Sorry about my lack of appearances. At this point Im taking a much needed hiatus from here after 5 long years. Not sure when I'll be back, but it won't be for awhile... sorry about that... : (
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likes
6 yrs ago
Revenge of the 5th has always been a thing tho...
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likes
6 yrs ago
Do not forget about the GOD DAMN bacon.
3
likes
6 yrs ago
Once upon a time, I used to cheer for May the 4th... now I cry with disappointment. *Except Clone Wars S7 and the Mandalorian - they are awesome*
Traveling west, the twin Dragonborn had been hugging the edge of the Qiangshan Mountains. The world around them was still, save for the wind that howled ruthlessly above them. Life around these parts were sparse, with little foliage and even fewer creatures to be found. One could even call this side of the mountains as a dead wasteland. Rain rarely came to this portion of the land and even when it did, it would ruthlessly hammer upon the surface to the point where they would wrought mudslides. But alas, an event of that caliber had not happened in many months.
However, Michalis and Minerva remained rather contempt upon the jagged rocks they walked upon. Both didn't dare to go near the hostile sands of the Sandravii desert, nor did they had the strength and knowledge for what laid on the other side of the great peaks. Yet their keen senses had detected the faint aroma of fresh grounds, one that seemed to call for their very well-being. A welcoming forest was within their range, yet a journey that would take hours, if not days, to complete.
Yet compared to where they currently found themselves, it would be a safe-haven.
Yet in between their destinations, pockets of life could still be found clinging to life on the edge. Scrubland bushes remained firmly attached the the mountainous terrain in small groups, retaining enough moisture for their dark-green leaves to last several more months. Some even contain bright red berries that could be forged for food - something the Dragonborn didn't take for granted. It only gave them menial sustenance - never enough to fill their groaning bellies.
Minerva found herself lagging a little behind as she found herself grasping her belly. She'd occasionally pinch herself with her sharp claws in order to keep up with Michalis' more rugged pace. Her brother, however, would notice this and always make sure he didn't walk too far ahead. He'd always be in sight of his sister, waiting for her to keep up, before moving on. Yet they both shared one crucial concern.
"We... must eat something... big."
Minerva's voice was already rather wobbly as she stopped to take a breather. Her partner was quick to steady her, his massive hands carefully keeping her upright.
Michalis knew fully well on what she meant. Berries will not sustain them for very long. They need something richer, some much more in precious nutrients to keep their bodies going. They had a savory affection for foods high in protein...
Meat shall do them well.
But where to find it in such a desert landscape? Michalis began to scour the slopes for anything worth of value. Nothing could be found near the base and nothing could be seen lurking near the top. However, as he scoped to the very edge of the rocks, he saw a large cliff side just cornering their current line of sight. Atop it, a bunch of twigs could be seen hanging slightly over the edge. More curiously, there appeared to be something in it. The dragonborn's ears picked up upon seeing this unusual sight as he nudged Minerva to look.
"There is something..." he said, pointing at the cliff, "Up there. You see?"
It took her a second to figure out what he meant, but upon seeing the mound of twigs she nodded.
"I do..." she confirmed before looking back at him, "Is it food?"
"I... do not know." Michalis unsurely admitted, "But there's only one way to be sure. Come."
He signaled Minerva to come as they began to slowly ascend towards their destination. They climbed through the steep facing rocks and leapt over small gaps in between each platform. Yet despite the lack of danger near the top, both would begin to crouch as if by mere instinct. A fog cloud was rolling in, and while it gave them some cover, they wouldn't know what to expect until they;d get real close. Eventually they made it upon the solid cliff-face and curiously glanced over towards the pile of branches. Yet they found that it was far from being empty. It held what appeared to be two large white ovular shapes, both being nearly half as large as their own torsos.
"What... is this?" Minerva asked cautiously.
They both began to crawl closer to this unusual set up and began to smell the air around it. They could smell the scent of rotting meat and faint droppings emanating around the two objects. Minerva began to slowly approach one of the ovals and slowly placed her hand on it. Upon doing so, a flood of knowledge surged into the dragonborn's mind before she slowly withdrew her hand from it. Her eyes widened upon the sudden realization.
"These..." she muttered softly to Michalis, "Are edible."
Her partner looked at her curiously before he too proceeded to touch the object. His grunt confirmed Minerva's evaluation.
"Yes." he replied, "They are eggs... Big eggs. They will surely satiate our hunger."
Michalis reached out to one of the eggs and carefully lifted it up with his might. Even for him, it was an unnaturally dense egg, and one he could barely carry.
Yet as soon as he got a good grip, the duo suddenly heard a screech howling in the distance. They froze upon hearing it, with Michalis almost dropping the egg right there and then, as they attempted to process the sudden noise. They were both feeling uneasy regarding the situation
"What was that?" Minerva asked cautiously as she tried to look around the corner, "Did you hear that, Michalis?"
He nodded silently. The two waited before they heard the screech again, this one being closer than the last. Michalis was quick to connect the dots as his eyes widened in horror. At this stage there's little that they could do here. He's too encumbered to run with such a giant egg in his possession. Surely, it would catch him. He looked down at the cliff edge and without warning grabbed Minerva's arm as the two headed off the cliff-face!
"Hang on!" he called as they suddenly seemed to have disappeared within the thick fog.
Footsteps could soon be felt, alongside heavy breathing, as a massive creature soon came into view. At first, it seemed to seamlessly blend in with the fog around it, save only for a faint dark shadow that masked its presence. Then a clawed foot speared into the harsh rock as the creature revealed itself - a large bird-like theropod creature covered in a snowy-white plumage. It's massive toothy beak held a chunk full of bloodied guts and innards, signaling that it had just came back from hunting.
Underneath him, a large crevice formed underneath the cliffside - exactly where the Dragonborn were silently cooped up in. Their eyes were wide in fear and their hearts pumping furiously, as they tried to stay as quiet as possible. Now Minerva had the egg in her possession and they had a mighty hunch at what was going to happen next.
The creature's eyes briefly surveyed the area, sniffing the air above him, before it checked the nest itself. Yet it would instantly realize that something was wrong. One of its eggs was missing. It's beak seemed to unhinge in utter blasphemy, as the meaty chum landed bluntly upon the nest. Its eyes squinted before furiously issuing an ear-splitting screech in utter rage, echoing across the mountains. Both offenders struggling to keep their bearings, closing their eyes in a feeble attempt to drown out the sound.
Minerva was struggling to keep herself from muttering any noises, as Michallis rose his finger up to her's demanding that she remained silent. The creature was once again sniffing the air around it. It would tilt its head closer to the edge of the cliff, before getting a whip of something... odd. It was a foreign smell - a smell it didn't recognize. The creature began to slowly crawl over towards the edge, slowly trying to track down the origin of the scent. It's head was literally hugging the edge at that point...
And the Dragonborn were now fearing for their lives.
"T-This... this is it." Minerva inaudibly whispered to herself in utter terror, "I-Is this how we die...?"
"Over an egg?"
Michallis remained silent as they once again closed their eyes, held their breaths, and prayed to the heavens that they would get out of here alive...
Until they heard something. The sound of heavy grunting. The bird-creature would immediately raise its head to get a better stance in which to hear. It would chirp curiously as it turned its full attention towards the animal in question. Emerging from the fog, a four-legged beast slowly emerged from the white fog.
It revealed itself to be a simple boar - not even bigger than a small boulder.
The brown-furred quadruped at first seemed to be oblivious to the predator that happened to be several meters away from it, as it continued uplifting rocks for any tasty mushrooms and other morsels. It's work would be soon rewarded as it suddenly found a truffle hidden underneath a large lichen-covered rock. Once eating it, it continued to search for more food, walking in an almost straight line before hitting its head upon a fuzzy tree log. It snorted rudely as it proceeded to head-butt the thing right in front of it...
Only to quickly realize that it wasn't a tree log at all!
The boar looked up to see the bird-creature glaring down at him with eyes laced with venomous intent. Realizing its error, the poor piglet squealed in surprise before the bird's massive beak descended upon him. Luckily, its quick reflects allowed for him to dodge the initial jab, as it proceeded to high tail out of there. Furious, the bird screeched as it proceeded to give chase against the foolish animal, both proceeding to quickly disappear into the thick fog beyond until one could hardly hear their conflict.
Once they felt like the coast was clear, both Michalis and Minerva began to loosen their stance while breathing a heavy sigh of relief. Then they found themselves beginning to snicker to one another. Then it evolved into chuckle. Until the two found themselves bellowing in laughter as they both embrace one another in absolute relief.
"O-Oh Michalis..." Minerva managed to say as she slowly began to calm down, "T-That was a close one..."
Her partner chuckled before scratching his head.
"Yes..." he agreed, "That was... too close. If that thing didn't distract the beast, we would've surely become her next meal."
The two then stood up and removed themselves from underneath the crevice. Michalis then proceeded to carry the burden off Minerva's shoulders and found himself carrying the egg once more. The woman would then motion her partner to follow her.
"Come. Let us find a place to prepare that egg." she suggested casually as he found herself skipping down the mountain in glee.
Michalis could only smile as he began to follow suit. The two will definitely not go to bed hungry tonight.
Post Summary
The Dragonborn continued their trek through the mountain range towards the forest, when they suddenly came across a bundle of sticks situated upon a cliffside. Curious, the two inspected the oddity, only to find that they stumbled upon a nest of a fearsome "Snodo". One of said Snodos would then return to the nest, forcing the Dragonborn to hide underneath a crevice underneath the nest. Snodo almost snuffed them out, before a random boar bumped into the creature's leg and ran off with the predator in pursuit. Both Dragonborn would laugh relievingly from such a stressful situation and would proceed to find a proper place to make a fire and cook the big ole' egg.
