POOPHEAD189Lurking in the dark waters the Hydra and its three heads moved against the currents. It had within its jaws a large and dangerous fish. Yet it devoured it without a second thought. It approached the edge of the waters from far below. This was to avoid any detection or being seen before it would strike. It was getting later and the Hydra was going to play it smarter now. It edged upwards but would wait behind a curv of stones in the depths of the rivers edge.
Algimar was pleased to see everyone was preparing themselves. Hopefully the energy they saved by building a raft instead of a bridge would make a difference. Their last battle's outcome was poor. Yet their saving grace was that the Hydra had been taken by surprise. It was odd though. Why did the Hydra attack them? Was it the blood of the fish? Surely it hadn't been hunting just one animal. Thinking on a Hydra's nature he was perplexed. He turned to Talise one more time and to Lynn posing the same question. "Can you perform a song that can lure the Hydra into a trap?"
Lynn nodded to Algimar as she stood up, only for her staff to come to her and let her rest on it as she hovered slightly in the air, at just about her own height. "I believe I can, especially with a little bit of music to accompany it." she said with a smile towards Tali. "I can start on your signal, as long as everyone is ready."
Tali tapped her chin thoughtfully at the question about luring the hydra. "I cannot guarantee my song will lure it. I do not have magical songs that do that. However, I could try to play something that the hydra may want to approach to see about the source. Perhaps I could do a song akin to a dancing number. That might lull it into a sense of surprise. That could potentially work." She waved down her servitor. Once it arrived at her side, she got her ocarina from it and then sent it back to do as it wished.
She then took a deep breath before winking at Lynn. "Alright, let's position inland a bit. We want it to investigate, not just pop a head above water." The Tyro/Lassa woman moved inland just enough to make it impossible to get a good angle on her hiding spot and found a rock to hide behind. She knelt down and began to play a lively jig, adding some fun improvisational parts to make it both fun for her and more enticing as improv parts take more focus than normal.
Algimar approached the waters edge as Talise began to play her strings. A risky move but he had to ensure their plan would work as best he could. Next to him formed a shadow doppelganger. Something with all of his features with none of the details. This was due to it being entirely black and emitting a smokey aura from its edges while moving. It dived straight into the water. Algimar stood with crossed arms in wait. The shadow was moving within the waters a fair distance from the shore. The waters were a bit calmer but still forced it down stream. That's when Algimar pulled from the waters a black rope connected to the clone. He used it to keep it from going any further. He now waited to see what the combination of music and bait would do.
Ignoring whatever was foolish enough to wade on the rivers surace the Hydra remained beneath the waters. It was not until the spike in the auras of Tali and Lynn did it seem intrigued in investigating. When their music imbued with their soul's enchanting effects reached the Hydra, who was peaking out of the water with one of its heads, it made the Hydra approach. The song seemed to strike a coord with the Hydra. One strong enough to make its presence known without any direct hostility. Yet only one head was out of the water. Coming closer as if to inspect those who were making the music.
Lynn would continue her siren song, her soft and soothing angelic tones woven with magic to tame the wild beast. She had done this a number of times with smaller, more singular headed, water dragons in the past, and in the back of her mind was her last failure with this three headed beast. She put it aside however, her determination set to not let her friends down again. She put her trust in Tali's music as she slowly walked forward towards the beast, her staff floating close to her. He tail would slowly and rhythmically sway to half the tempo of the music, the same pace as her slow gate to the monster. She didn't want to move too fast and upset it in any way. She reached her arms out to the monster in the water from the shoreline, and in soft gentle movements gestured for it to come to her. If it did, she would slowly back away from it, continuing this pattern as she would draw i more and more out of the water.
Meanwhile, Allard, Shye, and Dremmick all waited in their designated positions, waiting for the signal to move.
Nailah nodded, agreeing as she heard Allard saying he would be more careful. The Hydra wasn't exactly a small fry and no matter how tough Allard was, it could still wound him pretty badly if he wasn't careful. As he and Algimar prepared to fight the Hydra, Nailah took a defensive stance nearby Lynn, ready to protect her in case anything went wrong. She hoped their plan would work, as it would make things way easier but if it didn't, they might have to fight the Hydra once more...
The group was undeniably more prepared to face the hydra than it was before, with Aeden ready to heal anyone who needed and they weren't caught by surprise as they were before. Strangely enough, the Hydra also seemed to be a bit more careful after the attack it received. Still submerged in the river, it was only observing the group instead of simply surfacing and attacking them.
"It is much more wary of us than it was before... It might be much harder to trick it than it was before..." Nailah said after Algimar asked Lynn to perform a song to try and lure the Hydra.
Listening Lynn's words, followed by Tali agreeing to help her with a bit of music, Nailah smiled as she turned to both girls. It had a good chance of working, especially since it was already clear that even though the Hydra seemed to be a bit resistant, Lynn's song still affected it to some extent. With Tali's help and with other people distracting the hydra, maybe it wouldn't be able to concentrate itself enough to resist Lynn's songs.
When Nailah was about to give up waiting for the Hydra, suddenly it's head poked out of water. Surprisingly enough, it didn't show any hostility, instead it seemed to be almost in some kind of trance as it listened to Tali and Lynn's music.
"Oh my! It is really working!" Nailah said, whispering with a surprised tone without taking her eyes off the Hydra.
She saw Lynn getting closer to the creature and slowly followed her as she did. Even though Nailah was afraid to alert the Hydra, she was still scared that it could try to resist Lynn's song, just like it did earlier, and suddenly attack her. In case that happened, she would be close in order to try and get Lynn away from danger.
Garrett clapped his hands. The efforts of the team to contain the situation they found themselves in was laughably effective. Laughable in the sense that it was a big waste of time. If they could spend as much time and effort standing around on the wrong side of the river playing with a hydra as they did making the journey to their destination in a crucial, decisive moment of fighting against Nuxta, maybe he wouldn't be as powerful as he is now and they'd be winning.
"Okay. Let's load up the raft and hurry across while the scaly cerberus is creaming itself to some offkey strings and whistles."
Garrett smirked at his uncouth frankness for the moment and tugged on the rope tethering the raft to the shoreline they found themselves on, bringing it against the land. He torqued the rope so it wouldn't loosen, and started to put the more-less-mobile gear and transportation onto the raft.
Aeden shot a confused look toward Garrett. "What are we going to do about those that are focused on the beast? No, the tactically appropriate decision is not to take a half measure with this monster and deal with it here."
He was disturbed at Garrett's lack of understanding of tactics and his rudeness towards members of the Alliance. "No half measures. You never leave an enemy behind to stab you in the back."
He turned away to focus his attention to the beast. He kept some of his attention on Garrett. Before he came across as a noble with little understanding of the world projecting his high and mighty mindset upon reality. Now he simply seemed like an ass, and quite possibly a liability in this dangerous world. That would have to be dealt with sooner than later, but first they had to deal with the monster before them.
Aeden began stalking around the beast searching for a weak point he could exploit and direct the group towards.
The Hydras single head made it appear more like a serpent. Though it was large enough to gobble a sizable descendant like Allard in a few bites it was not as massive in scale as a sea Hydra. Something noticeable by those who have seen one and survived. Algimar was in a risky place but as the monsters focus was on Lynn he felt at ease enough to keep his chain in the waters and also his shadow clone. It not needing air was able to climb up the chain in the water and head towards the Hydras elongated backside.
The song Lynn sang along with Talise seemed to lure the Hydra in further. The other two heads that were once missing now vaguely visible by way of water bubbles on the rushing waters surface. It was then Algimar heard and saw Garrett moving for the spell cloaked vessel. With Aeden approaching him. All other sounds and or voices was a liability now. So Algimar shot them both a glare. The only tactic available now was to fight or flee. With Garrett grabbing the items to place on the raft Algimar assumed he was preparing an attempt at fleeing while the others kept the creature occupied. The mission as a whole was greater than individuals in the group. Be it as that may be Algimar had no allegiance to this group and only saw this risky situation growing far more than it was worth. If he was to continue he needed to see what this group's worth really was. Why the kingdoms intrusted them with such a important journey.
The hydra did not move closer than a few feet from the shore, part of it's long body on wet muddy shoreline. The mass of bubbles to its side remained as such. It looked intently at lynn with a long tongue escaping between its teeth, licking the air as if hungry or pleased.
As Garrett made his way closer to the the supplies he was going to take to the raft, he would find himself closer to where Dremmick was lying low. Dremmicks eyes were aglow with contained anger as he watched the careless man nearly ruib what little of a plan was formed to cross this river with the least amount of casualties. When Garrett grabbed one of the ropes, Dremmick's hands shot out, grabbing his arm and shoulder, pulling him down to where he was. "Sit back and shut up, you damned fool, before you get them killed!" he quietly hissed. "What was on that letter can wait, we need to make sure we survive first, or else all of their sacrifices will be in vain." Dremmick looked back to the hydra, watching very carefully to see if it noticed Garrett, hoping it was too distracted to care.
