Mas Bagus

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

"I know," Jazdia said. Her gaze, like Athena, was on the manor itself, where a faint screams and roarings, and the sound of broken windows could be faintly heard.

She beckoned Yvonne to follow and brought her pocket watch closer to her chin.

"Veronica, what's the situation on your end? My power is... disabled now, so I can't track you down there. Everything is under control here. The Package is down and secured." Shaking her head, Jazdia repeated the report with omitted lingos this time. "We have Jonas Delving under arrest."

The man in question was still lying in front of her, eyes closed, but still breathing.

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

"You certainly wouldn't want to wait for any doctor here if you value the life of the people in your care." She narrowed her eyes upon hearing such an ambiguous report. In all honesty, Jazdia was ready to dismiss the excuse to not relocate much earlier as a lack of better judgment. The wall before them could very well be the place where the enemy aiming a crossbow or musket at them, and considering how close they were to the mansion, such a risk should be apparent enough.

Pausing to observe the potential hazard, Jazdia's icy disposition was somewhat thawed a bit when she heard Louise explaining about her fixing Athena's bones. Well, at least it wasn't an open fracture.

She unbuttoned her blazer and handed it to the squire. "Use this as an arm sling, and refrain from touching the fracture until Solomon's around. I can't use my power yet and who knows what kind of surprise is being prepared for us in that mansion. Stay alerted!"

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

Moments passed. Not sure how long, the elven ranger was unsure of her own perception of time right now, and she still felt hazy. But at least the trembling on her hands had disappeared, replaced by pain on her side and a burning sensation in her belly.

Those could mean both bad and good, bad because the anesthetic had worn off, and good because the supplement she took before, prescribed to help alleviate anemia, was working.

Jazdia checked and double-checked her bandage, ensuring there was no life seeping out of it before getting herself back on her feet. It was time to resume her duty. Pain and fatigue could be ignored, but delays on the schedule she could not tolerate.

____

Nearby, Yvonne was busy watching the sky slowly shift into marginally less tenebrous shade as the acute awareness of her condition washed over her senses. Lightheaded trance with occasional lapse of focus stemming from non-negligible blood loss. The familiar dull full-body ache from her usage of her strengthening, interposed by the persistently annoying tug of wrong that was her right calf that the potion stitched back together into a less than perfect condition. All interposed with the situational awareness of her surroundings - the dirt and grass under her hands, sticky sensation of dried blood, the distinct lack of wind thanks to their walled compound highlighting the soft breath of the elf nearby, the existence of another campfire not far off... it's so easy to be lulled into a false sense of security.

"We need to regroup," Jazdia's voice rang next to her. "It will be some time before the sun is out. The raid is not over yet."

"Yeah, we do." Shaking awake from her reverie, the mercenary slipped her hands back into the gauntlets before strapping her helmet back where it belongs. She stood briskly, patting dust off herself, one hand passing Sparky's medkit back to the rightful owner. As for her cloak... eh, it's not going anywhere and she's damn well not wearing it back now. She just kicked over the largest piece of firewood to weight it down and be done with it. "Lets take a look of what the rest are doing. And then... perhaps we should see to help the infiltration team. They're taking a bit too long for my liking."

Jazdia motioned Yvonne to put the medkit back in its place. "We might need it to fix someone else." She said, pausing before addressing The Mercenary's concern. "True, I should dial Veronica anytime now. But we need to take care of ourselves first."

After saying that, the elf approached the thug's tent, unsheathed her knife, and dismantled the canvas shelter. "Help hold that one," she said, gesturing to Yvonne to hold another end before cutting and laying it flat on the ground. It wasn't a fancy mat, but at least wide and proper enough for a bear to lay down.

Wide enough for a bear. The elf shook her head, trying to banish an urge to curse. It was for the sake of THAT damn bear they have to deal with this diversion, and remembering that those Juvenile twins were of the same species, Jazdia couldn't help but allow her intuition to suggest the worse.

Steeling herself, the next objection was to having everyone gathered in one place. So she headed to the second campfire. Yvonne followed suit, intending to lend Jazdia her arm.

"Oh please, I am not decrepit yet..." The elf gently refused the support Yvonne offered and smiled, showing the mercenary that she could walk with a perfect gait despite the injury. It wasn't out of vain pride, an instruction wouldn't mean much if one issuing it didn't appear to be in control of the situation.

"Just because you can does not mean you should, yeah? It's not a light injury." Yvonne shot back with a grin "Accept some help, Sparky. No one will see you any less for it."

