely and was in no condition to move. She had to cut out the mercenary's armor for it had partially melted, though it did its job absorbing a portion of the beam's destructive energy before it struck her fully. Her left side was littered with angry red blisters, part of the face faring even worse. Meanwhile, the hunter was... not in good condition at all. The damage was severe enough that some part were blackened charcoal, and without some miracle he's not going to live much longer.

With all involved parties battered and exhausted, it would not take much longer before the battle finally saw the end. One way or another.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

An explosive arrow detonated right at the spell construct, a smaller and farther explosion consumed the acid cloud. Either running its course or hastened by the attack, the tesseract had shrunken into the size of bean before sizzling out of existence as the lightshow faded. That's one threat settled. Another one to go... probably.

"Oh no you dont."

The garret collapsed from the architechtural abuse, something that Asevor did not miss. Waving his hands like a conductor, a blindingly bright pinprick of light fell from the sky over first Violet, then Petra, Solomon, and finally August's exposed figure. Those pinpricks abruptly expanded, a massive beam of scorchingly concentrated sunlight burning through the four undead.

"What the- NO!"

Then dark cloud materialized in the sky, to Asevor's dismay. Glancing at the sinking box, knowing that it would hold for some time, an ugly rictus formed on his visage as he dove straight toward the dancing bear. Chounan, Reinhold, and Veronica attempted to shoot him out of the sky while Yvonne in particular decided to toss Ragnar's rusty axe to the old man. All projectiles missed, veering off-course from some enchanted item though the heavy axe was noticeably less affected than the arrows. Explosions bloomed where the enchanted arrows ended up, one high at midair and another at the stone wall surrounding the fort.

"Bastards, out of my way! Judgment!"

A fluidly forming shape materialized on the old man's palm, before turning into a massive beam of raw arcane might that he swept through the opposition. Veronica dragged Chounan out of the way, as if predicting the beam's path before it was fired as the blast narrowly missed and moved on toward the next. Reinhold and Yvonne wasn't so lucky to take the brunt of it, their streams of expletive cuts off by the scorching force.

Another tesseract were forming in Asevor's hand, his open spellbook floating exactly twelve inches from his face despite the rapid movement. Sweat dripped down his brows, off the disheveled hair that was so finely combed just an hour ago, as fat beads of rainwater and hailstone started falling from the sky.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

Ragnar was there, ready to press his attack, when he stumbled and fell. The axe still in his grip ripped itself out of the wound in a spray of blood as he confusedly looked down, his aura flickering and vanishing from the edges - enough that his severed leg was no longer held together, robbing him of his balance. The savage rictus eased into an understanding as he fell, a mountain of scarred muscle and flesh finally meeting its end.

"Ironhand, bring me home."

As the aura fully receded, the injuries it held together returned to take their toll. Pierced heart returned with all the fatalities it entailed, lifeblood leaking from a dozen more wounds that marked the end of Ragnar the Red.

"No fucking way, is he really dead? Good job, everyone."

Yvonne arrived a few seconds after, kicking at the corpse without any sign of respect for the dead. Then she retrieved her sword still buried in the mountain of meat, and as a last gesture of profanity proceed to saw off the northlander's head. She glared back halfway through at Cedar and a horrified Reinhold, scowling at the latter as if he had said something offensive.

"What? We gotta make sure, you have no idea how resilient this fuck is."

Her effort was interrupted by a loud detonation above, the roilling wave of green abruptly replaced by a flash of crimson as the caustic cloud exploded violently. The vines took the brunt of it, as were Jazdia herself being so close to the cloud at that moment. That solved the immediate issue... only for the clear sky to reveal that the spell construct was slightly smaller but otherwise unaffected as it resumed spewing more sickly-green cloud.

Violet was winning, but not fast enough. The remaining two ravens, meanwhile, threw themselves onto the conjoined spellcaster with abandon as they rapidly shrunk from the barrage. That, however, was all the time Asevor need to complete his tesseract. He victoriously raised his hand, the spell construct gleaming brightly before shooting straight into the sky.

