Omni5876

Broken Skies

Arn did not have much to fall. The rush of the wind filled his ears. In truth, he was not sure if he would be able to make a safe landing even as he prepared to utilize the Aether again. His muscles felt worn beyond the normal strain of over use. He was actually near passing out. His eye sight became blurry as he rushed towards the deck of the barge below him. His red armor drenched in blood, his own and those who had opposed him.

If this was to be the end, he had no regrets. He had tried to live his life to the best he could. He knew that one day he would perhaps fall in battle. In truth, he had hoped that this was the case and not that he should die of old age or due to sickness. The mage was perhaps not fond of going down in a blaze of glory but he knew that in his profession death was more of a reality than survival.

It was a miracle that he had lived so long. He was not reckless by any stretch o the imagination but he never played it safe. He fancied himself a weapon and the only job or purpose of a weapon is to kill. So he had killed and killed efficiently. If any one was to analyze this existence it would actually be sad. There was not aim, no goal and no end. One day he would be here and one day he would not.

The darkness started to close around him and his body started to feel limp. There was a sudden jolt. He could not have smashed against the deck already could he? He heard a familiar voice but which sounded far away. The mage recognized it as belonging to Tyrhallan. He forced his eyes to remain open as he tried to focus on the Knight Captain.

He tried to speak to answer the questions posed to him but he was not able to. Instead, he merely pointed weakly towards the deck of the dying frigate and the mounted Knights evacuating the Spider.

Arn also managed a haphazardly nod to acknowledge the gratitude. He felt that it was unneeded but he was aware enough to know that to not accept it would be considered rude. The last thought before he lost all consciousness was the frigate going out in a blaze that lit the ever twilight skies.

Arn?

A soft voice called his name. Deep in his heart he felt he knew it.

Arn?

He was in darkness. He tried to locate the voice.

Arn?

He searched with all his might. Somehow desperation started to set in. why? Something in his soul told him that he needed to find the source of the voice.

Arn?

He saw a glow just before his eyes. A silhouette began to take shape into something resembling a humanoid. He was captivated by the light. It brought feelings of warmth and peace. He reached forward with his hand.

The Knight Captain would probably find it weird that the mage was extending his hand to the void skies. Arn was falling in the realm between consciousness. The light was probably the explosions happening nearby. He had lost much blood but his battle instincts wanted to stay in the fight even if his body was trying to shut down to prevent further damage.

Broken Skies

sounds good to me.

Broken Skies

I think it'd be better to focus on the interaction between Tyrhallan and Arn for now. There's just one more post I want to make before we wrap things up for this scene.

@TheMerlin

I will post something as soon as I can. That being said and If @TheMerlin does not mind while he is taking a break. Myself and @deia876lat could post a few interactions etc.

Broken Skies

@TheMerlin@deia876lat I try to contribute as much as I can. I hope that my posts are up to par but any suggestions are appreciated.

Broken Skies

@deia876lat I figured I should leave Arn a few options. You flying out of there is another one. You can definitely snatch me out of mid air. Or is the barge still working after Ellis helped out?

Broken Skies

so I left my falling open ended for any to either pick me up or to land on the Barge. so should I wait to post or NPC my rescue lol.

To Claim a Starting World

@Blizz I dont know man, I hear some sirens and see imprisonment in the future for Arn.

To Claim a Starting World

Arn burst into the clearing. The sudden emergence into the sun almost blinding him and causing him to run into the small young healer’s daughter. His charge through the woods and his explosive culmination had left him breathless and he stumbled as his legs buckled beneath him doing their utmost to stop the forward motion of the big man.

He groaned as he inevitably fell forward, taking the poor lady along with him. However, the impact was lessened by his herculean effort to not hurt the girl. The hunter landed on his knees straddling the girls own legs. His strong fore arms landed and dug into the ground on either side of the young girl’s head. She probably would land with her eyes staring directly at his chest covered in furs not inches from her nose.