A terrible cacophony of noise was fast approaching the towering Qiangshan Mountain range. After what had seemed like forever flying over the great Sandravii Desert, Sartr’s dragon forces were finally closing in on their destination. Their malevolent leader - the gigantic hydra Slaevatein - led the charge as their songs of mayhem stemmed ever closer to their prey.
The only thing standing in their way? A massive wooden ship that belonged to none other then the owner of their residence - the River god Shengshi. The hydra was aware of his divine presence on board, their noses having quickly sensed the intoxicating smell of stream water and mead stemming off the god’s ride. Yet they also sensed another god onboard - a sweet-smelling goddess with a radiant persona that could only belong to Asceal.
It would definitely be an intimidating first run for any army to sink their teeth into, but the massive Slaevatein feared nothing. All it could feel was rage and a ravenous hunger to satiate. With their prey straight ahead, the Hydra ripped loose a melody of ear-splitting screeches as they proceeded to engage the ship. The smaller dragons began to split off, some having already formed large squadrons, as they proceeded to attack different portions of the ship. If they could overwhelm them by surrounding it, then surely they would be victorious. The hydra meanwhile was flanked by the larger dragons, before they finally opened fire on the vessel. All seven heads unleashed a volley of powerful beams of fire, each blasting upon various portions of the wooden deck - some hitting the hull, or the deck, with some even hitting the on-board masts holding up the ship’s massive sails.
The battle had just begun. All around the deck, screaming servants ran for cover behind the sacred gates. Some made it; others were boiled to nothingness before the fury of the dragonfire. Some brave martyrs of the Strong cast themselves over the jaws of huffing dragons aiming for their brothers and sisters, selflessly offering their lives just to buy their family some time. The barricades around the main gates, mortal as they were without having been blessed by the sacred oils of Jiangzhou, soon found themselves to be little more than ash.
While the ship was impervious to the dragon’s every attack, Jiangzhou was unfortunately faulty in one aspect: Every room in the palace had open windows. So even as the servants sprinted to close every set of wooden blinds and cover every window with blessed boards, the cunning beasts merely turned the rooms into ovens. That which was inside the rooms, deemed too mundane to be blessed, was reduced to cinders. Now, trapped within the depths of the hull, the servants hunkered together as the fires raged above.
“The nerve…” came a vicious rumble from the top floor of the central tower. The snake slithered out onto his veranda, his paper door-walled chambres aflame. The fire licked menacingly, yet harmlessly against the crimson scales of Shengshi, and his beastly, reptilian eyes mirrored those of his assailants. “A grave insult to attack my home, you mindless beasts - and a fatal mistake to burn my house.” He slowly extended his arms forward. “I will fashion your bones into cutlery to replace that which your fire has melted…” One long, elastic strand of water for each hand whipped up from the lake below and slapped against his open palms. “... I will sew your hides to replace all the textiles you have incinerated…” He flexed his left arm and did a practice whip with his right, its crack akin to a momentary thundering flood. “... I will turn your skulls into chambre pots for all my guests to use for eternity…” He began to spin the whips around into murderous buzz saws of water and fury. “... In short…” Two dragons saw their openings from the hind flank and dove.
“... I will slaughter you all.”
In what felt like a flash, the two dragons became a mist of crimson and unevenly cut meat strands. The other dragons unfortunate enough to be in the immediate vicinity of the middle tower suffered similar fates - the lucky ones suffered minor cuts and climbed for safety or major lacerations and dove for cover. Not even the holy wood of the sacred tower was safe from the meat grinder that was Shengshi’s whips, the water’s blades cutting deep into some planks and walls, and sometimes cleaving them entirely. The immediate space around the palace became a zone of death, forcing the dragons to momentarily retreat.
That brief reprieve bought Asceal time to gather what few Servants remained alive on the deck. None were uninjured, in fact few were even whole, but that was no obstacle for the Goddess. With a mere touch the missing limbs of felled servants were returned to them. Asceal zipped between the doorway she’d emerged from and the injured, retrieving and healing the few lucky servants who’d escaped the battle on the deck in the span of a moment.
When she’d rescued the last of the water-people she made her way the hallway where her children were waiting, all three of them. Makab had been roused by the din of battle and his siblings had been quick to shepard their disoriented brother into one of the safe corridors. It was he who asked the question on all the their minds, “How do we fight them Mother? Just one nearly-”
The winged man paused abruptly as he raised his pristine arm. Asceal smiled weakly at his surprise, but didn’t wait for him to come to his own conclusions, “The same way I healed you, Makab. I’m going to give all of you some of my power. You’ll be able to recover from any wound the beasts can inflict on you.” She hesitated and frowned before going on, “As long as it doesn’t kill you outright. You’ll still have to be careful, all of you.”
With that said the Goddess closed her eyes and the hallway began to glow. Her children felt a tingle, and that was that. Makab nodded, but Eline had more to say, “As helpful as that is Mother, the spears you gave us weren’t able to pierce the hide of the one that we fought before. We need weapons.”
Asceal pursed her lips, “You do. I should have given you proper weaponry to begin with.”
The Goddess took Eline’s hand and squeezed. As soon as Asceal let go the winged woman was holding a shimmering spear as tall as she was. Eline looked shocked, but said nothing. There was no time to waste. She hugged her mother and took off down the hallway.
“And now you two,” Asceal grasped the hands of her sons, and soon Makab was hefting a glowing sword while Akam held an elegant shimmering bow.
Makab gritted his teeth and took after Eline. Akam looked unsure, even uncomfortable with the weapons in his hands, but there was nothing for it. Asceal pulled her son into a hug and whispered into his ear, “Be safe, and keep them safe too.”
The last of the Goddess’s children nodded and outstretched his wings. With a powerful motion he took off down the hallway, flying to catch up with the others. Asceal, now alone in the passageway, scowled and cursed the air, “If any of them come to harm, Sartravius, I won’t stop with this army.”
She furrowed her brows and began walking in the direction her children had gone.
Meanwhile, the dragons continued their ruthless assault upon the sturdy hull of the ship. Even as each dragon fell, two would take their place and continue to what their fallen brethren started. Within seconds, they were back in the fray. Several of these ferocious beasts were able to out-maneuver the water god’s powerful jet-streams and land directly on the wooden deck of his vessel.
There they began to wreck havoc upon the holy deck of the ship, while also inspecting the broken windows that lead directly into the ship’s interior. The dragons would then peer into the broken windows - their amber eyes searching the interior for any tasty morsels. Any servants they found near them would be swiftly devoured. Otherwise they began to unleash their breath of death towards the visible windows, roasting any remaining alive, while others began to utilize their massive claws to manually get into the lower levels.
Meanwhile, Slaevatein noted the challenging words that ominously emanated from Shengshi’s mouth. The heads growled challengingly yet they weren’t intimidated by his bluff. Their skin began to release hot steam from little openings within their skin, as their body began to grow more and more crimson as they did. Even as a stream of water came directly at them, the intense heat was able to mitigate most of the damage received - boiling most of the water and power before they could even touch him.
How the cruel Slaevatein laughed at the water god’s attempts, their heads all cackling in uncontrollable giddiness, before they proceeded to fire all seven fire beams directly towards their opponent’s face. Yet as they did, they began to fly directly towards him. Those beams were to provide a distraction, hopefully long enough, for the terrible hydra to get close and rip their talons into the god’s hide, with swift and ruthless brutality.
While Shengshi’s scales were impervious to the flame, he growled in agony when the blasts seared the parts of his humanoid skin that he could not protect. He shielded what he could of his face and chest with the back of his arms, but left his abdomen open for the dragon’s talons. Few beasts could pierce sacred skin, but as the claws connected, Shengshi felt for the first time his ichor spill. The sensation was dreadful, wretchedly painful - yet above all, foreign, so much so that, for a moment after the strike, the snake lowered his guard in bewilderment and let his eyes fall to the wound as if it was some oddity. Shengshi stroked his palm against the three crimson slits on his belly and lifted it to his face, blinking.
“You… Wounded me,” he snarled quietly. He raised his other hand quickly. The dragon was close now - perhaps a little too close. Suddenly, two blades of water from the lake below bolted up towards the necks furthest to left and right. The left head was able to dodge the blade by several feet, swerving its long neck in an S-shape, however it couldn’t be said for the one on the right.
*CHOP*
It was just a second too slow as its head was completely sliced off from its host. The hydra roared violently as a fountain of fiery ichor found itself spilling all over the deck, slowly burning the divine hull and dripping into the lower levels. In a fit of rage, the monstrous abomination was swift in shifting their entire body and utilized their massive tail to issue a powerful swipe towards their wounded god before firing their beams both on him and upon the ship itself.
While the ship remained all the same, Shengshi was knocked off the top of the tower and sent flying, crashing into the Giant’s Bath with a deafening splash and waves that nearly reached to the deck of his ship. The surface of the water grew clouded with sacred blood and the snake was nowhere to be found.
With Shengshi now seemingly out of the picture, Slaevatein snarled before they rose on their hind legs and screeched into the heavens. Their victory screech could be heard for miles, echoing in an eerie symphony of harmonic chaos, before they proceeded to maul the vessel themselves. However, even as their claws became superheated, they would find that they weren’t able to pierce through the hull on their own? The other dragons seemed to have the same problem, with the exception of the broken windows.
Yet they wouldn’t even bother having to do it by themselves. The damage left by the god himself had produced several large holes, with some large enough to fit a small dragon in. The hydra would cackle again as they called for reinforcements. Several more of their forces came to their aid and proceeded to enter, however their giant brethren would quickly stop their descent.
They had a better idea.
The hydra ordered the dragons to gather around the exposed holes, but only that. Small groups, no larger than three or four, crowded behind every nook and cranny they could find. Each head would proceed to overlook any nearby hole, overseeing the operation as their throats began to glow a fiery orange. Then, they plunged their mouths into the wounds and ignited their liquid fire into the vessel. They were essentially cooking the vessel from the inside out, broiling everyone that were unfortunate enough to be on the upper decks. If they are to keep this up, the entire vessel would become a giant furnace and eliminate everyone from within.