Lynn, noticing that it wasn't wanting to come out, thought of another tactic. What if she could convince this head she was safe, and the other heads followed suit on it's suggestion. Maybe she only really had to try to 'tame' one in rder to tame the others. So, instead of trying to lure it, Lynn slowly and calmly approached the hydra head. She took slow gentle steps, her gait flowing like water as she approached. She reached out a hand to it, as if to pet it on the nose, thogh she kept it just a few inches away, letting it come to her. if it came to her, she would gently and tenderly pet it as she sang, the song she sang would belay her will to want to be friendly with the monster, she didn't want to fight. Her staff was closeby should her attempt to swallow her up, she could at least use the staff to bar its mouth open, as it was taller than her. But right now, her mind was focused on befriending the monster, keping any doubt that it would work from her mind.
It was the Sirens of Tearia that allowed their kingdom to thrive in the waters, surrounded by terrible creatures like this hydra. Even the Queen of Tearia was a legendary siren, if not the most. As such their relationship with the sea creatures who enjoyed their songs and were moved by them was a good one. The envy of the other kingdoms, not even Gaia could sing a song a Sea dragon enjoys. Lynn was a spitting image of many of the sirens, though her song was weak compared to true sirens Talise brought a curious mix to the sounds. However it was enough to move only one hydra head. A folly.
The one head was calm and gently approached Lynn but the others reacted to her movements. Their heads emerging from the waters with teeth bared. A hiss and a flare of their fins warned the enchanted. The far right head looked to Talise. While the far left looked to the others as a whole. The center most head moved back from Lynn. It's own teeth beginning to show.
The second she heard Garrett's words regarding the Hydra and Tali and Lynn's efforts to deal with, she immediately sent him a death stare. She knew very well that talking to him was useless so instead, she was sure to send him the message that if he did anything to disrupt both girls and put Lynn in danger, she wouldn't hesitate in doing something harsh.
Thankfully, she didn't seem to be the only one shocked with Garrett's words and attitude, as Aeden immediately voiced his dissatisfaction with what happened. As he started to position himself though, Nailah sent the same piercing stare to him, thinking he was about to do something that would threaten to break the Hydra's attention, but when she realized he only positioned himself in case something wrong happened, she nodded towards him, thanking him.
As Lynn moved closer to the Hydra, Nailah quietly walked together, always standing far enough so the Hydra wouldn't immediately see her as a threat but close enough to dash for Lynn in case something happened. Everything seemed to be going quite well. Even though only one of it's heads was reacting to Lynn's song and Tali's music, it was reacting favorably until now.
Unfortunately, the second she approached the Hydra to touch her, the other heads finally reacted to her movements, emerging from the water with their teeth bared. Nailah didn't even waited for them to hiss as she dashed towards Lynn. Apparently, Lynn and Tali's music wasn't strong enough to charm all tree heads of the Hydra.
Approaching Lynn in the blink of an eye, Nailah held Lynn in her arms, dashing away from the hydra towards anywhere that could give them some cover. The second the Hydra saw Nailah approaching, it was highly probable that it would attack, so she had to focus on taking Lynn away from danger first.
Garrett's face was filled with utter disgust as his eyes moved down to emulate a situation where he was looking at one of the most fetid insects laid on the ground before him. He tugged his arm away from Dremmick's grasp as soon as he finished with his demeaning spiel.
"Do. Not. Touch me. I am making preparation for the worst case scenario as should you."
Garrett tried to hide a smirk as his ears twitched at the sound of the hostile utterances of the territorial hydra. His face was splayed with an incomprehensible emotion, however, it is recognized as a twist of disgust, sourness, and the clash of polar negative emotions and those emotions that displayed a conscious satisfaction. A catapult was in hindsight the better option, anyway. He prepared himself for an incoming fight, and at a moment, the form-fitting blood-forging on his body slid onto his right arm, with a sight which can only be explained as blackened, reddish corrupted spikes and plate taking over, although the only corruption were the radically liberating thoughts in his head. It seemed he was creating a weapon to use against the beast at the moment.
“Tsk….” Aste frowned at the sight of the other hydra heads, whom don’t look so friendly. The whole charade didn’t go so well as it planned. The other heads are a bother again. She drew on her magic, ready to cast the spell of Heavenly Flare at any moment. There isn’t no choice but to kill the Hydra. Wait, the other heads? Teetering the focus of her magic towards the less obedient head, Aste sent for a bright lod of magic blast that made the noon seem like the day. Long and clear shadows flickered from the brightness of her Heavenly Flare.
The first attack rang out. The wet scales of the hydra steamed at the touch of fire. It cried as it was blinded by the light. The other heads of the Hydra roared in confusion to the brightness. A young Hydra not yet aware of the power of a descendant. Perhaps it was used to weaker foes. Still. It was determined to fight back. The third head unharmed by the fire and furthest from its light unleashed a cloud of sprayed water. The head on fire shook in pain before the waters would cover it and those near the Hydra.
Garrett, finishing the conjuration of what seems to be a spear with two branching blades protruding from the sides of the original, piercing tip that makes a spear, a spear. Its rough exterior would have to do for now, a real fine craft takes time, but this was a fight that Garrett would like it to be in in order to get uncomplained rest later. His indescribable facial expression smoothened to just a smile. He called to those willing to fight the beast. -9 Soul = 26
"Come now. Keep its sensory organs obfuscated, covered, and cripples, and aim for the heart cluster. Hydras rely on their multilayered senses. Lets not give it the satisfaction of a fair goliathian fight!"
Garrett strode forth toward the Hydra with his spear aimed for it, particularly towards its chest. This battle needed to be a decisive victory before it even started. The less they use their powers, the better in the long run.
Aeden and Garrett were on the same page here as Aeden had conjured a Blessed Spear -7 Soul = 33 and began his own charge for the beast's heart. He had considered the use of his sword briefly as to conserve energy, however, he needed to maximize the effectiveness of his reach. He was impressed at the effectiveness of Aste's spell, and he did not want to let her efforts go to waste.
Nyph hid in embarrassment and disgrace from his earlier voyeurism. He didn't know why he did it, only that he could not help it. He could hear the battle going starting off not too far away, but even so his usefulness was incredibly limited and he certainly could not fight something that large.
Dremmick's eyes cut from the Hydra to Garret for a brief moment, "What you were being was a damn fool. If you have a problem with me correcting it, maybe later you can do something about it."
When the monster turned hostile Dremmick cursed under his breath. He should have known that the hydra would be to much for the lassa to charm, rather, he did know, but hoped that she could. This was bad, if he were to fight, he would need a quick boost. WHile he didn't want to use the pure blood so soon, it seemed he had little choice. He reached in his satchel, his trained hands knowing where each and every item was secured, and pulled out the pure blood, downing half of it. He spit what little remnants remained in his mouth out in attempt to lessen the lingering taste, the taste or the notion overall unpleasant to him, he was never really sure which. He would then prepare a paralysis blood ritual, much like what he did with the basilisks before, using some of the pure blood on some paper to make two seals. He looked around for one of the faster members of the party, and remembering how elusive she was before, he knew just to to call when he spotted her bringing the lassa away from the front lines. "Nailah! Get these blood seals on the Hydra as soon as possible, if I can keep it still, we will have a clean shot to its heart!"
Once everyone was moving it, he saw it fit to do so himself, taking advantage of the monster's confusion and blindness to move in as well. After moving to het the blood seals to Nailah, he would try to get to the crystal wall Itzel made and prepare the rest of the ritual.
Allard, when seeing Garrett and Aeden prepare themselves to engage, prepared to charge in as well, drawing his heavy blade. He heard Dremmick shout something about paralyzing the monster, which would open up a chance to strike. Allard wasn't sure how long that window would be, but they would need to make the most of it. Allard prepared himself by speaking the old shadow skill incitation, pushing it as far as he could currently take it, making himself four times stronger than he normally was. "Alright then!" he said with a wide grin, "We will make this quick and decisive!" He then readied himself at their mark.
Lynn was noticeably upset by not being able to siren the large monster once again, though it was more so the fact that she felt she had failed her team twice now with this, and now they had to risk themselves once again. "I'm sorry..., I couldn't do it...," When the others started to engage the monster, Lynn took a deep breath and shook her head, trying to push away the guilt she felt. She needed to concentrate in case anyone got hurt.
It was then that they could hear Dremmick calling to Nailah, and Lynn looked to him and then her.
