CollectorOfMyst

Rebirth: At World's End

Redacted. Apologies, but upon further reflection, I'm not as invested as I initially thought I was. I wish all of you the best of luck.

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

The Second Day, Naji’s Home - Scott

"I know we just met and all, but perhaps you two could help a lizard learn how to use magic?"

“...Teach you?” Scott had to admit... he had no idea how to do that.

His eyes turned to the other pixie - who called himself Naji, and appeared to be in a bit of a sorry state. Had he even been eating? It didn’t look like it at all. And he might have been stuck back there for such a long time...

Wincing slightly at Naji’s usage of ‘Heal slut’, he looked to the lizard to make his own offer.

“Ah... well, I think the main issue here is that I don’t know how to or even if you can be taught magic. I... as far as I know, this healing spell came naturally to me. I-I think I have an idea, though.”

He ran along the ground to the nearest pebble - which was actually about the soze of a football to him - and with a huff, lifted it up and brought it back to the others. Biting his lip, he gestured to her claw.

“May I? Oh, and,” Scott forced himself to smile. “By the way, I’m Scott.”

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@Lovejoy um... why?

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

The Second Day - Scott

The lizard whipped around upon hearing him, and with a cool, slightly dangerous tone, spoke.

"This is my Crystal, Pixie. Go find your own."

Scott blinked at the sound. Well, that answered one thing - yes, the lizard could understand him, and communicate.

"What, that?" he asked, pointing, and trying to sound unafraid. The lizard could literally spit acid, and at this distance, he probably wouldn't be able to get out of the way. "I-I wouldn't mind doing just that, ah-actually. I wouldn't want to steal it from you. I was just wanting to... to talk."

His voice faltered as a second voice echoed in the cave.

"Hello! Come to the water!"

He turned on his heels, staggering backwards. He looked around fearfully, unable to tell where the voice had actually come from. He put a hand to his heart, eyes darting from side to side. As the echoes faded, he turned back to the lizard.

"I... sorry. I'm - kind of new to this."

His eyes went back to the crystal as he heard something behind it.

"Is... is there someone back there?"

He went a little closer.

"...atrics to that demon king jack..."

"Uhm... hello?" Scott said to the crystal.

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@shylarah Wow, Ziotea can be harsh. I mean, she's already shown that, and frankly, I wouldn't expect much less than that, given the setting, but still. At least she has some common sense to her.

Rebirth: At World's End

I'm working on my healer, right now. Let's hope I can get him in before I'm outclassed by everyone else. ^^;

The Last Embers (Dark Steampunk/Fantasy)

@Scout Oh? Did I misinterpret? I thought that her history was that she and her family were 'runaways', in a sense. That's why she was born 'free', even though she eventually was enslaved.

Rebirth: At World's End

I'm personally thinking some kind of healer at this point in time... I've got a character banked who I want to bring back out, and he'd be a good fit for this, I feel.

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

The Second Day - Scott

Scott awoke, his body slightly sore. His search hadn't gone completely as planned last night - he could only carry so much, after all. And he'd tried to lift one too many stones last night if the pain in his arms was any indication. He'd only searched for a couple of hours, but eventually, he felt his mind drifting off. He'd squeezed himself into a crack in the wall, and while it was claustrophobic, it was safer than resting out in the open. At least, he hoped. Nothing had come for him yet, but the cave was dangerous. He needed to get some modicum of safety.

Wriggling a little, he pushed himself out of the crevice, yawning as he did. Had it gotten darker in here? A few glances about the cave told him what he needed to know. Yes, it was a little darker, because the entrance of the cave had caved in. When did that even happen? And the main source of light inside the cave itself, the goblins' fire, had burned down into mostly ashes. That wasn't his problem, though, so really he paid it no mind. He ate a meagre meal of some beetles and moss, before beginning his morning routine.

Admittedly, it wasn't his routine. It was the pixie's. The pixie had been the one who practised flying each morning, but Scott hadn't been aware of himself, then. He had nothing better to do - or rather, no idea of what would be better to do. He might as well spend his time doing something that could be useful.

His memory didn't agree with him.

When he was about halfway between the floor and ceiling, Scott glanced down. Another scene flashed before him. Not stone, but piled dirt and steel scaffolding. Rapidly approaching, rushing up to meet him. And a great deal of pain, for a bare few seconds, before he... passed. He froze up. Lost in memory, he began to fumble. He couldn't. His wings stopped moving, and it started all over again, falling, falling.

The sudden change in situation shook him out of his thoughts. He had to do something. His new instincts drove him to start flapping his wings again before he hit the ground, even though he was already too low to avoid hitting the ground. He cast Shield I. quickly followed by a hard smack. The impact was cushioned a little by his wings slowing him down, in tandem with the shield. But now he hurt all over. For a few minutes, or years, he couldn't tell, he lay there, winded. Running across the stones under him with the flat of his palm, he cast his healing spell.