Immediately, those who had sought safety in the palace were boiled to nothingness. Men, women and children who had hunkered behind the doors to the guest rooms or in the previously impervious hallways were reduced to the mere cinders of their clothes. Down in the belly of the ship, where most had sought refuge, they quivered and cried at the gurgles and screams from the floors above. Occasionally, servants who had reached the staircase tossed themselves out of the way of pursuing columns of fire avoided the flames, but not the heat, falling to the floor below in messes of hot sand and mud.
As if the deaths of their kin was not enough, the ship was heating up from all the steam, and many of the servants grew paranoid and panicky as their breathed in the literal fumes of their dead brethren.
Within the vessel Asceal was bathed in flames. She’d been unable to escape the ship before the Dragon’s clever attack, and now the very corridor around her was saturated with furious orange fire. For anything mortal it would have been a death sentence. Thankfully, Asceal was not a mortal. Nor was she a stranger to pain.
The Goddess walked through the corridors unperturbed, her expression not one of horror but rather one of cold fury. Eventually she reached one of the holes Shengshi had torn in his ship and cast her gaze on the beast breathing fire in her very face. She flapped her wings once and collided with the beast's maw.
The dragon lurched back in surprise, and that sealed its fate. Before it could close its powerful jaws the Goddess in its mouth punched up and shattered the dragon’s palate. The blast of bone shredded the creatures brain and it fell dead suddenly. Its fellows looked at their fallen comrade in confusion only to see a glowing beacon of illumination climb out of the dead dragon’s mouth.
As she got to her feet Asceal grew brighter and brighter still, until her own light was enough to make even glancing at her deeply unpleasant for the lizards on the ships deck. Those who ignored the pain and held the Goddess in their gaze would soon find themselves without sight at all. Asceal didn’t scream in fury, nor did she utter any threat or challenge, she merely advanced on the stunned beasts.
It was then that the three angels attacked. All had dived into the water and taken the time to shift into their true forms. Now three titans stood up in the giants bath. The water, deep was it was, was only up to their chests. Makab pumped his wings first, the distinctive brown mottled look of his feathers distinguishing him from his siblings. He took off, his jump propelling him onto the deck of Shengshi’s enormous vessel. Eline and Akam followed suit, and suddenly there wasn’t much space left on the ships deck.
Glowing weaponry flicked to life in their hands and they entered the fray. Unlike the dragons, they were immune to their mothers blinding appearance and had no problem fighting under her light.
Dragons swarmed the three, but many things had changed since their first battle. Eline used her enormous spear to pierce the first dragon that charged her, and as it writhed on the shaft of her ethereal weapon a swing of Makab’s sword took off its head. The three fought with their mother, each one falling back into her light after sustaining an injury only to emerged unhurt after a few moments.
The dragons were, suddenly, presented with one enemy that it was dangerous to see and three that were seemingly impossible to kill. Several held their distance, but many cared little for strategy and simply did their damndest to maul each feathered titan as they emerged from the light.
Slaevatein’s heads each lurched up from their hidey holes as they inspected the new opponents that dared to engage them. The blinding light from the goddess was enough for them to avert their eyes, yet they still refused to abandon ship. The angelic trio were also now out and about - their giant white bodies being near featureless save for their wings and giant glowing yellow eyes - slaying every scaly monster they came across. The hydra was now in for a real fight.
Several of the hydra’s heads locked onto their respective angel - precisely Eline and Makab - as they blast their hellish blaze towards them with haste. However, the third angel - Akam - seemed not be in sight. That was, until he popped out from the creature’s left flank with a holy bow and arrow in his grasp. Taking opportunity of the distracted Slaevatein, he proceeded to aim his arrow straight towards the beast. He carefully prepared his shot as his firing hand shook upon the pressure… And he never fired.
His target was right there. It would be impossible for the angel to miss at the range he was at. Yet he refused to fire. His gaze shifted nervously, almost as if he was in utter awe of the beast that was in front of him. Alone that might have been enough to make Akam hesitate, but it was something else that stayed his hand.
Whatever it was, the winged titan didn't have long to ponder it. For that was when one of the hydra’s heads noticed the angel and its amber-colored eyes pierced the archer’s soul. Akam couldn’t move. No matter what he did, he just couldn’t release his arrow. And with one of Slaevatein’s heads now glaring upon him, all he did was look up at his impending doom, as the beast’s throat glowed brightly before a blinding red gaze filled his sight completely.
Eline and Makab had managed to dodge the hydra’s fire, even if barely, but Akam was not so fortunate. The feathered titan took the scorching blast to the chest, and despite its size, was flung off the ship. Akam landed in the giants bath, his front a charred ruin and his eyes dim. Almost at once his siblings abandoned their assault and retreated to their fallen brother, pulling his sinking form through the giant's bath and away from the battle. The faint glow of magic could be seen among Akam’s injuries, his scorched flesh slowly being restored, but the damage was great.
It was at that moment the blinding light of the Goddess simply… Ceased. The dragons looked around in bewilderment, trying to locate Asceal, but none managed. At least, until she streaked out from behind the tower.
The Goddess didn’t shout or scream or shout, she merely flew at one of Slaevatein’s heads faster than any arrow.
And upon impacting one of the hydra’s own heads, the head would simply explode upon impact with the goddess. Another head had been blasted clean from their body, as Slaevatein issued another surprising shriek towards the sudden turn of events. Only five heads now remained, with the bleeding stumps spilling their burning essence upon the holy wood of the vessel.
Now the enraged beast was not about to continue fooling around. It's heads began to search for the light goddess, firing upon anything that moved or squirmed around below them. If they could take down a water god, then surely they could take down a merely insignificant goddess with only some effort.
The waters around the massive Dragon's feet began to bubble faintly, light prickles tickling at its skin. Then, suddenly, several liquid arms and appendages whipped out of the lake and wrapped themselves around whatever part of Slaevatein they could grab, pulling it down to the surface.
The hydra began screeching profusely as they found themselves struggling against the wet embrace that enwrapped them. Their necks and legs were the first to become compromised as they attempted to use all the heat in their body to evaporate the offending arms, however they didn’t appear to work as efficiently. Slaevatein would then attempt to fly as they were able to gain several meters off the ground, yet the watery chains seemed to have kept them bound to the water below. The aquatic arms dragged the flailing beast to the eastern edge of the bath with a force that sent tall waves washing over the ship, the angels and Asceal. At the eastern edge, the arms snaked themselves around the entirety of the beast like bands around a mummy, trapping it in a liquid cocoon. The heads thrashed and frequently broke through the barrier, but no matter how the body struggled, the overall integrity of its cage seemed too solid.
At the centre of the pool rose Shengshi out of the water, propelled by a constant water jet. He clutched his still-bleeding side and hissed, clenching his free hand into a shaking fist.
“I will admit, I underestimated the potency of dragonfire. My carelessness has cost me much of my home and my loyal crew.” A snake of water rose out of the lake in front of the Slaevatein, nearly twice the size of the beast itself. It veered its head from side to side, occasionally popping out a dripping, forked tongue.
“Now, I seem to recall saying something about drowning,” the snake said with a cruel smirk and unclenched his fist. The water snake jabbed its head at the Slaevatein with such force that the now-five headed beast broke through the stone wall of the bath; however, its agony was far from over. The water snake surged forward with unrelenting fury, grinding the writhing beast through a cracking, shifting mess of sand, stone and water. It continued as it reached the deserts, turning southwards until it was far, far away from the battle. After a moment, not even divine eyes could see where the horror had taken the beast - only that it had left a long, smooth-bottomed river in its wake.
The dragon folley rose their heads to find their seven-headed master, but he was alas nowhere to be seen. They began to screech in confusion, wondering where Slaevatein went off too, before one dragon began to panic amidst Shengshi’s reappearance. And once it panicked, soon the others began to feel the same energy and most began to flee the scene. They rose from the ship like a mass of fiery locusts, their calls echoing across the area as they began their hasty retreat. Many went in the direction of where their Master had been forced to, calling to them as they followed the newly created river towards the desert.
Others however, whether out of confusion or of fear, went in different directions altogether. A handful found themselves heading to the very mountains they sought to conquer, however their intentions were hardly harmful at this point. They would each take residence in any cave they could find, eventually making them their new home and abandoning Sartr’s plans.
The same was said to several more, some exiling themselves into the farthest regions of Sandravii, the Charnel Steppes, and even the forests of Xishan. Eventually, others would settle across the world of Galbar, living out their days a simply humble beasts and nothing more.
Only one would find itself flying back to Mt. Eldahverr, where it would be the messenger to the battle at hand.
As the dust settled and the last of the dragons fled, Asceal found herself standing over Akam. Eline and Makab had brought their brother onto the battle scarred deck once it was clear the danger had passed, but the felled angel had not stirred since his injury. His silence wasn’t a result of any injury, for his body had long since healed. Nor was it a consequence of sleep, for Akam’s eyes were wide open.
It seemed to the world that he was fine, but he did not stir. His siblings didn’t understand, and in their ignorance they grew more and more concerned, worried their brother had sustained an injury no magic could heal. That was, in a roundabout way, the truth. Not the whole truth, though. Asceal knelt next to her son and held his hand.
After all, had the Goddess not been where Akam was now? There were some things that could not be explained, and Asceal didn’t seem inclined to waste her breath trying. She reassured Akam’s siblings, and then sent them to check on Liana and Shengshi.
The two found Shengshi standing at the top of the new waterfall, his hand still clutching his side. He gazed outwards at the large flow that seemed to snake its merry way through the desert in the distant. As the two angels approached, he gave them both a nod each.
“Have the dragons scattered?” he asked.