"Harlek's Incantation of Incineration."

Nothing immediately happened, yet the sky dimmed for miles around even though nothing visibly obscured the sky as if the sunlight itself had lost potency. If anyone had any sort of danger sense, however, it would've been ringing wildly right at this moment.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

Ragnar rampaged through with the grace of a rolling boulder, missing the bear in the first pass as his maimed leg prevented proper turning. The vines touching him rapidly sizzled and burned, his protective aura preventing both following blows as he swung the axe with abandon. It bit deep into Cedar's arm, the tips of his furs curling from the blazing heat emitted... yet the strength displayed seemingly pale in comparison to the previous performance.

The northlander was, inevitably, burning out.

Far above, one of the crow spirit reacted as it swiped at the incoming arrow, the following explosion engulfing it almost entirely. Yet by the time it dissipated the creature was still there, a bit translucent than before and missing half of a wing with body full of holes yet otherwise remained floating in the air. Another met the banshee head-on, the two semi-incorporeal beings descending on each other in a tangle of claws. The third went for the conjoined Petra, but the light blast struck it head-on as it disintegrated with a shrill shriek. More than half of it vanished on the spot, but the rest of the crow spirit seemed to be gathering together to reform into a smaller version of itself.

Asevor, floating away from the next vine outburst, added the last stroke onto his tesseract.

"Caustic Cloud of Ruzpin."

The spell construct lazily floated forward, belching sickly-green cloud of acid that spread and slowly descended over the fort proper. It wouldn't be as concentrated out here compared to the indoor usage, but it should cover a much wider area. Not taking any more chance of surprises, his spellbook flipped to another page as the archmage began tracing yet another imitation construct from his apparent safety.

At this point the walls was completely abandoned as the fire spread with abandon, blood-splattered Yvonne and Reinhold descending away from the heat. The latter seemed grimly satisfied with whatever they've had done in the past five minutes, the previously defended rampart now littered with corpses of the mages and mercenaries. The two noticed Ragnar going wild on their bear companion, the hunter nocked and fired an arrow at the crimson brute to no apparent effect. Meanwhile, Yvonne caught the expanding green far above and could only mutter one word.

"Fuck."

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

Unfortunate that there's no one in the immediate area that could feasibly took advantage of Ragnar's mud-soaked opening, with the elf deciding to skip ahead and went up. Veronica did the sensible move of getting the heck out, Chounan's limp form dragged along like a sack of potatoes. Her magic allowed a glimpse ahead, muscles forced beyond its physical limitations as she shot out right before the overgrowth burst and covered the entrance.

It didn't hold the northlander back for long at all. Ragnar was a walking inferno at the moment, plant matter curling and bursting aflame at the mere contact with his aura as he shoved and forced his way through. His quarries were gone into hiding by the time he passed, but then he set his sight on a different prize.

The bear druid over there, maintaining the plant growth that overtook the whole fortress.

With a ragged warcry, he stomped forward as he burned his own life.

Above, the second floor was completely devoid of life. The rooms were empty, and save for a single guest room in the far end there's no sign of magic at work either. Then the structure shook as brambles and vines grew at a pace that would give nightmare to all gardeners, obcuring the windows and plunging the indoors into pitch darkness. The growth insulated sounds as their side effect, the entire world seemingly turning silent as the cacophony from the chaos outside was greatly dampened.

Further, quite a bit further above, Asevor impassively glared at the rapidly approaching vines toward his position. He simply floated higher, knowing that the growth still had to adhere to its own physical limitations and would need an increasingly thick base to sustain its own weight. He's incapable of moving too quickly or else he'd break focus, but it was sufficient to steer clear of the increasingly desperate vines.

Then, of course, the ambushers appeared.

Only a fool fell to the same trick twice, much less in such short period. The only cover to get to his level were the vines itself, thus Asevor wasn't flustered at all. He pointed his left hand at the banshee, three rings simultaneously lit up as flame, kinetic force, and mind-flay blasted her straight in the face. The first two likely did little, and the third wont affect the basic undead, yet he lucked out that the filthy creature turned out to retain enough of her mind to be temporarily knocked senseless. Small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

Asevor's right hand finished the last trace, the spell construct pulsing into an opaque monochrome mass. Now, time to see if Xelthos' claim was as accurate as his boast.