The offer was still hanging in the air, but Jazdia was resolute with her choice. "I have asked and received your help more than what I deem appropriate. I appreciate the offer, but really, I am fine now, Miss Rosenving. You can follow me if you like because someone else might need your helping hand."

As the elven ranger continued walking, Evan could be seen walking past them, so Jazdia called.

"Hey! Mikkelson! We need to regroup now, have some rest near the campfire we will be there shortly!"

But there was no answer, Evan kept moving to the south. Where to? Jazdia didn't really care enough to look back and find out. If Evan could walk just fine then he was fine, strange, but not one to worry about.

"Athena, Louise. Can you two walk? Take my hand if you can't. The place is not yet safe, and it is unwise to remain scattered. Let us regroup at the thug's campsite, your fire wouldn't last long here, and there we can asses the injury better. Come on, get up!"

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

Widernia wasted no breath to return the retort, but instead tightened her arm around Veronica's neck very firmly had the pale woman was alive and needed breathing, she would feel the choking.

"Why bother? Just leave him!" whispered the mage.

Widernia did not hide her cowardice and anxiety when Veronica grabbed the unconscious guard. When the sound of clanging iron resonated on the corridor, the mage shivered and her breathing was ragged when her savior halted her pace.

"I have no love for Stritzel, nor her pet bear. A failed test subject he is." she mumbled "These people too are equally useless, and if morality is your reason to save them, you should know that those men are not in any way less despicable than me. But at least I have a deal you must honor!"
___

Steadfast like a statue, Bartholomew conveyed his fair warning, axe planted to the floor.

Upstairs, Ted the Gladiator unleashed his unadulterated rage toward the iron door that separated him and his Mother. A solid barrier the door was, but still could not match Ted's unnaturally enhanced might. Dirt and grime dusted off from the trembling ceiling and wall, metals clanged in idle protest. By the third pounding its shape started to bend, by the fourth, its hinges started to give in.

___

In the east room, there were other shelves, and desks, strewn about in disarray after the Juvenile bear thrashed the room to find their improvised tools. When Solomon looked closer toward the desk there was a torn diagram that seemed to belong to a large tome that was likely lost in the fire now. On the floor there were notes and writing about the research on blood harvested from unnatural beings, some looked slightly wetted and smelled awful.

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

If Jazdia was here and saw what her yellow countryman was doing, she would call him mad. Maybe some bookings would be in order to introduce something called sense into him.

Nevertheless, Varya decided to stay behind and prepared the enchanted arrow.

At the center of the chaos was Ted, and he just broke free from whatever restraints held him. A small glint of fear burned in his eyes when he saw the violet light emanating from the Blue Elf's longbow, but he did not stop, nor would the elf.

The arrow released, and in an instant Varya too disappeared as the thunderous explosion bloomed behind the enraged bear. Stone crumbled down, and more supports shattered. A deafening echo blasted the lab, and Ted the Enraged stopped dead from his track.

A sheer madness prevented him from looking back, while a sense of duty urged him to keep running forward, heeding his mistress' latest call.
---

Meanwhile, a silhouette of a blue elf reappeared at the antechamber, right after the monster he was running from barrelled past the entrance of their sanctuary. It seemed nobody was sure why would Varya be standing in front of them, acting like a gatekeeper as if his slender build could prevent such a hulking beast from wreaking havoc in the tiny spaces they now used as their hideout. Luckily Ted was not bothered to investigate.

Fortunately, or rather, unfortunately, someone else would soon overtake him in a race to be nonsensical. The very same bear they just risked life and limbs to save now walked past him intending to assist the very same bear that tried to rip them into shreds just some moments ago.

Even Widernia, after coughing coagulated blood out of her throat urged Veronica to let her stand on her own just to give him her piece of mind. "Are you daft?! Leave him be, you insufferable dunderhead!"

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

Ted The Gladiator was so lost in a rage that he did not notice one more fighter had joined the fray. Bartholomew was still holding him from completely breaking free from the concrete. The tin man shouted something, but all words were lost in him, lost in the fire and desperation, and isolation. They had killed mother, they are killing him, they have to die with him.

Until another migraine struck him again, cringing in the middle of the subsiding blaze, the mysterious voice is coming again, and every word he heard felt like there was a hammer beating his injured skull.

"No... no Mother!" He bellowed, "You run from them... They here do bad to you! MATHA!!"