Her staff came to her and she hopped onto it, though still stayed fairly low. "I'll try to be safe here, you should go, I'll be watching out for you. Oh! but first, drink this, it should help." Lynn summoned some water from the rune in the jar kept behind her on her belt. She concentrated on it, weaving magic into it as it turned a green color for a speed enchantment. "With this, you will be able to move much faster than normal, now go, they need you," se finished as she moved the water bubble to Nailah.
--
Shye was close as well, looking for an opening to move in, and upon hearing What Dremmick had planned, and hearing his call to Nailah, she thought she could offer her help as well. She met with them as fast as she could, "Please, allow me to help, two may be better than one after all, right?" she ended with a slight smile to Nailah and Lynn.
Tali's song ended as soon as the hydra became hostile. She hopped over the rock and sprinted upbehind Lynn as she got on her staff. "Lynn, sweetie, move back a bit. I would be shattered if you got hurt. Now, where were we? Ah yes, going for the heart." She put the ocarina to her lips and began to play a dirge for the hydra, each note laced with entropic energy. It would eat away at the creature's body to slow and weaken it. Once the spell was cast, she immediately transitioned into her battle song, two archers and three hoplites made of pure force appearing around her and readying their weapons. (-10 soul for 5 attacks, -? for entropic dirge)
Itzel listened to the intended target and took flight with a harsh flap of her wings. She rose high into the air before using her magic to accelerate her even faster in the dive. She aimed for the heart with her tail spike while keeping to the side to prevent friendly fire. In her dive, she summoned crystal molded onto the end of her tail to both protect it and penetrate better. (-1 Soul for making tail weapon)
A shiver ran down Mason's spine as the hydra reappeared from the depths. The thing inside him; the presence Dremmick warned him about... It wanted to feed on the soul of this powerful creature. "Don't worry, you'll get your fill." he whispered to himself as he drew both of his swords. Since Dremmick drove the hydra off previously with a lightning spell, Mason knew what he needed to do.
Arcs of electricity crackled as he channeled power from within himself into the chaos blade, and gauntlet reserves into the stone blade-- he was going to hit this thing with everything he had. Running over to Allard, his body beginning to shudder, he positioned himself in front of the giant. "Allard, throw me at it so I can make an opening for Nailah! Opposite side of Itzel!"
The very moment Nailah took Lynn away from the hydra, Aste quickly sent the first attack, hopefully being able to distract the Hydra. Nailah hoped her light attack would be able to take the Hydra's attention off her and Lynn for at least a moment in order for them to get somewhere a bit safer that wasn't in range of the Hydra's attacks.
Luckily, it seemed that Aste's attack had the exact effect she was hoping it to have, blinding and burning the Hydra. As two of it's heads roared in confusion while the last one sprayed water around it, Nailah used that chance to take Lynn behind cover.
"Don't blame yourself, Lynn..." Nailah said with a kind smile as she heard the lassa girl lamenting and apologizing that she wasn't able to calm down the Hydra.
"Nothing in life will go always as planned. You did your best and that's what matters. Plus, I don't think that saying that you 'couldn't do it' is the correct phrase to use..." Nailah continued.
"You couldn't do it... yet, right?" Nailah said, gently booping Lynn's nose with a playful expression.
"Thanks for the help, I'll make good use of it. Just remember to stay away from the Hydra's attack range, ok?" Nailah said as she drank the enchanted water bubble given to her by Lynn.
It didn't seem to be that much different from normal water at first, but after a few seconds, Nailah began feeling a strange power within her after she drank the water. It was not just a sensation, her body was indeed much lighter and it was noticeably easier to move herself. In fact, she would have to remember to control herself. Since she was already incredibly fast, Lynn's enhancement made her so fast that it was possible Nailah could lose control if she wasn't careful.
As she heard Dremmick's words, she nodded, dashing towards him and getting the blood seals. According to his words, he wanted her to stick the seals at the hydra for some kind of spell. With the added speed from Lynn's enchanted water and her own skills, it should be incredibly easy for her to do so. She just had to get close enough to the hydra and put the seal on it's body.
Hearing Shye's voice, Nailah looked around until her eyes met with the woman's. Splitting the seals Allard gave to her with Shye, Nailah prepared herself to do her part.
"We just have to put these on the Hydra, just like Dremmick said." Nailah said, nodding to Shye before she herself dashed towards the Hydra.
Using her enhanced speed and her abilities, she used both the bodies of the other members of the group and the many attacks being used in order to disappear from sight (-5 Soul). Due to Lynn's enchanted water, she took but the blink of an eye to get nearby the Hydra before trying to put the seal on it and run away before it had the chance to attack her.
With the fire out and water vapor spreading across the shore line the Hydras were now furious and on the attack. Itzel was the first to reach the Hydra, impaling the center Hydra's side. Its scales were tough. It would take more than a reckless strike to pierce deep into its hide. With water now covering its body it was also hard to hold onto. Itzel would have to fly off or fall, when she did however the head on the far right was ready to bite her and snatch her out of the air. With a cobra like strike Itzel would need luck to avoid it.
The others approaching the Hydra would find the vapor of water making the atmosphere more fogged and a bit harder to see in some areas. Like clouds touching down. The air was unfortunately still. Nailah made her way to the Hydra from a safe distance. Fortunately she was fast. Fast enough to get close to the shore line where its three necks laid against. Whatever her choice was the furthest left head noticed her. It would unleash a spell of its own. Its jaws opened releasing a rush of water. It fell before it and splashed against the ground. Within the water were masses of skeletons from its previous meals. The bones began to move then form. Rising as a large skeletal creature. Similar to a fish and a serpent as it slid across the ground under the Hydra to go for Nailah as she was finishing the first paper placement. Its fangs made of bones would sink into her if able to catch her.
Shye rushed forward, sing her fire to help propel her, but whatever Lynn gave Nailah made her incredibly fast. She helt the piece of paper in her mouth as she cut out the fire in her hands, approaching. Then, all the sudden, two Shyes wer moving towards the monster, one with the paper in her mouth, still boosting her speed, and the other towards Nailah, a charged blast in both hands. She leapt forward, to meet the skeletal monster heading towards the draconic tyro. "Look out!" she called before landing between Nailah and the skeleton abomination. She directed both hands out to it s hit got close and detonated scattering the bones about harmlessly.
The doppelganger Shye, moved out to the hydra to place the paper, using a quick burst of flame to get her close, place the paper on contact, and disappear. (-24 stamina, -6 soul)
--
Once both papers were in place, Dremmick would activate the paralysis on the monster. "Lynn! When it is paralyzed, move the water out of the way for an opening! Everyone else, finish this bastard off!" he called out. (-5 soul, -3 stamina)
--
Allard would laugh heartily as he picked up Mason, "I believe they beat ya to it! But worry not, I believe you can still get a good hit in!"
--
Lynn noded her head to Dremmick, and once seeing if the monster was stunned, would move in to remove the water from around the hydra, ready to fly off at a moments notice if something went wrong, shw would bolt. Once the opening was made, Allard would launch Mason out to the monster, he would take his time catching up, noticing that Garrett and Aeden were preparing attacks as well. Once theirs was complete he would move in to try to give the finishing blow if it hasn't been dealt already. (-20 stamina for activating his shadow skill earlier)
Seeing a new target, Tali immediately directed her group to strike at various places along the skeletal creature, focusing their force strikes upon important looking joints and bones seeming to support its motion. She spent her next song summoning only a single berserker, using it sparingly to conserve her energy. Her eyes followed the battlefield as she stepped back a bit, her lips never leaving the ocarina. She worried that this hydra had too much power to be dealt with reasonably by their group, despite its youth.
Itzl, meanwhile, struck true and dealt some damage, but a head decided to strike at her. She expected this type of behavior and almost smirked as she conjured magic enhanced crystal within the gaping mouth of the hydra, enhancing it so the strike would cause a burst of shrapnel in the mouth. That would give her ample time to escape and fly back to prepare for another strike. Her retreat, much like her strike, was calculated with a seasoned warrior's eyes. Rainbow lights danced along the hydra scales, leaving an oddly beautiful sight among the carnage she was attempting to inflict upon it.
Despite Nailah's speed, the third head somehow noticed her trying to get closer to it. The second the third head looked at Nailah, she immediately prepared herself to dodge it's water attack, but what the Hydra did next really surprised her. Releasing a splash of water of it's mouth, the second it impacted on the ground, masses of skeletons appeared from within. The second they started to move and rose as a large mass of bones, Nailah knew what it was...
"What? Necromancy?!" Nailah said, surprised as the serpent-like mass of skeletons slid towards her.