"Xelthos' Servant of Death."

The spell construct pulsed again, splitting into three parts before each grew and grew. In its place was tall, lanky humanoid creatures with pallid grey skin where from shoulder up instead of arms it had scraggly wings with black feather and a raven's head. The body were mostly humanlike with a distinct lack of nipples, belly button, or genital, while the leg ended in massive talons more fitting for birds of prey instead of the supposed raven theme.

"Defensive formation."

Pompous name aside, these were mere non-sentient semi-autonomous shadow elementals. Not quite the best at direct combat, but perfect for both committing and defending against guerilla tactics. And highly resistant to physical blows, something that he'll need if he were to proceed to the next step. Something that he could get into now that the three Servants circled attentively around him.

Everything below was a lost cause. So, he'll kill everything first and proceed from there. Asevor renewed his flight magic, ditching the invisibility part before starting to trace a different construct. If anyone paid attention earlier, it's building up to be the same one that summoned the caustic fog.

As Solomon observed the decommissioned ballistae, perhaps looking around for the projectiles and whatnot, he would notice that the garret was used as a storage of some sort. The inside, however, was cleared recently of whatever junk it previously held and in its place was a rather ominous cube of steel plates with sigils and runes carved on the surface, the edifice periodically pulsating with gentle blue light yet somehow emanated zero traces of magic as if it didn't exist at all. At one side was some sort of defunct arrangement of arcane construct, a detached link of wire suggested that it was until recently connected to the box itself. If Matilda was present, she would've recognize the box as something almost exactly the same dimension as the box containing explosives earlier, while the construct next to it had high degree of similarity with the one mixed among the explosives themselves.

There's a cut section that may had been a door except that it had no handle, with a slot - similarly without handle - possibly used to deliver food and whatnot into the thing. There did not seems to be any mechanism to operate the thing.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

It was a scene right out of a legend, where a sole warrior stood stalwart against an unstoppable force. Ragnar was overpowering him so badly that the slightest graze would've torn Chounan apart, yet with surgical precision every blow was deflected and redirected just enough to avoid a direct hit. Blisters from contacting the burning blood spread quickly, cracking open into bleeding wounds from the vigorous movement where he struck twice for every deflection, however no matter what he did Ragnar's blazing aura was akin to an impenetrable fortress.

Both of them burned, in their own ways, a pair of bonfires dancing the fine line between life and death. It was truly a pity that the samurai's constitution wasn't quite up to par to Ragnar's sheer endurance.

Chounan faltered. His grip weakened, the sword slapped out of his hands from the impact. With no more strength to move, he could only beheld the oncoming axe. However, a slender hand grasped him by the shirt and yanked him out of the trajectory just before he's split in half. That was not exactly a timely save, Veronica moving before the weapons even clashed as if she could see the future, but regardless Chounan was spared a grisly fate. The time he bought was not in vain, for the Impetuous Strife enchantment on Ragnar faded just about the same time as the samurai's fall.

The northlander was still a vicious and wounded beast, but it's undeniable that he's cornered and on his last breath. And, with a splat, even covered with stinky mud. The filthy additions sizzled as he roared and wiped the offending substance off his face, but perhaps it's a slight opening to anyone who's fast enough?

Above, far above, Asevor reached the locked battlement door and unceremoniously blasted it open with his force ring. The sight that greeted him was a burning hellscape, screams in the distance as the village itself started to burn. There's some fighting at a part of the wall, but several sections had been either abandoned or overran. That didn't bode well to the men he brought along. What happened in the short moment he's occupied within?

"Damnation."

He took a deep breath, calming himself down before taking another glance backward. No sight of hostiles, but that didn't mean a thing when his necklace still warned him of undeath presence. Bastard could slip through the wall and see through invisibility. His own detection was hampered by the sheer saturation of magical effect in the area, courtesy of that druid. Twice the damnation, he could feel that his mana reserve were... still plentiful, but definitely drained quite a bit.