There was another wave of sound and whispers. So strong it numbed the pain from Bartholomwew's axe attack. The great bear clutched his head. and did all he knew best when being put in a stressed environment; that was to let it all sorted out in a fit of rampage. He knew he was stupid, he knew he should listen to... mother?

A realization dawned even slower than usual, but it did, and it came with a new purpose.

"Leave me alone!" he shouted, still in delirium, mad like possessed, but rather than trying to take down Bartholomew, he tried to escape from the Armored Undead's grapple this time by swatting him aside with what remained of his strength. It didn't work well, but that didn't stop Ted from clawing, and again pounding the rest of the concrete with his hardened forearm.

____

Meanwhile, the group's attempt to escape from the laboratory was met with minimal obstacles.

Cedar's plea was lost in the fire, and even if it somewhat got through Ted's thickened skull, there was less reason for the Gladiator-Bear to heed his call. Or even to remain calm upon hearing such a proposition.

Sands opened paths for them to tread through the burning tiles, and considering that they had avoided further contact with the enraged Ted, they managed to reach the antechamber leading to the first basement... several moments earlier before Ted the Gladiator escaped from his concrete shackle and Bartholomew'swerestling, and proceeded to charge through, with all of his balding and smokey mass toward the empty tunnel leading toward Strritzel's mansion.

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

It was getting worse now, the fire spread uncontrollably and more cabinets were already burning. The flammable liquid had already crept around them. The fire started to reignite Ted's fur now, and at the most unfortunate moment, one of the red bottles burst in front of him, sending a splinter of glass, cork, and burning liquid to his face. To his bloody nose.

Yet Ted was not stopping, the air he breathed out from his injured muzzle was as hot and fumed as the surrounding smoke. Bartholomew anticipated the next mad attack and had a blade stab deep into Ted's forearm, and what came next was a tense pause, like a small prelude before the the wick ran out and ignited the barrel of gunpowder.

And finally, the Gladiator Ted lost it, following an ear-splitting roar was a brutal and continuous pounding. Sharp edges or hard metals, he did not care anymore. Injuries marred his muscular forearm. The fire burned his entire body, exposing his skin he almost looked pinkishly bald.

But he kept pounding, and mauling and pounding as cries of anger were ripped from his throat. Until his claws almost fell off from their sockets and his forearm was so calloused they looked like a pair of terracotta with blazing cracks rather than ones made of skin and muscle. Bartholomew's metal body endured, blow exchanged, until he realized that his living adversary had started to be as tough as himself.

Finally, in a single pulverizing downswing, Ted managed to detach Batholomew's arm from its invisible, unliving socket by crushing it against the hardened floor. A crack formed on the overturned tiles, the blow was so powerful that fire and burning liquid were withdrawn from them. Ted struck again, like a hammer trying to demolish the floor that trapped him and his enemy, again and again in multiple places. Retaliations from Bartholomew started to lose their effectiveness. A glow pulsed in the place where the heart should be, and after final pounding, Ted the Gladiator raised himself up from his stony restraint.

_____
Everyone heard that roar, and Widernia smiled smugly at the implied threat, but immediately cut them short at the idea of saving the lab. "It's too late for that," she said, mustering strength into his legs to stand, but she could not. Her vision was still black and white, and her hands shaking.

So she grabbed her staff instead.

Those... people were understandably alerted, but the red mage paid their cautiousness no heed, and remained smug, as if knowing whatever they would do to her was not making much difference... now.

With a single tap on one of the bars, a controlled electric current spread rapidly to all three cell doors. Glows outlined some runic letters, and when they faded again, the sound of locks being disengaged could be heard. Widernia adjusted her position and leaned on the bars, panting, yet still smiling mockingly. "He is coming for you!"

At this point, fires had engulfed almost the entire lab, and the smoke was almost unbearable. Still, the fire that blanketed the floor was shallow; one could run through and make it back to the main entrance if they were willing to burn their soles and withstand the pain.

The poisoning blaze and smoke, however, was the least of their worry, for Ted the Enraged Bear was breaking free, hell-bent on finishing the fight. There was no going back now, not for him.

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

He heard yellings. And he hated, loathed it. Though his presence in the arena was to make Mother proud, Ted can never get used to human-like voices. Jeering or booing makes no difference it hurts his ears all the same.