“Looks like,” Makab answered, “Once you beat up the big one they got out of here fast as they could.”
“Mm-hm,” the snake said sourly. “Is your mother still around? I would rather not walk around with my flesh exposed like this. It would be uncouth.” Not really waiting for an answer, he slithered into the water and swam for the ship.
Makab opened his mouth to answer, but a jab in the ribs from Eline discouraged him. The two elected to follow the God of Rivers at a distance. Shengshi climbed aboard the ship and looked around. The damage it had suffered was immense - heartbreaking. It brought mist and tears to the snake’s eyes to see burned heaps of clothing and sand and glass splattered across the deck. “An unforgivable massacre,” he whispered and wiped away a tear.
Asceal squeezed Akam’s hand and stood up from her son’s side. She made her way to Shengshi, the same tears in her eyes as her sibling’s, “I’m sorry.” Her voice was weak, almost choked, “Do- Do you know how many survived?”
The snake shook his head somberly. He snapped his fingers and, very slowly, the survivors came walking, limping or on stretchers out of the palace, presenting themselves before the gods on their knees. The snake let his eyes scan their numbers and he sniffed. “Of my ten thousand servants, fewer than two thousand remain,” he said in a shaking voice. The crew themselves looked at one another in horror, most of them starting to weep and cry. The snake clutched his face with a shivering hand and collapsed to the floor. “This is my fault… I underestimated the beasts…”
As the Servants presented themselves Asceal’s expression fell even further. She managed a sigh of relief when she saw Liana alive and well, but even that was short lived. The Goddess closed her eyes and rested a hand on Shengshi’s shoulder, “No, Shengshi, it’s not. Sartravius made these beasts, and Sartravius sent them out into the world. You, and me, neither of us understood the depth of our peers malice, that’s all. I knew Sartravius was cruel, and even then I never could have imagined this.”
The Goddess breathed in, and her next words were as resolved as they were icy, “It’s not a mistake we’ll make again. We made a toast to victory Shengshi, I think it’s time to see that promise through.”
The snake was silent for a long time. Then, eventually, he pursed his lips and nodded. He poked the final tear out of his eye and growled. “So we shall… First, though, I must repair my ship. Before that, though… Could you do me a little favour, dearest sister?” The snake pointed to his wound. “As I said to your children, I would rather this was closed.”
Asceal looked down at Shengshi and nodded. She knelt down and pressed a hand against the cuts on Shengshi’s side, eliciting a slight wince from the snake. There was a faint glow, and in the span of a second it was done. The Goddess cast her gaze on the servants and wiped a few tears from her eyes, “I’m going to go tend to your people now, Shengshi, if you’ll excuse me.”
“Please do.” The snake slithered over to the dragon’s head at the ship’s bow and leaned on it with a sigh. “They made a mockery of us, did they not, old friend?” As usual, the dragon’s head was silent on these matters. The snake frowned and gazed down into the waters below. He pressed his palm against the wood of the railing and, slowly, a pulse of light snailed and snaked its way through the wood fibres. It traveled like running water across the ship, turning broken planks and crisped furniture back to their undamaged forms. The cuts in the palace melted together in an uncanny fashion, considering they were wooden, and windows were replaced and redressed in paper. Shengshi’s personal chambres once again displayed the opulent perfection that he himself advocated. Yet, as his ship returned to normal, the snake shot another glance back at the grieving servants. He slithered back and breathed in deeply.
“Servants,” he called. They all quickened to, even the ones too damaged to truly quicken. The snake’s heavy eyes blinked a few times. He gave them a two-fingered rub and cleared his throat. “On account of this crime committed against the sacred people of the rivers, I, Shengshi, give you all my most genuine blessings to be fruitful and multiply.” Many of the servants looked at one another, sudden beams of glee contrasting their wartorn expressions. “Due to the grave losses, I set no boundaries on the number of children you may produce - however, the caste division test will strive to distribute the children as equally as their results will allow. I…” He took another deep breath. “... I know your new families will not be able to replace the old, but they will hopefully be able to mitigate some of the grief. You may start as soon as you feel like it. Nanhe, Beihe and the Giant’s Bath are all open to you.” The servants all smiled at one another, and as Asceal walked by to heal them, they cast themselves to their hands and knees and thanked her in every way that they could. Shengshi looked at the new river to the east and scratched his chin. “... Yes, that is right… I need a name for this one…” He eyed its dissecting nature as it cut the continent into the eastern desert and the western grasslands and jungle. “... A natural border, perhaps… A great one at that… Very well,” he said and beat his fist into his palm. “It shall be known as Taipang, the great border.”
Meanwhile, near the Cauldron
A vast winged shadow swept overhead, and a dragon fell, its back cloven in a single swipe. Another banked sideways, shaking its head and growling, as something grey fell onto its neck and began to crawl upwards. The roars turned to shrieks of pain as the grey spot reached its head and claws dug into its eyes. Around it, more tumbled and fell as apelike shapes continued to drop from above and swiftly put their talons and teeth to work.
”Lucky break today!” Vrog laughed, a sound not unlike the gurgling of a swamp, as he balanced over a reptilian spine, ”First an easy job, then we run into these apesk like an elbow in the gut! Get the wing first, spithead!” he barked to a ghoul wrestling its way across another beast above him.
With a curse and an empty husk spat out, the brute clambered up the crimson-scaled ridge, effortlessly digging his metallic fingers into the armoured hide. The dragon, snarling with each blow, writhed and turned at abrupt angles, trying to shake off the presence on its back. Every twist succeeded only in making the cold stings sink deeper, and they still came closer to its head. In desperation, it twisted its wing, lowering one flank until it flew sideways, and then beyond - its eyes narrowed in focus as it spun around the axis of its spine in a sweeping, graceful motion.
When it opened them again, a row of grimy yellow fangs was grinning straight at its pupil. Vrog tossed a seed into his mouth, chewed, swallowed and spat a sharp bolt through the dragon’s head.
The fall was quick, loud and ended in a crash, just the way he liked. Disentangling himself from the mangled corpse was a light price to pay for it. His tongue darted up, hoping there was still time to do it once again, but, much to his disappointment, the remaining dragons were already far. The Omen’s large shadow still slid in pursuit behind them, but it wouldn’t go far.
Vrog plucked another seed from the gap in his armour, raised it to his mouth and paused. The dragon’s smell itched on his tongue with an unfamiliar, fiery sense. He tore away a handful of scaly skin, opened his jaw wider than it ought to have done and bit down.
Sharp, but good.
Around him, the surviving ghouls were busying themselves in a similar way with the rest of the bodies. A good few of them had been crushed under the carcasses in the fall, and others dragged broken limbs, for the little that it slowed them in their triumphal feast. No matter, that. Ghouls were replaceable, and fixing themselves was what they were supposed to do. On the whole, he could count this as a clean victory.
The Devourer snapped his flask open, bit into the dragon again, and chased the mouthful down with a sip of fiery distilled fluid. It could use some improvement, maybe smoking, but it was fine.
This was a great day to be alive.
Shengshi before 5MP/6FP Used 2MP to make Taipang, the Great Border, a river that stretches from GB to the southern desert peninsula. Used 1MP to repair the damaged Jiangzhou as a 1MP godly action. Shengshi after: 2MP/6FP
Asceal before 0MP/6FP Used 2FP to confer portfolio boosted natural healing abilities upon Angelic beings. Used 2FP to confer the ability to summon spectral weaponry upon Angelic beings. (Angels may summon weaponry that can cut the material and immaterial. Beyond changing to fit their wielder these weapons are just normal weapons, save for their ability to har. the incorporeal. Each angel is able to summon one kind of weapon.)
Dragons attack. Servants get crisped and ate. Asceal gives her kids some badass powers. Sheng busts out some whips and goes full Indiana. Slae beats up Sheng but loses a head. Asceal beats up a dragon and blinds some others. The angels start kicking ass and… That’s it, mostly. Akam hesitates and gets roasted. Angels retreat. Asceal loses her shit and punches another of Slae’s heads off. Slae is mad as hell. Shengshi returns and YEETS Slae 4000km away by literally blasting the dude with the entire volume of a new river, the Taipang. Asceal comforts Akam, who is in shock. The angels fetch Shengshi. Asceal and Sheng grieve the servants and swear to make Travis pay. Asceal patches up Sheng and his crew. Sheng declares reproduction season open. Vrog gets a lucky break.
(Mario: Level Up!) New Ability: Cape - Mario pulls out a cape and swings it in front of him, reflecting projectiles and spinning foes around. He can also glide for short-distances and to break his fall.
Mario's mega fireball hit its mark and with the combined might of everyone's firepower, they were quick to bring Megadragonbowser down to his knees. He laid down on his hands and knees, seemingly begging to his doppel-ganger to take his spirit and claim everything for himself. Their koopa-pounding nemesis was not pleased in hearing it and was ready to throw down if their Bowser went berserk over his newfound power he'd so ominously utilize all for himself. His fist was raised, burning brightly, as he prepared to engage.
However, he didn't need to do anything as Tora and Poppi were fighting over who'd get the spirit besides Bowser himself. Mario remained silent, his burning gaze never leaving Bowser's while he plotted his own methods to settle him down. But out of all the people who'd get the spirit, it was the Centurion who'd take up the offer. Courageous and loyal only to his 'God' (or so he said), his point was soon made across and he was given the spirit to carry for himself. However, it morphed the warrior slightly to fit more within the tyrant's persona, along with the Centurion's personality.
Mario could've theoretically have taken the spirit into himself - considering he had once possessed Bowser's own mind during his recent great odyssey - but he currently had no intentions in risking his own sanity with the Koopa King's filth. Meanwhile Geno was indifferent regarding the turn of events, although he was also admittedly thankful that Bowser didn't harness the Boss's spirit. He came to the aid of the fallen Spyro as he helped the poor dragon get back onto his feet.