Without time to put the other paper seals, Nailah finished putting the first one and then dodged it's attack. If it caught her, it's fangs would do a serious damage on her that would certainly hinder her fighting capabilities.
"I saw it! But Necromancy?? Why does it know how to use Necromancy?" she shouted. The hydra itself was already annoying to deal with, but now it was much, much more.
"I can't get close enough to do anything with this skeleton thing after me!" she said once more as she continued to dodge the undead creature's attacks just as Shye came to strike the monster.(edited)
With a successful blow Shye sent the mass of skeletal shrapnel flying around. Within the confusion the Hydra that chewed and tossed away Itzel's crystal shell was furious. The middle head kept its eyes on Itzel and unleashed concentrated stream of high water pressure. It was strong enough to carve stone. It shot it after raising its neck up high to get a good angle over the other two heads.
The left head that unleashed the skeleton watched the two Tyro blooded women and one of their explosions reminded it of the fire it was hit with earlier. It shouted a roar. This roar was somewhat visible. If Shye or Nailah were hit by the wave it would cause a crippling fear. A fear such as a lamb before a lion.
The farthest right head noticed Mason coming toward it and prepared to bite him and devour him in one go.
Two heads were stamped with the blood seals. After activation the two affected heads would feel a pulse. A divine spell coursing through its chaotic body. It was enough to make the two heads on the far left and right to fall down, laying on the shore line. However the middle hydra head seemed unaffected. Still awake and observing any who got close.
As Mason was launched at the hydra, he saw the head furthest to the right coming straight for him! Using his wings, the young Aion warrior angled himself to try and strike the corner of its mouth and dodge its attack. Upon contact, his two blades would explode with electrical energy [-25 soul -15 Stamina]!
The final hydra head was struck by the lightning within Masons blades. As before it did not enjoy the electrical charge coursing through its body. Though the paralysis only affected two, the electricity was a bane to it's very existence. Or so it seemed. As it roared in pain before collapsing like the two other heads. Laying onto the shoreline, smoke streaming from its jaws.
Algimar stood by but was astonished by the coordinated efforts of everyone. He looked to the group after the Hydras final head hit the ground. No longer entirely submerged in water the Lassa girl worked to remove the water around it. Algimar was more concerned with getting across the river. He moved to the raft. Passing the seraphim and Garrett while doing so. "We'd best get moving while we can." He softly spoke this to Garrett while he passed. He then went to the end of the wood and began to push it. A shadow clone pushing with him. It was no longer a mystery that a Nayu could do this. None here seemed surprised by each others abilities. Algimar landed on the raft now touching water. A bit more weight and it would tip into the river.
Dremmick relaxed a bit while upholding his spell, glad that something seemed to finally work. He looked to Garrett, "Now would be a good time to finish this thing off. If I leave this spot the other two heads will be released," he said as he stood on a similar looking but larger blood seal similar to the ones placed on the hydra. "Afterwards, getting a good haul of scales would be a good idea before we cross, it should only take a moment and can provide decent armor and money for travel."
Allard made sure Nailah and Shye were alright, "You too still in one piece, eh?" he laughed heartily, "beautiful work." He sheathed his blade and grabbed the monster by the center neck and started to drag it out of the water, allowing Lynn to release her hold and return to Nailah's side.
"That was amazing, Nailah! I had no idea you would be able to go that fast! I could barely see you, at one point I couldn't at all!" She hopped off her staff gave Nailah a hug, "I'm glad you are safe though. C'mon, Algimar is preparing the raft! I will try to make sure crossing goes as smoothly as possible."
"It's finally over... It's a shame that Lynn's song didn't worked though. Still, glad everything ended without anyone getting hurt." Nailah said after the Hydra was finally put down by Dremmick's seals and Mason's lightning.
"These scales should be pretty useful for maybe making equipment if we happen to meet a good artisan. They should fetch quite a high price on the market as well if you guys decide to sell them." Nailah mentioned as she heard Dremmick saying that it would be a good idea to get some of it's scales.
"Thanks. Lynn's enchanted water did wonders too. But I'm glad I was able to help even if just a little bit." Nailah said, with a kind smile as Allard approached her and Shye to praise them for their work.
"It was all thanks to you, you know?" Nailah said, with a giggle, hugging Lynn back as she hopped off her staff to hug her, excited about how fast she was.
"I was a bit surprised when the Hydra used necromancy but I'm safe. Wasn't hit by any of it's attacks." Nailah said, confirming that she wasn't hurt as she followed Lynn towards the raft to help getting it across the river.
As Allard gripped onto the Hydras main head and pulled he would notice the stretching of the neck allowed to see its breathing easier. Indicating it indeed was still alive. As he pulled further, inching it out, a bulge appeared in all three of their throats. It ran up to the Hydras head. The Hydras mouths were slightly lifted open. Emerging from their jaws were bones in the form of giant skeletal fish. With sharp jaws of their own. The one closest to Allard snapped at him from the sides. The others moved towards Allard to do the same. They were nearly as large as the Hydras head, taller than Allard even by a few feet. They moved along the ground rather slowly however.
Garrett jams the tip of his spear into the beast's front torso below the necks at a downward angle up to the point that the horizontal blades would also dig into the flesh past the scales of the Hydra.
Soon after contact was made, Garrett would begin to drain the blood of the large beast from the freshly made hole, an orb of the gathered blood hovering beside Garrett's head, compressing as more of the ichor flowed from the wound.
The beast was most likely thrown out of its home due to pressures and side-effects of the strife on the Edafos, and was most likely scared from the fact it was farther away from the safety of its original home than it would like. That didn't matter. It was in the way. Time was of the essence, and Garrett began slamming force against his fresh spear against the beast in an attempt to puncture straight through and ruin the beast's steeled intentions.
As Garrett began to spear the Hydras center, where all heads connected, he would find its thick hide harder to pierce than the beasts that roamed the lands. While he was digging in as far as the heart one of the skeletal jaws turned and went for Garrett. Its jaws snapping rapidly before even crawling to him with a hurried unnaturally swift pace. Launching itself at him from above for a all or nothing attack.
Dremmick cursed as he saw the skeletons come out of the hydras mouth. Holding his position to keep the blood seals active, he drew his conjuration staff. His eyes and right arm started to glow with ethereal power as he activated his necromancy magic, "Heed my command, and do as I demand! Slake your bloody thirst, on the first!" Bolstered by the power of the conjuration staff, Dremmick took ahold of the three skeletal beings to turn them against the hydra.
Allard, who was at first concerned with the skeleton's took the chance Dremmick gave him to finally put an end to this. He dropped the neck he was pulling on and drew his heavy blade, wielding it in both hands. "Doesn't seem over yet, but it is time this ended," Allard said to Nailah before turning back to the task at hand. "You fought valiantly," he said to the hydra. Allard then turned to the center of the monster. On most creatures, the heart was at the center, not far from the base of the neck. even if the strike he planned to make missed, a wound like this would probably be close enough to the heart to be fatal, if not, well... he would just have to get a bit messier. With his four fold amplification still active across his whole body, Allard checked his surroundings in case the skeletons were still approaching, he would handle them if necessary, but if he was able, he would bolt for the torso. He would bring his blade down in a heavy over head arching swing to the monster's body, putting all he had to assure a clean a deep slice into and through the monster for the full length of the blade, If that wasn't deep enough, his wings would push the wound open as he would slice deeper in still. The heart was his target, if found, he would surely strike it down, however, even if not, its body being split in two may still seal its fate.
The Hydra's main body was struck from multiple angles but the final blow seemed to come from Allard's blade. Going through its back and with his amplified strength he tore through its hide. Its blood flowed everywhere. Nearly covering those around it. Its body stopped moving... But not before the center head roared in its final dying breathe. A curse.
Algimar was pleased to see everyone was preparing themselves. Hopefully the energy they saved by building a raft instead of a bridge would make a difference. Their last battle's outcome was poor. Yet their saving grace was that the Hydra had been taken by surprise. It was odd though. Why did the Hydra attack them? Was it the blood of the fish? Surely it hadn't been hunting just one animal. Thinking on a Hydra's nature he was perplexed. He turned to Talise one more time and to Lynn posing the same question. "Can you perform a song that can lure the Hydra into a trap?"
Lynn nodded to Algimar as she stood up, only for her staff to come to her and let her rest on it as she hovered slightly in the air, at just about her own height. "I believe I can, especially with a little bit of music to accompany it." she said with a smile towards Tali. "I can start on your signal, as long as everyone is ready."
Tali tapped her chin thoughtfully at the question about luring the hydra. "I cannot guarantee my song will lure it. I do not have magical songs that do that. However, I could try to play something that the hydra may want to approach to see about the source. Perhaps I could do a song akin to a dancing number. That might lull it into a sense of surprise. That could potentially work." She waved down her servitor. Once it arrived at her side, she got her ocarina from it and then sent it back to do as it wished.