For half a second the big bear man remained on top of her. His mind trying to process what had just occurred. His thought a mixture of surprise and confusion. He felt as if somebody had woken him up from deep sleep with a splash of ice-cold water.

Suddenly, realization rushed into his mind as quickly as blood rushed into his face. He all bout pounced off her with an agility that was impressive for his large frame. Arn had not been so close to another human, let a lone a female one since he was a young boy. Their proximity had been enough for him to get a whiff of her scent utilizing his keen nose. His face burned with embarrassment and he could not bring himself to look at her in the eyes.

It was extremely fortunate thus, that he noticed the blood and signs of footprints. A small group seemed to have moved towards the direction of a mountain stream he knew well and that fed the fields planted by the village. He was not such an elite hunter that he knew whose the tracks belonged to but he was skilled enough to know that the tracks belonged to teens at the most.

DANGER!!

The voice in his mind appeared again. His eyes scanned the scene hurriedly. A sense of urgency starting to settle in. Why the urgency? Why did the sight of blood so disturbed him? Though it was unadvisable, many children played in the woods, definitely not taboo for teens. So why was he trying to solve this puzzle?

All these questions sent his mind reeling. All he knew was that he needed to follow the tracks. He turned to the young Gwendolyn. His voice gruff and still with a tinge of apologetic embarrassment. “I..am going to follow the tracks…you should head back. It may be dangerous.”

It never occurred to him that his words may be constituted as offensive. He was merely speaking the truth that he saw. If he had thought better about it, it would make a great deal of sense to invite one versed in healing along. After all, if his sudden burst of premonition was turned out to be true, then medical need might be required. The big man however was too used to being and acting alone. He also felt he was protecting her from whatever lay ahead.

The big man looked at the young girl through the top of his eyes and lowered head. He stood up not waiting for a reply from her and moved in the direction of the tracks. He would not stop her should she decide to come but he would move quickly enough to ensure he did not loose the tracks.

The forest invited him in. The cool shadows caressing and dancing on his furs as he moved through the woods. The slivers of light that managed to break through the thick covering of foliage seemed to tease, to hint only to disappear a second later.

He pressed forward. The hunter had been in these woods many times. However, this time it felt that as he moved deeper into the depths of the forest that he was moving into the unknown. It seemed to him just as one steps into a dark lake. What will emerge on the other side?

Broken Skies

The battle mage had managed to recuperate enough to place a hand on the railing and use it as support to stand up slowly. He let out a humph/grunt at Leo’s jab. Arn knew that a mage sporting swords was a walking punchline. He knew that there was an unwritten rule that swords were meant for swordsmen i.e. knights and ki users.

He placed one hand protectively on the smaller bladed weapon. “I am able to hold my own against common soldiers. I dare say that I would be less than a challenge for the likes of you or the Knight Captain. These were given to me by my master.”

The young mage did not want to get into such a tale at a time like this. As if to answer his unspoken request, the ship started to turn more smoothly than the jolts that had been felt before. He agreed with Leo’s assumption and Tyrhallan had managed to gain the control of the steering wheel. All that was left was to somehow jam the rudder into place.

He grunted as he prepared himself to execute the remainder of the plan. His body groaned and strained. It had been many years since he had felt this way. He had not strained so much, but during his tenure in school it was not uncommon to find him passed out on the training grounds. He would be punished for such recklessness but this had not dissuaded him. Indeed, he often welcomed his time in the solitary room where students were sent to penance.

Arn was setting himself against the railing so he could be able to utilize his hands to perform perhaps his last spell ever. His idea was to melt the metal and in so doing, he would accomplish their goal of ramming the frigate into the other.

Their goal however, came to them. No sooner had he let go of the railing that the two behemoths crashed against each other. Metal squealed and groaned under the impact. As if in its death throes, the frigate that the mage and Leo occupied lurched violently. The motion of the ship sent Arn flying out of the side of the railig so he never heard the young Knight’s comment.