So when one of the bears yelled to call her sibling, partially blinded Ted found again which way his brutal maulings and jaws had to be directed, thus rushed toward the direction of that voice. Smoke and blistering scars were what remained from his balded head. His thick manes, silky facial furs, and the smooth muzzle his Mother often caressed were all gone now. They took it, took all until there is nothing left.

That Armor and Orb things emerged from swelling fire and raised his axe to welcome his persistent assault. Ted forced his sticky eyelids to open and recalled one of the emergency stances he had practiced hundreds of times. His enemy might be armed, and armored, but he was bigger still, so when the weapon came down he was prepared, the gladiator-bear lowered his body and leaned forward, letting the axe bite deep into his shoulder. Using both hands, he immediately grappled the axe by its belly and used his entire bulk and arms to wrest the weapon away from its owner.

Before he could succeed however there was another yelling. Suddenly the floor under him started to liquefy. Smelling the danger from it, Ted tried to push away his adversary, but his legs had been sunk into the surrounding floor. Realizing that foul magic is at play here the Gladiator-Bear resorted to grabbing the Fire and Metal man by the pauldron and had him sinking with him.

Until finally the sinking stopped abruptly.

Still grabbing the Fiery Armored thing by the pauldron, Ted's realization was mostly centered around the fact that he had been trapped with his enemy rather than acknowledging that the floor had been rehardened again. In utter rage and desperation, he removed his grapple on Bartholomew's pauldron and started mauling his torso to dismantle him. Red cracks started to appear not only on his injuries but also on his palms and started to spread onto his claws.

___

Meanwhile, Widernia lazily opened her eyes after feeling the cold sensation of a metal instrument impaled her chest. Now there were two of them. How generous. If not desperate. Still, as the process of breathing becomes a lot easier, a weak yet mocking smile curled on her lips upon hearing their demands to unlock the cells.

"So what if I don't want to?" she purred. "Kill me?" the mage then paused to breathe deeper, feeling the poorly oxygenated air around her, eyes staring vacantly at the ceiling. "It's burning, isn't it? All of my life's work..."

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

"But you'll live. Let's close you up, then you can catch a nap."

"Oh, I will live alright! Deviant was her voice when she said that, as if telling the Death itself to scram. However, the next thing that happened was Jazdia biting one of the rolled bandages as the needle dived in and out of her flesh. Yvonne was so focused on ensuring the wound was properly sutured she didn't notice Jazdia's mild twitching and grimacing, probably regretting some of her choices in life while at it, or perhaps reconsidering if this entire quest was worth it.

Or She might have also been wondering if she should have brought a stronger anesthetic...

"Phew! All done. Sparky, you still awake? Sit up a bit, will you?."

"I am awake. Is it done?" Letting the bitten bandage fall, Jazdia moved her palm from her face when she heard the not-so-glorious announcement. It was the first time she did not frown when Yvonne called her with that name.

"Still gotta bandage you. Then we're finished for real"

Trying to square her shoulders, the elf pushed her body up and sat straight. The drug was still blocking the pain, but she could feel her then-severed muscles touching and the grating sensation from the threads. It was unpleasant, but seeing no more blood dripping from the wound was relieving.

"Sure, but let me do my bit, hand me one of those gauze pads."

After Jazdia applied what looked like a sticky piece of white clothes, Yvonne leaned forward to wrap her torso with a bandage. Her relatively shorter overall stature brought their face so close to each other, and Jazdia, with no reason in particular, pecked the noblewoman on the cheek.

Chuckling, the elf took the roll from her and continued the wrapping. "I told you let me do my bit. Don't worry, I still owe you one after this."

Sovereign's Will: The Edge of War [Looking for new players]

Jazdia tried her hardest to not grimace. "Well, ideally we need to suture the wound." she paused, grabbing the nearest tankard and washing it with Yvonne's precious liquid courage.

"Give me that curved needle, scissors, and... bloody hell... we don't have a tweezer. So we will have to get dirty. Dip your fingers in this tankard. I assume you know how to drain and sterilize the wound?" pausing to peek at her exposed midriff, Jazdia shivered like a child on her first visit to an infirmary, yet still trying to hide it with an awkward smile.

"Doesn't look that bad... surely you can do it, right??"

"Ok, first things first, do you see those syrettes? Yes, those small tubular things with needles! Remove its cap and pick the ones with transparent liquid. The booze won't do much, so we have to apply a local anesthetic. Jab the needle some four centimeters under my wound. Remember, under the lacerated tissue, and then squeeze the tube. After that, we can drain it and... and... well, let's start now."