She then took a deep breath before winking at Lynn. "Alright, let's position inland a bit. We want it to investigate, not just pop a head above water." The Tyro/Lassa woman moved inland just enough to make it impossible to get a good angle on her hiding spot and found a rock to hide behind. She knelt down and began to play a lively jig, adding some fun improvisational parts to make it both fun for her and more enticing as improv parts take more focus than normal.
Algimar approached the waters edge as Talise began to play her strings. A risky move but he had to ensure their plan would work as best he could. Next to him formed a shadow doppelganger. Something with all of his features with none of the details. This was due to it being entirely black and emitting a smokey aura from its edges while moving. It dived straight into the water. Algimar stood with crossed arms in wait. The shadow was moving within the waters a fair distance from the shore. The waters were a bit calmer but still forced it down stream. That's when Algimar pulled from the waters a black rope connected to the clone. He used it to keep it from going any further. He now waited to see what the combination of music and bait would do.
Ignoring whatever was foolish enough to wade on the rivers surace the Hydra remained beneath the waters. It was not until the spike in the auras of Tali and Lynn did it seem intrigued in investigating. When their music imbued with their soul's enchanting effects reached the Hydra, who was peaking out of the water with one of its heads, it made the Hydra approach. The song seemed to strike a coord with the Hydra. One strong enough to make its presence known without any direct hostility. Yet only one head was out of the water. Coming closer as if to inspect those who were making the music.
Lynn would continue her siren song, her soft and soothing angelic tones woven with magic to tame the wild beast. She had done this a number of times with smaller, more singular headed, water dragons in the past, and in the back of her mind was her last failure with this three headed beast. She put it aside however, her determination set to not let her friends down again. She put her trust in Tali's music as she slowly walked forward towards the beast, her staff floating close to her. He tail would slowly and rhythmically sway to half the tempo of the music, the same pace as her slow gate to the monster. She didn't want to move too fast and upset it in any way. She reached her arms out to the monster in the water from the shoreline, and in soft gentle movements gestured for it to come to her. If it did, she would slowly back away from it, continuing this pattern as she would draw i more and more out of the water.
Meanwhile, Allard, Shye, and Dremmick all waited in their designated positions, waiting for the signal to move.
Nailah nodded, agreeing as she heard Allard saying he would be more careful. The Hydra wasn't exactly a small fry and no matter how tough Allard was, it could still wound him pretty badly if he wasn't careful. As he and Algimar prepared to fight the Hydra, Nailah took a defensive stance nearby Lynn, ready to protect her in case anything went wrong. She hoped their plan would work, as it would make things way easier but if it didn't, they might have to fight the Hydra once more...
The group was undeniably more prepared to face the hydra than it was before, with Aeden ready to heal anyone who needed and they weren't caught by surprise as they were before. Strangely enough, the Hydra also seemed to be a bit more careful after the attack it received. Still submerged in the river, it was only observing the group instead of simply surfacing and attacking them.
"It is much more wary of us than it was before... It might be much harder to trick it than it was before..." Nailah said after Algimar asked Lynn to perform a song to try and lure the Hydra.
Listening Lynn's words, followed by Tali agreeing to help her with a bit of music, Nailah smiled as she turned to both girls. It had a good chance of working, especially since it was already clear that even though the Hydra seemed to be a bit resistant, Lynn's song still affected it to some extent. With Tali's help and with other people distracting the hydra, maybe it wouldn't be able to concentrate itself enough to resist Lynn's songs.
When Nailah was about to give up waiting for the Hydra, suddenly it's head poked out of water. Surprisingly enough, it didn't show any hostility, instead it seemed to be almost in some kind of trance as it listened to Tali and Lynn's music.
"Oh my! It is really working!" Nailah said, whispering with a surprised tone without taking her eyes off the Hydra.
She saw Lynn getting closer to the creature and slowly followed her as she did. Even though Nailah was afraid to alert the Hydra, she was still scared that it could try to resist Lynn's song, just like it did earlier, and suddenly attack her. In case that happened, she would be close in order to try and get Lynn away from danger.
Garrett clapped his hands. The efforts of the team to contain the situation they found themselves in was laughably effective. Laughable in the sense that it was a big waste of time. If they could spend as much time and effort standing around on the wrong side of the river playing with a hydra as they did making the journey to their destination in a crucial, decisive moment of fighting against Nuxta, maybe he wouldn't be as powerful as he is now and they'd be winning.
"Okay. Let's load up the raft and hurry across while the scaly cerberus is creaming itself to some offkey strings and whistles."
Garrett smirked at his uncouth frankness for the moment and tugged on the rope tethering the raft to the shoreline they found themselves on, bringing it against the land. He torqued the rope so it wouldn't loosen, and started to put the more-less-mobile gear and transportation onto the raft.
Aeden shot a confused look toward Garrett. "What are we going to do about those that are focused on the beast? No, the tactically appropriate decision is not to take a half measure with this monster and deal with it here."
He was disturbed at Garrett's lack of understanding of tactics and his rudeness towards members of the Alliance. "No half measures. You never leave an enemy behind to stab you in the back."
He turned away to focus his attention to the beast. He kept some of his attention on Garrett. Before he came across as a noble with little understanding of the world projecting his high and mighty mindset upon reality. Now he simply seemed like an ass, and quite possibly a liability in this dangerous world. That would have to be dealt with sooner than later, but first they had to deal with the monster before them.
Aeden began stalking around the beast searching for a weak point he could exploit and direct the group towards.
The Hydras single head made it appear more like a serpent. Though it was large enough to gobble a sizable descendant like Allard in a few bites it was not as massive in scale as a sea Hydra. Something noticeable by those who have seen one and survived. Algimar was in a risky place but as the monsters focus was on Lynn he felt at ease enough to keep his chain in the waters and also his shadow clone. It not needing air was able to climb up the chain in the water and head towards the Hydras elongated backside.
The song Lynn sang along with Talise seemed to lure the Hydra in further. The other two heads that were once missing now vaguely visible by way of water bubbles on the rushing waters surface. It was then Algimar heard and saw Garrett moving for the spell cloaked vessel. With Aeden approaching him. All other sounds and or voices was a liability now. So Algimar shot them both a glare. The only tactic available now was to fight or flee. With Garrett grabbing the items to place on the raft Algimar assumed he was preparing an attempt at fleeing while the others kept the creature occupied. The mission as a whole was greater than individuals in the group. Be it as that may be Algimar had no allegiance to this group and only saw this risky situation growing far more than it was worth. If he was to continue he needed to see what this group's worth really was. Why the kingdoms intrusted them with such a important journey.
The hydra did not move closer than a few feet from the shore, part of it's long body on wet muddy shoreline. The mass of bubbles to its side remained as such. It looked intently at lynn with a long tongue escaping between its teeth, licking the air as if hungry or pleased.
As Garrett made his way closer to the the supplies he was going to take to the raft, he would find himself closer to where Dremmick was lying low. Dremmicks eyes were aglow with contained anger as he watched the careless man nearly ruib what little of a plan was formed to cross this river with the least amount of casualties. When Garrett grabbed one of the ropes, Dremmick's hands shot out, grabbing his arm and shoulder, pulling him down to where he was. "Sit back and shut up, you damned fool, before you get them killed!" he quietly hissed. "What was on that letter can wait, we need to make sure we survive first, or else all of their sacrifices will be in vain." Dremmick looked back to the hydra, watching very carefully to see if it noticed Garrett, hoping it was too distracted to care.
Lynn, noticing that it wasn't wanting to come out, thought of another tactic. What if she could convince this head she was safe, and the other heads followed suit on it's suggestion. Maybe she only really had to try to 'tame' one in rder to tame the others. So, instead of trying to lure it, Lynn slowly and calmly approached the hydra head. She took slow gentle steps, her gait flowing like water as she approached. She reached out a hand to it, as if to pet it on the nose, thogh she kept it just a few inches away, letting it come to her. if it came to her, she would gently and tenderly pet it as she sang, the song she sang would belay her will to want to be friendly with the monster, she didn't want to fight. Her staff was closeby should her attempt to swallow her up, she could at least use the staff to bar its mouth open, as it was taller than her. But right now, her mind was focused on befriending the monster, keping any doubt that it would work from her mind.
It was the Sirens of Tearia that allowed their kingdom to thrive in the waters, surrounded by terrible creatures like this hydra. Even the Queen of Tearia was a legendary siren, if not the most. As such their relationship with the sea creatures who enjoyed their songs and were moved by them was a good one. The envy of the other kingdoms, not even Gaia could sing a song a Sea dragon enjoys. Lynn was a spitting image of many of the sirens, though her song was weak compared to true sirens Talise brought a curious mix to the sounds. However it was enough to move only one hydra head. A folly.