"Are you ok?" the doll asked concerningly.
Spyro grunted as he fluffed off his wings.
"Y-Yeah... I'm ok." he groaned, "A little shaky, but I've encountered worse."
Geno would then frown upon realizing how the young dragon got to be where he was.
"It wasn't wise to engage him head on you know?" the warrior would say somewhat sternly, "You could've been killed."
"There was an opening for me to attack!" the purple dragon replied with a slight whine, only to regain his senses, "Or uh... I mean, I thought there was an opening. But you're right, I should be more careful."
"For your own sake, please do." the star warrior agreed with a simple nod.
Before they could continue, they could see the entire castle come back to its original form - revealing the original grand majesty of the beautiful interior of Peach's castle. Mario's nostalgic feelings came rushing through him as his sense of tension seemed to immediately become mute to the calming aura that formed around him.
And then, he saw her.
His eyes widened as he saw the love of his life, Princess Peach, - in the flesh - emerge from the great doors, with her toad servants to see the victory that had transpired. His heart hastened, relieved to see her alive and well. From her depressive frown of dread, her smile blossomed like the flowers in Spring as she congratulated everyone for their efforts in combating against the tyrannical Megadragonbowser. She'd then offer them a great feast and would soon retreat back to her quarters.
Mario would waste no time in following her as he proceeded to rush of the great flight of stairs and follow the Princess. He was unusually bigger than he would've liked - being how he wasn't able to properly utilize the Super Mushroom and how he didn't get hit back to normal - however, he believed that it wouldn't matter much at all.
He didn't even seem to notice Bowser looking at her in a lustful expression... probably for the best as well.
"Peach-a!" he called out to her excitedly as he attempted to keep his emotions in check, "Oh thank-a-da star road that you're alright-a!"
And as he awaited for her to respond, Geno also emerged from behind, where he also had the idea to meet up the the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom after a long awaited hiatus.
"Your Highness." he affirmed politely.
Meanwhile, Spyro roamed amongst the cast of fighters while waiting for food to arrive in his belly. He was absolutely starving, considering how much he had to deal with in the last couple of hours since he was here. He'd then notice the newcomer that entered the room, he being a tall, white-haired, man who looked much like a proper fighter, engaging in a brief argument with Bowser himself. He'd approach him cautiously before he found himself looking up at him.
"And who are you?" he asked the man curiously and in a way nicer way compared to the Koopa King, "Looks like you've found us all in a tough pickle, I'd say."
In life, she was amongst the largest of her kind to take to the skies. Within the hour that it was born, the newborn female dragon would've been considered to be one of the grandest warriors that would've ever served in the Flame God's conquest. She sported the grandest set of horns, the sharpest of teeth, the sturdiest of scales, the longest pair of wings, and the fieriest of spirits.
Her destiny was to live her life through the hardship of conflict and to be rewarded to live the rest of her days in peace. In time, she would be able to mate with a strong, handsome dragon - one deserving of her grandeur and provide a family for them to take care of. Her life ahead was brutal, yet bright. Violent, yet hopeful. Fate seemed to have taken her side as a survivor.
Yet it had only came to pass as disingenuous wish...
As she lied motionlessly upon a rocky mountainous riverside, coating the pure waters red.
Scarlet trails of fresh blood steamed down her burgundy scales, finding their way through the gauntlet of smooth rocks towards the smooth-going river proceeding downhill. Her left, back leg was completely twisted at an unnatural angle, snapping the joints and ligaments that would forever lame her had she survived. Her wings were tattered and torn, with one of her forearms being fractured up to her second long finger, and most of her upper ribs were broken. Her throat suffered from brutal trauma as well, with a purple bruise signifying the point of impact - no doubt her windpipe was thrashed as well.
But the worst of the damage could be seen at what was left of her face. Her skull was beyond repair, caved in by repeated blunt trauma, making her face nearly indistinguishable. Her exposed eye socket has been forcedly smashed into her skull and her snout was fractured. Nearly all of her teeth were shattered from her jaws, including her two long fangs that lied inches from her mouth that were now coated in her blood.
She was broken and battered...
Bloodied and beaten...
Dead.
Beside her, a boulder coated in scarlet laid to the side - a solemn reminder at how the grand beast died. The angels were brutal in their efforts to save themselves from her wrath, not understanding the creature that was in front of them. The dragon had put up a great fight against them, but it otherwise proved worthless against three powerful warriors of light. They were not wrong to defend themselves, but in one's animalistic fury, one of them became the very beast they sought to destroy for that very moment. One minute of unhinged savagery.
And in the end, they didn't even bother to clean up the mess they so ruthlessly wrought.
She may have been the first to fall, but she would definitely not be the last. And for the angels, their atrocity will not go unpunished.
But even in death, there was one last thing that she could muster - one final push that could accomplish in preserving her traits in a certain form. But it would not stem directly by her cold, deceased hands. Her own pool of bleeding ichor was not pure. Mixed within, small portions of glowing blood from the wounded angels had dripped into hers, providing a unique essence that had drifted upstream into their host's source. Her blood was now tainted by the winged holy-men, which provided an unexpected reaction to take hold. For a brief moment, the ichor began to glow faintly, even illuminating the insides of the scaly corpse.
Animals nearby would stop to glance at the oddly glowing body, having never seen such a phenomenon happen in their lives. They'd look upon it curiously, some tilting their heads in visible confusion. And then the glimmer would slowly dim until there was nothing radiating from it. With this unique event over, most the creatures in the forest highlands moved on to go forth with their lives, almost as if they'd forgot they'd seen anything.
But those who continued to stay would proceed to spot an odd spectacle.
Something began to stir within the stale carcass. Her thick skin was contrasting in and out, as if she was starting to breath again. To the animals, it would look as if she being brought back from the brink of death and that it would be back on her feet at any moment. Yet aside from the movement in her side, nothing else moved. The dragon didn't batch an eye or move a muscle, not even issuing a simple flicker of her tail.
No. The dragon was forever destined to remain dead. Nothing could revive her at this point, not even with the help of a god's lazarus.
Something was alive within her. Something wanted to get out. And it was struggling so valiantly, so desperately, to claw into the world beyond the womb. It pushed and pushed, until suddenly~
*Pop*
Reaching for the sky, the outstretched figure of an arm pierced through the tough draconic skin with its sharp claws. Blood covered its muscular pale arm, but coated upon its forearm were patches of dark-red scales - the same ones found upon their draconic mother.
*Pop*
Soon after, another arm pierced from the carcass, its arm looking more smooth and dainty. It clearly didn't match the previous arm that bursted prior. Then, in a sudden motion, both arms slowly descended back into the body till only their claws remained outside. And then they both began to carefully carve their own incisions through the squamous flesh like butter, until two large gashes were formed.
Both forms took a humanoid appearance, but bore features much related towards their draconic womb. Both sported predominantly greyish-white skin, however the patches of dark-crimson scales not only covered half of their forearms, but also their shoulders, their entire legs, upper back, and even a slight touch just below their amber-colored eyes and on their foreheads. They had long red hair, with curved horns sticking out of their heads, as well as abnormally long ears. Their feet were miniature replicas of actual dragons, each sporting four claw-tipped toes and a small hallux situated inwards. And both sported a long spiny whip-like tail, with a pearl-white pattern just underneath.
But their physiques compared to one another were quite different. It was clear that they were of opposite genders, with the male sporting a more robust figure, with larger horns and a hairier chest, while the female was more delicate, with elegant curves, smaller horns, and a slimmer posture.
The two beings took a moment to glance at the new world they've found themselves in before slowly turning to face one another. They were both covered in blood and gore, steadily dripping down their fresh faces and their nude forms. They locked eyes with one another, examining each other from head to toe, while looking at themselves in wondrous curiosity. Both weren't afraid to touch each other's body to feel their essence pumping into their's, with the face, arm, and chest regions being their instinctual first choices.
The male sighed softly as he caressed the female's soft and delicate cheek. Once he removed his hand, he tilted his head before he finally broke the silence.
"W-Who... are you?" he asked with a stutter while trying to grab ahold the language of this world.
The woman didn't reply back at first, with her large eyes pointed down at the ground, as she thought about it for a brief second.
"I..." she began, "I don't know. But I... also ask... who you are?"
He silently shook his head before he took another glance at the environment around him.
"And where... are we?" he asked again as he shaded his eyes from the bright sun. He then plucked his leg from the dragon's flesh and set it upon the rocky surface. She also proceeded to follow along as she stepped onto the ground and began to look around, before finding her gaze back at the dead dragon. She knew fully well that they came out of her body, however she couldn't help but to inspect the wounds not caused by their hand.
But the more she rubbed her essence upon the corpse, the more her feelings began to swell. She felt her connection with her and the past suffering she felt just minutes before her untimely demise. This proved to be too much for her fresh, delicate mind to handle and she proceeded to break down in anguish. The man immediately heard her sobbing and proceeded to run over and comfort her in his burly arms in a gentle embrace. He too felt her grief, as well as the connection they had to her, yet kept most of his emotions to himself.
But even then, he couldn't help but let two silent tears slowly drip down his cheeks.
The two cuddled together for awhile, settling down next to the body till the woman finally began to calm down. She sniffed before facing Him with reflected eyes that shined amongst the sunlight.
"I'm... sorry." the male slowly replied sympathetically, "There is nothing we... can do."
She nodded understandably before slowly rising. Her eyes gleamed into his as she watched him get up, not saying a word before he finally looked back on equal footing.
"But who are we?" the woman asked again, "What should we... call ourselves?"
He took a moment to think about it. Then he was suddenly hit by something. It was a name... but one he had trouble pronouncing.
"M-M-M...Meh-Mich...uh..." he stammered strugglingly, "M-M-Michal... Mich... Mich... al... is."