He was soon a leaf in the wind falling through the sky. He saw the deck of the refugee ship below him.. A close mounted knight may still have time to pick him off the sky as he fell. Arn however, was already planning. He even entertained a quick thought of just allowing himself to slam into the deck of the smaller ship. But that thought was immediately cast aside. He figured he could still cast a last spell which he had not used up since he did not have the chance to melt the rudder.

So he fell, the mage timing his fall and waiting untilt he last moment to try and cast an air cushion that would at the least allow only for injuries rather than death.

Rise of the Shield Hero - From Another World

Like many of the battles he had been a part of, it was done before you knew it. Adrenalin still rushed through is veins as he looked about. Cole, as the main attack dealer, had dispatched three or four himself. A few groans could be heard from the ones who had been knocked out by Auriel’s spear shaft. He looked down at their feet and the two who they had recently dispatched lay unmoving.

He turned to the winged warrior. “Hey you ok?” Came his gasping question. Fer saw some blood on her but it seemed to be only that which had spattered on her after inflicting wounds. He grimaced. A few specks had gotten on her pretty wings. The young shield wondered if they would be hard to clean off.

While waiting for her response, he gave himself a patting. There did not seem to be any obvious wounds expect for some scrapes and bruises. His shield arm especially hurt now that the adrenalin was receding. He shook it a couple of times and allowed his shield to disappear into the gem. He touched it to make sure there was not break but it seemed like it was only bruised.

Fer was still making sure he would not bleed out when he heard Cole’s request. It was a bit stranger to the shield at first but he figured it was better to make sure none of the bandits would surprise attack them later. He made his rounds. The two at their feet were definitely gone. Even in battle Auriel was merciful. The hammer bandit ha died quickly. As if to perhaps show a bit of mercy himself he closed the man’s eyes. He moved over to his own handy work. The edge of his shield had connected perfectly at the base of the spine, he had heard a crack and a gurgled grunt from the man. Some moans later and then silence indicated the final demise of the sword wielding bandit.

The shield hero moved on to other targets. Some, which had met Auriel’s spear shaft, were just knocked out. Utilizing what material he had available he hog tied them. With their hands behind their back and using their ankles as leverage, it would be really hard for the bandits to try to escape let a lone wield a weapon. He counted about three or so which were still alive.

Fer walked over to the water throughs for the cattle and washed his hands and face. He hissed as the water made the scrapes and cuts sting. But he was more or less used to that. He splashed water on his face and headed towards Cole who seemed to be taking all the death hard. The young shield hero could sympathize.

His first time had been much worse. They had been ambushed and forced to escape via a mine field. Needless to say many of the gore on him was not his own and there are nights he still wakes up hearing he explosions and the screams crying for help. Maybe that is why he was so adamant about being the hero that this world needs. He did not have the courage, power and means to help at that time but he did now.

As he neared Cole, he placed his hand on the sword’s shoulder and looked him straight in the eyes. “Are you ok?” The question both asked for his physical and mental state. Fer had heard Cole describe the ultimate plans of the gang. It seemed that these vultures were hoping to enjoy the end of the world feeding of the less fortunate.

The plan made Fer feel less bad about killing such scum. Taking life is not something you should enjoy be even vermin must be cleared to let good game thrive. Such is the circle of life, and somebody had to do it.

“Well, you are right about cleaning up this mess. I don’t think the poor farmer would have the fortitude to try and remove our bloody mess.” He thought back reflectively. “Also, we need to notify them of the plan. If I remember correctly, this quest was personally given to us by the king. I am sure he knew all along. But, this feels like more than just a test or a chance to cut our teeth at being heroes.” He massaged his left hand from the soreness that started to set it as he continued. “I think we are going to get little to no help from official avenues. We might have to try the adventurer’s guild again.”

Fer was not happy with the idea. The bat winged adventurer which was supposed to have inside knowledge on the gang never met them at the advertised location. Adventurer’s were nothing more than hired muscle and as such followed those who paid them the most.