The one head was calm and gently approached Lynn but the others reacted to her movements. Their heads emerging from the waters with teeth bared. A hiss and a flare of their fins warned the enchanted. The far right head looked to Talise. While the far left looked to the others as a whole. The center most head moved back from Lynn. It's own teeth beginning to show.
The second she heard Garrett's words regarding the Hydra and Tali and Lynn's efforts to deal with, she immediately sent him a death stare. She knew very well that talking to him was useless so instead, she was sure to send him the message that if he did anything to disrupt both girls and put Lynn in danger, she wouldn't hesitate in doing something harsh.
Thankfully, she didn't seem to be the only one shocked with Garrett's words and attitude, as Aeden immediately voiced his dissatisfaction with what happened. As he started to position himself though, Nailah sent the same piercing stare to him, thinking he was about to do something that would threaten to break the Hydra's attention, but when she realized he only positioned himself in case something wrong happened, she nodded towards him, thanking him.
As Lynn moved closer to the Hydra, Nailah quietly walked together, always standing far enough so the Hydra wouldn't immediately see her as a threat but close enough to dash for Lynn in case something happened. Everything seemed to be going quite well. Even though only one of it's heads was reacting to Lynn's song and Tali's music, it was reacting favorably until now.
Unfortunately, the second she approached the Hydra to touch her, the other heads finally reacted to her movements, emerging from the water with their teeth bared. Nailah didn't even waited for them to hiss as she dashed towards Lynn. Apparently, Lynn and Tali's music wasn't strong enough to charm all tree heads of the Hydra.
Approaching Lynn in the blink of an eye, Nailah held Lynn in her arms, dashing away from the hydra towards anywhere that could give them some cover. The second the Hydra saw Nailah approaching, it was highly probable that it would attack, so she had to focus on taking Lynn away from danger first.
Garrett's face was filled with utter disgust as his eyes moved down to emulate a situation where he was looking at one of the most fetid insects laid on the ground before him. He tugged his arm away from Dremmick's grasp as soon as he finished with his demeaning spiel.
"Do. Not. Touch me. I am making preparation for the worst case scenario as should you."
Garrett tried to hide a smirk as his ears twitched at the sound of the hostile utterances of the territorial hydra. His face was splayed with an incomprehensible emotion, however, it is recognized as a twist of disgust, sourness, and the clash of polar negative emotions and those emotions that displayed a conscious satisfaction. A catapult was in hindsight the better option, anyway. He prepared himself for an incoming fight, and at a moment, the form-fitting blood-forging on his body slid onto his right arm, with a sight which can only be explained as blackened, reddish corrupted spikes and plate taking over, although the only corruption were the radically liberating thoughts in his head. It seemed he was creating a weapon to use against the beast at the moment.
“Tsk….” Aste frowned at the sight of the other hydra heads, whom don’t look so friendly. The whole charade didn’t go so well as it planned. The other heads are a bother again. She drew on her magic, ready to cast the spell of Heavenly Flare at any moment. There isn’t no choice but to kill the Hydra. Wait, the other heads? Teetering the focus of her magic towards the less obedient head, Aste sent for a bright lod of magic blast that made the noon seem like the day. Long and clear shadows flickered from the brightness of her Heavenly Flare.
The first attack rang out. The wet scales of the hydra steamed at the touch of fire. It cried as it was blinded by the light. The other heads of the Hydra roared in confusion to the brightness. A young Hydra not yet aware of the power of a descendant. Perhaps it was used to weaker foes. Still. It was determined to fight back. The third head unharmed by the fire and furthest from its light unleashed a cloud of sprayed water. The head on fire shook in pain before the waters would cover it and those near the Hydra.
Garrett, finishing the conjuration of what seems to be a spear with two branching blades protruding from the sides of the original, piercing tip that makes a spear, a spear. Its rough exterior would have to do for now, a real fine craft takes time, but this was a fight that Garrett would like it to be in in order to get uncomplained rest later. His indescribable facial expression smoothened to just a smile. He called to those willing to fight the beast. -9 Soul = 26
"Come now. Keep its sensory organs obfuscated, covered, and cripples, and aim for the heart cluster. Hydras rely on their multilayered senses. Lets not give it the satisfaction of a fair goliathian fight!"
Garrett strode forth toward the Hydra with his spear aimed for it, particularly towards its chest. This battle needed to be a decisive victory before it even started. The less they use their powers, the better in the long run.
Aeden and Garrett were on the same page here as Aeden had conjured a Blessed Spear -7 Soul = 33 and began his own charge for the beast's heart. He had considered the use of his sword briefly as to conserve energy, however, he needed to maximize the effectiveness of his reach. He was impressed at the effectiveness of Aste's spell, and he did not want to let her efforts go to waste.
Nyph hid in embarrassment and disgrace from his earlier voyeurism. He didn't know why he did it, only that he could not help it. He could hear the battle going starting off not too far away, but even so his usefulness was incredibly limited and he certainly could not fight something that large.
Dremmick's eyes cut from the Hydra to Garret for a brief moment, "What you were being was a damn fool. If you have a problem with me correcting it, maybe later you can do something about it."
When the monster turned hostile Dremmick cursed under his breath. He should have known that the hydra would be to much for the lassa to charm, rather, he did know, but hoped that she could. This was bad, if he were to fight, he would need a quick boost. WHile he didn't want to use the pure blood so soon, it seemed he had little choice. He reached in his satchel, his trained hands knowing where each and every item was secured, and pulled out the pure blood, downing half of it. He spit what little remnants remained in his mouth out in attempt to lessen the lingering taste, the taste or the notion overall unpleasant to him, he was never really sure which. He would then prepare a paralysis blood ritual, much like what he did with the basilisks before, using some of the pure blood on some paper to make two seals. He looked around for one of the faster members of the party, and remembering how elusive she was before, he knew just to to call when he spotted her bringing the lassa away from the front lines. "Nailah! Get these blood seals on the Hydra as soon as possible, if I can keep it still, we will have a clean shot to its heart!"
Once everyone was moving it, he saw it fit to do so himself, taking advantage of the monster's confusion and blindness to move in as well. After moving to het the blood seals to Nailah, he would try to get to the crystal wall Itzel made and prepare the rest of the ritual.
Allard, when seeing Garrett and Aeden prepare themselves to engage, prepared to charge in as well, drawing his heavy blade. He heard Dremmick shout something about paralyzing the monster, which would open up a chance to strike. Allard wasn't sure how long that window would be, but they would need to make the most of it. Allard prepared himself by speaking the old shadow skill incitation, pushing it as far as he could currently take it, making himself four times stronger than he normally was. "Alright then!" he said with a wide grin, "We will make this quick and decisive!" He then readied himself at their mark.
Lynn was noticeably upset by not being able to siren the large monster once again, though it was more so the fact that she felt she had failed her team twice now with this, and now they had to risk themselves once again. "I'm sorry..., I couldn't do it...," When the others started to engage the monster, Lynn took a deep breath and shook her head, trying to push away the guilt she felt. She needed to concentrate in case anyone got hurt.
It was then that they could hear Dremmick calling to Nailah, and Lynn looked to him and then her.
Her staff came to her and she hopped onto it, though still stayed fairly low. "I'll try to be safe here, you should go, I'll be watching out for you. Oh! but first, drink this, it should help." Lynn summoned some water from the rune in the jar kept behind her on her belt. She concentrated on it, weaving magic into it as it turned a green color for a speed enchantment. "With this, you will be able to move much faster than normal, now go, they need you," se finished as she moved the water bubble to Nailah.
--
Shye was close as well, looking for an opening to move in, and upon hearing What Dremmick had planned, and hearing his call to Nailah, she thought she could offer her help as well. She met with them as fast as she could, "Please, allow me to help, two may be better than one after all, right?" she ended with a slight smile to Nailah and Lynn.
Tali's song ended as soon as the hydra became hostile. She hopped over the rock and sprinted upbehind Lynn as she got on her staff. "Lynn, sweetie, move back a bit. I would be shattered if you got hurt. Now, where were we? Ah yes, going for the heart." She put the ocarina to her lips and began to play a dirge for the hydra, each note laced with entropic energy. It would eat away at the creature's body to slow and weaken it. Once the spell was cast, she immediately transitioned into her battle song, two archers and three hoplites made of pure force appearing around her and readying their weapons. (-10 soul for 5 attacks, -? for entropic dirge)
Itzel listened to the intended target and took flight with a harsh flap of her wings. She rose high into the air before using her magic to accelerate her even faster in the dive. She aimed for the heart with her tail spike while keeping to the side to prevent friendly fire. In her dive, she summoned crystal molded onto the end of her tail to both protect it and penetrate better. (-1 Soul for making tail weapon)
A shiver ran down Mason's spine as the hydra reappeared from the depths. The thing inside him; the presence Dremmick warned him about... It wanted to feed on the soul of this powerful creature. "Don't worry, you'll get your fill." he whispered to himself as he drew both of his swords. Since Dremmick drove the hydra off previously with a lightning spell, Mason knew what he needed to do.