Floating straight up, Asevor stopped about a hundred feet off the battlement before starting to trace another tesseract. This one vaguely resembled a corvid, though from a certain point of view it'll look like a skull instead. This far enough should give him ample warning if anything came close. It'll leave him vulnerable to snipers, but that's likely less dangerous than an ambush by the necromancer. Yes, he had a battle plan now. This was still salvageable. And failing that? Fleeing was not out of the question.

Pity about his wardrobe in that case, but oh well. The generous payment was still worth it.

Sovereign's Will: A Fantasy Roleplaying Game. [CONCLUDED]

[GM Post]

Whatever Ragnar was expecting, a literal bucket on his head and some hideously loud clanging noise was not on the list. The northlander roared in anger as he clawed and failed to even touch the offending object, rendering him near-completely blind and deaf to what's going on around him. The axe in his hand cleaved with abandon, catching the blackened table a couple times but otherwise failed to get remotely close to any of his foes.

"WHAT TRICKERY IS THIS?! FACE ME BLADE TO BLADE!"

He wouldn't get his wish. Both Chounan and Veronica caught the warning and steered clear, a gleaming arrow landing dead center on Ragnar's chest. another explosion consumed the berserker, momentarily staggering him with concussive shockwave. The vampiress didn't miss the moment as she rushed back in, braving the remnant of the explosion to deliver a single strike to their foe.

The scythe tore through Ragnar's crimson aura like hot knife through butter, plunging through the heart where the weapon keened with greed. Yet her eyes widened as the man still refused to drop, brawny arm grabbing the scythe and refusing to let go. She had to abandon the weapon to avoid an axe blow, staring with morbid amazement at the sheer resilience of the brute.

"Finally! Slippery bastard."

The scythe was torn out, splatter of blood unnaturally following and flowing into it. The crimson aura coating him thickened to the point that it's veritably opaque now, looking less like a man and more like a creature made out of blood. The illusory bucket and hammer sizzled and faded upon contacting this seemingly enhanced layer, though from the sounds of it the man underneath wasn't doing very well at all.

Ragnar rampaged forward, Veronica and Chounan pushed further and further as he seemingly beelined to the elf. The vampiress seemed to do okay, but the swordsman's skin started to blister the longer he's locked in close combat with the brute. It was through sheer willpower that he kept blocking the way, deflecting and parrying with blood flowing through his palm.

Above, Asevor was unceremoniously ambushed in joint attack - something that he did not expect, considering his invisibile state. Pain seized him all of sudden, stopping his hand in place, followed by an inhuman screech so terrible the old man actually blacked out for a moment.

"ARGH! You dare-!"

Another protective ring started to crack, purging the magical influence of the scream and the hold. The false archmage was swift in tapping in another of his ring, soft layer of healing light fixing his burst eardrum though it did little to the blood that had dripped out. More pressingly, the tesseract was halfway unraveling by the time he regained his faculty. He willed it to collapse in that state, the purge barely a tenth as potent or widespread as it should, but enough to buy a little time.

A spell construct flowed into the mental mold, finishing in record time as for the first time today Asevor actually felt threatened to some extent. An unfocused bluish-white beam of arcane energy howled through the corridor, blasting Solomon and his latest banshee summon before colliding hard enough to crack the far wall of the fort.

Breathing rapidly, the old man hurriedly grasped for his necklace... only to find that the undead caster that ambushed him were still nearby somewhere. Turning with paranoia to the floors and walls and ceiling, Asevor immediately decided to bolt up and toward the battlement. Out in the open, he'll have a lot more options. Otherwise it would be putting the cart before the horse if he accidentally buried himself in this godforsaken fort.

At the antechamber below, Kaito would find the dead baron and a few more dead servants mixed in a pile of rubble that once was a staircase but now ruined and collapsed by explosion. Getting up... probably will take some effort. And was likely unsafe. But what choice did he have?