Your MP is low.

System

Ah... one of those. Guess he needed a Mana Crystal, then. Climbing to his feet, Scott began to flap his wings... and then faltered. No. He'd walk. The wall wasn't that far, anyway. Surely he'd find a cluster over there.

It took a few minutes to get there. As a pixie, every stone was practically a hill, every metre now a mile. Scott truly was an ant in a giant's world. Well, not quite, but you get the idea. He was small, the world was big. He was approaching his goal, in any case... but it appeared someone else would get there first.

He hauled himself over the top of the next rock and spotted what he was looking for - a cluster of crystals. The only ones about, it seemed. Then he caught movement in the corner of his eye. Scott hit the ground, flattening himself to the floor in an attempt to hide. Peering over the edge of the stone, he saw a lizard. Every so often, it would stop and take a look at some of the drained crystals, as if trying to gauge if they were suitable. Which was strange. As far as he knew, lizards weren't magically inclined... they were 'status effecters', right? So what was this one doing?

Wait... hadn't he gotten that knowledge from the Demon King? When his... 'rebirth' options were put before him? Yes, he remembered that. He'd chosen a Pixie because it was able to support from the sidelines. The wisps were also magical, on the offensive. Slimes were your damage sponges, and rats the damage dealers. A classic set up for any RPG team. And as the characters got stronger, their fighting style would change - healers learning how to harm, fighters becoming more agressive or defensive, and quite often, magic played into it as well. That's about when it clicked. If Scott was filling the support role, didn't that mean... he wasn't alone? Surely he couldn't be expected to undertake this kind of journey all by himself. And when he played these games, he always tried to explore what he could do - can you run away from fights? Are empty HP bars equal to death or just a knock-out? Was this someone else in the same situation as him? Trying to explore what they could do?

His curiosity getting the better of him, he took a deep breath, before taking flight, staying low, the tips of his toes just skimming over the ground.

"E-excuse me!" he called.

I, the Demon King, Will Summon My Own Damned Heroes!

Scott - The First Week

The pixie didn't do much for the first days of his life. He had the near-overwhelming urge to cause trouble, to make mischief, to sing and laugh and dance. But most of him objected to it. He stayed in his little hollow in the wall, most of the time, sustaining himself from the crystals. They didn't fill his stomach, but they kept him alive. Eventually, though, the crystals near to his 'home' were drained, and he had to venture further afield. It took him some time to work up the courage.

In fact, he only emerged when he noticed that dusk was on its way. Instinct - or was it logic? - told him that most predators would be resting at this time. The goblins, most certainly. He'd seen them once or twice, and their grabbing hands - watched as they tortured a captured moth, twisting off her wings, one by one. He didn't watch them after that. But by the sunset, the pixie darted out and began a search for the soft-glowing crystals; or better yet, something to ease the ache in his belly. And he did. He spied a lizard carcass, some time dead, and gnawed at by what must have been rats. Cautiously, he ripped off a piece and bit down. It might have been raw and unpleasant, but nothing else appeared to happen. His head darting from side to side, he grabbed as much as he could carry in his arms and flew back to the hollow.

The next three days were spent in a similar fashion. At dawn, he'd fly up to the cave ceiling, and practice flying through the jagged stone teeth that hung from it, learning how and when to turn, how to dive, swoop, glide and dodge. There were a few mishaps, but a healing spell or two fixed them. Once the other cave dwellers began to move, he would fly back to his little burrow. And when they returned to their dens and their camps and such, he would fly back out, and search the cave floor for any forgotten meals or recently deceased. Mostly bugs.

And earlier today, just as he was waking, and stretching out, he remembered. All of it at once. Not in an orderly way, mind. It was jumbled and disordered, and nothing made sense. His morning routine forgotten, he sat down in the dust and began writing, remembering what he knew, trying to piece it together. Name. Species. Personality. Human childhood. Pixie 'childhood'. He could sketch and write. He can cast spells and... make enchantments. And... his death. The last was the one he spent the longest dwelling on. He had, quite literally, made a deal with the devil. What that meant for his soul or his past, he didn't know. But he knew that he needed to get to the Palace.

His decision made, he stood, brushing the dirt off of his leggings. That's about when he realised it was dusk. Well, a better time than never to start exploring. He'd need to gather some resources, maybe find something or someone to protect him in case he ran out of mana, things like that. Taking a deep breath, he stood on the threshold of his 'home'. He was leaving behind pretty much everything he knew, in both of his lives. Such was the task at hand. Taking a few steps forward, and a few flutters of his wings, he began the search. Food. Crystals. A weapon. And maybe, just maybe, he could find an ally.