tex

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Ross smiled and summoned his sword in an instant. "That's more like it," He grunted, slamming his blade against the ground lightly enough that it wouldn't shatter the white tiles. "This entire tournament has been a joke so far! I'm hoping you can give me a little more to work with! By Gaia, I've been itchin' for a fight worth my skills for a while now!"

"Fight!" The announcer shouted, prompting the crowd to shout in unison. Ross rose his blade with one hand and aimed it at Jenso.

"So, fire manipulation, Ki control, what else do ya got?" Ross asked curiously, waggling his blade ever so slightly. "You gotta have way more than what you've shown. Don't insult me by holdin' it back until the last second!"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

~ Chapter 54 ~

_{Jenso V.S. Ross, All Is... Well?}

Ross stepped into the ring, looking awfully confused by the turnout, but excited for the upcoming match as well. He awaited Jenso's approach eagerly. Mikey tapped his shoulder, and a man in a white robe ran over, moments before the fight started. "Good luck."

The robed man grabbed Jenso's arm forcefully, and in a flash of white light, his injury was gone. Afterwards, the man slumped away, completely drained. The priests used quite a bit of energy when healing others, but that's why Feralda had so many of them!

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"Haha, Charles would never kill anyone," Mikey commented, patting Charles on the back as he walked by. He had picked up his daggers, but that didn't make him feel any better. "Looks like you're up against Ross Next. But I don't see my opponent yet..."

It was definitely strange. So many people were forfeiting, but usually, there weren't so many powerful entries at a time! Although Feralda was a magical city, they rarely had people like Jenso, Ross, and Rajaka on site. What was going on? The announcer looked at her clipboard curiously and sighed.

"Jenso, Ross, please report to the ring. Mikey's opponent has also dropped out."

---

~ End Of Chapter 53~

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Charles moved back to try and dodge in the last moment and counter with a decisive blow, but his choice was faulty, and in one chain of movements, Charles was immobilized, pinned to the ground, and completely unable to move. He struggled, but after a few moments, he gave up.

"You're strong like Mikey, I can't take that on," Charles muttered angrily, dropping his dagger, "I forfeit!"

The announcer heard the call and yelled out in agreement. "Charles forfeits this spectacular match! The winner is Jenso!!" She howled. The crowd went wild, thoroughly excited by the sudden change of pace. Finally, a match that wasn't boring! Mikey smirked and watched as Jenso and Charles were finishing their fight. He waited for Jenso to return with Charles, but before they could even leave, the announcer received a note from a man behind her. "Attention, attention please! It seems that Molly has dropped out of the rankings, moving Ross onto the next round!" Mikey wasn't surprised that the weaker group of entries was dropping out, but with so few strong fighters now in the tournament, it was a little less interesting. He looked forward to a chance at Jenso, though. That was going to be exciting.

"Hey, Jenso!" Mikey called out, waving to him, "Nice fight!"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Charles watched as his weapon flew off the stage and ran towards it. 'I'm just fast enough..!' But as he reached out, he became visible again, and felt heat burn his left hand. Without thinking, he tossed the dagger further away, letting it land outside of the arena. But now he was visible, and wide open.

Scattered Shades: Arcadia Chronicles

---

Diver's Paradise, Eastern Entrance

@Jensoman@LokiLeo789

---

Luke grunted at Jenso's commentary, and glared at Len. "I appreciate what ya did Jenso, but you're meddlin' in affairs ya don't understand. Besides, nothin's for sure yet. But while I'm here, I may as well satisfy a curiosity o' mine," Luke suddenly stepped towards Len and sized him up with a quick once over. Although Luke was big, he didn't quite match up to the titanic Len. Looking up to people wasn't uncommon, as Luke wasn't actually that tall, but it never bothered him. Muscles were muscles, after all, and Luke had strength where it counted! "Len! I figured you were a buddy o' Jenso, but I 'aint so sure about that no more. Still, I guess there's no harm in it- whattaya make of all this chaos? You lookin' forward to a war? Ya think there's any reasonin' with that dirt bag Duvell after what he's done? Or, is uprooting his corrupt little ass from the CMAS counsel lookin' to be a really attractive option to ya?" Luke inquired, tilting his head along with his statements. Luke turned back and glanced at Jenso momentarily before returning his focus to Len. Brian shuddered at the thought of hearing Len's own take on the prospect of war. The man seemed awfully stoic for one so curious. It bothered him to no end. But despite his demeanor, the hulking bronzed warrior didn't seem to harbor any evil intent. Luke waited patiently for a response from Len, whatever it may have been.