Arcs of electricity crackled as he channeled power from within himself into the chaos blade, and gauntlet reserves into the stone blade-- he was going to hit this thing with everything he had. Running over to Allard, his body beginning to shudder, he positioned himself in front of the giant. "Allard, throw me at it so I can make an opening for Nailah! Opposite side of Itzel!"
The very moment Nailah took Lynn away from the hydra, Aste quickly sent the first attack, hopefully being able to distract the Hydra. Nailah hoped her light attack would be able to take the Hydra's attention off her and Lynn for at least a moment in order for them to get somewhere a bit safer that wasn't in range of the Hydra's attacks.
Luckily, it seemed that Aste's attack had the exact effect she was hoping it to have, blinding and burning the Hydra. As two of it's heads roared in confusion while the last one sprayed water around it, Nailah used that chance to take Lynn behind cover.
"Don't blame yourself, Lynn..." Nailah said with a kind smile as she heard the lassa girl lamenting and apologizing that she wasn't able to calm down the Hydra.
"Nothing in life will go always as planned. You did your best and that's what matters. Plus, I don't think that saying that you 'couldn't do it' is the correct phrase to use..." Nailah continued.
"You couldn't do it... yet, right?" Nailah said, gently booping Lynn's nose with a playful expression.
"Thanks for the help, I'll make good use of it. Just remember to stay away from the Hydra's attack range, ok?" Nailah said as she drank the enchanted water bubble given to her by Lynn.
It didn't seem to be that much different from normal water at first, but after a few seconds, Nailah began feeling a strange power within her after she drank the water. It was not just a sensation, her body was indeed much lighter and it was noticeably easier to move herself. In fact, she would have to remember to control herself. Since she was already incredibly fast, Lynn's enhancement made her so fast that it was possible Nailah could lose control if she wasn't careful.
As she heard Dremmick's words, she nodded, dashing towards him and getting the blood seals. According to his words, he wanted her to stick the seals at the hydra for some kind of spell. With the added speed from Lynn's enchanted water and her own skills, it should be incredibly easy for her to do so. She just had to get close enough to the hydra and put the seal on it's body.
Hearing Shye's voice, Nailah looked around until her eyes met with the woman's. Splitting the seals Allard gave to her with Shye, Nailah prepared herself to do her part.
"We just have to put these on the Hydra, just like Dremmick said." Nailah said, nodding to Shye before she herself dashed towards the Hydra.
Using her enhanced speed and her abilities, she used both the bodies of the other members of the group and the many attacks being used in order to disappear from sight (-5 Soul). Due to Lynn's enchanted water, she took but the blink of an eye to get nearby the Hydra before trying to put the seal on it and run away before it had the chance to attack her.
With the fire out and water vapor spreading across the shore line the Hydras were now furious and on the attack. Itzel was the first to reach the Hydra, impaling the center Hydra's side. Its scales were tough. It would take more than a reckless strike to pierce deep into its hide. With water now covering its body it was also hard to hold onto. Itzel would have to fly off or fall, when she did however the head on the far right was ready to bite her and snatch her out of the air. With a cobra like strike Itzel would need luck to avoid it.
The others approaching the Hydra would find the vapor of water making the atmosphere more fogged and a bit harder to see in some areas. Like clouds touching down. The air was unfortunately still. Nailah made her way to the Hydra from a safe distance. Fortunately she was fast. Fast enough to get close to the shore line where its three necks laid against. Whatever her choice was the furthest left head noticed her. It would unleash a spell of its own. Its jaws opened releasing a rush of water. It fell before it and splashed against the ground. Within the water were masses of skeletons from its previous meals. The bones began to move then form. Rising as a large skeletal creature. Similar to a fish and a serpent as it slid across the ground under the Hydra to go for Nailah as she was finishing the first paper placement. Its fangs made of bones would sink into her if able to catch her.
Shye rushed forward, sing her fire to help propel her, but whatever Lynn gave Nailah made her incredibly fast. She helt the piece of paper in her mouth as she cut out the fire in her hands, approaching. Then, all the sudden, two Shyes wer moving towards the monster, one with the paper in her mouth, still boosting her speed, and the other towards Nailah, a charged blast in both hands. She leapt forward, to meet the skeletal monster heading towards the draconic tyro. "Look out!" she called before landing between Nailah and the skeleton abomination. She directed both hands out to it s hit got close and detonated scattering the bones about harmlessly.
The doppelganger Shye, moved out to the hydra to place the paper, using a quick burst of flame to get her close, place the paper on contact, and disappear. (-24 stamina, -6 soul)
--
Once both papers were in place, Dremmick would activate the paralysis on the monster. "Lynn! When it is paralyzed, move the water out of the way for an opening! Everyone else, finish this bastard off!" he called out. (-5 soul, -3 stamina)
--
Allard would laugh heartily as he picked up Mason, "I believe they beat ya to it! But worry not, I believe you can still get a good hit in!"
--
Lynn noded her head to Dremmick, and once seeing if the monster was stunned, would move in to remove the water from around the hydra, ready to fly off at a moments notice if something went wrong, shw would bolt. Once the opening was made, Allard would launch Mason out to the monster, he would take his time catching up, noticing that Garrett and Aeden were preparing attacks as well. Once theirs was complete he would move in to try to give the finishing blow if it hasn't been dealt already. (-20 stamina for activating his shadow skill earlier)
Seeing a new target, Tali immediately directed her group to strike at various places along the skeletal creature, focusing their force strikes upon important looking joints and bones seeming to support its motion. She spent her next song summoning only a single berserker, using it sparingly to conserve her energy. Her eyes followed the battlefield as she stepped back a bit, her lips never leaving the ocarina. She worried that this hydra had too much power to be dealt with reasonably by their group, despite its youth.
Itzl, meanwhile, struck true and dealt some damage, but a head decided to strike at her. She expected this type of behavior and almost smirked as she conjured magic enhanced crystal within the gaping mouth of the hydra, enhancing it so the strike would cause a burst of shrapnel in the mouth. That would give her ample time to escape and fly back to prepare for another strike. Her retreat, much like her strike, was calculated with a seasoned warrior's eyes. Rainbow lights danced along the hydra scales, leaving an oddly beautiful sight among the carnage she was attempting to inflict upon it.
Despite Nailah's speed, the third head somehow noticed her trying to get closer to it. The second the third head looked at Nailah, she immediately prepared herself to dodge it's water attack, but what the Hydra did next really surprised her. Releasing a splash of water of it's mouth, the second it impacted on the ground, masses of skeletons appeared from within. The second they started to move and rose as a large mass of bones, Nailah knew what it was...
"What? Necromancy?!" Nailah said, surprised as the serpent-like mass of skeletons slid towards her.
Without time to put the other paper seals, Nailah finished putting the first one and then dodged it's attack. If it caught her, it's fangs would do a serious damage on her that would certainly hinder her fighting capabilities.
"I saw it! But Necromancy?? Why does it know how to use Necromancy?" she shouted. The hydra itself was already annoying to deal with, but now it was much, much more.
"I can't get close enough to do anything with this skeleton thing after me!" she said once more as she continued to dodge the undead creature's attacks just as Shye came to strike the monster.(edited)
With a successful blow Shye sent the mass of skeletal shrapnel flying around. Within the confusion the Hydra that chewed and tossed away Itzel's crystal shell was furious. The middle head kept its eyes on Itzel and unleashed concentrated stream of high water pressure. It was strong enough to carve stone. It shot it after raising its neck up high to get a good angle over the other two heads.
The left head that unleashed the skeleton watched the two Tyro blooded women and one of their explosions reminded it of the fire it was hit with earlier. It shouted a roar. This roar was somewhat visible. If Shye or Nailah were hit by the wave it would cause a crippling fear. A fear such as a lamb before a lion.
The farthest right head noticed Mason coming toward it and prepared to bite him and devour him in one go.
Two heads were stamped with the blood seals. After activation the two affected heads would feel a pulse. A divine spell coursing through its chaotic body. It was enough to make the two heads on the far left and right to fall down, laying on the shore line. However the middle hydra head seemed unaffected. Still awake and observing any who got close.