His mind switched on like a lightbulb the minute he successfully pronounced his newfound name.
"M-Michalis!" he answered excitedly before reclaiming his composure. He cleared his throat before he too asked her, "And yours?"
It took her a bit to grasp her name as well, stumbling and stammering over her own syllables, before she too found her chosen name.
"Minerva!" she exclaimed with the same level of excitement and a smile of accomplishment, "We are... Michalis and Minerva."
Michalis chuckled at her jolly realization and happily flared his bone-white grin.
"Yes." he replied satisfyingly, "They will suit us... just fine."
With their identities now confirmed with one another, the two set their eyes upon a path that lead down the mountain where they situated themselves upon. Michalis then pointed down the path with his clawed finger.
"Come." he beckoned towards Minerva, "Let us explore this... new world... together."
She looked upon her partner and began to follow. However, no later than three measly steps, she found herself once again looking back at their fallen mother. Her attitude towards her seemed mournful, as if she was not satisfied in leaving her the way she currently was. Minerva looked back at Michalis with worry, signaling to him that they must do something to honor her giving life to them. This was something he fully understood and he nodded in agreement.
"Very well." he acknowledged, "Let us do something... for Mother."
For the next half hour, they erected a small monument of stone that surrounded the entire perimeter of her body. Granted it was not much to look at, but for the time being it will suffice. Perhaps one day, the two will come back and build something grander for her bones to rest. For now however, they must keep going. The two would begin to finally walk down the mountain and proceed to walk westwards towards the forest.
What lies in wait for them upon their journey? What sights will they encounter on their way? What foods will they try? And what allies will they forge?
For their journey has only just begun.
The corpse of the fallen dragon that the angels fought became the catalyst of two new heroes - Michalis and Minerva - as they both emerge from the creature's gut.
They inspect one another, asking first questions about who they are and where they are. However, when Minerva began to carefully inspect the fallen dragon, her strong instinctual connections towards her pain caused her to break down. Michalis comforted her until she calmed down.
Both would then declare their names.
Before they left, they proceeded to make a "monument" of rocks that surrounded their "mother" to honor her giving life to them. And they will one day come back and create something more proper to lay their deceased mother in.
With his minions setting course to their respected locations, Sartravius could finally rest and watch how it all played out. He returned to Muspellheim and plopped upon his makeshift throne of charred rock and hardened obsidian. He cocked his head back and surged his giant hands into the throne, providing his body access to the magma floating throughout the world. So much time was spent on his preparations for conquest, that he hadn't had time to explore the worlds beyond the Twin Dragon Islands. A deep trance devoured his conscious as he began to attempt in catching up with the current circumstances. He could feel many great and terrible things rush into his mind like a torrent of magma, listening upon what all had to say and mention.
But upon half an hour into his deep thoughts, he sensed the Phoenix's imminent arrival to Muspell. Sartr awoke with a snarl of annoyance as he glanced up at the magma-fall leading to the volcano summit. From the molten stream, the Phoenix emerged into the inferno and proceeded to land at his Master's feet. Sartr simply scoffed at his return.
"You're late!" he grumbled as he adjusted himself within his seat.
The terror bird could only bow his head in guilty submission. "I apologize for my delayed arrival, Master." he replied politely, "But I've already explained to you as of my reasoning."
"Doesn't mean that you're still late..." the fire god grumbled as he stroked his beard, "Alas! Did you at least find anything else upon your return from the conflict with our local Iron Giant?"
The Phoenix shook his head. "Nothing worth mentioning, Master." he simply replied.
Sartr would then eye his Avatar carefully, almost as if he expected something out of him. "Are you certain?" he inquisitively asked.
"Yes."
"Baah," Sartr scoffed as he threw his hands in the air, "Even I have already heard things happening... and I didn't have to get out of my seat!"
The avian's head cocked sideways questioningly. "May I imply what you've heard?" he asked cautiously.
"Many things!" the fire god blurted out, "Already a goddess had recently been deceased from the realm of Galbar - with her soul already having left the premise of this world..."
He coughed before the Phoenix asked again. "And who might she be?"
"Seihdhara." Sartr responded, "The same one you've encountered after you've INCOMPETENTLY FOUND YOURSELF CAPTURED BY SHE AND ARAE!"
The Avatar flinched at Sartr's sudden violent reaction and took a step back from his Master's wrath. Thankfully, his anger was quick before he found himself level-headed once more.
"Y-Yes," the Phoenix responded hesitantly, "I unfortunately remember that... humiliating experience."
Another annoyed sigh stemmed from Travis before he found himself fit to continue. "Well she's dead," he spoke composedly as he punched his flaming forehead, "Yet the essence of her powers have been scattered across the realm. Where they are situated I do not know, but even if I did know, I assume they are currently within the hands of other gods by now, if not already having disappeared into thin air entirely. Ugh... how her expertise in combat would do nicely to help with my conquest."
The Phoenix nodded at his explanation. "I see."
"And there's a million other things going on regarding the other gods!" the blazing god furiously remarked as he swiped his hand across his throne, his face contorting into one of anguish.
"May I inquire to what~" the avian put forth.
"CEASE YOUR PETTY MEDDLING!" Travis roared pre-maturely before it began sub-siding once more. An awkward silence filled the room before he continued. "My thoughts do not concern you, Avatar. If I request your ear on such subjects, I shall demand it."
He stiffened his posture upon his throne and continued looking down at his subordinate.
"For now, there are more important matters to discuss." he continued bluntly, "The first stage of my glorious conquest has only just begun, yet I continue to need eyes and ears elsewhere as I focus upon the Twin Dragon Islands."
The Phoenix could only nod towards him. "And where would you want me to go?"
"Our neighboring continent of Kalgrun looks ripe for the pickings," Sartr explained, "Unlike the heavily developed twin islands, much of it is still unclaimed by the other gods. So while the gods are busy with the eastern portion of the realm, few ought to be left in guarding the west. Still, it and her neighboring island must be investigated for any potential resistance that can oppose me. Go forth and see what you can find and report back to me once you find something of interest. Understand?"
"As you wish, Master." the avian bowed respectfully before he proceeded to turn back and prepare to fly towards his destination.
But before he could do so, Sartr quickly bellowed towards him. "And another thing!" This prompted the giant pterosaur to turn back to his master as he listened to what he had to say. "If you encounter anything upon the whereabouts of Dhara's essence may be found, contact me at once. And if you find any of it out in the open, you will return them to me."
The avian nodded carefully, bowing once again, before finally taking off to the continents up north. Thus his next journey had just begun...
The Phoenix finally returns to Sartr in Muspellheim and proceed to converse about several events that had happen - most notably mentioning the death of Seihdhara (who had perished for good).
Sartr then proceeds to low-key address complain about how far behind they are on schedule compared to the other gods, but quickly changes topic and orders the Phoenix to scout the continent of Kalgrun and Li'Kalla's island - also ordering how if the avatar encounters Seihdhara's missing portfolios that he should bring them to him to earn their portfolios.
Nicknames/Aliases: | Jörm | "Jörmi" | Hammond Callus Froder | Mr. Froder | "The World/Midgard Serpent" | | "The Girdle of the World" | "The Fiskrman/Fisherman" |
Age: Ancient - His human catalyst looks to be mid-thirties.
Gender: Male
Powers:
Shape-Shifting: Jörm can transform into his massive serpentine form at will, only utilizing it if he needs to carry out any dangerous godly feats or any that requires his immense power to utilize.
Incredible Strength: In both forms, Jörm can unleash a great deal of strength towards any given assignment. Whilst his abilities are more impressive in his serpentine form, he's still capable of lifting large objects, such as massive boulders, or even stopping a speeding car, as a human.
Incredible Durability: Both forms represent the Jörm being capable in taking a major pounding if in battle. Again, while he's more durable in his beast form, his human form can also resist damage and takes more effort for anyone to grievously hurt him. Even bullets seem to initially have trouble getting to him at first! However, he can still feel pain at higher levels of stress or when taken enough damage.
Venomous "Eitr": In his serpentine form, Jörm's saliva is coaxed with a highly toxic venom (known as Eitr) that is rumored to be strong and potent enough to kill the gods of Midgard, such as the likes of Thor or Baldr. In his human form, Jörm can secrete this venom from two sharpened teeth near the front of his mouth, however his saliva is otherwise non-venomous. And in both forms, he can even blow such toxic breath in the form of a poisonous cloud of mist.
Description: Standing at 6'4", Jörm's human form as "Hammond Callus Froder" is a tall individual with a rough and grizzled appearance. He sports messy brown hair sporting an undercut fade, bushy eyebrows, and shows a thick unkept beard. While his right eye is colored as an icy-blue, his left eye looks more reptilian-like in appearance and has a yellowish-orange tint in the iris. In order to keep that eye hidden, Hammond usually wears a pair of highly-reflective glasses when out and about in highly-dense areas, or wears an eyepatch if he's out fishing or sailing. In addition, a massive scar can be seen running down on that side of Hammond's face.
His normal attire usually consists in wearing a worn-out fuzzy-blue sweater, which is covered by a thick heavy brown coat full of numerous pockets, and wears beige work-pants or roughed-up jeans. The coat Hammond often uses is rarely washed, and being that he is usually out fishing, one could usually smell the scent of fish and sea water strongly emanating off it. He can also be sometimes seen wearing a thick blue and white flannel jacket on occasions as well.
His bestial form however is absolutely massive in scale. His face is thick and stout in appearance, almost box-like, with large crown of jagged spikes and has smooth stream-line scales flowing down his entire body. Long yellowish-brown bristles flow down his lower jaw, retaining the beard he utilizes in his human form, and his scar is still present in said form. His color pattern revolves around being primarily a dark-blue color, with some dark-crimson and yellow highlights situated around his face and the circular pattern running down his back. Large amphibious membranes flow down his back, ending in a paddle-like tail erilly-reminiscent of those on prehistoric mosasaurs.