Truth be told, Luke himself wasn't keen on the idea of going to war with the CMAS just to take Sydney down, but with so few options, and the diver's way of life on the line, what else could he do? His preparations were well under way, at any rate. All Luke had to do was give the word when everything was in place, and a war could be set into motion.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Charles knew when to bail, and that he did, slipping his left hand out of Jenso's grip, and letting go of his other dagger as Jenso tried to grab him. He then rolled to pick up the dagger that he dropped, and as soon as his hand touched it, he turned invisible again. Now he had to think carefully. Although he could wield his dagger, Charles' left hand was bruised pretty badly, and just from a grab. 'Shit, that guy's just like Mikey' Charles thought, looking Jenso over again. 'I can't risk getting caught again, or I won't be able to fight' Charles swapped the dagger to his right hand while invisible and approached very slowly, waiting for an opening to retrieve his other Dagger. 'I'll just have to use that again, won't I'

Mikey watched in amazement, whistling. "Mighty fine reaction time, eh?" He said to James, who positioned himself behind him. "You dropped out too, huh?"

"He took out last years champion with one move," James whispered, "You know I'm weaker than you two. I wouldn't stand a chance."

"Whatever. Charles is in a pretty tough spot, huh? He lost his Light Speed and just wasted the cool down on his invisibility. If Jenso catches on, there's no way he'll lose."

"Maybe.." James muttered as he watched closely.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Jenso's grip was strong enough to make Charles drop his left dagger, but he still had his right dagger, and with a sudden burst of speed, almost inhuman, Charles rammed his second weapon into Jenso's arm. It was faster than anything that Jenso had seen before, but it definitely wasn't just Charles' natural speed. There was something about that move that was similar to his invisibility.

Scattered Shades: Arcadia Chronicles

---

Hyznia, CMAS HQ

@RyuShura

---

Zack cringed as Pincy grew nearer, and stepped away from the wall. "I'm not that kind of shifter. I can shift parts of my body's mass into energy for periods of time- Lets me evade practically anything and slip around without making a sound," Zack briefly explained. He was awfully compliant despite his defiant composure. Perhaps the CMAS had threatened him with something a little more vicious than simply stealing his supplies. Stephanie looked up at Pincy and nodded.

"I could likely put together anything that seems plausible, if I had the right parts," She quipped, glaring at Sarah. Miss Eridal huffed and crossed her arms. "What did they threaten you with?" She asked abruptly. Sarah stepped forward and leaned towards Stephanie aggressively.

"No need for such questions, at present time, Stephanie," Sarah urged.

---

Illon, Reginald's Quarters

@13org

---

"Curious," Pride hissed, ducking low to the ground to examine the carpet closely. She moved quickly, like an insect, towards the window and inspected the nick with due diligence. Jaymee thought it over intently, listening closely to Lust as she did so. A sword, or a dagger, something sharp. Or magic? Metal boots? No, it was too small, and precise. Jaymee paused in thought and turned back to Kasumi with a curt nod. "Not magic, Ki. A curious, curious Ki, unlike any I've felt before. It seems almost inhuman, beyond my understanding, that much is certain. It reeks of death, but these markings, and the window- Something moved through here, still dying. I suspect necromancy is at play, but such magic has been lost to even the most resolute Arcadia scholars. Forbidden magic, Illon is not a stranger to such, but it still seems peculiar. At any rate-" Jaymee stopped and opened the window, pointing down towards the marshes that separated Illon's keep from the slums to the west. "-Our culprit is through here. Does it not seem strange, Kasumi? Traveling through the Snapper flooded swampland is not something done so easily, and there is no sign of struggle. How does one silently traverse the dangers of the swampland, and sneak upon an Archmage with so little resistance?"

---

Diver's Paradise, Western Entrance

@rekaigan

---

Oswyn was definitely good at getting on Kevin's nerves. The large man shook his head and began walking off, towards one of the ramps that lead towards the lower portion of the paradise. "When this kind of shit's happening, and the CMAS are knocking on our door, it may be time for Divers to start rememberin' one another," Kevin groaned, speaking not only to Oswyn, but himself. With that, he was headed off to catch himself a drink. The chaos that'd been flung about recently could weigh heavily on even the most powerful Divers. Soon, the gathering around Oswyn began to completely disperse as well. Aside from the line of corpses that hugged the western entrance's ledge, he was all on his own. What of these orb-wielding maniacs and the CMAS, though? Just who were the real enemies? With so much being kept in the dark by Luke on his advisers, along with the sheer mystery that encompassed No-Man's-Land, there was simply no telling what any of it meant.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Charles spotted Jenso's shadow dashing forward, but he was faster than expected. With a quick pivot though, he narrowly avoided Jenso's kick by stepping back. He then arced his right hand towards Jenso's back with the Dagger ready to strike.