As Mason was launched at the hydra, he saw the head furthest to the right coming straight for him! Using his wings, the young Aion warrior angled himself to try and strike the corner of its mouth and dodge its attack. Upon contact, his two blades would explode with electrical energy [-25 soul -15 Stamina]!
The final hydra head was struck by the lightning within Masons blades. As before it did not enjoy the electrical charge coursing through its body. Though the paralysis only affected two, the electricity was a bane to it's very existence. Or so it seemed. As it roared in pain before collapsing like the two other heads. Laying onto the shoreline, smoke streaming from its jaws.
Algimar stood by but was astonished by the coordinated efforts of everyone. He looked to the group after the Hydras final head hit the ground. No longer entirely submerged in water the Lassa girl worked to remove the water around it. Algimar was more concerned with getting across the river. He moved to the raft. Passing the seraphim and Garrett while doing so. "We'd best get moving while we can." He softly spoke this to Garrett while he passed. He then went to the end of the wood and began to push it. A shadow clone pushing with him. It was no longer a mystery that a Nayu could do this. None here seemed surprised by each others abilities. Algimar landed on the raft now touching water. A bit more weight and it would tip into the river.
Dremmick relaxed a bit while upholding his spell, glad that something seemed to finally work. He looked to Garrett, "Now would be a good time to finish this thing off. If I leave this spot the other two heads will be released," he said as he stood on a similar looking but larger blood seal similar to the ones placed on the hydra. "Afterwards, getting a good haul of scales would be a good idea before we cross, it should only take a moment and can provide decent armor and money for travel."
Allard made sure Nailah and Shye were alright, "You too still in one piece, eh?" he laughed heartily, "beautiful work." He sheathed his blade and grabbed the monster by the center neck and started to drag it out of the water, allowing Lynn to release her hold and return to Nailah's side.
"That was amazing, Nailah! I had no idea you would be able to go that fast! I could barely see you, at one point I couldn't at all!" She hopped off her staff gave Nailah a hug, "I'm glad you are safe though. C'mon, Algimar is preparing the raft! I will try to make sure crossing goes as smoothly as possible."
"It's finally over... It's a shame that Lynn's song didn't worked though. Still, glad everything ended without anyone getting hurt." Nailah said after the Hydra was finally put down by Dremmick's seals and Mason's lightning.
"These scales should be pretty useful for maybe making equipment if we happen to meet a good artisan. They should fetch quite a high price on the market as well if you guys decide to sell them." Nailah mentioned as she heard Dremmick saying that it would be a good idea to get some of it's scales.
"Thanks. Lynn's enchanted water did wonders too. But I'm glad I was able to help even if just a little bit." Nailah said, with a kind smile as Allard approached her and Shye to praise them for their work.
"It was all thanks to you, you know?" Nailah said, with a giggle, hugging Lynn back as she hopped off her staff to hug her, excited about how fast she was.
"I was a bit surprised when the Hydra used necromancy but I'm safe. Wasn't hit by any of it's attacks." Nailah said, confirming that she wasn't hurt as she followed Lynn towards the raft to help getting it across the river.
As Allard gripped onto the Hydras main head and pulled he would notice the stretching of the neck allowed to see its breathing easier. Indicating it indeed was still alive. As he pulled further, inching it out, a bulge appeared in all three of their throats. It ran up to the Hydras head. The Hydras mouths were slightly lifted open. Emerging from their jaws were bones in the form of giant skeletal fish. With sharp jaws of their own. The one closest to Allard snapped at him from the sides. The others moved towards Allard to do the same. They were nearly as large as the Hydras head, taller than Allard even by a few feet. They moved along the ground rather slowly however.
Garrett jams the tip of his spear into the beast's front torso below the necks at a downward angle up to the point that the horizontal blades would also dig into the flesh past the scales of the Hydra.
Soon after contact was made, Garrett would begin to drain the blood of the large beast from the freshly made hole, an orb of the gathered blood hovering beside Garrett's head, compressing as more of the ichor flowed from the wound.
The beast was most likely thrown out of its home due to pressures and side-effects of the strife on the Edafos, and was most likely scared from the fact it was farther away from the safety of its original home than it would like. That didn't matter. It was in the way. Time was of the essence, and Garrett began slamming force against his fresh spear against the beast in an attempt to puncture straight through and ruin the beast's steeled intentions.
As Garrett began to spear the Hydras center, where all heads connected, he would find its thick hide harder to pierce than the beasts that roamed the lands. While he was digging in as far as the heart one of the skeletal jaws turned and went for Garrett. Its jaws snapping rapidly before even crawling to him with a hurried unnaturally swift pace. Launching itself at him from above for a all or nothing attack.
Dremmick cursed as he saw the skeletons come out of the hydras mouth. Holding his position to keep the blood seals active, he drew his conjuration staff. His eyes and right arm started to glow with ethereal power as he activated his necromancy magic, "Heed my command, and do as I demand! Slake your bloody thirst, on the first!" Bolstered by the power of the conjuration staff, Dremmick took ahold of the three skeletal beings to turn them against the hydra.
Allard, who was at first concerned with the skeleton's took the chance Dremmick gave him to finally put an end to this. He dropped the neck he was pulling on and drew his heavy blade, wielding it in both hands. "Doesn't seem over yet, but it is time this ended," Allard said to Nailah before turning back to the task at hand. "You fought valiantly," he said to the hydra. Allard then turned to the center of the monster. On most creatures, the heart was at the center, not far from the base of the neck. even if the strike he planned to make missed, a wound like this would probably be close enough to the heart to be fatal, if not, well... he would just have to get a bit messier. With his four fold amplification still active across his whole body, Allard checked his surroundings in case the skeletons were still approaching, he would handle them if necessary, but if he was able, he would bolt for the torso. He would bring his blade down in a heavy over head arching swing to the monster's body, putting all he had to assure a clean a deep slice into and through the monster for the full length of the blade, If that wasn't deep enough, his wings would push the wound open as he would slice deeper in still. The heart was his target, if found, he would surely strike it down, however, even if not, its body being split in two may still seal its fate.
The Hydra's main body was struck from multiple angles but the final blow seemed to come from Allard's blade. Going through its back and with his amplified strength he tore through its hide. Its blood flowed everywhere. Nearly covering those around it. Its body stopped moving... But not before the center head roared in its final dying breathe. A curse.
Victory
Algimar was already nearly ready to move along on the boat. He watched as they finished it off with a brief glance. The others were on their way and with Lynn's help they could make the waters calm enough to passthrough. Or so he hoped. He then had no choice but to look at the battle as the Hydra let out its final cry. No doubt they planned to harvest the creature's essence. The sky above began to grow dark and cloudy. Even as the sun was soon fading. A wind began to grow. He sat on the raft with his legs now crossed. Closing his eyes he waited in preparation for what may come next.
"Alright, do what you need to... Mason whispered to the presence inside him as he landed next to Allard. Cautiously, he stepped forward, reaching his arm deep into the hydra's wound. In an instant, Mason felt himself almost instinctually grasp something tightly, as pale white energy began to travel up his arm, and into the core of his being. Any wounds he had sustained during the battle rapidly began to close, as an unsettlingly pleasant sensation took hold within the boy. Once he'd taken as much as he could, Mason withdrew himself to help preparations to cross the river.
Garrett's spear never left the beast until it reached its core. The second the spear touched its objective, Garrett hesitated for a moment, thinking over his choices as to what to do with his goal. A mental battle with himself occurred, but eventually a decision was made.
Garrett jammed his spear a little further into the recently deceased beast, lodging his spear into the heart cluster enough to yank it out of its corpse in one fell pull. Something was off to anyone that wasn't him, it seemed like the cluster itself was being visibly digested by the blood-forged spear itself, not touching Garrett at all beside the contact of his grip of the spear. The size of the cluster dwindled until entirely disappearing aside from a constant, pulsing core of its own at the base of the bladed outcrop of the spear. Something was different to the spear. He realized he was surrounded by people.
"If I, a living creature can't handle a drastic jump in power without going mad, then an inanimate object won't react so poorly to it."
That was enough explanation. Garrett joined Algimar on the raft.
"Do what you must with the corpse now, but do it quick, we must be moving."
The group now having defeated the Hydra that plagued their progress across the river now gathered their things to move on. However a few remained behind. Deciding that the journey ahead was too perilous to continue on. Their allegiance to the new budding alliance ending here. Now onwards beyond Gaia's boarders and to Fotia. Where the Wyvern territory awaited to test them even further. Algimar remained seated despite the rocking of the raft. He wished the water user could help calm the river. Though that was impossible. They had no choice but to hope to reach the other edge without falling too far down stream. Even more dangerous than the Hydra was the drop from the rivers edge. The very edge of the continent.