Personality: Jörm's tall stature and gruff voice may make him look imposing to approach on the outside, however he's been known to be very well approachable. He doesn't usually speak much, while also being somewhat blunt at times, he is otherwise known a kind-hearted, calm, and respectable individual - if not a little bit cautious. Despite being known to be often weary of other travelers coming near his cabin - in the event that they happen to be big-name Aesir gods in disguise - once he believes that the person in question is not a threat, he'll be kind enough to invite guests into his humble cabin. Jörm would provide them with temporary food and shelter before sending them back on their way. While he's fine being alone out in the wilderness of his shoreline cabin and going out fishing, he still could never shake off the feeling of loneliness that comes with his predicament, yet at the same time refusing to get too close with others. He also sports great knowledge of the sea and all who live in it, as well as the region he lives in as well.
However, when encountered with anything he deems as a threat - especially when it comes to Aesir gods such as Thor, Baldr, Odin, etc - Jörm would be highly defensive when it comes to guarding his house and would often do anything to either completely annihilate his opponent or at the very least drive them off.
Skills:
Anglership: His skills as a master angler had allowed him to catch many incredible catches, which include the likes of large sharks, marlins, and other weird sea-beasts.
Heavy-Lifting: Being how incredibly strong that he is, Jörm is well acquainted in carrying large logs or haul large carts with ease.
Surprising Shot: Carrying a well-worn hunting rifle in his cabin, Jörm has adequate training in firing said weapon.
Weaknesses:
Slow-To-Combat: While easily able to hold his own, Jörm isn't always the one to immediately go on the offensive. Hence if you ask him to come and battle so-and-so, he would often refuse the offer unless it specifically threatens his home.
Bringer of Apocalypse... And Destined to Die: The phrase how Jörm would begin the events of Ragnarok by the "release of its tail" stem directly to his demeanor. Despite being usually calm, it's been foretold that when came the day that the mighty World Serpent snaps against the vile world around him, he would commence the beginning... and that his destiny would lie by Thor's hammer before the day's end.
Brief History:
"The line of Odin's Offspring Lay not slack on the gunwale, When the huge ocean-serpent Uncoiled on the sea's bottom. The strong fiend's Terrifier In his right hand swung his hammer When he saw the loathly sea-fish That all the lands confineth."
Born to the trickster god, Loki, and the giantess, Angrboða, Jörmungandr found himself as the middle child between his older brother - the monstrous wolf Fenrir - and his younger sister - the Queen of the Underworld, Hel. However, their futures would prove ominous according to the gods, who perceived of an ominous prophecy. It foretold of all three of Loki's offspring would bring forth great misfortune that would befall the entire world itself - known as Ragnarok. As a result, all three were brought upon Odin's doorstep and were all outcasted from society.
For Jörm, Odin casted him out into the deep sea, where he left him presumably to die. However, the great serpent didn't perish within the dark depths of the ocean and found himself growing to the point where many presumed that he must have encapsulated the entire world! Yet the World Serpent didn't bother to care for the world around him, only laying dormant within the frigid waters... searching for food or otherwise biting its own tail in utter frustration.
Not much had been documented upon Jörm after his creation. However, two stories were uncovered, both revealing an encounter with the mighty God of Thunder, Thor. One, however, revealed a more harrowing tale that cemented their rivalry forever. On a fishing trip with the Jotunn, Haymir, Thor used the head of an ox to act as bait. However, it attracted the World Serpent and a mighty battle between the two became ominously imminent. A minor brawl took place, with Thor being able to place an early hit by producing a large gash vertically across the creature's left eye - one which Jörm still bears to this day. However, in a fit of panic, Hymir quickly cut the line, resulting in the massive sea serpent to descend back into the ocean with the bait still in his mouth.
It was on that day when Jörm's abhorrence for the Aesir God grew to its near-boiling point. He claimed that if he ever saw that arrogantly fat dobber for a third time, that he would mercilessly track him down and kill him.
Yet another long period of time passed, and on one particular day, the World Serpent found himself being able to turn into a human. He plopped himself on land and proceeded to wander the remote shore of which he brought himself upon. But not long after, he found an abandoned cabin on a shallow precipice overlooking the sea. With no one seemingly having been to it recently, Jörm took residence of the cabin, gave himself a new name, and began to live his life as a remote angler - feeding upon the catch that the great sea had to offer.
Yet as he enjoyed his peaceful life out in the wild, he seems blissfully unaware of the approaching days of Ragnarok slowly clamoring towards him ever slowly... for it was foretold that he would bring upon the end of days upon the 'release of his great mighty tail'. And as signs began to point in confirmation, it wasn't simply a matter of if it would happen...
It was simply a matter of when.
Other: - Jörm happens to own a black cat that he named "Fjord", after having found it all alone in the forest when it was a kitten.
- Jörm's favorite delicacies are both Lutefisk and Ox head.
- Jörm would always remember someone who he encountered near his cabin and would often act accordingly to how you last treated him, as demonstrated with his rivalry with Thor.
Shape-Shifting: Upon mentioning his real full name "Bödvar Bjarki", Oso can turn into a massive bipedal bear, equipped with armor and an axe, ready for combat.
Weapon Equip: In his bear form, Oso can equip himself with nearly any melee weapon - which includes swords, spears, axes, gauntlets, etc.
Enhanced Strength: In his bear form, Oso has enhanced strength to knock enemies around and wield heavy weapons.
Enhanced Durability: In his bear form, Oso also has enhanced durability that allows him to take a heavy pounding and survive blows that would normally kill regular mortals.
Enhanced Smell: Oso's smell is as strong as a bear, which allows him to sniff out even the faintest of smells from miles away.
Enhanced Hearing: Oso's hearing is about the same as an average bear's - being twice as acute as human hearing - allowing him to pick-up faint noises from far distances.
Description: Oso looks like your average pre-teen boy. Standing at only 5'4" with blonde hair and blue eyes, he looks very unassuming in his current looks. He usually sports light clothing, mainly wearing any t-shirt he can find and long black pants. If its cold, he often wears a thick brown coat, a dark-red scarf to warm his face, and sometimes wears a dark-grey beanie on his head. His hygiene varies from being relatively clean to being rather filthy given out he's usually outdoors and doesn't take showers for several days at a time.
However, Oso has the ability to transform into a towering 3 meter tall bipedal bear, one heavily resembling a polar bear. He has a very imposing stature, with cold blue eyes and strong muscles covered in a thick coat of fur. He often wears iron-based armor covering his chest, shoulders, forearms, and legs respectfully, while wielding melee based weapons like axes, spears, and swords.
Personality: Oso is a generally cheerful and childish, but somewhat blunt, individual. He always likes to start a conversation with anyone around him and talk just about anything that comes to mind. He's also rather adventurous, being how he absolutely loves nature and the outdoors. He actually doesn't like being inside much and isn't interested in high-tech phones, video games, and other things most child like. He does like playing tag and hide-n-seek, amongst other traditional games with others though. However, there are times where he finds himself being rather blunt - sometimes not initially realizing his mistakes until being called out upon them.
But when battles comes to his doorstep, Oso gets serious as he summons his bear form. His childish demeanor changes into that of a gruff warrior, one completely opposite of how he normally acts - almost as if he's a completely different person altogether. His language is more limited, often referring himself by his name rather than "I" or "Me", however his bluntness is the result of his ideology in action speaking louder than words.
Skills:
Weapon Mastery: In his bear form, Oso can wield a variety of different weapons with ease - including those he had never came across before. However, he prefers wielding melee weapons like swords and axes rather than firearms.
Nature Enthusiast: Oso is also incredibly knowledgable about the natural world, both with fauna and flora alike. He can identify most species and how they react within their environment, as well as even communicate with certain animals if need be.
Weaknesses:
Kid Form: In his human kid form, Oso has very little standing in the way of being viciously mauled by the enemy. He has only simply the strength and durability of a regular child and cannot match up against most foes.
Brawn Before Brains: Oso often wants to solve problems through combat first, which often results in him getting knocked away by stronger opponents or blatantly assuming things that are otherwise not true. This also often makes him vulnerable to tricks.
Extremely Loud Noises: With Oso's acute sense of hearing, comes the fact that they are more sensitive than a human's. Very sudden loud noises, such as fog-horns or a loud motorcycle driving by, can result in painful experiences for him - however strangely roars of natural creatures don't seem to affect him.
Brief History: Oso's childhood was... wild to say the least. Born to a logging family in the remote forests of Norway, the boy seemed normal for the first few years of his life. However, when a large jotunn killed the toddler's parents, Oso had to flee for his life as he descended deep into the forest. However, his parents' killer as not far behind and it soon caught up to him. But before it could harm the poor child, a huge bipedal bear - covered in iron armor - that was walking in the area, sensed the conflict and proceeded to fight the invading force all by himself. Yet while the massive bear won the battle in the end, he suffered grievous injuries and died shortly beside Oso.
But of course this wasn't just your average bear. It was blessed as a guardian of the forest and with its sacrifice, its spirit migrated to Oso and binded with his soul. Now the boy was destined to become the next spirit of the forest and with it he could now turn into that very bear who had saved his life. He was then found by a mother bear and her two cubs and was adopted into her litter, growing with them before he came of age. There he continued to discover his powers and bond with the animals around him, becoming very knowledgable with them.
He lived in the forest until he was twelve years old, where one day he discovered the Blessed traveling through his area. At first, he thought that they were threats and proceeded to do battle with them. However, upon realizing their true motives, he agreed to join them in their quests to vanquish the forst giants and prevent Ragnarok from descending upon the world.
Other:
- Oso is a massive foodie, often finding himself gorging on rich foods. Even though he doesn't hibernate, he still finds himself instinctually wanted to stock up for winter, yet his fast metabolism always breaks down the food at an enhanced rate.
- Despite resembling a polar bear - a truly carnivorous species of bear - Oso doesn't mind eating berries and other forms of food. He also loves to consume honey.
- Once upon his travels, he encountered a man with a scar living in a cabin right upon the shores of the Norwegian Sea. The scarred man was kind to Oso and provided him something to eat before sending him on his way. Unbeknownst to the bear-child, he encountered the human form of Jörmangandr himself!
As the campers fled the scene, Titanica only watched them flee for their lives into the trees as she stood over their puny tents. A loud snort ruptured from her nostrils as she looked back to see the rest of her allies come to the scene. Forde congratulated her on getting rid of them and for her to keep watch for any other intruders, however the titan barely took notice of him. However, she did not proceed to return to her human form. Instead, she simply plopped down on the snow-covered ground and watched the forest beyond.
As she laid beside the campfire, her mana continued to radiated outwards, providing more warmth amongst the heat that the fire demoness brought with her. But as they continued waited, it became apparent that the interrogation was taking a bit longer than usual. Whatever was taking the creepy grave-digger so long to interrogate this Mordus fellow? At least it confirmed that Titanica didn't scare the person off - which was rather odd considering how she issued a bellowing roar and how the others were yelling to fall back. In the meanwhile, the harpy seemed to have come up with a mischievous plan...
"You know, girls." She began.
Titanica merely turned her reptilian head down at the tiny girl.
"We monsters have this ability... to smell - sense the energy of others. Other monsters, men, especially men. That lets us know that we have... partners."
Another blatant snort rifled from her nostrils as she shook her head as if a bug was flying close to her ear. She didn't seem interested in what the girl had to say, let alone what she was talking about. She might be an ancient titan from thousands of years ago, but she was never too interested in mere gossip about lovers or what not.
"I'll admit though, some monsters are better at this than others."
She glared over at Vãra inquisitively, wondering that the Harpy meant by her statement.
Morgan and the sisters were able to dig a hole to shield themselves from the coming exploding birds that whizzed above them. Yet they needed to figure out how to get out of this nightmare of a dream that they were in. It felt so real, yet at the same time... they knew it wasn't. The question simply boiled down to...
If this was a dream, then surely... surely they could do whatever they wanted right? Or at least whatever they could at this particular time. This is what rummaged through Morgan's mind as the blue hair-pins on the sides of her head continued to glow ever-so-brightly. It would take her a minute of concentration and thinking before she came at a conclusion in what to do. She looked over at the two flower ladies with a calm, yet confident look.
"Stay here." she motioned calmly with her hands, "I have an idea... Pray to the gods that this works!"
Morgan took a deep breath before she slowly began to climb out of their hidey-hole. She felt her world become somewhat slower, as her perception focused upon what was beyond the fog. The birds continued whizzing by her, yet she didn't feel too fazed by them. In fact, in her mind, the birds were going at least a quarter of how fast they really were. She could hear their screeches and squawks whistle by in a slower pitch and see their maniac-eyes lock onto her petite form as they flew past. But the Titan was not phased. She felt calm - eerily calm - against the raging storm beyond.
Morgan then slowly closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she spread her arms outward. At first, it wouldn't appear as if it would do anything, until she began to slowly float into the air. The wind around her began to shift, circling around like a vortex around her. Any bird that directly flew at her would find themselves engulfed by the rapidly strengthening winds, putting them into a loop around the moth titan. At the same time, Morgan felt herself gathering a strength she hadn't felt in a long time, one which surged through her body.
Suddenly, her eyes open, which were now glowing brightly against the fog. Then Morgan issued an echoing cry, one which extended her wings to their full length and proceeded to remove a massive chunk of the fog around them. Now she could see the slingshots that were in the mere distance, but more importantly...
While her base form was rather short in stature, her wings were utterly massive - easily stretching over twice the length of her body alone. They were coated in a beautiful pattern of light oranges, crimson reds, white stripes, greenish-blue bases, and sported two giant "eyes" around the tip of her wings. It was a form she hadn't taken - let alone had the use - for thousands of years. Even if this was a dream, all of this felt exhilaratingly real. And Morgan was going to make use out of this.
As she flapped her wings in place, she eyed the slingshots and proceeded to hasten her flaps. The faster she flapped, the stronger the winds that she produced. No doubt they would be able to blow both the birds and their slingshots away. However, if that didn't completely work, bolts of holy electricity surged from her wings and proceeded to strike near the base of these wooden structures - threatening to rip their foundations down to their roots.
It appeared that the tides had finally turned in favor for Morgan and her allies... and they will surely get out of this dream alive and well.
Shape-Shifting: Upon mentioning his real full name "Bödvar Bjarki", Oso can turn into a massive bipedal bear, equipped with armor and an axe, ready for combat.
Weapon Equip: In his bear form, Oso can equip himself with nearly any melee weapon - which includes swords, spears, axes, gauntlets, etc.
Enhanced Strength: In his bear form, Oso has enhanced strength to knock enemies around and wield heavy weapons.
Enhanced Durability: In his bear form, Oso also has enhanced durability that allows him to take a heavy pounding and survive blows that would normally kill regular mortals.
Enhanced Smell: Oso's smell is as strong as a bear, which allows him to sniff out even the faintest of smells from miles away.
Enhanced Hearing: Oso's hearing is about the same as an average bear's - being twice as acute as human hearing - allowing him to pick-up faint noises from far distances.
Description: Oso looks like your average pre-teen boy. Standing at only 5'4" with blonde hair and blue eyes, he looks very unassuming in his current looks. He usually sports light clothing, mainly wearing any t-shirt he can find and long black pants. If its cold, he often wears a thick brown coat, a dark-red scarf to warm his face, and sometimes wears a dark-grey beanie on his head. His hygiene varies from being relatively clean to being rather filthy given out he's usually outdoors and doesn't take showers for several days at a time.
However, Oso has the ability to transform into a towering 3 meter tall bipedal bear, one heavily resembling a polar bear. He has a very imposing stature, with cold blue eyes and strong muscles covered in a thick coat of fur. He often wears iron-based armor covering his chest, shoulders, forearms, and legs respectfully, while wielding melee based weapons like axes, spears, and swords.
Personality: Oso is a generally cheerful and childish, but somewhat blunt, individual. He always likes to start a conversation with anyone around him and talk just about anything that comes to mind. He's also rather adventurous, being how he absolutely loves nature and the outdoors. He actually doesn't like being inside much and isn't interested in high-tech phones, video games, and other things most child like. He does like playing tag and hide-n-seek, amongst other traditional games with others though. However, there are times where he finds himself being rather blunt - sometimes not initially realizing his mistakes until being called out upon them.
But when battles comes to his doorstep, Oso gets serious as he summons his bear form. His childish demeanor changes into that of a gruff warrior, one completely opposite of how he normally acts - almost as if he's a completely different person altogether. His language is more limited, often referring himself by his name rather than "I" or "Me", however his bluntness is the result of his ideology in action speaking louder than words.
Skills:
Weapon Mastery: In his bear form, Oso can wield a variety of different weapons with ease - including those he had never came across before. However, he prefers wielding melee weapons like swords and axes rather than firearms.
Nature Enthusiast: Oso is also incredibly knowledgable about the natural world, both with fauna and flora alike. He can identify most species and how they react within their environment, as well as even communicate with certain animals if need be.
Weaknesses:
Kid Form: In his human kid form, Oso has very little standing in the way of being viciously mauled by the enemy. He has only simply the strength and durability of a regular child and cannot match up against most foes.
Brawn Before Brains: Oso often wants to solve problems through combat first, which often results in him getting knocked away by stronger opponents or blatantly assuming things that are otherwise not true. This also often makes him vulnerable to tricks.
Extremely Loud Noises: With Oso's acute sense of hearing, comes the fact that they are more sensitive than a human's. Very sudden loud noises, such as fog-horns or a loud motorcycle driving by, can result in painful experiences for him - however strangely roars of natural creatures don't seem to affect him.
Brief History: Oso's childhood was... wild to say the least. Born to a logging family in the remote forests of Norway, the boy seemed normal for the first few years of his life. However, when a large jotunn killed the toddler's parents, Oso had to flee for his life as he descended deep into the forest. However, his parents' killer as not far behind and it soon caught up to him. But before it could harm the poor child, a huge bipedal bear - covered in iron armor - that was walking in the area, sensed the conflict and proceeded to fight the invading force all by himself. Yet while the massive bear won the battle in the end, he suffered grievous injuries and died shortly beside Oso.
But of course this wasn't just your average bear. It was blessed as a guardian of the forest and with its sacrifice, its spirit migrated to Oso and binded with his soul. Now the boy was destined to become the next spirit of the forest and with it he could now turn into that very bear who had saved his life. He was then found by a mother bear and her two cubs and was adopted into her litter, growing with them before he came of age. There he continued to discover his powers and bond with the animals around him, becoming very knowledgable with them.
He lived in the forest until he was twelve years old, where one day he discovered the Blessed traveling through his area. At first, he thought that they were threats and proceeded to do battle with them. However, upon realizing their true motives, he agreed to join them in their quests to vanquish the forst giants and prevent Ragnarok from descending upon the world.
Other:
- Oso is a massive foodie, often finding himself gorging on rich foods. Even though he doesn't hibernate, he still finds himself instinctually wanted to stock up for winter, yet his fast metabolism always breaks down the food at an enhanced rate.
- Despite resembling a polar bear - a truly carnivorous species of bear - Oso doesn't mind eating berries and other forms of food. He also loves to consume honey.
- Once upon his travels, he encountered a man with a scar living in a cabin right upon the shores of the Norwegian Sea. The scarred man was kind to Oso and provided him something to eat before sending him on his way. Unbeknownst to the bear-child, he encountered the human form of Jörmangandr himself!
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